Pissed Jeans & Ahmed & The Romans - Gorilla, Manchester (16/8/25)

Ahmed & The Romans are a local based garage rock band. They have two guitars and no bass but the sound is pretty beefy with a satisfying amount of distortion and doesn't suffer from the lack of bass. One stomping number brings The White Stripes to mind maybe with a touch of Big Chief thrown in. Ahmed is a striking figure, with his shades and mop of curly hair. His stage presence is a bit more laid back than his style but he does have a certain amount of charisma. The band have a great feel for what the other members are playing, as demonstrated when they break it down and seemingly improvise whilst Ahmed just shakes his head in an unhinged manner. They're a band I've wanted to catch for a while and they are really good.

Pissed Jeans open with 'Killing All The Wrong People', its driving beat being supplemented by angular, chaotic guitars. The singer Matt Korvette yells into the mic whilst jerking his body violently. The sludgy Melvins-esque 'No Convenient Apocalypse' gets people nodding their heads and rocking back and forth in appreciation. 'Anti-Sapio' is fast and furious grungy punk. 'Ignorecam' gets the crowd moving even though it is seriously headache inducing (in a good way). This is music designed to make you uncomfortable. The bottom end of 'Cafeteria Food' is really loud and heavy and this makes the crawling noise rock particularly good. The anthemic 'The Bar Is Low' is really impressive. The chaotic, messy punk of 'Bathroom Laughter' is sheer madness. 'Cling To A Poisoned Dream' keeps the punk energy up. The guitarist Brad isn't feeling well and he is sweating profusely and doesn't look in a good way but he still gives it his all. Although it is only half full, everyone is packed fairly closely together and it is getting pretty hot and sweaty in here, and a pulsating '...Romanticize Me' doesn't make it any cooler. The visceral climax of 'Junktime' is incredible. The Fucked Up flavoured prog punk of 'Moving On' has a memorable yobbish chorus and is utterly amazing. The rabble rousing, messy punk of 'False Jesii Part 2' closes the set in an emphatic fashion. And that is it. No encore. No bullshit. Just pure fucking punk. Amazing.

Pissed Jeans ****

Ahmed & The Romans ****