Sheffield University

Being in the delectable main hall of Sheffield University is likestepping into the interior of some vast gas works. The place is all jutting pipes and strange angles of symmetry, the whole room being constructed in the shape of a something-agram (I lost count of the corners) with a kind of inverted trampoline thing pinned onto the roof.

It's a design to match the nature of the city, of course, yet this overtly industrial piece of architecture oddly glows with a warmth and cosiness. A setting, on the face of it, a trifle too smug for the expected impact of tonight's entertainment. There are a selection of film shorts and videos (even Cabs-own clips) running for 90 minutes or so before the arrival of the group.

A curious blurring action. It felt as if they'd already arrived before they actually had. Furthermore, there's an eerie switch from screen watching to people watching. Particularly as, in the case of the Cabs, you can only 'watch' fleeting details in a wider field of scattered vision.

To continue reading this article and to discover many more (over 140,000 words-worth!), purchase Mick Sinclair’s Adjusting the Stars: Music journalism from post-punk London.