Billy Childish's former girlfriend, Tracey Emin, once derided his paintings as "stuck, stuck, stuck". The same criticism could be levelled at his musical career - save for the fact that being stuck rather seems to be the point. For more than 20 years Childish has fronted a string of interchangeable bands, all single-mindedly devoted to a raw, reductive brand of 1960s rhythm and blues.
The main difference between his current trio, The Buff Medways, and their predecessors Thee Headcoats is their stage costumes. Thee Headcoats sported deerstalkers, while The Buff Medways dress like the cast of O! What a Lovely War. Childish affects a particularly splendid moustache.
Childish has spent most of his career in obscurity, but the cyclical nature of rock guarantees him regular bursts of attention. Every decade a new guitar-fuelled movement comes along and proclaims Childish their mentor. In the 1990s it was grunge: he was hailed a hero by Mudhoney and Nirvana. Today it is the Hives and the White Stripes.
Understandably, Childish seems distrustful of his current brush with fame. "Jonathan Ross played this song today, but don't let that put you off," he snaps, introducing the current single, Troubled Mind. "When people like Jonathan Ross start playing your records, you know you're doing something wrong."
Indeed, Childish seems distrustful of the modern world. The Buff Medways eschew powerful amplification in favour of vintage equipment. Childish's vocals crackle tinnily through a distorted microphone, as if being broadcast on Radio Caroline. "Can you turn the flashing lights off?" he complains. "We don't like flashing lights."
His scope may be limited, but Childish is fantastically good at what he does. The Buff Medways are awesomely tight. Their music comes in jagged, thrilling bursts. The frantic drumming of Wolf Howard adds a distinct echo of The Who to Dawn Said and the surging, angsty Well Well. The only variation comes when Childish sings a couple of unaccompanied blues numbers. Nevertheless, the sheer force of the trio is undeniable.
When the vogue for garage rock evaporates, the spotlight is bound to shift away from Childish once more. In a decade's time it is liable to settle on him again. The chances of his musical approach altering in the interim seem small. For the time being at least, Childish provides an object lesson in the virtues of standing completely still.
