Words by Ed King / Live pic by Stalingrad O’Neill
Lobster – Birmingham’s beloved ska, punk, reggae six piece – will be launching their debut album, Year of the Lobster, at The Night Owl on Saturday 4 November, with support from Young Culture.
Doors open at 8pm, with tickets priced at £6 advance and a bit more on the door.
Live music runs until 11pm, with all tickets gaining entry to The Night Owl’s soul and retro club night Dig? – which runs until the early hours of 4am. Over 18’s only.
For more direct event information and links to online tickets sales, click here.
Lobster formed back in 2009 and have spent the last decade and a half honing their high octane live shows – combining reggae, roots, dub, punk, hip hop, and ska with politically charged lyrics and superbly tight performances.
Their unique style – which boldly begs, borrows, and steels from across the genres – has won them fans across the UK and seen them support some of the reggae and ska scenes most revered faces. Put it this way, after they’ve safely launched their debut LP this Saturday the next date in the Lobster diary (2 Dec) is supporting ska legend Nevile Staples… so, yeah, we’re talking that kind of thing.
Surprisingly for such an established group, Year of the Lobster is the band’s first album release – featuring “twelve tracks that capture the very best material” from their fourteen years of live shows, recorded at the renowned Magic Garden Studios in Wolverhampton.
Opening with a trumpet led instrumental dub, Year of the Lobster moves quickly into a tennis match of upfront reggae and upbeat ska – with Will ‘Spud’ Moore’s instantly recognisable vocals punching out his dulcet yet dissecting socio-political commentary.
Tracks like ‘Bob and Weave’, ‘Workless Work Songs’, and ‘Plebxit’ shine a light on our primarily domestic disputes, whilst ‘Messiah (COINTELPRO)’ delivers a gut punch to the murky world of international politics and some less-than-transparent regimes.
Lobster also turn the torch on themselves with the more personal and introspective ‘10 Year Song’, and celebrate their collaborations with dub poet More Culture on ‘The First Bird’ and through a reworking of the Operation Ivy classic ‘Knowledge’.
Plus, the physical album is draped in awesome artwork from local artist VOID ONE – making Year of the Lobster a treat both your eyes and ears will thank you for. If you love the love of really loving vinyl, you’re going to… well, you figuratively and literally get the picture.
And look out for our interview with Lobster next week – talking more to Birmingham Review about everything from being shot at with an air rifle at their very first gig, to why they finally decided to print their debut album.
But for now, all you need to do is concentrate on getting to The Night Owl on Saturday 4 November to celebrate the launch of a long awaited LP from one of Birmingham’s punk, ska, and reggae outfits. Simples.
And if you need another little nudge…
Year of the Lobster – official album teaser
Lobster launch their debut album Year of the Lobster at The Night Owl, Digbeth, on Saturday 4 November – with support from Young Culture. For more event information and links to online ticket sales click here.
For more on Lobster visit: www.lobstertheband.co.uk
For more on Young Culture visit: www.youngcultureband.bandcamp.com
For more from The Night Owl, including a full events programme and links to online ticket sales, visit: www.birmingham.thenightowl.club