Jah Wobble and The Invaders Of The Heart – Huddersfield Parish 29/1/26

Where do I start with Jah Wobble? One of the great musicians that came to prominence in that post punk era, which was in many ways a lot more interesting that the era that preceded it. It wasn’t so much about the shocking tabloid headlines and the uproar but musicians looking into themselves more, making a more interesting listen. Siouxsie And The Banshees, The Clash, Joy Division and PiL were all a lot more interesting than what I have heard from bands in 1976/77. Tonight, Jah Wobble proves that even from the very start of PiL and right through his career, he would never rest on his laurels and has always been about constantly evolving which hasn’t stopped with his most recent album Dub Volume 1 which was in my Top Ten Albums of 2025.

I think what impressed me most about tonight’s set was the way it seemed so improvised at times with each musician bringing so much to a song. Wobble was at times like a conductor orchestrating the band on a musical trip through different points of his career. Right from the start of the set we heard PiL classics like Poptones, Public Image and even lesser-known tracks like Socialist but they were not carbon copies of the tracks that we had previously heard but dubbed up to the max with that improvisational feel that left me breathless. If you would like to hear what I mean, dig out the Jah Wobble Metal Box Rebuilt In Dub album where Wobble’s monotone vocal delivery brings out some amazing qualities that maybe I hadn’t realized before.

Wobble is also a very funny and indeed clever man. Joking about the Lancashire/ Yorkshire relationship that not only exists in history but also in his band. Quoting from Shakespeare’s Richard III one minute while playing a jazzed-up version of the Pink Panther theme the next. A particular highlight for me was the Dub excursions that Wobble would lead us through incorporating Liquidator (Harry J Allstars) and The Chain (Fleetwood Mac) on Becoming More Like God. At times he was sitting, others dancing but all the while playing some wonderful basslines and wearing a smile that was almost as wide as mine!

I was introduced to songs that I had not heard before like Visions Of You or Egyptian and if there was one thing that this performance did, it was to make me want to discover more music from around the world, to look for those different flavours and beats and to expand my taste….this could be just the start of a whole new adventure. One thing that I had not noticed but my gig buddy Matt had was the fact that Wobble wore a glove throughout the performance……you learn a new thing every day!!

Jah Wobble will be touring in April in the UK with shows in Wimbourne, Cardiff, Camberley and more!