It was March 2012, some ten years ago now, that I first discovered Rival Sons on this very stage. The band supported Black Stone Cherry here at the UEA LCR in Norwich and instantly had a new fan.
I was captivated by the incredible power of the band and the unbelievable voice of singer Jay Buchanan. The bands most recent release at the time was their breakthrough second album, âPressure & Timeâ, so imagine my delight that the band are back on this stage tonight playing that album in its entirety!
My history of this band in this venue doesnât stop there however. Two years later in 2014 the band headlined the venue for the first time and I attended to review for another publication. Just two songs in Buchanan departed the stage unable to continue and the show abruptly ended. The last song played, you guessed it, âPressure and Timeâ.
WATCH ‘PRESSURE & TIME’ FROM RIVAL SONS ON YOUTUBE
The band made up for that show in 2015 and now some seven years later they return with Buchanan acknowledging onstage ââŠI remember this placeâŠâ. Before that though we have the support band!
Tonight, that band is Dirty Honey who hark back to that night of discovery a decade ago by delivering a blistering set of classic rock infused numbers that somehow seems to channel the same energy as Rival Sons way back when.
Many in the crowd appear clued in and lap up the likes of âHeartbreakerâ and âWhen Iâm Goneâ. I can certainly see history repeating itself and Dirty Honey making similar strides to those of our headliners tonight.
The weird time warp that I find myself in then comes full circle with Rival Sons arriving on stage and banging out âPressure & Timeâ in full with very little time spent coming up for air.
It isnât until the band plough through the tracks that you remember just how many great tracks are on this album. âAll Over the Roadâ, âSave Meâ, âBurn Down Los Angelesâ, âGypsy Heartâ and âWhite Noiseâ all stand out this evening.
Itâs not until after they return from a very short intermission that the band begin to engage with the audience and the atmosphere becomes more relaxed. âOpen My Eyesâ and âElectric Manâ certainly help to loosen up the crowd a little.
There are stunning moments with Buchanan demonstrating those hauntingly good vocals on âJordanâ and âShooting Starsâ before the band stretch their legs on âFeral Rootsâ.
They close out the show with âDo Your Worstâ and new track âNobody Wants To Dieâ, and the audience are sent into the night happy. Weâve relived the past and looked to the future, and weâve celebrated the fact that Rival Sons remain an incredible force live.
Welcome to another edition of our weekly music News Report! We are starting off this week with the latest tour announcements including the above from Fontaines D.C..
Yes, it was a busy news week for the band as they revealed a lengthy trek around the UK and Ireland including a huge show at London’s Eventim Apollo.
Not just that, they also debuted their new single, ‘Skinty Fia’, from their upcoming album of the same name which arrives April 22nd. Check out the track below.
The legendary Nine Inch Nails this week added 3 additional shows to their UK stopover in June. The band will now play Glasgow, Manchester and London in addition to their already announced dates at The Eden Project.
The Amazons announce UK Tour and debut new single ‘Bloodrush’
Another band having a big news week was The Amazons. The band revealed a UK Tour, including a date at the Roundhouse in Camden, taking place this Autumn.
They also had a new single to debut, and you can listen to ‘Bloodrush’ below. The track will feature on their upcoming new album, ‘How Will I Know If Heaven Will Find Me?’.
Maximo Park announce the SĂŻngular Tour and new single ‘Great Art’
This week saw Maximo Park announce the ‘SĂŻngular Tour’ featuring only singles that will take place this coming Autumn.
Coinciding with the announcement, the band debuted new single, ‘Great Art’, which you can check out below.
Singer Paul Smith comments on the new single:
âThe song is about the insidious nature of Conservative ideology, and a response to people who say, “at least we’ll get some great art out of it!” We’re excited to have new material to play alongside our other singles on the SĂŻngular tour – we’ve always written songs crammed full of hooks, so that’s our ideal medium in some ways.â
Red Hot Chili Peppers debut new track ‘Not The One’
Red Hot Chili Peppers – ‘Not The One’
We move on now to the latest new music releases from the past week as out News Report continues. First up is the latest track from Red Hot Chili Peppers ahead of their upcoming album ‘Unlimited Love’.
That album arrives April 1st, but you can listen to new track ‘Not The One’ above.
Nothing More also had new music on offer this week with their latest single, ‘Turn It Up Like’. You can listen to the track above, which will feature on their upcoming new album.
Frontman Jonny Hawkins spoke about the inspiration behind the song in a statement, saying, âThis song is a reflection of how we all felt for the last two years, online. Fear and hate have become our god.â
Reef debuted their new single, ‘Best of Me’ this week, and you can listen above. The track will feature on their new album, ‘Shoot Me Your Ace’, which is released April 29th.
âWe want this album to make people just feel good about living, to appreciate life, to give them inspiration to play guitar or drums or sing or whatever theyâve got going on right now,â comments bassist Jack Bessant. âWeâve made a killer rockânâroll record. And we want to go out and rock.â
We head across to Standon Calling now as our News Report switches focus to the weeks festival announcements.
This week saw the day and stage splits for the event plus 40+ new acts such as Declan McKenna, Razorlight, The Mysterines, Crawlers, Snapped Ankles and more.
They join the already announced Madness, The Subways, Yard Act, Primal Scream and Bob Vylan.
Another festival adding additional acts this past week was Victorious Festival.
New acts include Bombay Bicycle Club, The Longest Johns, Embrace and Bessie Turner.
They join an already packed line-up including Stereophonics, James, Primal Scream, Paolo Nutini, The Wombats, Ocean Colour Scene, Kula Shaker, White Lies, The Subways, We Are Scientists and Editors.
Splendour Festival will return to Wollaton Park in Nottingham this July, and this week the event finalised its line-up with new additions including We Are Scientists, Coach Party, The Skinner Brothers and Deco.
They join the likes of Richard Ashcroft, Supergrass, Razorlight, Ocean Colour Scene, and The Magic Numbers.
First up is ‘This Is For You’ the new single from young rockers Classless Act. The single guest features The Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins.
Classless Actâs lead singer Derek Day expressed his excitement over the bandâs latest single, saying, “Itâs a dream come true for Classless Act to be a part of the Better Noise family. And the boys and I have been working really hard to give you something to shake your ass to. Now, summerâs here and the time is right for a couple of guitars, some bass and drums and a whole buncha me. Letâs get to it!!â
Collaborator Justin Hawkins shared his thoughts about hopping on the track, âOne Tuesday night in February I gazed up onto the Swiss night sky. There, to my surprise I witnessed the beaming of The Hawk signal onto a passing cloud. After months of inactivity, I was called into action. My mission? To provide a face melting guitar solo to Classless Actâs âThis is For You.â I grasped my Gibson 335, headed into the hawk cave and within 24 hours the solo was born.â
‘JENNY’ – RATS
Next we have ‘Jenny’ the latest single from young indie starlets RATS.
Frontman Joe Maddocks says, ââJennyâ is a story about a student who is forced to go to uni by her parents, but she has bigger dreams that soon turn sour.â
‘STARTING OVER’ – THE LAZY EYES
Finally is ‘Starting Over’ from Aussie psych-rock four-piece The Lazy Eyes.
In their own words, the band explain, âThis song was written back in our high school days like the other songs are on the album. I remember having an inkling for the verse on acoustic guitar and thinking âmehâ so I just left it be. After a while though, the song came back to me after jamming on the piano. I fleshed it out (admittedly with some pretty cringey lyrics back then) and whipped up a GarageBand demo for the boys. After that, we put it on Soundcloud and it was building some traction⊠soon after we wiped everything in the search for a new start, you could say we were ‘Starting Over’.â
