Slaves
The last time punk rock fellas Slaves headlined the UEA LCR, in a series events conveniently documented by a BBC film crew, drummer Isaac dislocated his shoulder after crowd surfing during the encore. So provided he didn’t repeat himself and knacker the other one, this victory lap in support of LP3 Acts of Fear and Love was only ever going to go well.
Ousting the winter chill, singer-songwriter Willie J Healey and his band opened. Most emerging acts might use such an opening slot to play the hits, but Healey instead opts to turn the room into an impromptu bedroom jam session. “I’m Willie J Healey and these are my friends”, he announces of his band mates, all appropriately dressed in shabby chic, as though they’ve been living in a recording studio of late. And in fact, they may well have – Willie’s new EP is out now.
To date the only act signed to Slaves’ DIY record label Girl Fight, thrashy trio Lady Bird could be quite good, but their downfall is an amusing one; between their apples-and-pears geeza personas, pseudo-political rambles between each quickfire song and a general lack of enjoyable melody, knock out a member and you’d be looking at a carbon copy of tonight's headliners. But, like, worse. Their stand-out song to date is Spoons, an ode to that pub, which lacks any charisma or comedy Slaves do so well.
That charisma is abundant from even before Isaac and guitarist Laurie rock up on stage; the interim playlist over the PA stirs mosh pits in itself as a carefully curated guilty favs mix of Venga Boys, Britney Spears, and more boosts the party mood, and the sweat is already dripping when the first note to Sockets fires out through the haze. While the new album holds little fresh meat compared to their previous efforts, live it slots in perfectly, each cut stirring a new wave of energy from the sell-out crowd. On fine form from start to finish, Laurie and Isaac deliver the goods: smirky ad libs about cockneys, big foot and manta rays, and a storming racket that the kids can go crazy to.
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