Blackpool Boneyard Weekender
Blackpool Boneyard Weekender
Saturday 6th July 2024
At
The Waterloo
Blackpool
I’m not gonna lie, I’m excited for this one – it looks and sounds to be quite something else – vibrant, creative and so much fun! A real celebration of so many musical genres! This is to be my first time on the gig circuit in Blackpool and, as an introduction, gigs don’t get much better! Blackpool Boneyard Weekender is the creation of Andrew Wilson aka “Ratty” (Alien Sex Fiend and Dr Diablo and the Rodent Show) and is to be a 3-day weekender this year. Sadly I can only attend the Saturday, but it promises to be one hell of a show!
Andrew explains: “The Boneyard is all of my favourite things, fusing The Cramps, my life with Alien Sex Fiend, industrialism, British horror movies (especially Hammer films), Alice Cooper, punk, rockabilly…all the cool shit!”
I honestly can’t wait for this! A spectacular of the alternative within the well-known Waterloo venue in Blackpool. Upon entering the vibrancy hits me, this venue is wonderfully cool – motorbikes are suspended from the ceiling, a phone box with an image of David Bowie within it, and the walls and ceilings are adorned with images of bands, posters of events and all kinds of music memorabilia; a table made from a scooter – you get the idea! This eclectic, pop art style clashes brilliantly with its art nouveau history – original fireplaces and chandeliers are all in this vast mixture of styles! A central bar serves all areas with a further bar to the rear and a purpose-built ‘venue area’ – full stage with barrier and standing room upon entering, and with numerous pub style seating areas with large screens so no one misses any of the gig action.
First up is Liverpool-based Krank Williams. It’s an early set but we already have a fair crowd and there is a real buzz in the air. The venue has been decorated in skeletons and spiders’ webs hanging from the ceiling, really adding to the Boneyard vibes! It’s full-on blues for our first set. 2 piece, semi-acoustic, and it’s going down very well. Old school, American style blues, guitar slides, a “washboard” style, original sound, real southern feels. Between songs, we have banter with the crowd and great interaction, that famous Scouse wit is in abundance here! Songs are soulful, burning and ablaze with a dust bowl atmosphere. Vocals are throaty, grating and filled with character. Real foot stomping, original songs, performed with a quirkiness, a real eccentricity. A really fun set, with great low-down American blues, meets Mersey music feels. Brilliant start to proceedings.
(Rezillos_Credit: Andrew Lawrence)
Now this band is fast-paced and coming right at us! Real retro here – 60s vibes throughout this set. Instrumental with epic guitars and undulating bass lines, with cries and shouts from the band members. Drumming is skippy almost syncopated. It’s all very surreal rock n roll with a jagged yet clean edge, all bound up in a sci-fi theme with surf rock in the mix. Energy up on stage from these guys is relentless, very spirited and infectious. Our band members all wear “alien” masks which add to the surreal element and adds humour. The overall feel for me is very “Googie”, undoubtedly down to the huge sci-fi and alien theme and the era of space age and American mid-century modern are conjoined up – think the Jetsons, and the ’60s guitar sounds really binding this all together. A fun and fast set, really different and very quirky, it’s must-see stuff and completely encompassing. They wrap their created musical environment around us as a crowd and we really feel a part of it. Very clever! Excellent set in every way!
Very, very cool, right from the very beginning. Slick and stylised; sound and genre is a total shift in direction for this set. We have pulsating, club-like beats with samples and backing tracks with ferocious retro guitar lines. No vocal again during this performance; this time a real “rave” vibe is produced, which only builds on the already upbeat atmosphere and ups the ante. Very tightly performed musically and the stage presence is huge; very polished, very restrained, conceptual and completely mesmerising to watch. It’s 50s, yet 70s, yet 80s, yet feels club-like at the same time. I get the real David Lynch film feels: eerie yet cool, vibrant yet contained, wild yet controlled. It’s intriguing and fascinating, I bloody love it!
In a tight gold suit, Tim Lane has a real air about him, throwing his guitar around and directing icy and fixated stares our way, keeping up the deadly serious persona whilst interacting with the mannequin which features as part of the concept. Images flash behind our 2 piece band throughout the performance, from monochrome 60s psychedelic patterns to pop art culture and snippets from film and TV etc. It’s a busy and bouncing crowd and the feels are like some bizarre alt-indoor rave in the middle of the day-which shouldn’t work but absolutely does. Stand outset for me this. I bloody love the Pink Diamond Revue and this creepy yet cool ambience they create!
(Pussycat and the Dirty Johnsons_Credit: Andrew Lawrence)
Pussycat and the Dirty Johnsons
Another change in musical direction with this next set; we go all-out punk rock here, and it’s incredible. Pussycat as you’d expect is very feline-like, dressed in leopard print with a tail and her hair made into pointy cats’ ears, with a punk vest. Stage presence utterly swallows up this venue! Such a huge voice for such a tiny frame! Agile and full of energy, Pussycat leaps about the stage with ease (very like a cat In fact) often bouncing right over the barrier and singing from deep within the crowd. The crowd is wild now, one giant pulsating mosh pit which has stretched out into every corner, engulfing all in its musical tidal wave. Cat cries and meows can be heard coming from all directions. Sounds are wild, ferocious and fast-paced; guitars scream; drums are thunder-filled and vocal is incredible, an almost purring quality present, then angry punk cries, changing to soaring notes being reached easily, then growls. Pussycat is not still for a second so the vocal control is impressive!
Another bonkers set, but in a whole other way. We were glued to this from the get-go. Show-stopping punk rock party time. What a sound and what a performance!
King Salami and the Cumberland 3
It’s been such a varied and full lineup, next up is a real whirlwind of a band! Starting as they mean to go on in a glorious blaze of guitars and drum rolls we have King Salami and the Cumberland 3. This IS one no-holds-barred set and really does leave us breathless and somewhat bewildered all in the best possible way! Super high energy, eccentric, immense stage presence and a comedy factor to boot. Pure entertainment. So fast-paced, lyrics are fired at us. I instantly get good old rock n roll feels, retro, very 50s, maybe a hint of rhythm and blues but a fiery punk exclamation running through the sound. Vocal is very distinctive, lower range, grisly, raspy, a real grate, very characterful and sits perfectly atop of this dance-inducing cocktail of musical mayhem. The overall feeling I personally get is “boogie woogie” rocking bopping stuff with edginess. It’s the wildest mosh pit so far today(and trust me it’s been in action throughout)but it’s reached new heights at this point! Our charismatic frontman has us eating out of his hand, often standing up on the barrier, leaning out over us, like a musical preacher, commanding us with feel-good energy. Such a lively fun and frantic set, a crazy musical train of good ol’ rock n roll, which comes back for more with an impromptu encore of 2 more songs which as a crowd we hungrily devour. We’re left feeling slightly bedraggled and wondering quite what just happened stop shaking musical mayhem! Love, love, loved this band!
(King Salami_Credit: Andrew Lawrence)
The Rezillos – headliner
Closing Saturday of Blackpool Boneyard Weekender and today’s headline act are the now iconic The Rezillos. From Edinburgh, this feisty band have been making waves from their very beginnings back in 1976. Having a huge impact on the still developing British punk scene at that time, and staying influential ever since, this band take no prisoners. Another set that hits meteorically, then musically explodes on stage right in front of us. Totally different again; another fast-paced set. The feels, sound and energy, although rooted in punk, feel poppier, and funky, and I even get a slight glam rock feel at times during the performance. Fun, fast and technicoloured! Wild – but different wilds – it’s more refined, stylised, theatrical if you like. I get a real ‘dress up’, cartoony, 80s feel. It’s all brilliantly camp and tongue in cheek but with musical brilliance. Band members interact both with each other and with us as a crowd throughout this entire set. It’s lively, bouncy, and loud – -everything we could ever want from a headline set. Classics and new material are performed with real gusto. It just gives off pure fun time vibes and the band really looks as if they’re having a ball. The sound hits right between the eyes; rapid beats are fired out. At one point band members grab one of the skeleton props and in a pure rock n roll frenzy smash it up and stamp on it on stage!
The sound is still fresh, vibrant and fizzing, but with that wonderful familiarity running through, a rock, jagged edge guitar sound. The kick drum slaps whilst the bass lines are thumping and pounding. Keys adds that new wave effect and the male vocal provides an angry, growly, punkier edge. The female vocal is pronounced, rounded and very far-reaching, yet edgy and can provide the punk factor when needed. One rip-roaring, felt like fast forward, nonstop, colour spectrum set. Another bonkersly brilliant and another stand out! Genuinely an amazing set!
(Rezillos_Credit: Andrew Lawrence)
I can honestly say today has been an absolute ball! The vibe has been one of complete fun, super laid back, welcoming and friendly and soo kooky and quirky. Many followers have gone all out with costumes, style and looks and it’s all made for one brilliantly bonkers, vivid and of its own kind event. Each set today was stand out, yet brought its own feel and energy. You can easily see the passion and attention to detail that goes into every part of this, which is to be both commended and celebrated.
A first for me and I genuinely hope this is the first of many; I highly recommend attending this celebration of Ratty’s favourite things, it just works superbly! Obviously I have one regret, and that’s not seeing Dr Diablo and the Rodent Show, but that’s on my wish list at the top now, and it’s now my mission to catch another show soon! Rest assured I will definitely be doing “Boneyard” next year – the FULL weekend!
Huge thanks to Ratty/ Andrew Wilson for having me along and for being so welcoming, a shout out to all involved in this event including the staff at the brilliant Waterloo FY4 – it’s a must-go to venue!
Review by Janet Harding
Photography by Andrew Lawrence
To view the entire photo gallery, click the numbers below the last bottom photo on the right or click on an image to see it larger and scroll through.
