The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Nottingham Rock City, 3rd Feb 2003.
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Nottingham Rock City, 2003.
We are really lucky, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion have
toured the UK three times in the last ten months. If you haven’t had the chance
to see them, what’s your excuse? There have been plenty of time to make travel
arrangements.
Well, as you’ll have read here on Drowned In Sound, The JSBX are on top form,
their last two reviewed gigs going down a storm. However, by the time the Blues
Explosion hit Nottingham, you quickly realise things have changed. Gone is the
two hour set, replaced by something more linear and straight to the point. Gone
was the finely toned stagetalk, replaced by something seemingly a bit more
organic, such as “Jon Spencer Offers His Thoughts On The Prospect Of War With Iraq”/
Despite arriving in Nottingham direct from China, the Blues
Explosion didn’t show signs of jetlag, what we did get was a set taking in a
lot of older tracks such as the fantastic ‘Wail’, and ‘Bellbottoms’ and most
surprisingly of all, during an absolutely blinding ‘Sweat’ we had an abrupt launch
into ‘Yer Blues’, The Beatles classic.
You would assume, after so many frequent visits to these
shores, the Blues Explosion must be taking a break soon. With gigs as
consistently great as tonight’s, it will be truly deserved.
