Stiff Little Fingers
1st March 2018
Powerstation, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Chris Zwaagdyk.
Looks can be deceiving.
At first glance, for the uninitiated, four men in their fifties may not look like the sort of band who could stir much of anything up. With a large banner declaring their name in bright white letters draped behind them, Stiff Little Fingers stepped onto stage, instruments at the ready.
Looks can be deceiving.
The Powerstation is easily nearing capacity as the band steps forward; with the exception of a few, the majority of the audience tonight is over forty, many of the predominantly male crowd dressed in nothing more than a simple tshirt and jeans.
Seeing is believing.
As Jake Burns, dressed in an almost country style faded blue shirt moved towards the microphone he uttered the words “Hello, we’re Stiff Little Fingers, 1, 2, 3, 4!!” as he simultaneously drew his hand across the strings of his guitar. A bolt of electricity shot out; riding the opening chords of ‘Straw Dogs’ it galloped about the room, its presence one that awakened deep within all who were present the urge to just let loose. Within an instant a mosh pit formed down in front of the stage; fans jostling each other as sweat quickly gathered on their brows. Bordering them, others danced on the spot or nodded their heads enthusiastically, grins painted across their faces.
Stiff Little Fingers may have formed in 1977, their line-up often changing over the years thanks to tumultuous relationships between band members; but their music, much of which comes from a place of honesty and personal experience, has always rung true, garnering fans from across the globe. And it is the music that has drawn the animated crowd to Auckland’s Powerstation tonight; as the band make their way through tracks such as ‘Just Fade Away’ and ‘Wasted Life’, the fans continue to work themselves up down front, clambering against the backs of those against the barrier, others removing their shirts in an attempt to last the distance. Against this display of male potency, Burns begins to explain the premise behind the next track, ‘My Dark Places’ speaking of how it was written during a time of his life when he was afflicted by depression; “For fucks sake talk to someone about it”, Burns impassioned plea seeing many in the room applaud him, the tragic consequences resulting from severe depression sadly known by many within the venue. This is the voice that Burns has provided to the fans for all of these years, whether it was as a teenager raging against the constraints of a junior position at an accounts office; or as a grown man trying to deal with a mental health issue that he did not fully understand at the time. His fans who have grown with him, empathizing with his words while raging against the same frustrations. As Burns discussed in a recent interview, he was worried their fans would not want to listen to the problems of a fifty year old man; instead he has found that they have flocked to them.
Over the course of the next few tracks, Burns breaks after each one to convey his thoughts or to speak about the history of both the band and the records. From the story of how it took them “thirty fucking years” to work out how to play ‘Safe as Houses’ in a key lower than originally written to how he failed his mathematics O Levels four times (an event in his life that led to the eventual creation of the track ‘Breakout’) Burns’s lilting voice and sense of humour make it feel as if you are sharing time with an old friend. Like taking a pot off the boil, these banter breaks also encourages the crowd to settle back down a bit as beer can missiles aimed at the stage is not something that any band enjoys, a small few tonight obviously losing control of their sensibility.
For periods during the career of Stiff Little Fingers, Burns was the only orginal member standing; but Auckland is in luck tonight as this is the 40th Anniversary Tour and as such they are treated to an outstanding performance by founding member Ali McMordie on bass; McMordie moving about the stage in full punk rock mode, often aiming the head of his long necked bass straight at the punters as he makes eye contact. While guitarist Ian McCallum may be a little more stationary in his demeanor, both his playing and his backing vocals (which have just the right amount of nasal punchiness) shine, adding to the overall sound of Stiff Little Fingers; a sound that let’s be honest could never be referred to as polished – but instead is about as authentic as you can get. Perched atop the riser, sticks in hand is Steve Grantley (formally of The Alarm), from his viewing point he surveys the audience, his rolling kick drums feeding the power plant that is the ebb and flow of the mosh pit down in front.
Hitting the fans with the cheesy, middle-finger-to-the-critics ‘Barbed Wire Love’ friends threw their arms around each other’s shoulders in comradery while raising their voices to the roof; the “red headed step child” (as Burns describes the track) of ‘Is That What you Fought the War For?’ encouraging the fans once again to bounce and shoulder each other down in front, a few of the older audience members choosing to dance on their own in small pockets of space around the venue instead. A couple of stage divers try their luck, their attempts being cut short by the quick reflexes of a tech assistant; their actions prompting Burns to tell the audience, “If you can all stay down there, we’ll stay up here … that’d be great!”. A lone stage diver making sure he got just one last swan dive in before being singled out by security.
Emotions ran high as Burns spoke of his time with Phil Lynott from Thin Lizzy, his fellow Irish friend and musician the basis for the song ‘When We Were Young, while ‘Strummerville’ was dedicated to the legendary Joe Strummer of The Clash. Once again McCallum came through on backing vocals as the band delivered a sweltering version of ‘Nobody’s Hero’; but as fantastic as it was, it paled in comparison to ‘Suspect Device’ from their debut album Inflammable Material released in 1979, the track – often a popular cover by any punk band worth their weight – set the venue on fire, the floors themselves vibrating deeply under people’s feet as they threw caution to the wind.
“Thanks very much, goodnight!” Burns declared to the crowd as the foursome made a hastened exit; everyone present kept waiting for several minutes, amusing themselves by catcalling the band and demanding an encore. First to arrive back on stage was Grantley, beginning with a simple drum solo that soon grew legs and crushed the crowd with a punishing bass drum that only grew louder by the second as Burns and co slowly made their way out, the crowd cheering them on, voracious for more. Their encore of ‘Johnny Was’ was easily one of the definitive highlights of the set, with each and every member adding a piece of musical magic to the track; from the throbbing bass lines plucked with ease by McMordie to the long held note of Burns, the track brought both depth and colour with a healthy dose of Ska influence to the Powerstation.
“It’s been awhile since we have been here” Burns started out, the exhaustion beginning to show through just a little “but you have always been so welcoming. We hope you had a good time, get home safe, goodnight!” groans rising from the fans as they realised their evening was about to end. But it would at least end in style, Stiff Little Fingers delivering not one but two more songs, the ever popular ‘Alternative Ulster’ seeing both band and fans implode together in a swirling vortex finale.
So don’t be deceived – the faces may be a little more lined, the clothing a little more reserved. But the fire inside both band and fans burns strong; punks one and all, for life.
Stiff Little Fingers:
Labretta Suede & The Motel Six:
Were you there at the Powerstation for this high energy oldschool punk gig? Or have you seen Stiff Little Fingers perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Setlist:
- Straw Dogs
- Just Fade Away
- Wasted Life
- My Dark Places
- Safe As Houses
- Breakout
- At The Edge
- Barbed Wire Love
- Is That What You Fought The War For?
- Roots, Radicals, Rockers & Reggae
- When We Were Young
- Strummerville
- Nobody’s Hero
- Tin Soldiers
- Suspect Device
- Johnny Was [encore]
- Gotta Gettaway [encore]
- Alternative Ulster [encore]
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