For audiences across the UK you could say the election starts here. Except of course if you catch the act just before or in the case of Liverpool – and inexplicably given the title of the show (‘Rock the Vote’) – just after election day on the 7th May. With a bunch of songs and engaging patter to get your political juices going these awfully middle class revolutionaries study to entertain and provoke. Here perhaps one should insert an advisory for potential UKIP voters to take a book or some other device to distract them during what was for me the funniest song about possible meanings of the word, ‘farage’. This number, which could justifiable have its own sub-section in the Uxbridge English Dictionary, had the audience hooting. Potential definitions for this one word ranged over various nasty smells, tastes, maladies and general unpleasantness the sharpest of which was, ‘a kind of bin juice’.
Backing up the well judged satire is some pretty mean musicianship and clever song writing which could even win over what you might call the opposition, although it is not so much personalities as policies and ideas which bear the brunt of their ire. Exuberance, honesty and clarity have a charm of their own whatever your social or political leanings. Numbers ranged from an irreverent protest song about the closure of libraries (do people really do those sorts of things amongst the bookshelves?) through digs at other people’s (ugly) babies and willies. The set included a bitter sweet song about (a) dad who supported UKIP, a dig at the Mail, a dig at Gove and a love song to Angela Merkel.
The two performers (Jonny Donahoe and Paddy Gervers) pack as much fun as possible into the just-over-the-hour long set with a fresh mix of political and social comment sauced with enough self-deprecation and bright personality to sugar the tartest pill. That is, UKIP excepted as the party hierarchy committed a cardinal sin for polticos and publicly protested at the (mis) use of public money given that some of their tour dates are Arts Council funded. Yet if UKIP is an easy target to whack with a mallet for a couple of lefties, a song about the acceptability of the blood of gays takes a sharp knife to a vey different issue and all credit to them for putting a less than popular topic in the set.
If you haven’t made up your mind yet which way to vote, cut along to a show that will be coming your way soon. It may not sway you one way or the other, but it will make you think and will certainly entertain. ★★★★☆ Graham Wyles 13/04/15
