Manchild's dissolution has not necessarily meant that the members have gone their separate ways - several have stayed together and, augmented with new personnel, have come back as NeoTokyo, playing their first show at Cardiff's Barfly.

They flot on stage fashionably late, and proceed to play to an audience who have, in all honesty, largely come along for the Barfly's standard indie club night. Nonetheless, by the end of NeoTokyo's set swathes of the crowd are in no doubt that this is a vast improvement on dancing to the Charlatans for the nth time. NeoTokyo's sound is reassuringly familiar, with an urban sound that comfortably shifts from tricksy Timbaland beats (as evinced on Fearless) to pure pop-nous workouts such as First Time, where vocalist Hiro adds a zeitgeist-y Justin Timberlake backing to impressive rapping by K-Dub.

A live rhythm section adds a hint of organic feel to the proceedings, while carefully considered guitar lines add colour to each individual track (Latin flourishes ornament First Time, while on one of the heavier numbers 'Linkin Park!' is yelled out by one of the audience.

The overall feeling is that this is a band who are remarkably assured and comfortable with each other for a first gig with new members. Sure there are quibbles - there could be a little more diversity in vocal styles over the course of the set, and vocalist Hiro should NEVER consider wearing a Hannibal Lecter mask again, particularly as it obscures his voice - but for a brand new proposition, this is accomplished stuff. It will be intriguing to see how NeoTokyo will shape up with a bit more live experience under their belt, as they are 90% close to achieving their stated aims already.

AC, www.soundnation.net