By DJ Astrocreep and David O’Neill
Another trip over to Manchester sees me take in the aural delectations of Kentucky blues rockers Black Stone Cherry, a couple of days after photographer David O’Neill has caught them down in Cardiff. I encounter a fair amount of travel chaos, as an idiot has decided to venture on to the train tracks at the first station out of Lime Street, so my pre-gig plans go out the window and I have to quickly make my way across Manchester for our first support.
Ayron Jones has just taken to the stage as I get to my space in my wheelchair, so I catch all but the first half of the opening song. He has a deep, soulful voice, which works excellently in this setting. It’s the first time I’ve heard of him, but his dirty blues rock very quickly gets my head nodding and feet tapping away in time. The 30 minutes absolutely fly by, as both Jones and his beautifully arranged music are on top form, even despite how late in the tour they now are. It’s a brilliant opening set, paving the way for the two more established acts to follow.
I have to admit to being quite torn about Skillet. There are parts I quite enjoy and their extended support slot, making this almost a dual headline gig with how long they get, plus they clearly go down well with a decent section of the crowd. There are some things that I just find off putting, though I think this is more down to personal preference than any wrong doing by any of the band.
Lead vocals are a touch rawer live than in recording, though this is perfectly natural and normal and backing/co-vocalist drummer Jen Ledger is very good (and comes across like an absolute chaos demon on the drums) though I think her very Paramore-esque vocals are where it goes for me slightly. To be clear, this is not due to any lack of talent – quite the opposite, in fact – just that it’s not my personal preference. It’s objectively a very good performance that seems to make quite a few people happy, with plenty of big, singalong choruses and a tightly executed set, that does them justice and they get the crowd nicely warmed up for our headliner.
Headliner time and Black Stone Cherry have gotten their reputation through sheer hard work and talent. The penultimate show of an almost two year tour could often be an awkward time to catch a band, but BSC are absolutely smack on form still. The crowd are full of positivity and love, which reverberates through the band and back out to the crowd and it’s great to see what I’d guess at around 13,000 people just absolutely loving the music and wanting to be part of the whole experience.
Chris Robertson and co are somehow still on top form, despite what must be a high level of tour weariness at this point. Whether it’s the slower ballads or the more up tempo favourites like ‘White Trash Millionaire’, there is just such a loving atmosphere that I’ve only really seen with the likes of Devin Townsend. A feeling of being uplifted for a set that would feel just at home in a gospel hall and maybe just an intimate, despite the grand setting of an arena show.
Coming on to personal favourite ‘Me And Mary Jane’, they start off the set with an absolute corker, moving on through a mixture of old and new. Rain Wizard isn’t too far behind, marking the start of the second quarter of the set. Whether it’s the big hits or some of the lesser known, such as a superbly crafted cover of The Cult’s ‘American Horse’ (which is now heavily in my normal song rotation), the crowd rightfully are up for each and everything, even when Robertson performs a highly emotionally charged ‘Things My Father Said’ solo performance.
You can hear a pin drop when he comes out into the audience for sole encore track ‘Peace Is Free’, getting hugs from a lot of the crowd as he makes his way through, before eventually retaking the stage to rapturous applause.
A superb headline set that just further cements their reputation as one of the hardest working and talented bands on the live circuit.
- All photos taken at Cardiff Utilita Arena © Bandtogs/Über Rock.
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