-
Upcoming Gigs & Albums
Latest Album Reviews
-
Album review: ROBERT REED – Sanctuary IV
-
Album review: LAURENCE JONES – On My Own
-
Album review : FREDDIE AND THE DREAMERS – You Were Made For Me, The Complete Recordings, 1963-70
-
Album review: PHIL THORNALLEY – Stacked
-
Album review: AMY HOPWOOD – Gone to Flowers
-
Album review: SEAN TAYLOR – First Light
-
Latest Gig Reviews
GRTR! Greats
Featured Album Reviews
Features
Interviews
Single & EP Reviews
DVD Reviews
Book Reviews
News
Author Archives: andynathan
Gig review:JIM KIRKPATRICK- The Cavern, Raynes Park, London, 3 February 2022
One of my favourite gigs of last year was when FM guitarist Jim Kirkpatrick played The Cavern bar in suburban South-west London. The occasion was special enough, being my first show after the 2021 lockdown was relaxed, but the musical … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged blues rock, FM, gig, Jem Davis, Jim Kirkpatrick, Leon Cave, melodic rock
Leave a comment
Gig review: SAXON- Hammersmith Apollo, London, 29 January 2022
Saxon’s 40th anniversary show was a case of deferred pleasure even by current standards. It was actually first scheduled as long ago as October 2019 but delayed when singer Biff Byford underwent heart surgery, and subsequently rescheduled at least twice … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged Biff Byford, Diamond Head, Doug Scarratt, gig, GIRLSCHOOL, metal, Nigel Glockler, Paul Quinn, Saxon, Uriah Heep
Leave a comment
Gig review: TEN YEARS AFTER- 100 Club, London, 24 January 2022
Ten Years After have a considerable pedigree- leading lights in the British blues explosion and participants at Woodstock, as the sixties gave way to the seventies they were a big enough draw at the time to notch four top ten … Continue reading
Album review: OUT OF THIS WORLD – S/T
Atomic Fire Records (Release date 14.01.22) Kee Marcello’s recording debut with Europe was 1988’s ‘Out of This World’ and I well remember how, celebrating 30 years of the album on a solo tour, the guitarist expressed his pride in the … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, Darby Todd, Europe, Kee Marcello, Ken Sandin, melodic rock, Out Of This World, Tommy Heart
Leave a comment
Album review: PERFECT PLAN- Live at Sharpener’s House
Frontiers Records (Release Date 10.12.21) Among the finest of this golden generation of Scandinavian acts, Perfect Plan‘s second album ‘Time for a Miracle’ was voted GRTR’s melodic rock album of 2020. That year also saw them play a ‘live in … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, AOR, Kent Hilli, live album, melodic rock, Perfect Plan
Leave a comment
Gig review: BRITISH LION- Camden Underworld, London, 4 December 2021
The phrase living legend is overused but in the world of metal Steve Harris deserves this description, as Iron Maiden’s founder member, single-minded visionary, principal songwriter and with his prominent bass playing a big part in the band’s sound. Hell, … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged Airforce, British Lion, gig, Iron Maiden, metal, Richard Taylor, Steve Harris
Leave a comment
Gig review: THE JONES GANG- 229 Club, London, 3 December 2021
Few living people can claim as rich a classic rock pedigree as Kenney Jones- the only Small Faces member still with us, a mainstay in the Faces and Keith Moon’s replacement in the Who. Its not surprising then that the … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged Dave 'Bucket' Colwell, gig, Kenney Jones, Pat Davey, Robert Hart, Stevie Smith, The Faces, the Jones Gang, The Small Faces, THE WHO
Leave a comment
Gig review: KIP WINGER – The Black Heart, Camden, London, 27 November 2021
Kip Winger’s acoustic shows in London at the much missed Borderline became the stuff of legend with their mixture of intimate songs and storytelling and fan participation. They even achieved the ultimate accolade of being a numbered series, so this … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged 27 November 2021, acoustic, Camden, gig, review Kip Winger, Robby Rothschild, The Black Heart, Winger
Leave a comment
Gig review: THE DARKNESS – Reading Hexagon, 26 November 2021
Never mind the hysteria that surrounded them in the early 2000’s, proof of how quickly time marches lies in the fact that it now a full ten years since the Darkness triumphantly reformed at Download. Since then they have surprised … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged Dan Hawkins, Frankie Poullain, gig, Justin Hawkins, Massive Wagons, Rufus Taylor, The Darkness
Leave a comment
Album review: JIM PETERIK & WORLD STAGE – Tigress – Women Who Rock the World
Frontiers Records (Release date 05.11.21) Jim Peterik’s World Stage project, whether live or in the studio, is characterised by the Survivor founder using the widest array of musical chums to sing his songs. ‘Tigress’ (what is it with his obsession … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, AOR, Cathy Richardson, Chez Kane, Chloe Lowery, Janet Gardner, Jim Peterik, melodic rock, Survivor, World Stage
Leave a comment
Album review: GROUNDBREAKER – Soul to Soul
Frontiers Records (Release date 12.11.21) Groundbreaker’s debut album was a Frontiers Records project to reunite Steve Overland with the pure AOR sound of early FM. That was a collaboration with Work of Art’s Robert Sall, but the latter is not … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, Alessandro Del Vecchio, AOR, FM, Groundbreaker, melodic rock, Steve Overland, Sven Larsson
Leave a comment
Gig review: WISHBONE ASH – Islington Academy, London, 18 November 2021
Sitting out live action during the pandemic must have been particularly galling for Wishbone Ash who always keep up a punishing live schedule. So there was a relief for both band and audience seeing them back in their familiar habitat … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged Andy Powell, Bob Skeat, classic rock, gig, Mark Abrahams, Mike Sturgis, Wishbone Ash
Leave a comment
Gig review: THE DEAD DAISIES – Shepherds Bush Empire, 10 November 2021
To quote the title of one of their songs, in many ways the Dead Daisies are ‘like no other’, even to the extent that they have been described as a collective rather than a band. Line ups have regularly changed, … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged David Lowy, Dead daisies, Doug Aldrich, gig, Glenn Hughes, Grand Slam, Guy Griffin, Quireboys, Spike, Tommy Clufetos
Leave a comment
Gig review: MARTIN TURNER- Boom Boom Club, Sutton, 5 November 2021
I must admit that the longer the pandemic went on, the more I began to fear that many of the acts from rock’s original golden era who we are lucky enough to still see performing might not resume touring, Wishbone … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged Boom Boom Club, Danny Willson, gig, Martin Turner, Misha Nikolic, Tim Brown, Wishbone Ash
Leave a comment
Gig review: MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP – Shepherds Bush Empire, London, 31 October 2021
For many years it seems I was fated never to experience one of my teenage guitar heroes Michael Schenker, at his finest. My only experiences of him in the last millennium were the McAuley Schenker Group’s short support slot to … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged Doro, gig, Michael Schenker, Michael Schenker Group, MSG, Ronnie Romero, Steve Mann, UFO, Warlock
Leave a comment
Gig review: REBECCA DOWNES – 100 Club, London, 19 October 2021
Just before the pandemic struck, one of the artists I was looking forward to seeing more of was Rebecca Downes, a very enjoyable support slot to Brian Downey’s Live and Dangerous at the Underworld proof that she was successfully diversifying … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged blues, blues rock, gig, Nigel Darvill, Rebecca Downes, Steve Birkett, The 251's, The Mojo Preachers
Leave a comment
Album review: HEARTLAND – Into The Future
Escape Music [Release date 15.10.21] I assumed Chris Ousey had kicked the long career of Heartland on the head with their last album of new material coming back in 2007. However, after his time with Snakecharmer and also fronting Kingdom … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, Chris Ousey, Heartland, Into The Future, melodic rock, Mike Slamer, review
Leave a comment
Book review: ERUPTION – CONVERSATIONS WITH EDDIE VAN HALEN by Brad Tolinski and Chris Gill
Hachette Publishing [Publication date 28.10.21] When Eddie Van Halen lost his prolonged struggles with cancer last autumn the rock world mourned – the number of Facebook friends who put his ‘Frankenstein’ guitar patterned design as their cover photo in memoriam … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, BOOK REVIEWS
Tagged book, Brad Tolinski, Chris Gill, Eddie Van Halen, review, Van Halen
Leave a comment
Album review: ECLIPSE – Wired
Frontiers Records [Release date 08.10.21] Eclipse have been on one the hottest streaks in melodic rock of recent years- even last year’s stop-gap live album ‘Viva la Victouria’ being a reminder of quite how many anthems they have written. And … Continue reading
Gig review: ROBERT HART AND DAVE ‘BUCKET’ COLWELL – The Cavern, Raynes Park, London, 14 October 2021
There have been some enjoyable ‘evening with’ nights of songs and stories at the Cavern this year – including Spike, who opened his show in July bantering with Dave ‘Bucket’ Colwell who was seated near him. In a neat piece … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged Bad Company, Dave 'Bucket' Colwell, gig, Humble Pie, Robert Hart, the Jones Gang
Leave a comment
Gig review: VEGA – Camden Underworld, London, 9 October 2021
Vega are one of those bands with a lot of lost time to make up as live music resumes. Since the beginning of the pandemic one of the UK’s premier melodic rockers have recorded not one but two albums, with … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged Billy Taylor, Dan Byrne, gig, Hazel Jade Rogers, James Martin, Joanovarc, melodic rock, Nick Workman, Pete Newdeck, Revival Black, Shelley Walker, Tom Martin, Vega
Leave a comment
Gig review: MUSIC FOR THE MIND- Hammersmith Club, London, 8 October 2021
As the old BT advert once said, it’s good to talk. Of mental health in particular. Despite growing awareness of its importance, not least with the struggles nearly all of us have faced in some way or other during the … Continue reading
Gig review: CATS IN SPACE – The Garage, Highbury, London, 2 October 2021
I will freely admit that Cats in Space are one of my very favourite bands to have emerged in the past few years. Their sound is unashamedly inspired by the second half of the seventies but the combination of lush … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged Andy Stewart, Cats In Space, Damien Edwards, Dean Howard, gig, Greg Hart, Jack Stiles, Jeff Brown, melodic rock, Pete Lance, soft rock, Vambo
Leave a comment
Gig review: THE QUIREBOYS- Boileroom, Guildford, 1 October 2021
Quireboys gigs come in all shapes and sizes- including those rescheduled orchestral shows next year- but some of my most enjoyable have been their acoustic shows. Lead singer Spike also made the format work when I saw him on his … Continue reading
Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS
Tagged acoustic, gig, Keith Weir, Matt Mitchell, Quireboys, Spike
Leave a comment
Album review: VEGA – Anarchy and Unity
Frontiers Records (Release date 17.09.21) Vega’s seventh album ‘Anarchy and Unity’ breaks their cycle of a new release every two years, coming less than 18 months after ‘Grit Your Teeth’. That not entirely successful predecessor took the UK melodic rockers … Continue reading
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS
Tagged album, Billy Taylor, Marcus Thurston, melodic rock, Nick Workman, Pete Newdeck, Vega
Leave a comment
