When they were good, they were… not bad. And when they were bad, they were just very, very dull. The Rakes first made an impression at Manchester at 2004’s In The City industry shindig and attracted encouraging word-of-mouth reviews, and their video for Work, Work, Work (Pub, Sleep, Club) is high on MTV2’s NME chart. But this post-Strokes band’s problem is precisely that – the sound that made The Strokes so refreshing a few years ago can now be heard being played by every pub up and down the country. Their post punk sound is nothing new and, while their upbeat energy is obviously a good thing, my tapping foot was inspired more by impatience to leave than enjoyment. Not all is lost for these London wannabes, though. Their stand-out songs do indeed stand out and they clearly know how to work a crowd. But those songs only stand out because the rest of their set is so poor. The Rakes could go far, but currently they lack that sprinkling of magic dust which inspires you to love a band. Whether they are capable of making that step up, only time will tell. | 
