Dominion Theatre, London – 9 March 2025
Reviewed by Phil Brown
3***
Well, I didn’t see any Mohawk hairdos in the Dominion Theatre on Sunday evening, but many of what looked like a full house were sporting their allegiance to punk through such things as Never Mind the Bollocks T-shirts, dye jobs and/or studded leather. Considering we’re approaching the 50th anniversary of the punk era (it surfaced around 1976), first hand aficionados will be in their 60s now, so it was mildly surprising to see a substantial portion of an enthusiastic audience from a younger demographic. An encouraging sign for the future of this full throttle jukebox musical which covers the cream of punk and new wave output in 40 songs split evenly over 2 one hour parts.
The seismic explosion of youth culture and ‘swinging London’ in the previous decade was running out of steam by the mid 70s. The socio-economic backdrop was deteriorating, and non chart popular music was perceived as having entered a progressive cul-de-sac of overblown and boring virtuosity. The punk movement was simply a natural reaction to boredom and a disconnect with the status quo. Its key “have a go, DIY, never mind the shambles” amateurism corrected the course of popular music and reinvigorated the arts and fashion in ways that live on in the mainstream.
Punk Off: The Sounds of Punk & New Wave tells this story. The irony is, it tells it through one of the slickest, most professional and well rehearsed musicals I’ve ever seen. Not surprising, since it has been honed on the road, the Dominion being the last show of this tour. (For the sake of closet punks everywhere, lets hope it gets back on the road again soon).
I have to say, the marvellously versatile performers excel at everything they do (dancing, singing, musicianship). Kevin Kennedy (Curly Watts in Corrie) is a good choice as narrator and also takes the lead on a number of songs in Part 2. The narration gives useful context and is generally well scripted (GED Graham) although seems pitched towards an audience completely new to punk/new wave at times or unnecessary audience flattery at others. It does provide effective periodic relief from some frantic thrash punk music, especially in Part 1. The narrative does factor in a few well judged recurring comic moments around busking that a responsive audience is quick to build on.
Given the vast catalogue of music produced in the name of punk, music director and singer/guitarist Adam Evans has tackled the unenviable job of assembling 40 quality songs well. One could argue with the choices/omissions, and the dominance of male UK artists, but, hey, Se7ven Productions and Prestige Productions have got a show to sell and this selection certainly passed audience approval. And I was pleased to be introduced to a couple of previously unheard numbers.
The core band of Reece Davies (guitar, vocals), Phil Sherlock (bass, vocals) and Ric Yarborough (drums, vocals) are awesome, whilst Lazy Violet covers the relatively few female vocal leads (Siouxsie, Deborah Harry, Chrissie Hynde) to perfection. The range of sounds produced by just a three piece band had me checking for additional musicians in the cast list!
Having started with what looked like random pogoing, the choreography (Louisa Clark) gets progressively more interesting and imaginative as the show progresses. Dance routines involving most of the cast not actively playing instruments, are fluently executed and the featured dancers (Louisa Clark and Joshua Fowler) stand out. This turned out to be a very enjoyable element of the show. Along with some great costumery throughout.
By my reckoning, the Sex Pistols, the Clash, Sham 69 and Ian Dury are the most featured original artists, followed by the Boomtown Rats, the Buzzcocks and the Stranglers. For the most part, the songs follow the established template fairly closely, but with one exception – probably the music highlight of the evening – a slowed down arrangement introducing the Stranglers’ “No More Heroes”.
The stage set featuring the famous “Camden Lock” design railway bridge in Camden (painted in the 1980s apparently!) (Se7ven Productions), whilst evocative, is perhaps necessarily basic to allow for touring. And the sound seemed a touch murky to my ears – possibly affected by the venue – the Dominion is a 2,000 capacity auditorium.
This brilliantly executed show packs a real punch – all killer, no filler as they say.
Part 1 feels like an unrelenting assault of urgent, high tempo, quite uniform sounding, “pure” punk rock. There is a reason Part 2 seems easier on the senses – it mainly covers the post punk new wave of songs with developing song craft and more light and shade in tempo and style.
Overall, it is a remarkably comprehensive overview of UK punk and new wave, that will nostalgically chime with many of a certain age. However, it is not a show for everyone. You probably need a personal connection with the subject to truly appreciate and enjoy this spectacle on offer.