Summer is here and on the pub and gig scene things are finally at least
starting to get back to what used to pass for 'normal' - whatever
that was...
So I find myself back in Camden for the first time in nearly 18 months - going to an actual music venue. But not without one or two liveners up the road in
BrewDog first - I have largely stopped drinking in music venues now due to the bar prices and poor quality beer. Suitably refreshed it's back down the road to the
Black Heart - a nice little music venue, but no longer a good place to drink - and the unisex toilets there are dire too. However, tonight there are two excellent bands to tempt me. The first might look familiar even if their name isn't.
This is The Oblivion Kids. They take their name from a song by the
Last Great Dreamers. In fact this band
is essentially Last Great Dreamers playing as a 3 piece without guitarist and lead vocalist Marc Valentine who is having to take time out from the band for health reasons. Lead guitarist Slyder now steps forward to take over vocal duties - and does a pretty good job of it. Slyder has changed his image slightly, and the guitar sound is harder and heavier. The set is mostly Last Great Dreamers songs, but not all the more familiar ones, although one or two of the 'hits' do make it into the setlist. The band work well as a power trio, but you do definitely have the feeling something is missing - as indeed it is. This is effectively the rest of the band keeping their hand in until Marc's eventual return...
There are familiar faces in tonight's headline band too, although this is a new band - even if the material isn't. Actually, I haven't seen some of these guys for so long and their image has changed so much that when I see them before the show I have difficulty even recognising them.
The Needful Things are a bunch of guys from other now defunct bands formerly well known on the underground scene - a bunch of mates who thought it would be fun to pool their resources and old setlists from their previous bands and go out on tour just for fun. And guess what? It
is fun!
The singer is 'Hilda' from the infamous
Drugdealer*Cheerleader and Waterbratz. He looks like he's
really missed being on a stage fronting a band. Lead guitarist Ben Marsden formerly of
The Main Grains and currently
The Spangles is no slouch on 6 string duties and more recently has been recording and touring with the
Warner E. Hodges Band. Sadly his 'Van Halen guitar' only lasted one song before breaking.
Fortunately he had his trusty Gibson ES-335 on hand - a proper rock & roll guitar!
Bass duties are taken up by Rob Lane AKA
Laney 74 formerly of Teenage Casket Company, DIP,
BulletBoys, and even
Let Loose - plus touring/depping with
many other bands. In recent years he has been playing with
Ryan Hamilton & The Harlequin Ghosts.
Also featured are guitarist A.J. and drummer Chris Reed from New Generation Superstars.
Together they are the self styled "Greatest Underground Supergroup EVER!" and play songs from all the bands they are best known from.
Even if you aren't that familiar with these guys and their previous bands you can be sure that you will be well entertained by The Needful Things and see some guys who are well known on the underground rock 'n' roll scene for good reason - even if not while in
this band. Yet. And you will also see a bunch of friends who are out performing for the right reasons - to have
fun.It was great to see some of the regular old faces from London's live music scene in the crowd - people I haven't seen for about two years. This isn't
just about the music - it's also about socialising and having a
life. For nearly two years now many of us have just been
existing, surviving, but not
living. Now maybe we can finally start
living again.
It looks like live music is coming back - enjoy it while you can, because it may not last. Now is the time to get back to supporting live bands and music venues. They have both been really struggling for well over a year and some have already fallen by the wayside.
As long as there is an audience the show can and will go on - but you need to be there if our rock 'n roll culture is going to survive...
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