Wednesday 15 December 2010

230 NOVA MOB, Zuzu's Petals, Sunshot, Reading Trade Union Club, Sunday 7 February 1993

What a crazy way to start the 1993 gigging year! Can't find the venue, then went to the wrong one! After we eventually found the right venue, we had to scale a 10 foot wall to actually get in, then got subjected to such a thorough search at the door, that we even had to empty our wallets!

Then, when we got in, unexpected support Sunshot were sat on the stage, having suffered a power cut! Eventually things got sorted out, and Sunshot resumed their drum machine driven chunder. Like Becky and Darlene from "Roseanne" playing at punk rock, the 2 girlies comprising Sunshot's personnel jumped about to a mad unhinged noise resembling Curve, only with more oomph. I'm still undecided on them... Still, I wouldn't climb over them to get to all American girlie combo Zuzu's Petals. Despite a bassist who seemed as if she had 2 polar bears fighting in a sack down her front, they were decidedly unimpressive, with the anorexic blonde vocalist/ guitarist able to play guitar about as well as I can. Which is to say, not at all. Crap or what!

My recent Husker Du gig connection however continued with Nova Mob, following Bob Mould's Sugar, last time out. And an interesting contrast - whereas Sugar rely on raw power and emotional intensity "live", former Husker Du drummer and co-songwriter Grant Hart's Nova Mob trust to a fine blues-based desert driving sound, and the emotiveness of Grant's voice. A little more corpulent (actually, make that a lot more!) than his Husker days, Grant still tugs the heartstrings with his voice like few others. A fine set, including a beautifully delivered "Admiral Of The Sea" (Grant solo, centre stage, no mic), culminated in an manic encore somewhat out of character with the rest of the set; Iggy Pop's "I Wanna Be Your Dog", sung by a roadie, climaxing in the band handing out their rider to the front rows (of which I, or course, was one). Strange end to an overall groovy evening!

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