The Londoners

I stopped in my tracks last night while walking down Spring Street for the Bowery Ballroom’s Live from London night. There is a Union Jack hanging outside the new Ben Sherman store. Has anybody thought of opening a Topshop in SoHo?

Live from London featured four bands from the U.K. capital that were making a pit stop in New York after performing at SXSW. It was my first time seeing Plan B, Boy Kill Boy, Towers of London and The Rakes but served as the perfect cure for my “I miss England” blues.

I only caught the end of the set by Plan B; with his guitar and rap lyrics, he reminded me of an English Everlast. Was it just me or did he keep referencing “Pakis” in his last song? If so, didn’t he learn anything from our president?

Boy Kill Boy, a four piece from Leytonstone, delivered a solid rock and roll performance. During the set, drummer Shaz Mahmood kept rolling his eyes behind his head, a la “The Exorcist.” It was a bit scary at times but what matters most is that he sounds fantastic behind the kit. Lead singer Chris Peck dedicated the third song, “On and On,” to the Towers of London’s Donnie Tourette.


Keyboardist Peter Carr played “Ivy Parker” for his piano teacher and said she was still looking over his shoulder. Although he was seated for the entire set, he still managed to rock out. The band played the first American single, "Civil Sin," toward the end of its performance and the crowd finally gave Boy Kill Boy the energetic response it deserved.

Setlist: Back Again, Killer, On and On, Suzie, Six Minutes, Ivy Parker, Civil Sin, On My Own.

I am a fan of the U.K. music scene but haven’t been able to get into the Towers of London, despite the band’s patriotic name. The guys were milling around in the audience between acts and stood out from the crowd with their Motley Crew outfits. When the Towers threw beer on the audience even before playing the first song, you knew you would need a shower right after the show.

The stage acts included guitarist The Rev taking gulps of his beer and spraying it across the audience. He also smoked several cigarettes during the show; at one point, a crew member in the audience held it for him during his solo. I guess that determines your rock star status.

Lead singer Donnie Tourette found an easy target in the audience--a pudgy guy with a digital camera--and sang to him while sitting at the edge of the stage; he eventually jumped down to the floor and was within kissing distance.


Dirk Tourette, the other guitarist, was gushing blood from his mouth but didn’t seem to realize it. Donnie and The Rev also climbed the large speakers on both sides of the stage and proceeded to hide behind the curtains.

When the headliners, The Rakes, took the stage, I wasn’t sure how to react. Despite their edgy lyrics ("I love you/I'm not even drunk yet/I've only had a few"), they appeared wholesome and clean cut, especially after following life altering performance by the Towers.

Lead singer Alan Donohoe performed his “white man” dance moves when he wasn’t hugging the microphone oh-so-tight. An Englishman kept requesting “22 Grand Job” during the entire set; at first, Donohoe mocked the drunk guy by slurring his own speech; he eventually told the audience that the group wasn’t a one hit wonder.


When the group finally played the song, the pit went into full effect, complete with a petite girl diving into the audience. Perhaps she took notes on stage diving at the Bowery from The Subways’ March 8 performance. While the Towers sprayed the audience with beer, people threw full glasses of beer at the stage and actually hit Donohoe during "Strasbourg," the final song of the night.

Setlist: Terror!, Retreat, We Are All Animals, Man With a Job, Work Work Work, The Guilt, T-Bone, All Too Human, Dark Clouds, Violent, Ausland Mission, 22 Grand Job. Encore: The World Was, Something Clicked, Strasbourg.