GIG REVIEW – The Dry Retch, Spam Javelin, MRI, Liv Fairclough @ Outpost, Liverpool

[all pics by adrian wharton]

Wow, Liv Fairclough is pretty pissed off with her Ex. For this I am grateful, as we would not have experienced her great voice, acoustic guitar and heartfelt, angst ridden songs. Having gorged on the absolute divine buffalo veggie pizza with maple syrup, washed down with some incredible pale ale that this amazing venue offers, Liv was the perfect aperitif. Soon, the amps were switched on, guitars were slung over shoulders and drums were beaten to a pulp…

…making a rare live appearance (by their standards), MRI turned on, tuned in and smashed out a short but punch filled set. They straddle the line of all out punk rock and Stooged licking guitaring with some serious tub thumping and exceptional bass runs. This makes for some great toe-tapping, head nodding, rail-roading stuff and warms things up nicely. You’ll also note that they’ve Never Had A Dog.

We (Spam Javelin) love playing at Outpost… So much so, that this is our 8th appearance at this friendly joint… Always a good laugh, and to fulfil contractual obligations of playing an off the cuff cover, we obliged with a punked-up version of Hawkwind‘s Urban Guerilla.

Crawling from under a rusty discarded tin of Castlemaine XXXX in the Tanami Desert, Aussie refugees The Dry Retch continue on their Fun House tour to end all tours. They slurped, they sneered, they Spinal Tapped and snorted their way through that cool repertoire they call songs (I’d call them pieces of objectionable art). That soundtrack for a generation included the sleazy likes of (Don’t) Touch Me You’re Sick and 12000 Miles From New. There’s a new album in the making… They need euthanasing now… (particularly the drummer, who’s an absolute beast behind the kit)… Catch them live (or dead) soon…