Words: Captain Long John Silva, Photos: Richie Yates
After surviving a mutiny and being adrift at sea; travelling to Mars via a cosmic portal and ending up washed on California’s shores, what else could happen to a psychedelic degenerate on the lookout for great music and legendary times?
As it happens – quite a lot: such as following Thee Lucifer Sams to the ends of Earth (well, Iceland, Vietnam, Germany, Morocco…), learning embroidery, being jailed in a Turkish prison, and unsuccessfully trying to boil an egg. Only two of these statements are true, but you get the picture
In short – our long journey arc leads us, eventually, back to Liverpool, where we catch the last classic rock stars in town, The Gentle Scars.
Liverpool is the Birthplace of The Beatles and Mathew Street is the epicentre of Beatlemania. But sadly, in 2025, Mathew street is nothing but a tourist trap for Beatles fans, and the epicentre of bad cover music, played inevitably and obnoxiously loud.
The only reason locals end up on Mathew Street is to get intoxicated on cheap drinks, and hey hey, The Gentle Scars are locals, which means singer Ste is raring to go from the off!
The ‘Scars had many different lineups over the years, and after almost two decades of activity, they’ve never sounded better or tighter. On this mild Sunday evening, they are probably the hottest rock n roll thing the audience will have witnessed all weekend, as part of the annual International Pop Overthrow free music festival.
Singer Ste mocks, sneers at and teases the crowd, who nod along and seems to enjoy the vintage rock ‘roll vibes. The band doesn’t care, and just plays on. They don’t have a product to sell, and even if they did, most people wouldn’t buy anyway. But! For the moments when they are on stage, they totally capture the audience’s attention with a powerful, tight performance.
In an ideal world, The Gentle Scars would be a massive band who’ve by now gone rubbish and irrelevant, like famous bands are wont to do. Instead, they remain Liverpool’s dirty little secret, playing with an energy bands half their age lack, with a sound that has more in common with Hanoi Rocks and New York Dolls than Merseybeat. As they sing in one of their best tunes, their music inhabits a different world – a “Mondo Trasho”.
If you haven’t seen them live yet do yourself a favour and check them out ,soon as you can.
Links
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegentlescars
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thegentlescars_
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/the-gentle-scars