Tag: Duke of Wellington

Jake & The Jellyfish are every bit as intriguing and innovative as their name suggests. With their infectious mix of punk, folk and reggae with a violin to boot, their live shows bring to the table the energy and passion which demonstrate everything which is great about the UK punk scene at the moment. In fact, their headline gig alongside three great local bands at The Duke of Wellington last night, proves the age-old saying wrong: punk is not dead—it’s thriving.

 

Opening act Joe Davis, from Lincoln based band, That’s Not Me, warmed the crowd up nicely with a solo acoustic performance. He even took a leaf out of the great Bob Dylan’s book by bringing out a harmonica for one song to accompany his guitar playing and singing.

Stereoepic were up next, a four-piece pop punk band from Gainsborough. With their catchy choruses and teenage life inspired lyrics, they’ve gone with a tried and tested formula, similar to that of pop punk giants Blink 182 and New Found Glory. The formula works very well for their live shows though, with the band having a friendly stage presence and bringing a real feel good factor to the audience.

The third band to take to the stage for the night were Wisecrack, a three-piece punk band from Lincoln. This was their first show with a completely new line-up with vocalist and guitarist Matt Colwell, drafting in a new bass player and drummer to replace previous band members who had left. For anyone on the night who wouldn’t have known this snippet of information however, I don’t think they could ever have guessed. The band played with the skill and confidence that made it easy to believe they’d played together for years. Playing upbeat songs such as the title track from their first album, released earlier this year, called Pining For The Road, the band managed to get the crowd moving. Perhaps the highlight of their performance was the hugely uplifting Sunflower Song, where half of the audience joined in with the band to sing along. I have a sneaking suspicion Lincoln will be seeing a lot more of these guys in the months to come.

Headline act Jake & The Jellyfish were last up on stage and they proved to be the perfect band to crown a memorable night at the Duke of Wellington. The four-piece outfit from Leeds are hard to nail down to a particular musical genre which is a compliment in itself. They manage to knit together punk, folk, and reggae to form an innovative blend of music which is a treat to experience live. Think of combining Against Me! and Frank Turner with Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen and you’ll come up with a cocktail similar in taste to that of Jake & The Jellyfish. Playing songs off their E.P called Landfills, which was released last year, the band converted the audience into a sea of dancing bodies and flying beer. They ended the night by coming into the crowd to play the painfully honest, but beautiful track Same Old, Same Old, which went down so well, the audience asked for an encore.

I turned up to the gig thinking that with a name as inventive as Jake & The Jellyfish, this band had to be something special. They did not disappoint in any way.