Heart of a Punk Soul of a Rasta

The cobbled backstreets of Digbeth, dirty water dripping down off a railway bridge, dark nights, queuing outside a venue for no apparent reason, money changing hands, "I got a stamp on my skin" and then in. Standing outside The Rainbow Club my mind gets dragged back to standing outside The Club Lafayette in Wolverhampton a million years ago and only yesterday. The only thing that was missing was not being required to become a member of The Rainbow Club, no 20p was asked for, no membership card was proffered, I suppose that's progress for you.

Into the main space, "I am a Poseur" by "X-Ray Spex" was getting an airing. Why am I not dancing, there's enough room, I used to dance to this, somehow it was impossible not to, once. So what happened to me, I'm still the same person behind the eyes, aren't I? Shit I don't know any more, perhaps they'll play "Identity" later and I'll find out.

The Courtesy Group.
So what did I see thru' these half dead eyes? What did I hear with these ears, these shell like objects bereft of ear plugs. Yeah what's that all about? Knob heads with ear plugs, it seems to be as contagious as a yawn nowadays, every gig I go to I see knob heads with plugs in their ears. If it's too much for you, fuck off. If you have a problem with your ears stay at pissing home. - Eh? Pardon? What?

Anyway where were we, oh yes, what did I hear with my ears? "Brick House Rock" to start, vox Mark E Smith/John Cooper Clarke/Dury, bass and drums banging along like Warsaw/Fall/PIL, sax blaring in where necessary like Laura Logic or The Psychedelic Furs in the very very early days. Who are Birmingham's own "The Courtesy Group" 'cause after so long at it I'm fucked if I know? The lead guy Al, tonight in a gaudy tawdry time for laundry sunflower shirt has as many facial ticks and mannerisms as Jello Biafra but it's the left handed guitarist on his right who is "the face" - apparently its chief Guillemot Fyfe Anthony Dangerfield Hutchins. (The Guillemots, deep breath, long silence, don't get me started, build bridges, tell the truth, keep stum, classically trained musicians, 28th of May 2006, head of a pin) Let's change the subject.

Did I mention Stump, well I should have done. Throw a stone from the Rainbow Club and you'll probably hit the Irish Club and that's where I saw Stump only a couple of drinks ago. (PS don't throw stones at Irish Clubs, I tried it once, I threw a stone at the Emerald Club in Wolves, let me tell you that having Irish blood myself I know how to throw stones, but those buggers throw back!)

Anyway have I got away from the subject of The Guillemots, good! Al Hutchins (can't be any relation - cough) the singer in sunflower shirt does has a touch of Mick Lynch about him (an all) especially on "Questret" where the Beefheart meandering guitar line completes the picture. He's on fuckin pins this guy! One second he's reading lyrics from a piece of A4 the next moment he's launching himself into the crowd. Thankfully mid set he calmed down long enough to give the assembled a John Cooper Clarke-esque interlude, well as calm as he got anyway. According to his rant he doesn't give a shit. But he should. There's something dysfunctionally wonderful and insatiably unstable about The Courtesy Group. "Tradesman's Entrance" their debut album is on its way in November, I'm off to start a disorderly queue outside Sundown Records.

The Courtesy Group - Tradesmans Entrance
http://www.cargorecords.co.uk/release/9993
The Slits - Trapped Animal
http://www.cargorecords.co.uk/release/9372