Blink

THE beer companies are really jumping on the rock `n' roll bandwagon of late, eager to be associated with the indie scene, and freely giving their sponsorship to anyone with a guitar. Murphy's are the underwriters of "Live Mix `96", a concentrated series of gigs in pubs and venues around the Temple Bar area, which had its official opening at Eamonn Doran's last week.

One of the benefits of having a high profile brewery as your sponsor besides the prospect of a few free pints is that they have the resources to put on a large number of bands over a single weekend without charging the punters an admission fee.

Dublin band Blink had the honour of kick starting this year's Live Mix, and they cranked it up straight away with the frenetic, whirlwind rhythms of Is God Really Groovy? From there it was a nonstop flutter of beats, as the band went through the now familiar moves from their 1994 debut album, A Map Of The Universe.

Some new songs were rolled out, including one with the somewhat lengthy title, Baby You Broke My Heart But I Don't Hate You For It, but these seemed to underline Blink's mad dervish persona rather than expand on it. Back in safer territory, Cello remains their most recognisable and effortless tune, but

Love Me sounds like too much trouble, and is starting to lose its abject appeal. Blink need to keep their eyes open for a bit, so they can see where they're heading.