Manchester 6-1 London

From a 1980 City Fun fanzine, kindly supplied as always by Mike Noon. Here, the reviewer Mat Snow rates The Distractions somewhat more than the support group, The Members, who oddly appear to have played second...

M/C 6 LONDON 1

The Distractions, The Members, M/Cr Poly, 3.5.80

Before, death warmed up; after, a million dollars.  I'm probably preaching to the converted, but the Distractions must be one of the world's best, say, dozen pop groups.  If you don't have the Irresistible Urge to shake a leg when they are on stage, you're either stone-deaf or in urgent need of the Samaritans.  Electrifyingly strong, compulsive songs are dynamically performed.  The next single in Eden Kane's oldie "Boys Cry", but the set is packed with chart contenders.  My fave is the hurtling, ricocheting "Sick and Tired", but to each his own.  In an earlier age they would have already appears on the Ed Sullivan Show and achieved world-wide fame overnight, but, given the breaks, they might achieve this anyway.

After the Distractions, the Members were at a bit of a disadvantage.  The audience was drained, and the Members only occasionally reinvigorated it. The trouble is that the most of their songs are rather dreary, although hectically performed by Nicky Tesco and his pals.  A lot of it sounds like a second-rate early Clash clone playing third-rate white reggae.  Only a few numbers hit home - "Gang Wars", "Police Car", Off-shore Banking Business" and "Sound of the Suburbs" were pretty rousing.  Others, like "At the Chelsea Night Club", were stilted and very uninspired.  In the end, feeling ill and bored, I left before the encore, and I probably didn't miss much.  If it had been a Battle of the Bands, the home side won, about 6-1.

Mat Snow