By Scott Hays
Sunderland’s punk scene is alive and well. Where else can you go on a Tuesday evening to find a pub packed to the rafters to see a pair of Italian punk bands on tour prior to their performances at Blackpool’s Rebellion Punk festival.
Daelirium delivered one of the performances of the year. Angry, raw and real. Elements of early 1990s hardcore. A more angry in your face version of the Offspring. The female vocal delivery of Giulia adds adds a certain raw melodic tone to the jagged hook filled wall of riffs coming from the stage. The bulk of the set is sung in Italian. I don’t have a clue what the words are that being sung with venom from the stage, it does not matter such is the universal language of Punk. Should I get the opportunity to I will go out of my way to see this band again.
Il Compresso hit the stage and from the start of their set it was clear that this gig means alot to them having played the Museum Vaults previously. Chaotic, energetic and intense. Dario the vocalist strips off to a vintage Sunderland football shirt to the approval of the capacity crowd. At multiple points in the set Dario is hoisted into the air by the crowd, I find myself underneath a sweat drenched bald Italian man holding him in the air, feet firmly planted on the ceiling as he continues his vocal onslaught. Powerful raw guitars, pounding drums and a bass being hit within an inch of its life. This is Punk at its finest. The spirit of rebellion, the DIY attitude and political outrage Are there for all to see.
