THE DICKIES + VANILLA POD + $UP25th November 2001First up on stage were local band $up, their lively blend of ska punk with wailing saxophones and skanking bass beats restored the circulation to frozen feet. After a short interval, the second support Vanilla Pod took to the stage with a cacophony of ska punk fused with metal crossover. The Wisbech-based band had a good deal of support judging by all the Vanilla Pod tops thrashing around just in front of the stage.  As the crowd bayed for the headline act, there was a commotion over the far side of the bar area. The fact that at the heart of the matter was a 6ft 4in chicken could mean only one thing, The Dickies were here.Their line-up has stayed the same since 1977, with one exception, Olga the Geordie guitarist, among the West Coast twangs. Starting on a festive note with their own rendition of Silent Night, which was like the Vienna Boys Choir - being mauled by a bull. What followed was a tour de force of hits both old and new. Primarily diehard fans cheered the original material which included tracks like All This and Puppet Stew. Everyone went berserk over their UK hits, which comprise cover versions of the Moody Blues' Nights in White Satin and Black Sabbath's Paranoid. Dickies classics You Drive Me Ape and Gigantor brought out the obligatory gorilla mask, and had the gangly lead singer cavorting around stage like Superman with a beer towel for a cape. Olga was then asked to do his English toon, and he proceeded to do just that with an anthemic Nelly The Elephant. The highlight of the evening had to be the encore, which was my boyhood favourite, Banana Splits - the perfect homage to Fleagle, Bingo, Drooper and Snork. Del Singh, Peterborough Evening Telegraph |