Devil's Gate Music
Related Articles
C U Next Tuesday”, with Hamilton emphasising each letter. Hamilton had a great line in stage banter, fondly recalling his last visit to Glasgow where he “vomited outside the Cathouse”, or mentioning his favourite Scottish phrase, that he picked up last time. If “Honking Of Pish” is not a song title on the next album, we’ll be sorely disappointed, dude! His humour is very self-deprecating, with his high voice being the butt of most of his jokes. It’s a nice touch when he took time out to thank Ginger Wildheart for inviting them out on the tour: “He heard us and said I want them to come out with us and let me tell you that does not happen very often in this day of buy on’s, he is an incredible human being”. The set ended with ‘Freak Flag’, which Hamilton described as a retort to keyboard warriors and online bullies, who he’d “Love to reach through the screen and choke…”. A fantastic set from an artist worthy of your attention. Earlier in the day, Ginger Wildheart took to Twitter to mention that tonight was going to be a hot one, and joked that we’d all turn into milkshakes. It’s two flights of stairs down to the venue, and with no air conditioning, it was sweatier than a priest in a boys school. A full house, packed in for a rock n’ roll show on a Friday night… there’s something poetic about that. Ginger and Co. could have been wearing speedos, and they still would have glistened with sweat, so the heat must have been killing them in their black trousers, boots and, in Ginger’s case, black waistcoat. Jeez, I felt for them up there, and as opening track ‘Take It All Why Don’tcha’ finished, bassist Toshi turns to Ginger and mouthed “Hot!”. Hot indeed, as the most prolific performer in recent British rock history led his band through a 80 minute trip down memory lane, a trip made up of ‘Silver Ginger 5’ tracks as well as solo and Wildhearts classics. The band are incredible. If someone waking from a coma with total amnesia was to ask what rock n’ roll was, then he should be pointed in the direction of The Ginger Wildheart Band. You’ve got Denzel on drums at the back in “the pizza oven”, who batters the living hell out of his kit, the coolest cat ever in bassist Toshi (taking time out from Gingers ‘other’ band Hey Hello), and guitarist Conny Bloom who still looks as hip as he did way back in 1989, when he breezed in on The Electric Boys ‘FunkOMetal Carpet Ride’! He still wrings every note out of that battered strat. Ginger Wildheart is, of course, Ginger. If ever there was someone who should be classed a national treasure by the red tops, then it’s Ginger. Someone with the uncanny ability to turn out the best hook-laden rock since the glory days of Cheap Trick. Someone who is still genuinely humbled when punters part with their hard-earned cash to support him in whatever venture he has going. Before introducing ‘Anyway But Maybe’, he joked that since he has been locked away in the studio for 8 months, he has “a few pounds to lose” and tonight should see them falling off, no problem. He also asked for any other “fat bastards with a few pounds to lose” to raise their hands in solidarity. I’ll be damned if I didn’t raise both. He peels off gem after gem, with what looks like effortless ease, and ‘Sonic Shake’ has the crowd roaring,with latest album ‘Year Of The Fan Club’, on sale at the merch stand. He led the band through ‘Do You?’, ’Ostracide’, and the stunning ‘No One Smiled At Me Today’.
