Photograph by Ian D. Hall
Originally published by L.S. Media. July 17th 2011.
Fresh from their appearance at Sonisphere the previous weekend, Los Angeles Punk revivalists Bad Religion arrived at the Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton in the kind of mood that lets you know they were there to still party and entertain in their own peculiar and indomitable style.
The set list was huge and expansive, the crowd pumped and ready to throw every last morsel of energy into making sure that the band got the kind of reception usually reserved for one of their own like Magnum or Neds Atomic Dustbin. To say the crowd were ecstatic is to do both the band and the audience a massive disservice as it truly looked as if they were feeding off each other’s vigour all night. As the band played harder, the crowd got more hyped by the whole experience of having the group there with them and vice versa.
Bad Religion opened up the night with some firm favourites; in some cases this can go horribly wrong as the audience senses that it may go flat roughly half way through, not on this night though as The Resist Stance, Social Suicide, 21st Century (Digital Boy) and the fantastic Los Angeles is Burning all led comfortably on and left no doubt that the band were going to pull off one of their finest gigs to date.
The one thing you can’t take away from any Bad Religion gig is the work rate that the five guys on stage put into it is extraordinary. Hardly stopping to catch breath the band raced through a daunting set list which included Wrong Way Kids, the storming Recipe for Hate, The Devil in Stitches and the brilliant 100 More Fools.
Bad Religion finished a absolutely cracking night with encores American Jesus, Infected and the bitter sweet lament of Sorrow.
One of the finest Punk bands to come out of America certainly still have the class that they have traded on for many years and show no signs of losing at all.
Ian D. Hall