Post-punk legends Public Image Ltd (aka PiL) have recently taken to the road on a massive North American tour, including a stop at San Francisco’s historic Fillmore on a balmy Saturday that left few excuses to catch “This Is Not The Last Tour” live.
The mostly middle-aged crowd trickled in slowly, skipping the merch table in favor of the bar, the volume from the gathered crowd gradually rising in proportion to the amount of alcohol poured. Those who were lucky and wise enough to get there in time for the opening act were treated to a riveting set by SoCal’s Plague Vendor.
No stranger to the punk rock tour circuit, Plague Vendor landed the plum opening slot on this massive tour and hit the stage like a ton of bricks, ready to win over an untapped audience. What San Francisco got was a renewed Plague Vendor than they may have seen previously, rejuvenated by the addition of Henri Cash (Starcrawler) on guitar, who did more than his share to contribute to the boot-scootin’ and absolute mayhem on stage.
Admittedly, the older crowd wasn’t quite up for the action that frontman Brandon Blaine was egging for, failing to be goaded out of the balcony or into a circle pit when he hopped into the crowd. Nevertheless, Plague Vendor no doubt made a lasting impression, if not with their searing riffs and swagger, then at least for cramming as many notes as possible into their brief 30-minute James Brown meets Iggy Pop set.
Thirty minutes was plenty of time for the crew to clear Plague Vendor’s equipment from the stage and set things up for PiL. Just the necessities: 4 monitors surrounding a mic and music stands, on the drum riser, a fifth of booze, an unmarked bottle of clear liquid that seemed a bit more hydrating, and a lone trash can (its purpose not immediately clear).
The band strode on stage promptly at 9 p.m., frontman John Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten) taking up position center stage as the band launched into “Public Image” from their 1978 debut. The packed floor was palpably stoked as Lydon’s vocals soared and the band chunked out those chorus-laden grooves. It was immediately clear that it would be a special night.
How special it would be became evident early in the set during “World Destruction” (Lydon’s 1984 collab with Afrika Bambaataa) when the power to the stage abruptly cut out. Thankfully, the microphone still worked, allowing John to riff for the crowd while the crew scurried for a solution. He first led the crowd in an a capella rendition of America’s “A Horse With No Name” (which ironically he knew all the words to) before moving on to some shit-talking about his former bandmates whose good names were finally saved from further disparagement by some electricity.
With no attempt at resurrecting “World Destruction,” Lydon screamed, “Love Song,” and the crowd once again went apeshit for one of the band’s mega-hits. With the set back on track, the band was perfectly suited for the room and vice versa—the sound was absolute perfection.
Even Lydon, clearly ailing based upon the frequent spewing of snot onto the stage (he later claimed, “no one has died yet from anything that I’ve got”), sounded spot on, his vocals soaring through the room. And goddam if that old curmudgeon wasn’t having just as good a time as everyone else; attentive and aware of everything going on in the front rows and with that acerbic wit on full display.
The momentum of the evening flagged shortly during “Death Disco” and “Warrior,” after which Lydon exclaimed, “Well, like you, we’re bored,” and launched into “Shroom” with a scream of “F*** YOU.” With a bit of encouragement, the SF crowd eventually chanted along, after which Lydon almost looked like he didn’t want to leave the stage. Alas, there were pressing matters at hand. “I need a Marlboro cigarette; give me 3 minutes. And make as much noise as LA could not!”
It might have been slightly more than 3 minutes when the band finally retook the stage for the encore, no doubt encouraged by the enthusiastic crowd that did their best to meet Johnny’s demands. Kicking off the encore with a heartfelt, “I guess you kind of liked us a little bit,” before launching into “Rise,” PiL finally wrapped up their truly amazing set with “Chant” and a promise of a new record. Thankfully, this is not the last tour, as Public Image is operating at peak form.
PLAGUE VENDOR
