Oh Boy! Writing this and my ears are still ringing! I had great anticipation about this gig and I can say straight off, me and a capacity crowd at Newcastle O2Academy2 were right, this band is the real deal. I haven’t felt this much buzz since Black Crowes were “shakin’ their money-maker”,
Yes, they are “retro” rockers: in the same way Detroit are revisiting their 70s classic motors, it seems L.A. are doing with bands, like Vintage Trouble and Rival Sons. They have the look and feel of their predecessors, but the looks are meaner, taughter, tighter; lots more horsepower is squeezed from the same large engine, but the handling is tightened up, sharper.
So on to Rival Sons, and first you gotta look at Jay Buchanan, powerhouse vocalist. This guy has one of those rare voices that only comes along every 20 years or so; he has power, range, depth and texture. Between songs, he tends to look distracted, but as soon as he graps the microphone he seems to become energised and delivers the lyrics, 100%: no extraneous “Baby” or “Oh Yeah” or “Oo My Soul”, he doesn’t need to - you get the full force of every word as it was written. This guy looks the archetypal rock singer - lithe hipped and lion mained, but he’s no effete poser. On to the “couter-balance, guitarist Scott Holiday. Scott is the perfect match for Jay, a powerhouse riffing and slide guitarist who delivers exactly what is required and no surpless. The solos are hard and sharp, no wondering off on a G-chord, everything is just as its needed. Robin Everhart & Mike Miley are a backline par-excellance, there’s power, buy the ton, but never over-the-top. If they lay down a complex or “tribal” rhythm, it’s because it what’s needed, never just for the effect.
So, what did we get? A main set of 60 minutes, opening with, and culled from Pressure & Time as well as new offering Head Down & the E.P. Keep On Swinging, All The Way, Three Fingers, Manifest Destiny represented newer stuff, while All Over The Road, Burn Down Los Angeles, Gypsy Heart did the older. We were then treated to a 2 song, 15 minute encore where Jay & Scott seemed to open up a little more, but still kept it tight and lean. Then a surprise, band left the stage, background music, houselights on and Scott Holiday bounds back on the stage and announces they’ve been given another 15 minuts and asks “does anyone want any more?”. Yet bet! A run through Soul was the perfect end to a great set.
Since they were picked up by Classic Rock magazine, I’ve wanted to catch this band in full flight; a full show rather than a 30 or 40 minute support slot. And to do this in a small, cramped, sweaty venue made the experience the more rewarding. This is a band of 4 musicians who give their all, and have a hell of a lot to give. getting back to the car analogy, just wait till they find the button to knock off the traction control.
Mike
When life gives you lemons; don't make lemonade.
Give back the lemons. Why were the lemons free? What's wrong with the lemons?
Do Not trust the lemons...
