Following the release of their new album, ‘Human Algebra’, the band performed the new material live along with their back catalogue on what had originally been their postponed ‘Celebrate The Bullet’ album tour, with the jazzy saxophone funk of ‘Frontline’ before they played from that 1981 second album, marrying two-tone rhythms and singer Pauline Black’s mellifluent vocals in ‘Bristol and Miami’ and post-punk watery guitar track, ‘Deepwater’. They also did the title track single, ‘Celebrate The Bullet’.
Together with co-vocalist Arthur ‘Gaps’ Hendrikson, The Selecter also performed their recently released material in the way of depressing title single, ‘Human Algebra’ and anti-war reggae dub ‘War War War’, which samples lyrics from The Temptations’ 1969 anti-Vietnam song ‘War’. They continued this message on the Carribean vibes of additional new song, ‘Stop Them’. The band then played from their 1980 debut studio album, ‘Too Much Pressure’, with ‘Missing Words’, and covered the funky groove of The Ethiopians’ ‘Train to Skaville’, with its saxophone drives and Hendrikson’s freestyle rap.
The Selecter finished their set on punk-skank track ‘On My Radio’, coming back for band introductions, including that of legendary founding Selecter drummer, Charles ‘Aitch’ Bembridge, and doing an encore of Justin Hinds’ cover ‘Carry Go Bring Come’ and ‘Too Much Pressure’, both from their debut album.
05/05/23: The Selecter @ KOKO, London.
Photos © E. Gabriel Edvy/Blackswitch Labs.
© Ayisha Khan.