Gig review: BLUE NATION- The Cavern, Raynes Park, London, 27 September 2024

Blue Nation are a band making a growing name for themselves. They’ve actually been around quite some while, but about 18 months ago I’d been impressed enough by their support slot with Laurence Jones to buy a CD, so the release of a new album ‘Ordinary People’ and the fact they were concluding a lengthy tour with this free show at one of my regular South-West London haunts made it the perfect moment to catch them in full electric format for the first time.

There was a mixture of regulars at one of Outer London’s best rock pubs and confirmed fans with t-shirts, one of whom had even come from Holland. There was plenty of chat throughout the night, and indeed they riffed on the fact even some fans had criticised them for excessive banter- meta banter you might say.

All that would just be a gimmick but for the undoubted quality of the music. Although songs like ‘Rich Girl’ and ‘Gimme Some Time’ had some big retro sounding guitar riffs and reminded me a bit of Rival Sons, even Blue Nation’s name is a little misleading as their style is refreshingly different to the crowded scene of blues rockers out there. The likes of ‘The Reason and ‘Time Is a Thief’ were song oriented and devoid of guitar heroics.

Lead singer and guitarist Neil Murdoch, sporting a military style jacket, has a lot of charisma while his voice blends well with the harmonies of bassist Luke Weston. The latter has grown his hair since I last saw them and gone full on hippy in John Lennon glasses, a paisley top and stockinged feet.

A variety of influences slipped through; psychedelic pop, occasionally a hint of Chris Cornell in Neil’s vocals and even the Britpop bands that also mined the sounds of the late sixties, notably Ocean Colour Scene. Not many bands are able to joke that one of their songs ‘Old Friends’ was emo meets goes country.

The new album naturally was generously featured including the title track, ‘Run Straight Ahead’ and I Feel Low’. ‘Once In My Life’ saw Neil’s voice going falsetto, ‘Come Back Home’ showcased those psychedelic influences and ‘Strangers’ was particularly impressive. There was also a melancholic feel to many of their songs.

Even in this pub environment an hour and a half long set was nearly all originals, other than slipping ‘When My Guitar Gently Weeps’ into a medley and Neil surprising Luke and drummer Nick Sharman (not that you would’ve noticed) by sneaking ‘Sweethome Alabama’ into the setlist. ‘Every Single Time’ had a more jaunty melody and ‘Good Times’ boasted one of the relatively rare big old school riffs.

There is also a serious as well as playful side to them with Luke giving a speech about the importance of men taking about their mental health prior to the first encore in ‘Echoes’. Both that and ‘Cold Night’ were fairly downbeat songs but the big riff of closer ‘Down By the River’ left everyone in a good mood with the jug for tips in a healthy state and even the resident dogs lapping up the music. A great end of tour for this promising and quirky band who are sure to be playing bigger venues before too long.

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

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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)