The Psychøtic Reactiøn

A problematic one this; it took me right back to the mid-90s for all the wrong reasons!

The Liaisons were the opening act and struck me as “together” but unexciting, but I can’t say I heard enough to give a truly accurate impression as most of their set was spent in ludicrous debate with Shepz and some bunch of jokers going by the absurd moniker of “Yes, Unison”. YU, as henceforth I shall refer to them, had their collective knickers in a twist about some obscure problems that had befallen them and the absence of a mysterious lead singer (whose very existence I quickly doubted); the upshot of this was that YU couldn’t possibly “headline” as they called it (ie. play last) and that we had to do it. Us and The Beach People said we wanted to stick to the agreed running order, but the gel-splattered rent-boys of YU and their “manager” stamped their feet and threw their toys around until Mr. Shepz said to us that we had to play last or not at all. Now, I’ve found Mr. Shepz generally agreeable and straightforward in previous dealings, so why he was letting these prima-donna amateurs push him around, I don’t know, but very reluctantly we agreed. So, despite being actually on stage and ready to go, we had dismantle our gear and make way for YU and 45 minutes of their god-awful OC-soundtrack-diet-Husker Du for-people-who’ve-never-heard-of-Husker Du-pop-punk drivel. Jesus! I thought I’d left this sort of petulant bullshit behind a decade ago, but given the distinctly bum-fluff-orientated nature of a lot of gigs around these parts (at least those that don’t involve 12-bar plodders and folkies telling us to turn it down!), I suppose it was only a matter of time before I experienced a time-warp… Such gigs invariably go one of two ways … either exhibiting energy and fresh-faced enthusiasm or zit-ridden aggro! Too many musicians over 25 (or even 21) give up, so we’re needed goddam it! I know I go on and on about the cultural de-evolution of Kent, but it’s getting beyond a joke!!

Anyhow, my equilibrium was restored by The Beach People, all the way from Deal (another care-in-the-community seaside town!). I first encountered an embryonic incarnation of this band last year, but since then they’ve morphed into a five piece with two guitars, bass and keyboards and no less than four vocalists, two male and two female. Although the murky vocal mix didn’t really convey this to full effect, there was a lot of interesting material on offer, and I suppose superficially lazy comparisons like Belle & Sebastian, and The Magic Numbers are my way of saying they have subtle, sophisticated pop-tendencies with influences I can’t quite place. They also feature Richard Kilner on guitar — the man who mastered Rumble!!

So, we finally got to play. First of all, my normally 100% reliable twelve-string malfunctioned after a couple of songs and this, combined with one or two other things caused us (and more specifically, me) to make an unmitigated pigs-arse car-crash of “Barking Up The Wrong Tree” and half of “The New Victor”. This wasn’t helped by the insistence of somebody using stomach-churning strobes at full tilt and objecting to my switching them off. This ain’t no disco! Plus, whilst I’m not epileptic, but I don’t want to push my luck! Apart from this, we played okay. In fact, the aforementioned fuck-ups and increasingly wake-like atmosphere combined with getting brayed at by a couple of teeny boppers enjoying their first pint, probably made us play with a bit more gusto than we would have been inclined to under the circumstances. An extended white-noise “Bass VI” seemed to provide an appropriate coda to the evening. So, despite expectations to the contrary, “an audience that consists of people who’ve either been drinking all day or are stuffed full of prescription drugs (or both)” is easier to win over than a crowd of sixth formers on alco-pops. I’ll leave the final word to Shepz himself:

“Thanks for headlining last night, I enjoyed your set… I think The
Psychotic Reaction are definitely a band to see live, energetic and mad!
Shall see you chaps around soon me hopes.” Shoaib

Set list:

• Dance of the Midwich Cuckoos
• ES-40
• The Medway Crab Fisherman
• Barking Up The Wrong Tree
• The New Victor
• Cocoon
• Overdraft Blues
• Put Your Weight on Me
• It’s A Small Town
• What’s Under The Stairs?
• Bass VI