‘VARIOUS ARTISTS’ – ‘REBELLION’ FESTIVAL, WINTER GARDENS, BLACKPOOL 4.8.23
Whilst there are other punk festivals held in the UK, the ‘Rebellion Festival’ is arguably the largest and most important, both in terms of the artists and the spectators that travel from all over the world to attend. Unbelievably this is only the second year that I’ve been here, but it is now an unmissable part of my annual gigging calendar.
This is the reports of Day Two (The Friday) of ‘Rebellion’. If you haven’t as yet read our account of Day One (The Thursday) then click HERE.
The Del Strangefish Inexperience
My Friday at ‘Rebellion Festival’ starts at the unfeasibly early hour of 12.30pm with The Del Strangefish Inexperience in the Empress Ballroom. Anybody who has read Del’s (a.k.a Del Greening) book “Jinxed: How Not To Rock ‘n’ Roll” will know that the one thing that Del does not lack is experience. He is a member of Brighton’s ‘Eastside Massive’ as in he is based in Woodingdean and has been a member of Peter And The Test Tube Babies seemingly since time began (or at least 1978), and was also a member of Flesh for Lulu. In addition to this he has worked as tour manager for artists including Lily Allen. To put it mildly, this man knows his onions. Returning briefly to Del’s book, I honestly believe that it should be accompanied by a government health warning, as on several occasions it had me laughing so hard that I almost had an asthma attack. It’s by far the funniest book that I’ve ever read.
Anyway, what did Del do at ‘Rebellion’, and was it any good? The Inexperience are a four-piece band (including Del) as opposed to when I saw his book launch at Brighton’s Prince Albert where he accompanied himself on guitar. So this is a meatier proposition altogether. Early in the set we get a storming version of ‘Intensive Care’ from the seminal Peter And The Test Tube Babies ‘Pissed And Proud’ album from 1982. The more recent ‘My Unlucky Day’ from ‘A Foot Full Of Bullets’ album from 2005 shows that the quality of the Test Tubes’ material has not been diminished by the years. They are joined by Johnny Wah Wah on vocals for the third number of the set which was ‘Spacecake’. This song seems unfeasibly fast, although that may simply be the time of day.
Del asks the audience if “anyone remembers Trapper?”, Trapper being Chris Trapper Marchant, the Test Tube Babies erstwhile bass player. Well, of course we do! Del introduces a song about him: ‘Boozanza’. Next Del is joined by more guests: Debs and Emily from The pUKEs, a ukulele punk band! They accompany Del and the Inexperience on ukuleles for ‘Silicone Beergut’, a tragic tale of a young man who is fitted with a silicone beer gut to emulate his middle-aged punk heroes, and they stay for the classic ‘Banned From The Pubs’. After Debs and Emily leave we get one more song and the Inexperience are gone. Sadly they have no more gigs planned, but fear not! Peter And The Test Tube Babies (along with Noah And The Loners) play Lewes Con Club on Sunday 24th September. What a brilliant way to prepare for the working week!!! Purchase your tickets HERE.
The Del Strangefish Inexperience setlist:
‘Intensive Care’
‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Is Shit’
‘Spacecake’
‘My Unlucky Day’
‘Excuses’
‘Boozanza’
‘Silicone Beergut’
‘Banned From The Pubs’
timematterrecordings.bigcartel.com
twitter.com/delfish
The unfortunate task of following Del and the Inexperience falls to The Attack, who hail from Orlando in Florida, USA. Doubtless they are impressed by Blackpool, in comparison to the rather dismal coastal resorts in their home state. I must confess that I am very impressed that they have flown over to the UK purely to play a half hour slot at the ‘Rebellion’ Festival. This demonstrates the high esteem in which the festival is held within the punk rock community worldwide. I am also impressed by the fact that the singer is wearing a Coventry Automatics t-shirt, this being the original name of the Specials.
However, the aforementioned t-shirt is no indication of what The Attack’s music is like. What they treat us to is fast, lean and punchy punk rock. The Ramones are clearly an influence as I don’t spot a single guitar solo. I am reliably informed that there was only one Ramones song with a guitar solo, and that was late in their career.
Maybe there is time for The Attack to enter the world of the guitar solo yet. Is this something that they really ought to do though? On the evidence of what I hear today, I would say not. What they do, and the way that they do it, is more than sufficiently pleasing.
shopenemy.co.uk/collections/the-attack
theattack.us
Next I wander across to the Opera House for I, Doris, who describe themselves on their Bandcamp page as “mummycore riotpop kitchenpunx”, which seems to sum them up quite nicely. They start with ‘Wonderwomen’, which effectively is the ‘Wonder Woman’ theme tune including a snippet of ‘I Will Survive’. The lyrics however describe the lives of many working mums who are expected to be good mums and efficient workers at the same time. Yes, they really are wonder women.
Next the bassist and singer (whose name must be Doris, it says so on her pinnie) encourages us to take the Doris pledge, which we all of course do. There are various requirements, and after each one we repeat “I do”. I can’t remember exactly what standards I have agreed to keep up, but I shall try my best to do so nonetheless. I do remember that I must not covet another Doris’s Doris, that’s for sure. They have a song called ‘Just Some Doris’, so they really must all be called Doris! Keyboard Doris plays a keytar, which initially alarms me as it reminds me of all kinds of appalling bands from the 1980s, but Doris’s music soon puts me at ease, which is probably not the effect that they want it to have!
They have a song about masturbation: ‘Do It Myself’. Well why wouldn’t they? They then bring on a guest: Brighton based Dunstan Bruce, the former singer with Chumbawamba, who says that he suspects that it’s no coincidence that his appearance is preceded by a song about w*nking. Dunstan is also wearing a pinnie, but his is special, as it says Dunstan on his, and not Doris. ‘HRT’ is about something that many ladies of a certain age have to go through. It features superb four-part harmonies and a biting guitar solo.
They’re certainly not musical one trick ponies. ‘Peri-Peri Menopause’ is ska and features the drummer (or Drummer Doris perhaps?) on lead vocals. Everybody in this band takes their turn on lead vocals. They even have a song about what happens when ladies convene in the ladies’ loo, imaginatively entitled ‘In The Ladies’. They have one more song: ‘Rebel Doris’ And their half hour is up. They truly are a great band.
Their lyrics and their onstage banter are really witty, but their songs carry serious messages, such as ‘Does Your Girlfriend Know You’re Here’, which is about dating. They have no Brighton gigs scheduled unfortunately, as they have just played ‘Brighton & Hove Pride’ on Saturday 6th August, but they are playing ‘Joyzine’s 20th Birthday Weekend‘ at The Old Library Music Room in New Cross Gate on 19th August, the ‘Loud Women Fest’ at London Rich Mix on 16th September, and The Oasthouse in Rainham on 6th October.
I, Doris setlist:
Wonderwomen
‘Just Some Doris’
‘Does Your Girlfriend Know You’re Here’
‘HRT’
‘Peri-Peri Menopause’
‘Not Done Yet’
‘Do It Myself’
‘In The Ladies’
‘Rebel Doris’
idoris.bandcamp.com
idorisband.wordpress.com
I remain in the Opera House for Mick Rossi’s Gun St. Mick was a founder member of Slaughter And The Dogs. Gun Street’s regular bassist is absent as he is away on his honeymoon, so who does Mick call? Only original Slaughter And The Dogs bassist Howard ‘Zip’ Bates. This semi-Slaughter And The Dogs reunion is something of an event in itself. Howard is looking pretty dapper – something of a punk rock elder statesman. Possibly in honour of Howard’s presence, possibly not, we do get some Slaughter and the Dogs era songs: ‘Stranded’ from ‘Vicious’ (2016) which Mick tells us was “the last good Slaughter and the Dogs album”; The Velvet Underground’s ‘I’m Waiting For The Man’ as covered on debut album ‘Do It Dog Style’, and ‘Boston Babies’, which Mick tells us he wrote when he was fifteen, also from the debut album. There’s no ‘Where Have All The Boot Boys Gone’ though.
Much of the set is from the new Gun St. album, which is more hard rock than punk, but that is by no means any kind of negative criticism. It sounds a fine album, which is more than enough explanation as to why Mick may not want to be quite so backward looking during this set. T Rex’s ‘Telegram Sam’ is covered on the album, and Jenny Russell-Smith, a co-founder of the ‘Rebellion’ Festival, guests on backing vocals when they perform it. ‘Dancing With A Dead Man’ is a particular highlight from the album.
They finish with a cover of The Heartbreakers ‘Born To Lose’, which is pretty awesome. Apparently Mick was in a post-Johnny Thunders version of The Heartbreakers with Billy Rath, which I didn’t know. However, the message to take away from today’s set is that if you like your punk with a slice of classic rock, then Gun Street is the album for you.
secretrecordslimited.com/products
www.instagram.com/mickrossisgunst
Next Up in the Opera House are The Outcasts from Belfast, who I had no idea were still operational, but here they are. They feature two remaining original members: Greg Cowan on bass and vocals and Martin Cowan on guitar. The Outcasts originally featured three of the Cowan brothers, with Martin on rhythm guitar and Colin on drums. Sadly Colin was killed in a car crash in 1982, and the band eventually split up in 1985. In 2011 the band reformed and are still treading the boards today.
Their set commences with The Stooges’ ‘1969’, as covered on their ‘Vive Lyon’ album. This is followed by the first classic of the set: ‘Self Conscious Over You’, the title track of their debut album. However, there is more to The Outcasts than nostalgia, as they demonstrate when they play the title track to their ‘Stay Young’ EP from 2019. It has to be mentioned that when Greg Cowan is singing he looks angry and forbidding. As soon as he makes his stage announcements though, he’s all smiles! ‘Justa Nother Teenage Rebel’ is disposed of mid-set, which is quite surprising as it’s probably their most famous song. Maybe it’s one of those songs that they know they have to play, and they want to get it over with as early in the set as is decent. It’s a bit like The Who starting their set with ‘My Generation’, which they have been known to do.
One fairly deep cut is ‘Gangland Warfare’ from their ‘Blood And Thunder’ album of 1982. This is introduced as being “a song about the situation back home”, i.e. in Belfast, although it should be stressed that this is the situation as it was in 1982. Another highlight is ‘The Pressure’s On’, also from their more recent ‘Stay Young’ EP. The Outcasts’ music is raw punk with a message, but with melody too. Forbidding though Greg Cowan may look, he’s not without humour. When somebody has the temerity (and bravery!) to heckle him, he responds with: “is English your second language?” Way to go fella!
The Outcasts setlist:
‘1969’ (The Stooges cover)
‘Self Conscious Over You’
‘Magnum Force’
‘Stay Young’
‘Mania’
‘Justa Nother Teenage Rebel’
‘Love You For Never’
‘Gangland Warfare’
‘Seven Deadly Sins’
‘The Pressure’s On’
‘The Cops Are Comin’’
‘You’re A Disease’
www.amazon.co.uk/Stay-Young-Outcasts
www.instagram.com/theoutcasts
The Outcasts are followed in the Opera House by the irrepressible Spizzenergi. Spizz is his usual ‘out-there’ self, and the band members have an element of that too. At one point bassist Ben Lawson and guitarist Phil Ross pirouette quite gracefully. The band have a kinetic energy onstage, with none of them staying anywhere near still for long. It makes them very difficult to photograph! Forget trying to compose pictures, you just have to try to capture what’s there in that particular moment.
Spizzenergi commence their set with the closing number of the Athletico Spizz 80 album ‘Do A Runner’ in the form of ‘Airships’, which rarely gets an outing, but that’s followed by a real treat, their take on Bowie’s ‘Hang On To Yourself’, a cover that hasn’t been played since the Spizz 77 days!
Spizzenergi are largely perceived as being zany and fun, but they have a serious side too. Before they play ‘Soldier Soldier’ guitarist Luca Comencini plays ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ and Spizz tramples on a combined US and Russian flag. Spizz is a natural frontman and the consummate showman. His t-shirt reads “Spizzenergi Singer”, and he’s wearing glasses that light up, and also electrically lit rings on his fingers. Later he throws the rings (still lit up) into the audience. Incidentally, the band have really impressive harmonies. Everybody sings apart from drummer Alan Galaxy.
A surprising cover towards the end of the set is Roxy Music’s ‘Virginia Plain’. It’s somewhat faster than the original…. Less surprising is set closer ‘Where’s Captain Kirk?’ Some forty-four years after its release, it still sounds surprisingly fresh. Spizzenergi are a really captivating and exciting live band. If you haven’t had the pleasure of witnessing them live, I strongly suggest that you rectify that at the earliest available opportunity.
Spizzenergi setlist:
‘Airships’
‘Hang On To Yourself’ (David Bowie cover)
‘Shallow End’
‘Mega City 3’
‘Death Of The Free Man’
‘City of Eyes’
‘Soldier Soldier’
‘Central Park’
‘Here Come The Machines’
‘Red & Black’
‘Virginia Plain’ (Roxy Music cover)
‘Clocks Are Big’
‘Where’s Captain Kirk?’
www.spizzenergi.com/spizz-merch
www.instagram.com/spizzorwell
Neville Staple From The Specials
Next comes what is undoubtedly my highlight of the weekend: Neville Staple From The Specials in the splendour of the Empress Ballroom. Neville has a superb band, and I can’t think of anyone better qualified to pay homage to the genius of the Specials. The set consists of songs recorded by the Specials or otherwise associated with the Specials.
Who can argue with set opener ‘Gangsters’? One would have perhaps that this nugget would have been saved to close the set, but not a bit of it. What follows is a high energy set, with Neville ably assisted by his daughter Sheena. Nobody stands still for the whole set. I mean, really, how can you? The band skank as they play. The audience are skanking. Even the bar and security staff are skanking when they can! This contributes to an absolutely electric atmosphere, and nobody really wants the set to end. Certainly not the band, who run over time with ‘The Guns Of Navarone’.
There are really too many highlights to mention, but I’ll have a go: ‘Concrete Jungle’; the audience singing the line “all the girls are slags, and the beer tastes just like p*ss” during ‘Nite Klub’; ‘Monkey Man’; the utterly peerless ‘Ghost Town’. Neville and Sheena leave the stage to a brief instrumental that I don’t recognise. I don’t hesitate in saying that The Neville Staple Band are the true successors to the Specials. Terry would have approved.
Neville Staple From The Specials setlist:
‘Gangsters’
‘Pressure Drop’
‘Concrete Jungle’
‘Nite Klub’
‘Little Bitch’
‘A Message To You Rudy’
‘Monkey Man’
‘Do The Dog’
‘Ghost Town’
‘Long Shot Kick De Bucket’
‘Pressure Drop’ (reprise)
‘You’re Wondering Now’
‘Guns Of Navarone’
www.amazon.co.uk/Specials-Beyond-VINYL-Neville-Staple
www.fromthespecials.com
So, how to follow that? By going over to Club Casbah for more ska from Citizen Fish, that’s how. I had been interested by their overt agitprop approach, so I thought that I’d check how it translates in a live setting. Citizen Fish aim to bring radical working class politics, if not to the masses per se, then to any audience who might be interested. Having described them as a ska band, the first song ‘Feed It’ is certainly more punk than ska, but the rest of the set is certainly ska. As a result of the efforts of the likes of Madness and Bad Manners over the past few decades, ska music is seen by the wider public as being party music. Well, if anybody here is expecting party music, they’re in for a bit of a shock!
‘Can’t Go On Forever’ is about the current political situation in the UK. ‘Working On The Inside’ is about working inside of a system and unintentionally becoming part of it. ‘Fearless’ is about replacing fear with anger, whilst ‘Face To Face’ is about being who we are, rather than trying to fit somebody else’s perception of who we possibly should be.
‘Meltdown’ is about global warming whilst ‘Party On Down’ is definitely not about partying! It’s very clear that Citizen Fish are no strangers to irony! Much as I like Citizen Fish, I must confess that after a while I found the preaching nature of their lyrics a little wearing, although that was probably more due to the time of night that it was – getting close to my bedtime! Overall they’re a great band, and can next be enjoyed at the ‘Convoy Cabaret Naughty Corner‘, Cerne Abbas Brewery, Dorchester, 17th to 20th August.
citizenfish.bandcamp.com
www.facebook.com/citizenfishofficial
And thus my Friday at ‘Rebellion’ endeth. I’ve seen some great bands, and I shall definitely be seeing even more tomorrow! Happy Days!!!
Our reviews from Day Three of ‘Rebellion’ (The Saturday) can be found HERE and the reviews of Day Four (The Sunday) can be located HERE.
‘Rebellion’ festival will return on 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th August 2024. Early bird tickets are already on sale from HERE.
