Live at Leeds Metropolitan University on Sunday, 5th October 2003
For a Sunday night in the Met, it's all gone a bit weird. Tonight is the opening night of the Met's new Drum n Bass weekly session. But that's in the back room. In the main room it's the shockingly popular Killing Joke.
I decided to go to this gig, because I had heard the name Killing Joke before, but didn't know where. So in my logical genius I came to the conclusion that they were a generic So-Cal punk band. Apparently I was wrong.
Everyone around me absolutely slated the first band on stage. Low-rider. Admittedly they did sound like a band that hadn't played together in ten years and I was aching to join the heckling by shouting "play one the drummer knows". But to give them their dues, they played kinda laid back punky sort of stuff and they had a harmonica (I'm easily pleased). Their music will never change the world, but they didn't deserve the level of abuse they got from the increasingly sweaty crowd.
And so onto the mighty Killing Joke. Judging by the number, and diversity of the crowd, I am the only person in the room who doesn't really know what to expect. I try to be open minded, I really do, but after a stupidly long intro the band come on stage looking like shit. Harsh I know, but the whole Goth thing doesn't do it for me.
So there is thumping drums, a driving bass line and gravely guitar, the lyrics are shouted over the music with a force only utilized by "proper" punk bands. The music is fairly good, above average certainly and I can see why so many people here think this is great, but it all just seems a bit uninspired. They try really hard and the fans are enthusiastic but not energetic, though that's a bit of a Sunday gig theme.
Soon the music becomes a background to my disenfranchised perspective of the Met. The hired thugs of ShowSec throw out a fairly passive customer in excessively violent manner, and this sums up the whole mood in the Met at the moment. It's still early days of this term, but has the Met lost its charm?
The music steadily grinds on, with shouting over the top. One or two tunes stand out, but only briefly. I eventually take up a seat out side the main hall where I can hear the music and reflect on the evening. The sad conclusion that I made is that, with time, this happens to all cult bands. In their time this band was one of the most important and inspirational acts around. Now people see them for memories or a last chance stab of history. These bands will reform every few years around new albums, or best of albums, or rarity DVD's or books or whatever, they will tour progressively smaller venues until only a hardcore fan base of 40 something's in faded, shrunk tour shirts will go to the gigs, making potential new fans feel unwelcome with their elitist sensibilities until the band retire gracefully, cut their hair and buy jaguar S-Types.
It happens to us all. We get old, what we think is cool no longer is, and people younger than us will disrespect us for trying to hold onto what we believe in.
You've got to know when to fold them, know when to hold them, know when to walk away, know when to run?
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On 9th October 2003 at 01:36 Anonymous 1174 wrote...
BOTH BANDS WERE EXCELLENT AND A TOP ROCK NIGHT WAS HAD BY ME AND MY GANG. ROLL ON THE NEXT TOUR , AND THE NEXT AND THE NEXT. QUITINGS FOR LOOSERS LIKE THE BLOKE WHO WROTE THE FIRST REVIEW, I HOPE HE WASNT KEPT UP PAST HIS BED TIME.
On 9th October 2003 at 02:07 Anonymous 1175 wrote...
If I was going to have the audacity to write a review, good or bad, I would at least have done a little background research.
I have the distinct impression that this reviewer would have been happier if Killing Joke had turned out to be a 'generic So-Cal' punk band.
Killing Joke were never a punk band. When punk was still alive and kicking punks took to the raw aggression of Killing Joke's music. When punk had all but dies off and what remained was a prototype goth scene, we again took to Killing Joke, because of the darkness and realism of their music.
Killing joke were never a goth band either. Killing Joke were so ahead of their time that they were in a genre all of their own. That is why they were influential.
They are not a band of old punks desperate for money. (a la Dead Kennedys).
If the writer had researched for instance 'Jaz Coleman' or 'Jeremy Coleman' then they would have discovered many dimensions to his life, not the least being the hugely successful Classical Music projects he has been involved in (working with Nigel Kennedy and others). He's not short of a bob or two.
Likewise, Geordie isn't exactly selling The Big Issue either, having been engaged in various activities as Murder Incorporated and The Damage Manual.
Neither of the main bassists are skint either.
Youth practically invented UK House music and was involved with Blue Pearl and the Orb along with other manifestations. Raven has been making noise and money with Murder Incorporated, Prong, The Hellfire Club and others.
My belief is that collectively and individually, Killing Joke are driven by a force that goes beyond a need to amass wealth.
Music is an art and Killing Joke are true artists not con artists like most manufactured bands are today, maybe the reviewer finds that concept too much of a challenge to understand.
Coolness has nothing to do with it.
Age has nothing to do with it.
But the litluns should stay the f**k away if they can't handle it.
And I would recommend that the reviewer stay away from Ministry, Front 242, Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails, Tool, Die Krupps and a whole load of other good s**t too.
Go back to Mark Owen.
On 9th October 2003 at 13:12 Anonymous 13 wrote...
"If I was going to have the audacity to write a review, good or bad, I would at least have done a little background research." Sounds like we need your contributions Ricardo - give it a try! Email the boss with a sample and I, for one, would be really pleased to read the stuff on-line. We're not great, but we're having a go.
On 11th October 2003 at 11:57 Anonymous 1187 wrote...
This is an extract from The Gatherings' message board that, basically, says it all:
I read the review (Killing Joke - Leeds Music Scene). It was obvious that this kid had gone there expecting to see Rancid or Green Day, or some other so-called 'punk' band.
What he found was a band that combined the vitriol and politics of punk, the darkness of goth and the aggression and energy of metal, with thought provoking lyrics and arrangements that are verging on classical. It was too much for his young head to take... well, anybody fed on a diet of Blink 182 and Mark Owen would find 'Joke' a little too much for their tender stomachs.
It's not an age thing. My partner is 25. She already owned 'What's This For', 'Revelations' and 'Night Time' when I got with her 2 1/2 years ago. Most of her friends her age down to about 18 are into Killing Joke to varying degrees.
Some things cannot be put into the context of a particular time and are equally relevant and fresh 25 or 30 years on. Killing Joke is like that. Good things often endure over a long period of time.
Killing Joke is not a nostalgia band, like The Damned have become (although when all is said and done The Damned rocked like bastards when I saw them earlier this year). Primarily, I think because their music was always more innovative and had deeper meaning for their fans than their peers music did.
I remember when 'Brighter Than A Thousand Suns' came out and thought that 'Rubicon' was the pinnacle of Killing Joke's achievement musically, an epitaph of sorts. How glad I am today that I was so off the mark.
There's some kick-ass stuff on the new album. And it's about today, not yesterday!This message was last edited on 11/10/03 12.20:00
On 11th October 2003 at 14:57 Anonymous 122 wrote...
i was under the impression that an opinion is neither right nor wrong. on this occasion it seems i was wrong. sorry kids, i wasn't impressed. and as for "Ministry, Front 242, Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails, Tool, Die Krupps and a whole load of other good s**t too" you're right, i don't much like them. just reviewing bands you know you all ready like is a bit biased. i tried this, i didn't like it. i don't like cinnamon either, but i keep trying it!
On 11th October 2003 at 15:16 Anonymous 13 wrote...
Exactly. James wrote the story - and you guys have repeated what he said. Basically he wrote: "I didn't know what I was in for - this is how I reacted". It's a brave way to write. And very honest. (For msyself I tend to look a few things up first so that I can at least pretend to know what I'm on about. Surely if the only reviews given space were those written by accredited experts in the territory claimed by the artist we would be in a sorry mess. Popular music is not about expertise and accumulated wisdom. It's about right now. And right now is very complex. It's so complex that the review was put in a place where great comments like yours could be added as a permanent part of the record ... so Killing Joke isn't going to be less well understood in the long run.
No review at all (the fate suffered by most bands most nights) is far more of a problem. So, again, get writing 'em! This message was last edited on 11/10/03 15.17:07
On 22nd October 2003 at 11:42 Anonymous 1220 wrote...
thanks deadboy, we at lowrider had a great night too. the scene down at the front was appreciative totally unlike what the reporter was hearing. we have the tapes to prove his inaccuracy. cheers.
