The Alarm at The Kazbah, Scarborough - Friday 6th February 04 By Steve Rudd

Gigs do not, I repeat, DO NOT get any better than this. Ever. Even though The Alarm haven't actually stayed together as a band since their inception back when punk-rock gripped the UK in the late 70's, the charismatic singing-&-songwriting Mike Peters has been over-actively involved in numerous bands and solo projects over the past 25 years.

While photogenic Welshman Mike did get a band together come the Millennium under the guise of The Alarm 2000 for touring purposes, the 2004 version of The Alarm sees Mike - as ever - as the fantastic frontman, accompanied by the devilishly - and hilariously - drunken Craig Adams on bass (who used to play in the Sisters of Mercy no less!), James Stevenson on guitar and Dave Baynton-Power on drums (who used to play for James).

While The Alarm did bust with the punk revolution, the bulk of their songs have been inoffensive soft-rock anthems laced with rampaging 'punk' zest. During the 80's they toured with U2, and few who hear Mike Peters sing can surely deny the fact that he sounds so much like U2's Bono it's uncanny. And hugely unfair, given the superstardom that's besieged U2 over the years, when The Alarm songs are just as euphorically anthemic as U2's, if not more so. Mike Peters is a unique workaholic and seemingly never stops releasing records and touring his music. While his solo albums - such as the stirring and sublime Rise and Feel Free releases - aren't as well known as Mike's captivating Alarm-era hits, I've honestly never heard one dud song written by the man, and he sure can hold his own in front of a crowd.

Despite the Kazbah far from being sold-out in light of Mike and band's first-ever visit to Scarborough in terms of playing for The Alarm, the in-house atmosphere was perfect, as obsessive-compulsive fans clamoured over the security fence that separated Mike from his awaiting public. Forget any singer you've ever seen on the TV show of the same name: Mike is a true 'pop' idol, and he's looking cooler than ever with his long blond hair and warm, ever-ready grin.

Always cracking smiles and seeming to genuinely enjoy his gigs as much as his fans, Mike is a pretty entrepreneurial businessman too (through having the most impressive spread of high-cost merchandise this side of Cardiff) - which is a bonus in the cut-throat, money-making biz of the music industry. Even if The Alarm were a pretty well-known 'mainstream' band in the 80's, I bet there are many of the band's original fans who are unaware that their victoriously vibrant music is still being banged-out as exhilaratingly as it always has been.

But why are The Alarm not better known? With songs as infectiously feel-good and shimmering and soaring as Alarm tunes are, they should be big business and destined for Top 40 penetration.

Hell, the rate at which Mike doles out brilliant songs, there's serious potential for him to top the charts with a different song every single week for the next decade or two - he is that prolific a writer. Aware of his musical prowess and self-convinced that he can more than 'kick it' as a songwriter, Mike's been asking for his fans' support to push the new 45 R.P.M' single, which is a spiky punk-fuelled romp. continued below

The Alarm at The Kazbah, Scarborough - Friday 6th February 04 continued By Steve Rudd

This gig in question crammed in as many of The Alarm classics as possible from 68 Guns, Rescue Me and Declare Myself an Unsafe Building to Where Were You Hiding? and the Spirit of '76 (the latter anthem being to Mike Peters what Summer of '69 is to Bryan Adams), before winding-up the second rapturously-received encore with a cover of the classy James song Tomorrow (given their ex-drummer's presence), then Blaze of Glory. Not one duff note sounded and no trace of ego within the current Alarm ranks prevailed.

And, if I'm perfectly honest, this gig was - no word of a lie - probably the best gig I ever have been to.

For the record, Mike Peters is a genius. For whom the bells toll, The Alarm do deserve to be re-embraced, as though the original line-up never parted in the first place. www.thealarm.com Tickets are now on sale for Mike's annual 'Gathering' weekend for £35 over January 28th and 29th, 2005. Links News - Ageing punks' single stunt a hit www.bbc.co.uk

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