The Damned at Bristol Beacon (13.12.2024) with Doctor & the Medics + The Fleshtones supporting.
Only my third trip to Bristol Beacon since its costly and lengthy transformation from Colston Hall; The Stranglers and The Darkness being the other visits. The three hour drive always surprises me – it’s only 60 miles!
The Fleshtones open. A bit of US punk history – they started out playing in 1976 at CBGB’s and just carried on and on, and here they are, from Queens, New York City.
We Remember the Ramones is a standout track that has me searching for it on YouTube next day.
They have a stage routine that must have been with them for ever and some striking poses as the garage/punk crashing sounds keep coming. An interesting finish to their short set when the lead singer, Peter Zaremba, climbs down into the crowd and just wanders off greeting people, deeper into the crowd and out of a rear door.
More bodies flood into the hall before Doctor & the Medics – this was an early start. I saw them, well lead singer, The Doctor (Clive Jackson), five years ago at an 80s winter indoor Wembley event. He was using the house band for the event then and a bought him a pint in an artist lounge.
The Doctor is 63 now and overtly grateful for his new knees and still being able to enjoy performing. Their UK number one single, the cover of Spirit in the Sky, stands in isolation as their moment of greatness. This may have hampered their long-term credibility as a decent rock band but here they are still at it nearly 40 years after that hit.
None of the original band are still touring but The Doctor is the voice, the leader and raconteur. Good ole fashioned rock’n’roll, quite heavy with some pomp.
A mention to the anthem of hope, No One Loves You When You’ve Got No Shoes, before which the Doctor refers to his own low points. This is celebratory though and of course it’s Spirit In The Sky to end. The man is a character and happy to be here supporting The Damned tonight.
Love Song opens the set, Dave Vanian twirling and flicking his mic cable. My thirteenth Damned gig (my Damned history blogged here for the 2022 original line up gigs) and with such a variety of good material, including a trickle of new albums, it’s always different.
The line-up itself has varied and while the original line-up gigs last year were something special, focussing on the first two albums with Brian James playing, I prefer the current look and sound. This sees Dave Vanian with Rat Scabies back on drums, continuing his original line-up return, and Paul Gray on bass, Captain Sensible on guitar and Monty Oxymoron going wild on keyboards.
The dominant albums in tonight’s set are The Black Album and Machine Gun Etiquette three tracks from Strawberries, which I acquired on strawberry scented vinyl as part of a Record Store Day rerelease. The Black Album has always been a favourite – it’s about the timing. The first time I saw The Damned was on their Black Album tour. The extended version of Curtain Call is a pick from that one and I caught tonight’s version on video, here saved here on my YouTube channel – one of the first encores later this evening.
Wait for the Blackout, another Black Album fave is another top track live and is early in a set that motors along without any real dips. An occasional aging knot of moshers gather in pace and size at times – I can see all this well from my vantage point of the front of the rear balcony (great spot – cheers gig buddy Dave).
I Just Can’t Be Happy Today is one of the anthems from the Machine Gun Etiquette album that finds its way onto my YouTube channel (link here).
Room is made for the anti-government Beware of the Clowns single from few years back and their masterful cover of Eloise. As for the other featured album, Strawberries, Ignite is my winner.
Rat Scabies delivers quite a drum solo in the encore – a belter before they launch into New Rose – something so fresh and upbeat every time you hear that beginning. It’s lasted so well.
A second and final encore starts with the festive, There Ain’t No Sanity Claus before Smash it Up, both parts. Great set. I’ll be back.
[As always, all gig photos and YouTube linked videos taken this evening with my trusty pocket zoom Panasonic camera. If I ever use any others I’ll say so.]
Gigs with Ivan 