**ONES TO WATCH**

By Dave Rowswell

It's fair to say that we definitely aren't suffering from a lack of cool-looking London bands at the moment. Everyone and their hipster mother seem to be donning oversized 80s jumpers and 'ironic' NHS glasses and making equally cool music together, so what should the lover of leather jackets and a decent pair of dm's do to stand out from the hipster crowd.

Well the most obvious thing to do is just make music so ridiculously awesome that no one even notices what you look like. That's what London-based trio, Skinny Girl Diet, decided to do and it's a formula that works  pretty well for them. Taking advice from predecessors such as Hole, Babes in Toyland, Sonic Youth and Nirvana, Skinny Girl Diet make primal, no wave grunge that demand your attention.

Skinny Girl Diet are Delilah Holliday (vocals and guitar), Ursula Holliday (vocals and drums), and Amelia Cutler (bass). It would be easy to link the girls to the Riot Grrrl movement and its recent resurgence but the band take as much inspiration from bands like Dinosaur Jr and The Ramones as they do Bikini Kill and L7.

Their songs are like mini hallucinations; a departure from the real world to a murky underworld full of creatures from your dreams and your worst nightmares. 'Mermaid Veins' is a druggy, 90s lament that throws you headfirst into hallucinations about metamorphosis and rebirth like a musical interpretation of the works of Kafka. 'Eyes That Paralyze' is a no wave, punky song that hypnotises you into submission with its fuzzed out guitars and girlish, reverbed vocals and 'Sunburn' is a slow, woozy number that has the cryptic refrain "You're sunny but you're not warm."

Still in the infant stages of their band, Skinny Girl Diet have already accomplished a lot in their year together and will go on to do so much more. Rumour has it they are currently putting together an EP for release later this year and also playing various gigs in London. Skinny Girl Diet are a raw, visceral band that are becoming a vital part of the London gig scene. See them in their prime while you can.


For more information: skinnygirldietband.tumblr.com