Tonight's bill is comprised of acts formed from the ashes of three classic rock acts, namely Thin Lizzy, Hanoi Rocks and Motorhead. There is an even mix of t-shirts representing those bands, meaning that all the bands are assured of a decent reaction.
Phil Campbell & The Bastard Sons open with 'We're The Bastards', hard rock with a yobbish edge which sounds like Massive Wagons mixed with Wolfsbane. Motorhead are an obvious reference point for their original material, although there are other styles at play too, from 'Bite My Tongue's uninspired biker rock to slow, heavy blues. We obviously get a few Motorhead tracks and vocalist, Joel Peters, does a great job with these. 'Going To Brazil' is great whilst 'Born To Raise Hell' is energetic and anthemic. The choice of Motorhead cuts is interesting, being largely deeper cuts.. Phil's guitar cuts out for much of 'Freak Show' which is unfortunate. They close the set with a high octane 'Ace Of Spades', a track which will always be great. Decent.
Michael Monroe is next, the lead singer of the legendary Hanoi Rocks.
The first time I heard of Hanoi Rocks was through reading Kerrang! around 1990. I'd probably only been seriously into rock for about a year or so but it already consumed me. I used to devour metal magazines to discover new bands to rock my world. A feature in the magazine revealed that Jeff Hateley from Wolfsbane (one of the bands I liked) worshipped Hanoi Rocks, and one of his prized possessions was a rare Hanoi shirt gifted to him by a fan. I'd also seen them namechecked in reviews of other bands so their name took on a mythical status in my mind and I imagined some incredibly dangerous sleaze band. I was therefore rather disappointed the first time I actually heard them. It was on a late night metal magazine show on TV called Raw Power. One of their features was a video jukebox where they played snippets of twenty songs and whichever song polled the most votes would be played in full a few weeks later. Hanoi's 'Mental Beat' won the vote and was played in full (I probably voted for something like 'Madhouse' by Anthrax). What I saw and heard wasn't amazing but was weird and confusing instead. They didn't sound like Crue, GNR or LA Guns like I thought or hoped they would. It would be a long time before I listened to them again.
Listening to Michael Monroe for the first time was a much different experience. It may have been before hearing Hanoi, it may have been afterwards. It was through catching the video for 'Dead, Jail Or Rock And Roll' on Raw Power or its predecessor, The Power Hour. It was everything Hanoi wasn't. The high octane rock and roll really hit the mark. Plus he looked cool as fuck, the embodiment of rock.
The third encounter with Monroe was the one which sealed the deal. It was through a seven inch which came free with Kerrang! in 1994 and it contained the track 'Nothin's Alright' by Monroe's new band, Demolition 23 (which also featured Hanoi's Sami Yaffa and Nasty Suicide). Trashy punk rock with a killer chorus, it blew my mind (and still does). This led to me buying their album which then led to me going back and discovering Hanoi Rocks.
So this really is the main event for me, and all objectivity goes out of the window. I am a big fan. I'm not the only one though. There is a teenage girl in front of me who is absolutely losing her mind, screaming ' MIIIIIIIIICHAAEELL' before he even takes to the stage. He opens with a wild 'One Man Gang', its psychobilly verse giving way to a pop.punk style chorus. 'I Live Too Fast To Die Young' is high octane and wildly anthemic whilst 'Murder The Summer Of Love' sounds much heavier live. '78's old school punk chorus is joyous. 'Nothin's Alright' slays. Michael just exudes cool throughout, even when he's drenched in sweat after covering every inch of the stage. He brings out the saxophone for a boisterous version of Hanoi's 'Malibu Beach Nightmare' whilst 'Dead, Jail Or Rock And Roll' ends the set on a high. Fantastic.
I'm less familiar with Black Star Riders' material but the spectre of Lizzy seems to hang over the majority of their songs, which either sound a little like 'Jailbreak' or 'Emerald'. 'Riding Out The Storm' is functional rather than thrilling. 'All Hell Breaks Loose' has a cool chorus but the remainder is rudimentary. The band rip through a pretty rocking cover of The Osmonds' 'Crazy Horses' whilst 'Don't Believe A Word' is great. It is the original material which seems a bit lacking. They summon the sound of Thin Lizzy but without the same spirit. There are some positives. Scott Gorham's guitar work is timeless. New guitarist, Sam Wood, is impressive too and his backing vocals are excellent. Overall, not bad but not great either.
Black Star Riders ***
Michael Monroe *****
Phil Campbell & The Bastard Sons ***
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