| $hame Academy The Defects Empire, Belfast 20th May 2004 It musta been a good night because 24 hours later my head is still spinning and my ears are still buzzing, but to be honest I'm getting tired of the Empire now as a gig venue. The novelty value has worn off and the constant battle to get a drink on a busy night is a pain in the arse, as you fight your way through the four deep line of punters at the long bar with not enough staff to cope. I find myself yearning for nights in packed white hot sweaty dives like the Harp and the Pound because what they lacked in comforts and decor, they more than made up for in atmosphere and excitment. Unless this place is at least three quarters full you can see the tumbleweeds roll across the dancefloor in the huge expanses of space between the dancers and liggers, and it makes for a long evening as witnessed by me at the recent Marky Ramone gig here. No matter how well the bands are playing, the size of this place just kills the performance if the place is not heaving. So coming onstage and finding the hall had not yet filled up is disappointing for any band and to the Defects credit they just dug in from the off and put on a great show. They found themselves in this position for the first few songs of their support set tonight, playing to an almost empty dancefloor bar the three regulation nutters who were running round each other in circles spurred on by Buck (yeah every venue has them!!). The band unfazed just said fuck this and took the bull by the horns, taking control of a potentially bad situation and using it to their advantage. They played with a lot more aggression, much more like their old selves than their last gig back in November. Less polished more abrasive definitely all the better for it, and eventually grabbing the audience by the scruff of the preverbial neck and forcing them to join in with the increasing number of die hards at the front. Highlights of the set included a blistering version of 'Bitch' not normally thought of as one of their best songs, but it took on a life of it's own here tonight for some reason. Three well chosen covers ensured the set ended on a high. With Buck's tongue firmly in cheek jokingly he dedicates Sham's 'If The Kids Are United' to all the Millwall fans for Saturdays FA cup final. I hope he's not planning any visits to the New Den in the near future. No word on any upcoming Defects gigs? But as I said before, it will be a real shame if the Defects don't carry on the momentum and play some shows of their own. As they proved tonite they still have that fire in the belly that made them a success first time round. The moral of this story is to make sure you get to the gigs early in future, or your gonna miss out on a top band. This was $hame Academy's first real headline show trading on their name alone, and with minimal help and promotion from outside sources. They can now rest easy in the knowledge that people want to see them and a fanbase has been established, a question that before tonites gig couldn't have been answered. Again like the Defects, $hame Academy's sound has become a lot more impressive, agressive, massive and they were loudddd!!! A weak song from previous sets like T-Rex's - 'I Love To Boogie' has been teamed up with a new addition of Vince Taylors - 'Brand New Cadillac' (Vince who?- P.D.C) and the Outcasts - '7 Deadly Sins' to become a muscular triple rockablly strut. Youngsy was in his element, throwing shapes like his hero Johnny Thunders, it was excellent. As was the pairing of the Outcasts - 'Cops Are Comin' and Rudi's - 'Cops SSRUC'. Two pure slices of vintage NI punk rebellion that were made for each other. Other new additions in the set included the Clash's - 'I'm So Bored With The USA', Petesy Burns solo spot with the UK subs - 'I Live In A Car' for reasons best known to him?!! Plus the Rudi classic 'I Spy' which had me smiling. $A just get better and better with each one off gig. Which is more than can be said for Gregs vast array of shirts. Tonight he was sporting an expensive looking Jackson Pollock inspired paint splattered number, which was definitely not a homemade creation like the early Clash attempts. I bet you viewers out there are jealous reading this, don't you wish you had a band as good as these boys in your town/city? The deut $A LP is due for a summer 2004 release, so grab a copy and hear what all my raving/hype is all about. Tonites show was more in the spirit of a real old fashioned punk rock knees up, there was no posing from media types and students, like at the previous November gig. It wasn't part of any festival programme either, this was retro punk at its best, with an audience straight outa the good old days just out to enjoy themselves. Most of whom didn't mind throwing themselves about or getting their hands dirty. Including the ageing Terri Hooley (Good Vibrations), who ended up on his arse in the middle of the floor and had to be helped up and escorted to the side. Superpunk Terri had earlier in the evening walked up to the front of the stage, tore up Gregs set list and threw it at him (yawwwwwwn), much to Gregs amusment judging by his sneer in Hooleys direction. The gig had a real old school punk vibe about it. Everyone just got into the music and atmosphere and had a real good time. $hame Academy are a class act, in fact both bands have got to be very happy with their performances and the overall reception given to the show. I had a chat later with a couple of the $A guys backstage and I got the impression that they were surprised and pleased how many punters had turned up. And how well things are going for the band in such a short space of time. It's less than a year since they formed the band. |
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| I hope the bands will maybe consider playing in the more intimate surroundings of the likes of the Rotterdam. A venue that both Buck (Defects) and Youngsy ($hame Academy) both play regularly with their day jobs...Doghouse and Sabrejets respectivly. The place is perfect for a punk rock show and both of tonights bands would absolutely tear the roof of the place. It probably isn't a financially viable proposition, and the bands themselves might view it as a step backwards maybe? I know I'm a moaning git, but wouldn't it be the icing on the cake to watch these bands firing on all cylinders in some dark dirty dive just like it used to be. And leave the Empire to the heavy metal tribute bands who frequently inhabit the place just for a change. |
| BELFAST MUSIC PRESS TAKE NOTE... Finally before I go I would like to have a rant at the local press as trying to get decent publicity for gigs by bands like $A and the Defects here in Belfast is near to impossible! And I'm talking with experience. The people in control obviously don't know their own local music history or how important both these bands/members were at one time. Or even the contributions these guys made to youth culture in the 70's/early 80's. The bands deserve better than the hand they are being dealt by the so-called local music journalists. These hacks don't seem to have a fucking clue as they shower valuable print on any has been Irish showbands from the 60's, country and western acts, Nu-metal/Nu-punk?, shoegazing boring indie, fucking crooners and any trendy pop acts that are the current flavour of the week. Like for example the Scissor Sisters or Goldfrapp who visited here recently. Though they are the exceptions to the shite, as both bands are timewarped in Bowie/Roxy 70's glam/electro kitsch and are pretty cool. The local press needs to get it's act together and do some serious research on whats important, didn't 'It Makes You Want To Spit' tell them anything? These retro punk gigs are getting more and more like watching your life fly by in the fast lane, unable to catch it up. Where did all the years go? Next stop those reborn in the USA trash city rockers, more about that soon. Joe Donnelly. Belfast 21.5.04. |
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