Gang of Four: Tuning Fork, 12 November 2019 Concert Review

13th Floor photographer Rachel Webb was at the Tuning Fork last night and shot these photos of Gang of Four and opener Swallow the Rat. Simon Coffey was at the show and files this report:

I grew up with Gang of Four in the early 1980’s, along with The Damned and The Angelic Upstarts.

But it wasn’t their first album, Entertainment, that snared me, it was Solid Gold, their second and much funkier and finesse agitpop manifesto. So to have the band drop ‘Paralysed’ from it, midpoint during a show sold as delivering ‘Entertainment’ was one of those rare moments of musical euphoria.

Yes Go4 2000 is a shadow of the 1980’s Go4, but the band always existed around the magnificence of Andy Gill’s guitar work and his leading role in production of their albums. Tonight, Andy Gill exceeds all expectation with his guitar prowess, ably aided by modern technology. But to my surprise, the young bloods are able to deliver the energy of the classic Go4 album, to create a feeling of being in a dingy, smoke filled, beer drenched Leeds pub as they punched out “Natural’s Not in It,” “Damaged Goods,” “At Home He’s a Tourist,” “I Love A Man In A Uniform” and “Anthrax”.

There were the obligatory new songs and the magnificent  ‘I Parade Myself’ from the obscurest 1991 ‘Mall’ album, but on the night “Entertainment” was the winner.

~Simon Coffey

Gang of Four

Swallow the Rat