Over the past two years Brave Rival have been one of my very favourite new bands, and judging by the various awards they have received (including ‘Fight Or Flight’ being GRTR!’s joint classic rock album of the year for 2024!) I am not alone in that. However, late last year one of the two co-vocalists that helped them forge such a unique sound, Chloe Josephine, left for family reasons. It was the biggest challenge in the band’s short career and eventually they chose to continue without her as a four piece, and I was somewhat anxious whether they would be able to maintain that special vibe.

Their touring schedule has not let up, and my first opportunity to see the new line-up came not too far from me at the Hampton Hub, a community centre in outer South-West London where promoter Jeff Barnes is putting on an impressive array of bands. These include originals (Chantel McGregor and Martin Turner being two upcoming shows) even though the conventional wisdom is that venues like this need tribute acts to make them pay. There was a decent crowd considering, all table seated with some familiar Brave Rival fan (mostly) boys filling the front row.

Perhaps unfairly, as the gig opened I was in the mindset of critiquing the new approach. This lasted less than halfway through ‘Heart Attack’ where the power in Lindsey Bonnick’s voice easily carried the song, even sounding like the great Ann Wilson at one point, and I never considered the issue again.

An opening quartet rocked hard and never let up, continuing with ‘Bad Choices’ made for audience involvement with clapping out the rhythm and shouting the ‘who-oh’s, ‘Secrets’ on which Lindsey’s vocals were superb, and ‘What’s Your Name Again’ with Ed ‘the Shred’ Clarke’s slide guitar and Billy Dedman’s bass prominent.

Part of their original appeal was the between song chemistry between the two singers and Ed to a degree stepped up to the plate as Lindsey’s banter partner, particularly drawing attention to his being more youthful than the rest of the band.

The first of a few curveballs in the set was a cover of Sheryl Crow’s ‘Run Baby Run’ and a very authentic one, but enlivened by a sweet solo from Ed, who again impressed with rather greater flash on ‘On The Next Round’, another with those ‘who-oahs’ reflecting the love of some band members for Bon Jovi- like stadium rock.

‘Sink Or Swim’ was cut from a different cloth, not only with Billy Dedman’s lengthy bass intro but Lindsey singing in a different and more ethereal style – indeed I was briefly making comparisons with Kate Bush. ‘Stars Upon My Scars’ initially took the pace down which then rebuilt as the song progressed with some urgent drumming from Donna Peters and another epic solo from Ed.

Taking a break, we were promised surprises in the second half and the band returned in acoustic fashion for a vocally and instrumentally faultless version of ‘Alone’, made most famous of course by Heart. During ‘All I Can Think About’, they moved from acoustic to electric, before ‘Seventeen’ boasted a riff somewhat inspired by Billy’s beloved Led Zeppelin. Another surprise was a Catfish song ‘Up In Smoke’ which was part of a forthcoming album tribute to the late Matt Long.

‘Stand Up’ was raunchy as was one of my favourites ‘Run And Hide’ despite the fact it was one of those where the original dual vocal attack was the most prominent. After ‘Blame The Voices’, Lindsey introduced their final song ‘Heavy’ as their power ballad. For me it was more intimate than that and the vocals superb but it took an unexpected twist, segueing into a lengthy instrumental coda, starring Ed going into an epic, almost Gary Moore-like solo.

They did come back for an encore in ‘Fairytale’, again driven powerfully by Donna, cementing the conclusion I had progressively come to during the set that they seem to have become a harder and leaner beast after a few years playing together. It was notable that Lindsey introduced them to newcomers as a ‘classic rock band’ and though they continue to pick up blues awards that pigeonhole is probably even less relevant than it ever has been.

This new line-up may be a more conventional one but their warmth, individuality and most importantly the songs are still there, so, this excellent show was an example of how another hurdle has been cleared in what, if there is any justice, will be a deserved rise to wider prominence.

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

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Power Plays w/c 1 December 2025

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