They Came From The East 25/09/2010
click on the above link for full review
Greg Cowans 50th Birthaday Bash -
Black Box, Belfast, 12/06/2010
old punks never die......................................
The children of the blank generation aint getting any younger and thats a fact .
Here we are tonight on our way to a party in the street where the Harp bar once stood to celebrate the 50th birthday of ex Outcast and still spikey Peter Pan of NI punk Greg Cowan , its a surreal situation. Happily I still have a few years before I reach my half century but its still f****** depressing thinking about it .
As you'd expect from a shy & retiring soul like Greg it was a low key affair .Yeah! right , the Black Box was transformed into an interior designed nightmare of black candleabras , tacky red balloons on ribbons plus the Sex and the City girls were out in force though counterbalanced with a fair smattering of old rockabilly and punky pals which included amongst others ( I can't remember the rest) Big Bear Long , Mully, Spikey Steve (Dead Styles) , Jim Reilly (SLF) , Terry Sharpe (Starjets),Tony Magill,Gerry & Mickey McKenna (Stalag 17),Fletch (Stage B), Mickey Murray, Sammy Haveron and me (obviously!!).
The party had been going since 5.00pm for the Cowan family & friends, with the liggers starting to appear a few hours later , a film crew were gathering footage for another upcoming punk doc when we arrived around 8.00pm.
The Kara Cowan band started the evenings entertainment off but we stayed outside and had a laugh watching Belfast legend 'Big Phil the Bear' wind up Jimmy Reilly over his alleged McManus drape , Jimmy was pissed off and did not look happy but it was very funny looking on . We went inside and the hostess with the mostess Mr Cowan himslf was in full flow doing the rounds mingling and joking with everyone , he was on great form and thoroughly enjoying himself .
Next up it was 'The Band With No Name' and this is no clever dick moniker they really had no name but they had an excellent short seven song set of classic covers with a couple of Outcasts originals thrown in for good measure. If ever there was going to be an Outcasts reformation then I reckon this was as close as it is going to get in 2010 with Greg ( it's my party and I'll sing if I want to)and Martin Cowan , Raymond Falls (back from god knows where) plus honoury Outcasts for a night (lol) Brian Young (Rudi) ,Petesy Burns (Stalag 17) and Kara Cowan. The set list was excellent Dancing with myself (Gen X), Rebel Rebel (Bowie),White man in the Hammersmith Palais (Clash ), Winter (Outcasts), Self concious over you(Outcasts), Ruby (Kenny Rogers) and finally the song that changed Gregs life as he jested 'the Sash' we all had a giggle as the band launched into Anarchy in the UK (Sex Pistols). The Pistols would be spinning in their graves if they had witnessed the pantomime reaction and antics of some of the less enlightened members of this audience during this performance of their anthem for a generation 34 years on. During the Outcasts numbers we had the very pleasent distraction of a trio of S/M fetish dancers gyrating on the dancefloor . I wasn't expecting this ,it was different and the music and theatrics worked pretty well together.
For a band who only had a couple of rehearsals prior to tonight they sounded really good and managed to keep it together most of the time , I hope they consider doing a few more full set covers gigs becuse this was a whole lotta fun .
Bring back Hades Whores!!.
One person surprisingly missing the shindig was Terri Hooley and we all know he's a man who likes a party. When I asked where he was I was told he was away djing and getting up to all sorts of debauchery and excess with his rock star buddies Snow Patrol on their current tour , well I know where I'd have rather been.
We left early and didn't bother with the after party in the Printers Cafe , but all I can say is roll on Gregs 60th .
Joe Donnelly Belfast 13.6.10.
Here we are tonight on our way to a party in the street where the Harp bar once stood to celebrate the 50th birthday of ex Outcast and still spikey Peter Pan of NI punk Greg Cowan , its a surreal situation. Happily I still have a few years before I reach my half century but its still f****** depressing thinking about it .
As you'd expect from a shy & retiring soul like Greg it was a low key affair .Yeah! right , the Black Box was transformed into an interior designed nightmare of black candleabras , tacky red balloons on ribbons plus the Sex and the City girls were out in force though counterbalanced with a fair smattering of old rockabilly and punky pals which included amongst others ( I can't remember the rest) Big Bear Long , Mully, Spikey Steve (Dead Styles) , Jim Reilly (SLF) , Terry Sharpe (Starjets),Tony Magill,Gerry & Mickey McKenna (Stalag 17),Fletch (Stage B), Mickey Murray, Sammy Haveron and me (obviously!!).
The party had been going since 5.00pm for the Cowan family & friends, with the liggers starting to appear a few hours later , a film crew were gathering footage for another upcoming punk doc when we arrived around 8.00pm.
The Kara Cowan band started the evenings entertainment off but we stayed outside and had a laugh watching Belfast legend 'Big Phil the Bear' wind up Jimmy Reilly over his alleged McManus drape , Jimmy was pissed off and did not look happy but it was very funny looking on . We went inside and the hostess with the mostess Mr Cowan himslf was in full flow doing the rounds mingling and joking with everyone , he was on great form and thoroughly enjoying himself .
Next up it was 'The Band With No Name' and this is no clever dick moniker they really had no name but they had an excellent short seven song set of classic covers with a couple of Outcasts originals thrown in for good measure. If ever there was going to be an Outcasts reformation then I reckon this was as close as it is going to get in 2010 with Greg ( it's my party and I'll sing if I want to)and Martin Cowan , Raymond Falls (back from god knows where) plus honoury Outcasts for a night (lol) Brian Young (Rudi) ,Petesy Burns (Stalag 17) and Kara Cowan. The set list was excellent Dancing with myself (Gen X), Rebel Rebel (Bowie),White man in the Hammersmith Palais (Clash ), Winter (Outcasts), Self concious over you(Outcasts), Ruby (Kenny Rogers) and finally the song that changed Gregs life as he jested 'the Sash' we all had a giggle as the band launched into Anarchy in the UK (Sex Pistols). The Pistols would be spinning in their graves if they had witnessed the pantomime reaction and antics of some of the less enlightened members of this audience during this performance of their anthem for a generation 34 years on. During the Outcasts numbers we had the very pleasent distraction of a trio of S/M fetish dancers gyrating on the dancefloor . I wasn't expecting this ,it was different and the music and theatrics worked pretty well together.
For a band who only had a couple of rehearsals prior to tonight they sounded really good and managed to keep it together most of the time , I hope they consider doing a few more full set covers gigs becuse this was a whole lotta fun .
Bring back Hades Whores!!.
One person surprisingly missing the shindig was Terri Hooley and we all know he's a man who likes a party. When I asked where he was I was told he was away djing and getting up to all sorts of debauchery and excess with his rock star buddies Snow Patrol on their current tour , well I know where I'd have rather been.
We left early and didn't bother with the after party in the Printers Cafe , but all I can say is roll on Gregs 60th .
Joe Donnelly Belfast 13.6.10.
Hedwig & the Angry Inch - RAOB Club, Belfast, 02/05/2010
by Joe Donnelly
|
Time To Be Proud cd launch
Why is it that Spikey Steve and me seem to be magnets for nutters at gigs ? , yeah ! we had two real rockets sitting beside us throughout this gig and I'm not talking about Guy and Mully lol. But even these harmless eccentrics couldn't distract us from what turned out to be a really good night in the heart of the Belfast city Cathedral Quarter. Tonights supposedly 15 act shindig (which thankfully turned out to be 12 acts) was to celebrate the long awaited release of the 36 track 'Time to be Proud' triple cd compilation (which isn't actually available as yet) but the show must go on .
The idea was that each band was to play at least one original song and one NI punk classic tune , not that they all did though . Read on .
First up was the 'Cara Cowan Band' who on this occasion featured her dad 'Martin' ex of the Outcasts on acoustic guitar.
Now I've seen her live a number times over the past few years and if I'm being honest I've not been that impressed but her short two song set tonight consisting of one self penned number I can't remember the name off and a radically reworked cover of the Outcasts 'Magnum Force'was pretty good,
'Kitty and the Canopeners' were an odd band , a whimsicle mix of lightweight indie pop with chimes and strange song titles like 'Henry is a little dragon' and their chosen cover was the Undertones 'Wednesday Week' . Do you know what even though I'd never heard of them before tonight I liked them in a Nouvelle Vague kinda way.
'Velma' on the other hand I have seen previously and they're highly rated in certain circles . They are a very tight band and the female frontperson is not short on confidence . Again we got the one un-named original tune followed by a pretty rough rendition of Stiff Little Fingers 'Suspect Device' which went down surprisingly well .
Saw 'John D'Arcy' a couple of weeks back at the Burnt Out gig and I was well impressed then ,well tonight he was just as good and his choice of cover the Starjets 'War Stories'was perfect for me as its one of my favourite local punk 45s . His own song 'Teenage Meltdown' is another very catchy new wavey singalong tune .
The Dollybirds were another band I thought were new to me until somone told me they used to be known some years ago as PBR streetgang . I actually remembered seeing them supporting the Mission in the Ulster hall way back then and I didn't like them .Tonight was a different matter they were great , the Clash are oviously their favourite band as the westway revolutionaires influence is all over their sound,Welcome to the scrapheap and their cover of SLF's 'At the edge were highlights of the night .
The Terri Hooley experience I've had the misfortune of having seen live before so I knew what to expect but Spikey Steve was oblivious and he couldn't believe what he was seeing . After sitting through two very shouty expletive filled getting it off your chest rants masquerading as songs he now thinks Terri is mad as a box of frogs ,but a good guy .
Belfasts premier rockabilly kingpins and europes favourite greaser combo the Sabrejets were up next , looking cool and sounding great .
No sooner had they got into their groove that their three song set was over and that was that . They've made the Outcasts '7 deadly sins' their own , and they dedicated ' Too fast to live, Too young to die to Malcolm Mclaren the man who never had an original idea of his own .
I'd been waiting years for the next band to reappear 'Stop Stop Start Again' ,who you might ask ?. Well thats understandable as this is their debut gig under this moniker but you might be more familiar with the name 'Stage B' ,yes its them well two ex members Fletch and Charlie from the legendary gothic punk combo .
I loved Stage B so this was a big deal for me (and a few others here), I've been encouraging / badgering the lads to do something for years and finally tonights the night and it was like they'd never been away .The band were fired up on nervous energy while Charlie just picked up were he left off all those years ago and showed no nerves at all .
It was strange watching Paul Rowan sing 'Recall to Life ' while Charlie Reilly was sitting only a few feet away but it sounded really good from the off . Charlie then got up and joined SSSA for 'Light on the hillside and a cool version of Magazines 'Shot by both sides' .
This short set was worth the wait , it was a very good start to a new era for 'Stop Stop Start Again' and I'm pleased that theres a few more shows planned for the very near future .
St Vitus Dance were next but I can't report much as I was standing outside the venue chatting with punk author Guy Trelford and missed most of their set , but they did a great version of Rudi's under-rated 45 'Overcome by fumes'.
The Defects were totally up for this show after a below par performance (by their own high standards ) at the recent Cramps tribute , they were onfire here tonight .
Rebellion 2010 aint gonna know what hit it, the Defects absolutely nailed it here.
Ricky Warwick is a genuine homegrown rock star , so it was a treat to see him in a intimate venue up close and personal .
His two song set wasn't nowhere near enough 'Arms of Belfast town'and a storming cover of SLF's classic 'Alternative Ulster' with Buck sharing the vocals and that was it . Pity he couldn't have played a few more songs , but hey! thems the breaks.
Terri Hooley and Buck Defect then payed a heartfelt tribute to music journalist and friend Carol Clerk RIP who passed away recently .
And so to the headliners $hame Academy , what can I say I haven't said a million times before.
Even tech problems and frequent interuptions from Terri Hooley who was getting more and more liquored as the night progressed couldn't put them off .
The aggravation actually made them sound a bit more aggressive and edgey than normal .
No point picking out their NI punk classic song because $hame Academy's whole set is made up of NI punk classic tunes .
It was business as usual with $A ,as always it does exactly what it says on the tin 'pure 100% vintage NI punk rock' .
This was a much better night than the expected disaster with so many bands playing one after another and William Maxwell deserves credit for putting on this gig and the getting all the artists together for the compilation cd , I look forward to hearing the cd it in its entirity and to the proposed 'They came from the East' gig , but thats for another day .
Its the Belfast stage debut of the cult alternative musical . Hedwig and the Angry Inch. on sunday at the RAOB directed by the hardest working man in punk rock and current $hame Academy and A Political member Petesy Burns , It should be another night to remember.
Vive le Revolution .
Joe Donnelly Belfast 1.5.10.
The idea was that each band was to play at least one original song and one NI punk classic tune , not that they all did though . Read on .
First up was the 'Cara Cowan Band' who on this occasion featured her dad 'Martin' ex of the Outcasts on acoustic guitar.
Now I've seen her live a number times over the past few years and if I'm being honest I've not been that impressed but her short two song set tonight consisting of one self penned number I can't remember the name off and a radically reworked cover of the Outcasts 'Magnum Force'was pretty good,
'Kitty and the Canopeners' were an odd band , a whimsicle mix of lightweight indie pop with chimes and strange song titles like 'Henry is a little dragon' and their chosen cover was the Undertones 'Wednesday Week' . Do you know what even though I'd never heard of them before tonight I liked them in a Nouvelle Vague kinda way.
'Velma' on the other hand I have seen previously and they're highly rated in certain circles . They are a very tight band and the female frontperson is not short on confidence . Again we got the one un-named original tune followed by a pretty rough rendition of Stiff Little Fingers 'Suspect Device' which went down surprisingly well .
Saw 'John D'Arcy' a couple of weeks back at the Burnt Out gig and I was well impressed then ,well tonight he was just as good and his choice of cover the Starjets 'War Stories'was perfect for me as its one of my favourite local punk 45s . His own song 'Teenage Meltdown' is another very catchy new wavey singalong tune .
The Dollybirds were another band I thought were new to me until somone told me they used to be known some years ago as PBR streetgang . I actually remembered seeing them supporting the Mission in the Ulster hall way back then and I didn't like them .Tonight was a different matter they were great , the Clash are oviously their favourite band as the westway revolutionaires influence is all over their sound,Welcome to the scrapheap and their cover of SLF's 'At the edge were highlights of the night .
The Terri Hooley experience I've had the misfortune of having seen live before so I knew what to expect but Spikey Steve was oblivious and he couldn't believe what he was seeing . After sitting through two very shouty expletive filled getting it off your chest rants masquerading as songs he now thinks Terri is mad as a box of frogs ,but a good guy .
Belfasts premier rockabilly kingpins and europes favourite greaser combo the Sabrejets were up next , looking cool and sounding great .
No sooner had they got into their groove that their three song set was over and that was that . They've made the Outcasts '7 deadly sins' their own , and they dedicated ' Too fast to live, Too young to die to Malcolm Mclaren the man who never had an original idea of his own .
I'd been waiting years for the next band to reappear 'Stop Stop Start Again' ,who you might ask ?. Well thats understandable as this is their debut gig under this moniker but you might be more familiar with the name 'Stage B' ,yes its them well two ex members Fletch and Charlie from the legendary gothic punk combo .
I loved Stage B so this was a big deal for me (and a few others here), I've been encouraging / badgering the lads to do something for years and finally tonights the night and it was like they'd never been away .The band were fired up on nervous energy while Charlie just picked up were he left off all those years ago and showed no nerves at all .
It was strange watching Paul Rowan sing 'Recall to Life ' while Charlie Reilly was sitting only a few feet away but it sounded really good from the off . Charlie then got up and joined SSSA for 'Light on the hillside and a cool version of Magazines 'Shot by both sides' .
This short set was worth the wait , it was a very good start to a new era for 'Stop Stop Start Again' and I'm pleased that theres a few more shows planned for the very near future .
St Vitus Dance were next but I can't report much as I was standing outside the venue chatting with punk author Guy Trelford and missed most of their set , but they did a great version of Rudi's under-rated 45 'Overcome by fumes'.
The Defects were totally up for this show after a below par performance (by their own high standards ) at the recent Cramps tribute , they were onfire here tonight .
Rebellion 2010 aint gonna know what hit it, the Defects absolutely nailed it here.
Ricky Warwick is a genuine homegrown rock star , so it was a treat to see him in a intimate venue up close and personal .
His two song set wasn't nowhere near enough 'Arms of Belfast town'and a storming cover of SLF's classic 'Alternative Ulster' with Buck sharing the vocals and that was it . Pity he couldn't have played a few more songs , but hey! thems the breaks.
Terri Hooley and Buck Defect then payed a heartfelt tribute to music journalist and friend Carol Clerk RIP who passed away recently .
And so to the headliners $hame Academy , what can I say I haven't said a million times before.
Even tech problems and frequent interuptions from Terri Hooley who was getting more and more liquored as the night progressed couldn't put them off .
The aggravation actually made them sound a bit more aggressive and edgey than normal .
No point picking out their NI punk classic song because $hame Academy's whole set is made up of NI punk classic tunes .
It was business as usual with $A ,as always it does exactly what it says on the tin 'pure 100% vintage NI punk rock' .
This was a much better night than the expected disaster with so many bands playing one after another and William Maxwell deserves credit for putting on this gig and the getting all the artists together for the compilation cd , I look forward to hearing the cd it in its entirity and to the proposed 'They came from the East' gig , but thats for another day .
Its the Belfast stage debut of the cult alternative musical . Hedwig and the Angry Inch. on sunday at the RAOB directed by the hardest working man in punk rock and current $hame Academy and A Political member Petesy Burns , It should be another night to remember.
Vive le Revolution .
Joe Donnelly Belfast 1.5.10.
Burnt Out, Still Singing...
Oh Yeah Centre, Belfast 17/04/2010
Approximately six years ago 'North Street Arcade' was burnt to the ground in alleged suspicious circumstances. The arcade was a listed building in the heart of Belfast city centre that housed a number of art installations and a latter day version of the legendary Good Vibrations record store with the main man Terri Hooley still behind the counter. The Blaze reduced decades of Good Vibes history to nothing more than a pile of ashes .
So tonights gig was not only a celebration of Good Vibes pheonix like ressurection with a recently opened new shop and a label relaunch in 2010 but also a two fingered salute to the arsonists responsible for the destruction.
There was a real eclectic mix of mostly unfamiliar acts to me booked for tonight ,a couple I did know didn't actually turn up " The Jim Reilly band"due to volcanic ash and "the Terri Hooley Experience"??? ,the leader was here but no band ( wasn't that fussed about the second act playing anyway lol) .
In the end It turned out to be a very long but a good night out .
We arrived early and got a table right at the front complete with flickering tea light (classy or what!) ,thankfully there wasn't much chance of any pogoing reprobates from this crowd falling all over us and setting the place alight.
There was a lively audience in when Terri Hooley got up and made his not unexpected speech then introduced a local turn called 'Steve Amos' who performed self penned acoustic comedy songs about various subjects including "Neil Young " that were actually quite funny and gave everyone a laugh .
'Ludwig O'Neill' was up next and again he performed acoustic versions of two self penned numbers and a couple of covers, one of which was a great version of the Tramps dancefloor classic 'Disco Inferno'. I enjoyed his short set .
'Victoria Geelan' took to the stage and launched into some angry poetry followed by an accapella rendition of one of her own songs . Not my thing but she can certainly sing and has a big voice .
Terri was back onstage to introduce his next big thing 'John D'Arcy' who I thought was pretty good , he had a nice line in spikey new wavey tunes that actually reminded me of Patrick Fitzgerald .
Two hippy looking gents disheveled and barefoot called 'Scorpion Jack' were next ,bodran and acoustic guitar in hand they played the weirdest yet totally captivating tunes of the night and they were surprisingly great . A good lesson in don't judge a book by its cover .
My main reason for attending 'Angry Inch' were playing their debut gig here tonight and they didn't disappoint .A short six song set featuring two show tunes from "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" and four covers which included Stevie Wonder's "Superstion" and the Rezillo's "Destination Venus" put a bit of electricity into the proceeding and got the people dancing . Can't wait to see the full stage show next week .
If blues was your thing then the "Lee Hedly Band " would definitely have floated your boat . Very tight ,very old school in a Feelgoods / Inmates style .
Last but definitely least for me it was "the Moondogs", they're a good enough band but I don't know what it is about them I've never been able to get into their fluffy pop and the older those lightweight songs of spotty schoolboy crushes get really doesn't improve them for me . We lasted four songs then called it a night and headed home .
As I wrote earlier it was a good night but the constant stream of musicians going back and forward does wear you down and this doesn't bode well for the longawaited 'time to be Proud' cd launch gig on the 30.4.10 as theres going to be a lot more bands playing that night than at this show . Then again theres gonna be rockabilly and punk rock in the mix plus theres the long awaited return of two ex members of Stage B in 'Stop Stop Start Again' and that'll make it all worthwhile for me ...............I hope.
Joe Donnelly 24/04/10
So tonights gig was not only a celebration of Good Vibes pheonix like ressurection with a recently opened new shop and a label relaunch in 2010 but also a two fingered salute to the arsonists responsible for the destruction.
There was a real eclectic mix of mostly unfamiliar acts to me booked for tonight ,a couple I did know didn't actually turn up " The Jim Reilly band"due to volcanic ash and "the Terri Hooley Experience"??? ,the leader was here but no band ( wasn't that fussed about the second act playing anyway lol) .
In the end It turned out to be a very long but a good night out .
We arrived early and got a table right at the front complete with flickering tea light (classy or what!) ,thankfully there wasn't much chance of any pogoing reprobates from this crowd falling all over us and setting the place alight.
There was a lively audience in when Terri Hooley got up and made his not unexpected speech then introduced a local turn called 'Steve Amos' who performed self penned acoustic comedy songs about various subjects including "Neil Young " that were actually quite funny and gave everyone a laugh .
'Ludwig O'Neill' was up next and again he performed acoustic versions of two self penned numbers and a couple of covers, one of which was a great version of the Tramps dancefloor classic 'Disco Inferno'. I enjoyed his short set .
'Victoria Geelan' took to the stage and launched into some angry poetry followed by an accapella rendition of one of her own songs . Not my thing but she can certainly sing and has a big voice .
Terri was back onstage to introduce his next big thing 'John D'Arcy' who I thought was pretty good , he had a nice line in spikey new wavey tunes that actually reminded me of Patrick Fitzgerald .
Two hippy looking gents disheveled and barefoot called 'Scorpion Jack' were next ,bodran and acoustic guitar in hand they played the weirdest yet totally captivating tunes of the night and they were surprisingly great . A good lesson in don't judge a book by its cover .
My main reason for attending 'Angry Inch' were playing their debut gig here tonight and they didn't disappoint .A short six song set featuring two show tunes from "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" and four covers which included Stevie Wonder's "Superstion" and the Rezillo's "Destination Venus" put a bit of electricity into the proceeding and got the people dancing . Can't wait to see the full stage show next week .
If blues was your thing then the "Lee Hedly Band " would definitely have floated your boat . Very tight ,very old school in a Feelgoods / Inmates style .
Last but definitely least for me it was "the Moondogs", they're a good enough band but I don't know what it is about them I've never been able to get into their fluffy pop and the older those lightweight songs of spotty schoolboy crushes get really doesn't improve them for me . We lasted four songs then called it a night and headed home .
As I wrote earlier it was a good night but the constant stream of musicians going back and forward does wear you down and this doesn't bode well for the longawaited 'time to be Proud' cd launch gig on the 30.4.10 as theres going to be a lot more bands playing that night than at this show . Then again theres gonna be rockabilly and punk rock in the mix plus theres the long awaited return of two ex members of Stage B in 'Stop Stop Start Again' and that'll make it all worthwhile for me ...............I hope.
Joe Donnelly 24/04/10