The Damned - Sydney - June 8 2023

It had been four years since their last visit but The Damned were finally back and with a new album. Sydney was at the tail end of a gruelling six months of touring, and online, band members did admit to feeling a little knackered. There were also some sound issues. But none of this was obvious to anyone in the audience. The band was firing on all cylinders, raging through their set. We were treated to all but one song from “Darkadelic” and many of their classics, a total of 22 songs.
Street of Dreams (01:21)
Wait for the Blackout (06:51)
You're Gonna Realise (10:54)
Beware of the Clown (13:14)
Leader of the Gang (16:39)
Standing on the Edge of Tomorrow (21:09)
Love Song (25:37)
Second Time Around (28:04)
Eloise (29:53)
Smash It Up (36:36)
New Rose (43:08)
A special thanks to Bert, my cameraperson down on the frontline, enabling me to combine great sound with great vision. If only I could get multiple camera angles at every gig. But The Damned are exceptional, well deserving of such special treatment.

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

The Damned official website - every thing Damned: www.officialdamned.com Facebook: facebook.com/OfficialDamned/ Instagram: instagram.com/thedamnedofficial/?hl=en

[@MM-dz9fk]

My dad loved this band 😎 playing their music makes me feel he's still with me 💚🖤🦇

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Your dad had great taste. Play them loud, play them often.

[@MM-dz9fk]

He did 😊@@Peter_LiveMusic I will always play them, I even tried to meet them back in April but failed! A great band 😎👍

[@darryllonsdale]

Nice one.Im 55 and went with my 21 year old daughter. A great moment.Bless you your dad was surely there.😊

[@MM-dz9fk]

That sounds brilliant 😎 @@darryllonsdale My dad would have been 60 this year. I bet he was there in spirit 😎👍

[@MM-dz9fk]

I got them to play Eloise at my dad's funeral (and Don't Ask Me by P.I.L. and White Root by The Clash) @@darryllonsdale

[@NoName-sm8co]

Smashing it up for 46 years ! Cant wait to see the boys here in Toronto, Canada next week ! They sound 👌💋💥❤️ Punk will never Die !

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

So how were they? Did they smash it up?

[@NoName-sm8co]

@@Peter_LiveMusic They sure did ! The venue was absolutely packed, and they brought the house down. Smiles all around, cheers, it was a gig for the books !

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

@@NoName-sm8co 😃👍

[@tonywhittaker1970]

Fuck me after 40 plus years, still top notch. Amazing, THE best.

[@panelvanhalen9717]

Darkadelic SLAPS. Can’t wait to see them next year.. to me they’re the Beatles of punk rock. Absolute icons

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Also looking forward to their last ever Australian tour next year - bitter sweet.

[@mediamonarchyplus]

Never lost the plot, never told me to vote, never told me to take some weird ass medicine

[@louiseconnor502]

Can't wait to see them at the roundhouse this year! Saw them first in 1985 at Hammersmith Palais. Walked up the isle to Love Song at our wedding. The Damed are the foundation of our relationsip and music throughout our life. We love you man!

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Sounds like you have a special connection with the band. I'll be seeing them again in a little over a week. It's been advertised as their last Australian tour. I certainly hope not.

[@nickjanice6356]

Should have thought of Love Song For our wedding. Looking forward to The Roundhouse!!

[@andyjohnston7527]

I saw these earlier in the year on the UK leg of this tour and they were brilliant as usual. Darkadelic is a masterpiece 👍 I'm 57 and have been a fan forever ..... LOVE LOVE LOVE this band ❤❤❤ Got my tickets for next years tour with the new re-joined Rat Scabies and apparently they're playing a lot from Strawberries and the Black Album (Curtan Call in full??🙏) Only 350+ sleeps ... can't wait!!!!

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

I've also got my tickets to that tour and we'll be seeing it much sooner than you - in March. But very sadly, they have announced it'll be their last ever Australian tour. I'm really going to have to make the most of it. Thanks for your terrific comment.

[@valkyrierules]

did capt actually keep his clothes on (for a change)? lol

[@MsChristyCox]

It's cool how his voice still sounds amazing. ❤️

[@ledbelly8820]

Thanks for posting this. The band still has lots of energy. Can't believe Captain Sensible is pushing 70! If you look carefully you can see me down in the bottom right hand corner! And about the "sound issues" - yes, Dave and Paul gesticulated to someone backstage a couple of times, but you're right - don't think any of the punters noticed!

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Yes, they don't seem to be slowing down, and by all accounts this was a full on tour. I'll take your word about the bottom right hand corner - glad you can see yourself there. It was a great night. Thanks for commenting.

[@philg5277]

The intro for "Smash It Up" can go on forever. It's what a daydream sounds like. Perfect.

[@francissreckofabian01]

The Damned still going. Eloise is one of my very favourite songs. Goos sound & video Peter.

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Still going strong and producing great songs. There are some terrific songs on their latest album. But of course, Eloise is a classic. Thanks for commenting.

[@graemenicol6377]

They never gave up they've been gigging ever since I hey formed Dave and Captain total legends

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

@@graemenicol6377 Still going strong. Still a great band.

[@yi-sinsun7476]

even they age, they still so chic and cool. Love them. Hope the Damned keep rocking!!

[@ramonleon5175]

Dave always looking classy AF! One of the Coolest cats in Punk

[@wolfenstein6676]

Every time I see Dave nowadays he reminds me of Robert Vaughan's character in the 'Magnificent Seven' western and he's every bit as cool too :) .

[@carnivalimusic]

Wait til you see Dave’s new hair. Looks awesome!

[@oldschoolpunkguy1]

They sound great!!

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

They were great. Can't believe the years have had so little effect on them.

[@GardnerGoldsmith]

FANTASTIC! Thank you!! Cheers from near Boston!

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Glad you enjoyed the video. It was a terrific night. Catch them when they are next your way. Thanks for commenting.

[@thirdofaman]

Thank you for uploading.

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Glad you liked it. Really appreciate your comment.

[@UKArtlover]

Love that Segway between Love Song and Second Time Around, The Captain has always had such a thrilling guitar sound !

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

A great live band. Looking forward to seeing them again soon.

[@jarrahdrum]

Excellent, subscribed, thank you, greetings from Barry South Wales

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Thanks Barry. Glad you enjoyed it. Should be one more in a couple of months' time when they tour here for the last time.

[@teeong1645]

Amazing he's still going. We used to live next door to him in south London in the seventies..nice neighbour!

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Not sure which 'he' you are referring to but glad he was a nice neighbour. Maybe you could hit him up for free tickets 😉

[@teeong1645]

@@Peter_LiveMusic his name was Byrne and he lived in Edith road, behind selhurst station. He loved my dog and I often see him with him rolling on the ground with him.

[@MegaSilver666]

Was there for this show...absolutely excellent!

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Yes, a great night.

[@oscardiezgarcia4984]

Super video, thankssss

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Glad you like it. It was a brilliant show. Thanks for commenting.

[@chrispraz877]

Blessed to be Damned in "23 !!

[@allhull]

first saw them 1977 at hull university was 15 years old and snuck in through a window! scabies set his drum kit on fire! seen dozens of times, and still feel like i was 15 again!!

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

What wonderful memories. It's amazing how music can bring it all back.

[@marcburger8458]

Great opener😊

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

It was a great show. But yes, the first number was something special.

[@phillarsson8253]

exactly my idea! Love the Phantasmagoria- album!

[@tankthelord1178]

Nice one Peter, me and the missus watched it earlier, looked great fun, warts and all (I'm talking about The Damned and not your filming by the way). Best band in the world in my opinion, I wish I was 10 years old again. Speak soon.

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Hi Tank. Glad you and ya missus enjoyed it. It was a great gig of course. But as you said, a few minor warts from both the band and myself. The most noticeable is me missing the beginning of 'Beware the Clown'. I wanted to include more of their new songs than I did for The Stranglers a few weeks earlier. But in the first half of the show, they were ripping through the songs so fast that they caught me by surprise with that one. Sitting further back was no where near as fun for me as the last time they were here. But the sound was so much better and that's what I wanted to capture this time. I think I managed that. Thanks for your continual support.

[@tankthelord1178]

@@Peter_LiveMusic All good.

[@vanessap7656]

Just saw them again here in San Francisco and SO good. I LOVE the new record, its been on from start to finish while I get tasks done. Keep it going boys! 🖤🎼🎤🎸🧛🏻‍♂️

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Yes, they have been very busy touring the past few months. I've no idea where they find the energy. And yes, a terrific new album. So many bands of their generation give up on producing new music, or if they do, it's very mediocre. Not The Damned. Still going strong.

[@andyjohnston7527]

It really is a fabulous album . Be aware they're touring next year with the newly re-joined Rat Scabies. Got my tickets for one the gigs in Ehgland and can't wait!!

[@born2damn822]

cheers and thanks for this.x

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for the comment.

[@libbydavitri6149]

Great gig!!! 🖤🙌🏻

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

It was a terrific night.

[@lycia6]

I was there in the mid 2nd row, woot!! Thanks so much for capturing my favourite band 💜💥⚡️😈

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

@@lycia6 I had the opportunity of being down front but wanted to capture better sound, and to be honest, these days I prefer a seat. I missed some of the excitement not being in the crowd but it was still a great night. Thanks for commenting.

[@lycia6]

@@Peter_LiveMusic Yeah, you do end up sacrificing a bit of personal enjoyment if you’re filming all night. Have to say the fans appreciate it though! Was so good to watch it back on replay. I usually position myself up back at the Metro as I’m short and always seem to get a 6 ft giant standing in front of me. Glad to say I managed to position myself near front behind the punk girls and my view was amazing! Well worth it even with the couple of crazies behind us went ape pushing and shoving (well it was admittedly the old punk faves). Are you ever happy with the sound at the Metro? I always feel they don’t do The Damned sound justice. I’ve only ever seen them there about 5 times now and I’m never real happy with it. Don’t know if this is the case elsewhere. Still, had so much fun being up close with my 18 year old daughter who’s first over 18s gig it was! She was very besotted 😍

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

@@lycia6 I find sound a bit hit or miss at most venues. I read comments from members of both The Damned and The Stranglers (who I saw there a couple of weeks earlier) that they weren't happy with their sound at the Metro. I'm not sure how that translates to the audience sound but I think it did result in The Stranglers cutting one of their encores. However, sound is never the best way down the front. It's usually best half way back but then you have to contend with those 6ft giants standing in front of you (unless you can somehow get above them). I know where those punk girls were. My friend, who caught some of this footage, was standing a little to their left. And yes, you only have to look at how the 'New Rose' footage is all over the place to know everyone was really going off during those classic hits. Glad you got to share it with your daughter. I'm sure she loved ever moment.

[@ebomberebomber2329]

merci pour la video vive le rock

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Heureux que cela vous ait plu. Merci d'avoir commenté.

[@bbernard1981]

Captain Shreds!!!!

[@timkenneally8173]

I don't think Captain Sensible gets enough credit as a guitar player, especially since he started out as their bass player.

[@lozarok]

legends

[@AndreyBalaban]

..amazing, fantastic, non plus ultra, that's all what i say..i wish i was here

[@nellsonogmore5938]

And everybody's smashing things up.

[@RyanJamesOfficial]

Greatest punk band of all time. Rivalled only by the Bad Brains.

[@patrickbuzzo1970]

Il nuovo batterista Will Taylor svolge la sua parte egregiamente!

[@tankthelord1178]

Hey Peter, hope you well, been busy here with new kitten/cats and have a few vids to catch up on when I can, going to see Extreme 27th November in Newcastle, did you get to see them?

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

Hi Tank. Great to hear from you. I hope life with the new felines is going well. My girl is still great company. I must admit I'm not all that familiar with Extreme but listening to them now on Spotify. I do know some of their songs. Hope you enjoy the gig. I've got plenty of shows coming up in the next few months. Unfortunately, my camera died on the weekend. Fingers crossed I can get it fixed as I can't really afford to replace it. In the meantime, I'm going to have to use my old camera which is no where near as good. Sparks tomorrow night. Take care.

[@tankthelord1178]

@@Peter_LiveMusic All good, am trying to catch up with loads of videos, Sparks are one on of my all time favourites, have a great time.

[@outuvstep]

What kind of tie/collar is Vanian wearing? Dont think ive ever seen that before. Always so fashionable that guy is.

[@BackToTheBlues]

It looks like a standard collar with an under-collar bow tie to me. They're a different shape to a regular bow tie, though you can sort of achieve the same effect with a regular one if the shirt collar is the right shape. Under-collar bow ties were a 1960's and 1970's thing, and I always thought they looked classy. Kenneth Williams was a regular wearer, you can probably find some clips of him wearing one on KZbin, or pics on the net.

[@Tom-q9z5s]

What is the collar Dave is wearing? not a bow tie but??

[@garyrigby21]

The Damned

[@alex7o77]

DRUMMer.........GOOD

[@patrickbuzzo1970]

The bass player looks like Alpo of the Real Kids

[@leprechaunamigo2]

s2

[@Ess666]

Without Scabies and James its not really the Damned though

[@gmantramp404]

Not much punk rock going on in this set 😱

[@markblackman2542]

wheres Rat scabies ?

[@MM-dz9fk]

38:55🧛🏻‍♂♥

[@lazarusgray1188]

I love the Damned but man, this gig was a waste of two hundred bucks. The sound quality live was nowhere near as good as this. All we could hear was bass and drums. Disappointing. -edited when I realised this was from last year - they came again this year and boy. It was bad. And yeah, the audience noticed.

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

You'll find my video of their most recent (and final?) Sydney gig at the Enmore Theatre here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oILRdJelg92EisU You can check the video sound quality against your memory. Yes, there were issues with sound quality at that performance. Dave was far from impressed. He didn't return to the stage for a final bow with the rest of the band. Issues were obviously those of the venue and not the band. But having said that, when it comes to sound quality, position is everything. If you are right up front, the vocals are always drowned out by the instruments, which is why at this Metro gig I was sitting much further back. I wanted to get better sound quality. However, I decided to be up front at the Enmore gig to capture some close ups and enjoy the vibes. But these days, I rarely stand on the barrier. As to whether or not any performance is worth the cost, that's an entirely personal opinion.

[@tedgartner1816]

No Rat Scabies no Damned

[@MichaelWill-rh2ly]

Agree. Rat is the Heartbeat of the Damned.

[@deadpool102192]

Well he’s back lol

[@gmantramp404]

No Pistols= No Clash

[@TheMusicalElitist]

Didn't like that drummer. Glad Rat's back.

[@louisguerra5532]

Sorry but Monty doesn't fit in at all. It's hard to take him seriously.

[@thebadplaces4511]

The Damned has historically been a bit zany though. I mean really..."he's alright and he don't care, he's got thermal underwear" doesn't strike me as terribly serious

[@MichaelWill-rh2ly]

He’s a clown

[@robertroberts3703]

How do you take Captain seriously? Seriously!

[@wildphil64]

@@robertroberts3703sensibly is how I would 😉

[@GhibliFan1]

Monty is time served and is Damned through and through.

[@derekdykeman9160]

Terrible drummer no wonder he's gone.

[@paololomao]

Thanks❤

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

You're welcome.

[@d.thomasmoore3020]

Good work mate----Thankyou...

[@Peter_LiveMusic]

It was another great concert. Thanks for commenting.