Of all the many bands in the thriving New Wave of Classic Rock movement, it is Those Damn Crows who, along with Massive Wagons, have made the biggest commercial breakthrough. Indeed earlier this year their new album ‘God Shaped Hole’ reached No 1 in the national album charts (albeit a rather less high bar to clear these days) and after a back to roots club tour in the spring, this tour of larger venues was a celebration of the South Walians’ exalted status. The Shepherds Bush Empire was nearly full with 1600 tickets sold and a real sense of anticipation in the air.

Two support bands, both crossing the pond, were given a half hour set each, starting with the tousle-haired Illinois raised, Nashville resident James Bruner, making a return visit after supporting the Crows on that club tour. He looks every inch the rock star, coming on stage in red leather jacket and matching strides, and with lithe, non-stop stage movements like Mick Jagger or Iggy Pop. However a set which included the likes of ‘Redlight’ boasted little in the way of memorable tunes, though I did enjoy the classic feel of lead guitarist Zach Mears.

Originally from Canada, Autumn Kings have been on the scene a decade but were also a new name to me. Their style was uncompromising yet on songs like ‘Power’ and ‘Riptide’ the melodies were still very detectable on the choruses, leading me to draw comparisons with Pop Evil and Three Days Grace.

The vocal arrangements were interesting- nominal lead singer Joseph Coccimiglio had a relatively thin and high-pitched voice but was supported either side of him by the rather deeper vocals of guitarist Jake Tiab, who supplied the rap-rock growls, and bassist Tibor Bognar. As the set wore on their professed Linkin Park influences became stronger, culminating unsurprisingly in a cover of ’Bleed It Out’, then ‘Hellbound’ ended an energetic set, but one which was not really my scene.

Expectation grew for the arrival of Those Damn Crows but there was a worrying false start- as the intro tape played drummer Ronnie Huxford walked away from his kit and from my vantage point of the side of the balcony I could see panicked looks at the mixing desk while they sorted a sound issue. Thankfully after a few minutes and with no danger of running into curfews we were under way.

The stage set up matched the distinguished surroundings with bright lights and the ‘God Shaped Hole’ album cover on a big backdrop and another smaller one on the stage itself. The set opened, as the album with ‘Dancing With The Enemy’, the crowd already shouting the chorus, while ‘Man On Fire’ from previous (and imho marginally superior) ‘Inhale/Exhale’ album saw singer Shane Greenhall conduct the first but not last ‘who-oah-oh’s of the evening.

Their songs have become ever more anthemic and I would take on the more conservative members of my melodic rock community in arguing that both ‘No Surrender’ and ‘Find A Way’ were textbook modern melodic rock with their big chorus hooks. However both ‘Spit And Choke’ and ‘Turn It Around’ showed the band still very much still have a bite, bassist Lloyd Wood a particularly energetic force.

What sets them apart though is Shane’s charisma and the way he revels in live performance, even if he seems a rather calmer presence these days. He spoke of his pride that five lads from Bridgend were playing Shepherds Bush Empire on the back of a No 1 album.

In a celebratory atmosphere they then showcased more tracks from it in ‘Glass Heart’, ‘Dreaming’ with some tidy guitar lines from David Winchurch, and ‘Night Train’, Shane explaining it was inspired by a dream about departed relatives, which had an original- sounding musical arrangement. They all showed, dare I say it, a pop sensibility and demonstrated how far the band’s style has moved on over the last couple of albums.

Indeed to that point the set had been wholly drawn from those two releases, but that changed with ‘Who Did It’, the crowd roaring the title en masse as the chorus built inexorably towards it. I noticed that Shane seemed to spend more songs than before behind a guitar and after another anthem in ‘I Am’, came their biggest stylistic departure yet as he carried ‘Still’ all by himself, other than the crowd taking over certain lines.

In contrast ‘Fake’ (completing a full house of the new album with the surprise omission of ‘Lets Go Psycho’) had a big sound augmented by taped keyboard and string effects but it was a real piano that Shane turned to for old favourite ‘Blink Of An Eye’- indeed the keyboard and vocal melodies even reminded me of Journey’s ‘Faithfully’.

The song had an epic feel with a number of changes of tempo and mid-song David and resident band cult figure Ian ‘Shiner’ Thomas moved from their stations to centre stage for a choreographed twin guitar pose. Both incidentally are masters of keeping it simple, avoiding solos of more than minimal length and allowing the songs space to breathe.

That restraint was cast off for probably the heaviest riffing of the night on ‘Go Get it’ accompanied by laser lights yet still with a big chorus, then during ‘Sin on Skin’ I could see pockets of people jumping on the crowded floor area.

However attention soon focused on Shane’s appearance near me on the first level. By his legendary balcony climbing standards it was a relatively tame effort, but he explained the law being laid down during a pre-gig safety briefing.

I’ve noticed over the last couple of years how the Crows’ songs have become ever more widescreen, with a huge broad brush sound meant for arenas, films or TV montages alike. They finished up with two prime examples, starting with ‘This Time I’m Ready’, which again had a big anthemic feel with several changes of gear. If the ‘who-oh-oah’ only came out at the end of the song, that motif was everywhere during the fittingly entitled ‘See You Again’.

The only let down for me was that as the latter came to a big ‘We Are Those Damn Crows’ conclusion, I realised we wouldn’t be getting the classic ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Ain’t Dead’ that was their trademark song as they climbed the ranks. I do hope this was only a temporary retirement rather than a more permanent decision that it no longer fits with their current musical evolution.

That gripe aside, this was one of the most enjoyable gigs of the year. The Crows looked entirely comfortable with the requirements of a theatre-sized show, and those songs are huge enough that it feels they are already preparing for arena status.

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

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