Eastfield, The Duel, Cherry & Peesh, Marie and the Meltdownz, and Dinosaur Skull do MoonPunx proud at end-of-season show
As a promoter who likes to do things differently, Lou Moon decided to dedicate her MoonPunx end-of-season residency show at The Fiddler’s Elbow, Camden, to raising awareness of older women in Punk and to raise funds for The Menopause Charity. A bill featuring five bands who are very much behind the cause, a special charity raffle organised by Cherry B (Punk Poet and one half of Cherry & Peesh), and the debut London performance by the third co-organiser Marie Repulsive‘s new band promised a grand afternoon of fun and entertainment!
My eye is immediately drawn to Cherry B’s raffle – there are Punk books (“I’ve been having a clearout” Cherry tells me), band CDs and T-shirts – and even a large pink vibrator for one lucky winner! – amongst the items on the table. Tickets are popular, and Cherry B is kept busy as the punters roll in and snap them up.
Opening the afternoon are Dinosaur Skull, a guitar & bass duo from Croydon, who specialise in protest songs with a beat! Their material tackles various issues, including capitalism and environmental destruction, and encourages taking personal responsibility for your own role in these with songs such as ‘What’s Your Emergency?’. They also wisely counsel remaining true to yourself when mean people try to put you down. Singer and guitarist Cil introduces ‘Mansplaining’ with “listen and learn, chaps!” Finishing with a charming number ‘Meadow’s Song‘, about Cil and partner (bassist) Mike‘s rescued greyhound, to highlight the scourge that is ‘sports’ animal abuse, Dinosaur Skull remind us there’s nowt wrong with a bit of disco pop punk to warm up our ears on a Sunday afternoon!
Our very own own Punk Rock Creatives Podcast queen Marie Repulsive is up next, with her recently formed band Marie and the Meltdownz. I’ve really been looking forward to catching them live at long last! They blow me away with a brilliant set of Punk songs written with real meaning and coming from the heart. They’ll be releasing their first single soon – ‘Giant Sexism Song’ – which is a rocking number about some of the outrageous and untrue things men say about women. For the band’s final song, Marie puts her guitar down to sing a cover of Poison Girls‘ ‘Old Tart’s Song‘ – and the band do it justice. Marie and the Meltdownz get very well-deserved cheers and applause for this excellent performance!
Punk poet and Punk singer-guitarist-songwriter Cherry & Peesh open with the first song they ever wrote – ‘Punk Mum‘ – which is highly relatable to many of us! We’re also treated to their newest number, ‘Chemistry‘, a lived story of battling addiction. Their social commentary on social media (over)use ‘Empty Windows’ has me singing along to its catchy chorus, then I hand out the ‘Fuck Off Bad News’ signs for their audience participation number, written especially for the Rik Mayall Comedy Festival. Cherry & Peesh have a surprise up their sleeves – a tribute to the recently departed Dolly Parton – and are joined by organiser Lou on vocals to deliver a rip-roaring version of ‘9 to 5‘, the rest of us singing along to this original feminist anthem that means as much now as it did in 1980. Ending their set with a song for us all, ‘Yesterday’s Kids‘, we cheer loudly to show them we’ve all enjoyed their set.
It’s been ages since I’ve seen The Duel – now consisting only of founder Tara Rez, and her songs are as strong and relevant as ever! Tara takes to the stage solo after a slightly bumpy start, where the sound guy couldn’t figure out how to play the backing tracks from her laptop, an essential part of the performance… Eventually he gets it to work, and Tara hits the ground running with a fabulous set of our favourites, plus a new song ‘Drifting?‘ about the pollution we’re all experiencing. Tara doesn’t only sing (very well I must add!) but expresses her music through her whole body. It’s impassioned, infectious and quite mesmerising to watch.
Tara has a surprise for us too – her partner Segs (of The Ruts / Ruts DC) steps up to play guitar and add his backing vocals to some of the songs mid-set. Segs is a good guitarist, which may surprise those who only know him as a bassist, and of course lead vocalist of his own band. Their duet of The Duel‘s ‘The Way London Used To Be‘ brings a new dimension to the song. Tara explains that her song ‘Camden Town‘ which is about homelessness became especially poignant when she discovered that her birth mother was living on the streets in Tehran, and reminds us that if we see a homeless woman, she could be someone’s mum… Her final song ‘Hold To Love‘ is dedicated to her old friend and bandmate, The Duel‘s co-founder Andy Thierum who is sadly back in hospital with his long-term illness. Yes, these songs have serious lyrics, but as we’re all grinning at each other as we whirl around on the dancefloor, it’s no surprise there are yells for more music. Tara rounds off her set with encore ‘Urgency‘ from her second album.
Urban rail Punks Eastfield bring their joyous sense of fun to the stage. Guitarist and singer Jessi is wearing his hat backwards, and jokes that he looks like the singer from 80s pop band Curiosity Killed The Cat! The band’s usual good natured on-stage ribbing / taking the piss out of themselves abounds as they rattle through a good-length set of favourites from their extensive catalogue; including ‘Fare Dodging‘, ‘Pin Me To The Moral High Ground‘ and ‘Paper Houses‘.
The pace is proving to be a bit much for bassist Bambi, who has to take a perch on the amp for a couple of numbers. Later on he gets told off by vocalist Trina (and by me!) for not eating properly before going on stage..! Fortunately, the rest of the band are doing fine, and Eastfield have the crowd singing and dancing along with them, while the drinks flow and good cheer permeates every corner of the room. This is the stuff the best gigs are made of – everyone enjoying themselves, and supporting every other person in the room, on stage and off. We all join in with traditional set closer ‘Another Boring Eastfield Song‘, then the band mingles with the crowd as we end our evening amongst good friends.
A massive WELL DONE and THANK YOU to Lou, Cherry B amd Marie for putting this event together – proving beyond a doubt that we MenoPunx rock as hard as anyone!
You can read Marie and Cherry B’s thoughts about older women in Punk and the Menopause in this article. The organising trio have also launched a Hot Flushes/High Voltage fundraising page HERE if you’d like to contribute directly to support the good work of The Menopause Charity.
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