Before Warwick's set, however, the growing crowd was treated to two support acts. Both bands I was familiar with in name only - so was looking forward to checking them out. Up first was Anchor Lane from Scotland, a three-piece grungy rock band that had something of a modern American radio rock vibe - with some alternative twists. Being first on can sometimes be a bit of a curse, but Anchor Lane certainly had the swagger to make their short set memorable - even if their grungy sound is not really my thing. One thing that was a shame, however, was that all of the basslines were on a backing track. I assumed that perhaps the band's bassist was ill, or otherwise unavailable, but a look at the band's Facebook page after the show revealed that he had left the band quite recently - and that they have decided to carry on as a three-piece. It is a shame that in doing so the band have not adapted their material to suit this new format - as relying on backing tracks for the basslines is not really a good look. This was especially true during the songs which really relied on the bass during the verses, which was most of them - as many of the band's songs had stripped-back verses and heavier choruses. For me, the band should either find a new bassist or adapt their songs (or who plays what) to suit the new line-up - as the band's current method is the worst of both worlds. That being said, I did not dislike Anchor Lane's set, despite their sound not really being my thing. A few of their songs had strong choruses, and Lawrence O'Brien (guitar/vocals) also impressed with some guitar playing that was a little different from the norm at times. His solos were rarely traditional hard rock-sounding or blues-based, but instead took on different forms - which I enjoyed. Whilst Anchor Lane are too far down the modern radio rock road for my liking, they are an enjoyable band who deserve to be making something of a name for themselves. I am glad that I have now had an opportunity to check them out, and there were certainly a few in the crowd who seemed to be into what they were doing.
Up next was The Virginmarys, a two-piece garage rock band who have been around for over a decade at this point. I remember there was a lot of excitement surrounding the band at one time, with many thinking that they would break through into the big time - but this never happened. Interestingly, The Virginmarys also lost a bassist at one point, but they adapted their sound accordingly rather than relying on backing tracks - with Ally Dickaty (vocals/guitar), I think, playing through two different amps to give his guitar a deeper sound as well as its more traditional tone to compensate. The band's garage rock sound suits the two-piece vibe well, however, and the band impressed during their high energy set. Again, The Virginmarys will never really be my thing - but live they were very powerful. I was amazed at how much of a varied sound that Dickaty was getting out of his guitar, and the drumming of Danny Dolan was extremely powerful - especially considering how small his kit was. Every song that the band played was a punishing assault of hard garage rock, with Dickaty's raspy voice the perfect accompaniment to his guitar playing. They reminded me at times of the rawer end of The Wildhearts' sound, but much more stripped-back. There was certainly a similar energy to The Virginmarys material, and again there were plenty in the crowd who were into what the band were doing. I saw plenty of Virginmarys t-shirts around too, so I would not be surprised if some turned up just to see them. I am not sure that they are the sort of band that I would listen to at home, but I would be tempted to go and see them live again if they played locally. I imagine that it is quite hard to capture the vibe of the band on record, with live being the optimum way to experience their music. It was quite caustic most of the time, but there were moments of light among the shade - and the band's sound was more diverse than I am probably making it out to be. They were a great way to pass 45 minutes of an evening, however, and I am sure that the band made themselves a few new fans with their performance.
Warwick always seems to be a rather straight-to-the-point guy, so it was with little fanfare than he and The Fighting Hearts took to the stage just before 9pm and launched into his rendition of Mink DeVille's Gunslinger - which was included on last year's album. The short, punky song got the gig off to a great start - and allowed the current incarnation of The Fighting Hearts to make themselves known. Ben Christo (guitar/vocals), Richard Vernon (bass guitar/vocals), and Jack Taylor (drums) are backing Warwick on this tour; and the four made for a powerful partnership throughout. Warwick was clearly the star of the show, but Christo also had plenty of opportunities to show off throughout - as he handled the guitar solos as well as most of the key backing vocals. Vernon and Taylor (who I thought could have played a bit more heavy-handedly throughout the set given the toughness of Warwick's material) locked together nicely too, and the four re-created the songs played in a high-energy and up-tempo manner. The focus of the set was on Warwick's solo albums, but a healthy dose of The Almighty's material was also included - as well as a few other treats. Over the Edge was the first Almighty track played, with the big chorus being sung loudly by the crowd, while the smoother The Road to Damascus Street showed off Warwick's somewhat Springsteen-esque side nicely. He paid tribute to his on-going time in Thin Lizzy with a rousing version of Jailbreak, which included a great Christo solo, before returning to the set-opening punk vibes for the fast-paced Never Corner a Rat - which was also culled from the latest album. Warwick largely let his songs do the talking, but did take a few opportunities to tell some tales. He introduced The Almighty's Wrench by describing the writing sessions that produced it, and thanked Planet Rock for their promotion of his current single Still Alive.
For whatever reason, too, the show in Nottingham was longer than many of the other shows so far on the tour. The folk/punk of Schwaben Redoubt was wheeled out in Nottingham, with the Pogues-esque track certainly garnering a strong reaction from the crowd due to its bouncy chorus and general high-energy vibe. This high-energy vibe was generally maintained for the rest of the set, too. Fighting Heart could have been on a Black Star Riders album with its big chorus and guitar leads, and the crunching Jonestown Mind was received well by Warwick's old-school Almighty-loving fans. I imagine that there were some in the crowd that wished that he dipped back into The Almighty's catalogue a bit more than he did, but for me the balance was about right - especially with a new album to promote. The Almighty songs played were easily some of the most well-received songs of the night however, and I imagine it pleases Warwick that his old band is still well-loved. Your My Rock 'n' Roll certainly channelled some of that vibe, however, and the big chorus of the title track of his latest album had plenty singing along. It is another song that could have been saved for Black Star Riders, but it sits well on Warwick's latest effort. Another big Almighty rocker, All Sussed Out, was then wheeled out - which was another track that has not generally been part of the tour's setlists so far. It was great to get a couple of extra songs in Nottingham, which certainly helped to make the night that little bit more special. By this point, however, the end was near. Warwick has never really been a go-off-and-come-back sort of act, so the three songs that would have probably made up the encore just flowed straight from All Sussed Out. Black Star Riders was represented by the inclusion of the fan-favourite single Finest Hour, before a furious take on Motörhead's Iron Fist raised the energy levels even further. This song brought the best out of the band, with Taylor shining on the drums. Another fan-favourite, The Almighty's Free 'n' Easy, brought the evening to a hard-hitting close - with everyone singing along to the simple chorus. It was a powerful way to end the set, and the crowd certainly made their appreciation known as the band left the stage. The setlist was:
Gunslinger [Mink DeVille cover]
Over the Edge [The Almighty material]
The Road to Damascus Street
You Don't Love Me
Jailbreak [Thin Lizzy material]
When Patsy Cline Was Crazy (and Guy Mitchell Sang the Blues)
Never Corner a Rat
Wrench [The Almighty material]
Still Alive
Schwaben Redoubt
Fighting Heart
Jonestown Mind [The Almighty material]
You're My Rock 'n' Roll
Celebrating Sinking
Tattoos & Alibis
When Life Was Hard and Fast
All Sussed Out [The Almighty material]
Finest Hour [Black Star Riders material]
Iron Fist [Motörhead cover]
Free 'n' Easy [The Almighty material]
Gigs in the Midlands are always memorable, and Warwick's Nottingham show with The Fighting Hearts was another one to add to the list. Full band solo tours are a relative rarity for him these days, so I am glad that I managed to get to one of the shows on this current tour. Warwick will soon be turning his attention back to Black Star Riders, as I understand that they have a new album recorded and ready to be released next year - with a lot of touring to follow. There are also plans for more Thin Lizzy appearances, too, meaning that this will probably be Warwick's last run of solo shows for some time. There are still quite a few shows left on the tour, however, so head out and catch him if you can - as the setlist is great and Warwick himself is on fine form.
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