Billy Childish & The Musicians Of The British Empire

While the twin fingers of fame and fashion have periodically wavered in his direction, Billy Childish continues to plough his own furrow; not so much anti-fame as apparently oblivious to it. Since his first recordings in the late '70s with the Pop Rivets, Childish has followed a single-minded course under a variety of monikers including the Headcoats, the Milkshakes, the Mighty Caesars and more recently the Buff Medways. Childish hasn't really deviated from his punky Kinks-Who-Bo Diddley-Link Wray formula. Childish claims to eschew the quest for “originality” as futile and cites “authenticity” as his goal. Arguably, the latter is the more chimerical of the two, but; if you define authenticity as a lack of ulterior motives and a general artistic integrity then Childish and the the MBEs have it nailed.When you look at the endless cookie-cutter music that fills the airwaves and the cliché-hugging Stepford musicians that pass for “rock bands” these days, the legions of endlessly hyped, all-haircut-and-no-music bands that abound, you realise just how much the world needs someone like Billy Childish.Live gigs generally have an off-the-cuff, relaxed, authentic atmosphere that Childish has worked to maintain since his punk-era roots. Childish’s well-known distrust of so much of what constitutes modern popular culture is well known, but this should not be construed as some sort of knee-jerk misanthropy. The atmosphere is as intimate and welcoming as they come, the audience are obviously kindred spirits.Childish’s vocals are all delivered in his distinctive reedy-but-expressive Medway voice and his guitar playing sticks largely to his key loves (Link Wray, Dave Davies, Townshend, Downliners Sect, etc). The spirit of punk looms large with echoes of the Stooges, the Roxy club in ’77 and the whole no-nonsense ethic of punk; but in many ways the the band’s collective persona harks back to more supposedly innocent days, pre-rock ‘n’ roll, pre-First World War even. Retro? Perhaps, but there is a unique personality, a warmth and a sense of humour at work here that mere copyists or revivalists lack completely. Every so many years Billy Childish is cited by some top-selling or influential band as the embodiment of rock'n'roll integrity (which, indeed, he is), and every so many years Billy splits his group up and starts again from scratch. With his latest combo, The Musicians of the British Empire, Billy carries on his tradition of home made punk and rhythm and blues, singing odes to Joe Strummer and nodding to The Who, whilst showing the next generation what a real rock ’n’ roll group sounds like.