LENE LOVICH + SCARE TAXI + DARLING BLACK – THE PRINCE ALBERT, BRIGHTON 25.10.26
Now here’s an interesting fact pop-pickers…Detroit-born legendary post-punk pop singer Lene Lovich (born Lili Marlene Premilovich) provided the lyrics for Cerrone’s disco smash ‘Supernature’, a 12” that I’ve caned to death down the decades! It’s miles away from what we perceive as the quirky Lovich sound, but this simply highlights the talent of this now 77 year young lady.
As you are probably aware, Lene hit near the top of the UK charts with her single ‘Lucky Number’ in 1979, which not only peaked at No.3 over here, but also in The Netherlands and New Zealand, and went one better in Australia, when it stalled at No.2. The tune also hit the Top 10 in Belgium and Ireland.
Lene moved to England at the age of 13, where she met guitarist and songwriter Les Chappell, who later became her long-time music collaborator and life partner. Her unique vocal delivery, eccentric hairstyle, clothing and quirky sense of humour very much sets her apart from the rest of the crowd. Quite rightly so, Lene was crowned the “Queen of Quirk”, influencing a generation of pop and alternative acts, from Nina Hagen to Boy George, and from Madonna to Dresden Dolls.
A normally reclusive figure, Lovich turned her back on the limelight after her third album ‘No Man’s Land’ was released in 1982 amid disagreements with her record company about her unwillingness to compromise her groundbreaking visual style for the then newly emergent MTV. Subsequently she has recorded only two albums in the last thirty years. Lovich’s unique vocal and visual style, along with her catchy but experimental songwriting, has exerted a huge influence over alternative pop culture and garnered her many plaudits and continued interest. She has been described as everything from “Kate Bush on acid” to “the New Wave Maria Callas”. Her hits ‘Lucky Number’, ‘Say When’, ‘Bird Song’ and ‘New Toy’ are still regular features in the clubs and radio of Europe, Japan, Australia and the USA.
Despite Lene being around for 50 years in the music business, I hadn’t actually seen her live in person until Saturday 24th May 2025, where she headlined at the very venue, namely The Prince Albert. It was rammed that time and again it sold out this evening. There’s no room to move! I again caught Lene in action at the O2 Arena in London on 20th June this year, where she was sharing the bill with The B-52s, Devo and The Rezillos, which was something rather special!
Once again, this evening Lene is joined by her trusty band of quality musicians, which comprise Skeletal Family founding member Stan Greenwood on cordless guitar, Morgan King on drums, Val Gwyther aka ‘Valkyrie’ from The Priscillas on cordless Fender Precision bass, and Sarah Fisher on keys, who I have previously seen as part of Hazel O’Connor’s band. All on stage offer Lene backing vocal duties as well. Their set lasts 65 minutes from 9:12pm to 10:17pm, and includes 14 choice cuts. They arrive to a tape playing ‘The Fall’ from the 12” edition of 1980’s ‘Angels’ single.
They open with ‘Savages’ from 1981’s ‘New Toy’ EP and Lene cuts a mysterious figure as she has an extensive head covering which virtually covers all of her face, but thankfully this is discarded after this opener. It must be said that from the very start that Lene’s vocal prowess is as good as it was when she burst onto the scene all those decades ago, and her skin complexion on her face does not signal her true age.
Song two is ‘Blue Hotel’ from 1982’s ‘No Man’s Land’ album with its “whaa whaa” vocals and organ sound, which from where I’m standing on the opposite side of the stage to Sarah, is sadly down in the mix, as it is throughout a majority of the set. ‘Momentary Breakdown’ from 1978’s ‘Stateless’ album came and went and was followed by the faster ‘Maria’ from ‘No Man’s Land’, which isn’t the Blondie song of the same name. Lene’s song initially begins like the Strangers 1977 ‘(Get A) Grip (On Yourself)’ which in my eyes is a good thing. Lene has a captivating aura about her and it’s fascinating watching her expressive eyes as she sings the tracks. Sticking with girls names Lene and the band perform ‘Joan’ from’s 1980 ‘Flex’ album, which sees Lene on saxophone for the only time this evening, this track very much reminded me of The Piranhas and X-Ray Spex, and it’s the best received tune thus far!
The Thomas Dolby penned ‘New Toy’ came next, which I’m always a sucker for, and was followed by ‘Never Never Land’ from the ‘New Toy’ EP. ‘Bird Song’ from ‘Flex’ was performed next with its reggae drumbeat and screams from Lene. With Lene and the gang there really isn’t a mid-set lull and her big hitters are sandwiched in the middle as opposed to appearing at the end, thus we are served ‘Say When’ followed by ‘Lucky Number’, with ‘Say When’ having a drum break like Racey’s ‘Some Girls’ whilst the band waves their arms around as in signalling to a plane where to land. Obviously it goes without saying that for ‘Lucky Number’ all the punters are singing “Ah! Oh! Ah! Oh!”. Finally Sarah’s keyboards could be heard clearly during ‘One In A 1,000,000’ from 1978’s ‘Stateless’ album, along with Val’s notable bass plucking.
The newest tune of the set came next, the 21 year old ‘The Wicked Witch’ from 2005’s ‘Shadows And Dust’ album, which, for me, highlighted Lene’s mystical otherworldly Eastern European (Serbian) descent. The penultimate track, was another set highlight, this being ‘Angels’ from ‘Flex’ which had the sound as if it had been released by Hazel O’Connor. The Eastern European feel continued through into ‘Home’ from ‘Stateless’ with its mashup “laa laa Laa” folk meets Banshees guitar and drums offerings. Lene introduces her bandmates, thanks both support acts and the sound man and they reprise ‘Home’ and at 10:17pm that’s our lot! It’s been another enjoyable evening in their company!
Lene Lovich:
Lene Lovich – lead vocals, saxophone
Sarah Fisher – keys, ipad, backing vocals
Stan Greenwood – guitar, backing vocals
Morgan King – drums, backing vocals
Val Gwyther – bass, backing vocals
Lene Lovich setlist:
(Intro tape) ‘The Fall’ (from 1980 ‘Angels’ 12” single)
‘Savages’ (from 1981 ‘New Toy’ EP)
‘Blue Hotel’ (from 1982 ‘No Man’s Land’ album)
‘Momentary Breakdown’ (from 1978 ‘Stateless’ album)
‘Maria’ (from 1982 ‘No Man’s Land’ album)
‘Joan’ (from 1980 ‘Flex’ album)
‘New Toy’ (from 1981 ‘New Toy’ EP & 1991 US reissue of 1980 ‘Flex’ album)
‘Never Never Land’ (from 1981 ‘New Toy’ EP)
‘Bird Song’ (from 1980 ‘Flex’ album)
‘Say When’ (from 1978 ‘Stateless’ album)
‘Lucky Number’ (from 1978 ‘Stateless’ album)
‘One In A 1,000,000’ (from 1978 ‘Stateless’ album)
‘The Wicked Witch’ (from 2005 ‘Shadows And Dust’ album)
‘Angels’ (from 1980 ‘Flex’ album)
‘Home’ (including reprise) (from 1978 ‘Stateless’ album)
There were two support acts this evening, first up was one woman goth tinged brutalist synthpop artist Dylan Hundley who goes under the banner of Darling Black, who was followed by local post-punk, goth-pop and alternative rockers Scare Taxi.
I suppose that it really shouldn’t surprise me that Darling Black is part of this evening’s lineup as Dylan’s brand of everything synth sits very nicely in the continual aim of tonight’s organiser, Frank Drake, under his Flag Promotions guise. A journey that began 49 years ago when he and his former partner Peter Gilbert (RIP) started producing top quality fanzines on the acts that excited them. The A4 size fanzine in question was called ‘In The City’ and was the go-to purchase if you wished to stay ahead of the pack, and find out what the rising stars in the world on new wave (and the like) were up to. I might still have a few copies somewhere in my loft! I can recall Ultravox!, Adam Ant and Gary Numan being featured. Numan being a big part of Frank and Pete’s lives as they used to put on ‘Numan Discos’ at The Flag in Wembley, which were always fun and you’d often get a few VIP’s attending. I’m sure if the Numan Discos or ‘In The City’ were still going that Darling Black would be featured!
Darling Black’s debut release ‘It Wasn’t Supposed To Be Like This’ EP dropped during our second period of Covid lockdown in December 2020. After some time, the second release finally emerged in June 2024, this being the ‘Dial’ single. Last year was thankfully more productive with the release of a trio of singles: a cover of Sinead O’Connor’s ‘Jackie’, followed by the self-penned ‘Deep Down In The Ground’, and a quality take on John Cale’s ‘Rosegarden Funeral Of Sores’ which appeared on Bauhaus’ ‘Press The Eject And Give Me The Tape’ album in 1982. The Darling Black self-titled debut long-player came out last October, and it includes another cover, this being Yoko Ono’s ‘Walking On Thin Ice’. This April witnessed Killing Joke’s Martin “Youth” Glover’s ‘Champagne Remix’ of ‘8th And Alvarado’ from the album.
Tonight we are in Dylan’s company for around half an hour and during this period we are given 8 songs. It’s a solo set, with the tools of the trade to hand, a small box attached to her microphone stand and a Novation synth. She cuts a striking figure with blond flowing locks and is dressed in black. Half of the set can be found on her album, the first of these being the sub two minute quirky ‘Shock’ with its repeated “What do we mean by shock?”. The Suicide-esque ‘In Cold Blood’ from the 2020 ‘It Wasn’t Supposed To Be Like This’ EP follows, which peaks the punters attention.
It’s back to the album with the arrival of ‘8th And Alvarado’ which is very much in the same vein. Each line is dramatically delivered with over-exaggerated hand gestures and theatrical stares, as is the case throughout the set. ‘Dial’ from the album follows and is quite possibly my fave as it reminds me of early Simple Minds work, especially ‘I Travel’. It has a more mainstream feel to it unlike the previous numbers, which would sit well with the likes of Gazelle Twin. Two more tunes are played and I think these are currently unreleased, after which we get the dirty synth beats of ‘Deep Down In The Ground’, and Dylan signs off with the title tune from 2020’s ‘It Wasn’t Supposed To Be Like This’ EP, which ventures back into the world of Suicide. Suffice to say that the room really enjoyed her set!
Darling Black:
Dylan Hundley – vocals, keys
Darling Black setlist:
‘Shock’ (from 2025 ‘Darling Black’ album)
‘In Cold Blood’ (from 2020 ‘It Wasn’t Supposed To Be Like This’ EP)
‘8th And Alvarado’ (from 2025 ‘Darling Black’ album)
‘Dial’ (from 2025 ‘Darling Black’ album)
‘Selective’ (unreleased)
‘Death Rider’ (unreleased)
‘Deep Down In The Ground’ (from 2025 ‘Darling Black’ album)
‘It Wasn’t Supposed To Be Like This’ (from 2020 ‘It Wasn’t Supposed To Be Like This’ EP)
Find Darling Black’s material on her Bandcamp page HERE.
After a short interlude, and time to grab a pint, we are back in the room with Scare Taxi who I’m sure are dead chuffed that the first floor music venue is already rammed! They are to give us 10 tracks, with the first of which dropped 7 years ago, this being the earworm that is ‘Fly’ from 2019’s ‘Death By Music’ album, which was recorded at Brighton’s 7.83Hz Studios. “I’ve got a fly in my eye there’s a fly in my eye, in my eye and it’s making me itch; I have a fly in my eye there’s a fly in my eye, in my eye and it’s making me twitch..” sings vocalist/bassist Tara Guitara Harley, whose own eyes are very expressive as she outpours the lyrics. This evening, she has gone for the two tone half black and half white hairstyle which really suits.
Not to be outdone is partner in crime Alexander Boag, who takes care of guitar, vocals, presets throughout the set. The presets are sprung into action with the tap of his white booted foot which allows the drum machine etc to come into play. The boots very much remind me of those seen on the front cover of Joe Jackson’s debut long-player ‘Look Sharp!’ from 1979, and indeed Alexander does look sharp, with his trademark mop of black proto-punk glam rock hair, and New Romantic white shirt, as he throws his cordless Squier Telecaster Deluxe around.
Circa 2015, Tara, unable to make enough noise alone, cajoled Boag to play guitar on her songs. The clash of sounds made perfect sense. Fast forward to August 2017, Scare Taxi debuted at The Wedding Present’s ‘Edge of the Sea Festival’ and have played with Electric Six, Membranes, S*M*A*S*H, Art Brut & The Ramonas.
Like Darling Black, the Scare Taxi music output took a bashing in the Covid times, but thankfully the duo emerged unscathed, and May 2024 witnessed the release of their ‘Gimme Sensation’ single, followed by ‘Personality Junkyard’ and ‘El Lobo Solitario’ the following month.
Back to this evening and selection two is their latest offering is ‘Perfectly Cruel’. Despite being hemmed in due to the Lene Lovich Band’s equipment already in situ, the duo still manage to pull off the moves, and alternate lead vocals from track to track. By my reckoning, 4 of the 10 songs are unreleased, two of these arrive next ‘Animal Heart’ and ‘Hissing Sid’, after which we are served their ‘Gimme Sensation’ 2024 single. The jam-packed crowd appear to be enjoying the set, with even one punter somehow making enough room to have a little dance!
During the performance, I note that Tara’s Squier bass often sounds as though it could be playing on a Siouxsie & The Banshees tune, and so Scare Taxi’s goth and post-punk elements truly shine through, none more so than on newbie ‘This Is My Skin My Life’. Their 2024 ‘El Lobo Solitario’ single is up next, after which we receive the second and final cut from their album, this being ‘Anna’ which is a solid number. Alexander thanks John on sound and lights, who did a great job all night, and the duo leave us with their ‘Personality Junkyard’ single and the unreleased ‘Senseless’. Suffice to say that there wasn’t a single weak link in tonight’s offerings and they went down well with the punters.
Scare Taxi:
Tara Guitara Harley – bass, vocals
Alexander Boag – guitar, vocals, presets
Scare Taxi setlist:
‘Fly’ (from 2019 ‘Death By Music’ album)
‘Perfectly Cruel’ (a 2026 single)
‘Animal Heart’ (unreleased)
‘Hissing Sid’ (unreleased)
‘Gimme Sensation’ (a 2024 single)
‘This Is My Skin My Life’ (unreleased)
‘El Lobo Solitario’ (a 2024 single)
‘Anna’ (from 2019 ‘Death By Music’ album)
‘Personality Junkyard’ (a 2024 single)
‘Senseless’ (unreleased)
