The Damned at The Waterfront
There was an energy and effervescence on stage that I've not witnessed at previous shows.
Norwich is no stranger to hosting The Damned and the majority of the crowd at The Waterfront tonight would have seen these OAPs (Old Age Punks) countless times before, myself included. Despite my preconceptions of a standard crowd-pleasing run through of their hits, followed by a brief and predictable encore however, this evening’s show was fabulously refreshing. Yes they played all their ‘big songs’ as expected, but there was an energy and effervescence on stage that I’ve not witnessed at previous shows, the reason for which no one could quite put their finger on.
Support came from mostly-local boys Gravedale High, whose blend of cheesy horror lyrics and furious pace took the audience a while to warm to. The wall of punk guitar and energetic front man with a curiously changing accent (he assured me he was Canadian. I’m still undecided) left some of the crowd in stunned silence for the first few songs. Those who also like their punk fast and frenetic though (like me) enjoyed the support set immensely.
Headliners The Damned, fronted by the ‘portly vampire’ (their words, not mine) are all well into middle age but still sported the same threads we’ve seen them in for years. Singer David Vanian wore his trademark leather gloves and kept his shades firmly over his eyes, while Captain Sensible sported a punked-up jacket bearing the ‘OAP’ moniker. They ran through various hits, with solos and sideline tracks given their due stage time, but the best parts of the gig were in between the familiar songs. The comedic banter between the guys on stage felt natural, taking the piss out of each other and laughing at good natured heckles from the crowd. Song highlights included ‘Neat Neat Neat’, with no less vigour than when it was originally released in 1977, and an unusually likeable cover of Jefferson Airplane’s ‘White Rabbit’ that even my mum would have approved of.
The whole evening felt like we were watching friends mucking about on stage, rather than an almost 40 year old punk band playing the same old songs, and more than a few people commented that this was the best Damned show they’d been to. I'd have to agree.
