Wolverhampton Little Civic: Little being the operative word here.

With the Civic Hall just 20 years away, it’s a city with a great reputation as a hot gigging spot. Tonight it’s up to the challenge of Fiction Plane to take the podium of the Little Civic’s little stage. Can a band with big music adjust?

If you don’t know Fiction Plane, then you should. A band very much their own in a British music scene where everyone seems to go the way of the indie crowd or the way of the Dodo. Their own brand of pop/rock alternative reminds you of British Rock ‘n roll bands like Reef that can easily fill a stadium, but instead they’re having to settle for a much smaller venue.

And if you didn’t know, front man Joe Sumner is the son of legendary artist, Sting.

As the band take the stage you can’t help but feel a disappointment for them. With as little as 40 people watching them tonight it’s amazing the lengths that the band go to put on a great show. You can tell that even with an audience this size they still enjoy it - particularly front man Joe who revels in his own music and takes as easily to the stage as his dad.

As they’re playing there’s a feeling of wow. I mean this guy is Sting’s son!  These guys belong somewhere much bigger. Their music fills the room, and then some. Starting off with Anyone, sounding like a U2 inspired stadium hit and the guitar fuelled Death Machine sounding like a Red Hot Chilli Peppers anthem.

The other great hitters of the night include It’s A Lie where Sumner shows off his talented vocals that surprisingly don’t sound too much like his fathers, and the acoustically and haunting Drink, giving a painful insight into an alcoholics world.

Each member seems right at home; Sumner could be playing in front of 40 people or 40,000 and it still looks like he wouldn’t be shaken, whilst jumping around with his bass with great enthusiasm and showing us that great vocals clearly run in the family.

Clearly every fan here seems to be a hardcore Fiction Plane fan. Signing along with each lyric and jumping to every beat as the band connect and pull out a show stopping performance. Hypnotic song interludes are where the band experiment with every instrument, showing us that they clearly are a rock band.

It’s just a shame that this is the kind of venue that Fiction Plane have the opportunity to showcase their music in, when it could be much more appreciated in a bigger venue for people to hear their music.

It really is a testament to a band that they can play in front of this many people and still give great service with a smile. They don’t care. They’re just happy to be here and play their music.