Who
The Wonder Stuff
Bentley Rhythm Ace
Support
Fuzzbox
The Lottery Winners
Where
Birmingham O2 Institute
When
23rd December 2016
Price
£20.00
Who with
No-one
Position
In the middle
Comments
2016 had felt like a fairly quiet year for gigs, although I'm surprised to note I attended more shows than at any time since 2013. Musically I'd maintained an excellent standard, crossing Electric Light Orchestra, Noel Gallagher, The Coral, Jean-Michel Jarre and Buzzcocks off my list, and now I'd be finishing it off with my latest ever show in a year, and a first viewing of The Wonder Stuff. In fact I had next to no intention of seeing them, but my attention had been drawn to an advertised Bentley Rhythm Ace show, and upon closer research I found that they were a mere support act on what looked to be an outstanding pre-Christmas knees-up on a Friday night. I pondered for a while if to go, as on so many levels 2016 had been a fucking horrible year. Besides the nightmare of Trump, Brexit and a devastating clutch of celebrity deaths, I'd also struggled to get a new job, somehow finding it harder than even during the recession despite my being more experienced and qualified than I'd ever been before. I can't possibly exaggerate how much it frustrates me when life kicks me in the balls in the cruelest ways possible, and to find myself finally with experience and being turned down for a job I was uniquely qualified for because someone outbullshitted me was horrifying as it was a recreation of the terrible scenario Hillary Clinton found herself in, and after voting against Brexit because I didn't feel we should be taking the slightest risk of economic catastrophe, to then find that my sector of the economy was terribly and immediately hit - whereas smug brexiteers who voted wrongly are safe in their overpaid jobs - was a shocking blow. I don't want anyone to suffer of course, but it is only karmic justice that if things go downhill then the people who caused it should bear the brunt of their decision, just as I'd be happy for them to enjoy the fruits of success if they are somehow proved right against all the overwhelming evidence that we're either going to be worse off or will end up in a messy compromise that could never justify the hassle of the whole process.

So this is perhaps the first gig ever that I was attending entirely on the merits of the support band and with no knowledge of the headliners at all, and my bond with Bentley Rhythm Ace remains unbreakable after their legendary performance at V2000, forming the holy trinity of my 20 years of live experiences alongside Moloko and The Flaming Lips. Interestingly I'd be seeing The Lips in London in January, and it's just a shame that Moloko are unlikely to reform, as although their V2000 performance was unbeatable, I don't remember it all and they wrote a good few songs afterwards on the Statues album that I never got to hear live. Double-header gigs have been a big theme of my 2016, and I was intrigued to note that Fuzzbox and The Lottery Winners were making up the bill, as although I wasn't familiar with their music I could see that this was a genuine event and that they weren't token support acts to suffer through, but artists genuinely worth a listen. Ultimately I decided to bill them both as supports to a double-headliner of BRA and The Wonder Stuff, although history will sadly relegate BRA to a mere support band, and to me it felt like an exceptional festival bill rather than a bog standard concert with support. I couldn't persuade anyone to join me but ultimately despite all the job uncertainty I decided to just go for it, figuring I'd be unlikely to be occupied elsewhere on a Friday night so near Christmas, although nobody else was interested despite the absolute bargain £20 price, but to be fair I barely asked anyone as I'm tired of being let down and do enjoy a certain satisfaction of knowing I've enjoyed something incredible no-one else understands. It's a sad reality that the wonder of V2000 was in leaving friends who were being closed-minded and negative, going off to enjoy the greatest musical experience of my lifetime by myself, and knowing I'd done better, but it's set a pattern that has recurred again and again, and I ultimately don't mind as I'm proud to not miss out on such wonder(ful) stuff!

I was visiting the Institute just 13 days after SFA had blown me away, and I was pleased to adopt a completely new method of preparation for the concert by embracing YouTube. Sadly it's a little bit trickier for me as my iPod struggles to play out of both ears, my stereo has blown up and my PC starts skipping if I don't reboot it regularly - and I can't afford to replace any of these things right now - but I made a concerted effort to listen to the music as often as I could whenever checking the internet. Perversely I heard Bentley Rhythm Ace the least, just giving each album a couple of spins and barely scratching the surface beyond their few hits, whereas I heard plenty of The Lottery Winners and Fuzzbox, enjoying the relatively few songs I could find. Neither struck me as acts I'd go out of my way to see live, but I could absolutely see the appeal of both, finding a good few decent tunes including Elizabeth and Pink Sunshine, and being surprised by the quality, making me wonder if other support bands have this talent, and it's just a matter of my making the effort to learn the music in advance. Sadly I rarely have this much time on my hands, but it was a revelation to discover new tunes, as decent new music is not something I come across often now despite reading NME and hearing the charts every week. Also because I played the music in the background I barely watched the videos, so it was unusual to almost force myself to listen to the songs often and develop an interest independent of fashion and assessment of their image and personalities. Although I hate the idea of judging things on first impressions, it does seem a sad reality that few acts can truly overcome the first impression - mostly if they look good and say cool things the music's good too, and if they look like twats then the music is equally shit, Mike Skinner of The Streets being the finest example of that rarest exception to overcome a very negative first impression. I was also reasonably impressed with The Wonder Stuff, with The Size of A Cow standing out as their finest effort, and other songs sounding pretty decent, although I did have to force myself a bit as none of the music really jumped out at me, as entirely pleasant as it was to hear.

The Wonder Stuff in fact come from Stourbridge, which is the unlikeliest of Midland towns to support a band, and I'd enjoyed a visit there earlier in the year as part of my local sightseeing, finding the town a little short of attractions but well worth a day trip. Similarly Bentley Rhythm Ace and Fuzzbox originate in Birmingham, so it was only the fact that The Lottery Winners rudely came from Manchester that prevented this show from being a glorious West Midlands homecoming event. As far as I can tell The Wonder Stuff don't play Stourbridge and I doubt that the town has a suitably large venue anyway. My research astonishingly reveals that their singer 50-year-old Miles Hunt was married to Mary Anne Hobbs for five years, and also he was briefly a member of Pop Will Eat Itself, another Stourbridge band I sadly have next to no knowledge of as they pre-date my interest in music. I also had to contend with YouTube rudely trying to auto-play Toploader every so often after The Lottery Winners, which is a horrifying thought that there may be an overlap in the fanbase, and I didn't get round to buying any music although I do intend to buy a Wonder Stuff compilation at some point in the future. On the week of the show I was finishing off watching The X-Files, which I'd been enjoying for a good many months, and also watching the complete Twilight and Hostel film series, the contrast saying much about my varied tastes. None of these things I'd want to watch again and again, but I'm delighted to broaden my mind and cross them all off my list. I had a dull morning reading The X-Files episode guide as stuff blew around outside in near gale force winds - luckily not destroying my car - and as I'd received an email advising me that the doors would be opening at 6pm rather than the advertised 7pm I set out after a ludicrously early tea, not wanting to waste money in town when I really needed to save some cash.

Learning from my mistake last time I took in a can of Coke to drink before going inside, and wasted money on a new train ticket machine, which was frustrating as there were no checks or barriers and I couldn't afford to waste cash adding to the obscene profits of the railways. I heard the three Bentley Rhythm Ace tracks I had on my phone, having decided that my dodgy iPod was too awkward to carry around, then switched to Guns 'N' Roses, already thinking ahead to their huge summer show I had to look forward to in London. Alongside Kraftwerk and The Stone Roses I had the most extraordinary week of live music lined up in June 2017, but that's a story for another time! I was also conscious that I'd fallen desperately behind with note-making for SFA so I drafted some notes out for this review on the way in, arriving and heading straight to the venue, absolutely determined not to spend any cash, taking the decision out of my hands by simply not carrying any. Fortunately it was a cheap gig anyway, and it felt pretty special to be going out so close to Christmas on the eve of Christmas Eve. The train ran a little late delaying my arrival, but luckily the music hadn't started as I arrived at the venue, rushing into the room half an hour after 6pm. The Wonder Stuff backdrop was visible from the start, announcing that they were established in 1986, and so in fact this Christmas concert also had the bonus of being an anniversary gig as well as a homecoming one. I was impressed that a roadie was sporting a DeLorean top, but less impressed by a twat in low slung jeans who was taking endless selfies with a blatantly underage girl when he looked older than me, struggling to disguise my distaste as I settled into a good position quite near the front, which I'd hold onto before gradually edging backwards as The Wonder Stuff took to the stage. The DJing was pretty good, featuring There She Goes and Common People when I got in, and later Alright by Supergrass and other tunes guaranteed to appeal to the crowd.

The DJ in fact was Janice Long, who was also doubling as compere tonight, further emphasising the celebratory Event Gig feel of the night. Wikipedia astonishingly informs me that Keith Chegwin is her brother, and she was far older than I'd imagined, as I'd presuming her to be a similar age to Steve Lamacq. She performs on Radio 2 so I must admit I never listen to her, instead I've proudly migrated to 6Music, which is the brilliant alternative for people who want to age with grace while simultaneously being on the same level as any young people who want to cultivate great taste in sparse times for the mainstream. She was clearly a woman of good taste though, whipping up some enthusiasm by wheeling off the list of the bands who were playing tonight, although I was frustrated that BRA didn't get the biggest cheer, and clearly judging by the noise for their namecheck it was unfortunate that many people here tonight were Wonder Stuff fans who were completely oblivious to what an exciting line-up was preceding them. Janice welcomed The Lottery Winners to the stage, settling my slight doubt over if they'd actually be turning up, as four bands seemed too exciting to be true. They had four members, including two guys who looked like brothers, with the singer in a cap and beard and his doppelganger guitarist sporting similarly excessive hair on both his face and head. The drummer looked quite dull compared to the extravagance of his bandmates, and an unfeasibly attractive girl completed the line-up on guitar, making them a genuinely eclectic and interesting bunch to witness. The banter from the charismatic singer was also impressive, introducing Elizabeth as their biggest hit, which I shot a short video of, and making outlandish claims that they'd had half a million views on YouTube, although the hit counter tells me it's more like 40,000 in reality!

They announced this had been their best year ever and they were keen to finish on a high, and the crowd were either open-minded or seemed to have some moderate knowledge of their catchy songs, with Young Love being particularly memorable, as was I Know. During Pillows the singer started singing the lines about marrying me in a heartfelt manner to random guys in the audience, before spotting they had a wedding ring, saying "shit" and moving on to another! This was fantastic stuff, and my effort to brush up on their back catalogue was paying dividends. A few burned CDs were dispatched into the crowd like frisbees, but from a health and safety perspective this seemed quite a risk to me! There was also some banter with a photographer when he chose to take a pic of the singer sipping water between songs, expressing a fear it wouldn't look very rock 'n' roll, before accidentally tossing the bottle aside in a way that seemed to cause a short circuit! There was also encouragement to get onto Facebook and Twitter and tell all our friends how sexy and talented they were, and bizarrely one of the roadies even leapt onto the stage for one chorus to add backing vocals, and I'd presumed he was a minor member of The Wonder Stuff so was really surprised to learn that it did seem he was just a roadie who'd perhaps developed ideas above his station! It was a fantastic start to the evening and put me in a good mood for the entertainment ahead. After a short break, Janice Long introduced Fuzzbox as being a favourite of both her and John Peel, and they'd been together from 1985-1990, peaking in 1989 with three top thirty hits. Fuzzbox had reformed briefly around 2010 before joining forces again in 2015, and I'm surprised to note that their official name is We've Got A Fuzzbox And We're Gonna Use It, with Fuzzbox largely being an abbreviation to cater for American audiences who can't cope with such a challenging name! A pink feather boa adjourned the mic stand of the singer and they kicked off boldly with International Rescue, which in fact was their biggest hit, charting at #11, surprisingly outperforming Pink Sunshine, which peaked at #14.

I'd heard International Rescue a good few times on YouTube, but surprisingly this was the first time I clocked that a backing vocalist actually said "Thunderbirds are go!" in the build-up to the chorus, and I shot a short video to capture the moment, surprisingly just recording a nondescript bit of a verse rather than the more obvious chorus. As far as I can tell only the singer Vix and blonde keyboardist Maggie Dunne were original members, with one of the original group sadly passing away in the interim. The other three did indeed look impossibly young so it made sense that they weren't originals, although all of them looked good and were dressed memorably in a disparate array of bright outfits. Vix was sporting red hair and a Santa costume with a badge declaring that she was on the naughty list for this year! All of their songs were entirely pleasant and fun, but clearly they weren't a group to change people's lives, instead forming part of a wider palette of musical entertainment. It may have been Love Is The Slug where the rest of the band gathered round the drummer to pound away at the instrument, giggling away and transmitting some infectious joy to the crowd in the process, and Vix declared near the end that we'd all made it onto the nice list, as well as claiming that they somehow weren't being Christmassy enough, which is hard to accept as serious! The show ended strongly with Pink Sunshine, as I shot another video where it seemed clear that a good few people did know the tune, as the band encouraged us to participate with some hand claps. They posed for a photo at the end taken by a roadie, before taking a bow, and I captured a great shot of them together. They perhaps hadn't gone down as well as The Lottery Winners had done but they'd won most of us over, whipping up enough enthusiasm to sustain those in the crowd who hadn't got the memo that tonight was a well-rounded and talented bill of music, and were now being blown away by the support artists who were enthused enough to act as if this was their show as well by indulging in such activities as the group hug and bow.

I was well aware that Bentley Rhythm Ace at V2000 was a seminal moment in my life that seemed impossible to replicate, and it's strange that they pretty much vanished from the scene shortly after such an incredible moment, but sadly the chart placing of #29 for the legendary Theme Of Gutbuster was an indication that their brilliance wasn't as appreciated as much as it should have been at the time. I'd researched them a few times since and it's only now that Wikipedia claims that they did indeed split in 2000, because as far as I could tell they'd just vanished without trace, occasionally re-emerging for poorly publicised DJ sets that I barely heard about. I was thrilled to hear they'd reformed if surprised that they were to be just a support act, and it's interesting to note that Richard March was a former member of Pop Will Eat Itself, who were connected with The Wonder Stuff in the incestuous community of West Midlands pre Britpop. I thought one cool-looking guy who appeared onstage was a member so I was surprised that he was again just a roadie, and a highlight of the evening was when the Bentley Rhythm Ace car front was uncovered, which was an awesome keyboard and effects deck in brilliant disguise. I couldn't say if it existed back at V2000, but it would be extraordinary if I'd forgotten such a memorable prop, as it featured a number plate, plenty of flashing lights and windscreen wipers that moved in time to the music! The band emerged onstage to a series of songs that I didn't recognise, eagerly waving a smiley-faced acid flag, before passing it into the audience, as it made its way up toward the balcony before the band pointedly asked for it to be passed back ahead of their finale. This was complemented by the word "ACID" being gaffer-taped in yellow onto the small keyboard to the left, as the guitarist to our right was wearing an especially bright golden jacket which Brandon Flowers would have been honoured to own!

My lack of knowledge of the tunes didn't affect things one jot, as much like V2000 the atmosphere was so joyous and wonderful it simply didn't matter. The crowd who'd failed to cheer BRA loudly enough at the outset seemed to be engaged, although I've always found it strange how such incredible - and more importantly live and original - dance music can be greeted by such measured head-nodding, whereas absolute shite and anonymous music that I heard at clubs in the same era was sometimes greeted with hysteria. I really struggle to comprehend, as BRA were far more compelling and deserving of crowd chaos, so it's either a reflection of the drugs and alcohol that fuel clubbers to not only tolerate, but actively love such awful music, or an indication that crowds at gigs can be too restrained and downright boring for their own good, in particular when they're witnessing a support band. Rarely have I witnessed a scene so deserving of a crazed reaction, but luckily for me I was personally content to just nod my head and enjoy the atmosphere, as the band joined in the madness with some whistles to make us think we were in a world where raves were actually awesome, and ratcheting up the insanity as a member rotated a thing on the ground that seemed to be an actual air raid siren! I shot a video of this, cutting it out just as one of the guys complained about getting old, and although I was ecstatic to be seeing BRA again, I was even more pleased when halfway through they actually played a tune I knew - How'd I Do Dat! I shot a video of the intro, which was lively if clearly pre-recorded, and I struggle to determine if this tune is entirely original, or made up of samples as I suspect it may be as it's just too good! They may or may not have played Whoosh, but much like at V2000 the performance was so gloriously chaotic it was difficult to tell what was actually happening, and even to this day I still don't know if BRA had played Theme From Gutbuster for that entire set or if that had just been wishful thinking on my part!

There was no mistaking Bentley's Gonna Sort You Out though, and I shot a rather long video of the introduction, and unusually for me a second video of the chorus, capturing the singer dashing to the mic to say "I love it!" to accompany the pre-recorded lady vocals. The singer also threw in some of Unbelievable by EMF, and I'm astonished that fellow Brummie James Atkin was the main man in EMF, and as far as I can tell it was actually him guesting with BRA, sporting a gold coat and Adidas t-shirt! This was a shocking thought, as Unbelievable was a US #1 hit, and here was the actual singer casually throwing snippets of it into the mix for a support slot. Bentley's Gonna Sort You Out was fantastic enough by itself, with happy memories of singing it at Blast Off in Wolves, but this took it to a different level! Otherwise as far as I can tell it was the original duo, and I presume the other main guy was the one in a bucket hat indulging himself with the air raid siren, and it says much about how wonderfully unhinged the performance was that I struggle to tell what his actual function in the group was! Apparently their original drummer was Fuzz Townshend, who is a car-focused TV presenter, and just to blow my mind even further my photos suggest that it was him accompanying the band on drums tonight too! Wikipedia of course isn't entirely reliable, with one brilliant claim being that East 17 performed to 450,000 people over three nights in Pyongyang at Mayday stadium on their reunion tour, but it seemed that all the evidence pointed toward BRA sporting a genuinely stellar line-up, as Fuzz Townshend had also been a member of PWEI for a good few years.

I seemed to trump my excitement levels even further with three videos for what I believe was Return Of The Hardcore Jumble Carbootechnodisco Roadshow, featuring a good waving of the flag that had been returned to the stage, and I believe I recognised the song a bit, although apart from the singles I couldn't put a name to anything. Making a mockery of the idea that this was The Wonder Stuff's night, the show then took a turn toward triumphant finale, as Fuzzbox reappeared to dance around to the ending. This was insane as it was now past 9pm, and The Wonder Stuff were either a very generous headline act or proceedings had spiralled far beyond their control. The two groups gathered together for hugs and bows, before asking us if we wanted another song. I prayed for Theme From Gutbuster so was taken aback by an impromptu singalong of We Wish You A Merry Christmas, with my camera barely capturing the very end of the briefest of a cappella renditions. I think the crowd were won over, but frankly you'd have to be a musical fuckwit to not be moved, and it was absolutely extraordinary to note that what I'd presumed to be a watered down retread of a glorious moment from my past had surpassed all expectations and proved that Bentley Rhythm Ace are a genuinely extraordinary live band who succeeded at V2000 not just due to the circumstances, but on the back of their very real brilliance. Even the lustre of The Flaming Lips had worn off a bit in the intervening 16 years, although they had performed brilliantly up until 2006, with Embryonic and The Terror, and now some fairly dull-sounding new songs sadly indicating a downward trajectory. I hope very much the Lips prove me wrong in 2017, but at V2000 they set their stall so high that even an 8/10 performance in the present day could be considered a disgrace by comparison. Bentley Rhythm Ace on the other hand felt as if they were brilliantly frozen in time, with a definitive line-up remaining intact and offering a take on dance music so extraordinary that it simply could not be bettered and has no need to be updated.

After such brilliance I can't even begin to pretend that The Wonder Stuff stood the slightest hope of measuring up, much as Manic Street Preachers and Noel Gallagher could never have lived up to the wonder of Super Furry Animals supporting them, but by considering all three as a nice bonus to evenings that had already proved their worth I was ready to greet them with an open mind and hoped to be impressed. Someone was vaping, making me think how silly it was to aggressively ban a sensible alternative to smoking indoors that does little or no harm to others, and The Wonder Stuff took to the stage rather late at around 9:30pm, having the magnanimity to give up so much of the evening to their wonderful supporting bill. They emerged to Don’t You Ever which I vaguely recognised, shooting a video capturing the red lights and many heads in my way. I recognised On The Ropes a bit more, shooting a second video, but the crowd reaction was just too much, as I gradually edged back to the edge of the moshpit. It was insanity and not one I could grasp, as these tunes just didn't seem good enough to warrant it. Luckily the crowd burned themselves out a bit by reacting with such unnecessary hysteria to the opening salvo, and proceedings quietened down. However, I was struggling a bit as I couldn't accept this insane reaction because, sad as it is to report, The Wonder Stuff had been hopelessly upstaged by their support acts, and it was hard to join in unwarranted chaos when the tunes just didn't connect. The singer still had long hair and very pale skin, and clearly judging by the reaction and number of band t-shirts there were some mental fans in tonight, but they just came across as hopelessly unfashionable, and even though tonight seemed to be The Wonder Stuff at the absolute peak of their powers, sadly they just weren't up to the ludicrously high standards I've hit in my past.

It's hard to explain what the issue is, but it probably has something to do with their being before my time and having no emotional resonance with me whatsoever, and despite listening to the songs as many times as I could muster very few of them had sunk in. The Size Of A Cow had appealed as a slight novelty proto Britpop hit, but the lyrics just didn't seem to have any deep meanings, and also perhaps because the group are local lads and spoke like it, it was hard to take to them as they just weren't cool at all and had no mystique whatsoever. Slade could presumably manage it, and obviously ELO, but otherwise the West Midlands music scene feels hopelessly weak when compared with the likes of London and Manchester. Also my forcing myself to become a fan via YouTube had been a little unnatural, and although it had proved a helpful tool to familiarise myself with support acts it couldn't create the love I needed to truly appreciate a headliner. Of course the standards I've set myself in recent years means it's tough for anyone to make the grade, and as I inhabit a universe where even The Prodigy live aren't up to much by comparison I'd say I'm a tough person to truly impress! I'd probably never naturally had become a fan of the band, dismissing them as an irrelevant pre-Britpop indie group, and despite my open mind and positivity it was only when confronted with their live spectacle I realised it wasn't for me. I do hope to eventually get round to buying a nice compilation album of theirs, but I feel no real urgency to listen to the music again. I shot a third video during For The Broken Hearted, capturing a burst of violin from Erica Nockalls, who I'm shocked to read is the current partner of singer Miles Hunt. She was quite a bit younger than him and wasn't a founder member of the group, joining in 2005 after their reformation in 2000, but in her overly elaborate red dress she drew the eye in what was otherwise a bog standard indie line-up who simply weren't as interesting to look at as any of their supports. Also sadly it appears that the singer is the only original member of the group anyway, but I only found this out afterwards!

The banter from Miles was pleasant enough if retaining the lack of coolness, declaring that the band had to slow down due to age, and their not being enough defibrillators in the room to cope. Perversely the crowd had got quieter as the songs got better, but perhaps I was just happy that proceedings calmed down to a level more worthy of the music being delivered and that I was now out of the ridiculous moshpit that the opening had attracted. It's funny to think that their fantastic taste and generosity in assembling such a special bill had worked against them, and although The Wonder Stuff were entirely reasonable and nice to cross off my list, the extent to which they'd been outshone by what had gone before was almost embarrassing, and perhaps a succession of terrible support bands in the past is a deliberate ploy by more selfish acts who don't want to be upstaged, and there is a certain tragedy that I think less of The Wonder Stuff because of the extra efforts they'd gone to to give us a good night. Erica left for some of the songs where violin wasn't needed, and I can add to the multitude of unfortunate reasons why The Wonder Stuff fared badly by noting that Gogol Bordello had set an inhumanly high standard of entertainment-levels provided by a violinist, and seeing someone just playing pleasant accompanying music was massively uninteresting compared to the violin-led moshpits and near-riots whipped up by Sergey Ryabtsev in the Bordello. If I recall correctly, Good Deeds & Highs was a song dedicated to the kids and their kids, acknowledging the multi-generational appeal of the bands of the 1980s, before Hot Love Now! was declared as a suitable number for the creation of more kids! The thematic link concluded with The Size Of A Cow, which was declared as the opposite of a romantic song, and it was only in this segment where The Wonder Stuff casually tossed out their biggest hit in the middle of the set where I felt the crowd reaction wasn't sufficient for the moment.

I shot a short video, cruelly cutting it off before the word bourbon, feeling glad he doesn't suggest Budweiser as the wonder drink of the tune! This strange middle segment was bolstered further as the band launched into Golden Green, which was the one other tune of theirs that stood out as something a bit more special and memorable. It was introduced as being country and western, and the crowd reaction was equally wild as it had been for Cow, suggesting a weird inversion of moshpit priorities in the crowd compared to reality. I shot two short videos capturing the green lights, and it was definitely a highlight and livelier than expected, and it also had the added bonus of dispelling my fears that the band would play onto 11:30pm and I'd have to leave early, being quite unable to afford a taxi. Somehow The Wonder Stuff had crammed a lot of hits and also b-sides into a short space of time, and as they blown their biggest moments I was happy to gradually edge back a bit further, preparing myself for a fast exit when the show did indeed finish. Miles encouraged crowd participation at one point, rudely calling the left balcony cunts for not singing loudly enough, then perhaps being overly nice for the remainder of the set to compensate! The crowd reaction was quite enough thank you very much, so he must have very high standards if we weren't enthusiastic enough for him! The band left the stage and immediately the instruments were retuned, making me side a bit more with SFA and their refusal to indulge in phoney encores, as it was clear they'd be back for more. A sheet music stand was set up in front of Miles, and he explained it contained the lyrics, acknowledging that artists should rehearse and know their material, but pointing out that he was going to do a very wordy cover version, and wanted it there just to be on the safe side.

This cover version turned out to be the wonderful That's Entertainment by The Jam, which I'd been lucky enough to hear Paul Weller performing with Miles Kane less than 18 months beforehand. Of course this version couldn't possibly measure up to hearing it done by Weller, but it was a lovely acoustic moment, and I shot a video capturing the pink lights and Erica substituting her violin for cymbals. The crowd were enthusiastic, and it was a rare moment where The Wonder Stuff lived up to the party vibe that had been set by their support acts, even though they failed to take the opportunity to invite everyone back onstage for a Jools Holland style cheesy singalong! It would have meant more if this had been a special treat for us but I note that the band had also played it in London, speaking of which they made a joke about making sure they don't cock up the intro of Full Of Life (Happy Now), which they'd admitted to doing in the capital. I believe the set ended with Good Night Though, but I just didn't know it, and this was where the bizarre decision to toss away their two biggest hits in the middle of the show really felt like a mistake. Astonishingly they'd stuck to a 90-minute set and were all finished in time for the 11pm curfew, as Miles blew kisses to all the different sections of the crowd and balconies before leaving the stage, being later followed by Erica in her red dress, strangely leaving behind the flanking guitarists who'd looked a little bored throughout to finish out the set by themselves. It was an unusual way to end a gig, and everyone seemed aware that there was nowhere positive left for The Wonder Stuff to go and had no qualms in heading straight for the exit. Luckily I had beaten the crowd a bit and escaped fairly fast, picking up a flyer for the tour made out of one of the most solid pieces of card I've ever got my hands on as I exited. In fact this had been the last date of a six night tour, interestingly all at O2 venues, and I noted that Bentley Rhythm Ace had fully embraced the nostalgia by reusing their classic old logo.

The Lottery Winners hadn't appeared at all nights so I'd been lucky to see them, although Steve Lamacq had appeared at three dates, including London, so I hadn't quite had the strongest line-up, although the homecoming and Christmas party vibe made me feel quite confident that this night had been the very peak of the tour. In fact it's tough to imagine The Wonder Stuff attracting such enthusiasm outside the West Midlands, as even geniuses like The Stone Roses garner much less appeal outside Manchester, and much of their core crowd travel around wherever they go, as it feels like relatively few southerners attend their London shows. I caught an earlier train to Wolverhampton, drafting my notes while waiting for the connecting service. My ears were whistling and I was tired, and I was upset to read that Carrie Fisher had suffered a heart attack, before 2016 cruelly murdered another wonderful celebrity four days later by taking her life alongside George Michael's. The last few days of the year were almost spent cowering in fear of the next terrible thing that would happen. Fuck you 2016, you truly were the worst year of my lifetime, and I hope never to see such lows again, but with Article 50 and a Trump inauguration ahead of us, the signs for 2017 hardly boded well, making me realise that the importance of seizing the moment and enjoying incredible live concerts was more important than ever. Speaking of omissions is a bit of a moot point as I wasn't expecting much beyond Cow and Green. Obviously having no Theme From Gutbuster is the real blow, and the fact BRA could get away with that and still steal the night says much about their brilliance. Also I'm shocked that The Wonder Stuff didn't play Dizzy, which had climbed to number one thanks to Vic Reeves, but it's another tune that had no emotional resonance for me as I was too young at the time, and their failure to play it meant that it wasn't going to sink in in future either. I was hugely annoyed to make an effort to wake up early to go swimming the next morning to find the pool was randomly closed, but I caught up with my sleep soon enough, and am delighted that I attended this show, even though The Wonder Stuff were totally outclassed by a deranged performance by Bentley Rhythm Ace, along with spirited turns by Fuzzbox and The Lottery Winners. This could go down as my most excellent Christmas gig ever, with a festive vibe while genuinely delivering quality that could be appreciated all year round.
Setlist
Don’t You Ever
On The Ropes
Unbearable
Radio Ass Kiss
Here Comes Everyone
Mission Drive
Caught In My Shadow
For The Broken Hearted
Room 512, All The News That's Fit To Print
Good Deeds & Highs
Hot Love Now!
The Size Of A Cow
Golden Green
Be Thy Name
A Wish Away
Give Give Give Me More More More
Ten Trenches Deep
That's Entertainment
Circlesquare
Full Of Life (Happy Now)
Good Night Though
n.b. This setlist was from another gig, but it's either correct or similar

Mark: 8.0/10