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Royal Albert Hall, London, England - 20th May 2016
Against all the odds The Damned have somehow made it 40, the band who have lived by the slogan anarchy, chaos and destruction for the last four decades are thankfully still with us. They still retain two of their original members, Dave Vanian and Captain Sensible, who together with Stu West and Pinch, both formerly of English Dogs, and Monty Oxymoron, who I presume originated in his own private universe, have now been together for about twelve years, given The Damned‘s history, there have over twenty members since they formed, this represents an unprecedented period of stability in their history
The audience for tonight has travelled from all over the world for today’s concert, a multinational collection of disciples has descended upon London and prior to the gig the local pubs are packed to capacity with the faithful, friendships are renewed and made prior to gathering within the grandeur of the Royal Albert Hall. The Damned were previously barred from performing at this prestigious theatre, the management of the venue at the time didn’t consider them to be the kind of the band that should be gracing it’s hallowed halls, forty years later attitudes have thankfully changed and they have finally been allowed to tread the boards in this impressive historic setting.
Since tonight’s concert was announced the band had promised that this would be a unique concert, and they have been as good as their word as we get a backwards chronology played over two sets spanning almost three hours. The only album’s that are bypassed completely are 1995’s Not Of This Earth and 1977’s Music For Pleasure.
They open with Nature’s Dark Passion, from 2008’s So Who’s Paranoid, and with a splendid sense of theatricality Dave Vanian arrives on the balcony above the stage dressed as the phantom of the opera, from there it’s a marathon down memory lane as they launch into a quartet from 2001’s Grave Disorder. Both of these albums have been somewhat neglected on recent tours and it’s good to hear them played live again. Their most commercial, and successful, era is well represented with Along Again Or from 1986’s Anything getting an airing, and then a fine tetrad of songs from 1985’s Phantasmagoria and an obligatory appearance for their biggest hit Eloise.
The First set closes with four tracks from 1982’s Strawberries and after a much needed half hour beak the second set opens with Life Goes On from this underrated album. Up to now the crowd has been enthusiastic but somewhat subdued, all this changes as Disco Man, from 1981’s Friday 13th EP, kicks in bringing the mosh pit to life, there’s no respite from this point. 1980’s experimental classic The Black Album is well represented and then it’s onward into the punk classics Machine Gun Etiquette and Damned Damned Damned before the we finally arrive back where it all began back in 1976 with a frantic New Rose.
They return to the stage for a final encore and treat the crowd to a stunning version of the epic Curtain Call featuring Dave Vanian and his daughter, Emily Vanian, both sporting dark wings for this 17 minute epic to bring what has been an unforgettable evening to a close and the crowd pour out into the London night. Forty years has been crammed into three hours and my feet may never recover but there are no regrets. The Damned have been a constant in my life since first seeing them on tv performing Nasty, which sadly didn’t get an airing tonight, on the anarchic sitcom The Young Ones back in 1984, tonight has reaffirmed everything that I love about this band and I hope I’m able to attend their 45th anniversary in 2021.
The Damned are continuing with their 40th anniversary celebrations throughout the year, so far they have announced extensive dates across the UK and Europe, full details of the tour dates can be found here.