Author: Crossfire

London ULU
11/4/09

Rock n’ roll – is it a sound, or an attitude? The music itself may have evolved since its 1950s origins, but evolution has never been much of an issue for either of tonight’s headliners, both of whom seem eager to join the likes of the Ramones, Motorhead and AC/DC in the ‘great bands who essentially write the same record over and over again’ stakes. Still, at the same time, it seems wrong to intellectualise a genre that has always been about gut feeling, and neither the Supersuckers nor Nashville Pussy are pretending to be anything that they aren’t.

“Dang, I’m a lucky man.” That’s what the look in Nashville Pussy frontman Blaine Cartwright’s eyes says as his wife/guitarist Ruyter Suys kneels at his feet, soloing away, her face the picture of ecstasy. The band’s Southern-fried odes to sex, drugs, drinking and fighting (and not much else) have led many to dismiss them as a cliché, but in the live setting, these guys and girls deliver in spades. Quite simply, there is no let-up in energy, with just about every song blasting past in a blaze of squalling riffs, powerhouse drumming Cartwright’s signature whisky-soaked rasp. They’re the Deep South bar band that outgrew their town, and as they rip through a cover of Ike & Tina Turner’s ‘Nutbush City Limits’, you can’t help but admire their chutzpah.

Supersuckers frontman Eddie Spaghetti has long referred to his band as “the greatest rock n’ roll band in the world”, and whilst that’s debatable, they’ve certainly made a case for being one of the greatest in their 20-year existence. Like their former tour buddies Social Distortion, the Supersuckers understand that rock n’ roll mixes well with country, and hence it’s a welcome surprise when Eddie breaks out his acoustic guitar for a few numbers. Elsewhere, the band’s usual high-octane treats still manage to whip the crowd into a pogoing, howling mass, with the ULU’s excellent sound and the lack of a stage barrier adding to the sense of intimacy.

“You guys are too good for an encore!” declares Eddie, before the closing brace of “I Want The Drugs” and ‘Pretty Fucked Up” reassure us that when the Supersuckers are in town, there are few more enjoyable ways to spend a Saturday evening.

Alex Gosman