Huddersfield’s intimate Parish venue is full to bursting for tonight’s arrival of cult Manchester trio A Certain Ratio and, considering the proximity of the famed West Yorkshire mill town to the former home of Factory records, it’s quite a surprise when frontman Jez Kerr confesses to the audience that this is the band’s first ever gig in Huddersfield after more than 40 years playing live.
It’s also a real bonus to see tonight’s ACR line-up (Kerr, Moscrop, Johnson) augmented by amongst others Denise Johnson, her dulcet tones gracing many an ACR track over the years, part of a long list of her notable credits, including the finer moments on Primal Scream’s MDMA fuelled odyssey Screamadelica.
What also becomes clear that some of the band’s hardcore following have attended many a gig on this 40th Anniversary ACR tour, a clearly humbled Johnson recognising faces from other recent shows, thanking those for their continued support.
The gloomy percussiveness of ‘Winter Hill’ gets things underway, Moscrop and Johnson sharing percussion duties ahead of post-industrial punk-funk of ‘Do the Du’ and ‘Flight’ a brace amongst many other ACR favourites we’re treated to tonight.
We’re also served a long-lost cover of Talking Heads ‘Houses in Motion’, two demo versions recently unearthed and dusted off for ACR:BOX. Unbelievably, ACR recorded their own take on this fine track way back in the early eighties and even had Grace Jones lined-up as a guest vocalist. Unfortunately, Jones never came to pass but tonight Johnson’s vocal more than makes up for that.
The band’s other notable cover, Banbarra’s ‘Shack Up’ is also delivered with aplomb, closing the band’s main set although with the venue the size it is, they elect to stay stage front for their encore as leaving then returning via the packed floor would probably have taken them 1,000 years.
Fittingly the band conclude proceedings with the turbo-samba excess of ‘Si Fermir O Grido’, everyone departing into the chilly autumn evening with the sounds of acme samba whistles still ringing in their ears.
Words - Mike Price.