Another British invasion is under way, this time it’s good

For those into the British music scene, the Gomez back catalog and concert experience is a… For those into the British music scene, the Gomez back catalog and concert experience is a gold mine. As part of a 10-stop U.S. tour for its fifth album, Split the Difference, the band will appear tomorrow night at Mr. Small’s Theater.

The group met around 1997, while attending college, and attracted immediate record label attention with raw four-track demo tapes recorded in their living room, which showcased the band’s trademark mix of slacker blues, funk grooves and exquisitely gruff harmonies. After band members polished the demos in a recording studio, their debut album, Bring It On, went on to win the coveted English Mercury Music Award.

In the following seven years, Gomez honed its talent through extensive tours and the recording of five more albums and two EPs. The band has moved on from the acoustic flavors of Bring It On, reminiscent of the pop-folk tunes of Nick Drake and the late 1960s Woodstock generation — think Crosby, Stills and Nash. Although their original concoction of wispy ballads included memorable moments of fuzz bass and seemingly out-of-place static feedback comparable to early Flaming Lips recordings, their new sound has brought their more eclectic tastes to the forefront.

Brass horns, funk guitar and stomping hip-hop beats have been thrown into the mix, and the live shows encompass an impressive array of musicianship, with the five band members hopping around the stage to slap-bongo drums and samples of strange prerecorded electronica melodies.

The first time I saw Gomez was at the Glastonbury Music Festival in 1999, a muddy enclave in the rolling hills of Somerset, England, surrounded by ancient Druid sites and neighboring the famous cathedral holding King Arthur’s grave. The festival supports 200,000 people every year for three days of musical performances and weird theatrical performances, and Gomez embodies this tradition.

The sun was setting and the band was going through an epic version of their song “Tijuana Lady;” the live version titled “TijuanAlaska.” The whole crowd simultaneously inhaled some fine herbs and there was a general feeling that this was good way to end a millennium.

Gomez has adopted an additional fan base here in the States, after they were touted as a jam-band. Yet they are a group with more to offer than your average psychedelic guitar experience. A Gomez concert is akin to watching five drunken friends enthusiastically running through band practice, trying out new instruments and drum loops, and refining four-part harmonies they’d thought up 10 minutes earlier.

They are one of England’s finest cultural exports in recent years, along with Radiohead and the British Broadcasting Corp. comedy “The Office.” Seeing Gomez can be considered an educational experience. Catch a glimpse of how the British do things on the other side of the pond.

Gomez will be playing Mr. Small’s Theater in Millvale tomorrow night. For more information or for tickets, call (412) 821-4447.