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MORE than most of their contemporaries, Dr Feelgood are a Trigger’s broom kind of band.
When you’ve replaced – and re-replaced – the component parts of any group so often it’s hard to argue that you’ve got anything resembling the original left. Could they even be called – gasp – a covers’ band?
Well, tell that to the lively, adoring crowd at Concode 2; the Feelgoods’ current incarnation provided a barnstorming night of bolshie British R ’n’ B and southern blues.
Lead guitarist Steve Walwyn may not have the angular, ethereal presence of that famous wonder of modern medicine Wilko Johnson but he knows his way around a gritty riff and rip-roaring solo. Latest vocalist Robert Kane wisely didn’t try to emulate the late, great Lee Brilleaux, but made sure to keep the energy levels impressively high.
To this younger (ie, born after Wilko left but before the rhythm section had been replaced) listener, the highlights were the proto-punk of Baby Jane and, of course, Roxette.
While it’s a shame that this raucous mixture of the traditional and contemporary was one of the few signs of evolution within the band itself, their influence is still clear to see in modern peers such as Kings of Leon.
So in the end, was this a gig by Dr Feelgood or Professor Thinkwell? Really, who cares?
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