Well, it’s been a while hasn’t it?! But finally live music is back in England and what a way to start it off with the line up that Sabotage have put together in Manchester’s Yes Basement venue.
Getting down early, so much so the room is empty save for a sound engineer, it already feels great to be in a dark, smoky room with a dimly neon lit stage.
Opening tonight are Warrington’s Pray for Mojo, who describe themselves as “for fans of psychedelic, grunge, stoner, punk and classic rock” – not for the faint hearted then. They tell us that this is only their second ever gig but as they get going you wouldn’t have known. Stand out tracks include ‘Salvador’, with its rolling bass riff, Eastern infused guitar riffs and Hawkwind esq vibes that well and truly blow any cobwebs that may be lingering. In other parts of the set they channel an Oh Sees feel, especially in the kinetic energy that’s bouncing off stage. Their first single ‘Landslide’ which isn’t out next week is one that fans of The Music will enjoy. A great start to proceedings, they are definitely one to watch.
Headlining tonight are Winsford’s Déjà Vega; to whom BSM readers need no introduction, we’ve been championing them here for a while. Like many bands they’ve not been idle during this period of bleakness and a sneak peek at the set list promises that things are going to be interesting.
They include fan favourites such as ‘Chasing’, ‘Mr Powder’ and ‘Eyes of Steel’ all taken from their self titled debut LP, but the rest of the set is the newer, more raucous sound that they have cleverly been perfecting. ‘Spitting Gas’ and ‘Who We Are’ ensure that any bodies that weren’t dancing before, are now and that everyone is at least a little sweaty, some, like me, a lot so. They storm through the set at a blinding pace, barely giving you time to catch your breathe before their version of ‘The End’ comes into play in all its glory; ‘The Test’. This time however we have a souped-up version, with added synth and triangle to name but a little of the organised chaos that singer Jack Fearon gets up to on stage. A full on mosh pit takes over the front of the compact venue and leads to the close.
As first gigs back go, I can’t imagine a better one, all that’s left to say is thank you to Sabotage, Pray for Mojo and Déjà Vega for making it a night never to be forgotten.
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