Written By: NICK ASHTON
Photos By: NICK ASHTON
Springfest UK returned to the Waterloo Music Bar for its third instalment of fun and frolics by the seaside on a sunny April afternoon in Blackpool. Despite some fluidity in the line up for the day over the previous weeks and months, coupled with a last-minute bout of illness that meant one of the bands had to play with a man down (more of that later), the day itself ran without a hitch and the appreciative crowd had a whale of a time.
Starting the day in a laid-back acoustic format, This House We Built soon got the early attendees in the mood for good tunes, good vibes and a whole lot of rock ‘n’ roll fun. Vocalist Scott Wardell was born to be on stage and is equally at home with both electric and acoustic backing. Indeed, if anything the latter shows off his talents both as a singer and as a frontman even more than a full-on electric performance as the power of his voice and personality can shine through. The stripped back approach works well on the likes of Fairweather Friend and Nobody’s Fool, allowing the songwriting to really shine through without some of the usual electric bombast. Andy Jackson (guitar) and Wayne Dowkes-White (bass) provide luscious backing vocal harmonies to fill out the sound, with Andy taking the lead on There She Stands before Scott joins in again on My Old Friend for the obligatory crowd singalong. Despite it still being early doors, everyone is up for joining in and belting out that hook-laden chorus. We are treated to a new song in the form of Better Man which, as you might expect from the title, carries a positive, uplifting message and shows off those gorgeous harmonies. Running out of time the band have to drop the final song and instead close with Coming Home To You and well-deserved applause.
By now everyone in the room is ready for some electric action, and the task of upping the volume falls to Stoke’s Old Glory & The Black Riviera who rise to the occasion. Their sound is steeped in the classic slide guitar blues of the steamy swamp lands of the deep South, courtesy of Jay Meehan. Jord Davies adds some foot stomping rhythm guitar to compliment his down-home vocals that are part preacher, part medicine man and part bar room brawler. Two Hearted Woman oozes sassy attitude, Had It All soars like a buzzard riding a thermal while Dollar takes you for a walk on the seedy side of life. A cover of the Stones’ Jumpin’ Jack Flash shows off Jay’s exquisite guitar tone before the countrified blues lament of Working Man leads us into the shit-kicking romp that is Where Did I Go Wrong. I defy anyone to stand still once the bass drum beat kicks in and that slide guitar insinuates itself into your subconscious like Beelzebub calling you over to the dark side.
By now the room has filled up noticeably and anticipation hangs in the air as we wait for Thieves of Liberty to hit the stage. The past 12 months has seen the Thieves’ stock rise considerably after notable performances at Wildfire, Firevolt and RockWich festivals, whose respective organisers are all present today, and the release of the debut album Shangri-La which was awarded 9/10 for ERB by this reviewer. With matching speaker cabs emblazoned with the album artwork, custom mic stands and fog machines, it is clear that the Sunderland five-piece have upped their stage show to match the quality of the music. The set kicks off at a pace with Cherry Queen, Ain’t Going Home and Shangri-La which tell you all that you need to know about ToL’s approach to rock ‘n’ roll. Powerhouse vocalist James Boak brings passion and intensity by the gallon while twin guitarists Kieran Wilson and Liam Lindsley exude 70’s guitar god class, throwing all of the requisite shapes while peeling off searing solos and hip thrusting riffs. The set list is relentless, with each song a future classic in the making: Rabbit Hole builds slowly from a dirty grind to a frantic climax, Ground Zerohas a light pop-song bounce and big singalong chorus while Until The End throws a multitude of ideas into the melting pot to produce a truly epic result. The band have worked on the visuals too: at one stage Liam takes a trip through the crowd on James’ shoulders for his big set-piece solo and the smoke machine gets an outing at appropriate points (though thankfully not to the point of creating a pea-souper on stage!). Sweet As Today is dedicated to the Firevolt faithful, many of whom are present today, in recognition of the accompanying video which was shot at last summer’s festival before the set ends in a hot and sweaty romp through the sleazy Calypso.
We are halfway through the day now but there is no sign of the energy levels dropping as Beth Blade and The Beautiful Disasters hit the stage with the one-two sucker punch of Hell Yeah! and Bad Habit. This is raw, dirty rock ‘n’ roll delivered with the authenticity of a life-long rocker. Beth has shared stages with some big names and is more than capable of holding an audience in her palm, giving a sassy leer one minute and crushing a tasty riff with the next breath. Give It All You’ve Got, Undo Me and Persephone take a similar riff-heavy approach, the latter adding some dramatic light and shade with lyrics exploring Greek mythology. New song Never Let Go, which drops on 1 May, has a lighter Americana feel that conjures up images of driving across wide-open spaces in a convertible with the sun beating down. Its parent album will be launched at the Waterloo on 26 September, so make a note of the date. Speaking of which, since we are in Lemmy’s Bar, what else can close the set but the riff-tastic rabble rousing Jack and Coke? Make mine a double!
Ashen Reach have suffered some bad luck recently. The last time that I saw them, at the back end of August at RockWich, guitarist Joe O’Sullivan had twisted his ankle and had to perform sitting down. Shortly afterwards he sprained his wrist in a fall, putting the band out of action while he recovered. Now with Joe back to full strength I was anticipating a monster show from these masters of modern metal. But once again fate intervened, as just before today’s gig vocalist Kyle Stanley was stricken down with a severe chest infection that prevented him from performing. Un-deterred, guitarist Paddy Cummins stepped up to take over vocal duties to ensure that the show went ahead. Thus, we were treated to a pared back form of Ashen Reach: the riffs were still huge and Jess Stanley’s drums were monstrous, but I have to say that Kyle was missed. Paddy made a valiant effort to cover, but some of the songs had to be adapted to accommodate his range. Hence the showstopper Epiphany and set closer Homecoming, which showcase Kyle’s amazing vocal abilities, were curtailed. Nonetheless, the crowd were on the band’s side throughout and sang along, helping out with the backing vocals and the call and response sections. Heir To The Throne was as frenetic as ever and The Dark oozed malevolence, while Lost’s ebb and flow still conjured up the terror of being cast adrift in the middle of the ocean. As I write this the band have announced that they have been forced to pull out of Bradstock as both Jess and Paddy have succumbed to the same bug too, so I wish them all a speedy recovery and hope that they will be fighting fit soon.
So to tonight’s headliners, Nottingham sleaze merchants Midnite City. This is their first show back in the UK after touring the USA and Brazil, so the band are ready to hit the stage with a vengeance. We Belong and Atomic kick things off with big riffs, big choruses and big hair straight out of the 80s as Californian Sunset Strip vibes infiltrate Blackpool’s pleasure dome. The feel-good factor is turned up to 11 on Bon Jovi-esque Girls Gone Wild while big power ballad Hardest Heart To Break tugs at the heart strings before Raise The Dead’s gang vocals take you back to the days when MTV was king. This is music that takes you to a place where the sun always shines, the girls (and guys) are always pretty and the drinks are free.
As Midnite City’s melodic vibes draw Springfest to an end it’s easy to forget your everyday problems and bask in the healing properties of good music, good friends and good times. Here’s to a long hot summer of festivals ahead.