Robert Jon & The Wreck - Exeter Review

I recently mentioned on this blog that my most-played artist of 2023 so far has to be Robert Jon & The Wreck. The California-based southern/country/blues rock band fell onto my radar earlier in the year, and the fact that they were going to be playing locally later in the year prompted me to give them a go. A couple of listens to 2021's Shine a Light on Me Brother had me hooked - and over the past few months I have been amassing their back catalogue. This culminated in getting their latest album, Ride into the Light (which I reviewed here), which has already become one of my favourite collections of songs from the band. I am not quite sure how they managed to elude me until earlier in the year. I had assumed that perhaps the UK tour which was announced earlier in the year was to be their first - but it turns out that Robert Jon & The Wreck have been pretty regular visitors to the UK and Europe since the pandemic started to wind down - making gigging possible again. It also appears that the band played at a festival here in 2019, so I am really not sure how I managed to not really hear anything about them until earlier this year. Regardless of this lack of awareness of my part, I am glad to finally be on board the train. It was the announcement of a show in Exeter, which is around an hour or so's drive from home in Plymouth, which prompted me to give the band a go - so, in some ways, everything was building up to a night at the city's Phoenix. Following many spins of their handful of albums, the show finally rolled around - so I headed up to Exeter yesterday via a roadside diner to enjoy an evening of organic rock. The Phoenix is a great venue, and one which I have been to quite a few times over the years. It is a multi-arts space with a lot of great facilities, and gigs there are generally memorable experiences. I last visited the venue back in June, when I saw the British death metal band Carcass play a raucous set to a packed and sweaty room - so it was good to return in somewhat more sedate circumstances. Robert Jon & The Wreck can certainly rock out, but they are more measured in their approach than someone like Carcass - with the crowd also rather older and more restrained than those who filled the pit back in June. Turnout-wise, the venue ended up being pretty full. Early on it looked as if the place was going to be quite empty - but the room soon filled up. I have seen bigger crowds there, but I think I would describe the turnout as healthy - particularly given this was the band's first visit to Exeter. There were quite a few of the band's t-shirts to be seen, too, so clearly some of those in attendance were seasoned veterans - which only made me more annoyed that I had missed the band's previous tours.

Before Robert Jon & The Wreck's set, though, the growing crowd were treated to half an hour or so of slightly funky and soulful rock from Caitlin Krisko and the Broadcast - a four-piece who were making their UK debut by opening up for Robert Jon & The Wreck on this tour. Hailing from North Carolina, there was certainly a bit of a southern rock vibe to the band's sound, but they were more soulful and bluesy than rootsy - with a few more pop-based moments throw in for good measure. Centred around frontwoman Krisko, the band seemed up for their first ever UK show - and they impressed the growing crowd from the off. Krisko's voice was perfectly suited to the material, and the spotlight was on her throughout. Aaron Austin (guitar/vocals) impressed with a few tasteful solos, but in general the band were not all that flashy - with the rhythm section creating strong grooves and Austin adding riffs and colour to support Krisko's vocals. The band rocked, but I would not describe them as a hard rock act. There was some bite when needed, but the band's songs were generally pretty smooth - which certainly harked back to the West Coast rock sounds of the 1970s, with some of William Seymour's (bass guitar/vocals) basslines reminding me of something that former Doobie Brother Tiran Porter might have come up with. Strong vocal hooks and soulful choruses anchored the songs, though, and Krisko was a captivating presence on the stage, too, with her long flowing 1970s sleeves and platform heels. There was certainly a retro vibe present both in look and sound, but a modern pop sheen stopped everything from sounding kitsch - and in fact it was perhaps Austin's laid back guitar style which injected a bit of modernity into the band, as he generally shied away from guitar hero antics. He did let rip during a version of Led Zeppelin's Rock and Roll - which was likely the set's most rocking moment. Krisko did the song justice vocally, whilst the band rocked around her. It received a decent cheer from the crowd, but in truth the crowd had been getting more into the band's performance with each song - and the lengthy closing track certainly heralded a strong reaction as the set came to a close. I am not sure of the band's history, but there was certainly a lot to like about Caitlin Krisko and the Broadcast - and the four-piece's set got the evening off to a fine start.

Half an hour or so following Krisko's set, the lights went down and the five men who make up Robert Jon & The Wreck trooped onto the stage Namesake Robert Jon Burrison (vocals/guitar) took the stage last, before the band launched into the rollocking She's a Fighter - one of a couple of stand-alone singles released last year. From the off, it was clear that the band were really up for the show - and the live mix throughout was pretty good. It would have been nice to have heard more of Jake Abernathie's keyboards, but generally everything else was clear, punchy, and loud - with Burrison's vocals also pretty high in the mix. I generally consider the band's more recent albums to be their best, and clearly they agree - as basically all of the 14-song set came from the last few releases. Burrison took a few moments to chat with the crowd, particularly joking about seeing Stonehenge for the first time earlier in the day at one point, but generally the band just cracked on - with Do You Remember keeping the energy high following She's a Fighter. An early highlight for me, though, was the Eagles/Blackberry Smoke mash-up of Tired of Drinking Alone, which introduced a country bent to the night - and showcased Henry James Schneekluth's (guitar/vocals) slide playing for the first time. Burrison leads the band, but perhaps the true star is Schneekluth. He is such a formidable guitar player, and there was barely a song in the set which did not benefit from his lead playing and soloing. He teamed up with Burrison a few times for some Allman Brothers-esque moments, such as during Ride into the Light, but generally he was responsible for all the lead playing - with Burrison more of a riff machine. It helped that the set was generally pretty hard-hitting. Groovy southern rock anthems such as High Time sat nicely alongside more riffy songs like Pain No More, and each song just further cemented how powerful the band were on stage. A short solo from Andrew Espantman (drums/vocals) later acted as an extended intro to Don't Let Me Go, whilst Warren Murrel (bass guitar) picked out the main melody to Bring Me Back Home Again on the bass whilst the band slowly filled in around him. The diverse track was another highlight, with plenty of organ playing from Abernathie and a lot more slide from Schneekluth. It showcased the band's blues edge nicely, whilst also allowing Burrison to let rip vocally thanks to the muscular arrangement. The pace then slowed somewhat with the set's only ballad Gold, which featured an emotional vocal performance - although the country rock stomp of Oh Miss Carolina which followed upped the energy again without the band exactly rocking out in a big way. It prompted a bit of a sing-a-long, too, but it was the calm for the epic storm of Cold Night - which brought the main set to a close. It was the only 'older' track played, and it was stretched out to include a lot of jamming and soloing - with Schneekluth really letting rip for a good few minutes. He truly is one of the unsung guitar talents of the moment, and his showcase was a real treat - as was his back-and-forth with Abernathie which was packed full of melody and Allman-esque virtuosity. It brought the main set to a powerful close, and the band left the stage to plenty of cheers. After quite a lengthy break, following lots of clapping, they returned for one more - and the upbeat and soulful Shine a Light on Me Brother closed the night out. Each member of the band showcased during the piece, and Burrison led the crowd through another sing-a-long during the big chorus - which was a great end to a great set. The setlist was:

She's a Fighter

Do You Remember

Tired of Drinking Alone

Ride into the Light

This Time Around

High Time

Don't Look Down

Pain No More

Drum solo

Don't Let Me Go

Bring Me Back Home Again

Gold

Oh Miss Carolina

Cold Night

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Shine a Light on Me Brother

I loved my first live experience with Robert Jon & The Wreck - and it certainly will not be the last. Based on the band's recent history, they have been visiting the UK pretty regularly - so I hope that they will return again soon. The Exeter show last night was the first show of a fairly healthy run of UK shows - so hopefully they other dates will also be well-attended and persuade the band to schedule something fairly lengthy again in the future. I came away armed with a new shirt and a new favourite band - and I have loved getting into this excellent band over the past few months.