Lord only knows what’s behind the stage at St Patrick’s Irish Club – sometimes it’s best not to look behind the curtain – but whatever it is, The Bonnevilles emerge from back there for the encore and promptly explain what’s wonderful about them.
First, they play a cover of “Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down”, then with a simple “1, 2, 3, 4” from Andrew McGibbon, they roar into “Hardtime Lurgan Blues”, the last song on their debut album from 15 years ago.
Those two songs make it absolutely clear that their self-styled Garage Punk Blues is about the best way to describe them.
They had emerged around 80 minutes earlier looking like two fellas who should be knocking on your door on a Saturday morning, trying to get you to take The Watchtower off their hands, and launched into “Machine Born To Think”.
From the off, you’re watching a band as skilful as they are superb. Simply put, McGibbon and Christopher McMullan are the archetypal duo. They’re always raw, but these boys take it to new levels.
They’ve got marvellous songs too: “Long Run The Fox”, “Good Suits And Fighting Boots”, and “Dirty Photographs”.
They’ve always been this good, and their new album “Age Of Monsters” is another peek into their world.
“The Bais” is played, as is the title track, and both show the light and shade of what they do.
They make the covers their own as well. “Po’ Boy” and Bukka White’s magnificent “Parchman Farm” are both turned into Bonnevilles songs.
There’s a sleazy side too, never better shown than on “God Might Love Me (But He Doesn’t Know Me Like the Devil Does)”. From the debut, it’s dedicated to “the best stripper in Northern Ireland” and features some wonderful slide guitar from McGibbon.
“Pankromatik” is a real trippy journey, and with the more urgent “10,000” offering a thunderous closer, it gets us to that aforementioned encore.
Now releasing records on “a tiny label, with a German distributor as we’re sick of dealing with big labels,” as McGibbon puts it, this is a new phase for the band.
Most things haven’t changed, though. They still come over every year, they still play Leamington Spa, and, moreover, The Bonnevilles remain an utterly sensational live band.
