Myke Gray and Kim Jennett – Camden 2020 gig review

MYKE GRAY AND KIM JENNETT, HOWLING TIDES, CAMDEN UNDERWORLD 2020 – PHOTOS BY DAWN OSBORNE

Howling Tides are one of the most impressive support bands I have seen for a long time. Monster distorted guitar sound accompanied with raucous whisky laden vocals and commercially accessible material remind me a little of Black Stone Cherry and Cold Truth. They sound like they should be a bunch of hard bitten crusty old Americans with beards, but they are a group of young brits who sound mature beyond their years. The crowd recognise the talent and they get a huge response when they ask the crowd to sing and clap. Myke Gray has good taste and I have no doubt he hand picked this young talented bunch for support.

Myke has also demonstrated his impeccable judgement in choosing Kim Jennett to sing – another hugely talented young person – that, if she looks after her voice, should have a long and prosperous career if there is any fairness in this world.  Myke is, of course, an incredibly talented guitar player and so has no need to worry about being upstaged. I was a big Skin fan and so I am delighted to see revitalized versions of classics like ‘House of Love’ injected with youthful and edgy feminine energy. It is only the second song and Kim is already out into the audience whipping them up into a frenzy. She is somewhat too successful when she has to ask them to stop touching her so much. She has the quality of voice of a Janis Joplin and so it’s not a surprise everybody wants a piece of her, although there’s no excuse of course for such behaviour and she points out that ‘Look But Don’t Touch’ means a lot to her because it is about issues of consent. Slower song ‘Counts for Nothing’ shows off the wonderfully expressive quality of her voice. There were some too over enthusiastic drunks at the front which rather spoiled any chance of a poignant silence, but she deals with them by handing them the microphone till they have finished before flooring them with acapella brilliance. The rest of the audience sing and clap when they are supposed to and are clearly familiar with the material.

This is rock n roll as it should be. Myke smiles and grins and watches the show unfold secure in the knowledge that he has handpicked his band to deliver as they should while delivering his own playing, tender and delicate when required and so hard and fast for most of the show that it was hard to get a clear picture of his digits for this review. He also takes time to thank his whole team and band for bringing it in grand style and the faces he recognizes in the crowd from throughout his career. This was not just a Skin revival, material as new as the latest single ‘I Get Up’ was also in the set and Ms Jennet can sing it all. Clearly this is a new offering and it may take time to get the word out, but anyone who wasn’t there this night in London missed out and should make sure they don’t do so again.

Dawn Osborne