17/11/2011 King Mob & Bermondsey Joyriders @ 229

Subject	King Mob & Bermondsey Joyriders @ 229
DateCreated	11/28/2011 3:15:00 PM
	This is the first time I've been to the large room at 229 and I'm pleasantly surprised. No real ale on tap, but found something reasonable in bottles - not cheap though. A nice spacious venue with a large stage and very good lighting. Bermondsey Joyriders are supporting and seem to draw a respectable crowd. Like the headliners, this is a band made up from members of various well known bands from the past - Cock Sparrer, Chelsea, and now Squeeze. It's good to see them on a large stage for a change, and their show fills it better than most 3 piece bands can manage. The setlist consists entirely of songs from the band's current 'Noise & Revolution' album, but I really miss hearing some of the songs from their first album like 'Cafe Racer' and 'Who Are Ya!'. Little do I know - this will be addressed later in the month... The PA seems quite decent for a change and the band sound good tonight. Actually, they always seem to sound good - there is a lot to be said for plugging guitars straight into amplifiers with no effects pedals or anything in between. Good players don't need effects to make them sound good - much of their sound is in their fingers. Once again the band have brought former White Panther and MC5 manager John Sinclair in to introduce the songs from the new 'Noise & Revolution' album with some of his specially written poetry, and it works rather well. Touches like this, and having a tuxedo'd assistant to turn the pages that illustrate the different songs on their board really make their current shows stand out. This band don't just look and sound different to anyone else around, they add things to their show to give the audience something to remember. It's very effective. The Bermondsey Joyriders may look and sound like a proper rock 'n' roll band (because they are) but they is also plenty of punk attitude and working class spirit to show where they come from. There is quite a bit of social comment in the lyrics too - all straight from the heart. This band mean it. And so to the headliners. King Mob draw a decent crowd of aging 1970's ex-punk rockers - here to see well known names like ex-Sex Pistol Glen Matlock, 70's guitar legend Chris Spedding, and Martin Chambers from The Pretenders. Steve Parsons on vocals is quite a decent frontman, and young whippersnapper 'Sixteen' handles 2nd guitar duties. Sometime you find a band who might not be the greatest musicians, but when you put them all together something special happens - chemistry kicks in and you can end up with something greater than the sum of the parts. Sadly, the opposite is the case here. In spite of the pedigree of the players - this band is dull. The songs are nothing special and there is little spark to the performance. Maybe if we hadn't just seen a great set from the Bermondsey Joyriders then King Mob would have seemed better, but on this occasion the support band turned in a far more memorable show and a far livelier performance. Guitar 'legend' Chris Spedding doesn't really impress and doesn't even seem to play much lead guitar. And no - they didn't play 'Motorbiking'! Or anything by The Pistols or Pretenders. Glen Matlock is a great bass player, but tonight it seems more like he's going through the motions, as is Martin Chambers. The music sounds like very generic 1970's rock with the odd bit of rock-a-billy thrown in. Steve Parsons easily wins the 'Worst Dressed Frontman of the Year Award'. What was he thinking? So, a less than inspiring end to the evening - but Bermondsey Joyriders were worth the price of admission on their own.