Tonight is a night we and the grinning noise rock veterans gathered here in the Brudenell Club in Leeds have been waiting for a long time! The Jesus Lizard are here finally! It’s been 26 years, to be precise, although we don’t know how it’s been since they played in Leeds, so it could be even longer! Either way, it’s been a long damn time! The show sold out in 30 minutes, and we are fortunate to have been privileged enough to gain access, and we’re ready to relive the intense experience.
First up, though, sounding not too unlike the headliners, Care Home deals in a slightly heavier brand of noise rock. Close your eyes, and we’re back at The Duchess of York. ‘Prescription Sleep’ is taut and persistent in the best possible way, and the driving, ‘Loved At Home’ is frantic and angular. There’s a lot to love here for fans of St Pierre Snake Invasion and bands of their ilk. They deliver a pulsing ‘Reversible Séance’ and a creepy crawling ‘Stained Glass’ and leave with many more fans.
The Jesus Lizard are actually dangerous tonight; David Yow, in particular, is 100% dangerous looking; there are no cuddles here. This man is literally taking over and taking anyone in his way with him. Already in the crowd from the first notes of Puss and from here on in all the favourites, ‘Mouthbreather’ and ‘Boilermaker’ utterly destroy the adoring crowd. The sound tonight is perfect, and a ferocious rendition of ‘Hide And Seek’ is launched at the Brudenell with ridiculous energy. This band is effortlessly cool, like Iggy Pop is cool, timeless, and faultless in their discordance. ‘Then Comes Dudley’ bristles with menace and means to hurt you. If you had told me that the crimson-faced Mr Yow had already killed someone today, I’d probably believe you; he demands that the audience continue to clap nonstop between tracks, and they do! New cuts like ‘Falling Down’ sound harmonious next to older tracks like ‘Gladiator’ from 1992’s Liar album. ‘Alexis Feels Sick’ is deliciously unsettling, whilst the standalone single ‘Cost Of Living’ is a perfect exercise in precision noise. Every song is so well played that it’s baffling that something so out of control sounding can be so tight and well-orchestrated. Jesus Lizard is definitely a band that you need to see live. You hear this phrase a lot, but we really mean it!
The atmosphere here is electric as if you’re trapped in a room with a highly sensitive wounded gorilla, especially on the main set closer to ‘Monkey Trick’ from 1991’s peerless GOAT album. After a brief break, the band crashed back on stage with the lurching ‘Thumper’ and ‘Fly On The Wall’ double attack. David WM Sims’ bass playing has so much clarity and Duane Denison’s guitar tone is exactly as it is on record. When you add in a powerhouse drumming performance from the ridiculously talented Mac McNeilly, the results are astonishingly tight and laser focused. From the slinky twisting, ‘Armistice Day’ from last year’s incredible Rack album through to a closing blues-tinged ‘7 vs. 8’’ from 1990’s ‘Head’ album, all bases are covered, and the sold-out crowd of stalwarts and veteran punks is well and truly satisfied and elated which is in this environment the way you should be after you’ve been berated by David Yow and his cohorts for an hour and a half.
An absolutely exquisite display of ultra-controlled chaos, stunning!
Review & Photography By George Miller – https://www.facebook.com/oneflamemedia
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Thank you to Rarely Unable and Nathan at The Brudenell
Care Home
The Jesus Lizard
