A
bit of a Punk Rock Adventure, this; Swindon’s finest, Raze*Rebuild, were
invited onto a “Punk At The Shooting Star” 4-band bill down in Southampton,
alongside some local and out-of-town skate punk and hardcore ruffians. Probably
a bit more akin to Si and Matt’s former skate-punk band Buzztone, this, but,
relishing an out-of- town gig for a change, the Raze boys gleefully accepted
the offer. As did I; circumstances had meant that I’d missed their last 2
Swindon Castle gigs – one, in fact, the previous night, Rach being out with
Kasey at a show – so I was well up for this, going so far as to offer my
services as chauffeur!
So,
as “Raze Car 1”, I picked up Raze*Rebuild vocalist Si and his kit, along with
fellow R*R uber-fan Paul, and Pete “Monkey” Butler, the “badger-haired
gobshite” from Swindon hardcore mainstays 2 Sick Monkeys, from Si’s house on a
sun-drenched Saturday afternoon. A swift and entertaining punk rock chat-filled
hurtle down to the South Coast pitched us up at the venue for 6, parking around
the corner and unloading. Immediately Pete recognised a few local faces from
his 2SM travels, the rock chat continuing in the beer garden as “Raze Car 2”,
comprising guitarist Matt, bassist “Paj” and drummer Jamie, arrived shortly
after. A few spots of rain didn’t deter the chat and drink, and I stayed out as
the first band Dark Days kicked up a grungy fuss in the pub. I did venture in
for the next band, Second In Line; hairy local boys in skate shorts and
Motorhead t-shirts, they sounded as they looked, 100 mph ramalama punk
soundbites shouted out over a brutal and primitive delivery. The sound wasn’t
great, but I could actually discern some melody beneath all the sonic assault,
and a cover of the “Only Fools And Horses” theme was fun. Still, I felt
Raze*Rebuild, next up, would sound positively cultured in comparison!
15
minutes for changeover, so Si got busy with the cables and I steeled myself for
their ½ hour slot. Knowing that, as usual, I was likely to completely lose my
shit when R*R kicked into gear, I’d prepared, with ¾ length shorts, kneestraps,
contact lenses and some Anadin Extra to cushion the joints. And I’d need it,
too, as given the nature of this event, R*R had opted for their most “punk” set
possible, leaving out the slowies in favour of their fastest, most hard-edged
popcore moments. Raze*Rebuild kicked off their set at 8.45 prompt, Si
immediately giving it maximum intensity, noise and neck-vein-bulging effort,
opener “Burden Of Youth” getting me rocking out, throwing my 52-year old body
into shapes it really didn’t appreciate being thrown into, and bashing the
overhead chandelier a time or two as well!
Raze
were “on it” tonight, all agreeing afterwards that tonight’s performance was vastly
superior to the previous night. “Never Saved My Soul” was a rollicking
thrill-ride through Si’s dubious speed-dating past, “New Leaf” was careering,
sweeping and swoopingly brilliant as ever, and “All The Gear” a strident Husker
Du-lite anthem for workaday punk bands everywhere. I needed to power down
during “Poison Air” as the oxygen was rapidly disappearing from the room, but I’d
saved enough to do final number “Back To the Fall” justice; this was my
highlight tonight, the soaring (Gaslight) anthemic hook towering over the poor
sound, and Si’s high-kicking antics, lionesque roar and the band’s tight,
dynamic power-play propelling the song – and the set – to a thrilling climax.
Intense, raw, ragged and utterly superb!
After
a breather and chat with a gregarious local (hi, “Cov John”!), I went back to
the beer garden for some fresh air, and to avoid headliners Local Mad Men. If
Second In Line were primitive, LMM were even more extreme – 10,000 mph
unlistenable wall-of-white-noise, a real throwback to the type of noise (I
hesitate before using the term “music” to describe them) that put me off punk
in the first place. Honestly, I totally get the anger and fury, but this had
all the sonic value of standing next to a pneumatic drill. Luckily it was
short-lived, over before 10, and even luckier, the barman fired up the pizza
oven in the beer garden, so I gratefully ordered a couple of pepperonis as
accompaniment to more rock chat with the boys. Nature’s own fireworks display
was kicking off in the distance, as we could see some of the reported 17,000
lightning flashes over the South Coast this evening, so we headed off at 11,
luckily avoiding any deluge on the A34/ M4 way home. Dropped the boys off and
achily arrived home at 12.30 after a real Punk rock Adventure, thanks to
Raze*Rebuild!
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