“Government Cancer/You’re all talking bollocks/Whilst you feast on lobster and scallops/People dying in the street/Whilst you screw up on repeat on repeat on repeat,” Noah belts down the microphone. Amen, brother.
These young upstarts and their punk rock with a protest message. Who do they think they are?
The fucking future that’s who! More shouting about things that matter and less sitting around on laurels talking about Spotify streams and Instagram likes. These punks want to slap you metaphorically into the middle of 2024 and say “Vote these cunts out!” I’m paraphrasing. Sort of.
Such is the speed and ferocity of their performance it’s a case of blink and you’ll miss it kind of stuff with ‘Crash Landing’ and ‘Just Kids’ giving an aural bash around the bonce. Noah and the Loners are only just beginning to scratch the surface of what is possible. Two of the best opening singles from any band you can name in ‘Teenage Tragedy’ and ‘Protest Anger’ (Single of the Year 2023) and we hear the next single, due next month, possibly, ‘Hell Of A Day’ about the day Noah went to see Spurs get beaten and the ongoing dreadfulness of the following few hours. I feel your pain, man.
For the uninitiated, Noah is a trans man, so we can only imagine the difficulties is has had to battle through, which are illustrated in the barnstorming but poignant ‘Losing My Head’.
Without losing any of the intensity, mid-set they dial it down in speed and tempo with ‘Gravity’ and ‘Vessels’ both adding a My Bloody Valentine loud shoegaze feel.
Despite their penchant for fast, ear-splitting rock, this is organised chaos. They are tight and drilled. Amber Welsh on bass is in the company of a long line of kick-ass female bassists and musicians currently, every band on the bill has a woman on bass. Joseph Boyle on lead guitar is a virtuoso, coming from the BIMM school along with Noah Riley on drums, who seems to be channelling Josh Freeze and Tré Cool into a hybrid sticks behemoth.
This is the penultimate date on the Music Venue Trust Tour sponsored by The National Lottery which includes jaunts by the likes of Opus Kink, Vlure, Hamish Hawk, Witch Fever and Lily Moore. Head of MVT, Mark Davyd had the band at the mixer they hosted at Focus Wales in May and he is a huge advocate and fan of the band. The initiative and general work MVT do is vital to keep venues like The Star and hundreds of others across the UK surviving and thriving.
The future is looking bright for Noah and the Loners; signed to Marshall Records, the backing is there, the support is there, and they have the energy, charisma and verve to keep the momentum going and maybe make people listen and elicit change. More power to these beautiful punks.
Keep your ear to the ground. Hear that rumble. Hear that roar. That’s Noah and the Loners kicking down the mother fucking door.