Simon Rushworth
The decline of western civilisation continued as Newcastle rock bar, Trillians, got a taste of L.A. with a visit of Californian sleaze rockers Dirty Penny. But this wasn’t all about a top dollar show from the US stars.
Kicking off the night with a bang, Bone Idle were the perfect aperitif to the night’s glam and sleazefest.
With a mix of 80s and 90s hair metal – and a somewhat melodic take on the Seattle sound – the Newcastle-based band impressed with a strong set of some truly great material. The rocky but emotive Dead Flowers was a prime example.
Next up, the awesome Falling Red. Celebrating the wrap of their first video/single shoot for the anthemic Out Of Control – a song they will exclusively debut at their upcoming September 18 show at Carlisle’s Brickyard – this band demanded attention with their ‘balls to the wall’ attitude and a sound to match.
The boys once again kicked Newcastle’s ass, storming their way through tracks taken from their debut album Shake The Faith. Always powerful, dynamic and great fun to watch and to hear, Falling Red are on their way to being one of the biggest, hottest bands on the U.K scene today.
Shake The Faith is a huge, sleaze packed glam fest that rocks from beginning to end. No filler here kids: play it loud, get down with the rock or f**k off is the message.
The sleazefest continued and the D cups runneth over when Californian glam four piece Dirty Penny clicked their cowboy boots onto Trillians’ stage. Touring the UK with their second album Young And Reckless, the US wannabes are unleashing their slutty brand of glam onto a new generation of backcombed, big haired rockers.
Sounding like Faster Pussycat, Motley Crue, Junkyard and Dangerous Toys, Dirty Penny evoke the sound of the Sunset Strip and resemble those dirty sleazy rocker boys of the Headbangers Ball era.
Young And Reckless is a blend of incredibly catchy, hooky all-out sleaze metal. Vocalist Binge introduces us to the vengeful Vendetta, which laments the tale of a psycho stripper turned stunt driver when she attempted to take the boys out of the game on the road to Arizona.
If I Were You I’d Hate Me Too is a challenge to all the jealous haters and is the perfect showcase for the boys on stage rock n’ roll ego and swagger. Scream Shout is a biography of child rebellion, giving the finger to dad: every ‘Shout’ has the crowd punching the air at the boys’ command.
Pedal to the metal and going to go that extra mile, Dirty Penny shoved their brand of rock down the audience’s throat and made no apologies for it. Closing the show with an invitation to Falling Red top join them for a big party, Dirty Penny chose the Beastie Boys’ Fight For Your Right (To Party) as their parting shot, and got the crowd chanting along with the ‘stand up and raise your fist to mom and dad’ battle cry.
Dirty Penny and Falling Red left me feeling like I just got back from the best Cathouse in town…. and had one of the best nights of glam and sleaze that I ever found.
Viki Ridley