Deathfiend and Vultur (22/2/25, Helgi’s, London, England, UK)

Posted on 26th February 2025 by MRDA

After the semi-disaster that was the previous night’s Manson gig, Saturday night’s visit to Helgi’s was just the redress I needed. Having missed them on their first visit to the capital in June due to gig clashes, I made a point of checking out Brum black/death/crust/doom contingent Deathfiend, headed by none other than the musically prolific Mr John Pickering, a.k.a. Johnny Doom, who, among other things, has been a Facebook friend for nearly/over a decade (memory’s shot!). Prior to the start of events (which, contrary to official advertisement, had Deathfiend stepping on stage *before* the night’s other band, Sardinian black-metal outfit Vultur), we sat down for a nice, though brief, chat on politics, religion, and, of course, music. Having kept up with each other’s postings on such online, it was great to finally have an in-person chat.

It was also great to finally witness Deathfiend in their live glory too; Johnny and his bandmates—bassist Rick Farn and drummer Andrea Pisu—put on a sterling, musically tight show, playing a selection of tracks (though, sadly, not initial single ‘Beyond Life’) from their double-album discography. Favourites such as ‘Rise from Decay‘, ‘Cyclic War‘, and the crushing ‘Watch Them Crawl‘ sounded absolutely fucking stellar, Johnny’s full-throated growls and bellows playing as well with the finely honed instrumentals live as they do on record. In short, an impressive set that lived up to expectations.

Next came Vultur with 50-minutes of immersive, tremelo-picking goodness. Contrary to what I expected, the setlist was composed of material yet to be released, meaning my favourite song of theirs, ‘In the Throne of Chaos’, never got a look in. In another surprise, they had a guest frontman in the form of Piero Paranoia, the vox of London-based fellow Sardinians Cogas, who I last saw put on an impressive support slot for Nervosa a couple of years back.

Occupying the middle of the floor, he delivered the same intense performance as with his main band whilst Vultur went all out on those textured, unrelenting black-metal instrumental work, regular frontman Attalzu interjecting with the occasional vocal line. Going by tracks such as ‘Cultores lapides et lignea’, ‘Su spegu’ (dedicated, by Piero, to “Camden posers”), and ‘Umbras’, their upcoming album, Cultores de perdas e linna, could indeed be worth a gander.

So, yes, a throughly satisfying night of doom-laden death and black metal at an suitably eerie, intimate venue, enhanced all the more by a rewarding interaction with a longstanding online presence. Look forward to doing it all again, Mr Doom.

~MRDA~

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Marilyn Manson (21/2/25, Eventim Apollo, London, England, UK)

Posted on 24th February 2025 by MRDA

Somewhat fittingly for a show on the infamous Antichrist Superstar’s comeback tour, this sold-out gig was memorable for both the right and wrong reasons.

Before the main act came Gallic alt-rockers The Blackmordia, their set not exactly landing well with the assorted audience members, including one gent who tenaciously held his finger up at them for a good chunk of it. By my reckoning, they played a decent set, with a few notable numbers I’ve yet to identify, with frontman Peter Moison doing his best impression of a BDSM Jim Morrison, riding crop and lack of shirt in tow for the bulk of the set. Sadly, they kinda wore out their welcome when they played three or four more songs after declaring it was the “last chance to dance”.

It was then, in the interval between them and Manson, when things started getting *really * annoying, with a loud drunken, arm-flailing attention whore parking herself in my vicinity and chatting bollocks to any and all who’d entertain the annoying bint . Luckily, I managed to edge my way away from her, further to the front.

As expected, the main man and his band ignited the crowd, inspiring the pushes and throngs characteristic of many a
mosh. Shame the princesses I was pushed into failed to get the memo, thinking their chromosomal configuration entitled them to special immunity from the normal consequences of being on the floor of a crowded hard rock show.

Then there was the bloke christened a “fucking American cunt” by others on the floor, who insisted on barging and elbowing his way through, eventually prompting me to knock him back with a sharp dig of my own. Still, I admit to laughing when he induced frothing Trump Derangment Syndrome from the audience member who’d rechristened him by endorsing the hilarious heel of a president.

And as much as I’m not one to bemoan the use of phones at gigs, what’s with everyone filming a *landscape * (the stage) in fucking *portrait *mode? Way to obscure the view, guys.

All these elements contributed to putting a dampener on what was otherwise a triumphant comeback show for Manson after a combo of drug and alcohol abuse, lacklustre performances, attending church with Kanye West, and most notoriously, the #MeToo scandal that had him smeared as a rapist, groomer, and all-round sex abuser by his ex Evan Rachel Wood, who effectively
rallied a coven of similarly spurned exes around her for what turned out to a factually dubious legal campaign. As Manson said prior to a storming performance of ‘Disposable Teens’, “They tried to take me away from you. They tried to destroy me. But all they did was make me stronger, because I’m not fucking disposable.”

And, indeed, twas fucking great to see Mr Brian Warner back in full-throated fighting form, his phoenix-like defiance marked by a  joviality I’d not seen in him before. There was not a dodgy or lacklustre note to be heard throughout his set, during which he belted out the likes of ‘Great Big White World’, ‘The Beautiful People’, the excellent deep-cut ‘Angel with Scabbed Wings’ and the set-closing ‘Coma White’. New tracks from his most recent album, One Asssination Under God, Vol. 1, like set opener ‘Nod If You Understand’ and ‘As Sick as the Secrets Within’, got honourable airing, though much to my surprise and disappointment, he omitted ‘Raise the Red Flag’, his sterling fuck you/declaration of war against those who wished to see him bound and broken.

His band did his rejuvenated pipes much in the way of justice, most noticeably bassist Piggy D. with his hair blowing around as if he were in a L’Oreal ad and new touring axewoman Code Orange shredder and songstress Reba Myers, who added her own lungwork to the chorus of ‘MOBSCENE’.

So, yes, a superb rise from the ashes for Marilyn Manson, man and band both, however marred my experience of it was by events on the floor. If there’s a Volume 2 of OAUG in the works, here’s hoping the tour setlist for that includes more of my favourite fight songs, love songs, and stranger-killing irresponsible hate anthems from the Pale Emperor’s past alongside the new shit.

~MRDA~

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Cyndi Lauper (11/2/25, O2 Arena, London, England, UK)

Posted on 18th February 2025 by MRDA

Cyndi Lauper’s return to London last Tuesday was quite a bit different from her previous stop-off in the Big Smoke. Whilst her Royal Albert Hall show back in June was much more celebratory (with Cyndi memorably kicking off proceedings with “Let’s get this puarty started!”), last week’s “farewell” show was 25% gig, 25% “An Evening with”–style raconteurage, 25% PRIDE parade and 25% DNC convention, making for a set that added up to something other than a gig. Your mileage may vary as to whether or not that’s a good thing.

Of course, being a fan of Cyndi’s ’80s output, I, once again, enjoyed the gig. Cyndi kicking off proceedings with a video montage that exploded into genital-fondling anthem ‘She Bop’ was a nice (hur hur) touch. Other highlights included an especially impassioned vocal performance of ‘I Drove All Night’, the always pleasurable ‘Goonies’ R’ Good Enough’, and her ode to romantic solipsism ‘Change of Heart’, all these and more undercoring her much publicised vocal missteps at last year’s Glastonbury as nowt more than the effects of bad sound monitors, as was  claimed at the time. Musically, she brought the goods.

She bought more than her fair share of the goods when it came to her between-songs vocals, regaling her audience with stories of the backgrounds behind certain songs and tales of earlier times in general. Much of it I did indeed find entertaining and enlightening, but I ultimately thought she dragged out certain recollections beyond what I’d consider acceptable for something touted as a musical event. A case of too much of a good thing having a negative effect on the highlighted good thing, evident by Cyndi’s acknowledgment that she forgot to perform a song on her setlist. If she ever wanted to do a talk tour, she certainly has a wealth of material for such!

Her costume changes better gelled with proceedings, and despite Ms Lauper claiming to indulge in such to please “the gays”, my non-gay self enjoyed the spectacle, though not always for the intended reasons: sure, Cyndi nailed shoulder-padded power jackets and polka-dotted Yayoi Kusama pieces, but the half-arsed Big Bird cosplay was just baffling.

Speaking of the rainbow folk, Lauper literally, and vocally, waved the flag for them during ‘True Colors’, a song which was probably ahead of its time with its implicit appeal to solidarity and allyship. Nowt too objectionable until she made mention of the recently re-elected Trump administration “taking diversity out of the books”, one of several eyeroll-inducing statements; others centred on her advocacy for reproductive rights, with her asserting that women should hold the same autonomy over their own bodies as men, which is reasonable enough if you forget that ritual male-infant circumcision and mandatory child support are, respectively, legal and enforced (I’d tell you to ask Walter Scott about the bodily-autonomy implications of the latter were he still breathing). Once again, Cyndi  worked her groan-worthy “Girls just want to have fun-damental rights” slogan into her closing performance of ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Abor–, I Mean Fun’, demonstrating that gender solipsism is an unmistakable symptom of even the mildest forms of Trump Derangment Syndrome.

All that said, my dislike of Cyndi remains elusive; for all her culture-war cataracts (and democravenglism, small- and capital-d), her heart’s in the right place, and her brand of activism remains refreshingly free of the venom one sees elsewhere. One just wishes it was a) better informed and b) better integrated, along with her between-song banter, into what had been primarily billed as a musical event. In any case, Cyndi and her endearing Italian-American New York pluck make the low points easier to weather, as did the surprise appearance of Culture Club’s Boy George, who provided vocal assistance for the aforementioned closing number.



Furthermore, her closing words of “Seeya next chapter, guys!” suggest that her “farewell tour” may not *quite* be the last word, or note, we hear of her.

~MRDA~

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Magnum: A Tribute to Tony Clarkin (22/1/25, O2 Forum Kentish Town, London, England, UK)

Posted on 26th January 2025 by MRDA

A pretty poignant one last Tuesday as stalwart prog/AOR/hard rockers Magnum kicked off their series of memorial shows for their late guitarist, songwriter, and co-founder Tony Clarkin in London. With the band being prominent on my playlists, mainly on the strength of their 1985 banger of an album, On a Storyteller’s Night, and having missed an opportunity to see them whilst Tony was alive, I’d thought I’d go along to pay my respects, especially as the band made it sound as if it would be the last time they’d perform live.

In the end, the double-set show turned out to be a satisfying tribute to their fallen comrade, with a setlist that drew upon the breadth of their 53-year career. To my great delight, not one but four tracks from Storyteller’s Night put in an appearance,  including the stellar title track, the show-opening ‘How Far Jerusalem?’, and the uplifting ‘Just Like an Arrow’. Other highlights included the epic ‘Don’t Wake the Lion (Too Old To Die Young)’ from 1988’s Wings of Heaven, the war-is-hell anthem ‘Soldier of the Line’ from their 1982 album Chase the Dragon (which would make a great opening theme for an ’80s military anime, e.g., Armored Trooper VOTOMS), the title track of their ’86 album, Vigilante, and, going all the way back to ’78, that of their first album, Kingdom of Madness.

All those tracks and more were performed superbly by the current iteration of the band, with particular kudos going to the band’s former guitar tech Brendon Riley, who filled Clarkin’s shoes immaculately, each note sounding like Clarkin did on record. Frontman and co-founder Bob Catley brought the vocal goods too, some inconsistencies on hitting high notes aside, though there were points where he was visibly, understandably overcome with emotion regarding the untimely exit of his long-time friend and comrade in arms. For all the sadness, however, he expressed encouragement at the enthusiastic turnout for the show, even dropping the suggestion, more than once, that this tribute tour would not be the last seen of the band on stage. I, for one, hope he and the rest of the band make good on that.

~MRDA~

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Dark Funeral (7/1/25, O2 Academy Islington, London, England, UK)

Posted on 13th January 2025 by MRDA

Last Tuesday night at the Islington Academy felt like stepping into a Black Mass on account of Swedish black-metal infernalists Dark Funeral occupying the joint as part of their winter Let the Devil In tour.

They did a good job of easing their audience into the main event with the aid of their supports. First came French merchants of melodic deathcore Kami no Ikari, who kicked things off with a nice caustic bounce, the likes of ‘Interitus’  and ‘Theophobia’ laying good groundwork for the sets ahead (shame I totally overlooked the album at the merch stand!).

Then came Roman-themed Canadian melodeath squad Ex Deo—my most anticipated band of the night—who gave a great showcase of their material, clad (with the exception of drummer Oli Beaudoin) in the appropriate armour. Standouts from the set included opener ‘Imperator’, ‘Vespasian’ from their then-upcoming EP Year of the Four Emperors (which I *did* manage to grab a copy of, in advance, from the merch section), and the ferocious closer ‘Romulus’, which featured some delightful dual headbanging from bassist Dano Apekian and lead guitarist Stéphane Barbe. Frontman Maurizio Iacono put out a strong vocal performance throughout, with some impressive alterations and repetitions at certain points.

As for third and final support act Fleshgod Apocalypse, I’d only previously heard their Labyrinth album with distinctly male vocals, so I was rather surprised to see a rather Rubenesque lass step on stage with an Italian flag and start getting operatic: turned out said woman is Veronica Bordacchini, who joined up past said album’s release. Shortly, the rest of the band, including frontman Francesco Paoli, joined her to give the audience a rather extravagant set full of piano arrangements, said operatic feats, and, of course, meaty metallic instrumentals. I admit to not being especially blown away by what I’d heard of band on record, but I found their set considerably captivating nevertheless, ‘Sugar’, ‘The Fool’, and ‘Pendulum’ being notable moments.

However, Dark Funeral turned the extravagance up tenfold, taking to the stage in full Satanic splendour, frontman Heljarmadr arrived aptly cloaked for opener ‘Nosferatu’ before shedding said garm for a set emphasing both their earliest and latest material. They even added a few numbers from the points in between, such as ‘The Arrival of Satan’s Empire’, which was preceded by one of the evening’s most memorable moments, Heljarmadr leading the audience in a chant or several of “Hail Satan!”.

Musically, however, the strongest numbers were the relative slow-burn of ‘When I’m Gone’, ‘Open the Gates’ from their storming self-titled debut EP, along with ‘In the Sign of the Horns’, and the title track from their latest release, ‘Let the Devil In’ (constantly recommended to me by the YouTube algo for the past few months, but that’s another story).  Heljarmadr, the band’s fourth vocalist, sounded powerful and prominent throughout the set, and the instrumental section put on a suitably tight performance, particularly lead axeman and band founder Lord Ahriman, who, quite aptly, was a tremelo-picking demon, strumming his strings at what looked like 666 square RPM!

So, yes, a strong start to yet another year of promising gigs, many of them of a similarly genred vein—AVE FUCKING SATANAS!

~MRDA~

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Peter and the Test Tube Babies (30/12/24, New Cross Inn, London, England, UK)

Posted on 1st January 2025 by MRDA

Once again, punk stalwarts Peter and the Test Tube Babies saw the year out at the New Cross Inn in Sarf London, this time bringing along newer acts Meathook and Bamboo Vipers along for the lark.

The Vipers opened the show with a set of interestingly titled and/or themed songs such as ‘Champagne Socialist’, ‘Andrew Ridgeley Moment’, ‘New Kinky Dimension’ and the macabre Cambodian holiday brochure that’s ‘Democratic Kampuchea’. The set was all the more entertaining for frontman Shaun Morris being seemingly half cut throughout it. Sadly, they were nowhere to be seen by the time I’d acquired the cash to buy their EP; presumably, they’d gone elsewhere to get (even more) ratarsed.

Popping out to grab aforementioned cash meant I missed the start of Meathook’s set, which was a right pain in the arse as they’d kicked off with ‘No One’s Safe’, one of my favourite songs from their 2016 album Piece of Me; another is that title track, which indeed got an airing. Other standouts included ‘Fallen’, ‘Bad Day’, and the set-closing ‘Broken Bones’, all played with a ferocity and heaviness bordering on the metallic by the trio of Jay on drums, Neil on bass and backing vocals, and frontman Tat on geetars and vox. Sadly, they didn’t play ‘Two Sides’, another favourite of mine, though that’s understandable, considering they’d have had to have yanked guest vocalist Johnny Doom, of Deathfiend and Police Bastard fame, down from Brum for the full effect. Shoutout to Sarah on the merch stand for sorting me out a free English Dogs album, featuring Tat on bass, with my Piece of Me CD.

Tat, ever prolific, once again assumed bass duties as one of Peter’s Test Tube Babies.

As ever, the set featured many a favourite track, with the likes of ‘The Jinx’, ‘Spirit of Keith Moon’, ‘Never Made It’, ‘Every Second Counts’, and sweary singalong ‘None of Your Fucking Business’ making welcome appearances. Less setlist-familar additions included anti-marriage anthem ‘Unlucky Day’, a cover of Focus’ ‘Livewire’, and the sexploits of ‘Oral Annie’, always up for a “five-man deal”. Banter was as abundant as the setlist, Peter and drummer Sam Fuller once again delivering the bulk of it, and I managed to pick up the latest solo venture by lead guitarist Del “Strangefish” Greening too.

In short, another great year-closing gig from Peter and his miscreants (though one with a younger, rowdier crowd than usual). Always a pleasure, and I’m sure this year’s upcoming won’t break the cycle on that account.

~MRDA~

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Slipknot (21/12/24, The O2 Arena, London, England, UK)

Posted on 28th December 2024 by MRDA

Last Saturday night saw a year’s worth of anticipation erupt in an hour and a half of moshpit finest as Iowa’s nine-headed masked monster, Slipknot, graced the capital in the second of two O2 shows concluding the UK leg of their 25th anniversary Here Comes the Pain tour.

Before that commotion came a nice warm-up set from Glaswegian metalcore merchants Bleed From Within, who really brought the energy and enthusiasm with songs such as ‘Hands of Sin’, ‘Into Nothing’, and, from their upcoming seventh album, it was Zenith, ‘In Place of Your Halo’. Frontman Scott Kennedy was especially appreciative to be sharing a stage with one of his influences, remarking how he would have scoffed at the idea two decades ago. Metalcore is kinda a hit-ans-miss subgenre for me, but BfW did it, and themselves, sufficient justice with their set.

Then came the Nine—and the promised pain.

I’ve been to gigs of bands that would be considered even more extreme and “true”  amongst the metalligensia, yet the audience reaction at those shows was positively sedate compared to that for the Knot. From the moment the riffage of ‘(sic)’ kicked in, the crowd erupted into a throng that never fully relented. To put it another way, even those not in the actual circle pit were swept around the floor, ending up in spots quite different to those at which they started!

“We’re playing nothing after 1999,” frontman Corey Taylor declared, and he and the rest of the band kept their word, the setlist consisting of material from, and around the time of, their self-titled major-label debut. Every track, with the odd exception of ‘Diluted’, got an airing, from the League onslaughts of ‘Eyeless’ and ‘Liberate’ to slower, moodier numbers like ‘Tattered and Torn’, ‘Prosthetics’, and set closer ‘Scissors’. Of course, abiding setlist favourites ‘Wait and Bleed’, ‘Purity’, and ‘Spit It Out’ also got respectable renditions.

The band were on top form, with Mick Thomson and Jim Root bringing the riffs, Eloy Casagrande and Alessandro “Vman” Venturella proving worthy replacements for late drummer Joey Jordison and late bassist Paul Gray, respectively, Sid Wilson stealing the spotlight with his turntabling and crowd-rousing, Michael “Tortilla Man” Pfaff adding extra percussion and hijinks, mystery member “Samples” filling the spot previously occupied by Craig “The Gimp” Jones, and Shaun “Clown” Crahan being, as ever, Shaun. Of course, Corey “The Great Big Mouth” Taylor didn’t disappoint with his trademark vocals, going from bellow to mellow, and back again, without issue, though, by contrast to all the other times I’ve seen the band, his crowd-addressing moments had a more unabashedly complementary, less confrontational air this time around, welcoming the fans who were there from day one and all those who came after for their support and attendance.

As callbacks go, however, it was hard to top the jumpsuits and masks, evocative of that earlier era, Corey’s red-eye accentuated homage to his first disguise being especially striking.

Like others who’ve commented on these shows, I definitely would’ve welcomed a double set, the second (or maybe first) consisting of a best-of compilation cribbed from all their subsequent albums. As things stand, having not seen them live since the late ’00s, it was great to make their reacquaintance.

~MRDA~

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The Human League (14/12/24, OVO Arena Wembley, London, England, UK)

Posted on 20th December 2024 by MRDA

Trudging all the way to Wembley is never fun for me in itself, so making the trip requires some pretty damn strong incentive; thankfully, Saturday night provided just that with the Human League concluding their Generations tour at the OVO Arena. The synthpop superstars had solid support from both ’80s contemporaries T’ Pau and the rather surprising choice of Sophie Ellis-Bextor.

Beyond ‘China in Your Hand’, their 1987 hit, I’m not too familiar with T’Pau’s back catalogue, but Carol Decker and co. got the night off to a decent start ‘Secret Garden’, ‘Heart and Soul’, and, of course, the aforementioned 1987 hit being standouts. Carol, the filthy mare, made light of her position on the bill with a decidedly bawdy turn of phrase; “I’m your official fluffer!” she declared midway through the set, and, indeed, her oral action left me with little in the way of complaint.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor wins my Pleasant Surprise of the Night Award for a rather polished, top-notch performance with some notable numbers, namely her cover of Alcazar’s ‘Crying at the Discotheque’, a medley-rich rendition of her breakthrough summer 2000 hit ‘Groovejet (If This Ain’t Love)’, her version of Freemason’s ‘Heartbreak (Make Me a Dancer)’ (on which she refreshingly pronounces “Dancer” like an Englishwoman instead of in the expected American cadence), and, last but not least, ‘Murder on the Dancefloor’ recently given something of a signal boost via the movie Saltburn. If Carol T’Pau was the no-nonsense the fluffer, Sophie goes for a more refined, playful, flirty approach, teasing and coaxing desire and enthusiasm out of the audience. Shame the overpriced cider I’d unwisely ordered from the bar had my lids falling at certain points, but I was pretty impressed with what I saw (and heard) my eyes open at least, to the point that I’m playing with the thought of catching one of her upcoming headline shows.

As for the main act, they, as at Kew last year, effortlessly impressed both vocally and instrumentally. Phil Oakey, Sue Ann Sulley, and Joanne Catherall sound as sharp as they ever did, and their current band —percussionist Rob Barton, keyboardist/backing vocalist Ben Smith, and guitarist/keyboardist Nick Banks—do a stellar job of supplying that crisp, distinctive sound for which this band is well known. The stagecraft, too, as ever, was a sight to behold, the most striking element being the descending platform that brought the band to the stage during show opener ‘Hard Times’.

The setlist itself had more than a few surprises. Sure, they had expected favourites such as ‘Mirror Man’, ‘Tell Me When’, ‘The Lebanon’,’ Heart Like a Wheel’, and, inevitably, their breakthrough hit ‘Don’t You Want Me?’, but they also added the likes of ‘Life on Your Own’, ‘Louise’, and ‘Empire State Human’ into the mix, much to my liking. I also got treated to the dark, moody sythlines of ‘The Path of Least Resistance’, the earliest song recorded, according to Phil, the sole vox on this pre-’80s number, which left me wanting to dust off initial album Reproduction for a thorough relisten. Speaking of Phil vox solos, another track from his collab with Giorgio Moroder,’ Good-Bye, Bad Times’, got an airing in the encore, alongside the more familiar (and much loved) ‘Together in Electric Dreams’.

All in all, another sterling set from the League, and one that left me wondering what they have in store for their upcoming return to Kew in July. Special mention goes out to Phil for his flares, Sue for her speech celebrating 43 years of being part of the band, and Jo for knowing how to fill out a stage outfit.

~MRDA~

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Front 242 (8/12/24, Electric Ballroom, London, England, UK)

Posted on 14th December 2024 by MRDA

A first and last for me on Sunday night, with me *finally* seeing Belgian EBM outfit Front 242 on the London date of their farewell Black Out tour. Having missed an opportunity to see them a couple of years back, I would’ve kicked myself even harder had I let their swansong set pass me by.

Support came from rising Swedish EBM star Rein, and very impressive support she was too, striding across the stage in a cyberpunk-worthy shades and suit combo whilst performing tracks such as ‘Reactivity’, with its striking staccato choral rhythms, the moody ‘Dystopia’, which channels the sound and feel of early ’90s sophistipop through an electronic filter, and the absolutely belting brutality of ‘Bodyhammer’, a track that’ll see many a replay on my personal playlist. Definitely one of the best opening acts I’ve seen at a gig this year. Hopefully, she’ll return for a headline show or several in the not-so-distant future.

The tone well and truly set by Rein, 242, the elder statesmen of EBM, took to the stage not too long after, opening their set with an introductory video marking their 43 years in operation (something in common there!) followed by a nice, full-bodied, crowd-rousing rendition of ‘W.Y.H.I.W.Y.G.’. The band were in high spirits during the entirety of their 80-minute set, particularly lead vocalist Jean-Luc de Meyer, who continually exhorted the audience to get into the spirit of things. Not that it was necessary with the selections on the career-spanning setlist, which included, amongst others, personal favourites such as the energetic ‘Body to Body’, the memorably melodic ‘Quite Unusual’, the body-bouncing beat monster ‘Red Team’, and the stellar, soaring ‘Masterhit’. Less familiar tracks such as ‘Punish Your Machine’ and ‘Welcome to Paradise’ also made a strong, resounding impression. Of course, though, the money shot of the night came in the form of the iconic  ‘Headhunter’, the best bounty-hunter anthem ever committed to recorded media, and the instructive, count-the-steps chorus definitely garnered the maximum participation from all assembled.

As swansongs go, Front 242’s final (?) London show of their final (?) tour proved a revelrous rivetheaded roar rather than a waning whimper; my only lament about this show (beyond not hearing ‘No Shuffle’) is that it was my first.

~MRDA~

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The Chameleons (7/12/24, O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London, England, UK)

Posted on 11th December 2024 by MRDA

A post-punk triple bill last Saturday night, with me revisiting a couple of familiar acts plus one never seen live before.

First came a familiar band, Statesiders Vision Video, with a new keyboardist (complete with fishnets and teddy bear mascots) in tow. Frontman Dusty Gannon, though vocal between songs as usual, keeps the political commentary fairly light this time—surprising given recent electoral events on his side of the pond—sticking to an impassioned anti-war speech to introduce ‘Kandahar’. Musical highlights included newbies ‘Dead Gods’ and ‘Balaclava Kiss’, the singalong-inspiring cover of Joy Division’s ‘Transmission’, and anthemic set closer ‘In My Side’. A solid start.

Then came a step into uncharted waters with The Membranes, and only having heard their five-disc compilation of their earliest material, Everyone’s Going Triple-Bad Acid, Yeah!, I half-expected, hoped, to hear tunes such as ‘Cor, Blimey! Ain’t England Snidey’ and ‘Tatty Seaside Town’; in stark departure from most ’80s-prominent acts, however, they chose to focus on their more modern material, even to the point of including yet-unreleased tracks, like ‘Dracula’s Daughter’ and ‘Spooky Dancing in the UK’. Frontman/bassist/journalist/author John Robb, at sprightly 63, proved summat of a human dynamo, pacing, high-kicking, and waving his bass around the stage and at the audience; he and his post-punk bass stylings were well-served by a strong instrumental accompaniment from the other members of a band, including the veiled lady on keyboards who added some pleasingly eerie backing vocals to the likes of ‘What Nature Gives… Nature Takes Away’, ‘Church Bells’, and ‘Deep in the Forest Where the Memories Linger’. Worth witnessing at least once. Twice if they headline.


Speaking of headliners, I was once again disappointed to not hear ‘Less Than Human’ and ‘Thursday’s Child’, two of my favourite Chameleons deep cuts, on the setlist; then again, those two are from Script of the Bridge, the first, and my favourite, Chameleons album, and the spotlight was well and truly on Strange Times, the band’s third album, for the bulk of the setlist. In any case, Mark Burgess and his merry men put on a spirited, soulful show, so much so that it really did seem like the frontman was trying to jettison his life force through the mic at certain points. Highlights included new track ‘Everyday, I’m Crucified’, which sees the band reacquainted with the menacing basslines of a certain opening track from Script, a moody ‘Tears’, and a rather engaging extended rendition of ‘Soul in Isolation’, but it was the encore that made my day above all, with the abrasive ‘In Shreds’, the philosophical ‘Monkeyland’, Mark performing a self-exorcism during ‘Second Skin’, and, of course, ‘Don’t Fall’, that “certain opening track” I mentioned, the one that put this band on my radar, closing the night, Mark embracing the audience towards its end.

In short another searingly strong Chameleons set. Makes me even more eager hoping to see (and hear) those favourite deep cuts of mine being dusted off for a future tour.

~MRDA~

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