They’re Us. And Us are as pure a rock n roll band as you’ll find. Essentially it’s like early Stones are playing Garage rock at a million miles an hour. In your face, loud, proud and drenched in harmonica, they are deliberately like stepping back in time. “Black Sheep” does screeching guitars with aplomb, and “Citroën Blues” follows suit. There are three covers, all of which are given their own slant, “Just My Situation” or Sly And The Family Stone’s “I Ain’t Got Nobody” and a breakneck version of “Say Mama” from Gene Vincent in many ways underline what they do, while “Paisley Underground” is perhaps the best moment. What they do is simple, so let’s put it plainly: Us are very obviously a mighty fine band, one who clearly loves being on stages as much as they belong on them.
Look, we pride ourselves on there being no bullshit on MV. We aren’t Tory MPs. We’ll give you the truth: so…..
Until about a month ago I knew two Electric Six songs. The same two everyone knows.
What changed was “Turquoise”. Their 15th album was the first I’d heard, and my goodness the thing is a beauty. A thing of pure joy, and the first two they play here are from it. The title track with the glorious line: “to think we used to live in fear of the atom bomb/Now we’re ordering our sandwiches from shit.com” rather sums up the modern world, and the following one “Dr K.” is as full throated a rocker as you’ll find.
The first hour or so is, in the words of singer Dick Valentine “a grab bag of albums 2-15, I’m excited for you”. And it’s varied and classy.
Not a man to take anything seriously, Valentine reckons that “Down At McDonnelzzz” “is the best thing we’re gonna play for ya” and the crowd joins in. “The New Shampoo” is a vehicle for drummer Dr J.” and “Dirty Ball” is a vehicle for everyone.
Things carry on apace as Valentine surveys the political situation in the UK and decides there should be an election before “The Future Is The Future” and songs are thrown at you like fizz bombs, and there’s a touch of ADHD about all of this. After “Panic Panic!” from the new album (“The record company said we have to play six from it” deadpans Valentine) they get their groove on with “Dance Epidemic” and “I Buy The Drugs” they disappear, promising to return with “something special”. What that is, is a run-through of their debut album “Fire”.
Celebrating 20 years, this is the part where normal reviews concur with this and talk about what a wonderful record it is. Not us. We’ll give it to you straight. I heard it for the first time yesterday morning. So my big story about the record was that the traffic was crap so I managed to hear it all.
No matter, though, because even I could tell that the thing was a cracker. There are highlights everywhere, not least the brilliant solo on “Naked Pictures (Of Your Mother)” from Overtime Clown, or the one that follows “Danger! Danger! High Voltage”.
“She’s White” keeps the energy level up – and it’s noticeable that things moved up a gear with “Fire” material, and never more than when “We move to the dance portion” and “Improper Dancing” and the other one I knew about where they want to take us. And which sort of bar it is.
“I’m The Bomb” brings even more sex and “Synthesiser is dedicated to their own keyboard player Tait Nucleus?.
After being all showbiz and going off and on again the set ends with “Hello! I See You” and it is clever as it is fun.
There’s only one way to stay around for two decades: to have songs that people like or mean something to them.
When it comes to Electric Six, it’s obviously a little bit of both, so you need to do me a favour. Next time there’s a brilliant rock n roll band that I don’t know, give me a nudge, yeah? Thanks.
