BIG SPECIAL + GRANDMAS HOUSE + SALOON DION – GREEN DOOR STORE, BRIGHTON 6.4.24
Saturday night and we were back at a now familiar haunt Green Door Store. On the list for the night two support bands from Bristol and a headliner from the Black Country. To help those who are new to any of them the bands names are projected onto the wall stage right.
Saloon Dion, Bristol-based five piece have been described as “a concoction of Punk meshed with Nineties Alt Rock with a dose of New Wave”. Their 2023 debut EP ‘Muckers’ and the previous singles have received positive reviews throughout the music press and have garnered a following from their Bristol fan base. Usually made up of five long term friends, Dave Sturgess (vocals, synth), Tom Simpkins (guitar, vocals), Taryn McDonnel (guitar, vocals), Luke Mullins (bass) and Ben Molyneux (drums), only Sturgess and Simpkins made it to the venue to perform as the first support.
A lone guitarist took the stage to sound-check. Joined on stage by the vocalist. On first impressions, presentation-wise, there was an air of ‘Madchester’ about the duo, with a dash of Liam swagger from the lead vocalist, though it could have been down to the fact he kept his raincoat on.
Bang on 7:30pm as scheduled the lead vocalist addressed the audience, “Hi, I’m Tom, and this is Dave we were a five-piece band, but the other three members couldn’t be here as the van burst into flames on the way here… and so, that gave us time to sign a lucrative record deal As a duo…. No. We’re actually quite nervous because this is the first time we’ve done this. So, we’re gonna do four songs on our own”. The audience laughed and applauded. One member shouted encouragement “You’ll be great!”
I prefer a band that can adapt when performing live, especially when it gives you a real feel of what they can do without the bells and whistles. Whether or not previously applied superlatives would translate when performing as a duo was anyone’s guess.
The lead continued, “This is our first song ‘You Want More'” and without further ado the duo started the first song. The lead brandishing a tambourine requested a “Little build-up there” from the guitarist who complied as directed. The lead vocal was guttural and intense, but the delivery was never intimidating. The first of the four promised songs was no less compelling for a lack of their bandmates.
Having successfully completed the first track to applause from those gathered the duo’s confidence noticeably bolstered they continued their buoyant interaction between themselves and the audience, “Brighton, how you f**king doing?! We’re Saloon Dion!”.
After a brief pause, the lead continued “We’re Tom Simpkins and Dave Sturgess, remember the names. That was ‘You Want More’, do you want more?”. The audience cheered in the affirmative.
“The next song is ‘I Don’t Feel’. It’s usually a little bit heavy, but we’re gonna do it… well like we just did that one…” he considered the situation and then told the audience, “This is my first time with the tambourine live!”, shaking the instrument as the crowd cheered and laughed. He continued “There’s usually a guitar solo now” audibly faking a guitar solo for emphasis, “Do you know the lyrics to that one? I don’t know…”.
The duo’s delivery continued to be pitch perfect. There was a clear confidence in the material and their ability to deliver it. Their vocals were strong, and their stage presence is palpable even with a sparse set. The lead has a great voice, and harmonies melded effortlessly.
“You’ll be pleased to hear we’ve only got two more songs left. We did have merch, but that all smells of fire now, it’s got a smoky scent to it….”, he continued “The next song is called ‘Strike’. It’s actually our next single. It doesn’t usually sound like this, it’s actually gonna sound much better.” Their voices filled the venue and the emotion of the tracks made tangible. Their humorous patter continued to abound throughout the short set despite the situation they found themselves in. “That was our next single It’ll be out in April”
As word had travelled around, everyone had filtered in from the rest of the venue to see how the duo was handling the pared-down set including the drummer from the night’s headliner.
Periodically checking in with the audience the lead singer asked, “How’s everybody doing?”. Responding again to the affirmative the audience was completely won over by the duo. Rather than being a hindrance performing in the new set up and voicing their apprehension in doing so had won them new fans in Brighton.
On the completion of the song the lead vocalist reminded those who hadn’t been keeping up “This is our last song. It’s very nice to be here, enjoy the rest of the night!”. Before going straight into their last song the guitarist clarified, “This one’s actually very tricky, it’s not easy to do!”, with the lead vocalist agreeing, “No it’s not!. This is Tangerine”.
The end of their performance was greeted by more cheers and applause from the crowd. “Thank you so much. Grandmas house up next thank you so much” and with that, they left the stage. Charismatic, funny, and compelling (even as a duo) Saloon Dion surpassed my initial expectations. I’ll be making sure I catch them in their usual five-piece formation the next time they’re in Brighton. I’d recommend you do so too.
SALOON DION:
Dave Sturgess – vocals, synth
Tom Simpkins – guitar, vocals
Taryn McDonnell – guitar and vocals (not present)
Luke Mullins – bass (not present)
Ben Molyneux – drums (not present)
SALOON DION setlist:
‘You Want More’ (from 2023 ‘Muckers’ EP)
‘I Don’t Feel’ (from 2023 ‘Muckers’ EP)
‘Strike’ (a 2024 single)
‘Tangerine’ (unreleased)
Grandmas House (written without the apostrophe) took the stage slightly earlier than anticipated finding a burgeoning crowd waiting expectantly including myself. We last had the pleasure of seeing Grandmas House at The Hope and Ruin (Review HERE). I’d been keeping an ear out for a UK answer to the ‘Screaming Females’ for a long while, I felt like I’d finally found them as soon as I heard Yasmin Berndt sing. Vocally the band have drawn obvious comparisons with ‘the Raincoats and ‘the Slits’ mainly down to Poppy Dodgson and Zoe Zinsmeister, but Berndt’s vocal brings something deeper, gravelly and a pleasing depth into the mix. Sometimes on the verge of a scream, sometimes on breaking point her delivery sometimes confounds in its guttural bass resonance.
“Hello, we’re ‘Grandmas House’, how’s everyone feeling? Just gotta put my earplugs in”. Standing next to the speaker’s stage left to get a decent view I was extremely thankful for this reminder. Earplugs in place, the band started with the song ‘Desire’ and I couldn’t help but smile as the thump of the Dodgson’s drums kicked in. The verses were slower building towards the much more up-tempo chorus. This first song grounded and the rest of the set continued. Short punchy ‘Punk’ tracks delivered in a ferocious style by the Bristol-based trio.
After the song closed Berndt addressed the audience who were applauding “Thank you!”. Struggling slightly with her stage outfit Berndt asked, “Who here loves a denim vest?”. To cheers and hilarity from the audience, but they were far from unanimous. Amused by the reaction, Berndt continued “Who here hates a denim vest?”. “I Do!”, came a holler from the back of the main venue, “Wow! You’ll have to go and stand at the back! Sorry…”
The second song in the set was ‘Almost Happy’ which is one of my favourites. First published as a single in 2021, this is a reflection on the false image that can be portrayed on social media, the false mask many use to disguise the truth. “Thank you, this is our newish song it’s called ‘Slaughterhouse’”. The guitar is a sumptuous dirge, the vocal refrain sullen.
The fourth song cannot fail but bring a smile to your face when you tune into the lyrics. ‘Pasty’ opens with a quick strum, then a nice continuous thump on the drums and bass flowing in smoothly underneath. The lyrical repetition of the chorus quickly draws the listener in. Before most around me knew it they were singing along about deals on baked goods.
“Thank you! This next song is brand new. We’ve played it two times. Once the day before yesterday, we absolutely f**ked it, and last night we f**ked it as well, and also it doesn’t have a name yet so if you think of one while we’re performing let us know.” The vocal for the as-yet-unnamed song started quietly and then built in power, with a rolling bass line and the drums double-time. The guitar gets scratchy and then more rock when the chorus hits and I’m taken back to very early ’90s hardcore punk and early grunge, think Nirvana’s ‘Bleach’ era in terms of some very dirty instrumentalization. On completing the song seemingly without a hitch Berndt thanked the audience and exclaimed “I think that was better? It’s getting better”, before introducing the next song in the set.
“This is another new one ‘’Nothing Special’”, which was much faster paced, more ‘Punk’ and upbeat than the last song. Zinsmeister joined in the vocals with Dodgson and Berndt. The crowd now thoroughly whipped up the trio steamed into ‘Table’ with bassist and drummer providing vocals and the drum building into the chorus.
The way the band interacted physically was visually compelling. As a trio they fuse well, their physical movements complementing each other and building the impact. This in turn is reflected in the blending of vocal delivery styles.
The band let the reverb play out as the audience cheered. “Thank you so much!” Berndt said, visibly pleased at the exuberant reaction. Then continued, “Anyone catch Saloon Dion? How amazing was that? Wasn’t that incredible?!” before Dodgson chimed in with “And now, I think that’s how it should stay!” I’m inclined to agree but I’ll reserve judgement until I’ve seen them play as a complete band.
‘D.O.G’ feels more ‘Rockabilly’ in musical composition, but indie rock in vocal delivery. Suitably speedy with pacey drums and dual vocals. Suddenly the tempo slowed down, and Zinsmeister joined Dodgson on the vocals. As the applause continued Berndt informed the audience, “We’ve got two songs left, thank you” and then, “Thank you to ‘Big Special’ for having us along with you”. Berndt grinned at the audience “You’re in for a treat later!”
As the set was nearing the end Dodgson took the opportunity to direct everyone to the merch desk “If you’d like to buy something we’ve got some merch at the back there’s a new T-shirt that Yaz (Berndt) designed. Feel free to buy one she did the design and the writing and there’s an image on the back!”
‘Devil’s Advocate’ was short, but hardly sweet as the trio joined in a two-chorus gang vocal, a simple repetition of the first chorus, it was fast and punched the listener around a little.
“This is our last song; we’ve been Grandmas House”. ‘Body’ was the last track of their set and the bass was dirty, the drums were heavy, and the guitar riff wanted to take you home. Dodgson’s high pitched slightly panicked vocal in the chorus contrasted with Berndt’s which confirmed the reason for the slight hysteria. As the song ended the band thanked the audience. The applause continued as they began to pack down their kit on the stage.
GRANDMAS HOUSE:
Yasmin Berndt – vocals, guitar
Poppy Dodgson – vocals, drums
Zoë Zinsmeister – vocals, bass
GRANDMAS HOUSE setlist:
‘Desire’ (from 2023 ‘Who Am I’ EP)
‘Always Happy’ (a 2021 single)
‘Slaughter House’ (unreleased)
‘Pasty’ (from 2021 ‘Grandmas House’ EP)
“unnamed” (unreleased)
‘Nothing Special’ (unreleased)
‘Table’ (unreleased)
‘D.O.G’ (unreleased)
‘Devils Advocate’ (a 2020 single)
‘Body’ (from 2023 ‘Who Am I’ EP)
Big Special hail from the Black Country. More specifically vocalist and guitar player Joe Hicklin from Walsall and drummer Callum Moloney from Birmingham. The headliners of the night drew the crowd in from every part of the venue. As the band soundchecked people were standing on the benches around us, everyone vying for a position with the best view. As the duo made their entrance, they did so to a track I couldn’t make out, due to the chatter around me. Excitement was high, the beer had been flowing and there was no space left to move.
Fixing to roll straight into the first song, vocalist Joe Hicklin was cut short with a false start as drummer Callum Moloney exclaimed, “Immediately broke a stick on the first hit!”. Entirely unflustered Hicklin paused long enough for the drumstick to be replaced before urging the audience “Oi let’s have some f**king fun yeah?! Cheers!”.
I have a soft spot for a drummer that pummels the kit, there is some irony in Moloney’s ‘Dead Slow’ t-shirt, Moloney showed his kit no mercy. Hicklin paced, visually and physically appraising the stage. Having gaged the space, he started with the currently ubiquitous speak-singing delivery known from bands such as Yard Act (who we saw at the Brighton Dome – Review HERE) and the ‘Seaford Mods’ (who we covered at the same venue back in 2021 – Review HERE) and who Big Special have toured with. Where Hicklin differs in his delivery from the others is in switching between this and what can only be described as ‘Crooning’. He has a great voice, usually I would prefer him stuck to crooning, being a sucker for a smooth baritone, but unusually this juxtaposition works for me.
The set on the night stuck to tracks from the soon to be released album, ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’, (out on 10th May) delivering them mostly in order with a few tweaks to please the audience they’ve come to know so well. As with the album the first track of the set was the short shot shock to the system ‘Black Country Gothic’.
Having set the tone for the night Hicklin’s self-aware, humour laden interaction with the audience begins, “We are Royal Blood!” hilarity ensued with a, “Sorry, we are Big Special. Don’t want to spoil it or anything! Let’s have some fun!”.
‘I Mock Joggers’, a statement I can agree with and the title of the next song. As with most songs from the band their trademark juxtaposition of spoken/sung colloquial and crooning delivery is present, but there the end of the word play is drawn out slightly with an “..ahh” at the end of some of the words for emphasis. The keyboards on this short track verge on the Moog on occasion, and as quickly as it starts it’s over.
Hicklin pauses to interact again, “Thank you, ladies, and gents, thank you very much. Everyone alright?”. As with the support bands, Hicklin makes a point of paying thanks to their tour partners “Who was I early enough to catch Saloon Dion?. Who was early enough to catch Grandmas House? This is the fourth week we’re getting on very well, very well”.
A quick pause as if the previous two tracks were just a warmup for the band and the audience, “Let’s start with a song that you might all know. This song’s called ‘This Ain’t Water’.” And know it they certainly did, there were raucous cheers from the audience.
Hicklin continued “Ladies and gentlemen Mr. Joseph Hicklin and I am, the Walsall Frank Sinatra! But much less problematic. F*ck Frank! no don’t f*ck Frank …”. A clever nod to the timbre of his singing voice Hicklin’s humour shines through not only in his patter with the audience and his band might on the night, but also in the witty and humorous take that runs throughout the band’s lyricism. Again, as it feels like this is the real start to the set, “This is a set where we just roll through the bangers you all know and love”. He paused “Are you ready Joe, are you ready Brighton? He’s happy, Let’s go!”.
On ‘Desperate Breakfast’ or, ‘D.B’ Hicklin’s vocal delivery is compelling, keeping the ears keen throughout the tracks, which are fast, but it is the drums that underpin everything. The lyrics speak of the frustrations of everyday life and the solutions taken to cope delivered with a dark wry humorous twist. Hicklin congratulated the audience “Some good f**king energy Brighton”, pausing for breath he continued “We’ve been in Brighton about four times now or five or take and we love it every time, we love the sea, we love the sea…”.
Pausing to the end of the sentence as if considering a lyric for a song. Ever the professional his mind snaps back to compare, “Do you want another one you can just boogie along to? Or do you want a niche one you don’t know?”. The audience knew what was coming; I did not hear what they said, but Hicklin did, “What’s that? NO swearing! Security!, Let’s have some f**king fun. Yeah, that’s right! this one’s ‘Shithouse.’”.
I took the opportunity to gaze up from my notes to the audience. It was a surprisingly mature crowd who clearly knew the band, with a few obvious diehard fans. If not nodding, they were mouthing along to the lyrics, or moving as much as the packed venue allows.
Hicklin’s face contorted, almost gurning on occasion as he sings. When he speak-sings his hand gestures were mirrored back by those diehard fans in the audience. Typically for a UK audience, the crowd all sung along with this track, expletives being the true national treasure preferably either shouted full blast or enunciated properly. Acknowledging this Hicklin congratulated the audience “F*cking big up yourself Brighton! This is a UK Garage set up in here now!”.
“What’s next on the list? Just a slight technical hitch, our friend Joe at the back (Green Doors ever present sound engineer) was meant to print this off, everyone turn around and look at him!” Everyone did. “Here’s a song everyone else was meant to hear, but only Brighton’s is getting, I don’t know that for sure, but you believe it! It’s called ‘Ill’”.
The sound was huge, anthemic, like a full band with a full orchestra graced the stage rather than the duo. “We just can’t believe we forgot that song this whole f**king week?!. We’ve just realised we’ve forgotten that song the whole week … aren’t you the lucky ones!”
Error acknowledged we took, what for me was an unexpected turn in delivery. “Joe Hicklin is about to read a poem, a sombre poem”, Moloney chided Hicklin “Have you got you glasses?” Hicklin smiled “Anyway this will be sung on the album. This is called ‘My Share’. This I’ll just be me reading poetry to an audience”. He read the lyrics as a poem, but sadly even I can’t type fast enough to transcribe them in full, so you’ll just have to wait until it’s released like everyone else sorry.
“This is our new single ‘Black Dog/ White Horse’”. With a sound reminiscent of a Sergio Leone western, sung in Hicklin’s baritone timbre. There is a whistle somewhere in the backing track. The guitar has a western riff going on. The Next song ‘Mongrel’ has a spoken poem before the drummer comes in with lyric and the drums building, they segued into the backing track for ‘Butcher’s Bin.’
Hinklin’s ability to merge delivery styles effortlessly where others might struggle is masterful. Big Special turn everyday concerns into poetry and ballads where others might drown them in alcohol. The duo owned the stage, Hinklin moved with assurance and swagger, and Maloney somehow managed to be larger than the space behind the kit allows. Hinklin acknowledged his bandmate and partner in crime, “Callum Moloney on the pots and pans everybody!”.
Ever the showman, Hicklin turned reluctant salesman “Shall we do the QVC bollocks? Literally our debut album is coming out on the 10th of May. Seriously, it’s been three years in the making. Anyway, everyone loves lanyards, who doesn’t love lanyards?!” (He chanted lanyards) “You scan the lanyard, and you’ll get the new album as soon as it drops!. We’re not Top Shop, we’re more Matalan, No. We’re more Sainsbury’s. sorry we’re in Brighton, it’s more Waitrose… we don’t work for Ocado …” letting his patter run away with him Hinklin asked “Who wants me to shut the f**k up?, stop insulting the audience and play!”
‘Dust Off’ follows the soft self-aware hard sell. “Thanks very much, now there’s going to be a four min interval where we catch our breath. Start an active punk band in your thirties it’ll be great they said …”. In reality the pause was barely a minute if that, “No seriously thanks for being here we couldn’t do it without you, you’re all so f**king beautiful I might come down there and have a look”. True to his word Hicklin descended into the audience mic in hand and started a mini moshpit. “This one’s called ‘Trees’”. Moloney came out from behind the drumkit and sings while Hinklin bounced around, then returned to the stage.
“We say we can’t do an encore, we’re not one of those bands who won’t do an encore, we just ain’t got any more songs! You’ve been special”. The applause was so loud his speech was drowned out. Undeterred he continued “It’s been an odd few years. Keep being lovely people and staying on the right side of everything and we’ll keep playing for you”.
“Terribly sorry but we’re gonna do more poetry for you, WERE GONNA DO MORE POETRY FOR YOU! There’s a bit of an intro so we’re gonna stand here looking stupid for a few minutes. This is ’For The Birds’”. Hicklin derived the lyrics to a hushed audience.
“Ladies and gentlemen, you’ve been special, thank you very much!” Last song ‘DIG!’ kicked in. A vastly slower tempo song the whole delivery is more subdued and slower. Emphasis and enunciation are given to every word, this is a stagecraft that delivers the meaning behind every word to the audience. Big Special are witty, polished, confident and speak to the audience crafting a tangible connection the audience will take home with them. They head to the merch stand to rapturous applause.
BIG SPECIAL:
Joe Hicklin – vocals and guitar
Callum Moloney – drums
BIG SPECIAL setlist:
‘Black Country Gothic’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
‘I Mock Joggers’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
This Here Ain’t Water’ ((from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
‘Desperate Breakfast’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
‘Shithouse’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
‘My Shape (Blocking The Light)’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
‘Black Dog/ White Horse’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
‘Mongrel’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
‘Butchers Bin’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
‘Dust Off/ Start Again’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
‘Trees’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
(encore)
‘For The Birds’ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
‘DIG!‘ (from 2024 ‘Postindustrial Hometown Blues’ album)
