SATURDAY

Rip It Up, Issue 55, 1 February 1982, Page 2

SATURDAY

Freudian Slips opened on Saturday. Being an all-girl feminist band sounds like a problem. It is. Hecklers with their hands in their pockets gave them a hard time, but they gave it back. It all got very heated, and the Slips' music suffered. They have several promising reggae-based originals, but their version of Then He Kissed Me', lyrically altered to 'Then He Hit Me', was the worst thing heard in the whole four days. Forget the politics, get on with your sport. Clive Wilson was backed by a strong band that included some ex-Furys. It was rock and roll, punchy, straight-forward festival fare. Their major drawback was Clive trying to be Joe Cocker. Legs For Fish? Their sole qualification for playing the main stage must have been knowing the right people. Mark Phillips The Valentinos sounded better from the river, down among the mudfights. Their gloomy, twonote songs seemed so out of place in brilliant sunshine. They're fine enough to jump around to in a pub, but outdoors they only made me feel hotter and stickier than I already was. Spaces injected more personality into the proceedings, in the form of singer Warren Hyde, a little Scotsman who demands

attention. What he needs is more songs that can take , advantage of his voice and antics. He's at his best with 'Disadvantage', which is Spaces' most untypical song. Blind Date were happy, extroverted [and I tuneful Very orthodox, but pleasant. Braving the heat and dust out front was becoming a chore, and still nothing really on stage to take i the | mind off it. Duncan Campbell Feed the face, recharge the brain, and into the dust bowl for faf little pop music. In the! last year, Screaming Meemees;have shot to national fame. For once they didn't mess up a major gig. Peter has become a red-hot bass j ist, injecting balls into songs that were lacking six months ago. 'See Me ' Go' had the crowd "singing. Back from Australia, minus Andrew Snoid, Pop Mechanix were.the band everyone wanted to see. They didn't disappoint. Both" Paul Scott and Chris Moore looked spot-on, and the band, worked like their life depended on it. A few of the old favourites were absent, but several new; pieces made worthwhile replacementshmß^BHßSHßAfll Mark Phillips ' Penknife Glides finally made it worth' being there. My, but they were good. Their sound has

fattened out since they've been working with Paul Crowther, and they were brimming with confidence. Their extended dub of Taking The Weight Off' left everyone quite zonked. Jules even managed to get away with wearing one of the vilest pairs of trousers at the festival. Sadly, it was Stefan's penultimate gig. Let's hope the Glides can find a drummer even half as skilled." Pink Flamingos had spent a week rehearsing for this appear-

ance, and it was just as well. Sheer professionalism carried them through, with the piano inaudible for half the set, the bass amp packing up, and the vocal mikes feeding back. Things came right for 'Dying In Public' and 'Lonesome Road Star', they encored with 'Virginia', and left with all things just about equal. Mental As Anything are a lovely buncha yobs, who made people smile and laugh with some grade-A chunderama. Grinning, greasy rockabilly with

flashes of those great second-rate surfie bands. Greedy Smith, rock's own Norman Gunston, was adored by one and all. They made people forget their discomfort, and everyone wanted them back. How a band as orthodox as Cold Chisel can be so successful is beyond me. I suppose if all else fails, hard old-fashioned boogie is sure to work. The people's choice, as they were last year.

Blam Blam Blam deserved better. Their set was cut short because Chisel went on too long, and the guitar never quite worked properly. Still, they managed half a dozen songs, and Don's vocals on 'Marsha' were just beautiful. Angry, funny, radical, challenging music. The essential bare essentials.

The Knobz had the same problems as the Blams, too little time to work with, and no time to check that their gear was working properly. They sounded too close to Flight X 7 for comfort, but they say they'll do better as they tour the country. They promise big things at Mainstreet, so let's give them another shot. Duncan Campbell