Hard Rock Hell XII – Review by Dawn Osborne

HRH XII

Thursday

Eden’s Curse

It’s an absolute packed house when Eden’s Curse kick off proceedings with ‘Masquerade Ball’. For a band delivering big prog epics it’s hard to fit much into a festival length set and they almost just seem to be getting started with ‘Angels and Demons’ inspired by the novel of the same name before it has to come to an end.

 

Myke Gray

After a heavy instrumental from his Shades of Gray album ‘Infinite Power’ the big surprise of the evening was bouncing on with boundless energy was female singer Kim Jennett of Voodoo Blood (a band set to play stage 2 of HRH on the Friday.) There is no doubt that it brings a whole new feel to the Myke Gray show. With previous singer Phil Conalane the live show was already good time rock and roll well suited to Myke’s best known material from Skin. Now we have Janis Joplin instead of Jimmy Barnes!! Vocally we love both, of course, but there is no doubt that Kim is super striking visually with her jet black sharp cut fringe and long hair and leopard print body con flares bound to get noticed and her direct attack firecracker approach to songs and audience alike she can probably give Lzzy Hale a run for her money.

 

Myke is perfectly happy for Kim to be the focus of attention, having done this for decades there is no sign he is feeling upstaged, indeed he seems re-invigorated and there’s huge amounts of interplay between them as they lean forward and back in a rock n roll see saw. She also displays good crowd skills unafraid to lean right into the audience. As they leave the stage there is no doubt they have been a big hit with HRH and Myke extends himself in a prayer bow holding his Flying V with both hands by its bottom points out to the audience and bowing up and down to them. It’s a triumph and apparently Kim’s first live gig as singer (although she did sing a few songs with the band when Voodoo Blood supported Myke previously). With reportedly only 4 hours rehearsal time and one week to learn the material we look forward to seeing what more can be achieved by a combo that looks set to run.

Rock Goddess

With a brand new bassist in the ranks it was a surprise when Rock Goddess announced that long time member Tracy Lamb was leaving and while we missed her Rock Goddess delivered a confident and strong metal performance gripping HRH Wales by the balls. With the new material standing up well alongside the old stuff they get a great reaction and as the first ladies on the bill definitely give the boys a run for their money.

 

 

Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons

Phil and his sons delivered their by now honed combination of heavier punk numbers such as the ‘R_A_M_O_N_E_S’ cover and screaming guitar with the heavy blues of newer tracks like ‘Dark Days’ with its slow burn riffs and ‘Age of Absurdity’ stripped back to show off fine bluesy vocals. Fresh from his award as HRH axeman I am always struck by however heavy the music he is playing with his trade mark chew Phil always seems to be in his Rolling Stones groove as if this is a walk in the park and barely breaking a sweat. If you’ve seen this band before you’ll know they are far from a Motörhead tribute band but they do not forget to honour departed members with a harder version of Hawkwind’s ‘Silver Machine’ delivered with a rock n roll swagger. Now a traditional part of the show the band rip Tyla Campbell by building him up and then encouraging the crowd to shout ‘fuck u; to him. So with classic versions of ‘Ace of Spades’ and ‘It’s a Bomber’ it’s another Welsh homecoming for a band already set to climb high up festival bills worldwide.

 

Michael Schenker Fest

Approaching this as a real entertainment show revolving around himself Michael Schenker quite modestly starts off proceedings by explaining which bands he has been in and not assuming that he needs no introduction. After a brief demonstration of his axe skills it’s not long before we have not one but four original singers on stage which I believe, just like Michael himself, to be unique. Now one might think that the egos of front men might get in the way, but not a bit of it and they all seem to be enjoying the crack as they launch into the well known ‘Doctor Doctor’ by UFO.

Michael is rightly proud of his new material from ‘Resurrection’ and we get a fine version of ‘Take Me to the Church’ with current singer Doogie White taking the lead but with fine harmony backing vocals from Graham Bonnet, Robin McCauley and Gary Barden and indeed they all get to shine across proceedings taking it in turns to sing lead on songs across Michael’s career from old to new.

There are plenty of featured solo shreds from Michael and he takes the time to set history straight as he sees it about the Scorpions and to inject other personal anecdotes along the way. Further all four singers participate in the new material fully with ‘Warrior’ giving them a chance to punch their fists into the air like a tribe. The signs that it has been a good show is that it all seems over too soon with the new material definitely standing up to old classics like ‘Only You Can Rock Me’. Indeed on encore ‘Lights Out’ the singers sound better when they sing all together introducing a harmonious depth to what otherwise can be a bit of a shout fest chorus wise. Michael always someone I think of like the girl with the curl and delightfully unpredictable is on super form tonight and it was really a truly memorable end to the first night full of old skool metal and contemporary rock and roll and fine performances worthy of Michael’s long career.

Friday

Vambo

Opening the main stage today were Vambo with big riffs delivered with plenty of emotion and a symphonic sound, singer Jake Stiles looks and sounds like John Corabi’s son so I kept imagining the moment if they met in a corridor backstage.

A strong and deep bluesy voice to watch with the power to deliver metal screams backed by talented musicians with especially nice guitar tone, it’s a big 70s sound and, should they do as well as the Daisies, promises a lot.

Thunderstick

Thunderstick deliver a powerful soprano voice over heavy heavy metal delivered with a myriad of costume changes that’ll keep you on your toes. There’s a dash of Pamela Moore, a dash of Alice Cooper and a large back bone of heavy artillery that made them really enjoyable to watch.

 

 

 

 

Blitzkrieg

Blitzkrieg delivered old skool cut off vest metal with a highlight being ‘Angels and Demons’. Fans of Judas Priest they threw in a few covers at the end providing a wall of sound and mid afternoon it’s designed to knock your block off in a good way.

 

Vintage Caravan

Vintage Caravan are obviously huge fans of the psychedelic side of the 70s so there’s a lot of kaleidoscope backdrops for mock epic songs like ‘Universe’. Black Sabbath is obviously a heavy influence on the band, Their super geekiness seems to endear them to the HRH crowd which is super friendly in any event.

 

Dan Reed Network

Dan Reed brought his own authentic heritage to the party. Super international and super cool they breezed their way through their classics and provided the only real funk rock so far at the festival including bass solos so fly, that a bowler hat precarious to wear at the best of times didn’t even fall off when the bass was played behind the head. We get a dancy interlude , a bit of RnB, a snippet of ‘I was made for Loving You’ by Kiss. Not many people could pull off a cover of ‘Relax’ by ‘Frankie goes to Hollywood’, but Dan DOES. New music and new age positive vibe attitudes come through with ‘Champion’ a song from the latest Frontiers album about working with people who believe in your dreams. It’s a strong offering that fits in with the classics. To top it off we get an interactive version of defining classic song ‘Ritual’ in which the crowd get to sing the tribal chant having been all nicely warmed up by now.

Girlschool

Girlschool are tight and make arena rock look easy taking everything in their stride including having to tell bad jokes during a brief drum tech issue. They bring some new tracks in the shape of a couple of songs from the last album ‘Guilty as Sin’, ‘Revolution’ and ‘Take it Like a Band’ which way more than washed their own faces against classics like ‘Out to Get you’ and the wonderful ‘Running with the Devil’ with an iconic riff delivered with smiles. Still looking very much the part (loving those heart concho boot straps and shiny pvc!) musically they really are the female Motörhead and totally deserve more recognition for that.

 

Saxon

Head banging from the off Saxon deliver a two hour set with energy and total passion. How Biff managed to wear a wool military coat throughout and on top of that wear cut off jackets thrown up onto the stage by fans under the heat of the lights without any impact on all the metal action I’ll never know, but he looks fantastic throughout and the sheer stamina involved makes me think of battle heroes of old. Thanking HRH for all the awards the band scooped this year he promised a trip back to the 80s and takes the crowd with him.

 

My favorites were old skool versions of the classics like ‘Princess of the Night’ and ‘Motorcycle Man’, but I also love the historical content of later songs like ‘Battering Ram’, ‘Crusader’ and ‘Sons of Odin’. Epics and balls out motorcycle songs sit comfortably side by side with historical epics. Biff’s love for his tribe is obvious and they love him for wearing and signing their jackets and giving attention to the audience that actually has you feeling he’s watching you like a hawk and you better not disappoint him cos he’ll call you out.

 

In tribute to Lemmy ‘They Played Rock n Roll’ is delivered and there’s no doubt Saxon have gilt edged credentials as carriers of the torch of the authentic British Heavy Metal that started everything off around the world. As we approach the encore Biff mentions 40th anniversary celebrations next year promising ‘It will be Mighty and you will come’  before the evening ends on a high with crowd favorites ‘Wheels of Steel’ and ‘Denim and Leather’. A huge chant of ‘Saxon, Saxon’ erupts several times across the evening and there’s no doubt of the crowd’s love for a band that have earned their colours through sheer toil and sweat and commitment across the years. A metal giant for a giant metal event.

 

Saturday

 

Kaleb McKane

Big 70s prog rock delivered by an ingenue. You saw it here first. If you love the freedom prog affords artist to express themselves with their instrument in an unfettered way then this was for you.

 

 

Hawklords

Hawklords deliver long and ponderous space rock, it’s not really my thing and I don’t catch the whole of their set.

 

Massive

Cheeky chappies from Melbourne based Massive deliver no nonsense quality meat n potatoes rock n roll with nuthin fancy. It’s heavy blues metal with chunky riffs and bouncy hairy men. Imagining beers out loud which suddenly appear from stage left doesn’t work too well when they shout ‘Hookers and Blow!’ But despite all the ostensible dumbing down, in fact, these guys manage to deliver melodic catchy songs which are not too obvious and increasingly as we get to the end of the set we hear some great stuff, harmonies and less tramelled ground. Dancing and spinning to a frenetic rhythm which is almost Celtic in effort and pace, for every rock n roll cliché there’s a freshness and enthusiasm which carries the day.

 

Tygers of Pan Tang

The Tygers are tight and focused tonight and at the beginning of their set they remind me of Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow in terms of their full and rockin sound. The Tygers make the most of the wonderful songs in their back catalogue tonight and while it’s rightfully all about the guitars it’s definitely a very full all round package. As I enjoyed the blistering guitar solo during ‘Lonely at the Top’ I reflected on how much better this performance was than the much smaller gig where I last saw them in London where there wasn’t room to swing a cat never mind a very large one with stripes. The Tygers look much better at home on a larger stage with room to breathe. With this performance tonight they are carrying on the UK tradition of guitar bands like UFO, heavy and super synced heavy riffs on repeat. Monster guitars and delivered with a bit of humour such as guitar plecs on the forehead Rimmer style and pretend strangulation backwards to create axe hero poses with a twist, this band look completely behind what they are doing right here right now. Happy and at ease the Tygers were at their best tonight.

 

John Coghlan’s Quo

Loved as Quo songs are, the crowd’s reaction is slightly muted to a new band playing the classics. Rossi and Parfitt were so well known it’s hard to shed all comparisons. It was lovely to see Coghlan back on stage which I don’t think I had since the early 80s and the crowd clearly know all the songs from Quo’s most popular era. If I was to give any constructive feedback I’d say that without Rossi and Parfitt the band need to work even harder to involve the crowd. With such an amazing back catalogue and with an original member in the ranks the band should not be afraid to strut their stuff a little more and make it more of a show than simply a concert.

 

Femme Fatale

Adding a welcome addition of feminine energy were all female Femme Fatale, now all bad ass babes as opposed to the female fronted otherwise male band behind the original album. The focus is still on the well loved original material and the game is super strong. My favourite set of the weekend saw Lorraine singin better than ever and backed by a rock band competing on the same terms as any other band on the bill. They made the most of the wonderful songs from the first album and follow up second album recorded also in the old days of the band (although as the first album is better known it unsurprising filled most of the set).

 

Maybe the crowd are tired as they react less to Lorraine initially than they would I feel if they hadn’t done three days of hard partying and bands, but she will not let them get away with that and works tirelessly to pump them up putting everything into her performance, propeller arms and throwing herself on the floor if the passion requires it. It works and by the cell phone videoing to send home to absent keyboard player Kat the crowd are pumping the horns and enthusiastically cheering the band along. We get incredible power ballads like ‘If’ along with rockier classics like ‘Fallin In and Out of Love’ and literally the big one ‘Waitin’ at the end.

When Lorraine announces that we have reached the last song of the night the crowd boo clearly wanting the girls to stay on stage as long as they possibly can. It’s 30 years since Lorraine played in the UK and she should definitely not wait 30 years to come back. We had a lot of very strong female musicians and vocalists at HRH this year and justifiably highly placed on the bill. Girl Power? Don’t look any further than Femme Fatale who occupied the same slot rank wise as Rock Goddess and Girlschool on other nights and carried the torch for the American AOR sunset strip side of female fronted rock with aplomb.

 

Dead Daisies

 

Having worked tirelessly to build up a back catalogue of songs in an almost annual barrage of new albums and lengthy tours and myriad festival appearances the Daisies have a lot of great songs to choose from for their set list now and, despite the stellar bands in their collective CVS from the past, in the main they concentrate on superb Daisies classics like ‘Song and a Prayer’ and ‘Long Way to Go’. They have a lot of years stage experience  between them meaning they are all masters of crowd management and now, claiming a headline slot, it is undoubtedly where they belong.

Nobody stays in the music industry as long as these guys unless they really enjoy it and being such huge fans of music from the UK they can’t resist a smattering of music they love, although wisely they stick to snippets and Purple’s ‘Highway Star’ which is a more contemporary shredding metal version than the classic and which they definitely own. Marco with his easy latin charm get’s right down with the audience at the front to whip them up and looks to the side and the back making sure everyone is with the program. Doug Aldrich is undoubtedly a modern axe hero with traditional chops and the Randy Rhodes looks that make him a joy to watch. John has seen so much over the years as a rock frontman that nothing with throw him off his mission to have a good time with rock n roll and take the crowd with him. He even risks a dig at the weather which often pours down in Wales at this time of year and this weekend is no exception. He graphically describes how even the sheep seem hunched over exclaiming ‘f*ck!’ at the cold. Using this as a platform he offers to take the crowd on a plane with him to hot weather, beaches and tequila before launching into ‘Mexico’ we get one final big solo from Doug before the final crescendo, the big thank you and a promise to come back next year.

 

After the problems getting to Steelhouse last year this definitely a make it up return to Wales for the Daisies and definitely not the last for one of the most hardworking bands on the planet.

 

Dawn Osborne