If you want an example of how the pandemic has held back some bands then I think London post-punk band Shame are probably it.
By rights they should probably be selling out the UEA LCR by now, instead of its little sibling The Waterfront.
They have all the right ingredients in place.
- Charismatic and passionate frontman (check)
- Energetic, loud and uplifting sound (check)
- Couple of decent albums and more than a handful of excellent tunes (check)
- And a very passionate following who think nothing of moshing and crowd-surfing their way through a 70 minute set (check).
But while similar sounding bands like Fontaines DC we're luckier with their timing and managed to build up a large following before lockdowns came, Shame feel like they still have some way to go to hit the same levels.
Not that it seems to matter to them one jot as they pulverise their way through a pulsating set of songs from their two albums so far, namely Songs of Praise and Drunk Tank Pink.
Lead singer Charlie Steen is a formidable frontman, rasping out the lyrics with passion and vigour and regularly diving into and onto the large mosh-pit - much to their delight.
But this band is no one-man show and the remaining four members play their part adding some great guitar riffs and thrilling drum beats, even if one or two of the songs on show tonight don't quite match the quality of their best stuff.
And their best stuff, in particular One Rizla and Concrete, does more than enough to suggest that this is a band still very much on the rise. I can't wait to see what they come up with next.
* I love it when the support acts end up being bands you want to go on to check out, so a massive hat-tip to The Goa Express and The Umlauts, both of whom did enough to suggest they're worth keeping an eye on in the months to come, especially The Goa Express with their late 80s/early 90s sound.
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