Social Distortion are the epitome of American punk rock, having honed their craft over the decades. A revolving door of talent, the bands line up has consistently changed throughout the years with only one constant member. Their live shows have a large back catalogue of seven full length studio albums to draw from including their latest release ‘Hard Times And Nursery Rhymes’ that was released early last year. So this was very much a tour for the fans. A best of, if you will.
First off their frontman, Mike Ness, the only remaining original member of the band, takes to the stage and makes it his own, controlling the crowd from first picking up his guitar. The crowd was incredibly diverse in many ways but was notably made up of older fans, fans still wearing their office clothes with their sleeves rolled up to show off their tattoos, a multitude of fans from the Irish punk scene extending over every decade of the genre from the last sixty years.
And these fans were truly here for the music, as was evident in their reaction to hits such as Sick Boy and the “most punk songs” Ness has ever written in Bakersfield and Just Give Me The Sweet. Nothing garnered such a reaction from the crowd as fan favourite Story of My Life, with fans screaming and dancing, swaying with Ness’s every move and bringing together an atmosphere rarely felt at a live show, a comradery among people of every age that this, this was how music should be played, this is how people should be entertained.
There’s something about a small gig in The Academy, it isn’t always present but it was there that night, a band had entertained and sent their audience out into the streets screaming their lyrics. It was the sort of show that would impress someone who had never given Social Distortion a chance and more than appeased the die hard fans.
Social Distortion Photo Gallery
Photos: Aled Owen-Thomas
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