Yet another busy gigging year in FM’s ever hard working calendar ended in the unlikely surroundings of Tunbridge Wells, the genteel Kent town famous for its spa and the mythical disgusted letter-writing retired colonel. Its commutable from both the South Coast and my own London location even when the trains are as horrendous as they were this day, so the Forum, a converted toilet no less but a small venue with an excellent sound and set up, enjoyed a good attendance.

The night was nicely warmed up by Diamond Black, the latest project of former Night by Night and Sisters of Mercy member Ben Christo, who describe themselves as gothic AOR, a rare juxtaposition. A lot of the arrangements did indeed have a gothic feel, allied to synth pop influences, with keyboards liberally piped in to augment the traditional power trio on stage.

Yet songs like ‘Fall Into The Silence’ and ‘If You Kill My Demons’ boasted more traditional melodic rock choruses and were not too far removed from something that Vega could have come up with. The lyrical themes though seemed darker – indeed there was even a song called ‘Dark Anthems’ while closer ‘Sorrow’ had an unusual song structure yet was a real grower. British melodic rock acts are a bit thin on the ground at present, so they are a welcome and different addition.

On the other hand FM are a reliably known quantity, and opened as they have for most of the last couple of years with ‘Synchronised’, which has grown on me to the extent it ranks alongside their best loved older songs. Talking of which, it gave way to the big choruses and hooks of ‘Tough It Out’, before ‘Killed By Love’ got people singing along to the ‘yay yay yos’.

Steve Overland then joked that he hated singing ‘Someday You’ll Come Running’ and only did so under fan pressure, yet he seemed to cope with its soaring chorus with ease, then after a brief intro from Jim Kirkpatrick, looking very dapper in T-shirt and suit, ‘Let Love Be The Leader’ concluded with some harmony guitars between him and Steve.

‘The Dream That Died’ was one of the less obvious choices in the set, but the classy arrangement and superb vocals including Jim and Merv Goldsworthy’s backing vocals left me wondering how it was another potential hit that somehow got away back in the day.

‘Face to Face’ featured the crowd taking over from time to time, a harmony guitar break with the tones of mid-seventies Thin Lizzy and some excellent drum fills from the ever reliable Pete Jupp.

The cramped stage ensured both he and keyboardist Jem Davis were pushed further forward, the latter to the front edge of the stage, giving me an excellent vantage point to appreciate at close quarters that thorough keyboard work that complement the guitars in AOR at its best. ‘Crack Alley’ was another excellent song brought back from obscurity by fan demand though it felt a little less instant among this particular set.

Steve introduced ‘American Girls’ with a reference to his late brother Chris and said it was another one that tested his vocal range: it’s a personal favourite for a number of reasons that I think they should play more often and the lusty chant of ‘Destination USA’ suggested I was not alone.

It started a run of one of their eighties classics after another- the ballad ‘Frozen Heart’ was another to have the crowd taking over to every word and my AOR cup was truly running over with delight at the melodic hooks of ‘That Girl’, ‘Bad Luck’, complete with harmony guitars and a mid section keyboard bridge from Jem worthy of Survivor, and ‘I Belong To The Night’.

I don’t know if it this was a conscious tribute to Chris Overland, but this was as AOR driven a set as I’ve seen from them in a long while with the lion’s share from the first two albums that he played on. Nevertheless it finished with a song to rank with their best from last album ‘13’ in ‘Turn This Car Around’- with Jem on electric piano, the song has a storytelling theme reminiscent of ‘Bon Jovi’s ‘Blood On Blood’ or even ‘Born to Run’ and it was the perfect vehicle for the band to swap places around the cramped stage with big smiles and even a cheeky snatch of ‘Caroline’.

The encores also followed recent tradition, Jem the main accompaniment to a near solo rendition by Steve of ‘Story Of My Life’ showing off that wonderfully soulful voice before more infectious choruses and stage movements to ‘Other Side of Midnight’, the only disappointment being that, presumably due to space limitations, Jem did not come out from his back of keyboards with his keytar.

Steve referred a couple of times to 2023 being a year to forget with Chris’ passing and Jem’s cancer battle among other things. Yet their unforced joy in playing together always creates a feel good atmosphere.

It means their live shows are always capable of entertaining even those who may not be big fans of the band’s studio work. But, if like me, you are a British melodic rocker, preferably one for whom those first two albums played a big part in your life, this night was even more memorable. With new product in the horizon, roll on another busy year of touring activity on 2024 for a band that get better with age.

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

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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)