Live review: 30 years on, The Jesus and Mary Chain’s Psychocandy still thrills

This all could have gone so wrong. Scotland’s The Jesus and Mary Chain have always been a tempestuous band; that raw energy fuelled their early chaotic live shows, but also eventually tore the band apart, due to the constant in-fighting between founding brothers Jim and William Reid.

The band’s first reunion run in 2007 was largely underwhelming, the excitement of seeing the Reid brothers back on-stage tempered by the band’s constant live flubs and general lack of preparation. Thankfully, last night’s North American tour debut of the band’s 30th anniversary of Psychocandy was a different beast altogether.

Chalk it up to the band’s continued respect for their insanely influential debut LP, but they were firing on all cylinders once again. In typically nonchalant Mary Chain fashion, the band took the stage with frontman Jim Reid casually explaining that the band would run trough a few non-Psychocandy tracks, before coming back out and playing the album in full. In full subservience to the record, he also explained that “Some Candy Talking” would be played in the intro set, since it was never on the original pressing of the album. The band were clearly taking this very seriously.

Opening with “April Skies,” before kicking into “Head On,” the band were completely locked in step, with Jim Reid kicking the mic stand back and forth, while William Reid was side-stage in the shadows, head leaned into his guitar, seemingly oblivious to anyone else in the room.

These full-album shows have become a bit of a cliché, but Psychocandy is the rare album that actually deserves a tour like this. The album’s brilliant mash-up of noise and pop sensibilities has infected untold bands over the years, and many of the album’s tracks were never even played live during the band’s initial run.

Following the wonderfully noisy “Upside Down,” the band’s very first single, they make a quick exit and returned with the classic opening drum fill of “Just Like Honey.” Joined on backups by opener Gateway Drugs’ vocalist Liv Niles, the band seemed to soak in the crowd’s cheers for what is by far their most well known song. However, it was with the next track, “The Living End,” that the night really took hold. As black and white video of motorcycles speeding down a highway played behind them, the band unleashed a barrage of noise and feedback as Jim Reid crooned their ode to “an open road and a cool, cool wind.”

Playing the entire album in order meant there were no real surprises, apart from the fact that this was happening at all. Still, the ripple of recognition that ran through the crowd during the opening lines of “Never Understand” was thrilling, and kept the energy up as the band chugged along to album and set closer, “It’s So Hard.”

LA’s Gateway Drugs opened the show with a rowdy set of heavy psychedelic rock, which saw the band’s drummer accidentally knock over a mic-stand within minutes of getting on-stage, in true JAMC fashion. They unfortunately share the same name as a number of wildly different bands, which explains my initial confusion over why a synth-pop band was opening up the show. Montrealers will have a chance to catch the band on May 4th when they open Swervedriver, another legendary band (they must really have a great agent).

Even as a die-hard JAMC fanboy, I have to admit I was a bit skeptical heading into this show, following the band’s mediocre return in 2007. However, the band is truly performing with a renewed passion, and the chance to hear rarely-played tracks like “The Hardest Walk” live, make this tour an absolute must-see. Hopefully this renewed momentum will see the band finally get into the studio to record their long-discussed upcoming album. Or at the very least, convince the band to embark upon a Darklands retrospective tour next (fingers crossed).

The Jesus and Mary Chain have additional tour dates scheduled in Canada and the US later this month. All current dates are below.

03 May – St. Andrew’s Hall, Detroit, MI
05 May – Riviera Theatre, Chicago, IL
07 May – The Bomb Factory, Deep Ellum, TX
09 May – Austin Psych Fest Presents Levitation, Austin, TX
11 May – Ogden Theatre, Denver, CO
13 May – Vogue Theatre, Vancouver, BC
14 May – Showbox at the Market, Seattle, WA
16 May – Warfield Theatre, San Francisco, CA