Bad Guys - Northumberland Arms, Newcastle, 1/4/2015

  by Adrian Huggins

published: 18 / 4 / 2015

intro

At the Northumberland Arms in Newcastle, Adrian Huggins enjoys a chaotic night of stoner rock/metal from rising London-based band Bad Guys

Following the recent release of their second album 'Bad Guynaecology', London-based Bad Guys hauled their collective hides across the UK. I was lucky enough -to catch them appropriately enough on April Fool’s day in Newcastle, with support that somehow ended up being even more bonkers than them. Molestral Palsy, who clearly didn't get the memo about political correctness, kicked off the night, but, hey, who am I to not love a band whose highlight of the gig was growling over Glenn Frey's 'The Heat Is On' while wearing gimp masks. Other support came from Roy Cropper, who fittingly appear on stage decked out in Roy Cropper (from ‘Coronation Street’) masks to pedal their soap opera inspired grindcore. It was insanely loud and thoroughly enjoyable but completely odd. Then there was the Newcastle-Upon-Tyne Speed Donk Experience. Trying to describe this act in any sensible manner would be like trying to discuss the underlying Shakespearean themes in 'Chucklevision', so I'll end by saying everyone seemed to love them, the place went nuts and their best moment was probably when they left the stage. The final support came from Newcastle Grindcore band Rat Faced Bastards which mainly comprised of members of Roy Cropper. They added a touch more of a sensible edge to the evening. Rat Faced Bastard were tight, ferocious and did not let up during their brief but intense set. After the four local acts gave the crowd a damned good warm-up, everyone was pretty much ready for Bad Guys to get on stage and do their stuff. Lying somewhere between the stoner and sludge metal genres, Bad Guys approach music with an ever present tongue in cheekiness. They are the type of band where definition of genre or style is pretty irrelevant as they're just a great band and so much fun to watch. The band’s set was predominantly made up of material from ‘Bad Guynaecology’. They didn't waste any time breaking out the riffs, beers, and Buckfast, all sure fine signs of a good night. The superb tale of one young man’s entry into the world of criminality, following his own lust for a Tonka truck and the subsequent refusal of his parents to furnish his request, in the form of 'Crime' featured early on in the set and quickly got the fists pumping as enigmatic, skulleted front man Stu growled his way through the set. Bad Guys launched into their current single ‘Prostitutes’ three songs into their set, keeping the momentum going much to the pleasure of those in attendance, I doubt I was alone when this particular number was still in my head hours after the sweat had dried and ear ringing had died down after the gig. ‘Reaper’ was another up-beat and pacey number with its pummelling drums courtesy of apparent Hungarian Tamas. Other album tracks like ‘Zoltan’, ‘World Murder’ and ‘Fabled Subbubus’ really shone through in a live setting, thanks not only to their gargantuan riffage but also due to guitarists PJ (the long-haired one) and Dave (the short-haired one) using their trademark double-necked guitars, which somehow seem to make everything that bit louder and better. The Bad Guys ended their set with the mammoth, psych/doom inspired ‘No Tomorrow’ which gave the guitar guys a good chance to have a bit of a wander round the venue, as much as their leads would allow anyway and also for lead singer Stu to have a few beers and the odd splash of Buckfast while his sidemen strutted their stuff. Bad Guys are an absolute must for fans of Melvins, Killdozer and pretty much anything loud. I seriously suggest booking yourself in for a bit of ‘Bad Guynecology’ if these chaps are coming anywhere near you.

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