… ostensibly a gentle, tuneful track backed with twinkly keyboards, but try tapping your foot to it – there is an extra beat every second bar, putting the song into an overall 9/8 or some such. Aussie prog metal outfit Voyager return with this, their 7th album, and they bring everything to the party for..
Collateral/Little Red Kings – Leo’s Red Lion, Gravesend, 04/10/19
Another storming gig went down at the Red Lion on my home patch tonight, starting with excellent Norwich rockers Little Red Kings, who are neither Kings nor red as far as I could see, and mostly not all that little either. First highlight of the night was their melodic pop rocker These Days, with its..
David James Smith – Austin Gold
We recorded the drums, bass, guitars and keys, as we always do. Then if I remember rightly, Andy put a monitor in the toilet... First off, let’s set something straight – Austin Gold is the name of a band, not a person. It grew out of a standard Peterborough pub blues band, and is named..
Voyager/Coldbones/Shattered Skies – 229 The Venue, London, 22/9/19
Complex arrangements and heavy beats make it prog-metal indeed, but front man Danny Estrin’s one-sided hairy mane and bright white jacket give it a decidedly 1980s glam-pop edge... Shattered Skies A three-band evening in Great Portland Street was kicked off by Shattered Skies, a hard-hitting Anglo-Irish combo whose power rock is difficult to pigeonhole –..
AUSTIN GOLD – AUSTIN GOLD (MINI-ALBUM)
Peterborough 5-piece Austin Gold released their debut album Before Dark Clouds in 2017, gathering a couple of newcomer awards and securing a main stage spot at 2019’s Ramblin’ Man Fair along the way. Unfortunately, progress towards their second album has been stymied six tracks in by the departure of guitarist Jack Cable, leaving the rest..
BAD TOUCH / COLLATERAL / GORILLA RIOT – Leo’s Red Lion, Gravesend 26/4/19
The quality of tonight’s three-band lineup can be judged by the fact that popular up-and-coming metal rockers Gorilla Riot, with their penchant for complex, driving, backing riffs, were bottom of the bill. The Red Lion in my home town has been a hard rock venue for as long as I can remember, but as the..
DAVID COVERDALE
There is surely no doubt in any rock fan’s mind – when they write the final roll call of great frontmen, that of David Coverdale will be very prominent. In this interview, first published in the final issue of Rock Society magazine, David spoke about his remarkable career journey. ‘Here’s an interview for ya!’... As..
ACHIEVERS – The Lost Arc
The Achievers are an electric pub blues band with more than a hint of the gospel about their good-time, upbeat rock’n’roll. Every song on this, their second album, is an original, mostly backed with multi-part harmony vocals. Traditional and quirky at the same time, upbeat and joyful yet lackadaisically laid-back, there’s no doubt this is..
Rick Wakeman – 13/7/19, Royal Festival Hall
Royal Festival Hall, London (13/7/2019) Photos: Graeme Stroud In truth I have genuinely never seen or heard a standing ovation as long... Having missed Wakeman’s previous full performance of Journey To The Centre Of The Earth at the Albert Hall in 2014, I was highly pleased to be given the opportunity to attend this, his..