The Supersuckers, The Warner E. Hodges Band and Desperate Measures Bring an Unforgettable Night of Down and Dirty Rock, Blues and Punk to The O2 Islington!

The Supersuckers, The Warner E. Hodges Band and Desperate Measures Bring an Unforgettable Night of Down and Dirty Rock, Blues and Punk to The O2 Islington!

It was the dream double headliner, two phenomenally great bands playing a double bill at the 02 Islington, but it didn’t stop there!! As not only were blues and country royality in the house, but also on the bill were New Zealand’s finest punk rockers Desperate Measures!

Hot off the heels of the release of their new single ‘Sublime Destruction’, Desperate Measures were a force of nature!! Delivering ballsy in your face punk rock fronted by the formidable Eugene Butcher, with the brilliant skinsman James Sherry on drums, the insanely good Gaff on guitar and the UK subs Ricky McGuire on bass. Despite forming in the 80’s, these guys were just as punk as ever!! They delivered a balls to the wall set of down and dirty tracks such as their superb single ‘Back To The Rats’ with its storming shared vocals from Butcher and Gaff!  Their banging new single ‘Sublime Destruction’ went down a storm with Sherry’s relentless drum sound and Butcher’s snarling vocals. It was one hell of a great start to one big rock’n’roll party!!

Next up were the phenomenal Warner E. Hodges Band. With Hodges on main vocal and guitar, Jason Knight on bass and backing vocals, Ben Marsden on guitar and backing vocals and Shane Dixon on drums, this is a band who are tight as tight and better than ever, and all outrageously good musicians!!

Hodges and his band delivered a blazing set of southern rock ‘n’ roll, so good you could almost taste the moonshine!! Opening to raucous applause with ‘Gunslinger’ with its signature guitar riff, from the very first note they had the audience eating out of their hands! As Hodges swung his guitar around his body, the audience went wild!! The boys were well and truly back in town!!

Although Hodges is well known for his collaborations with the legendary Dan Baird, tonight he proved that even without his partner in crime that he is an exceptional bluesman as he slid up and down the fretboard like it was on fire! Next up was ‘The Magician’, more country than rock or blues but a welcome addition to a great set none the less!! And the hits kept coming thick and fast with tracks such as, ‘I Love You, Baby’ and ‘The Hard Way’ bringing down the house!

There is a really beautiful authenticity about Hodges, despite being a star in every sense, he came across as a genuine southern guy who really cares about his band and his fans, it was heart warming to see! He was down to earth and his whole persona oozed warmth as he regaled the crowd with tales of life in the Deep South, a true gent and a really great guy!

Songs like ‘Country Roads’ where the Supersuckers and the Hodges band joined together were an absolute masterpiece that left the audience spellbound!! The dynamic between the bands was amazing as they rocked and laughed together, bouncing off each other, making the audience feel like they were part of something wonderful!!

A special mention has to go Jason Knight who proved himself to be an incredibly talented bass player with boundless energy and enthusiasm who was having nearly as much fun as the audience and that was one hell of a lot!! As he bound around the stage, jumping in the air and rocking out, he was a real showman in his own right, and on a stage of such pedigree, that’s saying something!!

As Supersuckers took to the stage, to say the audience were warmed up was an understatement! They were pretty much bouncing off the walls!! Supersuckers played an outstanding set of dirty rock ‘n’roll with a punk edge and a touch of country, a hybrid of sorts, delivering track after blistering track which left the audience screaming for more! Kicking of with ‘All of the Time’, smoking hot with its heavy guitars, raw punk vocals and VonStreicher’s pounding drum beat, dynamic and visceral, they were sensational! Tracks like ‘Coattail Rider’ were fast, furious and glorious!! ‘Girl I Know’ with Eddie Spaghetti’s distinctive punk vocal was reminiscent of punk greats the Ramones and a definite highlight, but their entire set was literally bursting at the seams with down and dirty riffs courtesy of the magnificent ‘Metal’ Marty Chandler leaving the audience captivated!!

At times, it was hard to see the divide between the Supersuckers and The Warner E. Hodges Band as they spent nearly as much time together on stage as they did apart! They were like one great big rockin’ blues-heavy rock family with a hint of country thrown in!! A stage full of supremely talented musicians who clearly love to play together! For the audience it was like being invited along to one of those parties most people only dream about, a night I’m sure none of them will ever forget!!

Photos of The Supersuckers

Photos of The Warner E. Hodges Band

 

Photos of Desperate Measures

Words and Photos by Louise Phillips

All photos are copyright to Louise Phillips Music Photography