| Product: |
Wildhearts in general |
| Date: |
29/01/02 (92 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Good Old Rock n' roll
Disadvantages: Internal Problems, Band Since Disbanded (Again)
THE WILDHEARTS - LIVE IN NEWCASTLE
“Rock n’ Roll!”. The parting shot of tonight’s opening band was for many the epitaph of the Wildhearts, who disbanded due to a myriad of differences and difficulties in 1997. For most of the nineties they epitomised the anti-mainstream collective, but they took things a step further by actually managing to infiltrate it. They were quite successful at it too. A combination of zero airplay and minimal press failed to stop the band from having top 20 hits complete with Top of The Pops appearances, due in no small part to a tremendous fan base, many of whom turned out for tonight’s gig in the hometown of their heroes.
Everyone here is happy and the band grin like Cheshire cats, mingling at the bar with fans prior to their performance. The question begs though: why? Why put back together one of the most self-destructive bands of recent times? The answer lies in the many T-shirts spreading the venue emblazoned with the calls to arms legend typical of Ginger and his troops: The Wildhearts – Your Country Needs Us!
At a time when safety in numbers and liberal acceptance is the meek war cry of the once vitriolic urban youth, the time is ripe for a curveball to be thrown and an eruption from the depths to shake the foundations of the establishment. Fred Durst beats his chest hollow; Lowgold a chosen anaesthetic and King Adora, though punks, would get on with your mum. Will Ginger offer the answer? Does he need to?
30 seconds into “Shame On You” and the answer is apparent: you only notice when you want to. We all love Limp Bizkit: big riffs, big pants and big noise. We love Eminem: big attitude, big insults, big lyrics. Sell it to us and if it’s big, bright and bold enough we’ll accept it, but we seemed to have forgotten how to scratch the surface.
After an hour Ginger throws down his guitar and he’s off. But there are no prima do
nnas here. There’s also no mindless rhetoric or silly baseball hats worn backwards. No big budget stage shows or pretty young blondes. Few words are spoken. The music is allowed to take centre stage and after all, isn’t that what we really want?
So what if there are no new songs. Beach Boys harmonies mix with head-splitting buzz saw guitar complete with beautiful melody and heartfelt aggression. It’s still relevant, rock n’ roll that is. Of course it’s always been there. Perhaps we couldn’t see the wood for the trees. Tonight proves one thing: scratch the surface and you can get what you want. Don’t just accept what you’re given, especially when there’s so much more on offer.
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