Old gig reviews: Junkie XL W/ Stimulator and Pulkas, Nottingham Rock City, 16/5/98

[while I do remember parts of this night from over 20 years ago, the review intended for publication omits the fact that I abandoned my friend Matthew who couldn't get in, which was a dick move, and my mum was was waiting in her car outside afterwards after having been called by Matthew hours earlier when he had no idea how to get home. I was a dick]

Pulkas W/ Stimulator, Which oddly became Junkie XL W/ Stimulator and Pulkas!
Nottingham Rock City, 16/5/98

They fucked about for an hour while they were setting up, during which time I talked to a cool bloke called Glen, met Mark Clayden from Pitchshifter (top bloke!) and met a shitload of people I know, but it was worth the wait when Pulkas took to the stage. I'd bought the album that morning, having had the 'Control' demo for ages, and 'Organ Radio 1'. I really like Pulkas' music, but what are they like live?

Fukkin brilliant, that's what! They played an ultra intense set of their 'Neurosis if they ever started playing shorter songs' (” Lukas 1998!) type noise, climaxing with the gloriously pissed off 'Hippy Fascist' and the brutal noise war of 'Close To The Enemy'. MORE!!!!!!

T'was a perfect mosh, with just the right amount of violence so that everyone who was up at the front had fun.

I met up with another friend who got some Pulkas stuff signed while we chatted to singer Luke Lloyd (another top bloke, along with bass player Jules McBride). He put the change in billing down to "politics", and he's probably right.

Next were the actually-rather-good Stimulator. They mix punk up with some dance type beats and samples rather well, whilst wearing kilts! They had the courtesy to thank a nice young lady at the front who had neglected to wear a bra for "making it all worthwhile"! If they ever get a record deal they'll go far. Until then they'll just keep converting audiences.

I spent the next half hour wandering around aimlessly with a remarkably cheap Junkie XL t-shirt. during this time I saw a pierced nipple, various states of drunkenness (no, not me, unbelievable as that sounds!) and was introduced to about 2000 people by my friend Emma for no apparent reason!
Junkie XL and his band of merry men were in full flight when I got downstairs again. The Prodigy comparisons are evidently well founded and despite the fact I knew none of the songs I had a fukkin great time, dancing away like a mad bastard down at the front!

This continued for some time. Members of Pulkas were spotted in the mosh. Junkie XL left the stage to rapturous applause. They came back for an encore, and the whole place exploded into a frenzy of jumping around and waving arms, fuelled by the band's clearly insane DJ! Then there was a stage invasion, and 20 of us moshers took to the stage! What a fukkin night! I spent the remainder of the gig onstage with Junkie XL, with various mad bastards borrowing the mike (me included). And then it finished. It could have gone on forever.