THE MULLET MONSTER MAFIA + YUR MUM + DEAD HOMBRES – THE PRINCE ALBERT, BRIGHTON 14.6.25
As is often the case, with so much music on offer in Brighton, we decided to take on two gigs this evening. The second of which was the current edition of the Stay Sick club night being held in the bar of The Hope & Ruin on Queens Road, which featured a blasting live set from local heroes Top Left Club – Read our account HERE.
First up though, we find ourselves a short brisk walk away at The Prince Albert where Brazilian psychobilly surf trio The Mullet Monster Mafia are playing their first ever Brighton concert, and their fourth overall UK gig, since their inception 17 years ago back in 2008. The previous three being on Wednesday at The Red Lion in Bristol, on Thursday at The Ferret in Preston, and last night in London at Signature Brew. Support this evening comes from fellow Brazilian (now UK based) duo Yur Mum and Surrey based trio Dead Hombres. This evening’s concert is a milestone for Shake Some Acton promoters as it’s the 100th event that they have put on, so congratulations to them!
The scene is being set for this evening’s trio of live performances by the sound and light technician whose choice of tunes to get folk in the mood somewhat matches my own likes. We had the likes of Buzzcocks ‘Fast Cars’, ‘(White Man) In Hammersmith Palais’ by The Clash, ‘Two Sevens Clash’ by Culture, a couple from PiL and Siouxsie & The Banshees were also in there!
As it’s the first time in Brighton for The Mullet Monster Mafia, let’s begin with them. They hail from Piracicaba in Brazil and consist of Neri “Emiliano Ramirez” on drums, Ed Lobo Tiko Lopez on Fender Stratocaster guitar and Jé Novaes on Fender bass. They are all compact fellas with tattoos and if you saw them walking towards you on a darkened alley, you might be forgiven in assuming that they are from “The Cartel”. The Mullet Monster Mafia label their sound as “Surf Punk with Metal and Psychobilly influences” and I certainly wouldn’t argue with that. The guys play for 46 minutes and offload an impressive 17 tracks within that timeframe. It’s therefore fair to state that none of the material outstayed its welcome. The eagle-eyed amongst you might have noticed that from the above list of band personnel, that no-one is listed as vocalist, this is simply because all of their material are instrumentals.
From 9:32pm until 10:18pm they let rip, with tunes thrown at us in batches, which are either segued straight into the next or with a millisecond between tracks. They warm us up with ‘Intro’ which is really a statement of intent to announce their arrival at the front of the room. The first real number is ‘Demon Attack’ which can be found on the ‘Retro Gaming Split’ 2020 album, which is a four-way release with them and a trio of other artists. It’s a frantic surf rock instrumental with a fast drumming beat. This very much sets the tone of what is to follow, which is ‘Sands Of Little England’ from 2013’s ‘Clash Of The Irresistible’ mini album. It’s evident that this trio don’t do things by half! Their deliveries are intense and they easily hold the punters attention. They then segue straight into a couple of cuts from 2019’s ‘I.N.F.E.R.N.O.’ album, these being ‘Dust Rain’ and the even faster ‘Surfing Punk Zombies’. It’s been an impressive delivery of psychobilly surf rock thus far to end this first block, and the Ramones ‘It’s Alive’ album intensity and delivery springs to mind. On a side note, I have to honestly say that ‘It’s Alive’ is still the best live album by anyone ever! My partner Jordan Mooney (RIP) also thought this right up until her untimely passing.
The trio have a well earned break as drummer Neri informs us that this is their first time in the UK. I later found out that they have actually been in Europe on eight previous occasions, but thanks to Shake Some Action, they are now finally in the UK. The guys then blast into the next block of four tunes, which comprises a trio of tracks from 2019’s ‘I.N.F.E.R.N.O.’ album (‘Speed Surfing Demons’, ‘Porno Diesel’ and ‘Fishwater Cataia’) and ‘Swamp’ from 2009’s ‘Power Surf Orchestra’ album. It really is surf psychobilly central during these tunes, they are dirty and gritty, filled with wah wah guitar action, and I scout around the room behind me in order to see if Brighton’s Electric Cowboy Club are in attendance. Sadly they aren’t, which is a shame as they would have really enjoyed it. It seems that South American bands always seem to push the boundaries of their chosen genres and The Mullet Monster Mafia certainly do what it says on the tin!
The lads take a brief break from their onslaught and Neri informs us that the next tune is a “new one” and then adds that they “wrote it two years ago” and that’s considered new to them. The song in question is 2023’s ‘The Storm’ single. This then segues straight into ‘Shot In The Dark’ from 2020’s ‘Retro Gaming Split’ album, which kicks off with an enjoyable bass rumble from Jé, followed by a fast drum beat from Neri. It sounded as though The Exploited had discovered surf rock! There was more surf rock and enjoyable guitar riffage on offer from Ed during ‘Hawaii’ from 2011’s ‘Dogs Of The Seas’ mini album, and this benefitted from a big rock style ending, before segueing straight into the speedy ‘Black Coffin Board’ from ‘I.N.F.E.R.N.O.’. ‘Banana Juice’ was next and I think they might have said that it was a cover of friends of theirs, but I’m assuming they aren’t referring to The Wiggles!
Neri then tells us that there’s just three more songs to go before he has his heart attack. The first of these was another intense psychobilly surf tune called ‘Break Beach’ which is found on their ‘Dogs Of The Seas’ mini album. This then segued straight into another track which according to their setlist was “DK”, and low-and-behold it was their tribute to the Dead Kennedys ‘Holiday In Cambodia’. They really got to grips with this and they made it a 12” extended version, which was most pleasing. They signed off with the title tune of their 2016 ‘Surf’n’Goat’ EP, and this really felt like GBH’s ‘No Survivors’ mixed with a surf sound and a big rock ending. Rebellion festival take note…book these guys!!! In the meantime, listen to their work on themulletmonstermafia.bandcamp.com.
The Mullet Monster Mafia:
Neri “Emiliano Ramirez” – drumz
Ed Lobo Tiko Lopez – guitarz
Jé Novaes – bazz
The Mullet Monster Mafia setlist:
‘Intro’ (unreleased)
‘Demon Attack’ (from 2020 ‘Retro Gaming Split’ various artists album)
‘Sands Of Little England’ (from 2013 ‘Clash Of The Irresistible’ mini album)
‘Dust Rain’ (from 2019 ‘I.N.F.E.R.N.O.’ album)
‘Surfing Punk Zombies’ (from 2019 ‘I.N.F.E.R.N.O.’ album)
‘Speed Surfing Demons’ (from 2019 ‘I.N.F.E.R.N.O.’ album)
‘Swamp’ (from 2009 ‘Power Surf Orchestra’ album)
‘Porno Diesel’ (from 2019 ‘I.N.F.E.R.N.O.’ album)
‘Fishwater Cataia’ (from 2019 ‘I.N.F.E.R.N.O.’ album)
‘The Storm’ (a 2023 single)
‘Shot In The Dark’ (from 2020 ‘Retro Gaming Split’ various artists album)
‘Hawaii’ (from 2011 ‘Dogs Of The Seas’ mini album)
‘Black Coffin Board’ (from 2019 ‘I.N.F.E.R.N.O.’ album)
‘Banana Juice’ (unreleased)
‘Break Beach’ (from 2011 ‘Dogs Of The Seas’ mini album)
‘Holiday In Cambodia’ (Dead Kennedys cover from 2013 ‘Clash Of The Irresistible’ album)
‘Surf’N’Goat’ (from 2016 ‘Surf’n’Goat’ EP)
www.instagram.com/themulletmonstermafia
Main support this evening came from Brazilian husband and wife duo Yur Mum who are Anelise Kunz on lead vocals and bass, plus Fabio Couto on drums and effects backing. Although they hail from Brazil they are actually these days based in London, and interestingly they actually recorded their last album, ‘Duality’ at Brighton Electric Studios. This evening the couple give us nine tunes across a 32 minute set, from 8:28pm to 9:00pm, with no less than six of them coming from last year’s ‘Duality’ record.
The first thing I can’t help noticing is Fabio’s luminous green drumsticks which look seriously cool as he kicks off with ‘Anhangá’ from ‘Duality’. It’s an onslaught right from the very start, and clearly the sound levels have been turned up since the opening set. Yur Mum’s music is loud and in-yer-face and if you just heard this music without watching them, then you might be forgiven in thinking that there are 5 people playing on stage! The title track from their 2021 ‘Tropical Fuzz’ album is their second selection and this has the same intensity as the opening number, and reminds me of a combination of Brighton’s SKiNNY MiLK and SNAYX. The tunes are coming fast and furious at us and choice three is ‘Say Say’ from ‘Duality’, which highlights exactly how tight an act they are, by both finishing on the exact millisecond. From time to time throughout the performance Anelise turns and faces Fabio to see that they are both bang on each note.
I’m pretty sure Yur Mum have already played the Rebellion festival, and at this rate, it wouldn’t surprise me if they were invited back every year! ‘Immigrant’ (from ‘Duality’) is up next and this sees Fabio on vocals via his call-centre style microphone, which isn’t quite as loud as Anelise’s conventional mic. They then segue straight into ‘New Beginnings’ (also from ‘Duality’), which has an even faster beat, and vocals return to Anelise for the rest of the set. ‘Hands To The Sky’ (from ‘Duality’) was a bit special as Anelise turned her back on us and stood in front of hubby and joined him on the drums, for the beginning of the tune. Her drumsticks were the standard colour and they were chucked across the stage when no longer required, as she had to split our ears with some loud bass chords. Interestingly, whilst they were both on the drums, it gave the feeling of Brazilian carnival rhythms.
I must state that the song that got me the most was ‘Same Igual’ (from ‘Duality’) on account of its fast punk rock beat, although interestingly we were informed that it was “about romance”. They then segued straight into ‘Sweatshop’ (from 2021’s ‘Tropical Fuzz’ album), and this was another fast track which benefited from almost tribal pounding drums. They signed off with another from ‘Tropical Fuzz’, this being ‘Je Ne Sais Pas’, which in English means ‘I Don’t Know’, and this tune speeds up and heads towards Motörhead territory. Anelise came into the crowd halfway through the track, which added to the bonding process. The punters clearly enjoyed the performance, and no doubt a few went home and checked out yurmum.bandcamp.com.
Yur Mum:
Anelise Kunz – bass, lead vocals
Fabio Couto – drums, vocals, presets
Yur Mum setlist:
‘Anhangá’ (from 2024 ‘Duality’ album)
‘Tropical Fuzz’ (from 2021 ‘Tropical Fuzz’ album)
‘Say Say’ (from 2024 ‘Duality’ album)
‘Immigrant’ (from 2024 ‘Duality’ album)
‘New Beginnings’ (from 2024 ‘Duality’ album)
‘Hands To The Sky’ (from 2024 ‘Duality’ album)
‘Same Igual’ (from 2024 ‘Duality’ album)
‘Sweatshop’ (from 2021 ‘Tropical Fuzz’ album)
‘Je Ne Sais Pas’ (from 2021 ‘Tropical Fuzz’ album)
Opening up proceedings tonight were Dead Hombres who on social media state that they offer “Primal Trashy Gothabilly Rock’n’Roll with howling feedback driven Gretsch Guitar, growling Rickenbacker bass swamped in Voodoo drum beats”. They comprise Nasty Nige’ Hombre (vocals, guitar), Traci Gotica Hombre (bass, vocals) and Cowboy Kev Hombre (drums, vocals) and this evening they play for 39 minutes (from 7:33pm to 8:12pm) and give us 11 compositions.
The multi-tattooed trio take to the stage and certainly look the part in their cowboy/cowgirl hats, cowboy/cowgirl boots (minus spurs) and neckerchiefs. They look like they are getting ready to rob a Wells Fargo horse-drawn carriage or rob a bank. They pick up their wireless white Gretsch guitar with bigsby, and wireless white Rickenbacker bass, and begin to deliver dirty gritty tunes with Americanised vocals. Clearly they are from El Paso in Texas! Oh OK then that’s stretching it a bit too far, as they are actually based in deepest darkest….Surrey! In fact, we learn that Traci is from Leatherhead. They kick off with a yet to be released song called ‘Under Your Skin’ and segue straight into ‘Baby From The Black Lagoon’, which is the first of nine consecutive tracks found on their ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ album from last year, which Nige’ often refers to as being “available at the back on the merch stand”.
Their sound has a rockabilly feel to it and tune three, ‘Street Walkin’ Zombie’ has a real Cramps vibe going down. Nige’ then announces that they are going to play their album’s title track ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ (which is “available at the back”). It becomes a long-running joke throughout the set, but honestly it’s an ideal way to support the artists! There’s some lovely echoey guitar action from Nige’ on ‘Hearts In Flames’, whilst Traci takes care of lead vocals. ‘Rockin’ Horse’ is their next selection and for me is the standout tune thus far with its slightly faster beat and more guitar echoes. For the punk rock styled ‘Crazy People’ we are invited to join in on the chorus “Hey hey we are the crazy people”. ‘Baby Moonrider’ comes next and I perceive it to be like The Clash meets Tom Petty, whereas my colleague says that it sounds like the WitchDoktors meets The Dogs D’Amour to him.
The rockabilly western sounding ‘Hombre’ is performed next, and followed by ‘Killing Machine’ which carries a nod or two to Vince Taylor’s ‘Brand New Cadillac’ which was famously covered by The Clash on their epic ‘London Calling’ album. (Note to self: “Hmmm I must dig out my vinyl and give it a spin really soon!”). It’s now time for their final number and both Traci and Nige’ vacate the stage with their cordless instruments, whilst Kev holds the fort behind the drumkit, for their take of ‘Rumble’ by Link Wray from his 1969 ‘Yesterday – Today’ LP. It’s a fine way to round off a solid set! ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ now not available at the back but on deadhombres.bandcamp.com.
Dead Hombres:
Nasty Nige’ Hombre – vocals, guitar
Traci Gotica Hombre – bass, vocals
Cowboy Kev Hombre – drums, vocals
Dead Hombres setlist:
‘Under Your Skin’ (unreleased)
‘Baby From The Black Lagoon’ (from 2024 ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ album)
‘Street Walkin’ Zombie’ (from 2024 ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ album)
‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ (from 2024 ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ album)
‘Hearts In Flames’ (from 2024 ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ album)
‘Rockin’ Horse’ (from 2024 ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ album)
‘Crazy People’ (from 2024 ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ album)‘Baby Moonrider’ (from 2024 ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ album)
‘Hombre’ (from 2024 ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ album)
‘Killing Machine’ (from 2024 ‘Guns, Gamblers And Ghosts’ album)
‘Rumble’ (Link Wray cover from his 1969 ‘Yesterday – Today’ album)
