The Damned
8th March 2017
Studio The Venue, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Doug Peters.
A little bit punk. A little bit rock. A little bit goth. But a whole lot of fun! The Damned are back in town (it’s been a good 5 years since they were last here) and they are ready to party, and judging by the crowd tonight so are their fans. It may be a school night, but The Studio is packed with the young, the old and the somewhere in between.
Support band tonight is the Waiheke based Leatherhead – dressed like The Madness and with Stooges sounding bass lines the four piece certainly impressed those who were seeing them for the first time. Leatherhead has recently released their first album entitled ‘Needles’ on Last Libretto which is a digital label based on Waiheke Island. There may have been some old school The Damned fans tonight watching Leatherheads guitarist and thinking that he looked very familiar – and they would be right. Lead guitarist Brendan Mooney was the guitarist for Dave Vanians side project ‘David Vanian & The Phantom Chords’. But Brendan is not the only local celebrity in this band – throw in vocalist Bede Taylor with that fantastic character to his vocal styling’s (known for his work with local bands such as Clench, Three Legged Horse as well as Tank & Pump). Add a dash of Moik Brennan’s bass lines (also from Tank & Pump) and tie it all together with Carsten Blutner (from Loose Trigger) on drums. They were the perfect choice to set the tone for the evening.
Pressed up against the barrier, you could cut the anticipation with a knife as the fans watched the stage like a hawk for any sign of the band. Monty Oxymoron was the first to appear, bounding across the stage looking like a mad professor with a shock of hair and skull print pants. He took up his position behind the keyboards and under a single spotlight began to play the opening lines to ‘Melody Lee’. Bassist Stu West and skin master Pinch came next, but it was all eyes on Captain Sensible in his red tartan pants and ‘Smash It Up’ t-shirt as he stood behind the mic stand and flashed that winning smile of his.
And then there he was, master of ceremonies Dave Vanian himself. A collective sigh rose from the ladies in the crowd, as Vanian strode out looking absolutely immaculate in black pinstripe pants, brocade waistcoat and black gloves. As Vanian sang those first few lines of ‘Melody Lee’ it was as if a jolt of electricity shot through each and every audience member. The fans front and centre burst into a heaving mess of arms and legs, voices howling the lyrics as if it was the last song they would ever sing…And so began an absolutely stellar night of punk rock and brilliant banter.
The Damned have an illustrious history, first UK punk rock band to release not only a single (‘New Rose’) but an album as well (‘Damned, Damned, Damned’). They were also the first UK punk rock band to tour the states. While there have been many a line–up change over the years (fan favourite Rat Scabies leaving in 95 and the gorgeous Patricia Morrison who was bass player for a while leaving in 2004 after giving birth to Vanians daughter) the current line-up have been together for the last 13 years, and it shows in which with the tightness they play. It has often been said that along with the Sex Pistols (“we’re better than them” Sensible would later retort during the night) and The Clash, The Damned lead the punk movement in the UK.
But back to the show! Vanian was working every inch of the stage. Barely pausing in any position for more than a few seconds; his gloved hand clutched the classic dynamic microphone, as his eyes pierced you from behind dark glasses. Captain Sensible was as per usual on fire, always armed with a quick quip, he chatted to the audience and gave the hecklers as good as they gave. His first little story of the night being how he had visited the Ponsonby all you can eat buffet and that he was now feeling a bit “stuffed”.
A few songs in and Vanian dedicated ‘Love Song’ to New Zealand’s own Burt Munro, as he is “quite partial to motorbikes myself”. ‘Street of Dreams’ was a definite crowd favourite and was followed closely by the song that they are probably most famous for – “Eloise”. Sensible grinned at the crowd as he announced that the next song was all about how they used to get thrown out of hotels for being “little turds”. “Can you imagine that? Us? Being little turds?” – the band kicking straight into ‘Stranger on the Town”.
As expected tracks like ‘Ignite’ and ‘New Rose’ hyped the crowd to the point that spontaneous mosh pits were breaking out down in front and most people looked like they had been standing outside in the rain for a while. And by the way, a big shout out to the two awesome security guards in the pit tonight. Not only did they watch over everyone; they handed out water and kept some overly exuberant fans under control without ruining their night! Finishing on ‘Neat, Neat, Neat’ the band bid us farewell; everyone knowing that there would be an encore, yet the chants were started anyways because hell, that’s the fun of it all is it not? Sure enough the boys were back for a three song encore, finishing on the very popular ‘Smash it Up’. But could The Damned be convinced of a second? It would seem they could indeed be persuaded as they came out one last time to deliver a blistering version of ‘Antipope’.
Perfection. Plain and simple.
The Damned
Leatherhead
Were you there at Studio to witness this classic punk-rock show? Or have you seen The Damned live somewhere else during their illustrious 40 year career? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Setlist:
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