It's wild to think that Brit alt-rockers Jesus Jones formed in 1988 but, at the same time, it makes perfect sense. That's the era that saw rave culture envelop the U.K., affecting everything that came into even proxy contact with it.
Even the indie rock bands, such as the Madchester, Haçienda bunch (Happy Mondays, New Order, Inspiral Carpets) and the grebos (EMF, Pop Will Eat Itself, Jesus Jones) were touched by rave. Musically, maybe. But it was all in the E-friendly vibes, the trippy videos, and crossover projects such as the Utah Saints.
Fast-forward to 2024, and the Jesus Jones guys are touching 60. The late night clubbing days are (probably) behind them. There are a few lines on the faces, a few grey hairs. But Jesus (Jones), they can still put on a show.
The Whisky is, on the surface, an odd venue for Jesus Jones. It does host a lot of nostalgia gigs -- veteran acts with a solid, cult fanbase. Usually, they sit on the metal and punk end of the spectrum. But as it turns out, Jesus Jones shone on the Sunset Strip.
Opening with "Move Mountains," the set contained everything you'd want to hear. "Never Enough," "International Bright Young Thing,""Right Here Right Now"--all are magnificent '90s timebombs.
Frontman Mike Edwards sings and plays note perfect. He might carry himself more like a road-weary rocker than the cyber-indie kid of yesteryear, but thank god for that -- imagine the tragic alternative. Guitarist Jerry De Borg riffs like the beast that he is, while keyboardist Iain Baker is the life and soul of the party. Sporting an Anarchy shirt, he verbally demands that the crowd join in. There's no room for audience apathy here.
The encores were superb--"Real Real Real," "Bring it on Down," and a manic "Info Freak." By the end, the crowd was re-devoted. The results are in -- more of this please, Whisky. Bring over EMF and the Utah Saints, Kingmaker and the Wonderstuff, Neds Atomic Dustbin and Pop Will Eat Itself.
Earlier, Nashville band Dixie Dragster may not have been an obvious opener for Jesus Jones, and in many ways the pairing was jarring. But regardless, DD sounded great. With a decent number of fans brought over from Tennessee, they ran through a set that blended trash-punk a la New York Dolls/Heartbreakers with the glam pomp of T-Rex and Sweet. Hair metal-adjacent, but certainly on the punk end of the spectrum. Somehow it worked.
