MEKONS
Le Public Space, Newport
Tue 2 Apr
The Mekons sit somewhere between cult and classic. Formed in Leeds in 1977, the band of seven misfits have continued to make genre-breaking records for over 40 years. Once upon a time they were supposed to be a punk band: they could barely play an instrument and, true to form, were art school students who needed to find more ways to express their artistic urges. Luckily, they haven’t stopped trying since then and this lineup, in place since the mid-1980s, shows no signs of settling down.
Deserted, released just in time for this tour, is the Mekons’ latest offering and their first in eight years. The time off has done nothing to dull the band’s fervour; nor did making an album in the area musically synonymous with U2’s 80s behemoth album, Joshua Tree in California. Unlike the old Irish rockers, Mekons actually recorded the album in the bleak American National Park and you can hear their futile, but brilliantly rewarding, attempts to fill the landscape on this new album.
Roots and Americana sounds sit easily alongside their punkier offerings and the whole album grooves restlessly as the band’s many singers and varied instruments get cooked-up in a campfire stew of story and sound. If you’re lucky enough to find a ticket – buy it, quick.
Tickets: £8 (sold out – check social media for returns). Info 01633 221477 / lepublicspace.co.uk
