The Gigolo Aunts are back in the UK again, and I'm determined to see them; so much so that Clive and I drove up to Leicester on a Thursday evening! This time we got into the Charlotte (parking again in the Phoenix Arts Centre private car park - we don't care, us) to find that, happily, the headliners hadn't cancelled! Met up with Aunts boys Phil and Dave, and chatted about their November tour in Sweden with the Wonderstuff (from whence I subsequently received a postcard from Dave!), before tapping a toe to Kentucky's own Hula Hoop, who produced a fine, tuneful pop blast which was sufficient to persuade me to part for £5 for their LP afterwards. A fine start!
Disappeared to take antibiotics (just getting over the flu, you see) during Boy Racer's set. Apparently a Sarah Records band, although you wouldn't guess from the forceful, heavy on the guitars noise they kicked out; quite early Wedding Present in its' harshness, rather than the usual Sarah Records twee-ness.
Took positions down the front as The Gigolo Aunts soundchecked. Towards the end of said check, the boys heckled drummer Paul (the only one onstage at the time) from the wings for a drum solo, so he promptly started up the drum intro to set opener "Cope"! Suitably caught out, the rest of The Gigolo Aunts hurriedly took the stage, and subsequently attacked the song and subsequent set with power and venom. Clive and I, despite recent bouts of illness, gave it loads down the front to a set which, initially, struggled with glaring noise and bad feedback mix hell, but which after 3rd number in, the studied "Ride On", settled into their usual manic and irresistibly harmonic pop brilliance. "Serious Drugs" was greeted by Clive and I, hands clasped to our hearts, singing along (a reference to the Kidderminster video!), which in turn Dave greeted with a sincere, "I love you guys!"
A confident and superbly paced and projected set was capped with a frenzied Smiths cover "Ask", (itself preceded by a haphazard Kiss cover, featuring Dave on drums!), and second encore, the zenith of their material, the brilliantly soaring "Walk Among Us", requested by, and dedicated to, erm, me! Compliments and photo opportunities followed the set, after another brilliant performance from an increasingly very special band!
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