Gig review: DIRTY HONEY – The Garage, London, 24 January 2023

January 30th, 2023 by andynathan

Many American bands are choosing to skip Europe and the UK with the rising cost of touring. And the cost of living crisis and the sheer volume of gigs as the industry tries to make up for the time lost to covid mean that attendances are down across the board.

Yet Dirty Honey have bucked both trends. It was only last summer that the Californian four piece played Download, their own headline shows and supported Rival Sons, yet six months later they were back for an extensive European tour. And this London show was one of a number to sell out ahead of the event, and with an interesting mix of younger fans alongside the forty and fifty somethings that many of the new generation of bands still primarily seem to appeal to.

There was therefore a palpable sense of excitement in the air and an intro tape of ‘Rock n Roll Damnation’ only improved the mood further as they hit the stage: singer Marc LaBelle and bassist Justin Smolian -with his big curls looking a little like Gene Simmons in his makeup free phase – both the epitome of cool in afghan coats, which they swiftly discarded, and shades.

They opened with ‘Gypsy’ which was already treated like an old friend with some short audience participation while ‘Break You’ even featured a brief guitar and bass jam. ‘Heartbreaker’ was immediately accessible while ‘The Wire’ was one of those with a Led Zeppelin feel, particularly on Marc’s high pitched vocals, and the impressive ‘Scars’ saw guitarist John Notto off on an extended mid song solo including a snatch of ‘Third Rock From The Sun’.

The above might lead you to surmise they share the seventies retro approach of the likes of Rival Sons and Greta van Fleet. They do to a point, but the directness of the songs and their pretty boy image are equally akin to the later wave of glam metal bands, certainly those that incorporated bluesier influences. The comparison I was increasingly drawing was with Aerosmith, who of course successfully straddled those two eras, and, either side of ‘Tied Up’ and ‘No Warning’, a very authentic cover of ‘Last Child’ proved the point.

They were impressively tight, not least as a new drummer Jaydon Bean had been blooded on the tour, while as you would expect, John’s Gibson Les Paul had a classic tone, with his playing style and stage moves calling to mind at various stages Joe Perry, Jimmy Page and Peter Frampton.

The bluesy ballad ‘Down The Road’ provided some welcome variety and they even sneaked in an unreleased song in ‘Ride On’. While their first cover had stuck closely to the original, ‘Lets Go Crazy’ took a boldly different approach to the Prince classic, at a slower, darker tempo with the joyful exuberance of the original restricted to a closing jam.

‘California Dreaming’ – which Marc said was about the two different sides of their home state -got the best reception yet while the sweet sounds of ‘Another Last Time’, with its vibes of the Black Crowes or even a Cinderella ballad, was again a welcome contrast, Marc also making a sortie into the front of the crowd.

They closed with ‘When I’m Gone’ which had a great groove to it, and the solitary encore of ‘Rollin 7’s’ did likewise, albeit with a looser feel, with the band pulling some great poses and the Aerosmith influences again prominent. They have an engagingly charismatic stage presence, yet Marc said relatively little between songs, meaning that there was little padding in a lean hour and a quarter set.

Their music may not be the most original or adventurous but few are currently pulling it off with the panache that Dirty Honey showed. They looked as if they would be entirely at ease on bigger stages, making this even more one of those nights that those present will boast they were at in years to come.

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

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