I didn’t know how old Mercury was until last week when they celebrated their 9th birthday with the ever-entertaining Taxi Violence as well as Pretty Blue Guns and Junkyard Parade.
Junkyard Parade were up first. I hadn’t seen or heard of them before so didn’t know what to expect and admit the first few tracks didn’t leave much of an impression, but I liked the 2 tracks before the last song…
I’d been meaning to see Pretty Blue Guns for a while; the only track of theirs I’d previously heard was the title track of their current album Shed Your Skin, which is really cool. I enjoyed watching them and hearing their other material, though I did catch myself thinking their set was pretty long at one point…still, I’d definitely see them again.
One of the great things about going to a Taxi Violence gig is it’s guaranteed to be loads of fun, a certainty not true for many bands. This was the first time in a long while I’d seen them without the nutty antics of Bingo which was actually a bit refreshing.
Vocalist George van der Spuy gave a shoutout to the venue congratulating them on their 9 years and their importance to the music scene and upcoming bands in Cape Town, also mentioning that they were the scene of Taxi Violence’s first gig once upon a time.
There was another birthday being celebrated that night – a 21st that saw a distressing number of overdressed and obnoxious people swaying drunkenly on the dancefloor. There was also a small group running around wearing glowsticks, but whether or not they were part of the 21st I don’t know, either way the crowd present for Taxi Violence was one of the more intense I’ve experienced lately…
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Check out Mercury’s gig guide & Facebook page
Taxi Violence | Pretty Blue Guns | Junkyard Parade
