The Molotovs + Neckbreakers + The Mitchells @ Bush Hall 11th December 2025
Very occasionally, a band comes along who, when you initially see them, are so good that it is necessary to see them again as soon as possible to ensure that they are actually as good as you thought they were. The Molotovs are one such band. I was absolutely blown away by them when I saw them at Camden’s Electric Ballroom in October, and I had to have a second look. Thus, here I am at their Christmas gig, which is being held in aid of the Music Venue Trust. A worthy cause if ever there was one.
The Molotovs have put an interesting bill together tonight, and first up in support are The Mitchells. The band are very young indeed, but then again so are The Molotovs, to be fair. The singer is dressed as Santa as they break into a punked-up cover of All I Want For Christmas Is You. The vocals are woefully flat, but the singer is reading the lyrics from his phone, and it’s possible that he can’t actually hear himself.
The singer rapidly loses his hat and beard, and he and the lead guitarist share a mic, Beatles-style. The band are rough, raw, but mostly tight. There’s some spidery guitar soloing which seems to carry on throughout the songs. It’s both skilful and diverting. It’s clear that this band still have a lot to learn. One of those lessons being that it’s not a good idea to hold intra-band discussions mid-song. At best, it’s going to put your bandmates off. This happens twice, at the instigation of the singer.
For the final song, a young guy comes on to guest on harmonica, briefly anyway. He holds up a Chelsea flag. Well, we all have our crosses to bear. The singer takes over on harmonica whilst the bassist sings lead. He has a better voice than the actual singer. The song closes with the best lead guitar of the whole set. That’s saying a lot, as the guitar has been excellent throughout. There’s a lot to admire here, and a lot to build on. I would suggest more practice together with more gigs as soon as possible in the New Year. Also, there are quite a number of bands called The Mitchells, so they may want to consider a name change, too.
Next up are Neckbreakers, a five-piece consisting of siblings Ebony Rose Palmer on vocals, Georgie Palmer on bass and vocals, and Maxx Palmer on guitar and vocals, together with a live drummer and keyboard player. I must confess that, judging by their name, I was expecting a hardcore punk band, but Neckbreakers are nothing of the sort. They have something of a 1980s soft-rock feel, with a touch of The Last Dinner Party, Fleetwood Mac and late-period Roxy Music.
The name comes from bassist Georgie Palmer breaking her neck during Freshers’ Week at university a few years ago. A neckbreaker is also a wrestling move. I would guess that Georgie wasn’t, in fact, wrestling when she had her accident.
Guitarist Maxx Palmer is dressed like a refugee from Split Enz (Google their pictures. You’ll see what I mean). He also undertakes some impressive karate kicks, so it might be wise to avoid upsetting him. He plays some pretty awesome guitar solos too, incidentally. Maxx may have a bit of a Pete Townshend fixation, undertaking leaps reminiscent of Townshend in his prime and windmilling a couple of times too.
Throughout the set, Ebony Rose Palmer’s vocals are quite amazing. It’s not just her vocal power and expression — her range is pretty impressive too. The band’s harmonies are jaw-dropping, and it’s not just the siblings. The keyboard player fits in well with them vocally, too. All in all, Neckbreakers make you stand up and take notice. I’m sure that we’ll be hearing a lot more of them before too long.
The reason we’re here, though, is The Molotovs. They’re every bit as electric as when I saw them a couple of months ago. It instantly becomes clear that they are absolutely as good as I thought they were then. Not only are they a terrific live band, but they’re also charming too. Some people really have it all.
There are obvious (and inevitable) comparisons with The Jam, but that’s largely because singer and guitarist Mathew Cartlidge has a similar fire and drive to the young Paul Weller. Most of tonight’s set comes from their soon-to-be-released debut album Wasted On Youth. In truth, that album really can’t come soon enough, as tonight we hear banger after banger taken from it.
There are virtually no covers tonight, although Newsflash contains a closing musical quotation from David Bowie’s Suffragette City. With material of the calibre of their songs, The Molotovs don’t even need to think about playing covers. Why would they?
Urbia is a new song — so new it’s not even going to be on the album — and guess what? It’s a banger.
This band are the complete package: they care about how they sound and how they look. Bassist Issey Cartlidge has black masking tape around her arm and thigh. This could be a fashion statement, or it might just be there because it is. Who knows?
The band’s energy levels start high, and with Popstar, they become stratospheric. I wonder whether they’re going to be able to sustain this? Of course they will.
Rhythm Of Yourself is a song about being yourself. Issey is being herself, posing and mugging for the cameras. It’s all very tongue-in-cheek, but she’s very much a star in the making. A snippet of Give Me Just A Little More Time is slotted into Today’s Gonna Be Our Day. It’s difficult to say which is the superior song.
Father Flag is about Brexit. The Molotovs aren’t afraid of addressing political issues, no matter how potentially divisive they may be. It’s not something you can imagine Oasis doing.
In the midst of all this, Matt spots somebody’s lost phone on the floor and throws it back to its owner. Get A Life has an impressive bass intro. Matt asks everyone to be quiet, so Issey and drummer Noah play more quietly — before Matt turns to them and says, “No, not you.” Verily, he has control of both the crowd and the stage.
Wasted On Youth closes the set, but drummer Noah returns after less than a minute and plays a brief solo before Issey and Matt join him. Issey makes her bass look like a lethal weapon whilst Matt slides his guitar along his mic stand.
The final encore is a cover of Slade’s Merry Christmas Everybody. It’s not really necessary, but it’s nice anyway. This performance has been more than assured, and I feel privileged to have witnessed it. The Molotovs are not so much pushing open the door to their future — they’re kicking it down and trampling over the top of it.
Dig the new breed.
WORDS: MARK KELLY PHOTOS: CRIS WATKINS
