Gossip
HMV Forum, London
28/11/2009

With countless column inches devoted to the apparently shocking fact that fearless frontwoman Beth Ditto doesn’t conform to the Twiglet pop-idol norm, it’s easy to forget that Gossip’s rise to fame is largely due to blood, sweat, tears and their ability to turn out an electrifying live performance.

But with Sunday’s gig in Birmingham already pulled due to illness, it is with some trepidation that Gossip’s devoted following wait for the powerhouse vocalist and her searing band to take the stage at the steamy HMV Forum. Kicking off with the pounding drums and scuzzy blues riffs of ‘Dimestore Diamond’, it’s clear that they won’t be disappointed, come sore throat or menstruation. “I gots the bronchitis”, Beth grins as she shimmies around the stage, resplendent in orange mop-top and sequins. “And I just started my period”.

Chugging from a glass containing a concoction unlikely to be found in any Lloyds pharmacy – for medicinal purposes, naturally – she leads a riveted crowd through a barnstorming performance that draws heavily on latest album, the Rick Rubin-produced ‘Music For Men’. With guitarist Brace Paine doubling up on synths for several of the newer tracks, Hannah Blilie’s faultless drumming is matched with an electronic pulse that draws out the band’s natural pop sensibility and dance backbone.

So ‘Four Letter Word’ and ‘Pop Goes The World’ twinkle and surge, whilst the slicing guitar of crowd pleasers ‘Listen Up!’, ‘Yr Mangled Heart’, and, of course, ‘Standing In The Way Of Control’ remain faithful to the southern punk blues of old. This double punch is carried through to their choice of covers, with renditions of Tina Turner’s ‘What’s Love Got To Do With It’ and the Saved By The Bell theme tune rubbing shoulders with Bikini Kill’s ‘Rebel Girl’.

At a time when there is much excited talk about a new wave of ‘individual’ and ‘genuine’ female pop stars, Beth Ditto and Gossip are still blazing a trail of guts and charisma, oozing the genuine article from every pore.

Tom Watkinson