The Lexington, London
Back in the late 80’s/early 90’s a Alternative Rock band fronted by Christian Riou called Claytown Troupe were exciting audiences up and down the country. The band released their impressive debut album Through The Veil and with a hardcore following of fans; went off on major tours with The Cult, Pearl Jam, The Wonder Stuff and The Mission.
The band were commonly labelled under the Gothic Rock bander due to their following, however their sound featured lots of unique elements and influences giving them quite a different sound from the typical elements of that genre. Sadly by the second album, they had left from Island Records after the company was sold to Polygram. They signed to EMI Records USA and released their 2nd album “Out There”, which failed to gain the momentum that the band had hoped for and the band eventually split.
Christian has reformed the band with different line-ups a couple of times over the years after being invited to play at various events. 2024 has seen renewed interest in the band and a new line-up have been put together featuring the top class rhythm section of Damon Williams (Bass), Kurt Phillips (Drums) along with Dave Weiss (Keys) who has worked revamping the keyboard soundscape for this new era and former fan Mark Stratton (Guitar) who joined after a impressive audition.
The band have been gifted a once in a life time opportunity to join The Mission for a gig in Dubai, along with The Chameleons and IST IST at the “Duty Free Tennis Stadium” on 23rd November. In preparation for the event the band are playing a few low key shows as a warm-up, the first was on a Sunday afternoon in Guilford and the second is tonight at The Lexington grassroots music venue found somewhere between Islington and Kings Cross in London. The low key aspect of the gigs have demanded a pseudonym and the band are going under the name of “The Mud City Group”.
After an atmospheric intro the band power onto the stage to the familiar instrumental sounds of “Bury My Heart”. Christian arrives delivering a powerful vocal, looking quite different to how he once did. Gone have the long brown locks and they have been replaced with a short grey mop with matching Tache… a little like Anthony Kiedis!
There are quite a few familiar faces in the crowd who followed the band back in the day and like Christian, most of us are a little grey around the edges. The music starts to work its magic and I feel the hairs standing up on the back of my neck as “Hey Lord”, “The Veil”, and “Ways of Love” are delivered. The band all seem to be really well rehearsed and there is an air of confidence in the way they play. The spot on rhythm section is complimented by the melodic goodness of Mark’s impressive guitar and Dave’s well put together keys. The songs are sounding invigorated and just like we remembered them, there has clearly been some hard work going on behind the scenes.
Christian is focused on his vocals and says very little to the crowd, though at the end of each number there is plenty positive support. The youthful fire returns during the final number “Alabama”, where the frontman ups the ante and returns the fiery delivery that we were once used to. This gig has a lot riding on it and the band can’t be blamed for having a few nerves. A great set from a much underrated act who deserved so much more than what they got when the cards were dealt out.
After the Dubai gig the future is unclear, however there are signs that the band may want to work on new material and play some more gigs, I for one very much hope so and tonight’s gig reignited my admiration for this much missed band.
Set List
Bury My Heart
Tell Me
Hey Lord
Hate to Hate
Wanted It All
The Veil
Ways of Love
Wonder
Real Life
Prayer
Alabama
Videos
Link
https://www.facebook.com/claytowntroupe
https://www.facebook.com/groups/36623030974s (Fan Group)
Words & Media by David Chinery (Chinners)
