The Damned and the Temperance Movement...Well I'll be Damned, two awesome nights.

Last month I saw the Damned at the Koko and didn't write a review on it. Things have gotten hellishly hectic so I've not had the time to really write anything and as I am going to another event tonight, where the Damned will be performing, I wanted to get my review in first.
This is actually a double review because I also saw the Temperance Movement a few weeks ago and they are worthy of some serious praise, but first, on to the legendary Punksters, the Damned.

How the hell can they look so youthful and healthy? These are men in their 60's and they looked incredible. Captain looks the same as he did performing on "Top of the Pops" and Dave Vanian must surely be a vampire.
On to the show, to put it simply, they were on blistering form, the Koko suited them as a venue, an old theatre that has been renovated to it's former glory, all reds and golds and small and intimate to a band as seasoned as the Damned. They were magnificent, no signs of age or slowing down and they seem to have found a balance between what they were at the start, what they became and what they are now. The new tracks were prime Damned, having a 50's feel to them, kind of David Lynch but with a modern feel. I felt so bad that my daughter couldn't make it, I got her tickets to see them supporting the Hollywood Vampires. I wouldn't take them out as a support, they are far too good and the relationship between the Vanian and Sensible, is on top form, joking with each other and the banter is unrehearsed and funny, very much like Morcambe and Wise. Were there any highlights above the whole set? It's impossible to pick out particular songs from a band that has a history of 40 years worth of music, they were prolific and on the whole, excellent songwriters. OK, at a push, I was always a sucker for "Ignite", "Anti Pope", "Smash it up", "Eloise", "Dozen Girls", "Neat Neat Neat" and the newish single "Standing on the Edge of Tomorrow" but I only pick those few at a push...

I strongly recommend that you see this band while you can, I have seen them a few times but not recently and they have never let me down, they always put on a good show and their songs are not what you expect, they moved well beyond the limitations of punk early on and have written some all time classic songs.

Anti Pope: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qc_McPqw15c

Dozen Girls: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7HjCbTZUIw

Standing on the Edge of Tomorrow: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ad6ENngpqGc

On to something newer but equally as timeless. I have been aware of the Temperance Movement for a few years but haven't fully invested in them. For some unknown reason, they announced a tour and I bought tickets for myself, my wife and my youngest daughter, I just thought they would be good live. I loved the title track off their second album, "White Bear" and the single "Midnight Black" and the single off their last album, "Built-in Forgetter". They were brilliant, old school 70's rock with a modern feel and twist and lots of energy. The crowd were dancing, not something I am used to seeing at the gigs I go to and the performance was worthy of a headline act at any festival. There were hints throughout the set of what they will become, brief moments of absolute electricity and when they learn how to harness that, they will be extremely special live, beyond the excellent that I saw.

My daughter had an amazing time and my wife drew the comparison with Thunder, another top live band that plays that 70's vibe rock music and they also have a great singer. I didn't mention the singer, Phil Campbell, a powerhouse voice that is one of the best live voices I've heard (alongside Dave Vanian) in a while. He has the grunt and guts of Joe Cocker and can turn it on it's head in an instant and conjure up a ballad that made one man wave his lighter in the air, how we laughed at the throw back to another era, smokers eh? This band have some serious songs and it all comes to life onstage, they may be a relatively new band but the members have been around the block and the professionalism shows, they know how to meter a show and they definitely know how to rock out. Support this band, they deserve to be massive and you will be doing yourself a favour. I would say they are for fans of the Black Crowes, Thunder and that 70's vibe of Bad Company/Free with some soul thrown in and an alternative feel.

A Pleasant Peace I Feel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gw9iV4gHX00

A Deeper Cut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XpHDXqWEhU

Anyway, the reason I had to rush this post in is because tonight I am going to this:

It’s 8 MASSIVE ACTS PERFORMING LIVE! Rock’n’roll icon Shakin’ Stevens makes a rare appearance! Members of The Damned will be playIng live with our all-star band The Vive Le Rockers and will also pick up their Band Of The Year award! UK SUBS legend Sir CHARLIE HARPER will give us another kind of blues, Hanoi Rocks supremo Michael Monroe will rip the roof off, Ginger Wildheart will play a special set, TV Smith will open the show and… just what will The Professionals play??? Wait n’ see….!!!

The Damned, Ginger, Michael Monroe and Shakin' Stevens...bizarre and my kind of night!