They say that the job of the support band is to get the crowd ‘warmed up’, but ask any band and they will tell you that their job is to blow the headliners clean out of the water, and The Minutes are no exception. In many ways, this Dublin three-piece were a natural choice for this support slot as Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s influence shines through in their music. But The Minutes are no half-baked tribute act.

Just back from a short European tour, the band delivers their own blend of hard, blues punk-rock with short, sharp bursts. For a definition, look no further than their opener ‘Secret History’ – one minute and 58 seconds of pure unharnessed energy. The band is no one-trick pony, however, with tracks such as ‘Fleetwood’ demonstrating their modern interpretation of rock, coming on like a mix of early Kings of Leon and The Strokes.

Another rule of bands is to have a strong opener, and a strong closer. The Minutes chose to go out in style with their version of the blues classic ‘In My Time of Dying’. Six minutes of slide guitar and fuzz bass, the audience are now at their mercy. As the song reaches the coda, Mark Austin rips off his guitar and screams the final few lines into the pick-ups and mic.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club come to the stage knowing that they have a hard job topping The Minutes, but of course, they strut on stage with their trademark biker cool. BRMC open with the title track off their latest album Beat the Devil’s Tattoo. Whereas many bands of their vintage would choose to open with a classic, BRMC’s cult status means that there is no need to pander to blow-ins. The band have a very simple, but effective stage show: blinding white light that contrasts sharply with the pure darkness of the room. The band, all in black, emerges from the shadows every so often with the aid of dimmed spotlights pulsating to the music. And the audience, approximately aged 21-65, are given their fill – the band play for two-and-a-half hours.

Such patience does not go unrewarded, however, from the strobe-laden ‘Whatever Happened to My Rock ‘n’ Roll’ and ‘Berlin’ to Robert Been’s 20-minute acoustic set in the middle of the show, which includes his rendition of ‘Dirty Old Town’. It is at these moments that the band’s personality shines out from the tough guy facade. Robert Been comes across as almost shy as he takes on what little talking the band does, recalling the in-store gig earlier that day (which was a gig in itself at 40 minutes) and thanking their stage crew as tonight is the last of their European tour. 

To finish, Been (bass and vocals) and Peter Hayes (guitar and vocals) remain on stage and all that is visible is the dim glow of Peter’s cigarette. Robert starts into ‘All You Do Is Talk’, compliment by his bass with occasional harmonies and guitar licks from Peter. The loyal crowd chant along as if in communal prayer as they stare up at the band. The song gradually comes to a halt and the instruments drop out, followed by the vocals. As the band walk off humbled, the crowd continue to sing. The lights go down and the crowd fall silent. With a nod to the season, ‘White Christmas’ plays as the crowd disperse into the night.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club don’t rely on backing players or tracks to fill in their live sound – what you see is what you get. A true Rock ‘n’ Roll band, no bullshit. Barry Fahy

when we arrived at Dublin with my girlfriend, i was trilled already-we did some shopping and head to The Academy

GREAT VENUE !
dark and black...
ideal for rock-sicko-BRMC-climate style band...

grabbed a pint and listen to not really good support band fallen rule

well....they finished and that silent and waiting started-if you can say that on the concert with crowd and music coming loudly from the powerfull speakers ;)
i love that moment when you so excited and you just have to wait and time stretches...

they finally came out and started with a big boom ( i've started to love 666 conducer as an opener )

i had to say that Robert seemed tired or in "last night" condition....well what do you expect...it was their1000st show so the celebrate it for sure ;-)

it was my first show with Leah behind the drums and i have to say she was really focus on her set and the whole show...as always

as we know, Peter didn't felt well before next day Belfast show and i could say that he wasn't in best form that night...and his clothes "style-way" made me smile...have a good look yourself ;-)

 

have to say that they have build the tension with that setlist and as i'm placing as my best, first BRMC show back in 2007 at the Ambassador Theatre, this one will get second prize and the one at Savoy in Cork would be the last in line...

i was a bit nervious about the song from BTDT as it's not my favorite record....they sounded great !

the acoustic part was well placed to cool it down for a while

have to say that from now on the true rock'n'roll have started...great kick with the weapon of choice and whatever happened to my rock and roll

the tension rises...and some of the people apparently couldn't take that...as you could see at 03:30 min. of the below video:

 

 

 show was almost over and great encore to finalize that great night !

by Dom Gourlay

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club have probably experienced more ups and downs during their twelve year existence than most bands would get through in a lifetime. Heavily tipped to be one of the biggest outfits of the new millennium on the back of their debut album B.R.M.C. in 2001, they've endured numerous in-band bust ups culminating in the departure of original drummer Nick Jago, not to mention changes in style and sound just as mainstream commercial success beckoned, a move which undoubtedly contributed to their parting of ways with Virgin Records. While initially endorsed by the likes of Noel Gallagher, their obvious disdain of celebrity culture and its trappings meant that more often than not, records such as Howl and Baby 81 only received a modicum of praise while artists less deserving seemed to steal their thunder.

Having finally replaced Jago two years ago with former Raveonettes drummer Leah Shapiro, founding duo Robert Levon Been (bass/vocals) and Peter Hayes (guitar/vocals) set about re-inventing their sound with the fully instrumental long player The Effects Of 333 while earlier this year their sixth album Beat The Devil's Tattoo saw them return to the more traditional sound of their debut. Indeed, we at DiS thought it arguably their best record for quite some time, its wares meriting a more than respectable 8/10.

Currently back in the UK for the second time this year, DiS managed to track down a tired and weary Robert Levon Been prior to their show at Nottingham's Rock City.

 

The UK leg of your tour started last night in Portsmouth. How did it go?
Robert: Pretty well, although the coach ride up to Nottingham was scary. We were skidding all over the place so it was a case of "hold on tight and hope for the best".

You've attained a loyal following over here since your first UK tour back in 2001. Tonight's sold out I believe?
Robert: We seem to have been adopted by UK audiences right from the start. It's strange really because most of the big cities here play host to great bands seven nights a week, which is why I think we're more appreciated in smaller towns and cities where there's less traffic, if you know what I mean. We always seem to have more fun when we veer off the beaten path. It's worse in the States. In the big cities you get a lot of people just standing there with their arms folded judging every little fucking thing we do.

With an extensive and distinguished back catalogue of songs to choose from, how do you decide what to include in your set and what to omit?
Robert: We used to fight about it all the time, but there's no way you can please everybody, so we tend to just play more for ourselves. Before when we had released just a couple of albums it was easy to work out which songs people wanted to hear the most but now it's kind of impossible. There are probably eight songs off each of our albums plus numerous b-sides that we rehearse before we go on tour so it gives us the option to change the set every night if we wish. Sometimes it feels like too much trouble to make everybody happy so I guess it's easier to make no one happy!

Are there any songs that you listen back to now and wish you'd recorded or arranged differently?
Robert: There's a couple which we play differently to how they sound on record. Some we've extended parts that seemed to end abruptly, songs like 'Weight Of The World', 'Mercy' and 'Six Barrel Shotgun'. Actually, most of our songs have changed and evolved over time, and then we've some songs we've been sitting on for four or five years waiting for that final piece to emerge.

It's interesting you say that particularly as one of your oldest songs 'Evol' finally made it onto Beat The Devil's Tattoo six or seven years after first appearing as a demo online. What made you release it now after all this time?
Robert: You know, the funny thing is 'Evol' is one song we never changed at all! That's just a good song that for some reason got left off every album from Take Them On, On Your Own onwards. We tracked it every time. It's funny because me and Peter always have the debate over which songs will make the final cut and it almost ended up on the chopping block for this album which I thought was ridiculous after ten years. Any song which has been debated over this length of time deserves to be on a record - it's obviously stood the test of time - so I guess a little persistence paid off and it's finally got to have its day.

Are there any other songs hiding away in the vaults which might make an appearance soon?
Robert: We actually played a song during soundcheck today called 'Intentions', which is one of the first songs me and Peter ever wrote together. There's a couple more too I guess which still lack that final ingredient, so for the time being we've put them to one side. Sometimes you've just got to be patient when it comes to songwriting because occasionally you're so far away from knowing the headspace you're at that if it doesn't come naturally to force it could ruin the song altogether.

Beat The Devil's Tattoo in many ways feels like a return to the style and sound of your first record. Was that a conscious decision or just something that developed naturally?
Robert: It kind of does I guess. When we first started the album, neither me or Peter had any preconceived idea. We just wanted the record to take its own shape from the very beginning. It would have been quite false if we'd deliberately attempted to force the direction of the record. Instead we just let the songs evolve naturally, more by extended jams than anything else. In a way the whole process was quite refreshing for us, because it kind of confirmed that we still had a lot to offer as a band. We realised at that point that there's still plenty of mileage for Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, still lots to be said and still lots of places for our music to go. There's a good fire between the three of us at the moment and I think by keeping out of the way and not worrying about any conceptual diversions we made an album that sounds naturally raw.

The record received mixed reviews, Pitchfork's being particularly scathing. Do you pay much attention to what the music press say about your band?
Robert: Pitchfork are funny ones. They're just trying to get noticed by writing something extreme. They tend to pride themselves on writing a review that's so bad it automatically gets attention. It's the same with the NME over here. They either write reams of ridiculous praise which you barely deserve or the exact polar opposite. The NME gave us such a bad review that we went and made a t-shirt out of it. It was a silhouette of a girl bending over another girl spanking her from behind with this paddle with our name over the top in the same font and logo as the NME with the full review printed below. I guess we have enough problems trusting our friends never mind someone in the media who's probably getting paid to dislike us.

At thirteen tracks and over an hour long, and with songs on there like the closing 'Half State', which clocks in at over ten minutes, you can tell it was recorded with a live feel to it.
Robert: A lot of the songs on Beat The Devil's Tattoo actually started of at ten minutes long and we had to shorten them down, which is usually the case! 'Half State' we decided to leave because it had that climactic feel about it, and in its place at the end of the record seemed the perfect way to close the album. I don't really have a heavy explanation for the way that song developed you know....it gives me piece of mind to know that something like that just happened naturally. The next album I know we may try to steer in a different direction. We've already got some ideas, and when we sit down and put them together as songs I know it won't be the same as this one. I like this album in that we just recorded it as we went along and hoped for the best, almost like trial and error in many ways.

You mention the next album. Are there any songs finalised at this moment in time?
Robert: Yes and no. There's sounds and ideas, more pieces than usual but they're not finished. There's still a lot more writing to be done but the good thing is we've left ourselves room to take the ideas into more interesting places.

Do you see it being a full-on electric record or something more stripped back like Howl?
Robert: I think it's gonna take its time. It may well end up as a combination of the two. I think there's gonna be space within it...I know that sounds really strange but there's a certain rhythm and pace to our albums so far and I get the feeling the next one will be more open. I don't really know how to explain it but if you were to have a script, and that script was actually made up of dialogue rather than purely rehearsed prose, that's how I see our next record being like. It's a really awkward description but probably the closest I can get right now.

Beat The Devil's Tattoo was self-produced. Is there a reason why you've decided to produce your own material in recent years, and is there any producer you would like to work with in future should the opportunity arise?
Robert: You know, we don't really trust people that well, and it's difficult for us to hand our music over to someone else who wants to change it. Maybe in time we will go to a producer and let them put their own stamp on one of our recordings, but I don't think they could do a better job than us. Me and Peter have a mutual understanding of knowing what the other one wants. We've had people mix our records in the past and it's ended up sounding completely different to what we wanted.

Aside from the download-only The Effects Of 633, Beat The Devil's Tattoo is the first full-length record of yours to feature Leah Shapiro on drums. How did she end up joining the band?
Robert: We've known her for a while now. She was playing in a band who opened for us on tour a few years ago, and we'd see her playing live every night where she was by far the best thing about the band. She just plays like she's in a trance you know...even more than we do at times! It's incredible to see someone so within themselves musically, and when the opportunity came for her to join the band we knew we couldn't let it slip. Physically she can keep up too whereas a lot of musicians - guys I'm talking about here more than anything - would struggle with what we do. She's also the right kind of spirit we need around us right now.

Do you see her becoming involved in the writing process?
Robert: Yeah, definitely. Me and Peter write the words but that's only a minor part of what the songs are about. Musically she has so much to give that I think we'd be foolish not to involve her.

At the same time, Nick Jago your original drummer was a seemingly integral part of the band. Was it quite a difficult period leading up to and just after his departure and do you see yourselves ever working with him again in the future?
Robert: Nick is an incredible drummer physically. He could read us really well at the beginning, and that's why it wasn't working towards the end. It's less about personality because he was always interesting, but he stopped listening, and as basic as that sounds it's what made it untenable for him to be in the band. You can stop listening in life itself and all of a sudden it becomes like tuning out, you know. Even in the moments of playing songs he wasn't really listening and I think he had his own songs in his head that he was paying more attention to. We hoped that there was room for both, only he didn't see it that way.

One of the songs on the current record 'Bad Blood' mentions in the chorus "I can see it in your eyes and now it's gone". Was that a specific lyrical reference to Nick Jago?
Robert: Peter wrote the chorus for that - I only wrote the verses so I couldn't really say what he meant by that. It's the way a lot of the songs go. They're connected, but as far as a specific literal meaning to that goes, I'm not sure. I kind of have the same question in the back of my head! All of the songs from the band's beginnings have been about break-ups and love and loss so I guess Nick could take credit for a whole lot of songs if you want to put it literally!

You've set up your own label, Abstract Dragon. Will there be any other artists records released in the forseeable future or is it purely for Black Rebel Motorcycle Club at this moment in time?
Robert: It's a difficult time for musicians, so I think we'll be using the label to keep our own band afloat at the minute. I don't really want to subject anyone else to our own experiments or whims at this stage.

Are there any new bands that have caught your attention recently?
Robert: I've seen so many great new bands lately. The Black Ryder and Dark Horses are two of my current favourites. I wouldn't want to namecheck too many as I guess that would be more of a hindrance to them than anything. I'm not sure of our model for success just yet!

Finally, if you had to choose one album as being the definitive Black Rebel Motorcycle Club record which would it be?
Robert: It would be too much like 'Sophie's Choice' for me; you can't choose one child over another, and I have equal amounts of problems with all my kids! They're all like different chapters of a book really, and I couldn't imagine that book with one part missing.

as we all know guys ( and girl of course ) played their 1000th show at London Brixton Academy.
below there a  few reviews of that extended and great set...

first great moment of remembering...

here's a short review from Gigwise.com and pics by James Berry 

11 December 2010 - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club celebrated their 1000th gig by playing an extended set to a rapturous reception at Brixton Academy. 

Beginning with tracks from their 2001 self-titled debut, including 'Love Burns' and 'Whatever Happened To My Rock 'n' Roll (Punk Song)', and working their way through to highlights from this year's 'Beat The Devil's Tattoo', the set also included an unexpected cover of Cyndi Lauper's 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun', The Pogues' 'Dirty Old Town' and Iggy Pop's 'Real Wild Child', introduced by a specially recorded voiceover from Iggy himself.

Support came from The Duke Spirit. You can see shots from the show below.

 

more pictures here

pictures by Paul Gregory

more here

By Live4ever

11/12/2010

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club reached a pinnacle point in their career tonight – their 1000th show, and what better place to mark this occasion than a gig at London’s Brixton Academy? It’s fair to say the venue has become their home away from home in recent years, having graced the stage here many times throughout their history.


To be here tonight you can see exactly why this love affair has endured as it’s the perfect setting for a band of this size; not too big, not too small. BRMC continue to remain the unsung heroes of American rock n’ roll, ploughing on with album after album, tour after tour, yet never quite capturing the attention of the masses. Perhaps they prefer it this way, it’s hard to see them becoming a full-time arena band anyway. Those vacuous, hot dog stinking, soulless atmospheres would suck the life out of the spirit and raw energy that BRMC bleed on stage tonight in Brixton.

With six albums under their belt, they’re not short of tunes, and tonight’s somewhat chronological approach to their back catalogue seems to work, even if on paper it shouldn’t. Opening their set with ‘Love Burns‘, ‘Red Eyes and Tears‘ and ‘Whatever Happened To My Rock n Roll‘ is a bold move that actually pays off in the long run. These are undoubtedly three of their biggest hits but this is a band who have stood the test of time and can afford to bring out the big guns so early on. It’s purely a testament to their longevity and crushes any notions that they were ever a one trick pony. This was nothing short of a minor earthquake inducing start to the gig and a statement of intent which they followed through until the second encore, yes – second (but more on that later).

Those who have followed the band from the very beginning will observe Robert Been‘s natural progression over the years into one the most captivating performers of modern day rock n’ roll. Tonight at Brixton he doesn’t look like a man who has played ‘Spread Your Love‘ 1000 times, it’s actually more like the first time with everything still to prove to the world. He wields his guitar around uncontrollably like a scene straight from the ‘…Chainsaw Massacre‘ and has developed a confidence that would have even Freddie Mercury raising an eyebrow.

Peter Hayes remains the calm and collected backbone of the group’s stage presence, never for a second breaking that cool exterior. The reception he receives as he strums the opening chords of ‘Devil’s Waitin‘ cements his popularity among the band’s legion of fans and gives us another side of BRMC away from the shoe gazing, Jesus and Mary Chain influenced earlier material.

It was this stripped down acoustic sound that was showcased on their third album ‘Howl‘, which was a hugely significant point in the shaping of their sound and a brave new direction that won them both critical acclaim and a new audience. They’d turned their back on the electric guitar and focused on an acoustic driven sound that was more gospel and harmonica than wah wah and distortion.

‘Shuffle Your Feet‘, a fine example of this era of the band, did exactly what it says on the tin and classic stomper ‘Ain’t No Easy Way‘ was greeted like an old friend which picked up the pace and paved the way for yet more highlights from this latter stage of their career.

One thing you can say about a BRMC gig is that you always get your money’s worth. 200% effort is the least you can expect from a performance by them. A two-part encore comprising of nine songs is nothing to be sniffed at, especially when Robert hands the fate of the evening into the palm of the ticket holders by taking requests: “What do you wanna hear, I don’t give a fuck” he says, resulting in a surprisingly brilliant rendition of Cyndi Lauper‘s ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun‘, proving nobody is too cool for a bit of classic bubblegum pop. Much to the amusement of the crowd, he doesn’t quite finish the entire song after having tried incredibly hard not to laugh all the way through it: “Come on seriously, I don’t know the rest.”

The biggest surprise of the evening came in the form of former punk turned insurance salesman Iggy Pop during the first encore. Originally intending to have appeared in person to join in the celebrations of this milestone 1000th show, Iggy instead delivered a recorded tribute to the late Johnny O’Keefe before the band launched into a cover of 80′s classic ‘The Wild One‘. It’s not often BRMC line up a guest of such royal stature, which just goes to show they endeavored to make this show extra special to mark this occasion.

The cover was a commendable testimonial that the band carried off with grace and was not the only tribute of this eventful night. ‘Windows’ was dedicated to Robert’s dad, Michael Been, who sadly passed away earlier this year. For this track they were joined by a member of Michael’s former band, The Call, and delivered a sincerely touching performance of the song which couldn’t have been easy for Robert. “If he were here now he’d have a huge smile on his face, we better get this right,” said Robert as he then sat in front of the piano to sing his heart out, and boy did they get it right.

 

'Beat The Devil's Tattoo'

It was the band’s most recent album, ‘Beat The Devil’s Tattoo‘, which was responsible for providing some of the most memorable moments of tonight’s show. ‘Half State‘ sounded even bigger than on record, complete with an assault of wah wah guitar pedal usage and crashing drums. Any previous troubles with their drummer were long forgotten as Leah Shapiro now clearly has her feet firmly under the table.

‘Beat The Devil’s Tattoo‘ had Robert on the edge of the stage as he sang the song’s refrain, like a preacher man reaching into his audience and encouraging them to sing their hearts out to the band’s mantra.  As far as 1000th gig anniversaries go, tonight’s show had it all – balls to the wall rock n’ roll, emotional tributes and a moment Iggy himself would be proud of – Robert immersing himself into crowd with his guitar in tow. He was predictably mobbed and lapped up every second of the adoring crowd.

All corners of society were in attendance this evening, from teenagers to middle-aged men. As BRMC near the tenth anniversary of their debut album, they appear to be picking up a new generation of fans. It wasn’t always the most ecstatic crowd at a BRMC show, but this didn’t affect the energy and effort the band put into their performance. It was comforting to know that everyone under the roof of the Brixton Academy tonight witnessing a glorious display of rock n’ roll by one of the finest bands in the world had chosen this over staying at home and watching the X Factor – a bit of hope for humanity that we can desperately cling onto. Whatever Happened To My Rock n’ Roll indeed.
(Matt Humphrey)

Setlist:

Love Burns
Red Eyes and Tears
Whatever Happened to my Rock n’ Roll?
Spread Your Love
Stop
Six Barrel Shotgun
We’re All in Love
Heart & Soul
Devil’s Waitin’
Shuffle Your Feet
Ain’t No Easy Way
Weight of the World
Took Out a Loan
Berlin
Weapon of Choice
Windows
Encore:
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (acoustic)
Dirty Old Town
The Wild One
Beat the Devil’s Tattoo
Bad Blood
Half State
Conscience Killer
Shadow’s Keeper
Open Invitation

and in the end videos from SerialSuiciderVideo

By Laura Hughes

It’s bloody cold in Manchester tonight. There’s enough ice on Oxford Road to host the Winter Olympics and the security staff patrolling the door are checking tickets so slowly, you suspect they’ve begun to freeze over. Nevertheless, an army of shaggy-haired Black Rebel fans have descended on Academy 1, each hoping for a repeat performance of April’s blistering Ritz gig, albeit this time with gloves, scarves and a new-found ability to ice skate on pavements.

 

The change of venue has sparked a noticeable shift in atmosphere. The bouncy dancefloor and ballroom feel have been replaced by a vast aircraft-hangar of space – an echoey black hole chewing up any kind of instrumental subtlety and spitting out raw, ear-splitting noise.

Thick clouds of cigarette smoke fill the air and for a moment, it doesn’t matter that your lukewarm cider has been served in a plastic cup by an arsy-looking student, clearly put out at being made to work on a Sunday night. This is proper music.

The band slink on stage in pitch darkness as the crowd jostle for warmth. Rather than explosive, distorted noise, the nonchalant slow burn of ‘666 Conducer’ snakes its way out of the speakers.

Silhouetted, swaying against white lights, the three-piece are so painstakingly cool that suddenly the blizzard outside looks toasty in comparison.
Founder members Peter Hayes and Robert Levon-Been eyeball the crowd with appreciative smiles, an earnest acknowledgement of “Thanks” their only sound before unleashing the anthemic ‘Stop’.

 

Relatively-new drummer Leah Shapiro clearly relishes only her second UK outing with the band. As former touring percussionist for Spector-influenced Danish duo The Raveonettes, she’s clearly well within her comfort zone as she pummels the skins like a healthier-looking Alexa Chung, arms flailing like surprisingly strong tree branches.

Having journeyed from Jesus & Mary Chain-esque reverb-drenched walls of noise via country/blues-tinged experimentation and back again, the trio are in a position to cherry-pick from six studio albums worth of material. Not so complacent as to use the evening as a platform solely for new material, they plough through ‘Red Eyes and Tears’ and ‘Whatever Happened to My Rock and Roll (Punk Song)’ from 2001 debut ‘BRMC’ in quick succession.

The latter especially, a song they’ve played hundreds of times before but their frantic joint vocals ring out with as much snarl and menace as on record.

 

The mood dips slightly during ‘Annabel Lee’, and the crowd whisper amongst themselves during a lengthy organ solo, before Hayes straps on a harmonica for stomping single ‘Ain’t No Easy Way’. Fan favourite ‘Spread Your Love’ is the first song of the encore, and unsurprisingly the now-thoroughly-defrosted crowd bounce off the ceiling like leather jacket-clad rubber balls.

It’s only then that the pair address the crowd. “We wrote this song in Manchester” Levon-Been smiles by way of introducing ‘Shadow’s Keeper’, after which Shapiro leaves the stage. The remaining twosome end the night with the droning, almost-acapella ‘Open Invitation’, their ghostly harmonies echoing through the night long after they leave the stage. A band of few words – tonight, the music did the talkin

REVIEW/by Paul Glynn

DESPITE another week of protests at Universities around the country there was a refreshing mood of wilful acceptance around Manchester Academy on Sunday evening; as a sea of nodding heads allowed BRMC’s signature blend of sun-drenched West Coast shoe gaze and dirty country-blues wash over them like sonic rain.

Hypnotic bass lines, gun shot guitar riffs and a rhythmically primal drum beat, augmented by Robert Levon Been and Peter Hayes’s shared space rock vox all served to act as a reminder as to why the Californian rockers had crossed over the pond with such success in the Noughties.

Highlights were always going to include a raucous rendition of their seminal 2001 hit ‘Whatever Happened to My Rock N Roll?’ and the heart-felt howl of the stripped-down ‘Aint Now Easy Way Out’.

But an impromptu acoustic cover of The Pogues ‘Dirty Old Town’ will have warmed the hearts of the coldest of winter souls inside the Oxford Road venue.

Long after fellow leather clad, hirsute Yank rockers Kings of Leon went soft, Black Rebel continue to stick to their guns, evoking images of The Verve, T Rex and early Rolling Stones.

And while their gigs may no longer be the riotous occasions they once were, the San Franciscan duo (nowadays ably assisted by Leah Shapiro behind the kit) continue to deliver a three chord rock ‘n’ roll education.

By JAY RICHARDSON

SINGER Peter Hayes stands silhouetted against a few dazzling lights but otherwise enveloped in darkness, his face shrouded by his hoodie… in this part of the world comparisons to The Jesus and Mary Chain are obligatory for the moody Black Rebel Motorcycle Club.

Diabolic opener 666 Conducer restated their current priorities – tiresome posturing over meaningful lyrics and the more memorable melodies of the band's most accomplished album Howl. Scarcely acknowledging the audience for the first hour of the gig, the solemn, down-tempo aspects of their repertoire were enlivened by room-rattling, visceral rock with growls of Delta blues swagger – you could almost forgive their affectations while admiring the sheer wall of sound produced by a mere trio.

Hayes and bassist Robert Levon Been traded and shared vocals while drummer Leah Shapiro added a high edge occasionally, as on the ambling The Toll. Part of an extended acoustic set that also featured a cover of Dirty Old Town and the spectral Mercy, this and occasional keyboards and swampy harmonica afforded texture and variety to a gig that otherwise lacked them.

Stormers like War Machine, staggering and bellowing with distortion, were urgently needed to re-energize the room. Berlin might be saddled with a frankly ridiculous chorus but it retains a defiantly erotic charge and crowd favourite Whatever Happened To My Rock 'N' Roll (Punk Song) was a reminder of of the sneering frenzy of noise that established this band's reputation.