Gig Review: Viagra Boys At O2 Academy Brixton
Leave the Viagra at home, these boys are hard enough.
While on their journey to becoming noise rock staples,(surprisingly) Swedish band Viagra Boys have undertaken their most expansive tour to date in order to celebrate and promote their new, almost self titled album ‘viagr aboys’ to great acclaim. The band brings an electric atmosphere to the stage, immediately barrelling into their latest album’s opening song Man made of meat. The on stage lighting rig blazes into life as the crowd hollers lyrics back at singer/frontman Sebastian Murphy, who has arrived on stage shirtless and shoeless, but wears adidas tracksuit bottoms, reflective sunglasses and white socks.
There are few modern musicians who command attention on stage quite like Murphy, who can only be described as a born performer. His erratic hops around the stage followed by what can only be described as lolloping is strangely captivating. You just can’t keep your eyes off him as he manoeuvres himself closer to the writhing crowd, positioning his microphone just over the stage and letting them sing on his behalf. During Pyramid of Health he pulls out a megaphone, holds it up to the already present microphone and bellows the words of the song in a fashion reminiscent of Gibby Haynes of Butthole Surfers; a band that you could be forgiven for assuming is a fairly large point of inspiration for Viagra Boys. While the rest of the band are largely less mobile, they all get a chance to shine. Most notably in the case of rhythm guitarist/saxophonist/flautist Oskar Carls, who at one point during the show descends from the stage with his saxophone and disappears into the crowd only to re-emerge minutes later, all while keyboardist Elias Jungqvist abandons his instrument entirely and hurls himself offstage in order to crowd surf.
There truly was not a single dull moment once Viagra Boys took to the stage, helped in no small part by their expertly curated setlist which featured a myriad of classic numbers as well as eight songs from their new album. At one point during their set, the lights dim, the crowd quiets and Murphy begins to speak into the microphone. “On a more serious note” he sincerely proclaims, “this next song is about sports!” The entire venue whips itself into a veritable frenzy as the band starts to play. Fans are crowd surfing into the front of the stage, being sent away by security only to return with remarkable efficacy. Enough people are jumping in the pit that the gallery is shaking. Murphy has stopped swaggering around the stage and is now clutching the mic stand, his unmistakable drawl emanating from the enormous sound system behind him.
With near unparalleled showmanship, a truly rabid fanbase and an evident adoration for what they do, Viagra Boys are well on their way to legendary status. Evidently inspired by punk and noise rock legends like The Stooges and Butthole Surfers, this is a band that knows exactly what they’re about and even more so, how to put on a truly excellent show.