Finally, after what seemed like a rollercoaster ride, Soundbay went ahead. All be it with a slightly rearranged line up, a couple of bands pulling out at the last minute due to illness, the core of the line up remained and on paper for the first festival, it was a pretty damn good one.

Friday began early evening with the look of a warm up night. Opening things up were a local initiative to give youngsters a chance to learn a musical instrument, sing etc, The Rock Project consisted of 5 members plus their teacher performing a handful of rock covers, Highway To Hell being their opener. Parents and friends looked on proudly while recording on their phones.

I don’t know if this was their first time playing on a stage together but if so they didn’t show any sign of nerves or being overawed by the size of the venue. They were really enjoying the 30 minutes or so they had, full of smiles and playing up to the cameras, none more so than their teacher who threw himself fully into his performance. It was a great idea by the promoters, who knows, one of these band members may go on to great things in the future.

Beth Blade and her Beautiful Disasters played a well received set , more akin to 80s style in performance , Beth has always put 100 % in every time i have seen the band, and now with a strong line up and more frequent shows , the soon to be released new album will hopefully showcase all the hard work put in.

Another band who in my humble opinion need to play more shows, especially across the bridge, are Fallen Temples. A hard hitting 3 piece on the harder side but laced with melody you wouldn’t expect. Adam on vocals and guitar makes it look easy, i saw them a few weeks ago without their bass player and they kind of got lost on the big stage, tonight with the full band it was far more cohesive. Over the weekend there were a few bands that I felt the need to keep an eye on and Fallen Temples were one of them.

Fair play to Toby Jepson and his Wayward Sons, they are one of the hardest working bands in the UK, always seem to be out playing somewhere or other. All that hard work has paid off and they are now headlining festivals, deservedly so, bearing in mind they only started in 2017 , and two of those years were broken down by Covid!

Now three albums in it is quite a dramatic rise in that short amount of time. Tonight’s show was shoehorned in to the rescheduled dates that had been cancelled previously and by the sound of it the tour has been going magnificently well.

Toby, resplendent in his double Levi ensemble, Doc Martins and baker boy cap, tooks centre stage. Ever the consummate frontman, never putting a foot wrong. What I love about this band is that it is a band, it isn’t Toby Jepson with three faceless sidemen so to speak. Flanked by Sam Wood with his flailing locks and broad smile occasionally appearing through all the hair.

On the other side of the stage, the ageless Nic Wastell, the bass playing Angus Young. he makes me tired just watching him. The guys played an 18 song set, that covered the three albums, and while it looked unbearably hot on stage the energy never once dropped. It was a great choice in finishing off the first night, WS always deliver, the only negative I could mention was there wasn’t enough people there to witness it, their loss I guess.

Saturday

Thankfully it was a reasonable time for the start to Saturday which, due to a band pull out, was put back a little bit more. However, the crowd were thin on the ground for Anchor Lane, but it didn’t deter them from playing a blinder.

The Glaswegians play with attitude, the songs are hard with gnarly verses. It looks like they have learned a lot from the recent Ricky Warwick tour and are another band of this new generation that are honing their sound and working hard. Their rewards come in playing spots on various festivals in 2022.

The Howling Tides have had a fruitful 12 months, appearing at Steelhouse in 2021, Winters End a month ago, signing a great management deal and also benefitting from being on the four band bill with Ricky Warwick. They have definitely turned a corner, a better direction which has impacted on their live shows.

An almost ferocious set, but with a confidence that belies their ages, Robert the singer and guitarist has that voice which lends itself more to the harder bluesy soaked style which I would love to hear it in a purer form on a slowed down song. Haydn, the other guitarist, looks as though he needs a letter from his parent to be here, though there is nothing baby faced about his playing, a matured player and the perfect foil for Robert.

Sam Millar’s next vehicle, after the sad demise of Bigfoot, is a bit of a different animal. Already on the backfoot the day before when a member went down ill, they actually reworked vocal and guitar parts on the journey down.

Sam looked a little unsettled which is understandable, however the Sass Bandits pulled together and gave a great set. Sam has a habit of writing a great song with a killer hook. and his playing, which goes without saying, has always been first class. None of that has changed and this is one I would like to see again with the full band.

One of the names which I enjoyed seeing on the poster was Matti Alfonzetti and if you were a fan back in the 80s/ 90s you would know why. He is the voice behind Jagged Edge and Red White and Blues which were names well known in the UK.

Tonight it was an acoustic set alongside Adam Wardle also from RWB, delving into his back catalogue and future releases of his solo work. He also got to show off that ageless voice with Jagged Edge songs ‘You Dont Love Me’, ‘Out In The Cold’ and with the RWB track ‘Rescue Me’.

It was a set which gave everyone a chance just to listen to 2 guitars and one voice. It has been around ten years since he last graced the UK, so a bucket list moment for sure. He returns in may this year with his solo band for a few dates, I would highly recommend going along.

What can be said about Ricky Warwick that hasn’t been said already? Whether it is with Black Star Riders, Thin Lizzy, or as a duo with Damon Johnson, he is another of those artists who gives his all onstage. Tonight it is his Fighting Hearts alongside him, long time bass player Richard Vernon, with new hearts Ben Christo on Guitar and Jack Taylor on drums.

The bulk of the set covered his solo work, concentrating on his last release ‘When Life WasHard and Fast’. However, there is no way Ricky could play without having a nod to his past with The Almighty with ‘Over The Edge’ and the classic’ Free n Easy’.

There were also versions of Black Star Riders ‘Finest Hour’ and Lizzy’s ‘Jailbreak’ and even a cover of ‘Iron Fist’. Ever the consummate pro, Ricky knows how to work a crowd, and having such strong connections with South Wales and the Steelhouse Festival, he is much loved down this way.

The guitar partnership works well with Ben Christo, it looks like they have been playing together years, Ben is an accomplished player himself but is more than willing to let Ricky have the spotlight. This was the last night of the tour amid rumours that Ricky voice was struggling but he sounded fantastic, the band were on fire and gave us a great finish to the Saturday.

Sunday

Sunday began as it did all weekend with beautiful weather on the Swansea coast. Thankfully on entering the venue it was noticeably busier than the previous day.

As line ups go the Sunday was stronger with a great mix of genres, so if you like your blues then These Wicked Rivers are perfect for you, they play it so damn well. Their sound had me counting how many members are on stage , the five of them make such a rich sound that it filled the room. 30 minutes didn’t seem long enough for myself or the crowd that gave them a huge sound of approval.

Valhalla Awaits are a relatively new name to many people, born from the ashes of Revoker, The Blackout and Buffalo Summer. They are quickly being talked about as one of those aforementioned ones to watch. Built around powerful riffs and the immense vocals of Andrew Hunt, the band just seem to gel onstage with each other. With huge hooks in a number of songs these guys could go onto greater things given the right breaks.

One band I was looking forward to sseing were Daxx and Roxanne. I caught them on the second stage at Rockstock back in December and was blown away by what I saw and heard. I like a band who entertains not only musically but visually and there is so much going on with this band.

If you like the guitar sound of AC/DC and Airbourne then this band will blow your mind. They interact with each other constantly, jumping over each other, laying down, never missing a note, great fun to watch. With songs that you find yourself tapping a foot to or nodding your head. They are appearing all over the country at the smaller outdoor festivals so get in early, it will be worth it I promise.

How often can you get one top ten album chart band at a festival let alone two? Scarlet Rebels are a band that have just seemed to appear from nowhere to most people. They had a bit of bad luck before playing today with the drummer coming down with covid, so Wayne (vocals) and CJ (guitar) played an acoustic set and it went down a storm.

Stripped bare the songs take on a more emotive feel, with Wayne’s voice almost haunting through ‘Heal’. It is remarkable what a little success can do for a band in regards to confidence on stage. They have grown over the last 12 months and would give anyone a run for their money, the sky is the limit for Scarlet Rebels .

With a healthy amount of Welsh bands on the bill, it is refreshing to know that the rock scene in Wales is vibrant and not just surviving. Florence Black, fresh from their support slot on the Kris Barras tour, are a slick but brutal entity.

The crowd had swelled considerably with the Merthyr massive were down to support the boys in force. Having been fortunate to have seen them regularly over the last few months, the material from their album takes on another life on stage, from ‘Zulu’, a savagely fierce opening from the band, to the almost sedate Sun and Moon closing their set. They will be at the Tramshed soon playing their own headline show in the Steelhouse Awayday 3.

The main band today, and let’s be honest, the main band all weekend were Massive Wagons. My first taste of MW was ‘Red Dress’ which was back in 2015, from then I have seen them in front of a handful of people to headlining the Steelhouse and one thing is constant…they always put on a hell of a show. Where you leave smiling and knackered singing one of their songs you know it’s been a good show.

The atmosphere in the room before they came on was almost palpable. Baz and the boys fired off with ‘Back To The Stack’, with Baz swinging the mic stand out over the crowd, or kicking his way across the stage.

Baz is unique, there is no other word to do him justice,if you looked up the word frontman in a copy of Viz, you would see a photo of Baz. You go to a Wagons show for a raucous evening , while they take their music seriously , you are only a breath away from a humourous moment , ‘China Plates’ or ‘The Curry Song’ are proof of that.

With a wealth of material to choose from we get the majority from their last offering ‘House Of Noise’, with crowd favourites, ‘China Plates’, ‘Ratio’ and ‘Nails’ also included. We were also given a taste of a couple of new songs .

With Bowzer on bass further back tonight, it gives Baz the space to perform, though Adam and Stephen on guitars must be looking over their shoulder most of the set. Without doubt MW have paid their dues over the years, deserving of all the rewards they are enjoying now. They are still as approachable and as humble as ever. One of those bands that you want to do well and be successful .

The first Soundbay finally happened, a success?…yes, I think so. Swansea has long been regarded as a student city and people are doing their best to bring Rock music to the city, but punters have to support it for it to continue and thrive.

Review and photos by Darren Griffiths

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.

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David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 1 December 2024.

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Power Plays w/c 9 December 2024

In this sequence we play ‘The Best of 2024′ GRTR! reviewer selections

Featured Albums w/c 9 December 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2024 (Singer Songwriter)