Midnite City continue to entertain with their feel good revival of the glammy melodic hard rock sounds of the late eighties (or hair metal as it was never called in the day). This show was originally scheduled for November but postponed when singer Rob Wylde broke his ribs. Every cloud has a silver lining, as a rescheduled date avoided the pre-Christmas rush and was at a time when gigs are fewer on the ground, and we are in greater need of the lift which they certainly provide. Plus, it gave me more time to allow their new album ‘Bite the Bullet’ to grow on me.

Their sound is made for arenas, but- at least in this country- is confined to small clubs. I enjoyed the gig in spite of, rather than because of, the venue, the music room in the Black Heart being the size of the average living room, with a cramped stage, poor lighting and poor sightlines further back. The one consolation is for the faithful at the front to be right up in the band’s face.

There was a support from Nasty Ratz (sic) who had come all the way from the Czech Republic. My expectations were modest for the sleaze rockers but enjoyed a surprising variety of songwriting. Frontman Jake Widow (sic) also looked and sounded the part and I was very impressed with his fingerless gloves doubling up as laser pointers!

After a very quick turnaround, Midnite City hit the crowded stage with new song ‘Live Like Ya Mean It’ just as effective an opening anthem as on the new album. ‘Someday’ was one of many where the keyboards of Shawn Charvette, rather hidden from view at the back, and fluent guitarist Miles Meakin traded off each other in melodic and very enjoyable fashion.

Blond hair held in place by a black headband, Rob Wylde is a masterful frontman, involving the crowd at the right moments and generous in his praise of crew, band and fans- notably a couple from Japan and the USA respectively.

It is also reassuring that he speaks in a broad Boltonian accent rather than be tempted to put on a faux American voice. I did notice however that Shawn was taking quite a few lines of lead vocals, particularly on the verses- whether this was something that passed me by before, or a measure to protect Rob’s return to full fitness, I am not quite sure.

The new album featured heavily including its first single ‘Heaven In This Hell’, ‘Lethal Dose of Love’ with another irresistible chorus, and ‘No One Wins’ alongside older favourites across their five album career. Of the latter, ‘Hardest Heart to Break’ showed their more melodic side, ‘Girls Gone Wild’ had an irresistible chorus hook that Desmond Child might have written back in the day, and they went right back to their first album for ‘Summer of Our Lives’ which had long-term fans singing along.

There was a ‘name that tune’ to some familiar melodies with ‘Atomic’ reminding me of a cross between Loverboy’s ‘Lovin Every Minute of it’ and Firehouse’s ‘Rock on the Radio’, while one of my own favourites in ‘They Only Come Out At Night’, where the crowd spontaneously sang the ‘na-na-nas’, boasted some Def Leppard gang style vocals in the verses.

I was particularly pleased ‘When the Summer Ends’ was in the set as my favourite from the new album, reminding me of cult heroes Blue Tears, while a couple of other newies in ‘Worth Fighting For’ and the mid-pocket ‘Seeing Is Believing’ seemed to take on a new strength live compared to their recorded versions.

They ended with what Rob referred to as Midnite City anthems in ‘Give Me Love’ and ‘We Belong’ and as a band now nearly ten years old they have stood the test of time. Sadly, with the atmosphere now really cooking, they marked the end of an 80 minute set that had flown by.

I still live in the fading hope that their combination of strong songs and a lively and colourful stage show will give Midnite City a big breakthrough, but in the meantime this was another entertaining and enjoyable gig from them.

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

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Upcoming sessions:

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Josh Taerk - Sunday Session - 11 January 2026

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. This “Best of 2025 reviewer choices” show was first broadcast on 21 December 2025.

UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). Pete’s Best of 2025 was first broadcast on 23 December 2025

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Power Plays w/c 26 January 2026

JOANNE SHAW TAYLOR Hell Or High Water (Journeyman Records)
TY FREEMAN One Way Love (indie)
GREY DAZE Monster You Adore (indie)
HOKKA Death By Cupids Arrow (Nuclear Blast Records)
PURPLE DOTS Stared At The Sun (Kycker)
SAINT AGNES Song For Mia (Spinefarm)
STREETLIGHT Shake That Feeling (Frontiers)

Featured Albums w/c 26 January 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)

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