The Damned with Agent Orange, The Courettes

People have been arguing about punk rock since the big bang that created that high decibel universe. The Damned were at the heart of that revolution and have returned like resurrected vampires to take back the(ir) punk rock crown. Few bands have managed to maintain their manic muse, few bands have been key catalysts to a musical genre, few bands have managed to improve like fine old wines and few have managed to do it with such fantastic chaos, captivating style and shape shifting music as The Damned. Their mix of theatrics and raw power combine to create their vaudeville immaculate and gothic horror shivers, dark music hall anthems and a perfect punk rock. In the rules of rock ’n’ roll most bands fade away but then the Damned were never playing by the rules. One of the originals who sparked the punk rock riot doesn’t mean they had to stay there. Their trip has been long and thrillingly strange and ‘Darkadelic’ is a late period triumph that entwines their core obsessions of garage/psyche/punk rock old black and white Universal horror film soundtracks and even moments of sweet jazz which they sieve with a brooding and enthralling melody. This is a tasteful aural experience with exquisite guitar playing delivered with a breath taking virtuosity but never loses its inventive punk rock edge. It feels they have been waiting for decades to deal this hand that sees them surpass their early 80s classics such as Machine Gun Etiquette, Black Album and Strawberries whilst nodding at what was loved on all those classic albums. From their 1976 formation to the new album this has been a wild creative trip. Playing by their own rules, The Damned were the first punk band to release a single in Nov 1976, the first punk band to release an album and six months later they were the first punk band to release a second album, they were the first punk band to tour America and then the first punk band to split up. They did this all by the autumn of 1977 before most people had cut…