“PONTYPOOL, you have one hell of a venue here.”

So says Laurie Vincent, one half of the English punk rock duo Slaves, who chose the town to host one of only four UK dates on their 'Acts of Fear and Love' album tour.

Before the gig on Monday night, vocalist and drummer Isaac Holman said that if it wasn't for venues like The Dragonffli “there is no chance we’d be where we are now”.

And despite becoming fixtures at larger venues and festival stages, it was clear that the boys from Tunbridge Wells enjoyed playing in front of 100 or so people such an intimate setting.

“Let's ******* have it,” snarled Holman, as his energetic drumming paved the way for the scorching opener, 'Sockets'.

The set was a mixture of old and new, with favourites 'Cheer Up London', 'Debbie' and '**** the High Hat' complimented by songs from the new album.

Lead single 'Cut and Run' saw fans invited on stage to copy dance moves performed in the music video, while songs like 'Chokehold', 'The Lives They Wish They Had' and 'Photo Opportunity' were welcomed.

Holman's preambles, particularly before songs like 'Debbie', have now become staples of their live shows with the crowd hanging onto every word.

At one point, the frontman even popped into the bar next door to grab a pint, while lamenting about how unpleasant it was to see girls fighting – a prelude to 'Girl Fight'.

Vincent was also allowed to roam amongst the crowd with his guitar, making occasional allusions to Pontypool's rich sporting history - “You used to have the best forwards!"

With the set winding down, the band still managed to keep the heaving crowd moving with big hitters 'Sugar Coated Bitter Truth' and 'The Hunter'.

A more than honourable mention must also go to the support act Pizzatramp, the 'three-chord' thrash punk trio from Caldicot.

Their funny and frenetic numbers about everything from hating Bono, clowns and CCTV, kept the crowd on their toes prior to the main event.

Niall Griffiths