24/8/2014 Maleficent, The Camden Cat & Paradise Alley @ The Purple Turtle

...So for the second time this month I find myself rushing off from afternoon gig in a North London park to see more live music in Camden. Tonight see's the return of the 'Dusk Till Dawn' club. I arrive at Purple Turtle in time to see the last song from 90's sleaze/glam rockers Paradise Alley.

I don't get time to form much of an impression, but it seems like competently played but generic stuff.

Next up is The Camden Cat (or Cats) AKA Daniel Jeanrenaud. This guy is the real deal and can be seen busking on the tube or playing with his band at venues all over Camden and the West End.

This is very authentic sounding and looking 1950's style rock & roll, played by someone who has actually played with many of the greats in the past. This guy knows how real rock & roll should sound and how it should be played. Daniel has an excellent band - I think the double bass player used to be in King Kurt and the drummer was in The Quireboys.

The next band is something a little different.

Maleficent have been continually evolving for several years and singers 'Maleficent Martini' and 'Mortimer Cain' are the only members remaining from the first time I saw the band.

The band's live performance has also developed dramatically. In the band's early days there didn't seem to be that much that was actually 'live' apart from the vocals, and the dependence on technology rather than musicians often led to things going wrong during live shows.

These days this is far more of a real live band with guitar, bass, and drums being much more to the fore - and the show is all the better for it. The sound is still heavy with an industrial slant, but the feel is more organic.

This show is intended to promote the band's debut single 'Model Song' - always a highlight of their live set. I think the show is a success from that point of view as the band play to a fairly full room tonight and their set is well received.

The headliners Vince Ray and the Boneshakers are due to end the night with more authentic looking and sounding rock & roll and rockabilly, but things are already running late and I can see that if I stay to see them I will miss the last tube yet again. As I have to be up at six in the morning I decide to cut my losses and head for home while there are still trains running...