THE MOLOTOVS + JEANIE AND THE WHITE BOYS – CHALK, BRIGHTON 5.9.26
We first reviewed The Molotovs back in April 2024 where they rocked on up at the Green Door Store as the support act for Laurie Wright. Without a doubt, it was certain that siblings Matt “Molotov” Cartlidge (lead vocals, guitar) and Issey “Carts” Cartlidge (bass, vocals) were going to go far! Our review that evening accurately concluded:
“There’s no doubt that The Molotovs are a phenomenally accomplished live unit. With their looks, style and Matt’s obvious songwriting prowess, it’s easy to imagine them achieving much wider recognition. I suspect that if the writer can one day escape the shadow of his hero and find his own unique voice, they’ll be unstoppable”.
Originally called The Mocktales, The Molotovs have indeed been unstoppable! A month after our debut encounter they were joined on stage at London’s Bush Hall by Sex Pistols drummer Paul Cook, playing ‘God Save The Queen’. In January 2025 they were snapped up by Marshall Records and by that date had amassed over 500 live performances including opening for The Libertines, Blondie, Iggy Pop and The Damned. It appeared that they were (and still are) one of the hardest working outfits in the business!
Two months later they dropped their debut single ‘More More More’ (not the 1976 Andrea True Connection tune) and opened for the Sex Pistols at the Royal Albert Hall and then went to North America with them. On 30th January this year they dropped their highly anticipated debut long player ‘Wasted On Youth’ which is an eleven track slab jam-packed with absolute gems! It’s a great way to while away a half an hour of your time. Not surprisingly it reached No.3 on the UK Albums Chart – The Molotovs had moved from relentless grassroots touring to national television, chart success and arena-level support!
Thankfully as The Molotovs are London based, they really aren’t adverse to chucking their equipment in the van and heading on down the A23 to Brighton. We’ve caught their energetic sets on 9th April 2025 at The Prince Albert, 22nd August 2025 at Patterns, 31st January 2026 at Resident Records, 13th May 2026 in the Komedia Basement and 17th May 2026 at The Hope Ruin. Tonight they are headlining the Chalk venue for the first time and it’s a totally sold out affair. This is a teaser for their forthcoming second album ‘Welcome To Urbia’ which contains 10 new tunes and is set for release on 9th April next year – Pre-order ‘Welcome To Urbia’ HERE.
Let’s start by stating that The Molotovs are not simply another nostalgia act, but if you’re a fan of the work of The Jam (I was fortunate to have seen their last ever gig) then it’s very likely that you already know The Molotovs. At their earlier concerts that I’ve been to, their gigs have been rammed with mainly aging male mod and Jam fans and I was fully aware that they were preaching to the converted, and really needed to open up their fan base. Thankfully as I look around Chalk tonight, that’s exactly what they have managed to achieve! There’s now a healthy cross-section of punters eager to see what Matt, Issey and the former drummer of defunct Brighton punk outfit Noah & The Loners, Noah Riley, have to offer us!
The trio take to the Chalk stage at 8:40pm as their backing tape blasts out ‘Saturn 5’ by Inspiral Carpets. To the rear of the stage on the high-rise is Noah who is sporting a snazzy Rioja coloured suit. In front of him to his right (our left) is Matt on lead vocals and guitar who is the re-incarnation of Paul Weller and wearing a blue and white striped suit atop a Paisley shirt. Across from Matt is his older sister Issey on Rickenbacker bass, who is also in blue and white (blue dress, white jacket). Matt addresses the crowd “Evening! Alright?” and they launch into ‘Johnny Don’t Be Scared’ from last year’s ‘Rhythm Of Yourself’ single. Immediately they sound exactly like The Jam! In fact all their tunes do, but this is them now in 2026 and not back in 1977. The tune has a false ending which gives the crowd time to bellow at the trio, before the track is resumed.
Tune two is last year’s ‘Rhythm Of Yourself’ single which is also on ‘Wasted On Youth’. It’s a slower number, but none-the-less Issey is very animated by pulling many poses and stances and using her bass as a prop, as her bleached blond locks flow about her. After this, Matt informs us that the next one is a new one, this being ‘Born In Society’ which is on their forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album. This signals absolutely no drop-off in form! It begins with Matt on guitar before Noah sets about showing what he can do on his kit. It’s the turn of ‘Daydreaming’ from ‘Wasted On Youth’ next and this one reminds me of Tommy Roe’s 1969 ‘Dizzy’ single, which Vic Reeves and the Wonder Stuff covered back in 1991 and took it all the way to the top of the UK singles chart.
Fan favourite ‘Geraldine’ from ‘Wasted On Youth’ gets a welcome outing next with its full-on punk energy. There’s another newbie next, with the arrival of ‘Join Us’ from next year’s ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album. I’m very, very much enjoying this tune, especially Issey’s backing vocals which are a carbon copy of the backing on ‘Promises’ by Buzzcocks. I’m telling you now, this will be a future fan favourite and one which I hope appears in their live sets for years to come! Suffice to say that on its conclusion it was very well received! Issey and Noah kick off ‘Today’s Gonna Be Our Day’ from ‘Wasted On Youth’, but it seems all is not well. There’s a few words exchanged between the siblings, something’s clearly up!
I’ve got a copy of this evening’s setlist and it should be ‘Down At The Cafe’ from their Urbia’ single next, but that gets dropped. Up next should have been ‘Is There Any Hope?’ from ‘Welcome To Urbia’ but that will come next after they offload their 2026 ‘Urbia’ single which will also be on ‘Welcome To Urbia’. The “ooooh la la la la” within this reminds me of Mink DeVille’s ‘Spanish Stroll’ and Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel’s ‘Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)’. After this, we learn that both Matt and Issey have throat infections, and as Matt is the lead vocalist, he really is starting to struggle, which is of great annoyance to him, and he clearly gets more and more upset with this situation. He informs us that he’s becoming worried that he will sound like “Freddy Krueger or Mickey Mouse”. Their situation is worsening and appropriately ‘Is There Any Hope?’ is now up next.
Two cuts from ‘Wasted On Youth’ appear to be dropped, these being ‘Father Flag’ and title tune ‘Wasted On Youth’. They move onto crowd favourite ‘More More More’ from ‘Wasted On Youth’, which is very much like The Jam, they crowd assist with handclaps here. It’s now come to a breaking point and Matt is really suffering so at 9:16pm the band leave the stage for 4 minutes, whilst I’m guessing Matt and maybe Issey seek medication and remedies. They return at 9:20pm. Matt has got rid of his jacket and shows off his shirt. ‘Father Flag’ is picked up here. They’ve dropped ‘My Metallic Wife’ from ‘Welcome To Urbia’ and ‘Get A Life’ from ‘Wasted On Youth’. They struggle on by performing ‘Newsflash’ from ‘Wasted On Youth’ which gets the punters eagerly clapping along. Although I’ve said “struggle”, struggling by Molotovs standard is still full-on action.
Matt addresses the crowd again, informing them that if at all possible that they are going to organise another gig at Chalk for the fans to see and come back again. He’s clearly upset with being unwell and really doesn’t want to let a single fan down, which is honourable. Their take on David Bowie’s ‘Suffragette City’ follows. ‘Nothing Keeps Her Away’ from ‘Wasted On Youth’, ‘The Man That Could Never Be’ and ‘You, Me – Shadow Boxer’ both ‘Welcome To Urbia’ are dropped. They leave us with ‘Come On Now’ from ‘Wasted On Youth’ which concludes at 9:32pm. We’ve had a 52 minute set comprising 14 of the proposed 21 tracks. I tell you what, I’m betting that virtually every fan does not feel short-changed in any way! But Matt is still clearly feeling guilty about the whole situation and says they will play again and starts to throw guitar picks into the crowd, and wouldn’t you know it, one got me right in the eye! I couldn’t see it coming because of the stage lighting. I understand that this was not intentional, so I won’t add to Matt’s stress.
Anyway, keep your eyes peeled for the new date. I guess that folk who prove that they purchased a ticket for this evening will be able to get free entry, or something like that. Right guys, it’s over to you!
The Molotovs:
Matt Molotov – vocals, guitar
Issey Carts – bass, vocals
Noah Riley – drums
The Molotovs ACTUAL setlist:
(Intro Tape: ‘Saturn 5’ by Inspiral Carpets)
‘Johnny Don’t Be Scared’ (from 2025 ‘Rhythm Of Yourself’ single)
‘Rhythm Of Yourself’ (from 2025 ‘Rhythm Of Yourself’ single & from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Born In Society’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Daydreaming’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Geraldine’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Join Us’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Today’s Gonna Be Our Day’ (from 2025 ‘Today’s Gonna Be Our Day’ / ‘No Time To Talk’ single & from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Urbia’ (from 2026 ‘Urbia’ single & from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Is There Any Hope?’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘More More More’ (from 2025 ‘More More More’ / ‘Suffragette City’ (Live From London) single & from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Father Flag’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Newsflash’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Suffragette City’ (David Bowie cover) (from 2025 ‘More More More’ / ‘Suffragette City’ (Live From London) single)
‘Come On Now’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
The Molotovs PROPOSED setlist:
(Intro Tape: ‘Saturn 5’ by Inspiral Carpets)
‘Johnny Don’t Be Scared’ (from 2025 ‘Rhythm Of Yourself’ single)
‘Rhythm Of Yourself’ (from 2025 ‘Rhythm Of Yourself’ single & from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Born In Society’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Daydreaming’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Geraldine’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Join Us’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Today’s Gonna Be Our Day’ (from 2025 ‘Today’s Gonna Be Our Day’ / ‘No Time To Talk’ single & from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Down At The Cafe’ (from 2026 ‘Urbia’ single)
‘Urbia’ (from 2026 ‘Urbia’ single & from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Is There Any Hope?’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Father Flag’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Wasted On Youth’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘More More More’ (from 2025 ‘More More More’ / ‘Suffragette City’ (Live From London) single & from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘My Metallic Wife’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Get A Life’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Newsflash’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘Suffragette City’ (David Bowie cover) (from 2025 ‘More More More’ / ‘Suffragette City’ (Live From London) single)
(encore)
‘Nothing Keeps Her Away’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
‘The Man That Could Never Be’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘You, Me – Shadow Boxer’ (from forthcoming 2027 ‘Welcome To Urbia’ album)
‘Come On Now’ (from 2026 ‘Wasted On Youth’ album)
Luckily for me, tonight’s special guest slot is being filled by Jeanie And The White Boys who other members of our team have previously reviewed in action at The Hope & Ruin back in July, and at last year’s ‘Mutations’ festival in November. This is their second visit to Chalk having supported HotWax back in February. We were supposed to be reviewing that one too, but were let down by the powers that be! I’ve heard and read great things about Jeanie And The White Boys and have been wanting to catch them for some time, and so tonight is the night!
We are in their company for 32 minutes from 7:40pm until 8:12pm and during that time we are rewarded with 9 mainly yet to be released tunes. They’re currently unsigned, but I personally can’t be seeing this to be the case for much longer based on what I witnessed this evening!
The musicians that take the stage are frontwoman Jeanie Crystal, who is centre of attention on vocals and occasional tambourine; and accompanying her are a trio of lads composed of Elston Murder on guitar, Andrew Sawdust on bass, and Caezar on drums. I’m sure the quartet were more than pleased as they came out onto the raised stage as the venue was heading towards full capacity, with folk arriving during the set. There’s a sizable audience to entertain, and entertain they certainly do!
There’s no crowd acknowledgement, they simply kick off with the brief and unreleased ‘Why Do You Want To Be Me Bitch?!’, which is immediately followed by last year’s ‘Queen Bee’ single. There’s copious amounts of retro New York City 1970’s punk attitude, action and bass and guitar riffs going down here, coupled with added Cramps vibes with higher pitched Clare (no “i”) Grogan vocals to be had. All eyes are drawn to Jeanie with her long bleached blond hair and sparkly silver dress, the girl has the look!
Jeanie informs the punters that they are going to play their debut single, this being 2025’s ‘The Big Udder Blues’, which if you were none the wiser would swear it had been released back in circa 1972! It starts at one pace and then seriously speeds up, which I’m certainly not adverse to. After this Jeanie tells us that the next number is dedicated to her ex-partner and that it’s titled ‘Don’t Look Now Satan’s Over There’. Elston starts this one off and then Caezar’s solid glam rock style drumming kicks in. Jeanie is at her most animated here, so I’m guessing that the previous relationship didn’t end well! Or as Jeanie puts it “The moral of the story is hatred gives great art!”.
Staying on a similar subject, we are told the next track is about a man, it’s title ‘I’m A Man’, and this commences with a joint bass and guitar slow strumming start, and then the drums kick in and there’s a real durrrty beat going on, before they revert back to the strumming again. Strangely, Jeanie’s vocals and demeanour remind me of Amy Winehouse, who sadly is a member of the 27 club along with Kurt Cobain.
Jeanie then dedicates the next song to another departed soul, this time around it’s Dolly Parton who recently passed aged 80. The quartet launch into ‘The Boo Hoo Girls’ and I swear that if the legendary John Peel had lived past his mere 65 years, he would seriously get behind this number! This sounds musically as if it could have been a Half Man Half Biscuit number, but obviously without the female vocals. It actually takes me unawares how much the music does sound like them. I’m beginning to think that if everything was correct and just in the world then Jeanie And The White Boys would be riding on the coattails of The Molotovs.
There’s more lyrics about relationships in the next number, this being ‘Girlfriend’, which we are informed is about not liking other boys’ girlfriends. This is yet another slice of punk loveliness and is my choice tune of the set, on account of it being like a female version of any Jilted John track. The singalong “laaa la la la” chorus is easy to learn as well. Jeanie end the track by screaming “I hate your f*cking girlfriend!” so that’s messaged received over and out!
During the set Jeanie is an energetic soul and certainly no shrinking violet as she pours on the seduction when required. I notice there’s a chemistry between her and Elston and she tells us that the next tune is written about her husband, who may very well be Elston? The song in question is called ‘No Rock ‘n’ Roll Man’, which is sadly their penultimate tune. They sign off with ‘Is The Rectum Grave?’ which has alternating music and vocals.
I’m not actually sure if Jeanie And The White Boys have ever played at Rebellion Festival in Blackpool, but if they haven’t then the organisers really need to get them on board for next year’s event, as they would go down a storm. There’s the coarseness in Jeanie’s manner accompanied with her punk mentality and their retro proto-punk sound that the punk rock fans would seriously lap up. Mind you they did play Glastonbury last year, and so I expect them to be gracing larger stages in the future!
Jeanine And The White Boys:
Jeanie Crystal – vocals
Elston Murder – guitar
Andrew Sawdust – bass
Caezar – drums
Jeanine And The White Boys setlist:
‘Why Do You Want To Be Me Bitch?!’ (unreleased)
‘Queen Bee’ (a 2025 single)
‘The Big Udder Blues’ (a 2025 single)
‘Don’t Look Now Satan’s Over There’ (unreleased)
‘I’m A Man’ (unreleased)
‘The Boo Hoo Girls’ (unreleased)
‘Girlfriend’ (unreleased)
‘No Rock ‘n’ Roll Man’ (unreleased)
‘Is The Rectum Grave?’ (unreleased)
www.instagram.com/jeanieandthewhiteboys
