24 February 2005

Gaye Bykers on Acid


Or was is Lesbian Dopeheads on Mopeds, or Rektum, or whichever version of the Leicester grebo outfit which turned up that particular night? Grebo seemed basically to be dirty long hairs, playing sort of metal, all coming from the midlands, whether East (GBOA, Crazyhead) or West (Pop Will Eat Itself before they found E and dance music).

This was May 1987, some time after Everythang's Groovy and before Nosedive Karma. It was a Friday night, and they were playing at a real shitehole in Birkenhead - the Hard Rock Cavern, I think it was called. It was in some warehouse type building behind Hamilton Square and took ages just to find. I remember John B, Rob Hill, maybe Si G being there, no doubt a few others. Unfortunately, Crazyhead were playing the same night at Stairways. So, being fellow Leicester boys, GBOA trooped off to see their mates, not making it back to the club until well after midnight and of course being totally wasted. By that time, the "crowd" was down to about 10-15 of us. There was a broken amp and general chaos, Rob ended up falling onto the tiny stage while moshing, and yes, the band were technically crap, helping the grebo tag live up to its moniker of mediocrity. But, it was fun.

Of course, in those days, we had to go to school the next morning, on a Saturday, beurgh. I think I slept through double further maths.

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21 February 2005

SOD



Kirk Brandon and his various incarnations - Theatre of Hate, Spear of Destiny, all having some vague kind of Nazi symbolism, certainly Wagner-esque in dramatic potential. By 1987, Spear of Destiny had achieved some commercial success, with the majestic "Never Take Me Alive" a hit single from the album Outland, which made it top 10.


This was another gig at the Liverpool Royal Court, in April 1987. There are bootlegs around of a Kilburn show from the same tour, which was broadcast on Radio 1 (I have an old, old tape copy). I went to this show with Tim Holden, I think. No idea who opened for them. The setlist was similar to other shows from the tour, running through old and new songs, and all the ones you'd expect. It was amazing how quiet it got through Mickey.

A weird bunch for sure, and pretty much just the vehicle for Brandon. Amazingly enough, he is out there gigging as well, playing shows with Mike Peters from the Alarm and other forgotten names from the 80s pseudo-punk crowd.
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14 February 2005

Oh, those lips



My first ever long distance gig. Travelled down by train to Birmingham on a Sunday for the Cure show at the Birmingham NEC, a soulless arena if ever there was one, full of totally anal security guards. Being a Sunday in the 80s in Birmingham, bugger all was open, so we (me & John B) spent the day bored in the station and MacDonalds (spit). It was 6 December 1987. I don't think they even had a support band. We had front row seats, and as soon as the lights went down made a rush and got in prime position standing against the barrier. Of course in a big venue like that, it meant cricked necks looking up to see the band!


The show started with a projection of bright red lips on a huge screen, before they launched into The Kiss. The set list was:

the kiss
torture
a strange day
a japanese dream
catch
just like heaven
hot hot hot
if only tonight we could sleep
like cockatoos
the walk
inbetween days
how beautiful you are
the perfect girl
the snakepit
a forest
fight
close to me
let’s go to bed
one more time
charlotte sometimes
faith
three imaginary boys
primary
boys don’t cry
why can’t i be you

Fantastic show, I even have some photos somewhere in a file at home. Of course, no zoom, no digital camera, so the band look tiny.

Then, there was the train journey home, late on a Sunday, with BR at its finest. We had to hang around at Crewe station for an hour or more, and I think we got in at about 3am and had school the next morning. But it was worth it, though I probably still owe my mum for the tickets.
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11 February 2005

Damned if you do, Damned if you don't

Dave Vanian and his hearse. Rat Scabies. Punk gone goth with the album Phantasmagoria. Didn't make it to that tour, we were a bit scared of all the punks coming out of the woodwork. Instead, went to the next one, late 1986 or so, supporting the Anything album, which was pretty rubbish really. It did score them hits with Eloise and the cover of Alone Again Or. I guess by then they were comedy punks. It was at Liverpool Royal Court, lots of black, lots of dry ice, we were sitting in the circle. No idea who I went with or really much about it at all.


Astoundingly, they are still around! But just look at the toilets they are playing. No Rat Scabies, but Captain Sensible is back and as silly as ever. The undead never die, they just sleep more.

Wow - it's amazing what's out there on the net. This bootleg list even lets me work out the date of the show I went to - 13 October 1986. Hmm, wonder who else was there? Si Gee, John Buzz, maybe.
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10 February 2005

Anthemic Christian rock

There must have been some shows in 1986, but I'm drawing a blank for now. I remember having tickets for Half Man Half Biscuit at the Royal Court, but they split up, and the Smiths Queen is Dead tour didn't come to town, alas. One of my great regrets is never seeing them in their glory days, though if recent history is anything to go by, they'll join the long list of reformers looking for a last pay day. Did I hear anyone say Bauhaus?


For some reason, at this time, I liked The Alarm. Not really sure why. Maybe it was their easily accessible stadium rock, which hadn't quite made it big. There was that whole Celtic rock thing going on - Simple Minds, Big Country, U2, Runrig and the like. So, I trooped along to the Royal Court, April 25, 1987 to see the local boys from Rhyl or one of those other shitty North Wales coast towns, full of caravan parks and scallies from the estates on a day out at the arcades.

I can remember the majestic opening bars of Strength kicking it all off, then a run through a few new songs from the forthcoming Electric Folklore tour, and all the classics - Where were you hiding?, 68 Guns, Spirit of '76, KnifeEdge, One step closer to home. Lots of people jumping up and down. In the weeks later, I managed to pick up a bootleg of the show from one of the dodgy geezers at the monthly record fair at Quiggins.

It was only later I found out they were a bunch of Christians. And unbelievably, they're still going, or at least Mike Peters is back out there for more. What ever happened to our heroes crashing and burning in a blaze of glory?
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09 February 2005

Back for more

Ahhh, the mighty Echo & the Bunnymen. Sometime October/November 1985, I think, again at the Liverpool Royal Court. So many of my early gigs were there. More to follow in future posts about that venue and the gigs I saw.




I think it was the Songs to Learn and Sing tour, as that album came out in November 85, along with the single Bring on the Dancing Horses.



Anyway, the excitement of getting the train into the city. Buying my first ever smokes - 10 B&H, please love - in a sorry effort to impress my mates and look hard. We were up in the rafters on the top level, with its precipitous drop. I think I was with Fran Eyre, Si Gee and someone else - John Buzz, maybe? Support was the Woodentops (it was close to C86 times), who were pretty good, but got bottled off stage - hometown show for the Bunnymen and all that. Can't say I remember much about the show itself, apart from just how fucking cool Mac was. Ocean Rain remains one of the greatest albums of all and Mac is still an arrogant twat, if recent radio pieces on BBC 6 Music are anything to go by.



It wasn't the last time I saw this band, but it was the driver that started me off on seeing more live music. Thanks, guys.
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08 February 2005

My first time

Howard Jones, Liverpool Royal Court. I guess it must have been late 1983 or early 1984, in the third year at school, so 13 years old. So exciting, going across to the city, all dressed up with my mates at the time (Marnie, Bish & Howie, maybe). Wearing my pegs, grandfather shirt and blue shoes. What do I remember now? Bugger all, apart from a dreadful support band and some pissed up jocks throwing up in the middle of the crowd. In retrospect, it's not a horrendous first gig, but not as cool as it could have been. Things picked up though.





Then and now. Time's been relatively kind, but is that the haircut for a 50 year old?