Unlike the previous night, there was no saga relating to the support act. From the off, CJ Wildheart and his band were on the bill - and it was great to catch CJ again for a third time in a relatively short period. I saw him headline in Plymouth last year and open for Michael Monroe in Bristol earlier this year - and the growing crowd enjoyed 45 minutes or so of ballsy, punky rock from CJ whilst they were waiting for Warwick. With a good mix of material from his solo albums and previous bands, CJ's set was different from the one played on the Monroe tour. Instead of focusing on latest album Slots, CJ drew from a few of his more recent solo albums - with the slightly older Kick Down the Walls kicking things off. As is generally the case at KK's Steel Mill, CJ and his band sounded powerful. His guitar, alongside that of Dean McCreadie (guitar/vocals), sounded tough and raw - which allowed tracks like The Baddest Girl in the World to really shine. CJ's music veers from poppy punk to heavy metal and back again, often via Cheap Trick-esque power pop, and there was a good amount of variety on show as a result. The slightly more bubble-gum sounds of Lemonade Girl, culled from his days with The Jellys, and the anthemic hard rock of Honeycrack's Go Away turned the clock back to CJ's 1990s adventures sans The Wildhearts - and it is great that CJ operating as a solo artist allows these long-defunct bands to be represented live once again. Honeycrack's sole album in particular has become a bit of a favourite - so hearing a couple of songs from it again was a treat. The focus, though, was wisely on solo material with the heavy State of Us shaking the venue's foundation - whilst the somewhat more anthemic and sing-a-long All You Rude Boys directed at CJ's fellow Londoners. Another melodic feast later came in the form of Honeycrack's Sitting at Home - but the crowd really came alive for the last couple of numbers, which were culled from The Wildhearts' back catalogue. The fan-favourite Stormy in the North, Karma in the South saw plenty of singing in the room, whilst the lengthy and somewhat proggy O.C.D. brought CJ's 45 or so minutes to a strident close. The setlist was:
Kick Down the Walls
The Baddest Girl in the World
Lemonade Girl [The Jellys material]
Go Away [Honeycrack material]
Another Big Mistake
State of Us
All You Rude Boys
Sitting at Home [Honeycrack material]
Stormy in the North, Karma in the South [The Wildhearts material]
O.C.D. [The Wildhearts material]
It is amazing what a name can do. Last year I saw Warwick, fronting The Almighty, play to a sold out KK's Steel Mill - but on his own he drew a much smaller crowd, and the set-up had not been changed from FM's smaller arrangement the night before. There was still a decent turnout, though, and a few hundred rockers were soon gathered ready for a lengthy set of Warwick's no-nonsense hard rock - which largely drew from his solo albums but also took in his work with other bands and a few choice covers. Backed by The Fighting Hearts: Leigh Heggarty (guitar/vocals), Richard Vernon (bass guitar/vocals), and Jack Taylor (drums); Warwick kicked off his lengthy, 22-song set with the fast-paced, somewhat punky, You're My Rock 'n' Roll and the more mid-paced Wishing Your Life Away. Half of the new album was played, alongside plenty of other solo favourites - but the early portion of the set also showcased the variety to come with Thin Lizzy's Are You Ready, Black Star Riders' When the Night Comes In, and The Almighty's Do You Understand all impressing the crowd. Given his punk/ska background with Ruts DC, too, Heggarty really impressed as a guitar player. He shone on the Thin Lizzy and Black Star Riders cuts especially, with fluid solo after fluid solo coming from his fingers, but the whole band were tight - with Taylor feeling weightier than I remember him being when I last saw Warwick in 2022. It was nice to hear a few Almighty tunes despite the reunion, although only three were played this time - with an increase in Black Star Riders representation instead. The focus was largely on Warwick's solo material, though, with the melodic Angels of Desolation, the folky oldie Three Sides of Every Story, and the semi-ballad Don't Leave Me in the Dark (sadly sans Lita Ford) all impressing during the set's first half. Warwick has always been an engaging frontman, too, and he took quite a few opportunities to talk to the crowd about some of the songs - and there was some good banter between him and the crowd at points, too, leading to a great atmosphere. Each song was greeted by big cheers, but perhaps Another State of Grace received one of the loudest - with Warwick and Heggarty teaming up nicely for the harmony guitar leads. A shout-along version of Jonestown Mind and Thin Lizzy's slinky Jailbreak were also fondly welcomed by the crowd - whilst a rendition of The Heartbreakers' Born to Lose showcased Warwick's punk roots nicely. The folk punk of Schwaben Redoubt also brought a punk sound to the fore of the band's sound - but solo tracks like Celebrating Sinking and The Crickets Stayed in Clovis just showcase Warwick's strong, storytelling songwriting approach. There is almost a heartland rock feel to much of Warwick's solo material so there was a real warmth in the room throughout much of the evening. The Thin Lizzy and Black Star Riders cuts played fed into that vibe, too, especially Kingdom of the Lost which was deployed near the end. The folky overtones filled the room, and the crowd lapped them all up - before everyone sang along to The Almighty's hit Free 'n' Easy. The night felt like a big celebration by this point - and Finest Hour and Fighting Heart brought an excellent set to a rousing and melodic close. The setlist was:
You're My Rock 'n' Roll
Wishing Your Life Away
Are You Ready [Thin Lizzy material]
When the Night Comes In [Black Star Riders material]
Do You Understand [The Almighty material]
Angels of Desolation
Three Sides of Every Story
When Life Was Hard and Fast
Don't Leave Me in the Dark
Another State of Grace [Black Star Riders material]
Rise and Grind
Jonestown Mind [The Almighty material]
Jailbreak [Thin Lizzy material]
Born to Lose [The Heartbreakers cover]
Celebrating Sinking
That'll Be the Day [Buddy Holly cover]/The Crickets Stayed in Clovis
Schwaben Redoubt
When Patsy Cline Was Crazy (and Guy Mitchell Sang the Blues)
Kingdom of the Lost [Black Star Riders material]
Free 'n' Easy [The Almighty material]
Finest Hour [Black Star Riders material]
Fighting Heart
Sometimes the second of two gigs on the trot can suffer a little from fatigue from the previous night - and that could have easily happened here given how much I love FM. Thankfully, though, it did not. It was very much a joyous evening from the off - with Warwick delivering memorable song after memorable song with his usual good humour and a tight band behind him. The crowd were into it from the off, too, and a great opening set from CJ Wildheart also helped make the evening in Wolverhampton yet another memorable one.
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