Radkey, The Degenerates, Hazard.

Lev 2 Bedford Esquires. Saturday 14th June 2014.

Phew! Wow! A heartfelt WTF! These words spring to mind as RADKEY leave the Esquires stage. It has been a while since an audience here were collectively blown clean away, nay musically machine gunned down by the sheer velocity and presence of a band. It happened tonight and was an awesome sight to witness, especially up so close. Radkey are made up of three brothers Dee (vocals, guitar), Isaiah (bass, vocals) and Solomon (drums). Hailing from a poor African-American background, they are from St Joseph, Missouri, USA. A place notable for where the Pony Express started, gunslinger Jesse James met his maker and birthplace of Eminem. The Radke brothers were blessed with a fine family record collection to grow up with. Their father has nurtured their musical education and is in attendance as tour manager.

For a person who grew up with first generation punk, Radkey bring a warm glow to both my ears and heart. Nearly forty years after that genre first exploded on the scene, Radkey have given it a 21st century makeover and truly embrace everything that punk was really about. From their background they have raised themselves to another level through the music. The lads are on a high as yesterday they played Download Festival for the second time. Tonight they are playing against the England football team. It is an early starting gig due to the important date in the diaries of people who enjoy watching 22 nodding donkeys kicking a beach ball around in the Brazilian jungle. The brothers sense the passion and Dee apologises for interrupting the schedule. With two EPs released last year, Radkey are making plans for their debut album and immediately open with a new one entitled "Le song". An expectant audience are, to a person, wide eyed in amazement at the flexibility of the two guitar duelling brothers whose gymnastic abilities are spellbindingly spectacular. Did I really witness the sight of Dee spinning around with his guitar strapped to him and ending up in the dying fly position, legs upwards with nimble fingers still strumming and picking continually? They athletically throw themselves around with elasticity that genuinely defies belief. All the time Solomon is pounding the beat.

The influences are vast; old skool punk, DC hardcore, thrash and even an epic Sabbath damaged comedown! "Little man" from the "Devil fruit" EP typifies this with a semi-Ramones feel. With Radkey, as with all good bands, there is a heightened sense of danger and you are wondering what comes next. Where's it all going? The guitar sounds are gratefully gobbled up by a crowd eager to show our American cousins some warm English hospitality. Radkey offer us plenty of love and the soundwaves ricochet around the old building. The many photographers flash their cameras. Methinks there will be many blurred images as the fellas dart around the stage like tracer bullets. The songs are sharp, swift and to the point. "Out here in my head" and recent single "Feed my brain" lacerate the senses. We are just the mere dough in the hands of these musical master bakers. With "Cat and mouse" garnering huge cheers and applause, the set has sped by quicker than Lewis Hamilton's F1 car. When the Radkey clan left the stage, the queue for merch was as crowded as I can ever remember it being. The audience have come to say thanks to these fine lads from across the pond.

Opening are Luton's premier punk band HAZARD. This was without doubt the best performance I have seen by this trio at Esquires. I have watched them many times previously and they have always shown plenty of potential, but a certain ingredient has always been missing. Tonight, beginning with "Destroy" and ending with "Freedom fighters", there was a snarling intensity. Conor's throaty screams some to the fore, especially with the excellent "Redeploy". This knuckle dragging guitar squall is a real joy and the lads should be real proud of their sweat drenched efforts this evening.

Not to my total liking were Bedford's THE DEGENERATES. They are slightly older than the other two bands and are immaculately attired. They heavily remind me of The Godfathers with their slick, genre-bending, moddy/punky material. They are hugely popular and have brought many admirers. Vociferous shouts accompany each ending. They possess a calm and relaxed demeanour as they pound out the new wave stuff. These fellas know what they are doing, but it's all a tad clean cut for me on this rough hewn night and a show that will live long in my memory.