Yes, here I am back at Dingwalls again for this excellent triple bill for Norwegian independance day and to launch the new Urban Voodoo Machine album 'In Black 'N Red.' What could go wrong....?
Kind of as I would expect we know loads of people at this gig who have shown up to see some or all of the bands on the bill. First on is NIGEL BURCH playing a solo set on his Banjo. Amazingly for Nigel he actually sounds and acts like he is sober! Even if all the songs are about his usual state of
drunkeness which for any of us that have seen him stumbling around legless for 20 plus years is as we would expect it.
That said he really should be a far bigger name than he is and considering who he has played with over the years is still surprisingly unknown. A good opening set for sure.
He was followed shortly afterwards by the new line up of LAST MAN STANDING: Max Vanderwolf's long-running Junk Shop glam band who as ever sound like a cross between The Rats/Dave "Kuby"
Kubinec's solo work and the lesser offshoots of David Bowie's bands like Woody Woodmanseys U-boat or Juniors Eyes mixed with a heavy helping of Mott the Hoople.
They played quite a few songs of the excellent debut album False Starts and Broken Promises from '06 including a tasty version of Everything Must Go and the ever appropriate Bar Room Floor. Do they play like A Man Condemned? Well the female drummer doesn't but the rest of them might well. The Dean Street Stumble sounds more and more like the first cousin to The Rats "Oxford Donna" only not quite as sleazy as that tune.
It's good to see Last Man Standing back and I look forward to seeing them again soon. I'm still wondering what Max did to get thrown out of Dingwalls while Urban Voodoo Machine were on.
Then it was time for the URBAN VOODOO MACHINE to come onto the extended stage that apparently Dingwalls had made them pay to extend so that all the band would have room. Bearing in mind that they went from a 9 piece up to a 14 (or was it 15?) piece band meant it was one very busy stage indeed as they came out to Theme From Urban Voodoo Machine with Lady Ane Angel banging her gong while dressed like Betty from Wilson Kepple and Betty.
Then Paul Ronnie Angel and the band kicked into Love song 666 and they were off on a very long and action packed set that covered a lot of ground over the course of their two hour set.
The only really downbeat moment of the set was when they did Heroin (their song about how many of their friends have died from the Class A drug) but they are never far from a belter like The Orphan's Lament or Go East to get the place dancing and going wild.
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Train Wreck Blues sounded an awful lot like How I Wish my Train Would come that the North Mississippi Allstars had sung the weekbefore but of course with a tasty trumpet solo from Lloyd and some nice accordian from Slim. Throughout the set guests got onstage to join them including (on musical saw and theremin)
Adrian Stout from the Tiger Lillies and the band's producer Alex MacGowan on Piano as well as Ms Lucifire on Saxophone.
The band's troubles with Dingwalls security began when Lady Ane Angel came out for some Firebreathing for Goodbye to Another Year. Although the band had permission for the fire the security guy went a little batty and stopped her halfway through which was brave as tackling a woman with a mouthful of fire breathing fuel is a touch dangerous.
Apparently the securtity then shut the bar as punishment for this crime. Perhaps they wanted to join The Real Criminals on the band's shitlist but things seemed to be going downhill with the security trying to stop the band playing just as they were encouraging more guests onstage.
Were they really going to stop us seeing Boz Boorer playing clarinet and jamming with Nick Marsh as they go Down In A Hole? I hoped not as it was a superb version and was followed by a long old venue baiting encore that saw Boz switch to his guitar and the band jamming on a multitude of songs that ended in a frantic finish of Ray Charles Thats's What I say and three or four songs that I could sing along to but don't remember the names of. It was a great finish to a great and dramatic set.
A pity Dingwalls wouldn't let the band sell the album they have advertised on the toilet walls above the urinals. It just added to the strange tension prevalent at the gig and the staff practically forced us all out of the doors as quick as they could. Ah for the old days when the headliner wouldn't have even gone on by 11.30. Tonight that was the time this show ended.
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