Back in Middlesbrough for the third time, legendary Essex punk-rockers Newtown Neurotics play at the Westgarth Social Club on Saturday 12th November at a time when they are perhaps more relevant than ever before.
Forming back in 1979, Newtown Neurotics (known simply as The Neurotics throughout the mid-‘80s), have always made politics a central theme of their music. Their 1982 track ‘Let’s Kick Out The Tories’ proved to be an anthem for disaffected punks at the height of the Thatcher government’s power, whilst 1980s ‘When The Oil Runs Out’ has proven to be tragically prophetic in its eerie predictions for how life at the back end of the fossil fuel era is turning out to be, as the nation braces itself for a real winter of discontent through no fault of their own.
In addition to their records being overtly political, the band carried the message into their live performances too, hitting the road with Billy Bragg during their initial 1980s run as they became one of the first Western bands to perform behind the Iron Curtain, completing two tours of then communist East Germany. Following the band’s initial break-up, vocalist Steve Drewett also became one of a very small number of Western artists to perform in North Korea, in addition to a performance in Castro-led Cuba.
Following their reformation in 2006, Newtown Neurotics have picked up where they left off. Where they differ from many of their reforming peers, however, is that rather than resting on their laurels, or going down the well-worn path of becoming more conservative as you get older, the band has doubled down on their stance, with their new material displaying many of the same proudly socialist themes. Their new single ‘Climate Emergency!’ once again touches on the state of mother Earth, as frontman Steve Drewett belts out: “What we do to this Earth, we do unto ourselves, while we try to deny how bad it’s gonna be.”
Whilst the subject matter of the band’s songs has always been deadly serious, the music itself carries an almost joyous, anthemic vibe: it’s true old school street-punk packed full of infectious melodies and sing-along choruses.
Their new album ‘Cognitive Dissidents’ is out now and this performance at the Westgarth will be a fantastic opportunity to witness these songs and other classics in the intimacy of the downstairs stage at the venue.
Tickets, priced at £10.00 in advance, are available from seetickets.com.
