Miraculous Mule, Nov 2016
MIRACULOUS MULE @ Paper Dress Vintage – Hackney, East London, November 11th 2016 – There’s a slightly defiant stomp in here tonight, a slightly pissed-off air of defiance, the floor is bouncing, the building feel likes it might be moving, it isn’t anger, this is defiance. Miraculous Mule have been spitting it out all summer, they really are the sound of, well if not the sound of the summer, the sound of right now, and at times like these stomping feet in an upstairs room above a vintage dress shop in East London, all shaking floors and big big riffs, at times like this defiant gatherings like this are needed more than ever. Drenched in red, a whole gig drenched in dark red light, singing and stomping about bulshit wrapped up in red right (or did he say white?) and blue, stomping at those taking the power, these pushing the buttons of those who cling to a flag, That stomp is needed tonight, it seems heavier in here tonight, harder, louder, a little more defiant than last time, occasionally faster, almost metallic.
Been a strange week, we got Trumped, the tabloids responded by throwing Crass on the front covers, Americans are apologising on the London streets, people over here are worried, people over there are rioting, the audience upstairs above this vintage dress shop in Hackney are stomping hard, the floor is moving, the walls vibrating, singing about the people they’re despising more and more – stomping up a storm, no mercy in any eyes, defiantly gospel-stomping at fools following monsters and at time like these that big defiant stomp is needed more than ever. Where Monsters Lead has even more of an edge tonight, an extra bit of commitment, these are times for commitment..
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We’ve written up a storm about the Mule in the last eighteen months, you know how we feel about Miraculous Mule around these parts, they do keep on nailing it, nailing the whole damn lot, delivering it live again and again when ever time we think they surely can’t be as good as last time, surely they can’t do it again tonight? Of course they can! Things are bleak out there tonight, the Friday night London streets are emptier that usual, people are down, they’re staying in, the unsold food from the sandwich shop was being dished out to the homeless at St Mungos. Those flowers left in tribute to the beggar who dies a few months back are still tied to the lamp post, no one wants to move them on, and the storm Miraculous Mule kicked up has just an extra edge to it tonight, an extra bit of defiant bite, an anger turned to energy. Things are not quite so mellow and soulful tonight, they still have that soul, of course they do, the three of them are up there drenching us with their soul, but this ain’t the week for that, this is a week that needs to end with a stomp and a collective defiant letting out of it all, a week for everyone to come together and start to make things happen, for defiant music, defiant art, people doing it rather than just taking it.
Damn hot in here, damn cold outside, hot in here, leathers are staying in place tonight though, defiantly so, Paddy can’t take that leather off, the leather jacket holds those big base lines together, and what a rhythm section, the chemistry up there just has to be watched, the eye contact, the knowing nods and smiles, the feeding off each other as drums are hit hard, feeding off the audience feeding the audience, almost tribal in here tonight, defiant chemistry filling the very red room. Lot of hair in here as well, this soul is drenched in rock, and this is serious rock, Miraculous Mule are a seriously big powerful rock band, they’re drenched in attitude, dripping in gospel and blues and songs and their musical heritage – and they’re not playing it mellow tonight, they can do do it mellow, but not tonight, tonight needs defiant attitude and a big big stomp/ And what the hell happened this week anyway? What the hell is going on, who got the fools to follow? What a week – Trump, Crass – the passing of a poet called Leonard Cohen – the Daily Mirror, Boris gloating – that summer sound might just be coming, the Mule might just have called it one year early, people surely aren’t going to sit back and just take it. Someone up there on the stage said something about how in these times the only thing to turn to is booze and music, said it slightly tongue in cheek, but yes, well partly – out of times like these comes great art, great music, great big comings together, great big creative slabs of collective defiance, and if ever a week needed to end with a room full of people stomping a floor, with big soul-drench hard rock riffs and massive slices of defiant blues anger, a room shaking at the bulshit and the fools who follow, a defiant band full on and in your face, loud defiant riff-fueled attitude, soul-powered slabs of serious rock music, then this was the week. It really couldn’t have finished with anything defiantly better than a slightly pissed-off Miraculous Mule playing it just a bit harder and heavier than they did back in those summer months….Never did that stomping sounding of Where Monsters Lead sound so right, the Mule ripped it up again, the fools might have followed the monsters this time, this surely is their last stand though? The monsters are making their last stand, we needed those giant riffs tonight, hold on to that soul now, hold on in there. How many time do we need to say Miraculous Mule are the best damn live band out there right now? Needed that tonight, defiant. (sw)
Oh and they lied about this being their last gig of the year, last minute show somewhere in Camden on November 20th – think that’s what they said… watch this space.
Miraculous Mule, Nov 2016
Miraculous Mule, Nov 2016 – take them photos now!
THE ORGAN 