Lithium

Lithium play The Marlborough Arms on Sunday 1 November, with the music running from 19:00 to 22:00. They're a four-piece band, and they'll be the only act on the bill that night, so they've got the full three hours to work through.

What they do is a mix of old and modern rock, indie and ska, and they describe Britpop and ska tunes as being at the core of a set aimed at something everyone can enjoy. That's a fair bit of ground to cover in one evening, and the two styles they put at the centre don't usually sit in the same room: Britpop for the guitar-driven, melodic side of the nineties, and ska for the upbeat, off-beat rhythms. Between those, they pull in rock and indie from both ends of the timeline, so the set moves between eras rather than sticking to one particular decade.

As a four-piece, they've got the numbers to handle it, too. The ska side of things usually needs a bit more lift than a standard indie set, and having four of them on stage gives them the room to shift from the guitar-led Britpop stuff to the more rhythmic ska tunes without it feeling like a sudden jump. It's a broad enough mix that you'll likely recognise a good chunk of what they're playing, even if you don't know the bands by name.

If you're heading down, The Marlborough Arms is at 43 Spencer Street, NR3 4PB, and the music runs from 19:00 to 22:00 on Sunday 1 November.