ANGEL WITCH, Enforcer, Age Of Taurus @Institute Library 9/11/12

It must be hard for Angel Witch. In 1980 they were contemporaries – and genuine rivals of – Iron Maiden. Their self-titled debut album was better received than Maiden’s too.

Then they disappeared. Aborted attempts at comebacks saw three albums released in over 20 years before they drafted in guitarist extraordinaire, Bill Steer and released “As Above, So Below” in 2012.The sad truth is, though, that however good “As Above…” is the gig going public hasn’t caught on and there are barely 60 people in attendance tonight.

Indeed there are considerably less than this when London’s Age of Taurus hit the stage to bring the so-called “Live Evil Tour” to an opening. All of which is a tremendous shame as quite frankly the band are brilliant.

Displaying the type of stoner rock grooves to put them in the Orange Goblin bracket, Taurus’s is a stunningly powerful sound. Songs like “Desperate Souls Of Tortured Times,” “Sinking City” and set closer “The Bull And The Bear” are all built on huge riffs and are all uniformly excellent. Their debut album is out next year and we urge you to check them out.

Set against this power, Sweden’s Enforcer are, well, a little bit weedy. No matter, though as the Earache signed band are not here to compete, merely to have a good time with their NWOBHM style grooves. By no means a joke like the godawful shit of Steel Panther, but the likes of “Midnight Bite” aren’t to be taken too seriously either. The title track of most recent album “Diamonds” and best song “Katana” remind us that heavy metal can be about fun too.

That Angel Witch chose to begin with new song “Dead Sea Scrolls” is telling. They are not here to indulge in mere history, they still have something relevant to say. Now with just one original member (singer/guitarist Kevin Heybourne) in the ranks, they clearly want to look to the future.

There is, though, a heavy bias towards the debut album in the 75 minute set and when songs like “White Witch” and “Atlantis” are being played you really do get a sense of how special and revered that this band could – and perhaps should – have been.

The addition of Steer to the 2012 version is masterstroke. He has proved with Firewind and Gentlemen’s Pistols that he has a gift for 70s sounding metal and so it proves again. It would be easy perhaps for the band to go through the motions given the lack of crowd and some bitterness at the way their career has gone, but not a bit of it. Instead they give a fine performance.

If the one thing it lacked was some real connection between the stage and the crowd even that is redeemed by the end as the song gave the group its name is delightedly chanted around the room.

Angel Witch might have missed the boat in terms of making themselves household names, but it looks like they are happy enough in the role of NWOBHM metal’s largely unheralded gem.

EDDIE AND THE HOT RODS, Guitar Gangsters, New Killer Shoes @Roadhouse Birmingham 8/11/12

New Killer Shoes have given themselves quite a profile in recent months, as they have gigged incessantly around the Midlands. They get the chance to show their talents again tonight, but find themselves a man down with second guitarist Ben Smith missing.

The Redditch band describe themselves as “grit pop” but to us it sounds a little like the Buzzcocks, which isn’t a bad thing. “Lets Go Disco” is a catchy number as is “Snake Of The Charm.” They are a band who is standing on the very verge of their big break as they go on a European Tour with Brad in the early part of 2013. We will see them – hopefully back at full strength - on that jaunt.

Guitar Gangsters are another band we have never come across either. The three piece band from London claim that the last time they played in these parts was back in 1988, but their brand of punk belongs to an ear perhaps 10 years before that.

Singer Pete Ley – who looks like Billy Bragg – and his brother Phil – a dead ringer for The Fast Show’s Swiss Tony – have been in the band since its inception and their camaraderie shines through songs like “Guitar Shakedown, “ “Guitars, Bars And Getaway Cars” and “Class of 76.” “Everybody” is an attack on the Facebook generation and new song “Aftershow” is a jaunty affair. An extremely entertaining 40 minutes, if you like the Clash then check these Gangsters out.

In many ways the fact RTM is even here tonight is down to our love of The Almighty. Back in 1994 on the “Wrench” single there was a song called “Do Anything You Want to Do.” The 19-year old RTM didn’t have a clue about Eddie, or indeed his Hotrods, but we knew a great song when we heard it and investigated.

Well, the aforementioned tune is knocked out with casual ease about two thirds into the set tonight, and for us is the highlight, seeing as we’ve waited nearly 20 years to see it live. What we didn’t expect, however, was just how good the rest of the set was. “Get Across To You” and “Why Should I Care Anymore” sound as fresh as they would have 30 years ago and the old punks who largely make up this audience lap it up.

The Hotrods, though, were – like Dr Feelgood – never a punk band in the conventional sense, as they prove with the trio of covers they choose to end things with tonight. Mott The Hoople’s “Once Bitten Twice Shy,” “Gloria” by Van Morrison and “Born To Be Wild” might seem an odd choice, but they work well.

Really this was pub rock at its absolute finest. Eddie and the boys support the Quo this Christmas and, if they are as good as this, they will be fine way to start that bill off too.

JACK WHITE, Willy Moon @Academy Birmingham 7/11/12

Sometimes, you feel a bit out of the loop. Take the fella who races up to RTM before this gig and excitedly says: “I can’t believe Willy Moon is supporting tonight.”

RTM’s blank look alerts him to the fact we have never heard of Mr. Moon so he almost pleads with us: “Willy Moon!” he exclaims. ”He was amazing on Jools Holland…? The iPod advert song….?” To extricate myself from this conversation – which took place in the toilets of the Academy (not a place any bloke should chat in) I say “yeah, never heard of him, mate. Still I will check him out. Have a good one.”

Such is the way when popular culture and RTM mixes, but here we are, on the back of the fact we liked the White Stripes (a lot actually) and like Jack White’s solo effort “Blunderbuss” from earlier in the year. To get there however, we have to watch the aforementioned Moon and his band.

Amazingly, we do recognise his first song. It is a cover of “I’m Shakin’” but that is it really. He has a lady on guitar, another on drums and a chap on what he describes as “the ones and twos” (a mixer to you and me) and to be fair to him he isn’t too bad in a Beck type of way. He does the iPod song (called “Yeah Yeah” according to wiki) and is ok, although frankly we can’t see why we would ever see him again.

There is an inordinate delay before Jack White and his band hit the stage. Initially it did look like it might be an exercise in style over substance as the stage is covered in white sheeting and roadies, dressed in sharp suits, have asked us not to take pictures. But in fairness once White is in front of us, it is very much a conventional rock and roll show.

White does appear stuck in a halfway house. Now a slow artist, he plays more White Stripes songs in his 90 minute set than solo songs. Indeed, proceedings kick off with one of them in “Black Math.” That is followed by a trio of “Blunderbuss” tunes, with “Missing Pieces” the pick, before a rollicking “Hotel Yorba” takes things up a notch.

The singer does seem to be enjoying himself, though, playing guitar with gusto and also keyboards and piano on more than one occasion and you can’t help but reflect that in years gone by he might have been a wizened old bluesman – a fact he seems to acknowledge by playing “You Know That I Know,” an old Hank Williams song he re-worked for a project.

The encore brings with it a raft more White Stripes songs, with “Hardest Button To Button” and “You Got In Your Pocket” amongst them, before that riff for “Seven Nation Army” brings things to a close.

Largely it was an interesting show, and White is a compelling live performer, but one who, you sense, is still trying to decide what he wants this part of his career to be.

NIGHTWISH, Pain @Academy Birmingham 6/11/12

You know all those great Scandinavian bands you have in your collection? The likes of Sabaton, Amon Amarth, Dimmu, Children of Bodom? The chances are that they have albums produced by Peter Tagtgren.

Well, in addition to being a producer extraordinaire, Tagtgren fronts his own band, Pain, and a very interesting proposition they are too. Difficult to classify, they are – if such a genre existed – a symphonic power industrial metal band. The White Zombie-esque stomp of “Dirty Women” is perhaps their most immediate number, with the disco stylings of “On And On” and set closer “Shut Your Mouth” displaying a confident swagger that wins the huge crowd over.

Nightwish, as is evidenced by the sold out signs outside are a seriously big deal. That they have done all this despite losing a vocalist on October 1^st says much for their consummate skill.

Annette Olzon left the band barely a month ago, but rather than cancel shows as many bands would, instead they drafted in former After Forever singer Floor Jansen and on the evidence of her quite magnificent show this evening they made the right choice.

Jansen, dressed strikingly in red, is very much the focal point of the group, sharing talking to the audience duties with Marco Hietala and is seemingly comfortable in her role, grinning throughout.

The band are here on the back of the quite brilliant “Imaginaerum” record, a fine opus that takes in many styles and in microcosm it encapsulates the ethos of the live show. There are very few metal bands – and make no mistake this is very much a metal show – who could headbang their way through set opener “Storytime” and “Dark Chest Of Wonder” and then ease themselves into the jazz of “Slow, Love, Slow” without batting an eyelid.

The show is built on the intricate guitar work of Emppu Vuorinen, as much as the vocals of Jansen and Hietala – their interplay at its peak during “Ghost River” - but comes into its own with “I Want My Tears Back” with its echoes of Iron Maiden, and as if to emphasise the eclectic nature of the near two hour show, one minute it is “Ever Dream” and some tremendous double kick drumming, while the next, Englishman Troy Donockley is adding a folky bent to proceedings.

The result, by the time “Last Ride Of The Day” closes things is a frequently bewildering, but always brilliant show. It is also one which, given the circumstances, is perhaps an even bigger triumph than might have been expected. This was truly memorable and we couldn’t have wished for more than that.

MOTORHEAD, Anthrax @Wolverhampton Civic Hall 5/11/12

Say what you like about Motorhead, but you can’t accuse them of playing safe when it comes to support acts. In recent years these Autumn jaunts have seen bands of the calibre of Saxon, Michael Monroe and The Damned open up, however this year Lemmy and the lads have given themselves perhaps their biggest challenge yet.

Anthrax – yes that’s Anthrax – you know, one of the Big Four thrash bands, one of the best metal bands in the world, and one who lets be honest about this, is having something of a renaissance, are going to come out right before the old stagers tonight.

RTM saw the New Yorker’s stunning show in Oxford in March, thus hopes were high for this slot at a venue that seems to lend itself to magnificent concerts. However large expectations were, though, they don’t quite prepare us for what actually did take place.

Quite simply, Anthrax were, this evening, unstoppable. The setlist they chose for their 50-minute jaunt? How about one that starts with “Caught In A Mosh” then moves into “Fight Em Till You Can’t,” takes in “Indians,”  “Time” and a few other classics before tearing Wolves to pieces with “I Am The Law”? Not too shabby huh? In short, Anthrax were phenomenal and they – and moreover the assembled gathering – know it.

In fact, so good were Scott Ian and his mates, that even a Motorhead that was seriously on top of its game would have struggled to live with them. The fact is that on this particular evening Motorhead were not as good as ever.

That is not to say they were bad by any means, merely that this is the first date of the tour and it is clear that there are some teething problems to iron out.

It starts well enough “No Regrets,” “Damage Case” and “I Know How To Die” would grace any show, but some essential spark is missing. The synchronised dancing of “Metropolis” and a rollicking “One Night Stand” are fantastic as always, but there is a rather tetchy undercurrent throughout. Things come to a head in Mickey Dee’s drum solo during “One To Sing The Blues.” The sticksman had been upset with his kit at the start of the song, and at the end of it he leaps off his stool and argues with his technician.

The encore is another rather odd affair, the band play “Orgasmatron” bathed in green light before the usual strobe filled ending in “Bomber” although pointedly and perhaps in keeping with a rather low-key beginning, there is no making the balcony stand for this track this time, as has been the case in previous years.

So, what to make of this evening? Well Motorhead are and will always remain one of the greatest bands this country has produced. It was just that this evening saw one band give a slightly off colour show, while another absolutely ripped the place apart.

SABATON, Eluveitie @Wolverhampton Wulfrun Hall, 2/11/12

Switzerland’s Eluveitie seem at first to be on a mission to cram the most amount of people in a band. There appears to eight of them on stage, including flute players, a violinist and somebody playing the bagpipes.

As might be expected given the breadth of instrumentation on show, their sound is in eclectic mix of metal and folk and they are an interesting proposition. “Rose For Epona” and “Havoc” have plenty of twists and turns and their 45 minute set has much to commend it. Although RTM can’t help feeling that the bagpipe should be kept apart from metal at all times.

Things outwardly might look good in the Sabaton camp. New album “Carolus Rex” has continued their run of fine records and the show is at a bigger venue than when they last appeared on these shores a couple of years ago, but the truth is that it has been far from plain sailing for the group.

In April a new line-up was announced, with four members leaving and three new ones being drafted in. However , if there was a touch of trepidation about whether the band would be as good live as they ever were, we are happy to say those fears were totally unfounded.

Kicking off with “Ghost Division,” it is immediately clear that this is a band that is on top form. Frontman Joakim Broden is taking an even more prominent role these days, and it is a role that naturally gregarious singer is comfortable with, effortlessly getting the crowd onside from the off.

The band are evidently proud of their new record, with five “…Rex” songs being aired. “Got Mit Us” and “Poltava” being perhaps the pick. There are, however, a smattering of old songs – and with a reasonably novel idea, the crowd is allowed to choose some of them, by virtue of which gets the biggest cheer. On another occasion Broden spots someone he has seen before in the crowd and lets him decide, said fan is wrong as he plumps for a song other than the stunning “Uprising,” but never mind.

The fun continues with the encore. After “The Art of War” and “Primo Victoria” there is “Metal Crue” a cheesy homage to the bands of Broden’s youth.

The band seem genuinely pleased at their reception and thank the fans for giving the new incarnation of the band a chance. There really is no need. A band who is this good live deserves to be cut some slack over a few line-up changes. Really and truly, songs about war, death and destruction never sounded so good. 

EVERY TIME I DIE, Stray From The Path @ Slade Rooms Wolverhampton 30/10/12

Being as they are from Long Island, New York, you could perhaps forgive Stray From The Path for having other things on their mind this week. However, whatever Hurricane Sandy did, singer Drew York is more annoyed with the Wolverhampton crowd.

The five piece are, its fair to say, not having a good night. It doesn’t seem to matter what they do – and York in particular is trying his heart out – they get almost no response from the assembled gathering.

It’s an odd one because you would have thought songs like “Damien” and “Long History” would be lapped up by Every Time I Die’s crowd, but for whatever reason, this is one for the group to forget.

Whatever misgivings the fans had for Stray From The Path, they are long gone by the time ETID hit the stage. A hedonistic mix of metal, punk, great lyrics and stupid song titles, the New Yorkers have been doing this stuff for nearly 15 years. All to infrequent visitors to these shores, their arrival is eagerly anticipated.

The impressively bearded Keith Buckley is a vocalist of some skill and, with the band ringing the changes to the set tonight, he is exercising his pipes with “Apocalypse Now And Then” instead of “Kill The Music” which had started the shows on most of the other gigs this tour.

Its breathless tones are a very clear signal of intent, with the band keen to showcase their brilliant “Ex Lives” record from earlier this year. The magnificently titled “Underwater Bimbos From Outer Space” with its chorus of “I want to be dead with my friends” is an instant favourite.

Elsewhere it’s a veritable greatest hits of Every Time I Die, “The Marvelous Slut,” “Wanderlust,” “I Suck (Blood) and a quite stunning “The New Black” are obvious standouts, but really there is no complaints anywhere, before a breathless race to the end, with the trio of “Ebolarama,” “We’rewolf” and “Floater” closes things.

The band are onstage for little over an hour, but such is the energy and class of the songs the length barely matters. There is a slight suspicion that there is not a lot of light and shade in their songs, but if Every Time I Die are a one-trick pony, they are one that would win best in show…urmm…Every time they tried.