“We’ve got lots to say. This is Warmduscher and this is what we do…“
Have a listen to anything from the back catalogue of London lot Warmduscher and you’ll surely agree with the statement above, that the band do indeed have lots to say. A quote of many from the other night in Manchester, belonging to one Clams Baker, vocalist extraordinaire, who gives off the vibe of a car dealer on acid.
At Manchester Academy on Wednesday evening, he’s a sight for sore eyes in his bright white tracksuit and baker boy cap, cutting about like he’s in East 17, with a pair of sunglasses that seemingly never come off. The rest of the band look splendid in their matching branded white jumpsuits, who very casually sauntered on stage when the time came. The keys player was first to his station to lead the others on with a beautiful piano intro, building into new album opener ‘Live at the Hotspot‘, worked up into a lounge stylee groove by the rhythm section to welcome on vocalist Clams.
‘Big Wilma‘ kicks it off proper and right off the bat the drummer is a vision of thrashing long hair, pounding away to the bodies amongst the crowd moving about up front. Big hitter ‘Midnight Dipper‘ comes out nice and early, a wonky delight as Clams power walks on the spot and points the finger, soon whipping off the tracky top as the bassist bounces up and down to his left and vibes off the energy in the room.
I love the bald, aviator wearing bod at the back, who’s very much a blink and you’ll miss it character – mostly stood with his arms crossed in front or held behind his back for the majority of the set, occasionally fiddling with a little electronic box of tricks in his hands or hammering away at a cowbell, sunglasses firmly on. Equally, the new drummer is a joy to watch, going full on metal drummer on the utterly heavy doom shit of ‘Lady Eggs‘, thundering along in crushing fashion as Clams grits his teeth. Later he’s one-handing it, swigging from a bottle (Water? Beer? Hennessy?) whilst playing on the Kool Keith affiliated ‘Burner‘.
It’s fuck this and fuck that for recent powerhouse single ‘Wild Flowers‘ and when Clams hollers to “…stop looking at me while I piss“, he grabs a big hold of his junk, which might not fly elsewhere, but fits in with the aura of Warmduscher and their dynamite brand of sleaze-funk. It’s from their latest album ‘At The Hotspot‘ and as expected, we’re treated to the majority of it in Manchester – particular highlights coming from dance-smash ‘Fatso‘, the frantic buzz of ‘Eight Minute Machines‘ (where Clams gets in his daily steps, running on the spot) and the great glam thump of ‘Twitchin’ In The Kitchen‘.
It’s not all new though and the band do dip through all of their records, all to much fanfare from the revved up punters. “And now we get into the music industry, Ladies and Gentlemen…” Precedes the chug of ‘Fill It, Don’t Spill It‘ and from that album, title track ‘Tainted Lunch‘ sounds vicious and frantic. Cigarette smoke fills the air and I feel like I’m back in a European pub on me jollies – fitting for the pink glow from the stage for the 70s dirty delights of ‘Disco Peanuts‘, absolutely elevated in the big room, particularly with the band as tight as we soon will be with the energy price hike.
‘Whale City‘ – title track from their 2018 second album screamer – has the true heads shouting back every “Oi!“. Clams meanwhile almost screams himself hoarse on ‘1000 Whispers‘, as the pit becomes a closely knit gaggle of blokes with arms around one another’s shoulders. Elsewhere from the album, ‘Standing On The Corner‘ and ‘I Got Friends‘ remain firm favourites, the latter teased real slow by the guitarist as the crowd clap along, soon ramping up the tempo as the floor starts to rumble and bodies become unglued towards the end of the set.
Ahead of a brief encore, Clams reminded us of their position – “We are Warmduscher, this is what we fuckin’ do.”. A sold out show so the internet tells us and rightly deserved, the band have plugged away at it for so many years, swiftly moving up the escalator of appreciation. Having stepped up dramatically from the last time we saw them at the much smaller Soup Kitchen on the other side of town, they seem to have taken it all in their funky stride. This is what they do.
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