Stereophonics barely merited a paragraph in the local paper when they performed in Dundee for the first time in 1996.
At the time, the Spice Girls were everywhere and Stereophonics were supporting Lauren Laverne’s punk band Kenickie who were touring the UK.
Stereophonics had become the first artists signed with Richard Branson’s record label V2 in August 1996 before going on tour with Laverne’s band.
Kenickie were being hailed as the next big thing by Courtney Love but no one could predict how successful the support band from the village of Cwmaman would become.
Support slots at Lucifer’s Mill
Lucifer’s Mill – which could hold around 250 people – was the perfect size at the time for touring bands who were not quite ready to hit the big halls and arenas.
The Kenickie gig took place on December 1 1996 and Stereophonics took to the Lucifer’s Mill stage following a performance by Dundee’s Yellow Car.
Stereophonics returned to Lucifer’s Mill in March 1997 with Subcircus on the Tennent’s Live tour where the first 50 fans through the door got a free goodie bag!
Courier music writer Roddy Isles previewed the concert in his column 25 years ago and predicted big things on the horizon for the Cwmaman three-piece.
He wrote: “Subcircus and the Stereophonics are two of the guitar bands most heavily tipped to succeed at the moment, so the joint tour which brings them to Lucifer’s Mill next week could be a groundbreaking jaunt.
“The Stereophonics sound a touch like the early Manics minus the bluster, and their single The Local Boy In The Photograph is fully deserving of the attention which Radio One have given it. They have just finished a support slot on the Skunk Anansie tour.
“An added incentive to get to the gig, which takes place at Lucifer’s on Wednesday night, is the offer of free stuff.”
Dundee-born broadcaster and DJ Jim Gellatly interviewed the band before the Tennent’s Live tour and seemed to strike a nerve when he asked Kelly Jones and Stuart Cable about the comparison with the Manic Street Preachers!
Jones said: “If there was any band we weren’t influenced by it would be the Manics.
“We all grew up and we were into Creedence Clearwater, The Kinks, Beautiful South, Neil Young and stuff. It’s only now that the Manics have come out with a big album as a three-piece that people try to make some sort of connection.”
Global stardom followed quickly
The 1997 show came just five months before the band released Word Gets Around and the set list included songs from that now legendary debut album.
A Thousand Trees, Not Up To You, Traffic, Too Many Sandwiches, More Life In A Tramp’s Vest and debut single Looks Like Chaplin were all performed at Lucifer’s Mill.
It’s still kind of strange to think these Lucifer’s Mill gigs even happened.
Stereophonics began a meteoric rise following the release of Word Gets Around and 12 months later they performed to 10,000 people at Cardiff Castle.
Jim said: “I just thought they were very relatable and nice people too.
“Off the back of the Manics I’d been taking an interest in Welsh bands coming through and I loved the grittiness of Kelly’s voice.
“I always found him to be very humble and genuine. I was lucky enough to interview him on many occasions although I don’t remember what we chatted about!
“They were a lot rawer when they first broke through. I don’t think I expected them to be a band that would have a number one single.
“The Bartender and the Thief is probably one of my favourite songs but More Life in A Tramp’s Vest would be up there too.
“I do prefer the more ferocious numbers to the show ones!”
What became of Kenickie and Subcircus?
Kenickie lasted only four years and eventually disbanded in 1998 before Lauren continued to pursue a solo career and eventually made the move to TV and radio.
Subcircus were a Britpop band who formed through a Melody Maker advert and released two albums before disbanding in 2000.
Special memories of Dundee gigs
Meanwhile, Stereophonics graduated from pubs to stadiums and have been regular visitors to Dundee in the past 25 years after achieving global success.
Bass player Richard Jones has never forgotten those early gigs in Dundee.
He broke it down further before the band performed a Caird Hall concert in 2007.
“I remember those days well, we did a Tennent’s tour and we played some great little places in Aberdeen and Dundee,” said Jones.
“I remember playing at Lucifer’s Mill with a band called Kenickie and we had some brilliant times.
“The Scottish fans are great to us and it’s like a little bit of a homecoming for us because we played in Scotland so often when we were starting out.
“It’s pretty amazing that we’re still doing this after 10 years. But we always thought we had it in us to do that and we knew it would take a lot of hard work.
“It was brilliant to be part of the whole Brit-rock thing, but I think the reason we’re still doing this is that we were never really stuck in the scene, making sure we had the right haircuts or anything like that.
“We’re just doing our style of music and not trying to fit into the latest scene.”
As promised beforehand, the band delivered a real mixture of old and new tracks at the Caird Hall in 2007, showcasing new material from the album Pull the Pin in the middle of a packed set which was heavily punctuated with golden oldies like Mr Writer, Have A Nice Day, The Bartender And The Thief, and number one single Dakota.
It was yet another great night in front of a sell-out crowd.
The band returned to the Caird Hall a decade later in August 2017 to perform a UK tour warm-up show where they played a mix of new songs and classic hits.
It was a typically storming set and the Dundee audience was the first to hear tracks being performed live from the band’s album Scream Above the Sounds.
Kelly Jones also played the Caird Hall in September 2019 on his solo tour which featured rarely-heard album tracks mixed in the classics and a few covers to boot.
The band were also due to perform at the Caird Hall in December 2021 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the album Just Enough Education to Perform.
The tour was cancelled because of the pandemic but they return to Dundee this summer at Slessor Gardens to make more memories in the City of Discovery.
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