All roads led to The Albert on Sunday afternoon for a sold out matinee show from Johny Brown’s evergreen Band Of Holy Joy, supported by local friends Asbo Derek.
Following a brief introduction by frontman Johny Brown, the band struck up and Johny took us on a tour of the South Coast and declared ‘The Devil Has A Hold On The Land’ speaking/singing and dancing when keyboard player Peter Smith took a solo. Forceful and compellingly delivered, the band locked in as Johny shouted “come on!” before the final verse built to a crescendo.
Johny reminded us that “the French know how to deal with political devils” before ‘French Riots’, the lead single from this year’s ‘Scorched Jerusalem’ album. With Conor Fensom’s solid, funky bass opening, Johny’s tremulous voice, still retaining that North East accent, soared as the crowd sang with him on the chorus.
‘Dot’ was dedicated to the New Cross buddies, which was met with a big cheer by those that made the journey south. The song had a motorik sound, with repeated bass lines, as the guitar played over the top and keys stabbed out the rhythm. Johny delivered a passionate vocal shouting out the title repeatedly as the song closed.
A quick thank you to Asbo Derek for their support set was followed by a shout of “let’s get out on the road” for ‘Route To Love’ which took a tour of “Heaven, Hell or Hartlepool” backed by a walking bass line and frenzied drums to finish.
A fairground organ melody on the keys was joined by James Stephen Finn’s short sharp guitar chords to introduce ‘Who Snatched The Baby’. This was sung with heartfelt desperation but musically it was a playful song for such a tragic title. Johny then detailed how he “survived the first COVID lockdown with the help of magic mushrooms” before delivering a brooding ‘A Citadel Of Crooked Soul’, a wonky guitar solo played as the sound built with drums kicking it up a beat for a scorching finale.
A gentle intro from keys and slowly strummed guitar soon erupted with Johny shouting out and dancing to the drummer’s 4/4 stomp, which pointed to Johny’s love of soul music. The band really stepped up as the singer gave his all, hand clutched to his heart, wringing out every syllable of every word, beseeching the crowd to “come on” as he sang “I’m gonna try”, finally dropping to his knees at the end, repeating the song’s title “Capture My Soul”.
‘Born To Sin’, the second song taken from the new album, began with a menacing heavy repeated guitar riff with a retro space age keyboard sound, as Johny delivered his sermon. The band left the stage to huge cheers and soon returned for an encore of 1987’s ‘Fishwives’. Johny, with hands in pockets, stood looking out and soaking up the appreciative crowd, declaring “I love you”. Mid-song he told the band to take it down as he delivered a monologue on reminiscences of wandering into a protest and trying to save a relationship, which turned into an homage to true love. Suddenly with a “1234”, the band kicked back in for a spaghetti western-flavoured big guitar finish.
It’s rare to see a gig delivered with such intensity and passion and this was a powerful example of a band and its fans coming together as one.
Brighton’s Asbo Derek kicked off the afternoon, a little after the scheduled time due to stand-in drummer Arvin Johnson arriving late, but as singer Jem Price proclaimed “well he is the greatest drummer in the world”.
They began with “one of the hits“, ‘Bryan Ferry’s Ball Bag’, which involved a Vanessa Feltz workout video and faulty sports goods. A spot of fascist-baiting came before ‘Nails’, a hard-hitting take on the Essex container lorry deaths a few years ago. A nod to The Fall aside, this was a respectful commentary on a horrific event.
There was the chance to enter a dance competition during ‘Power Mincer’. Newly promoted, unpaid apprentice Mark Erickson’s squelchy bass effects and a solid backbeat from Johnson set the groove for the participants and the prize was duly awarded. An old favourite, ‘Can I Get A Latte’, written as a response to the “grammatical incorrectitudes” of people saying “Can I get a …”. The song’s appropriate reply to every request was “No you can’t, you don’t work here!”, with Darcy Dench rocking out on guitar.
‘Mark E Vangelist’ was based on a true story about an interaction with a crestfallen fan of The Fall who was duped over a festival ticket by Mark E Smith, which was delivered with a suitably angular guitar. ‘Darcy’s Car’ saw Jem encourage crowd swaying on the slowest and most tender song of the set, while Mark’s Psycho Killer-sounding bass intro stayed throughout ‘Carnivore Collective’, while Jem decried the similarly-named Brighton festival band, as the speed and the singer’s vitriol increased.
Other topics covered included haircut dilemmas, getting overexcited about office furniture and the set ended with a song constructed from the lost property list of Brighton’s Buddhist Centre. A crowdpleasing performance and a great way to start the afternoon’s entertainment.
The Prince Albert, Sunday 26th October 2025.
