a review -GOGOL BORDELLO live, hammersmith 8th Dec

This was to be the first time i had seen the band live, but i wasn't looking forward to the hammersmith odeon (or what ever they call it now) and i have to admit to not knowing anything more than their televised concert played at Glastonbury earlier this year (if i had seen them before that i would of recorded it for sure) and a clip on youtube, and although i liked what i saw on tv i was still unsure of what kind of show i was going to.
The evening started with me meeting up with my mate who was also meeting his brother at the same time in Hammersmith, (I'm sure he was using us to kill two birds with one stone, the exploiter!) and have a drink. all was going well until the subject of conspiracies was brought up, my mate sunk his face into his hands as his brother told me in all seriousness that the queen really is part reptilian and that we should read DAVID ICKE'S website and find about (among other mad things) ADOLF HITLERS last minute escape from his bunker to south America while surrounded by three million Russians, my mate tried to stop his brother but he was determined to say his piece!
Despite wanting to carry on the conversation, the time was approaching when we had to enter the venue and say goodbye to the brother, and he was just getting into his stride telling us about the secret genetics lab next to Roslyn chapel (the one that has popped up in every 'holy grail' book over the last twenty years, including 'the da Vinci cod') so in we went.
Upon entering i was shocked to find out that the downstairs seats were gone, and the seating regimentation was the reason i had avoided the place for so long! i thought of all the bands i could of seen but didn't because i thought the seating was still there, oh well, i was interested to see the type of crowd the band pulled in and i was surprised to see that the band's fans came in every shape and size possible, from crusty Russian/eastern European punks to office girl types and everything in between, even children.
i don't know if there was a support band as i didn't get in early enough but there was a DJ on stage who was playing a mix of reggae/ska, metal, punk and what sounded like Ukrainian wedding tunes, which was interesting if not my usual cup of tea.
Once the DJ had played his set (to a pleased audience) the lights came on and so i was able to see all across the venue, my first surprise was the amount of females there, it was nice to go to a gig where the crowd isn't only made up of 30 to 40 year old blokes with big bellies, trainers and crops for a change, and there was no bad atmosphere at the gig despite the difference's of the people there.
When the band finally came on the crowd almost screamed the house down, i didn't realise they were so popular (nor did i know they had 4 LP'S out) they came on and almost as soon as the first song got going the whole audience was dancing away, from the 'mash heads' down the front to the mums and dads at the back, even the people in the circle upstairs were going for it as the band tore into song after song. The band hardly stopped between songs for the whole of their set (their trick was to have mellow bits at the start and end of their songs where quick costume changes and the odd crafty smoke were possible).
Of the music its self it is almost inevitable that comparisons are going to be made between them and the LEVELLERS, but that would just be lazy writing because the only thing the two bands have in common is the instruments that are used. the music also is different in that the kind of 'folk' music the LEVELLERS use is nearer to that of JONI MITCHELL and her drippy acoustic folk ilk, GOGOL BORDELLO on the other hand use the more 'hardcore' folk that you hear in traditional dances in countries all over Europe, the type that THE POGUES also tapped into, but they used it in a different way of course.
The music played by GOGOL BORDELLO is a well worked out and great sounding mix of traditional folk and dub mixed with punk, it doesn't just switch from one style to the other but fuses them seamlessly, producing an infectious sound that had everyone present moving. The fact that the 2 or more hours they played seeming to pass by in no time shows how good they were because time just seemed to speed up and before i knew it the band were coming on for an encore.
Not only do they sound good they also put on a good stage show as well, the 'backing singers' being just as involved as the lead singer, even a roadie became part of the stage antics at one point.
And then it was all over, a great gig by a punk band who have more to offer than many who are doing the rounds at the moment, mind you i still stand by my original thought that GOGOL BORDELLO sound like the (glorious) TOFU LOVE FROGS after a make over! but that didn't stop me from enjoying the band who are a great original punk band who show their attitude via their stage show.
My only criticism of the band is their acoustic song about drinking, i thought it was rubbish, but that is the only bad thing i have to say about the band.
Mind you the t-shirts were £20 and up, but outside they were selling good designed t-shirts for £5 so that was OK, mind you i bet the poor sods who got one inside were sick to see the cheap ones when they left, oh well it was still a pukka evening, a band worth going to see, even if they do have a lot of plum fans!