Last week I had the pleasure of not driving far for a vibrant music scene.
In fact, I didn’t drive anywhere; I got the bus into Lincoln, once upon a time a stinking backwater devoid of any meaningful cultural experiences. Johnny Cash played the Ritz in 1988, I think, but as my mates and I entered our teens, we got Aswad at the Castle, and little else.
Over the years, places like the Jolly Brewer and Bivouac have been the hub of live music, and Grafton House had a local Battle of the Bands which was great, but there never seemed to be a desire for an alternative scene beyond one venue, one pub. The university helped change that, but on Thursday and Friday, we weren’t watching trendy university bands.
We were watching punk rock.
Okay, punk rock is a crap term, really, because there is so much to punk, and on Thursday night, it was at the Drill Hall for some Celtic punk. Firstly, pop punk in the form of Voodoo Radio, who became yet another band I’ve seen twice in as many weeks.
I like the Drill; it’s a good venue, and over the last couple of years we’ve been to some great gigs there. Ferocious Dog were the headline act, touring for the final time, so in fairness, watching Voodoo Radio wasn’t the main draw. They were good; their father/daughter act is amusing, and they’ve got some decent tunes as well. They work hard; they’ve supported three different bands I like now (Bar Stool Preachers and Millie Manders, the other two), but in fairness, I wouldn’t go and see them twice in a week on purpose. I don’t mean that as a slur, they’re worth checking out, for sure.
Ferocious Dog, I would watch every night if I could. It’s a shame the band are breaking up, and I felt a pang of guilt during their set. I haven’t made the effort to go see them much recently, apart from last November, days after Dad had died, when I left early because I wasn’t really in the right frame of mind. After a massive dinner at the Harvester on the Brayford (an hour’s wait, another story), I did wonder if I’d get in the mood for this gig.
In fact, I missed the opening song, so I came in a little late, and wasn’t disappointed. They played for nearly two hours, and I doubt any Hellhound could find a song they should have played and didn’t. I can’t help but feel that when a non-political band with political songs about the Tories see a Labour government in power, they do lose a little punch, but musically, FD still deliver.
I even ventured into the mosh pit for a moment or two, but the combination of slippery Drill Hall floor, beer, and Adidas trainers with little grip made it as treacherous as driving on black ice. I got out, but lasted a little longer than my mate Dave. He did go first, lasted a quarter of a song (as long as our mate Chris lasts playing a song). Chris fared a little better, until he went down in a heap. Luckily, the Hellhounds picked him up, and all was good. Our other mate Dave loomed on the edge, finding a good vantage point and a beer better to peripheral bruising.
There were the odd signs the band is getting bigger, just as they’re packing up. I saw more phones filming songs than at the gigs I go to usually, and there were one or two attitudes in the hall. For me, if I’m standing watching and I back up onto someone’s toe, for instance, I turn and say sorry. A couple of times I got barged or trodden on, not down the front, but at an acceptable distance, and ignored.
Mind you, that’s not the band’s fault. They were sensational, blasting through their back catalogue, and I can’t wait for their final gig in November.
The next night, after a few rounds of virtual golf (I was rubbish) and some virtual football (I won), Chris, myself and the Daves met at Southside. It’s a new venue for me, an old church at the bottom of Lincoln High Street, and it was buzzing. I was super impressed with how busy it was for Hell’s Ditch, a local (ish) band we’ve seen before. Their lineup once featured the booking agent for the Drill Hall, so they often played the punk festival there.
My only complaint would be beer prices. At Wroot, we pay £2.50 for a can, which is cheap, but Southside asked £5 for the same. I probably wouldn’t moan at £5 per pint, but for a can, it did feel a little over the top. That said, independent venues putting on live shows need all the help they can get, and it was still a lot cheaper than the Castle. In a week where they announced a tepid line-up for their £6.60-a-tine, £70-a-ticket extravaganza, maybe I should count my blessings, not look for the cloud.
Southside was heaving, and that was a blend of Hell’s Ditch fans coming to see the (partially) local band do what they do, or the dedicated following that ska band The Activators have. There was a shift in the audience from one band to the next; hip youngsters replaced by hips that had been replaced, but the venue always felt absolutely rammed full.
In terms of performances, I haven’t followed either band too closely, so I was more of a foot-tapping onlooker. Dave (one of them) is a big fan of Hell’s Ditch and wore their hoodie, and I guess when you know the songs, it makes the gig a little more accessible. I also lacked energy because, as a 40-something (seven, it’s seven) man, I don’t usually manage two nights in a row. My knee hurt from the mosh pit, my elbow from swinging a golf club for the first time, and let’s just say Thursday’s beer had left Friday’s belly a bit dicey.
Still, we stumbled out of the latest venue we discovered for a walk down the High Street pretty chuffed. After two bus journeys and two taxi rides home, we’d seen an eclectic mix of bands, and witnessed two packed venues, probably described as ‘small venues’ putting on shows not to half-interested, sparsely populated rooms, but a wide range of people seeking something different from the usual beige cultural toilet paper we’re force-fed.
I’ll definitely keep an eye on Southside, a venue I think would be great for the likes of Black Water County, Millie Manders and the Shutup and a host of the other ‘underground’ bands bursting to be heard. I’m even happy to pay £5 for a can if it helps build on what seems to be really solid foundations of a growing and vibrant local music scene.