By Monk
OK, which of you bastids did it? Who turned up the feckin’ temperature? Yes, spring seems to have finally, erm, sprung and it’s the hottest night of the year so far… so warm, in fact, that I’ve left my biker jacket on the coat hook as I walk the walk to my favourite venue and somewhat ironically climb its narrow stairs in order to enter Satan’s Cellar to witness what goes down when Lesbian Bed Death make their first ever visit to this darkened corner of the rock ‘n’f’n’ roll Überverse \m/
Opening proceedings, and making their first trip north of the border from the darkened midlands of the island, are Motion Sickness. Surprisingly, they seem extremely nervous as they introduce themselves, but those nerves soon disappear as they launch into their fiesty riot grrl-infused new age power pop, with its infectious, melodic punk grooves.
Their singer obviously prefers to let their music do the talking, as those nerves are still evident in her between song monologues, but when they get on with doing what they do they do so very effectively. They take the brave step of getting the audience to do the “sit down jump up” thing as early as their second song, and nail it – which is in contrast to their later attempt to initiate a wall of death, which results in just one guy two-stepping it across the floor. Nevertheless, the brilliantly visceral closer ‘I Don’t Give A Shit’ is declarative and finally gets the small crowd of early arrivals moving.
Proceedings take on a decidedly darker hue as the renascent Mourning Of The Heretic switch the mood to a gothic noir hue with their Cradle Of Filth meets Sisters Of Mercy take on the mien. Unfortunately, they hit early technical problems as their laptop seems to want to refuse to play the intro to second song ‘The Ghost Who Loves Me’ – something frontman Mark laughs off as “every time we try to do this one”, before it promptly crashes again!
Tech issues aside, the quintet deliver a set characterized by epic ambition with tautness and practised aplomb, proving that the ‘Midnight Children; are most definitely, and defiantly, in the house.
“Welcome to the Midnight Horror Show” declares JJ as our headliners tear into their set with a fiery, fast-paced opening salvo, a momentum which is maintained through ‘Switchblade Valentine’ and into the summoning of ‘The Antichrist’ before ‘Sabrina’ takes us on a voyage through ‘Dark Waters’.
With thick chunks of garage style back alley r’n’r mixed with tonnes of melodic power pop sensibilities, with a dark gothic undercurrent, the effect is weird: kind of like Martha Reeves fronting an alternative universe version of The Runaways with L7, Transvision Vamp and The Dollyrots sitting in on the session for the shits and giggles.
Goth girls may not necessarily be easy, but this is one ‘Satanic Suicide Sex Cult’ to whose evil powers you may want to briefly submit…
- The tour continues in Dublin tonight (Friday 24 April) and Galway tomorrow (Saturday 25 April) before LBD take to the road again in September:
