Another Funhouse night. These seem to be increasing in popularity so to help celebrate these occasions, we drafted in the curious oddity that is WanWeird, the 60's psychedelia noise that is Tuppenny Bunters and the surf/garage racket that is Thee Windom Earles.
The first band up included myself on bass so the Funhouse Band with members of bands such as the Dry Retch, Sonic Rednecks and MRI all having decided to get together and play the excellent Funhouse album by The Stooges. We called ourselves the aptly named Funhouse Band. We played the entire album from start to finish and in track listing order and finished the set with the epic that is Black To Comm by the mighty MC5. Obviously, I can't review ourselves and as no-one was available to bribe to write a review I can only go on audience feedback and it all seemed positive so we must have done justice to the album and it was fun.
Next up Wanweird (featuring two members of Dead Class). The clue is in the name really isn't it? Wanweird hails from the depths of Ron and Dons Weird's warped minds and it's brilliant. Wanweird take to the stage, Ron stands there in silence looking like some kind of demented young scientific protege that's taken a few wrong turns in his chosen career path and had several experimental mishaps with his plan to take over the World! The pink feather in his hair and the Gok Wan t-shirt complementing his gig-wear. Don the drummer looks like a demented god-knows-what! He makes Uncle Peter from Reeves & Mortimer look normal(?) Whatever normal is these days. Silence before Ron speaks (or rather offers more insults) to the gathered punters then they burst into a loud, euphoric punk racket. Silence, more audience abuse, more contorted facial expressions and obscure vocal sounds from the drummer as they both slap their heads in unison. More punk as fuck in yer face noise. Completely bonkers stuff but very captivating. It was ace. A far cry from Dead Class. Loved it. Oh I must remember to mention a guest appearance by a banana.
Next up, another duo that is the husband and wife outfit, Tuppenny Bunters. The duo kicked off their piano driven, trashy moon styled drums behind their trademark honky-tonk noise with both members of the band swapping drums, keyboard and vocal duties. A sonic 60's inspired aural assault, expertly driven and applied. For a two piece, these folk made one hell of a noise. If I hadn't witnessed them play live, I could have sworn there was more than just keyboards and drums. Full of energy and very catchy tunes. Halfway through the set, they swapped over with Dave on keys and Fiona on drums. You couldn’t tell the difference as the musical delivery was just as exemplary. If you're a fan of hippy psychedelia intertwined with early garage and the sound of the Hammond, then you'll love these. Go check 'em out.
So tonights headline band are Thee Windom Earles. A band I'd never heard off before. I do now!!! The ante was upped, then upped some more. This Mancunian five piece, complete with silky-smooth shirts, gorgeous hollow-bodied Gretsch guitars and a wrestling-mask wearing keyboardist were the perfect ending to an incredible variety of sublime noise. Imagine the Beach Boys and Bones Shake having a child, Thee Windom Earles would be the offspring. A surfabilly, rockabilly punked up explosion. A barrage of noise! They were mega! An aural assault of the eardrums but such a great sound. Great songs with various members of the band sharing the lead vocal duties. Drums were hammered into oblivion, the fuzzed up bass being the perfect partner to the drums, what was left of them. Keyboards (and maracas) delving in and out and of course, the dual guitar sonic attack was immense. Every band smashed it tonight. This has to be one of the best Funhouse/Last Stop Sound nights I've been to. Incredible.
Words: Dave Whyte, Photos: Adrian Wharton/Richie Yates
Links:
Tuppenny Bunters: https://www.facebook.com/Tuppennybunters
Thee Windom Earles: https://www.facebook.com/TheeWindomEarles