A brief zig zag up Smithdown Road on the final day of the Smithdown Festival, catching a few last bands out of what has been a massive undertaking spread over three days, eleven venues and well over 100 bands. I elect to catch three more before succumbing to a need for sleep.
Villy Raze is a must see and especially as he’s unveiling his newest project the aptly named Dead Raze. Its still embryonic but the songs and the style are there and Villy feels confident enough to take them to the stage at the Black Cat Bar and Bottle Shop. What we get is an amped and psyched up garage blues. A mixture of MC5 and Leadbelly, the Stooges meets T-Bone Walker. Its primal, it’s fast, it’s vicious and the duo make short shrift of their set and keep the attention of the audience throughout.
A walk up to there Handymans just in time for a band I’m told are called Brickhouse (but can find any further info on them). Its’ smoother and funkier than Dead Raze and comes really to life when the full brass section is present. The vocalist earns points for the best put down of the day though with ‘I was told to learn some jokes to cover any gaps between songs but our bassist has turned up dressed appropriately’.
Back got the Black Cat and the Coughin’ Vicars are starting up. Its like watching a festival of arms and legs on the crowded obviously too small stage. The band cram in and it doesn’t slow them down. The punkish sounds bounce off the ceiling and walls (as do the band, and the audience) and various vocalists are out in the crowd gurning with them and keeping the momentum going at damn the torpedoes speed.
Words and Photos: Richie Yates
Links:
Dead Raze: Villy is too cool for links…
Brickhouse: Can;t find them anywhere - any info would be nice. Cheers got the link: https://www.facebook.com/brick.houseuk
Coughin’ Vicars: At last a band that just has a nice ordinary facebook page to link to… https://www.facebook.com/coughinvicars