Live Review: Black Stone Cherry, Duff McKagan’s Loaded, The Parlor Mob
An evening of retro-tinged rock in Birmingham.
Black Stone Cherry + Duff McKagan’s Loaded + The Parlor Mob @ Academy, Birmingham, 10-10-09
Tonight is one of those rare shows where parents and their offspring can come along together, as you can tick both the ‘modern’ and ‘retro’ boxes to describe all three bands on the bill. As such, the room is packed, the atmosphere is relaxed and t-shirts, CDs and hot pants are all flying off the merch desk. Time to rock!
Opening things up is New Jersey’s The Parlor Mob, who make a mockery of the crowd’s sobriety and the 6.20pm stage time by launching into an opening 5-minute jam song packed full of big riffs, wailed vocals and plenty of harmonica. Their name is a fair reflection of how they play; this mob adopts the wall of sound approach, bombarding you with a mixture of Sabbath-esque doom-laded atmospherics coupled with the bluesy retro sound made popular by the stoner metal genre. The result is a cacophony of glorious noise that draws you in and leaves you desperate for more. Whether it be the dual guitar work of David Rosen and Paul Ritchie, or the piercing vocals of Mark Melicia, this is a band with real talent.
For another support band to follow that would be difficult, so luckily for the group next on stage they are fronted by a bone fide rock legend; Duff McKagan made his name as bassist for Guns ‘n’ Roses and Velvet Revolver, but he’s actually been in Loaded, his hometown band, longer than he has played for any other band. Before you judge, Loaded is not just a poor excuse for a band that gets gigs because of their frontman – far from it. They play a likeable form of sleazy, punky rock and do it with a passion and attitude that really seems to strike a chord with the crowd. Their own material like ‘Sleaze Factory’ and ‘Sick’ are good enough to win people over – although this was helped with the inclusion of a couple of classic punk covers in the shape of ‘Attitude’ and ‘New Rose’. Duff’s guitar playing is solid, his raspy vocals fit the music perfectly and he is clearly healthy and enjoying himself with Loaded, something the crowd pick up and respond to by really getting into the performance. A finale of one of his own classics – GNR’s ‘It’s So Easy’ – ensures one hell of a cheer as Loaded exit the stage.
Despite hailing from many, many miles away, Black Stone Cherry have already amassed great support in the UK in the three short years since their debut album was released, something evidenced by the huge crowd here to see them despite it only being a few months since they were last over here. With no new music to speak of, tonight is more about a celebration of where they’ve come so far, as well as a chance for the band to show just why they are doing so well for themselves. The second part is answered within three songs – when you can open your show with ‘Rainman’, ‘Backwoods Gold’ and ‘Shooting Star’ then you’re onto a winner. BSC’s songs ooze style, their riffs have punch, their choruses are catchy, they aren’t afraid to drop in a guitar solo and, in John-Fred Young, they have one of the finest (and hairiest) modern rock drummers. Tonight sees the band air some tracks from a re-packaged version of their second album – Folklore and Superstition – which came out earlier this year; as singer/guitarist Chris Robertson says, they wanted to do “something a bit different” before launching into ‘Cowboys’ and ‘Yeah Man’.
BSC live are truly the complete package; there’s the speed and axe-grinding fury of songs like ‘Blindman’, the gentle ballad ‘Please Come In’, the huge, crowd-friendly chorus of ‘Soulcreek’ and the great storytelling of ‘Big Train’ all in one show, and the band are very relaxed, very confident and very, very good. This confidence is apparent for all to see, and it makes for one of the strongest band to crowd rapports you’re ever likely to see at a live show; quite simply the band love their fans, and the fans love the band just as much back. The encore of ‘Things My Father Said’ and ‘We Are the Kings’ rounds off the set in great style, and has everyone already anticipating the band’s return to the UK. With the ability to put on a show as good as this, it can’t be long before BSC really hit the big time.
Full Black Stone Cherry setlist: Rainman/Backwoods Gold/Shooting Star/Cowboys/Yeah Man/Blindman/Hell and High Water/Please Come In/Soulcreek/Drum Solo/Peace is Free/Blues Jam/Maybe Someday/Big Train/Things My Father Said/We Are the Kings.
Photography: Dave Musson Photography
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