The Clash, accept no substitute or so you’d think right? I’ve been bouncing around some ideas of a series of posts about songs the Clash covered and then the giant ants nest that is artists who have performed Clash songs. Both are really time consuming, pretty interesting but need more planning on my part. On a related path there are bands who cover The Clash -- all the time -- tribute bands.

Let me start by saying I’ve never seen a tribute band in my life, although some acts who’ve changed lineups so much (Echo and The Bunnymen spring to mind -- though I love them I yearn for the original four, which of course isn’t possible) feels somewhat like a tribute act. As for The Clash, I can see why there is a long list of bands (bands? I guess) who take this path. The logic for it is sound -- hugely influential band, ended far earlier than they should and never reformed to take away your potential audience. Thus I did some legwork and researched a bit about this whole concept. Music is an odd industry, where else can you take a form of art/entertainment and make a living trying to be that person or collective? Hello everyone, I’m half english-half irish and like to act a bit like Daniel Day Lewis -- please let me take part in ‘Next to Last of the Mohicans’.

Still an open mind was needed so I detached myself from preconceived notions and started with Rebel Truce. Some background information, these lads have been together since 1997, which means they’ve played Clash songs for almost twice as long as The Clash. That in itself is pretty odd, but speaks volumes about the market/need for a tenuous connection with West London’s finest. I also must add that ‘tribute’ is appropriate, they seem by all accounts to be dedicated to keeping the spirit of the band in safe hands -- so with that said do Jerry, Lee, Rick and Wayne have something special going on?

I’d have to say yes -- in a sense (the sense of providing a decent rendition of The Clash).

The plaudits on the myspace page seem to be a good barometer, with old Clash fans and those who never were of the right vintage sharing their plaudits and excitement of having seen the next best thing. So I launched into their playlist.

Well….it was a bit like getting to a friends house and hearing about their planned meal. “You’re gonna love it, a combination of  4 things you’ve never heard of but it’ll taste like a really nice cottage pie”. 2 hours and a bottle or red wine later, it wasn’t the best meal ever but was plenty good -- not sure you’d ever want it again, but much better than expected.

I’d say the same for Rebel Truce. I listened to all the songs on the myspace page - and there’s nothing to dislike. The live songs are delivered in tight fashion with good musicianship. The delivery of the songs was a bit loyal to the recordings as many Clash songs live were often a little faster and a lot more furious. Again though the guitar/bass playing was right on schedule, the drumming was a little subdued -- but Topper was Topper. As for the vocals it was a combination of familiar -- “Is that Mick with a cold?” and somewhat forced “Joe’s accent sounds a bit warped” but again the power and vocal inflections were good. Perhaps a bit too mimicky -- but it’s a hard line to follow. I’m sure the audience want it as near as possible. The backing vocals were really good. The best track was their demo/studio version of Spanish Bombs, which despite a different feel to the mix the sound was bang on, if you were in the next room it could have been a Clash demo.

The stage moves….these boys own a DVD player and enjoy/study live Clash footage. That’s enough to be getting on with.

So overall, let me say if I was still in the UK and had nothing planned on a Thursday night I’d drop down to a venue and see them. I’m lucky as I did see The Clash but if you never did I’d recommend it more. I had to pull away my previous concepts of a tribute band -- these guys obviously have a passion for The Clash and clearly work hard at it. Thankfully -- helpfully -- they don’t seem to try too hard to look like The Clash, that would make me recoil a bit. I mean they do wear ‘punkish’ gear but it’s not as if they are spending hours matching Paul Simonons best line of belts and jackets.  In summary, they do have a lot of gigs scheduled so go and see em. They’ve more than 50 tracks on their CV and dedication that looks to be well beyond a phase. If you have seen them, let me know -- if you’ve seen another Clash tribute band email me.

Not to be contradictory but they also remind me how uniquely incomparable The Clash were. You can’t really touch them live. You could draft the geyser from Glasvegas to stand there and look the part.

Your somewhat converted Clash Blogger….or am I him?