1,169 THE WONDER STUFF, Jim Bob, Bristol O2 Academy, Thursday 12th December 2019

My eighteenth (!) time of asking with this lot; Stourbridge’s own enduring Indie veterans The Wonder Stuff, now well into their 30-somethingth year (a brief mid-90’s hiatus notwithstanding, during which time main-man Miles Hunt treaded water with Vent 414 and served time as an MTV VJ, interviewing young bands with barely a sliver of his talent), and for me (and like me!), indisputably getting better with age…! I’d already secured tix for this one before they utterly crushed it at “Shiiine On”, winning my Best Band award at a canter, so after that stellar performance hopes were raised for this; a 30^th Anniversary run through of sophomore album “Hup”, plus – just because they’d missed doing that one – a full performance of their brash, flippant debut “8 Legged Groove Machine” as well! Add to that a promise of a smattering of tracks from new, return-to-form album “Better Being Lucky” as well, and it was clear that they’d have a ferocious amount to get through, so the key was, get there early!

Old Level 3 friend Robynne was up for the gig as well, so I picked her up straight from work, making tentative plans to meet up with friend and Stuffies guitar roadie Russ before doors, only for said plans to go awry due both to some difficulties on Russ’ end, and busy traffic into Bristol which saw us park up at 20 past 6, just before doors. A swift half in The Hatchet, then in for 7 and in the usual spot, house left, running into Gloucester mate Simon Barton just before opener Jim Bob, on at 7.15. I’d missed the former Carter USM man’s set at “Shiiine On” safe in the knowledge that I’d catch him here; wandering onstage in an iridescent jacket and hastily discarded red sunglasses, the erstwhile Mr. Morrison ran through a set of acoustic versions of Carter USM singles and deep cuts, and some new numbers, with the veritable lyrical barrage of quintessentially English working-class references, puns and wordplay the main feature throughout. The woah-oh singalong to “Born Again Atheist” (a song I saw the man doing with previous band Jamie Wednesday, waaay back in 1987!) was an early highlight, newie “Victim” was dark, pointed and barbed, and the impressively held first choral note in “Only Living Boy In New Cross” drew cheers from the enthusiastic early crowd. Some flippant between song banter too, Jim lamenting being pipped to artist of the decade by Ed Sheeran (“curses!”), then introducing acerbic closer “Sheriff Fatman” with, “I’ve got time to do this then I’m off to hide in a fridge!”. Good set, glad I caught him!

Another advantage of Jim Bob’s set was just one guitar to unplug afterwards, so turnaround time was quick, and in no time at all, it seemed, Miles Hunt came flouncing onto the stage accompanied by some TV lounge music (!), channelling his inner game show compere with appropriate cheesiness to advise the format for the evening, then announcing, “to do this, I’m going to need me a band!” Once fully banded-up, then, opener “Feet To The Flames” was a joyous old school Stuffies banger, with a coruscating riff and insanely hooky chorus, and a great opener to a vignette set of new album material, another highlight here being the yearning “Don’t Anyone Dare Give A Damn,” described by Miles as the favourite song he’d ever had a hand in writing – high praise indeed!

A short break, then they were back on for “Hup”, start to finish. Retaining the upbeat catchiness and innate mischievousness of their debut (viz. an excellent early “Radio Ass Kiss”), “Hup” nonetheless marked a slight maturing of the Stuffies’ material, nudging the sound from the hazy, slightly-delic early feel into a rootsier, fiddle-embellished direction (again, viz. an amazing early “Golden Green”/ “Cartoon Boyfriend” double, overlaid by some wickedly undulating violin from Erica Nockalls). This was given full justice tonight, the band being in excellent fettle, with even lesser-played tracks being delivered with muscular power and excellence (the thunderous “Can’t Shape Up”, my “Hup” highlight, illustrating this perfectly), and Miles was again a confident, gregarious and generous performer and raconteur, urging the crowd to pace themselves as, “this is a mammoth fucking set! Manchester went nuts from the off and by “Unbearable” it was pathetic…!”, and reflecting on the set as, “a time machine – at the end you’ll be 18 again!”

“Hup” done, Miles paused for breath and to recount the inception for the tour, which, “like all good ideas, started in the boozer…”, then we were “back in the Groove Machine” with the ringing opening riff to a quite superb “Red Berry Joy Town”. However splendid “Hup” may have been delivered, “Groove Machine” took it up a few notches further, more remarkable given that by now they’d shed the extra guitarist and (occasional violin appearances from Erica notwithstanding) were actually performing this album as an 8 legged groove machine! The tumbling hook and urgent driving riffery of “No For The 13^th Time” was an early highlight, a less practised “Merry Go Round” nevertheless fared superbly well with a wonderfully melodic repetitive hook, and the swirly roundabout twirl of “Wish Away” was top “8LGM” song for me. That is, until… set closer “Poison” was utterly tremendous, venomous and earth-quakingly huge, the undisputed highlight of the night, ending a near 2-hour set on a massive high. They’d left “Goodnight Though” off the “Hup” run-through, returning to play a herky-jerky, jagged version, peeling off one by one at its’ conclusion after a job phenomenally well done.

A pause for breath, then I caught Russ’ eye for a list as he scampered onstage – he later advised me that he’d waited to see me in the crowd before coming out and giving the lists out! What an excellent fellow you are, Sir, and you provided the topping for me on a quite superb evening. There’s always concern on such album showcase performances that lesser-played tracks would suffer, being suddenly brought out of cosy album track retirement to be played “live” (Echo And The Bunnymen’s notably less successful 2010 tour of their first 2 albums – gig 803 – being testament to that), but there was none of that here with this Wonder Stuff line-up. They nailed every. Single. One! And in doing so, further underlined that as far as hugely entertaining nights of brilliantly catchy, singalong “live” indie rock go, they currently have very few peers. Brilliant stuff from the Stuffies for my 18^th time!