The Dirty Dozen

Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? (Part One)…

Teenage Casket Co, (New Inn Ilkeston) 20/01/12…

It’s hard to believe that the first time I saw Teenage Casket Company was seven years ago, they filled the support slot at the now defunct Potters venue in Langley Mill to an Aerosmith tribute band. The bass player (Rob Lane) I already knew from the band Dip amongst others but the other three guys were all unfamiliar to me. It’s fair to say after they’d played a couple of songs many in the audience were hooked on their brand of glam/pop/punk rock, catchy riffs and sleazy lyrics, TCC had arrived! The headliners that night have been totally erased from my memory but I went on to see and listen to the likely lads of TCC many more times over the next few years and not always in the same band.

Tonight’s gig at the new inn Ilkeston may well be fulfilling a seven year itch for me, having taken their collective eyes of the ball TCC experienced several fallow years. This state of affairs arose from all the band members seemingly wanting to diversify and play with other bands. But they returned to the fray minus one band member so these days the trimmed down TCC go out as a three piece. The afore mentioned Rob Lane (bass) along with Spike (drums) and Rob Wylde (lead guitar/lead vox) sound a little different to when they were knocking on the door of stardom a few years back. Their album ‘dial it up’ and supper EP ‘eat your heart out’ should have broken them onto the international scene but alas it never quite happened for Nottingham’s nay, the UK’s ‘best kept secret’ who seemed to have fallen by the wayside. Until now perhaps, their live set still includes many of the classic songs from their first two discs along with some new material most notably the song ‘best friend is my radio’ fans old and new have turned up in droves to the new inn to cheer them on. With all their trials and tribulations surely this time the likely lads of TCC, older and wiser can make that breakthrough they were searching for back in the day.  With a new single and video ‘without you’ being released on Valentine’s Day 2012 TCC just may well pull it off after all… GD.

Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? (Part Two)…

JD & The FDCs (Sitwell Tavern Derby) 27/01/12…

Seven days later finds me in Derby to see JD & The FDCs at the Sitwell tavern, the JD stands for Jamie Delerict (lead vocals/rhythm guitar) whom I first met seven years ago at that aforementioned gig at Potters. JD was then a member of Teenage Casket Co. these days he fronts his own band the FDCs consisting of Daz Mondo (lead guitar) Joey Strange (bass) and Danny Gunn (drums) all of whom funnily enough have ‘stood in’ for various Teenage Casket Co. personnel on at least one gig (GD trivia fact) and all of which have previously made their mark in two of the east midlands most memorable rock bands Dip and Patchwork Grace. JD & The FDCs may have emerged from the shadows of three popular bands but they have already stamped their own collective identity on the scene with some great songs like ‘tie me up (tie me down)’, ‘monsoon is now’ and ‘burn this city down’ all delivered live with a snarling punk attitude synonymous with Jamie’s former performances in TCC and The Dangerfields. I spoke to JD after the Sitwell show and although there may be some regrets about the split with his former band and the fact that TCC were millimetres away from major success the bottom line is JD & The FDCs are ‘never gonna stop’ and if you don’t believe me check out their video of the same name on YouTube (http://youtu.be/RPVodo5pNKw?hd=1).

So summing up then, whatever happened to the likely lads? Well they may be a little older and hopefully a little wiser but one thing for sure they’re still out there with attitude, writing and performing new songs, they may well say to the music establishment, ‘you ain’t got nothin’ on me’ and indeed ‘thank you for nothing’ but with a determined effort and the support of their many fans let’s hope that they remain a secret no longer and hit it big before the passage of another seven years… GD.