Bursting at the seams
Hot Water Music shouldn’t be playing a venue the size of The Old Blue Last. Not only because they’re one of the most influential modern punk rock bands around, but because their sound – their searching, emotive melodies and the gruff vocal harmonies of singers Chuck Ragan and Chris Wollard – can barely fit inside the round(ish) walls of this upstairs room. Nor, for that matter, can many more people – it’s a special, intimate, one-off gig and the place is rammed. And with the band’s first album in eight years on the verge of release, the excitement is as tangible as the heat is sticky.
A blistering warm-up set from Leamington Spa’s Sharks is the perfect precursor to the main act, their rebellious rock ’n’ roll riffs getting the evening off to a flying start. Boisterous and intelligent, they play with a bold grace. It’s a different kind of punk from the kind Hot Water Music play, but it’s propelled by a similarly inspiring and infectious passion. They’re only young, but this four-piece write songs that – already – sound timeless and which, if justice prevails, should see them go from strength to strength.
That’s precisely what Hot Water Music have been doing since re-forming back in 2004. For three years these punk veterans have been tearing up stages around the world with formidable performances of their back catalogue, demonstrating just how potent those songs still are, even as they and the band advance in age. But tonight, those tracks are mixed with a couple from that new album and, as the old and the new collide, it’s clear that their talent for writing hasn’t diminished in the slightest.
They kick off with ‘Remedy’, from 2002 album ‘Caution’, and end with a furious, ridiculously-in-your-face rendition of ‘Turnstile’, which sees the crowd explode in a heart-attack inducing sing-along as all limbs and bodies surge towards the stage in heat to rival a sauna. In between, ‘Rooftops’, ‘Jack Of All Trades’ and a blistering ‘Paper Thin’ charge the room with an electric fervour, while new songs ‘Drag My Body’ and ‘The Wrong Way’ ignite the room just as much as those old favourites. What it does is confirm Hot Water Music as a living breathing punk rock legends. They may have had time off, and this record may be a long time coming, but tonight’s performance is proof of the old adage that good things come to those who wait. In fact, on this showing, that should be changed to fantastic things. Those here lucky enough to fit inside the room will boast of this night for years to come. And while there’s no doubt that Hot Water Music will return – as they always have, even after a lengthy hiatus or two – next time, there will be a few more hundred people there to watch. Unless, of course, the band decide to do another intimate show. But it’s unlikely the walls of the Old Blue Last – or anywhere, for that matter – could withstand the impact of that happening again.
Words by Mischa Pearlman
A blistering warm-up set from Leamington Spa’s Sharks is the perfect precursor to the main act, their rebellious rock ’n’ roll riffs getting the evening off to a flying start. Boisterous and intelligent, they play with a bold grace. It’s a different kind of punk from the kind Hot Water Music play, but it’s propelled by a similarly inspiring and infectious passion. They’re only young, but this four-piece write songs that – already – sound timeless and which, if justice prevails, should see them go from strength to strength.
That’s precisely what Hot Water Music have been doing since re-forming back in 2004. For three years these punk veterans have been tearing up stages around the world with formidable performances of their back catalogue, demonstrating just how potent those songs still are, even as they and the band advance in age. But tonight, those tracks are mixed with a couple from that new album and, as the old and the new collide, it’s clear that their talent for writing hasn’t diminished in the slightest.
They kick off with ‘Remedy’, from 2002 album ‘Caution’, and end with a furious, ridiculously-in-your-face rendition of ‘Turnstile’, which sees the crowd explode in a heart-attack inducing sing-along as all limbs and bodies surge towards the stage in heat to rival a sauna. In between, ‘Rooftops’, ‘Jack Of All Trades’ and a blistering ‘Paper Thin’ charge the room with an electric fervour, while new songs ‘Drag My Body’ and ‘The Wrong Way’ ignite the room just as much as those old favourites. What it does is confirm Hot Water Music as a living breathing punk rock legends. They may have had time off, and this record may be a long time coming, but tonight’s performance is proof of the old adage that good things come to those who wait. In fact, on this showing, that should be changed to fantastic things. Those here lucky enough to fit inside the room will boast of this night for years to come. And while there’s no doubt that Hot Water Music will return – as they always have, even after a lengthy hiatus or two – next time, there will be a few more hundred people there to watch. Unless, of course, the band decide to do another intimate show. But it’s unlikely the walls of the Old Blue Last – or anywhere, for that matter – could withstand the impact of that happening again.
Words by Mischa Pearlman
