The Buzzcocks are back

The band has replaced its youthful spark with mature professionalism, set for March 15 show in Tel Aviv.

By DAVID BRINN
Buzzcocks311 (photo credit: Courtesy)
Buzzcocks311
(photo credit: Courtesy)
The Clash and The Sex Pistols may have received most of the press, but The Buzzcocks, out of Manchester, England, epitomized the best elements of the nascent punk movement in the mid-1970s with their blend of pop craftsmanship and punk energy.
It’s unclear if there’s still gobbing and mosh pits at their shows, but the band has replaced its youthful spark with mature professionalism, which Israel can experience for the first time as The Buzzcocks perform on March 15 at the Barby Club in Tel Aviv.
Formed by Pete Shelley and Howard Devoto, who was soon replaced by Steve Diggle, the band released three albums and numerous singles, including the widely covered “Ever Fallen in Love (with Someone You Shouldn’t’ve)” before disbanding for the first time in 1981. Shelley and Diggle reformed The Buzzcocks for the first time in 1989, and since 2006 they have made it a full-time endeavour once again, propelled by the acclaim that greeted their 2006 album Flat-Pack Philosophy.
In recent years, the band’s name has become more famous in England as the title for the long-running BBC game show Never Mind the Buzzcocks. In his autobiography, Diggle wrote that he and Shelley had granted the BBC use of their name under the impression that the show would be a one-off, likely unsuccessful pilot. And in true punk fashion, they’re upset that Buzzcocks is now more readily associated in Britain with the TV series than with their band. No such confusion will cloud Tel Aviv, however, when the rock legends take the stage.