The Supersuckers
16th November 2017
The Kings Arms, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Bridget Herlihy. Photography by Doug Peters.
Super by name and super by nature would have been an apt tagline on Thursday night as the US of A’s finest purveyors of garage/alt/southern rock rolled into town. Playing the second of four North Island shows as a part of their debut New Zealand tour it wasn’t a moment too soon. The air in the mighty Kings Arms was thick with anticipation with the near capacity crowd patiently awaiting the return of their cowpunk rock heroes.
Supersuckers have earned reputation of delivering fast, furious and fun performances, and they certainly lived up to that reputation last night. After impressive sets from opening acts Magic Factory and The Soloman Cole Band, the somewhat sparse crowd continued to grow, and the sedate vibe that had lingered over the venue began to lift as the audience became more animated. Without any fanfare whatsoever, and after setting up all of their own gear, Supersuckers sauntered onstage, with frontman Eddie Spaghetti beckoning the crowd to come forward. As he and guitarist ‘Metal’ Marty Chandler on guitar held their axes high, they launched straight into a blistering rendition of Get The Hell. Spaghetti, clad in ripped jeans, aviator sunglasses and his signature cowboy hat, cut a fine form, his distinctive gravelly voice filling the room with ease.
Touring as a three piece, the self-proclaimed greatest rock and roll band in the world did not miss a beat, churning through track after track, barely pausing for breath, which is no mean feat given that many of their tracks run a mere two to three minutes in duration. Spaghetti confessed that the band had been on the road since September, asking the crowd to forgive them if they appeared short at times, wryly grinning that the next song was about them, the aptly titled Beat To Shit. Given that they were clearly tired, and looking forward to getting home in just a few days, there is no doubt whatsoever that they gave it their all, and the crowd lapped up every second of it. Metal Marty showered the crowd with a number of impressive, albeit brief, guitar solos, while drummer Christopher “Chango” Von Streicher played like there was no tomorrow for the duration of the seventy minute set, which included tracks from throughout their thirty year career, including classics such as Rock Your Ass and the anthemic I Want the Drugs, which Spaghetti dedicated to Chandler. After reiterating a number of times that the crowd were “people of impeccable taste”, Spaghetti deemed them worthy of “just one more”, before an encore of not one but three songs, including the ballad-esque Pretty Fucked up from alum Motherfuckers Be Tripping (2003), ending the set with a rip-roaring performance of Born With A Tail, with Spaghetti encouraging the crowd to hold their middle fingers to the air before taking the obligatory photo of the crowd.
Although their claim to being the greatest rock n roll band in the world is largely, although not entirely, tongue-in-cheek, they proved without a doubt that they are certainly worthy of the accolade, leaving the crowd begging for more after serving up a pure, unadulterated serving of good old rock n roll. May there be much more where that came from.
Were you there at the Kings Arms for this rowdy night of rock n roll good times? Or have you seen The Supersuckers perform live some other time? Tell us about it in the comments below!