Concert Review - Seven Crowns, Auckland New Zealand, 2018

Seven Crowns

22nd March 2018
Whammy! Bar, Auckland, New Zealand.

Review & Photography by Sarah Kidd.

Punk is universal; and as such punks will travel. So it is by this good fortune that Auckland’s Whammy! Bar had the pleasure of hosting Seven Crowns on a Thursday night. Hailing from Bath in the British West Country, the four piece who are influenced by the likes of Poison Idea and Motörhead have just recently released their latest album Lightning Rod. Having already played both Wellington and Tauranga, the boys are well over (well mostly) any jet lag and are ready to take Whammy apart.

But as they take the stage, it is quite noticeable that lead vocalist Monty [John Montague – formally of A38] is in a bit of pain, later revealing after the show that an old injury had decided to flare up after a particularly long trek on their day off. Where other artists would have bowed out, citing any number of reasons of why this would hinder them delivering their performance, in the true spirit of punk, Monty went ‘fuck it’ and played anyways; the pain it seemed adding a sharpness to the cutting edginess already sown throughout their work.

Indeed while Seven Crowns captures their hardcore punk sound well in their records – in particular with their latest offering – live they are something else completely. Between the mad drumming of Rob Clark – who was wearing a tank top of the Swedish punk band Sista Sekunden – and the clarity of Liam Baker’s guitar work – Liam in case you are wondering, sporting an Iron Maiden t-shirt, a classic staple of the British heavy metal scene – live Seven Crowns are an intuitive, animalistic beast who prowls the stage.

They begin with ‘The Past Is A Bastard’, a nod to their A Murder Of Crowns album released back in 2013, one of only two tracks that make it to the set list; but what a track to begin on! As Clark springs to life hammering out a fast paced intro that remains at high speed throughout, Monty grabs the microphone and screams into it, the chorus line of “the past is a bastard, the future’s a whore” hitting you full frontal while gripping you by the throat and demanding your undivided attention, much like the ‘past’ that Monty refers to, emphatically communicating to us all that “it won’t let you go”. With the tone set for the evening and some tongue in cheek English humour bubbling just beneath the surface – Monty plays the self-deprecating card as he explains that the reason for his weird gait is due to the fact that he is “old” and that his body is “falling apart”, Baker grinning and enquiring as to whether there’s a doctor in the house.

Moving into the first of nine tracks that we get to hear live off their new release, ‘White Cells’ continues with the frenetic pace, the opening bass lines from John ‘JB’ Banbridge never losing any of their body as his fingers propel them into the air. But it’s ‘Deep Water’ that is an instant hit with the crowd, the track encompassing everything you expect from a hardcore / DIY punk band. Coming in at a perfect fifty-five seconds, it’s short, punchy and completely fucking visceral, just as it should be.

Speaking of a van trip in Indonesia that was promised to be short but ended up being a rather anxiety inducing twenty-three hours, Monty introduces ‘Trans Java Express’ his vocal style throughout measured and brooding until the end of the song where it picks up its stride and ends with flair. Following it up with back to back tracks off their debut album 2010’s Sun Skulls, the longer term fans in the audience showing their appreciation of their inclusion, Seven Crowns then moved into the title track off their latest. ‘Lightening Rod’ brilliantly captured everything that fans of Seven Crowns love about their sound; Monty’s repeated howling of the title itself evoking the power of those skyward electrical discharges.

With barely a moment for the crowd to recover, the four piece spring back into action, Monty leaning back against the stages wooden beam as Baker and Banbridge begin the track ‘As Above So Below’ with short, snappy chords, the combination of the two sounding like a freight train barreling down the tracks. As Monty raucously comes in over the top, Baker provides more melodic backing vocals, which takes the song into a slightly different direction adding more of a psychedelic feeling overall. Clark keeps time effortlessly, barely breaking a sweat he at one point leans forward over the kit as he lolls out his tongue.

Engaging in some light hearted banter, Monty compliments the general population of New Zealand stating that the hospitality the entire band have received while here has been outstanding. “You’re all so bloody nice! I’ve yet to find an asshole amongst you.” With a final nod to A Murder Of Crowns with ‘Dark Matter Transmits’, Seven Crowns deliver their last two tracks for the night, a rather tired looking Monty never once holding back anything from his vocal performance, his often at times animated delivery resilient til the end. Finishing on ‘Justified and Ancient’, it is another one of those tracks where you can certainly hear that Motörhead influence coming through; its tight riffs and brutal swagger closing the night on a high.

As the final note plays, immediately calls for “one more song” are made, which prompts Monty to raise an eyebrow, lean over to the microphone and utter in a quite matter of fact tone “Punk bands don’t do encores”, Baker – that English humour once again coming into play – adding “If you see a punk band, let us know”.

If you have never heard of Seven Crowns before, get your hands on a copy of Lightning Rod, preferably on glorious red vinyl, its stylish sleeve depicting illustrations of a rather pagan looking character on a deep red background, a satisfying addition to anyone’s collection. In saying that – whatever you do, check them out live, your heart and mind will thank you for it.

Seven Crowns performing live in Auckland, New Zealand 2018. Image by Sarah Kidd.

Were you there at Whammy! Bar for this fun punk gig? Or have you seen Seven Crowns perform somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!