Gunfire Dance, aka ‘the band that should have been’, is one of those outfits perfect for playing venues like the 12 Bar Club or the 100 Club.
On this occasion, it happened to be the 12 Bar Club with its rough ‘round the edges CBGBs feel. One can see why
Gunfire Dance - a band from the Midlands originally formed in the 80’s and which disbanded in the early 90’s - opted for a late night stint here. With their passion for New York rock ‘n’ roll and garage punk, it seemed the appropriate setting.
The audience welcomed original members Jeff Ward (guitar/vox), Ray Birch (bass/vox) and Ozzie on drums. They were joined by Jez Miller (formerly of
Pleasure Victims) on lead vox (plus guitar). He turned out to be a worthy ‘stand-in’ for the band’s original frontman, the late Anthony ‘Ant’ Bullock who, after a long battle with addiction and depression, took his own life in 2006.
Kicking off with ‘Bliss Street’ things got into full gear straight away, though I always wonder how any band as explosive as
Gunfire Dance manage to perform in the tiny and restricted space that is the 12 Bar stage!
‘Suit And Tie’ followed next and left no doubt that the old punk spirit was alive and screeching. Jez came across as confidant and charismatic, with a voice perfectly suited to be the leader of the pack. After the next two numbers (‘Break It Up’ and ‘Make You Cry’ respectively) were finished, sweat started to drip and the crowd really got into it. While the former track boasted fierce riff work and even fiercer drumming, the latter one boasted a catchy chorus and great backing vocals.
Next number ‘Pretty As Sin’ sounded a blend of New York Dolls and Stooges, with a snarling attitude to match, real rough n dirrrty… just great!
A fitting tribute to Ant Bullock was ‘Bird Doggin’ – an absolute killer track if ever there was one and no, I don’t wanna think about any possible double-meaning of the song’s title…
‘Darlin Anne’ was equally energy-driven, while last number ‘Blue’ was another scorcher that had the crowd yell for more. And more they got. Not only that, they even got a very special guest: Dave Tregunna of
Lords Of The New Church and
Sham 69, who appeared in top form. Back in the day, Ozzie had embarked on an ill-fated European tour with the church lords, albeit
sans Stiv Bators. Hence, the first encore – ‘Russian Roulette’ – was dedicated to the memory of both Stiv Bators as well as Ant.
One of the bands that
Gunfire Dance were influenced by are
Iggy and the Stooges, so ‘Kill City’ (Iggy Pop and James Williamson) was called for and the band delivered a great version.
“Shall we go or shall we play another number?” asked Jez, a somewhat unnecessary question. The punters demanded more, but since another fab band (
The Witchdoktors) waited for their slot, ‘All This And More’ by
The Dead Boys had to be declared final song for the night. A wicked gig indeed, and I can’t wait to hear and see more! The sooner, the better.
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