The Stranglers in Exeter

Friday saw me in the old Roman town of Exetercester to see The stranglers and they were better form than ever. The fab four work well together after several years as a five piece following the amicable departure of Paul Roberts in 2006. The current tour features all the singles played in order, although the encore has to No More Heroes. Anything else would be just wrong. That bass intro is real body music - you feel it in your chest rather than hear it.

After a few health problems, Jet Black is playing with them again. He is 70 after all but you wouldn't know it from his drumming. Apparently, he invented a special bass drum pedal that has brought greater creative freedom and comfort to drummers. On Friday, JJ said Jet Black was back the dead, which was a back handed compliment. there was always something sinister about The Stranglers so a little resurrectionism adds to their mystique.

I'm not a die hard fan because some of their stuff is a bit experimental for me but when they rock they rock. The good thing about not being 100% familiar with their work is that they can pull something out of their back catalogue that pleasantly surprises me. This happened on Friday nite even among their singles. There's still a lot for me to discover about The Stranglers and I enjoy the prospect of future pleasant surprises. And the old favourites are real favourites.