By Monk
Seven years is a long time on anyone’s calendar but in the music business it can feel and seem like fucking forever… Careers can come and go, fads zoom in and out of fashion – and bands can undergo a complete and total overhaul. Which is exactly what has happened in the period since the “godfather of applecore”, the singer known as H and the then line-up of Acid Reign addressed #TheAgeOfEntitlement on this very same stage and this reinvented and reinvigorated line-up of the band inviting us to try and remember what fucking day of the week it is… well, it’s Thrashday (sic) and it’s the first night of the tour, so let’s get down the front and stuck into the action shall we? OK, seeing as you asked nicely…
Regular readers will know that, unlike certain mainstream outlets with the “they ain’t got a deal so we ain’t interested” attitude, we at ÜR always make a point of checking out the support acts, especially when they’re a band with whom we’re not familiar – which is something which can be said of tonight’s appetizer for the main course.
Talking Knives definitely fall into that “unfamiliar” category: I think I’ve seen their name on a couple of posters but know nothing more – especially as they seem to have an almost invisible social media profile – apart from the fact that they hail from the wilds of County Fermanagh!
Anyway, crammed onto Voodoo’s already compact stage (it’s been a long time since I’ve seen two kits set up on there), these culchie rapscallions deliver a short and sweet set of energetic old-school punk tinged with elements of the likes of Faith No More and SOAD, and a few bits of grungy breaks and thrashy solos chucked in for good measure. They’re a bit raw around the edges, but focussed in their intent and with plenty of potential for all to see… I’ll definitely be keeping a watching brief on these youngsters should they venture back up to the big city in the future…
As H struggles his way into his oversize hoodie (not that it stays on that long once he hits the stage), our new look headliners rip into the opening salvo from new album ‘Daze Of The Week’, with the frontman singing the opening verse as he struts through the crowd with an assured swagger.
We’re only two songs in before H starts with the jokes (well, he is also a stand-up comedian) – a cheeky “hello Dublin” referencing certain geographically challenged American artists, and a observation about the now partially demolished office block next door to the venue: “it looks much better as rubble… well, if you’re not going to blow it up, we’ll blow it down!”.
In between the serious business of delivering some equally seriously good thrash, the new songs mixing effortlessly with audience pleasers such as the inevitable singalong of the likes of ‘Humanoia’, H The Humourist is definitely and defiantly on fire. “Who’s the guy seeing us for the first time in 36 years?” he enquires, before advising him that “we’ve been back three times, you lazy cunt!”
With the band tighter than a welded nut, what the godfathers of applecore deliver is classic old school thrash done classic old school style, with tonnes of positive attitude and zero negativity, combined with a defiant “less is more, more is less” approach. An object lesson in not fucking about, just doing it… and “it” is what’s it’s all about, innit?
Another great, if all-too-brief, set from one of true champions of the genre… Let’s hope it’s not another seven years before they pull together the pennies to afford to cross that expensive piece of water and return to these shores: I don’t think my ageing knees could keep me upright any more!
- The tour continues:
