LUST FOR LIFE TOUR – Liverpool Academy 8th March 2024
Who knew Katie Puckrik, known by many as the vivacious and effervescent American presenter on the cult UK TV show ‘The Word,’ would in 2024 morph into Iggy Pop on stage? Her infectious and utterly mesmerizing performance alongside a band of all-star musicians was revelatory. And what a band she had – Kevin Armstrong, a Bowie and Iggy veteran, led the guitar surge, alongside Clem Burke of Blondie on drums, Glen Matlock, formerly of the Sex Pistols, on bass, Luis Correia (Earl Slick) on second guitar, and classical pianist, composer, and touring member of Heaven 17, Florence Sabeva on keyboards..
The night began with Pareidolia, a young band making their live debut. They hail from the Wirral in Merseyside and are still at school, but they showed zero nerves and delivered a short, punchy set of scuzzy rock numbers which had a Runaways vibe and fitted in perfectly with the tone of the night. A bright future awaits.
Next on stage was Fifteen Lions, replete with Tom Selleck’s ‘tache and he certainly knew his way around a guitar demonstrating some incredible licks with a set that had a slightly ’80s alt-pop vibe.
Prior to the headliner Suzi Ronson, David Bowie’s hairstylist turned author, arrived to talk about her forthcoming Book Me and Mr Jones: My Life with David Bowie and the Spiders from Mars. She shared anecdotes from her time touring with Ziggy and her future husband, Mick Ronson with eloquence and humour. And the crowd did actually listen, which can be a rarity these days!
Then came the main event. And Boom ! Puckrik owned the stage from the first note of ‘Lust for Life,’ her enthusiasm absolutely contagious. The band ripped through the entire album, from the ferocious adrenaline rush of the title track to the garage rock of ‘Fall In Love With Me,’ without ever sounding like a tribute band per se. The show is essentially an updated reboot of a classic album, which highlighted the band’s deep connection to the music, allied to Puckrik’s indefatigable energy, which gave it a whole new twist, whilst respecting its iconic status.
Highlights included the title track (obviously,) an incendiary version of ‘I Wanna Be Your Dog,’ ‘NightClubbing’ plus ‘China Girl ‘ and deep cuts from Pop’s solo career like ‘I’m Bored’ and ‘Five Foot One,’
The second half of the set acknowledged the band members’ own musical legacies with Puckrik tackling Blondie’s ‘Hanging On the Telephone’ with style and passion whilst Matlock still clearly enjoys performing ‘Pretty Vacant,’ probably The Pistols’ finest moment and one he recently admitted was inspired (melodically) by ABBA’s ‘SOS.’
The night concluded with a raging, explosive version of the legendary ‘Search and Destroy,’ with Puckrik still exuding enough energy to power a medium-sized city. It’s not just Puckrik’s infectious energy, that was remarkable, what truly impressed was her ability to capture the spirit of Iggy’s performance without simply imitating him. She made it her own.
Before this gig, I really couldn’t imagine what a band performing ‘Lust for Life’ fronted by Puckrik would be like. Now, I couldn’t imagine anybody else pulling it off with such style, panache and effortless cool. Imagine how much fun this show would be at a festival!
Photos : WWW.ANDYVONPIPPHOTOGRAPHY.COM
Excellent Interview about Lust For Life with Katie here
