|
|
With
melodic rock supposedly on the decline, this was third festival
type gig in three weeks to grace the UK. First up was Firefest
and then came the Melodic Rock Xmas Bash and now the Winter
Rokfest. In its conception the Winter Rokfest, under the
auspices of the Classic Rock Society, was very much in the same
mould as the MRXB, that is take a known headline band to draw
punters and then give an opportunity to some up and coming bands
to showcase their talents to a wider audience. Unfortunately for
the Winter Rokfest the main support act, Pulse, had split a mere
week or two before the show and thus with no time to replace the
band everyone else was bumped up a place.
It must be
said that the venue, Montgomery Hall, Wath-On-Dearne, was not
the most accessible of places, but once there proved to be
actually very conducive to such a show. A decent sized stage,
good lights and a friendly atmosphere made for an enjoyable
evening of rock music enjoyed by everyone who attended.
|
|
The Strangedays
The Strangedays
featured previously on HardRockHouse.com when they
opened the Jeff Scott Soto show in Ashton-Under-Lyne
back in September. AT the time our reviewer likened the
band to Free, with a classic bluesy rock feel. To be
honest having now seent eh band first hand I can't in
any way disagree with those comments, save to add that
the band, although turning up late for the show, turned
in a tight, if short, performance and certainly seem to
have the ability, judging purely on this set to go
further. |
|
Gaia
If The Strangedays
proved a good choice as opening act for the Winter
Rokfest, then second band of the day, 'Gaia' proved a
somewhat strange addition to the bill. Rather than being
what could be described as a 'rock' band Gaia have more
in common with say a Radiohead or a Coldplay. The music
was psuedo-intellectual nonsense and to be honest if the
audience seemed somewhat non-plussed by the band, the
band seemed likewise non-plussed and indifferent to the
audience. This made the whole performance slightly low
key and hard to fathom.
In the right
situation, and with the right audience, I can certainly
see the value in what Gaia are trying to achieve,
unfortunately, this was more a case of wrong band, wrong
day. |
 |
 |
Payola
If Gaia were wrong
for this particular show then Payola were most
definitely right. Hailing from Belfast this is a band
that peddle good old fashioned rock and roll infused
with a touch of soul and a soupcon of the more nu-breed
type of rock so popular with the youger generation these
days.
The band certainly paced their set just right for the
audience showcasing numerous songs from their 'Try
Everything Twice' album as well as the AC/DC cover 'Rock
N' Roll Damnation' that got most of the punters nodding
their heads in appreciation. Definitely a band to watch
out for in the future. |
|
Crimes Of
Passion
Now I'm not certain
whether Crimes Of Passion are stalking HardRockHouse.com
or whether HardRockHouse.com are stalking Crimes Of
Passion, either way we have somehow managed to catch all
of their gigs since the bands launch at Firefest. To
give the band their due they were always slated to play
this gig, initially under the old Deadline guise.
There's really not much to add to what has been written
previously. Once again the band were full of a
confidence that maybe they had lacked in the past,
although whether the Michael Jackson-esque touch of
strapping a baby to vocalist Dale Radcliffe was exactly
PC is open to debate - fun though.
if
there is one piece of advice I could give the band it
would be to make certain that they don't over-expose
themselves to the market place whilst they are still
working on the new songs, otherwise it is hard to have
any complaints about both the quality and energy that
COP seem to have captured within the material. |
 |
|
Vaughn
Once again we see
Vaughn in action for the second weekend of their current
UK run. Having rocked Camden's Underworld with one of
the best performances I have ever seen from the band the
previous week it was with interest to see what a few
days break would do for the outfit. In truth they seemed
to have slightly lost the edge they had in London but
nothing that was massively noticeable and with a set
list was virtually identical to the previous shows,
covering all of vocalist Danny Vaughn's career from
Waysted and Tyketto to Flesh & Blood, Vaughn and the
Once & Future King and From The Inside projects they
were the only band of the day to fully draw the
audiences attention and have people right down the front
of stage headbanging away. |
|
