Live Review: SUiCIDE BOMBERS Live At Madam Felle, Bergen (2024)

A sleaze rock band at Madam Felle? When I first saw the ad for the gig of the Suicide Bombers at this well-known Bergen club, I was somewhat skeptical about how things would unfold in this famous city bar named after the madam who used to brew beer there. Tables and chairs in front of the stage and a band that came to sweep everything before them like a hurricane, hmm, a strange combination. On the other hand, there is also the question of whether Bergen on that Friday, April 19, with a little rain (because, after all, Bergen is Bergen), was actually ready for the aforementioned hurricane?

The first band for the night, serving as the local opening act, was Astroturf. To be honest, I was late for their show and only caught a few songs at the end of the set, so I’m not going to delve too much into it. But from what I saw—a young band with three girls and two guys—there is potential there. They are new to the Bergen scene, so playing in front of a band with the reputation that Suicide Bombers have is good for their future development as a band.

After Astroturf finished their performance and bid farewell to the audience, things on the stage slowly began to change. The dominant red color that filled the space was a sign that the stars of the evening would soon take their places. As the microphone stands started to gleam adorned with red bulbs, it was clear that a grand spectacle was in the making. One by one, the members of the Suicide Bombers band stepped onto the stage, playing a prerecorded intro and kicking off their performance with the first song, ‘Dynamite Playboys,’ which also opens their latest album ‘All For The Candy’ that they are promoting on this tour.”Chris Damien Doll at the center of the stage, guitarist Stevie Teaze on one and bassist C. Slim on the other side , along with drummer Lyle Starr, kicked in furious with their fastest track in their discography. The bar is set very high with this one, which was not unexpected for a band like Suicide Bombers.

Without a pause between songs, Suicide Bombers continue even stronger with the song “Take It Off,” also from the new album. Following that is a greeting to the audience and the question “Are You Ready For Tonight Bergen” along with the well-known riff from the album “Suicide Idols.” However, what followed next managed to energize the previously reserved Bergen audience, who slowly began to rise from their tables (because tables and sleaze rock don’t quite go together). It was the well-known “All For The Candy,” yet another song from the new album, which has so far proven to be its biggest hit. It was at that moment that everything exploded, and the band kicked into an even higher gear.

Having experienced Suicide Bombers live for the first time, I feel compelled to delve a bit into the band and their performance as a whole. What I expected from a band like Suicide Bombers is exactly what I got. And then some! The energy, the intensity, the attitude, and musical skills that these guys posses were all fully transferred from the albums to the live performance. It’s pure high-octane rock ‘n’ roll music, with no regrets, both straightforward and exceptionally well-crafted. The rhythm section is precise and powerful and beats to the ground. The guitarist Stevie Teaze channels the spirit of Warren De Martini and Doug Aldrich trough his Les Paul, and at the center of it all is Chris Damien Doll, who is a persona unto himself. He’s simultaneously a rockstar par excellence and an underground leader of some sleaze army. If this were a comic book or something like that, he could embody the perfect villain and the perfect superhero all at once. This band encapsulate sleaze rock to it’s core, but their brand is exceptionally unique. It’s not your typical Sunset Strip kind of sleaze; it’s a bit raspier, darker, with a grittier , and some would maybe say, colder Scandinavian edge.

By the end of the set, the band played several more songs from their new album such as “Videodrome 2049,” “Out Of Love,” and “Tonight Belongs To Us,” seamlessly blending them with old hits like “Worlds Without End,” “Suicide Idol,” and my personal favorite, “Murder Couture.” “New York, London, Paris, Milan” echoed through the Madam Felle club at those moments. To conclude the whole show, they naturally finished with the song “Bladerunnner Tokyo,” complete with the indispensable ‘ooo, ooo, ooo’ moment.

Overall, it was a phenomenal evening. Besides meeting many interesting people, including the band members themselves and a well-known colleague journalist, and narrowly avoiding alcohol because the bartender misheard my order and poured who knows what instead of a Coke (in Norway, the legal limit for blood alcohol concentration when driving is zero, and as you might guess, I came by car), I witnessed a true sleaze glam spectacle.

That’s the crucial point of it. Suicide Bombers are a band that commands a stage like giants of this genre, and playing in a club where the front rows are filled with tables and chairs simply doesn’t suit the sensibility and intensity they possess. Next time, I expect to see them in a venue like Kvarteret, Hulen, or USF Verftet, because why not? Suicide Bombers are masters of their craft, and they certainly deserve it. On the other hand, to answer the question from the beginning of the text: Was Bergen ready for such a sleaze rock spectacle? No, unfortunately, not in any sense. Apart from a few dedicated fans, I must admit that the Bergen rock scene fell short. We’ll have to change that in the future. There’s a plan. So we will see…

Setlist: