punk/post-punk live review
Live: Sleaford Mods, Leeds Irish Centre
Last time I saw Sleaford Mods it was in a much smaller venue and it was visceral as Jason Williamson stalked the stage like a caged animal spitting out his explicit lyrics laying bare the lives of Britain’s dispossessed. But something has been lost in this cavernous venue as all that pent up anger just …
Live Review: PiL – Manchester, 19.09.2015 + Gallery
A rather nonchalant Mr Lydon, stridently bimbles his way to the front, and a minor eruption occurs in front of him. Amongst the welcoming cheers and raised arms, plastic pint pots are launched skyward and a rain of beer falls on our heads. Seems quite befitting the occasion, and apart from one punter who cops …
Peter Hook And The Light, Picturedrome, Holmfirth, 19.09.2015
Poised to commence his legal action against The Other Three, Peter Hook bestrides the legacies of two seminal bands like some kind of a COLOSSUS; Joy Division and New Order. Tonight, it’s “Imperial”-period New Order and he’s playing their mid eighties albums “Low-life” and “Brotherhood.” For reasons that I won’t bore you with, I missed …
Live Review: Tramlines 2015, Desperate Journalist – Crystal, 26.7.15 plus Gallery
You’ll know if you read Backseat Mafia regularly, that Desperate Journalist are one of our favourite bands right now. On the back of their debut album, which we awarded 9.9/10 (see here) we take any opportunity to see their raw and incendiary live set, so when we saw they were on at Crystal, Sheffield as part …
Live Review: Tramlines 2015: Main Stage – 24.7.15 including Charlatans gallery
Tramlines 2015 style kicked off on Friday 24th July this year, and we took a stroll down to the new Main Stage, now situated in Ponderosa Park, a little out of the centre and away from its home of the last six years, Devonshire Green. As it was, the ten minute stroll from the city …
Live Review: The Tubes – Brudenell Social Club, Leeds 12.8.2015
Once upon a time The Tubes took their brand of rock theatrics out to stadiums but now on their 40th birthday tour they are still delivering the goods albeit in much smaller venues. In truth they are an old school rock band who somehow got caught up in New Wave, but who cares when you …
Live Review: SWANS at The Reflektor, Liège 19.05.2015
I’ll admit, my only knowledge of SWANS is that of a friend playing them back in the eighties; an album with a dollar sign on the sleeve (‘Greed’ 1986). My frazzled memory lumped them in with that ‘Butthole Surfers’/’Big Black’ school of American nut-job noise, with a side-serving of Psychick TV cultism. Now, almost thirty …
Live: The Membranes, Brudenell Social Club, Leeds 04-07-2015
It’s a very hot summers night in Leeds, and as The Membranes take the stage, it’s clear from the off that the temperature is set to carry on rising. Opening number, “The Universe Explodes Into a Billion Photons of Pure White Light”, initially takes a few of the crowd by surprise. Taken from the bands …
Live Review: Long Division 2015 – Wakefield 12th – 14th June
Long Division, a three day urban festival, spread over eight venues all within spitting distance of each other. Over 60 bands on offer and with the added bonus of it been just down the road in the city where I grew up, and still live. What started out five years ago as a full on …
Live: Bearded Theory Festival 21-24.5.15
Catton Park, South Derbyshire, last time I was here I spent 24 hours sweating and panting my way around the park on a mountain bike, supposedly for fun. This time we are here for the Bearded Theory Festival and I was swapping the energy drinks, pasta and anti-chaffing cream, for good beer and great music, …