![]() Chameleons (UK) will be touring the United States and Canada in 2022 with The Mission UK and Theatre of Hate”. ![]() Three additional bonus tracks of Chameleons Vox era live recordings round out this stunning release. “As things begin to open up and the world finds some sense of a new normal, Chameleons (UK) have joined with Metropolis Records to release “Edge Sessions (Live from the Edge)” a collection of seven classic Chameleons songs performed live in May of 2021 by founding members Mark Burgess and Reg Smithies, joined by more recent members Chris Oliver on guitar, and Stephen Rice on drums. An “I was there” moment for those lucky enough to have had tickets. We reviewed their show at Liverpool’s iconic Cavern Club a couple of months ago that is a concert that will go down as one of the famous venue’s landmark nights. And not without good cause, the chemistry and musical connection between Reg and fellow founder and vocalist/bassist Mark Burgess is almost telepathic. Since his return, the band’s live dates have been some of the most highly rated and widely reviewed gigs in recent times. Special thanks to animanocturnaofficial for the photographs.After various line-up changes, and touring as Chameleons Vox without founder member and inspirational guitar legend Reg Smithies, it is brilliant to see that he is now firmly back in the fold as a full-time band member. Luckily, Burgess continues touring to this day and he has carried the torch with the utmost grace. There is no pretense whatsoever, just an abject honesty and yearning that has been sustained ever since their first single, “In Shreds,” an intelligent punk classic that started off their trajectory in 1982, one that sadly turned out to be short lived. One of the greatest things about the group and their music is that their songs cover the spectrum between darkness and light.īurgess is one of those rare artists who is still so passionate in his delivery and yet humble in his stage presence, which is one of the reasons why The Chameleons will always be one of the best and most underrated bands around. ![]() “Tears” and the rarely performed “Paradiso” were introspective, gorgeous highlights while “Soul and Isolation” and “Swamp Thing” were sharp, political and visceral opuses. The entire set of The ChameleonsVox was an absolute joy, but even with that, there were some pinnacles, all of which were the tracks selected from their masterpiece, Strange Times. The band seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves as Burgess expressed his surprise and gratitude towards the rapturous audience a handful of times. The Sunset seemed like far too small of a venue for this concert, but that also meant that the sold out show afforded everyone in the audience a close vantage point to the stage. In mostly chronological order, they performed songs from their three legendary 1980s albums, Script of the Bridge (1983), What Does Anything Mean? Basically (1985) and Strange Times (1986). From then on, there wasn’t one moment that was a letdown. ![]() The night was already off to a ridiculously strong start when Mark Burgess and The ChameleonsVox launched into “A Person Isn’t Safe Anywhere These Days,” which sounded just about as powerful as ever. They belted out their material with impressive fortitude, culminating in the classic tribal anthem, “Do You Believe in the Westworld?” After his set, Theatre of Hate stepped onto the stage and immediately took command of the audience. Bill Pearis Published: MaChameleons frontman Mark Burgess and his current band ChameleonsVox will release a new EP of previously unfinished Chameleons songs. He strummed through his songs with conviction and his bare voice sounded both strong and vulnerable at the same time. Preceding the headline act, Gene Loves Jezebel’s Jay Aston played a solo acoustic set that was beautiful, honest and impressive. The concert itself was a UK post-punk dream. Mark Burgess and his current outfit, The ChameleonsVox, delivered on that response Friday evening in what turned out to be one of the very best shows that I have witnessed in a long time. Even as someone who is obsessed with music, it is rare to attend a performance that induces goose bumps, let alone one that does so several times.
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