The Moshville Times - Gig Review: Duff McKagan / James and the Cold Gun

It’s hard to believe Duff McKagan’s third (fourth if you want to split hairs with Beautiful Disease never seeing the light of day), solo album is about to celebrate its first birthday. It feels like only yesterday the full record was available for cramming into earholes. What’s even more surreal is that it’s been five years since McKagan played the smaller room upstairs to promote the release of Tenderness. This time around, the accompanying record has had time to truly get under the skin of fans and gestate and it’s no wonder why he’s packed out Manchester’s Academy 2.

There’s a large crowd in the room by the time James and the Cold Gun and almost a year after catching them supporting Tigercub, they’ve only gotten better. And by the fervent response they’re greeted with on their arrival, it’s clear they’ve got an ardent fanbase. As they combine punk, blues and indie, they ladle in a dollop of fuzz and it goes down a storm. It’s the brash punk side of them which does them the most favours given that tonight’s headliner is a punk at heart. However, they’re not afraid to slow it down and wear their heart on their sleeve with “Meet My Maker” which is all about holding onto music to get you through hard times. The band bleeds authenticity, showing their love for Manchester, counting this as their tenth time in the city in three years and their love and respect for McKagan is as genuine as it gets. The finale of “Long Way Home” has the titular James declare about the show, “I can’t wait to tell my nan about this one.” And if I was him, I’d be doing the same. They seize the initiative, grabbing the crowd by the scruff of the neck and drag them along for the ride with their polished yet loose rock and roll to get everyone warmed up nicely for what is about to follow.

It’s virtually without any fanfare when Duff McKagan and his band take to the stage, other than the spoken-word version of “Lighthouse”, which is delivered by Iggy Pop, filtering through the PA as they take their places. And with the leather-clad McKagan hitting centre stage with his acoustic guitar, he’s met like an old friend. And what follows is ninety minutes of sheer bliss, eclipsing the last show he played in this town. As he fires through many of the songs from Lighthouse, a handful from Tenderness and the title track of This is the Song, he’s backed by a tight band who assist him in bringing these songs to life. The Tenderness material may not be fully replicated musically but it allows them to be that bit rawer and the heady lyrical content to hit even harder.

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McKagan is less talkative than last time around but in the few times he does chat, he emphasises the importance of togetherness and it’s a theme which runs through his music. Plus, there’s a sense of that in the crowd, the importance of supporting others and he believes that when the media stokes the fires of division, it only encourages people to do the opposite. McKagan and band believe in that ethos wholeheartedly, practicing what they preach from the off with “Forgiveness”, showing the importance of such an intimate act and not just putting the issues of the world under the microscope – but he does do a lot of that, too.

It’s not about offering solutions so much as calling out injustice and inequality, and the people in the room agree with McKagan’s worldview. There’s definitely a youthful anger mixed with the weariness of turning 60 and witnessing a less-than-ideal world. But somehow, it’s not turned him into a cynic. He’s well aware that people have jobs and lives and have taken time out to come and see him and for a man whose day job is playing stadia, these intimate shows still have a sense of occasion; nothing is taken for granted. The show starts slowly and other than “I Saw God on 10th Street” and a cover of “I Wanna Be Your Dog”, there’s nothing too upbeat. But it doesn’t stop the crowd from singing along and cheering at the appropriate points but it’s still one of the most sedate Manchester crowds I’ve seen. Indeed, last time around, on a Sunday night, the audience seemed more up for it.

“I Just Don’t Know” is contemplative and world-weary, still trying to make sense of the world and it’s followed by “Fallen Ones”, an ode to those left behind and forgotten in various ways. These two songs become the darkest point of the set but it’s knowingly done at the halfway point before McKagan raises the spirits with two songs written for his wife in “Fallen” and the Duff McKagan’s Loaded number “Wasted Heart” (which also featured on Tenderness). They’re not saccharine and instead make for a suitable uplift without causing whiplash, especially for what follows. McKagan swaps his acoustic guitar for an electric to blast through the second half and the crowd respond in kind and pick up their feet as “Longfeather” kicks in. It’s in this second half where McKagan explores more of his legacy and influential songs after “Just Another Shakedown”. There’s a rousing rendition of “I Fought the Law” and the atmosphere which has been building throughout the night… well, that’s the spark which lights the powder keg. And when a punked-up version of “You’re Crazy” rears its head, the crowd becomes positively unglued. As one of Appetite for Destruction’s more punk moments, McKagan and the band fully lean into it where it’s unrecognisable to begin with until the lyrics hit and that’s coming from someone who has that iconic artwork tattooed on his arm and knows it inside out.

But it’s the last few songs where the wistful side of things return but it’s imbued with a sense of hope with covers of “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around a Memory” and “Heroes” (the latter of which McKagan recently released). But where the sense of hope is sent full tilt is the finale of “Don’t Look Behind You”. It’s not the heaviest song of the night but there isn’t a better song for McKagan to play to bid farewell. As the song reaches its stunning conclusion, he drops his guitar, gets into the pit and shakes as many hands as he can, physically thanking the people here and reinforcing the theme of togetherness in his solo music. Seeing him do this and the powerful rendition of a song which reminds you to keep pushing forward is nothing short of spine-tingling.

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The word “legend” may be over-used to describe people but for McKagan, it’s fitting. His tour five years ago was nothing short of exceptional, living up to the expectations. Tonight had even loftier expectations and McKagan managed to knock it out of the park. Not only is it the best gig I’ve been to this year but like that one five years ago, I’ll be thinking about this night for a long time.

Photos by Coops Gig Photography