The Guildhall is unusually full, but when I realise that The Cruel Knives is Sid Glover and Rob Ellershaw‘s latest band (it had somehow escaped me) and given the huge following Heavens Basement had in Southampton it all falls into place. They open with ‘Overdose’ and anyone expecting Heavens Basement won’t be disappointed the high-octane […]
Damnation Festival 2022, BEC Arena, Manchester
Damnation Festival kicked off in full swing in Manchester, at the BEC Arena the first time the festival has taken place in 17 years outside of Leeds. With a jam packed line up of 24 bands, three stages and your typical clashes this was a filled out day full of hard metal. The BEC Arena […]
Samantha Fish s/b Wille and the Bandits @ KK’s Steel Mill, Wolverhampton.
The eminently talented and highly popular Samantha Fish returns to the Midlands to ply her trade of explosive blues rock. Since I last saw her she has changed her band line-up and her now regular touring band comprises Ron Johnson on bass, Matt Wade on keyboards and Sarah Tomek on drums. Before Samantha Fish entertains […]
THE RASMUS + OVERLAPS, O2 KENTISH TOWN, LONDON.
Promoting their latest album, Rise, The Rasmus concluded their UK tour with a spectacular 2 hour gig in London at the O2 Kentish Town. The band performed with new guitarist Emilia ‘Emppu’ Suhonen and was supported by the Italian female-fronted Overlaps. Overlaps were an excellent match to The Rasmus, who already toured with them back […]
Cats in Space – The Engine Rooms, Southampton.
Cats in Space haven’t actually been around that long, formed in 2015 by guitarist/songwriter Greg Hart and drummer Steevi Bacon, they are unusual in that they are not a super group as such, they are a band of musicians who got together to write and play classic rock songs in the styles of the seventies […]
Sepultura – O2 Ritz, Manchester
The O2 Ritz, Manchester is full tonight and the building is prepared for an intense night of Trash! Nothing could make the night better than kicking it off with New Orleans’ own Crowbar courtesy of the insane legend that is Kirk Windsteinand his ‘Troops of Doom’. Crowbar were on at 7:10pm which is fairly early […]
Anthrax & Municipal Waste – Manchester Academy
Anthrax, the world famous classic rock thrasher band that took over the 1980s have returned to Manchester for their 40th anniversary tour. (Well, 41st Anniversary technically) You can’t walk into Manchester Academy, without seeing a battle jacket. The doors opened at 7pm and the queue for entry already went down towards The Manchester Museum. To […]
Hypocrisy with Septicflesh, The Agonist and Horizon Ignited @ The Institute 2, Birmingham.
If you don’t like Death Metal, go home now, because tonight the audience was exposed to four Death Metal and Melodic Death Metal bands hailing from Scandinavia, Greece and Canada. Swedish Death Metal merchants HYPOCRISY were touring Europe with several other bands in tow and tonight the metal militia had reached Birmingham. Fist on stage […]
The Hunna – O2 Ritz, Manchester
The Hunna join us tonight at The O2 Ritz Manchester for their self-titled album tour! Already, when going into the venue, it’s boiling hot, even within the first act there’s people passing out in the crowd. Taking to the stage first is Manchester’s own Lucy Deakin. More of the pop act of the night for […]
Billy Idol – The Roadside Tour 2022 – Resorts World Arena, Birmingham
For the last 40 odd years Billy Idol has been one of the two musicians that I’ve always wanted to photograph, an opportunity to photograph the other one will never happen, for that was the late great Freddie Mercury. Although the two of them are very different characters with very different styles their music has […]