Mostly Autumn/The Hayley Griffiths Band - Bilston Review

For a reason I can never quite fathom, The Robin 2 in Bilston is a real haven for rock music. The town itself is certainly not what many would call 'exciting', but many evenings see a small part of the town turned into a real hotbed of great music. Many of the bands I follow regularly play at The Robin 2, but its location (between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, and lacking a mainline railway station) means that I do not visit it very often. Every so often I make the effort however, and travel to Birmingham to take the thirty minute or so tram ride to the town. The venue is a short walk from the tram stop, and includes a small hotel which means getting accommodation near to the venue is often very easy. The reason for this particular pilgrimage to a fairly anonymous part of the West Midlands was the York-based progressive rock act Mostly Autumn, who regular readers of this blog will know to be one of my very favourite bands. I have seen the band at least twice a year since 2007, with the first solitary gig coming a year earlier, and they are a band than continue to impress year on year. This particular gig was a bit of a special occasion for me, as it marked my fortieth Mostly Autumn concert! I am sure that this number pales in comparison to many of the real die hard fans' figures, but I am really happy to have been able to see the band as many times as I have. They are regular visitors to The Robin 2, and always pull a great crowd there. I made the trip up to Bilston to see them last summer, but decided this time to go for one of their Christmas shows. The band's Christmas shows have always been special, and this one was no different. The evening promised to be even better than usual however, as the show was announced as a double-header with fellow progressive rockers Touchstone - another band I have followed for a number of years. However, in a move that surprised precisely no-one, Touchstone pulled out the show a few days before the show. Considering the fact that Touchstone do not currently have a singer or a bass player the decision was largely expected, but it was still disappointing to miss out on an opportunity to see them live again. Luckily a replacement in the form of the newly-formed Hayley Griffiths Band was found, and the show in its originally-intended format went ahead. Being a double-header, the venue opened at 5pm, with Griffiths hitting the stage at 6pm.

Griffiths was already known to me before this show, as she fronted the symphonic rockers Karnataka from 2011 up until last year when the band's then-current line-up ended rather messily. I had been a big fan of Griffiths' voice since first seeing her with Karnataka back in 2012, and her songwriting since hearing Karnataka's Secrets of Angels album in 2015, so I was excited to see what see was capable of on her own. Joining Griffiths in her new venture were two other former members of Karnataka, with Çağrı Tozluoğlu (keyboards) and Jimmy Pallagrosi (drums) helping to round out the five-piece band. Jim Clark (guitar) and Jordan Brown (bass guitar/vocals) filled the other two spots, and the five made for a potent rock force. This show in Bilston was only the band's second ever show, and they are still clearly a bit of a work-in-progress, but they have the makings of a great unit. Given three members of Karnataka's Secrets of Angels-era line-up was on the stage, it was a surprise to no-one that a large chunk of that album was played throughout the show. In fact, the ending of the lengthy title track was up first, which followed a progressive instrumental build-up from the band, before a tough rocky number that was unknown to me followed. Throughout the show, Griffiths and co. showcased some new material, including her new single Aurora, re-worked solo material from her pre-Karnataka days, and the occasional cover. It was the Karnataka material that dominated the set however, with the melodic Forbidden Dreams once again impressing early one and the spiky goth rock of Poison Ivy really setting the ending part of the set alight with some stabbing guitar riffs from Clark and vocal pyrotechnics from Griffiths. Elsewhere a lovely cover of Queen's No-One but You (Only the Good Die Young) added some emotional weight, before a powerful rendition of the dramatic Karnataka track Borderline finished things off nicely. By this point the crowd were really into the new band, and called them back for an encore. Luckily there was time for a couple more, and the traditional Scottish folk song The Parting Glass led into the big Karnataka power ballad Feels Like Home. While Feels Like Home is a little Disney-ish to truly fit in with the classic Karnataka sound, I have always enjoyed the song. It worked well as an encore, and Griffiths clearly loved singing it again. It capped off a fun set perfectly, and I hope that this show really propels the bands on to new heights going forward in 2019!

After half an hour or so to change the gear used, Mostly Autumn took the stage at 8pm with Iain Jennings (keyboards) sitting down to play the rolling piano intro to the epic Sight of Day, the title track of the band's most-recent album. I had seen the band once previously this year, at The Wharf in Tavistock back in June. While an enjoyable show, in the grand scheme of my Mostly Autumn experiences it was not one of the most memorable concerts of theirs that I had seen. This show in Bilston was on another level however, and the crisp sound mix that the band benefited from from the off really helped them to shine. Sight of Day has become one of my favourite Mostly Autumn songs over the past couple of years, and getting another chance to hear it live was a real treat. Frontwoman Olivia Sparnenn-Josh delivered the varied vocal lines with ease, and the atmospheric mid-section was a perfect opportunity for bandleader Bryan Josh (vocals/guitar) to take his first extended solo. The setlist was largely the same as the Tavistock show from earlier in the year, with the earthy Simple Ways and the soaring Evergreen really hitting the spot early on. It is great having Simple Ways back in the current set as it is one of the band's best true duets, and the outro keyboard solo is excellent. The folky blues of The Last Climb was the only 'standard' song played that was not featured in Tavistock, and once again was a showcase for Angela Gordon (flute/keyboards/whistle/vocals) who impressed with a lengthy flute solo, before Josh took over for another guitar workout. The first half of the show, before a short break, really contained a bit of everything that makes the band great. Their fragile side was shown with Sparnenn-Josh's piano ballad Silhouettes of Stolen Ghosts before the spacey alternative rock of Silver Glass allowed Chris Johnson (vocals/guitar) a moment in the spotlight. Since re-joining in 2014, Johnson has become an important member of the band. Live he often handles some of the heavy lifting guitar-wise to allow Josh a chance to focus on his vocals, and he has contributed some strong songs to the band's catalogue. Set one finished with the old Breathing Space track Questioning Eyes which has always been Sparnenn-Josh's opus. The piece was sung extremely powerfully as always, and was packed with real emotion. She is such a fantastic singer, and this song has always been a way to showcase her talents. Even a couple of lengthy solos, including a lovely slide-based one, from Josh could not steal her spotlight!

After a short break, the band came back for a second set that included a few more newer tracks and some of their other epic pieces. The upbeat, cinematic Tomorrow Dies got this second portion of the night off to a fine start, before Drops of the Sun saw some great round-the-kit moves from drummer Henry Rogers. Drops of the Sun is probably the only song in the current setlist that is probably due a rest from next year's shows as it has been featured pretty much consistently since its release in 2012. With a new album due out next year, hopefully Drops of the Sun will be granted the rest it deserves. The centrepiece of the second set however was a stunning rendition of Mother Nature, a song which is arguably the band's most complete work. There is a lot going on in the piece, with a rousing chorus early on, a lengthy atmospheric midsection that includes both guitar and keyboard solos, and a hard rock workout to end on that saw the whole band upping their game as the song came to a crashing close. Another highlight of the second set was Johnson's quirky, yet beautiful, Changing Lives which ended in an audience participation moment which more than a few opted to take part in. The ever-present epic Heroes Never Die was as emotionally charged and spirited as always, before Tonight brought the main set to an uplifting close. By this point the band had been on stage for around two hours, and the energy levels in the crowd were high. There was of course going to be more, and a five-song encore followed which included one more original tune - Forever and Beyond - and four covers. The first two covers were Pink Floyd songs. Pink Floyd have always been a big influence on Mostly Autumn, and the classic Comfortably Numb proved why. The acoustic-based Wish You Were Here is less like the band's usual style, but it was poignant as it was dedicated to the band's late guitarist Liam Davison who sadly passed away last year. That song was an emotional moment, but it was followed by two upbeat Christmas songs to round out the night. Greg Lake's I Believe in Father Christmas was sung by Josh, and the crowd, before the real highlight of the encore section came in the form of Chris de Burgh's A Spaceman Came Travelling which was sung beautifully by Johnson. The band's arrangement of the song really suits their sound, and Josh encouraged the crowd to sing the wordless chorus over and over again which they did! By this point it was 10:45pm and it was time to go home, but the band took their bows to still-huge cheers. It was clear that this adventure to The Robin 2 was another successful one for the band! The setlist was:

Sight of Day
In for the Bite [Bryan Josh solo material]
Simple Ways
Evergreen
The Last Climb
Silhouettes of Stolen Ghosts
Silver Glass
Questioning Eyes [Breathing Space cover]
-
Tomorrow Dies
Drops of the Sun
Nowhere to Hide (Close My Eyes)
Mother Nature
Changing Lives
Heroes Never Die
Tonight
-
Forever and Beyond
Comfortably Numb [Pink Floyd cover]
Wish You Were Here [Pink Floyd cover]
I Believe in Father Christmas [Greg Lake cover]
A Spaceman Came Travelling [Chris de Burgh cover]

Overall, this was another fantastic gig from Mostly Autumn and one that marked my 40th time in their company rather special. The band are currently firing on all cylinders at the moment, and I look forward to getting my hands on their upcoming album White Rainbow soon! The Hayley Griffiths Band were a real bonus too, and it was great hearing many of these excellent Karnataka songs performed live again.