LIVE

Rip It Up, Issue 48, 1 July 1981, Page 16

LIVE

Simon Grigg

Flowers Mainstreet.Julyl These Ockers are onto something. Time was when , people in these parts knew or ; cared little about what was,happening across • the ditch. But Oz rock, like our homegrown product, has had a renaissance in recent years, and the exchange -of > talent between the two countries has been healthy. .Cold Chisel had packed Mainstreet two nights running the week before,. and Flowers just about managed the same at their ’ one-night Auckland stand, part of -a quick quartet of NZ gigs. • i

Iva Davies is a neat little showman, his coldly delicate features almost Numanesque, but with far more expression, especially when wringing every ounce of anguish from 'lcehouse'. He also did one of the best Lennon salutes I've seen, a tortured, majestic rendition of 'Cold Turkey'.

Mainstreet turned into a sauna as Flowers tore through 'Fatman', 'Sister' and 'Walls', hit an early peak with 'Can't

Help Myself', and encored with 'We Can Get Together'. Heavy synthesised pop is in danger of being done to death, but Flowers steer clear of the pitfalls, and have better songs than most of their peers. Duncan Campbell Neighbours Windsor Castle, July 4 You've got the wiry Sam Ford on guitar and vocals, Trudy Green on vocals, Rick Bryant on vocals and saxophone, Andrew Clouston (ex-Rodents) on saxophone, Ken James on guitar, on bass Poss Cameron, and Paul Kunac on drums. The Windsor, though not packed to the hilt, is blessed with a somewhat serious, but attentive crowd. The first set, for the most part, is confined to a selection of rocky/calypso tunes written by Sam and Rick, plus covers 'King Creole' and 'Cry Tuff'. It is extremely loud. We're looking at some of the best musicians around town, they could play anything well, but for a start, it lacks kick. The excitement only emerges in the second bracket, where there are some great moments. Sam Ford calls a break, announcing the Neighbours will return to kick the shit out of it. Certainly, there is an improvement, despite sound problems. Trudy Green, when she takes the main spot gives the words what she's got, and inevitably gives the band a colour, and verve, as she sashays round the stage, tambourine in hand. One of the night's highlights is 'Jump Back Baby', where Ken

James plays sax in favour of his guitar. And Rick Bryant's just got rhythm coming out of his pores. When he takes the mike in hand he's a classic showman. The Neighbours warmed up, and became less rigid in their choice of material as the evening progressed Otis Redding, a Motown medley, and finally their forthcoming single 'Love is Never Cruel'. The band's been together about two months. They're good, but somehow they still seem to be searching for the right combination. Ann Louise Martin Herbs ' \ Gliiepot, June 25 Unless it's reasonably full, I don't regard the Gluepot as the ideal venue to see any band, let alone one fighting against 1 a lousy PA as Herbs had on this particular Wednesday night. This problem tended to compound all the band's shortcomings. They couldn't get enough volume (and reggae should be very loud) and the overall fuzzy effect that occurred when more , than one person sang made them a little cocktailish in the early part of the evening. But in spite of the problems, they still managed to pull it off. ; ’ n ' .The band has improved vastly in the last few months with new bass player Phil Toms, and a fast-improving drummer, Fred Faleauto, providing one of the . tightest rhythm sections. I've seen recehtIyJ^BHBIBpBHBBSWS The material is about» two thirds non-original, ranging from a dull Heptones' styled 'I Shall Be Released' to an inspiring '96 degrees in the Shade'. But it's the originals that really / stand out, with a flavour that's; one step beyond pure IJAj reggae, with an obvious indigenous feel. It's a pity they don't play more of their own material as they seem to put a lot more into that than they do some of the covers3HHßK|^H Given time, and a decent sound system, Herbs could ‘ develop into something special, but they should make the decision right now whether to play more of their own songs, or to continue to do covers.