Gang of Four, The Ruby Lounge. 18th October 2018

The Ruby lounge is on borrowed time, it’s fate to make way for flats next year, because the city centre needs more flats apparently. The same can’t be said for post-punk pioneers Gang Of Four though as they nearly destroy the place ahead of time with a furious set of ear-splitting razor sharp vitriol. Angular guitars fused with devastating bone shattering beats, despite being formed the year I was born, this stuff still sounds relevant and perhaps arguably more so than many contemporary bands. Granted this isn’t the original line-up, only guitarist Andy Gill remains from ‘77, but the band still induce pogo inspired smiles from the woefully small yet appreciative, pretty hardcore and impressively wide age ranging audience. I was here for the early stuff, Entertainment! is a staggeringly great album, but the whole set sounds good, including the new stuff surprisingly. Rarely do bands this established still kick out decent stuff, but if tonight’s anything to go by, the forthcoming album will be well worth a listen. It’s not the Andy Gill show either, singer John Sterry is a bundle of tightly wound, quickly unravelling untethered energy as he bounces between three mics marking his territory at the front of the stage and with the rhythm section vying for the coolest in the country title... seriously fucking good! this is very far from anything resembling a nostalgia act. It doesn’t shy away from art performance either with Sterry taking the disembodied neck of a guitar to smash against the casing of a microwave that’s wheeled on during the encore. That may sound pretentious, but I assure you a well mic’d microwave sounds incredible. This is a band looking to cut loose and this was not a gig to stand still. Fat bass lines, seismically funky drums and Gills guitar distortions, turned the at first cool venue into a strobe lit surging sweat box. If The Ruby Lounge is planning a closing party next year, book Gang Of Four to tear the place down brick by brick.