Passion Rocks! Witch Charmer + Groan + Ashes Of Iron + Trippy Wicked, 25th October 2012, Passion, Sunderland
Now I remember Passion nightclub in Sunderland back in the day as Pzazz nightclub and it was a regular haunt for a decent Thursday night out, complete with all the mod con features including door less toilet cubicles, sticky floor, and strange Alco-pops that turned your wee a funny colour (don’t ask) that everyone glugged down ‘cos they cost less than a quid. The drink was cheap and the atmosphere was usually upbeat playing tunes like Nirvana’s ‘Teen Spirit’ and James’ ‘Sit Down’(where only the bravest or drunkest would indeed sit down upon the sometimes wet sometimes sticky sometimes both dance floor in drunken glee). They even had their own food place where for a few pounds you too could indulge in greasy chips and if you were feeling really brave one of their ‘burgers’ (well it was meat of some description in a bun), ‘sigh’ those were the good old days! I’ve had some great nights out in that old building and was over the moon when I heard that they had revamped the place and revived the Thursday night rock nights. The layout hasn’t changed all that much, the toilets have doors now though some are lacking in toilet seats, and redecorated in an extraordinary black and pink theme (a bit like Barbie goes Goth), and the DJ stand has been relocated to the opposite side of the dance floor, but the floor is still sticky and they still serve those dubious Alco-pops but given the very low prices of other (dare I say safer) drinks I didn’t see too many people partaking of the strange florescent concoctions so beloved of times gone by. The biggest change is when you first walk in the first bar (one of four) that you encounter has now been given its own private room and this is where I encountered the stage for tonight’s performances. There had been a bit of a hitch with the sound so the first band of the night were a little late getting on stage but that wasn’t too much of an issue as it gave me a chance for a nosey around and a little reminiscing as I waited for the bands to begin.
It didn’t take too long for the sound issues to be sorted and as a crowd began to gather I took my place amidst them for the first band of the night. Witch Charmer is a local five piece band and there were a couple of ‘super fans’ at the front who happily head-banged and generally rocked out to every song they played. This was their debut and for a first gig they did a fantastic job playing metal themed rock and with a little practice and experience they will surely go on to do great things. Their female lead singer has a wonderfully sultry voice which contrasted to the drummer / vocalists gravely tones. The instrumentals were very tight and it all combined to make a very enjoyable performance. They even got us into a bit of a sing along to Wild Cherry’s ‘Play That Funky Music’ which we joined in happily though none more so than their every enthusiastic super fans.
After a short break and just enough time to pop to the bar for another very reasonably priced drink the second band took to the stage. Groan have just been signed and their new album ‘The Devine Right Of Kings’ is due for release on the 26thNovember via Soulseller Records. They specialise in what they describe as doom ‘n’roll and that pretty much sums their music up nicely. Now with a lot of death metal bands they lack a certain je ne se qua on stage but this band really seem to love the lime light. Their lead singer has more charisma than most and a real stage presence and more joi de verve than I’ve seen in a while and was happy to engage with the crowd re naming the city Thunderland and joking along with wry quips such as “We are the modern day poets dear Sir!” between crowd pleasing songs such as ‘Throne Of Weed’ and ‘Atomic Prophets’ though I have to admit I really enjoyed the on the spot backing vocals from Tony Reed and Pete from the headline act of the night when the bassist couldn’t sing due to his bad throat for the song ‘Gods Of Fire’. All too soon their set was over much to the disappointment of myself and the growing number of super fans gathering at the front for moshing mayhem.
To console myself I decided to have yet another reasonably priced drink at the bar (thirsty work this gig reviewing lark) and after what seemed like an age the third act of the night took to the stage. Now I’ve already seen Ashes Of Iron this week when they supported the epic Bo Ningen at the Cluny 2 and I was really looking forward to seeing them again. Tonight they were on top form once again playing through their set list with ease and complete rocking style. Their lead singer seemed more ‘up’ too and was less the tortured poet and more the libertine as he stripped down to his waist and strutted his stuff on stage as his band mates thrashed through one song after another. Utterly fantastic as always!
The headliners of the night were Trippy Wicked & The Cosmic Children Of The Night who have just completed a European tour. Not that it showed in their performance as they played their way through their psychedelic rock anthems with aplomb. Variety is the spice of life and they certainly spiced the night up! Their music flows from heavy metal power ballads to the deeply trippy and ethereal with distortion laden guitars and vocals showing their versatility and aptitude. They have never before played as a full band in Sunderland and tonight they had flown in Tony Reed all the way from America for the gig. Playing classics such as ‘Southern’ and ‘Fire’ as well as some of their songs from their new album including ‘Change Your Mind’ and ‘I Want Another Drink’. My favourite by them though was the tongue in cheek song ‘Hillbilly Moonshine’ which got most of the crowd dancing along and inspired one of the best ‘rock out without spilling my pint’ performances of the night from the bassist of Witch Charmer.
Now the bands had finished but the night was still young and the club was in full swing as the DJ played through a variety of metal, rock, indie, and alternative tunes for the main dance floor. Only slightly tipsy from the very reasonably priced drinks I had been imbibing all night I spent a merry hour or so chatting away with some of the band members of Groan and congratulated their youngest member, albeit a day late, for reaching the grand old age of 21 (though it might just be me but he didn’t look a day over 12) and generally having a good old natter with their lead singer. It’s not often that such talent comes to my home town but when it does it is always of the highest calibre and the four bands tonight were worth their weight in gold. 9/10
Helen Todner – Words & photos