Bad Manners, with supporting acts 20 Dead Camels and Chico & The Chocolate Factory.

Esquires Level II, Bedford. Saturday 1st June, 2002.

Well they've done it- first they backed The Selector, and now backing the famous Bad Manners, it's certianly a good year for "CHICO AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY". They played to a more different crowd than they're used to, seeming to be daunted by the red braces wearing bigger (+ balder) older crowd. Their usual younger fan base either lost in the pit or put off by the £10. Ticket price. A lot of things went wrong during the set. I know they wern't very happy with their sound. I dont think they needed to worry as they appeared to go down well with the audience. I really dont think the crowd noticed Chico's complaints about the sound. - there certianly wasn't anything wrong with the drum sound. The bands usual appearance differed, usually full suited, this time half clad in denim cut offs with suit top + tie. One of the things I like about this band is the fact that when they do a cover, it doesent just make them sound like a cover band, they do their own rendition of it, so it still holds a certian fresh origionality engineered to their own style. They went out on a cover, which was no exception. O.K. not one of their better sets but not bad considering they never had a sound check!

With 7 members on the stage "20 DEAD CAMELS" always seem like a party in full swing. Their female lead singer I noticed now stands at the other side of the stage from when I last saw them, their main singer knocked out a strong vocal performance, with other members doing backing vocals to compliment the sound in true ska style. They went through a set of their usual songs (with even the James Bond theme thrown in there) and demonstrated a compitent and professional sound, - I think with out which, their Egyption themed attire (their hats stayed on this time) would seem a bit tacky, but because there so good musically, the fez hats should stay, as it helps audiences associate the image with a good band.

"BAD MANNERS" first formed in London in 79, and to the chant of 'You Fat Bastard, You fat Bastard!' The huge Buster Blood vessel (real name Doug Trendle) rolled on to the stage wearing a tent sized red football top - the chanting was all done in fun though and he was preceded by his varied instrument playing band members including drums, guitar, bass, keyboards, trombone, trumpet, and sax. The brass section was particularly good, each standing behind a row of mike stands to amplify their playing. Although Buster was quite energetic, it was widely reported that he had a heart attack while playing abroad, and had to disband for a while, although this wasn't strictly true, what actually happend was he collapsed on stage which caused the health scare, then retreated to a health farm. They did quite a few covers in ska style including Deep Purples 'Smoke On The Water', as well as their hits and of course, the one they are most famous for - The Can Can, although this time their singer wasn't wearing the long yellow dress. I was in the mosh pit for most of it and at one point Buster hurled an ice bucket full of water, which I got the most of - nothing like a good mosh & soak! All in all, a lively gig, with a lot of skins, well chosen backing bands and a 'Monster Mashing' headliner!

Review by Keith Pickering.