You know you're at an odd gig when one gentleman comments that "The last time they played here, they wore wizards' hats," while another seems genuinely disappointed that the stage line-up doesn't include a goblin. However, this is the unusual world of Gorky's, a proudly idiosyncratic bunch who are fighting the onset of mass-produced, pop music like a tiny shop of unusual treasures might resist the opening of a hypermarket.

Gorky's are probably the only band loved by the music press to have been going 15-odd years; guesses at their influences range from Robert Wyatt's Soft Machine to Brit punks Wire. They look like characters from The Hills Have Eyes, play unusual instruments and model the kind of haircuts that would be sniffed at in Battersea Dogs' Home. However, this ramshackle outfit have been given the gift of a songwriting talent many more famous names would kill for.

Those fabulous songs presumably explain why Gorky's were picked up by Mercury Records after years of independence, although - amid much protest - the label unceremoniously dumped them shortly afterwards. It's Mercury's loss - Gorky's sublime new album, Spanish Dance Troupe, on the unknown Mantra Records, conjures up the rare prospect of a fully-functioning, independent band with a sizable following. No doubt some are attracted by the current trendiness of all things Welsh, but Gorky's test the fashionable punter's resolve with between-songs pronouncements so unintelligible they make Super Furry Animals seem like Oxbridge professors.

Gorky's create a magical universe of songs as rolling as the hills, singer Euros Childs' gloriously whimsical vocals and unexpected freak-outs. As for the goblin, he never does arrive onstage. He's busy collecting coats by the door.

***** Unmissable **** Recommended *** Enjoyable ** Mediocre * Terrible