Punk Fest, Macmillian Charity Cancer Fundraiser

On The Rocks, Bournemouth

Day Two

Featuring:
The Sporadics
2 Sick Monkeys
Crash Course
Lineside

It’s Saturday night and I find myself back at On The Rocks for my 2nd instalment of Punk for the weekend. Tonight its the turn of the “out of towners”.

First up are Littlehampton’s Lineside. Singer Liam announces “were Lineside from Littlehampton – anyone ever been to Littlehampton? its shit!” High praise indeed! And so to the music. Lineside play straight-up 3 chord Punk with a no nonsense attitude. They open with “We Don’t Care” then “Make You Sick”. Liam banters with this sparse crowd between songs and finds time to explain the “themes” to each title. “Johnny Sadistic” is a set highlight as is “Nutjob” as Liam says “everyone’s met one in their town”. Will (guitar/vox) barely looks up the entire set while Jack (drums) has an unfussy hitting style but plenty of power. Most of these songs centre around “town” life although “London Riots” captures the feelings of last year. “Ave a Word” is about “slags” cos’ we all know one announces Liam. Its another great song from a largely confident set. They end with “Smash it Up” (not the Damned song), and leave to decent applause.

Lineside 1

Second on are Crash Course, a UK Subs covers band from Bognor Regis. They open with “Blues” then “C.I.D.” and I have to say are fairly confident. Alan (vox) is the polar opposite of Charlie (Harper),looking twice as tall with his mohican;but his vocals are good and the band can play. (Fat) Dan (drums) is technically proficient while Joe (guitar) confidently plays all the right chords. Si (bass) completes this quartet with some additional vocals. For a Subs fan like me this is a dream setlist. “Left For Dead” and “New York State Police” are great but there really aren’t any songs to disappoint. “Warhead” gets us all singing before the excellent “Party in Paris”. They end with Subs favourite “Emotional Blackmail” with an interesting vocal intro from Si before launching into the song itself. Great set, setlist etc. Once again good applause.

Crash Course

Third on are Swindon’s 2 Sick Monkeys, a ferocious thrashy 2 piece bass and drums Punk outfit. From the outset to the finish there is absolutely no let-up, these guys play on adrenalin and theres no half measures. There’s no setlist Pete (bass/vox) informs me, “we just make it up as we go along!” Who am I to argue! There is real anger in his vocal delivery in front of Fred’s ferocious hitting. The sound these two conjure up is simply deafening. Midset Pete decides on an anti everything “rant”. Its lost on me but he gets some applause. Their deafening set continues apace but I take refuge outside although they could probably be heard some 100 yards away. It’s thrashy, harsh, in yer face Punk at its loudest and they too leave to good applause.

2 Sick Monkeys 1

Headliners tonight are none other than Bournemouth’s finest ska/punk/dub band the Sporadics. They are here tonight with stand-in drummer Pete (Howard) from Extinguishers/Jack Ratts fame, with Saul being on vacation. He’s a great stand-in and gets a good reception. They waste no time in getting us moving with “Truth & Rights”. (Westbourne) Shaun (vox) tells us not to get too close cos’ he’s got a cold-I know where I got it from now! “D.S.P.” follows before the excellent “He Said She Said”. This once again sparse crowd now really find their feet. Bimble (bass) gives a shout out to Gary (Raynor),who had the original idea behind the gig-applause duly follows. Crowd favourite “Freaks” is a highlight while I have to say this band are at the top of their game. The setlists may be similar but no two shows are ever the same. “Sick Of It All” is another highlight before they end an excellent set with their re-written gem “Crustie Man”, while being joined by one eager punter onstage. All in all another great evenings music for a great cause. The total sum raised is £362. Just a shame there wasn’t a full house both nights, I’m sure they’d have at least doubled that figure. That aside a good result for charity.

The Sporadics 1–2

Setlists
Lineside
We Don’t Care
Make You Sick
Johnny Sadistic
Wasteland
Condemned
Nutjob
London Riots
‘Ave A Word
Smash It Up

Crash Course
Blues
C.I.D.
I Live In A Car
Tomorrow’s Girls
Left For Dead
Kicks
Rat Race
Creation
New York State Police
Warhead
Public Servant
Party In Paris
Crash Course
Radio Unfriendly
Teenage
Emotional Blackmail

2 Sick Monkeys
No setlist!

The Sporadics
Intro
Truth and Rights
D.S.P.
He Said She Said
Hard Times
Schnews
Freaks
Ronnie
Sick Of It All
Unity
Crustie Man (Specials re-working)

Videos
The Sporadics