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Keeping the Faith
The dust had barely settled from John Otway’s assault on the place when Day Two of the Easter eggstravaganza got underway. I was in the bar when the bands arrived. My old friend Mel found me there, finishing the previous entry – I hadn’t even seen her coming in.
I made my way into the music room after the soundchecks. The first thing I noticed was a low wall of speakers at the side of the stage. This was the Luke Warm Sound System, three middle-aged guys who got into Reggae during their Mod days. They’d decorated the walls with banners, posters, and a large Union flag – hung correctly, to boot. With Colin’s scooter in pride of place on the stage, the room looked amazing. (Have a look at Clint and Ros’s photos and you’ll see what I mean.) Our visitors were sitting around in little groups, and I had a brief chat with Mel, her husband Dai and his bandmates from Tenplusone before things got started.
First up were the Guttersluts. The lads are from Leeds, and they’re unashamedly an old-school Punk band. Barrie had shown me some videos, and they are completely outrageous. Three normal-looking black-clad guys, all about my age, back up two frontmen. So far, so good. One of the singers looks fairly anonymous too, but his sparring partner has stepped straight out of the Rift from 1978. Sporting a huge green mohican, with tattoos everywhere, a pink tutu (‘because me red one’s in the wash’), his belly overhanging an elephant posing pouch … Well, you get the idea.
Playing a great mix of well-known and obscure Punk songs, abusing all and sundry, teasing Dai and Mel’s young daughter Polly, pulling unwary ‘volunteers’ onstage for fun and games (including Barrie, Amanda and your humble reporter), the Guttersluts definitely got the afternoon going with a bang.
People were trickling in, but I felt a bit sorry for our friends from the North when they played to a couple of dozen people. A couple of my friends pointed out that Easter weekend is when the first scooter rallies take place. There was one in Porthcawl, and a lot of our natural audience would have made their way there. Maybe it was a tactical error trying to put on a Mod event when everyone was heading for the coast instead.
And now a confession: I’d suggested adding a third band to Saturday’s line-up. Dai’s new band Tenplusone haven’t played in Aberdare before, so I thought they’d represent added value. Gaz, the guitarist/singer, used to be in Headshot with Nick (currently in Cool Beans and Skacasm), so we had an extra Aberdare connection. Theoretically, it should have worked.
Unfortunately, I think the crowd was expecting back-to-back covers. Tenplusone were excellent, but I think they went over many people’s heads. That was my tactical error. Having said that, Barrie suggested that they might suit a Blowout night. I’ll keep them in mind next time I’m chatting with Mitch and Connor.
The good news is that Dai’s day job is as a food hygiene instructor. Amanda’s food hygiene certificate is up for renewal; the girls at the bar want to get qualified as well. Dai’s going to sort it out for them.
To round off the night, we were pleased to welcome back Inner City, a top-notch Jam tribute band from Weston-super-Mare. The guys have been fans of the band since they were actually around, and their flawless delivery of so many classic tunes really energised the crowd. I was late coming to the Jam, and it was only their final performance (live on Channel 4’s The Tube) that showed me what I’d been missing. My pal Geoff – a huge Jam fan – had come along on my recommendation, and he was blown away by what the guys were doing.
It was good to chat to the band after their set, and to learn that they’d been impressed by Tenplusone. Maybe Dai and the others will get a support slot next time Inner City are in this neck of the woods. After all, no gig is ever a waste of time, as new contacts are made and alliances forged.
Sunday afternoon got off to a good start when the traditional bank holiday weather struck. With rain driving people indoors, the music room was filling up nicely even before the first band had set up. I chatted to Dai from Luke Warm Sounds, swapping stories, reminiscing about our time spent in London, and arranging for him to put posters up around the Rhondda Valley. (See – yet another contact!) Meanwhile, Barrie took the scooter off the stage to make room for an eleven-piece band. Seriously.
From Kidderminster, and mostly around student age or a little older, Stiff Joints are proof that great music crosses the generation gap without any difficulty. With two powerful frontmen, two guitarists, a bass player, a drummer, a horn trio, an extra percussionist, and the essential organ that characterises the Ska sound, these young guys played a dynamic and thoroughly enjoyable set of originals and unusual covers. I’ve always said that it’s possible to Skarify (sorry) just about any song you care to name – but even I was shocked by their reworking of a Nirvana classic.
This is going to be a case of ‘pot and kettle’, because the nearest I get to dancing is occasional foot-tapping. But it was a bit disheartening to see everyone sitting around listening to what is essentially great dance music. Maybe it was too early in the day – or maybe Aberdare is terminally stuck in the ‘I don’t know this song’ mindset – but I thought Stiff Joints deserved more action from the crowd. I was certainly happy to pick up their CD, and thanked them for a great set when they were packing their gear away.
The rain turned to sleet, and punters continued to pile in. I joined Clint and Ros in the bar for a drink, as it was quicker to get served in there. By the time Skacasm took to the stage, it was standing room only. They always pull in a good audience, and with bugger all else happening in town, I wasn’t surprised that they’d managed to fill the place.
In fact, about halfway through their superb set of post-Punk and Two-Tone classics, I slipped into my role as unofficial barmaid. Because nobody could slip away from the bar, the empty glasses were starting to outnumber the full ones. When I spotted the first plastic mugs, I borrowed Gav’s mic and asked everyone if they could return their empties to the bar. Yeah – it was that full! Did anyone listen? What do you think?
After they’d finished their set, I asked Gav and the lads if they’d be up for a future charity event I’m hoping to put on at Jac’s. It’ll depend on their prior bookings, but they’ve provisionally agreed to come on board. If it comes off, it’ll be brilliant.
One of the nicest aspects of the whole weekend was seeing how many of the old Mod gang (a few years younger than me, mostly) had kept the faith, as we say. Loads of guys were sporting Ben Sherman or Fred Perry, Levi’s, skinny ties, pork pie hats … There were a number of women with Mary Quant hairdos and authentic dresses. After all, Mod was the second youth subculture (after the whole Teddy Boy thing) to be as much about the look as about the music. Parkas are back in fashion among today’s youngsters. I don’t know whether they’re ‘quoting’ (as cultural historians say), or whether there’s a new subculture based around a hybrid style. I’ve no doubt that there’ll be people listening to the music that backgrounded my early teens in another forty years.
That’s why it was slightly disappointing that Inner City didn’t go the distance and dress for the part as well. After all, they’re probably one of the finest Jam tributes on the circuit today. Would it really hurt them to put on the suits and ties, rather than wearing what they wore on the drive up from Somerset? But that’s my only slight reservation about the whole weekend.
Next time we do this, we’ll check the calendar for potential clashes to give as many people as possible the chance to come. Who knows – I might even revolt into style myself. Watch this space …
