GIG REVIEW: The Bar Stool Preachers + Kahuna,
Trillians, Newcastle, Sunday 26 September 2021
Brighton six-piece The Bar Stool Preachers made a pledge years ago that they would never visit Newcastle without playing at Trillians.
The basement rock bar is their North East ‘home away from home’, so when they were confirmed for the North East Calling punk all-dayer at Northumbria University, fans knew that meant an extra BSP gig!
Sure enough, 24 hours or so after smashing their first-ever appearance at NEC (reviewed here), they took to the stage at Trillians for a more intimate show.
Cramming six of them onto the small stage here is a feat in itself; add in the high-energy nature of their infectious ska-punk, and it’s amazing no one’s lost an eye to a stray guitar headstock.
The Preachers are past masters at putting on a show in places like this though; it’s where they’ve paid their dues, even if bigger stages are now beckoning.
Their last visit to Trillians (reviewed here) was in March 2020, three weeks before the UK and much of the world went into lockdown amid the terrifying spread of coronavirus.
Back on the road at last after 18 months of kicking their heels, and with new songs in their arsenal, they decided to make this an all-ages show too, and were firing on all cylinders.
It was a very different set to what they played the previous day, even though it kicked off with some familiar tunes from their first album in One Fool Down, Trickle Down and Looking Lost.
A handful of new songs from their forthcoming third album were thrown in, with the pick of them Don’t Die Today – a future single perhaps?
State Of Emergency and When This World Ends, which were released on the 12in Soundtrack To Your Apocalypse EP during last year’s lockdown, sound even better live than they do on record.
But my song of the night – sorry, afternoon – was 8.6 Days (All The Broken Hearts) from second album Grazie Governo, which sounded better than ever.
The closing one-two of Ballad Of The M1 – “we only play this when we’re north of the Watford Gap, so it’s been a while” – and Bar Stool Preacher brought another great gig to a close.
The Bar Stool Preachers really are a very special band, as increasing numbers of people are finding out for themselves.
That includes my grown-up step-daughter – a recent convert who was attending her first BSP gig, and is now a confirmed fan.
A mention, too, for opening band Kahuna, a ska-punk six-piece from Newcastle.
I hadn’t seen them before, but their upbeat brass-inflected music was the perfect appetiser for some bar stool preaching, and I’ll certainly be trying to see them again.
As for The Bar Stool Preachers, they’re hitting the road again in December for another short UK tour. Check out the dates HERE.
