You can call him cantankerous, hard-nosed, fucking awkward and self-opinionated, but say what you like about John Lydon, he doesn’t care..... he’s got a message to get across to anyone that is willing to listen and he couldn’t give a rat’s twat whose feathers he ruffles along the way.
Public Image Ltd (P.I.L.) rose from the ashes of Sex Pistols in 1978, fronted by John Lydon, the original line-up included Keith Levine on guitar, Jah Wobble on bass and Jim Walker on drums.
During their first innings (1978 - 1992), they released an impressive eight studio albums including 'Public Image: First Issue' which merged dub, noise, progressive rock and disco before sliding into a more avant-garde arena with their sophomore offering 'Metal Box' which is often regarded as one of the most important albums of the post-punk era.
In 1993, Lydon took time out from P.I.L. to focus on his memoirs, and in 1996, he regrouped with Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and Paul Cook for the Sex Pistols' Filthy Lucre Tour. After a solo studio album, 'Psycho's Path', in 1997, 1999 saw the release of the 4-disc PiL compilation Plastic Box which offered a more comprehensive retrospective of PiL's recorded output than the single-disc 'The Greatest Hits, So Far'.
In September 2009, it was announced that PiL would reform for five UK shows, their first live appearance in 17 years. Lydon had financed the reunion using money he earned doing a UK TV commercial for 'Country Life' butter (you couldn't put a better bit of butter on your knife), a wise move as they are still around to this very day!
With a slew of past members, it was the current line-up of John Lydon, Bruce Smith on drums, Lu Edmonds on guitar and Scott Firth on bass who took P.I.L. on the road for a September jaunt around the UK before heading to Europe for the entirety of October. Hard working? you betcha bottom dollar they are!
Their Torquay show was the penultimate date of the UK tour and saw The Foundry venue positively heaving with a mixture of 'back in the day punk rockers', freaks and misfits as the support act, Dublin’s Meryl Streek (Politically outspoken avant-garde punk) took to the stage to warm the healthy audience that had decided to arrive early to get a good spot for the main act.
It was clear from the get go that Meryl (probably not his real name) has some issues with the state of the country, Europe and maybe even the world as he paced the stage, spewing his agitated and vitriolic poetry into the microphone whilst the hard hitting, ear-splitting industrial electro backing tore through the venue's sound system. To say that I won't be spinning a large percentage of his material on my radio show isn't a lie, I would love to play something by him as I feel my audience would really enjoy it but as every track tonight was littered with a healthy dose of 'effs and jeffs', I don't think that the FM people who monitor the radio waves would be very happy with me! Regardless, his set was energetic, exciting and thought-provoking and culminated in him spending time on the other side of the barrier as he carolled the room into action whilst marching about in a rather threatening manner (I bet he's a lovely chap really).
After a tidy up on stage, the scene was set for P.I.L. to take the lead and run the room through their set which was to last a good 90 minutes and span their entire career.
As the band took to the stage, the audience reaction was immense and after a brief interaction with the room and a rather tongue in cheek "So, this is Torquay", they launched into the show opener 'Penge' which happens to be the opening number from their 2023 album 'End of World'. The bass and drums shook the foundations of the venue and sitting just three feet away from the action for the first three songs (I was on photo duties), I could feel the force from the P.A. which sounded tight and perfectly balanced for the show.
'Albatross' was a sonic delight, clocking in at over 9 minutes, it allowed me to spread my wings (no pun intended) and make sure that I was able to capture John in action onstage with his arms outstretched, mimicking the albatross that the song was aimed at.
'Flowers of Romance' conjured an almost tribal feel with its motorik, relentless and droning industrial beat which pounded the chests of the first three rows and an unholy guitar squealed and squawked like an exorcised spirit whilst 'The Body' allowed the guitar to take the spotlight with a tremendous display which showed the range of musicianship from Lu Edmonds who has truly earned his place on the payroll since the mid 80's to date.
The band exited the stage for a short break and returned a few minutes later to perform 'Public Image' which went down a storm and sets the scene for the first of three encore tracks. 'Open Up' came next, originally with an electronic backing courtesy of Leftfield, but this time performed with live instrumentation courtesy of the band alongside a pared-down synth backing track, this turned the post-punk leanings of the show into five minutes of club-themed hedonism for any fan of dance music who'll recall the track which featured on many world famous DJ's playlists for years.
A P.I.L. gig wouldn't be complete without 'Rise' and it was this track that was kept back until the end of their set to leave the audience assisting John with the 'Anger is an Energy' vocal sections before the final notes rang out around the venue bringing it all to a climactic crescendo. John’s unconventional vocal style is an acquired taste for some, but his performance was never in doubt tonight; he still commands the stage with all the swagger and attitude of his younger self.
With a packed house, it was clear that there is still a hunger from the gig-goers who want to see John perform with his band, I don't think this will ever change and as long as he's able to stand up and deliver his art, he'll always have his core audience who will lap up every single second.
Review by Steve Muscutt & Joe Taylor
Photography by Steve Muscutt
