www.needleinthegroove.co.uk: BillyBio at Rebellion Manchester, 29.1.19

Thursday 31 January 2019

BillyBio at Rebellion Manchester, 29.1.19 - Live Review

BillyBio – Rebellion Club – Manchester – 29-01-19

Billy Bio received 9/10 for his album ‘Feed The Fire’ which I reviewed back in November and rightly so. You can read the review here. An album of stunning quality which deserves all the acclaim it will get.

Tonight, in what used to be a pub many moons ago, the small yet massively unique Rebellion Club in Manchester once again hosts a quartet of bands with massive potential.

Firstly, OMV. A heavy punk rock/hardcore unit with bags of charisma on stage. Only Richie, the lead singer and founder of the Merseyside band has his face on show. The rest choose to stay concealed behind masks. Pretty cool. As for the music, this is a pure onslaught of angry hardcore with awesome speed changes. There’s lots of Pantera and Slayer knocking around within these guys. Well worth catching live if you can. A great start.

Next up were Sonnet 13. Manchester based, although singer Bartek and drummer Lukasz I believe are Dutch(?) These were very D.R.I/Mucky Pup to me. They had that late 80’s thrash punk shout to Bartek’s voice. This is my kind of era and the guys pulled off a worthy set.

Cutthroat LA earned my respect straight away by refusing to play until the crowd came forward. A great move I thought because it worked a treat. If any band could warm a crowd up nicely for BillyBio, it’s these guys. They got everyone involved from the start. Inciting mosh pits, getting fans on stage. Their interaction with their fans is nothing short of perfect. Using political issues to express their feelings, these guys really know how to deliver proper hardcore. Throw in some street rap/punk/thrash. These guys have it all.

And so to BillyBio. Words cannot describe what a stunning and powerful set this guy delivered tonight. Playing virtually everything from his latest ‘Feed the Fire’ album, we were also treated to some Biohazard classics in the form of ‘Shades Of Grey’, ‘How It Is’, ‘A Lot To Learn’, ‘Love Denied’ and ‘Punishment’. Throw in a cover of The Exploited’s ‘UK82’ and you have a set so powerful and true that the only bad thing about it was it went too fast.

Once again crowd interaction was a major part and everyone, indeed, played their part. What I find particularly impressive is that Billy wears a head mike which gives him so much more scope to move around and interact with the crowd.

Seeing such an iconic hardcore legend in such a small venue always gives me that shiver down my spine. Arenas are not for me. This is where music lives and breathes, in venues like The Rebellion club, with fantastic friendly people all looking out for each other. Long may it continue. And lets prey BillyBio returns soon.

Score – 10/10. All day long.

Reviewed by Sty

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ABOUT ME

I was brought up on my dad's record collection of rock 'n' roll greats. He was a Teddy Boy and had all the gear (and hair) - drain pipe trousers, jacket, crepe shoes. We listened to Elvis, Bill Hailey, Eddie Cochran, Johnny Kidd & The Pirates, Fats Domino, Tommy Steel, and the big names from the sixties such as Dave Clark Five, Wayne Fontana, Dave Dee (etc.,). This music was the kind that you would listen to to rebel against and annoy your parents; it was rough, wild, and the Ted's had a reputation.

So, fast forward to the end of the 70's. I was about 12 when it was the thing to choose your musical stance. It had to be a good choice as there was no going back. You had to be a mod, or a rocker back around 1980. I had a mate (still do, just the one mind) and he was an influence with regards to my musical tastes (and we still go gigging together to this day), and what with my dad's influence I chose the rocker route. I've never looked back. We (me and dad) both started a musical journey where our parents hated what we listened to! In fact, being a teenager in the mid 50s, it wasn't any different to being a teenager in the late 70's/early 80's with regards to rebellion. Although in my era, you couldnt get rickets.

I was fed strictly on a cassette diet of Deep Purple, Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake, Rush and Rainbow. From there it expanded into melodic rock and hair metal - Journey, Foreigner, Stryper, Ratt, Motley Crue, and Dokken. And Prog!

I absorbed all I could. I was a human sponge. The internet was eons away, so I got my fix via a wonderful weekly paper called 'Sounds.' It covered a lot of genres, but they specialised in Rock! I read it every week without fail for about three years. I loved the way their reporters wrote articles. It was like they were talking directly to me. It's how I try to do the same today. When it stopped, I moved with the crowd and subscribed to 'Kerrang!' A lot of the 'Sounds' crew moved across, and it felt like home. I wanted to know more about what was happening over in the U.S. So I subscribed to 'Hit Parader' - it was shite really, the articles weren't great, but the pictures were good. Plus I could follow the Dokken feud between Don and George. Thirty odd years later, they still hate each other! Today, its a diet of 'Classic Rock' Mag, sometimes 'Prog Mag', 'Fireworks' and 'Planet Rock' mag.

My enjoyment of this music has never waned. I see the same people time and again and its a great community. I try to get to as many gigs as I can still as its much better than sitting on your arse reviewing. I hope you enjoy the blog!

Paul Chesworth