IF YOU find yourself at a loose end tonight (Friday), you should see The Tiger Lillies.

Adored by Simpsons creator Matt Groening and director Terry Gilliam, they will appeal to anyone with a taste for the bizarre.

The Lillies are fronted by operatic singer Martin Jacques, who chooses to sing like a castrati, mimicking the falsetto sound that was once achieved by castrating choir boys before they reached puberty.

This haunting voice is then fused with outrageous cabaret and the spirit of punk, with the passion of the French chanson put into the mix alongside the savagery of Dickensian under-culture. Their extreme brand of blasphemous ballads tells the tales of love, madness and unsavoury characters. Part street gutter opera and part wild gypsy song, the frenetic cabaret has a raw, intense theatrical delivery underlined with a dark, wry wit.

The Lillies’ music has also been featured in films such as The Hunger and Plunkett and Macleane and they provided the memorable soundtrack for the multi award-winning West End hit Shockheaded Peter.

They will be on stage at The Brewery in Kendal tonight at 8pm. Tickets are £12.50 from the box office on 01539-725133.