It was always touch and go that we would even get to Manchester to see the NME line-up at The Ritz. Life has a habit of getting in the way and it put up a major road block this week, so I was thankful when we managed to get to the venue just as Slaves were starting to bang out their particularly in-your-face set. I’ve said it before, these guys make a lot of noise considering there are only two of them. There was a decided split in the crowd between fans and onlookers, but as the set progressed even the disinterested folk at the back of the room were warming to their powerful, primal beats and lyrics. All the tunes were there, ‘Feed the Mantaray’, ‘Hey’ and the excellent ‘The Hunter’. I recently saw this band in Liverpool, as I love Baby Strange, who were the support act. Then I wasn’t that impressed, but I thought the NME gig saw them at their best. Who knows, they might win me over yet.
I really had come to the gig to see The Fat Whites. Their grimy innuendoes and sleazy rhythms wormed their way into my psyche quite a while ago and no scrubbing with mind bleach seems to remove the musical stain. The boys looked as unkempt and dangerously sexed-up as ever, with Saul painfully thin and wearing enormous shades in the gloom of the club. Beginning the set as they often do with ‘Auto Neutron’, then launching into ‘Baby, is it Raining in Your Mouth?’, things got wild pretty quickly, Lias jerking his body like something possessed, the high-pitched, guttural vocals balanced by the deeper tones from Saul. Being in the process of replacing their base player seemed to have little effect on the music, in fact this was the best I have seen them play, Lias having been in questionable health on the other occasions. By the time they finished their set with ‘Bomb Disneyland’, things were going crazy. I was glad I managed to get my Fat Whites fix. I’m looking forward to the next time already.
Palma Violets are a band who have never made much of a lasting impression on me, to be truthful, but I could see I was in the minority. The set had hardly begun and the crowd were showing the love, singing and dancing, bringing a happy vibe to the night. The band were obviously sharing in the feel-good factor and enjoying every minute of it. These were die-hard fans who knew every word of every lyric. I couldn’t fail to be impressed by the faithful. They were having the time of their lives, probably the same as I was watching The Fat Whites. It’s good, well played indie music, it just doesn’t do it for me. By the time ‘Best of Friends’, arguably their best-loved track, came on the crowd surfing had begun and things were going swimmingly. It’s a good track and even I was singing along. Sadly, I never saw the finale of their act, due to transport difficulties, but I’m sure the crowd loved it. I had a great night, the perfect antidote to a difficult week. I’m glad I made it.
RIFFED's Rating: 8/10
Watch a snippet of The Fat White Family perform at the NME Awards Tour at The Ritz in Manchester: