The Lemon Grove or Lemmy as we like to call it is looking pretty full even with the extra space of the second room with Beatz & Bobz regulars in residence. The audience is a little older than your average University gig and have come from all over Devon and Cornwall for tonight is Dreadzones furthest foray South West.
The support band are DibDub sound system with some extra accompaniment and they warm up the crowd well for the main event. At the allotted time, the crowd are buoyant with anticipation as a chair is put before one of the microphones.
To a huge cheer Dreadzone take to the stage, a full band with Leo Williams on bass, Dread founder Greg on drums, Steve Roberts on guitar, Ben Belafonic on decks and Earl 16 and a hobbling MC Spee on crutches, who makes his way painfully to the chair to sit. The shaven headed one has done his knee in and cant give us his trademark dancing but delivers a brilliant vocal performance and using his arms, head and body tries to give us as much rude boy bounce as he can.
In fact he does an impressive job of lifting the crowd, who are wreathed in various pungent aromas and working up a sweat, some are stripped to the waist and there are a lot of dreads flying about. Earl 16 adds vocal depth to the performance and its terrific. Everyone is dancing, everyone, the sound is tight the bass is fat and even the mixing desk techs are dancing and theres a girl on behind them swinging light poi.
Its sexy and we all bounce to the groove and from the new album were treated to First Steps, Once Upon A Time (In Jamaica), Iron Shirt plus such Dread classics as Return of the Dread, Digital Mastermind and Little Britain and many more finely blended dub-reggae combinations. Wow, what a terrific live band and what a terrific audience. Spee tells us its one of the best nights theyve done and I certainly have to agree a riotous romp through their new album and their old stuff.
Three nights earlier Id seen Bloc Party in the sterile environment of Exeters Great Hall and thought they were good but the crowd had disappointed me, Id lamented for the old days of heat sweaty gigs and lo here were Dreadzone in full sweat drenched effect. Not only would they musically blow Bloc Party out of the water but the production was better and the band were enthused with enjoying themselves and delivering a great live performance with Gregs drums, Simons guitar and Leos bass adding to the two vocalists and DJ samples.
The crowd and relaxed atmosphere certainly helped and even those normally too timid to dance were grooving to the infectious tunes. I defy anyone to stand stock still throughout a Dreadzone show. A brilliant and memorable performance ended excellently with us yelling for more with adoration before being able to spill into the other room for more Breakbeat from the Beatz and Bobz DJs and a cooling pint or two til the small hours. Dreadzone are one of the best bands on the live scene at the moment.
FUTURE GIGS
- date performer venue price
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Sat 9 Nov 2024
Dreadzone
Leeds
Brudenell Social Club
[LS6 1NY] £25.00
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Fri 15 Nov 2024
Dreadzone
Kidderminster
Dakota Lounge
[DY10 1BB] £25.00
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Sat 16 Nov 2024
Dreadzone
York
The Crescent Working Mens Club
[YO24 1AW] £25.00
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Fri 22 Nov 2024
Dreadzone
Bristol
The Fleece
[BS1 6JJ] £26.00
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Sat 23 Nov 2024
Dreadzone
Tenby
De Valence Pavilion
[SA70 7JD] £25.00
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Fri 29 Nov 2024
Dreadzone
Frome
Cheese and Grain
[BA11 1BE] £25.00
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Fri 6 Dec 2024
Dreadzone
Nottingham
Metronome
[NG1 1AP] £25.00
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Sat 7 Dec 2024
Dreadzone
Birmingham
The Hare and Hounds
[B14 7JZ] £27.50
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Sat 14 Dec 2024
Dreadzone
Portsmouth
The Wedgewood Rooms
[PO4 0JW] £25.00
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Fri 7 Feb 2025
Dreadzone
Guildford
The Boileroom
[GU1 4LS] £25.00
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Fri 14 Feb 2025
Dreadzone
Newcastle upon Tyne
The Cluny & The Cluny 2
[NE1 2PQ] £25.00
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Sat 15 Feb 2025
Dreadzone
Wolverhampton
Newhampton Arts Centre
[WV1 4AN] £25.00
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Fri 21 Feb 2025
Dreadzone
Worthing
The Factory Live
[BN14 8BX] £25.00
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Sat 22 Feb 2025
Dreadzone
Tunbridge Wells
Forum
[TN4 8YU] £25.00
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Fri 7 Mar 2025
Dreadzone
Bournemouth
Old Fire Station
[BH8 8AD] £25.00
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Fri 7 Mar 2025
Dreadzone
Bournemouth
Old Fire Station
[BH8 8AD] £25.00
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Fri 14 Mar 2025
Dreadzone
Oxford
Bullingdon Arms
[OX4 1UE] £25.00
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Fri 21 Mar 2025
Dreadzone
Holmfirth
The Picturedrome
[HD9 7DA] £25.00
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Sat 22 Mar 2025
Dreadzone
Worcester
The Marrs Bar
[WR1 1TA] £26.00
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Sat 29 Mar 2025
Dreadzone
Southend-on-Sea
Chinnery's
[SS1 2EJ] £25.00
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