Quiet Riot - London Review

Given how many bands I have managed to see live since I started going to concerts in 2006, it is actually quite rare that I see a band live for the first time these days. I have been lucky enough to see most of my favourite bands live over the years, and I have also taken punts on a few things - some of which paid off and some of which did not. It is always good to expand the list of 'bands seen', though, and sometimes an opportunity needs to be taken to see a band that does not come around too often. This was the case yesterday, then, when I headed up to London to catch a rare UK appearance by the California-based heavy/glam metal act Quiet Riot. According to setlist.fm, prior to this past weekend Quiet Riot had not played in the UK since 1984. Whilst setlist.fm is not always the most comprehensive of sources, I certainly cannot remember the band visiting the UK in recent years - and, despite finding plenty of success in the US, they have never had the biggest presence here. The band's impetuous for a rare UK visit was a headline slot at one of the Hard Rock Hell festivals, which took place on Saturday, so they clearly decided to make the most of the trip by booking a headline show in London the day after. When the show was first announced, I was on the fence about whether or not to go. I certainly like Quiet Riot, but I think it is fair to say that the current version of the band is somewhat questionable. They have had no founding members in their ranks since the death of frontman Kevin DuBrow in 2007, with the band's classic-era drummer Frankie Banali kept a version of the band going with a revolving door of singers until his death in 2020. Following Banali's death, the stewardship of Quiet Riot shifted over to Rudy Sarzo (bass guitar/vocals) - who returned to the band to pick up Banali's reins. Whilst not a founding member, Sarzo is certainly part of the classic Quiet Riot line-up of the early 1980s - and performed on many of the band's best-known songs as well as having a great career elsewhere with the likes of Ozzy Osbourne and Whitesnake. Joining Sarzo in this current iteration of Quiet Riot, then, is long-time guitarist Alex Grossi, who has been associated with the band since 2004, former Type O Negative drummer Johnny Kelly, and Love/Hate frontman Jizzy Pearl. This is certainly no classic line-up, but Kelly has had a good career - and Pearl is something of a peer and, crucially, still in fine voice. Given all of this history, though, I was originally reluctant to head up to London to see the band live - but when the Welsh glam metal act Tigertailz were added to the bill the offer looked more tempting. I had not had the chance to see Tigertailz previously, either, and they seem to potentially be winding down their live activity this year. Given that there might not be many chances left to see either band, and the fact that I managed to find somewhere affordable to stay in London, I picked up a ticket - and suddenly I was looking forward to the overall prospect. I have long learnt in my music-loving life to not be a line-up snob, so I got to the O2 Academy in Islington in good spirits despite my train journey to London arriving over 90 minutes late and the heavy rain which was drenching the capital.

The venue opened at 7pm, and by 7:30pm Tigertailz were rocking the house. The UK never really did glam metal, so Tigertailz are one of the few genuine examples of such that the UK produced - but the Cardiff-based band found some success in the early 1990s. Themselves down to one original member, Jay Pepper (guitar/vocals), the band seem to have been given a recent shot in the arm by the addition of Dendera and former Power Quest frontman Ashley Edison - who's high-pitched voice was put to good use throughout the band's 13-song set. The show was not billed as a co-headline effort, but it felt like it at times - and Tigertailz had an hour to play with and plenty of fans in attendance. I had expected the band's set to essentially take in their first two albums, so I was surprised that they opted for more of a career-spanning set. An old favourite in Young and Crazy did kick things off, but with Do It Up from the mid-2000s coming next it was clear that the band were not just pandering to the casual fans. I would consider myself a casual Tigertailz fan, so it was great to hear a few songs I was not familiar with. Edison brought Do It Up's chorus to life - with another track from the same era, One Beat of Your Heart also impressing later. There were plenty of classic Tigertailz tracks showcased, though, with the poppy chorus of Noise Leve Critical acting as the evening's first big sing-a-long, whilst the ballad Livin' Without You including some great soloing from Pepper. With Edison seemingly breathing new life into Tigertailz, it does seem strange that Pepper is thinking about calling it a day. The band have not been the most active in recent years, but I do wonder if following this tour he may change his mind. There is clearly still a lot of love for Tigertailz in the UK and Edison seems the man to take them forward - even if I was a bit sceptical when he was first announced given that he is much more of a metal singer. He has adapted to the band's sound well, though, but the heavier tracks like Wazbones felt mighty with him at the helm - and the new track You Can't Stop the Rock shows that Pepper can still write a hooky riff. By this point in the set, though, it was mostly about the classic tracks. Sick Sex, which the current line-up re-recorded, came alive with everyone singing along to the punky chorus - whilst the heaviness was kept alive with the riff-heavy Murderess. Tigertailz were often heavier than most hair metal bands, despite a few poppy singles, as Call of the Wild later showed. They certainly had a thrash side, and the fast drumming of long-time drummer Matthew Blakout really propelled that one - before another new track in A Little Bit of Rock added a bluesy edge and allowed Pepper to indulge in some heroic lead playing. It was left to hit single Love Bomb Baby to close things out, and it was another moment which saw lots of the crowd singing along. Tigertailz were certainly greeted more warmly than most support acts are - and it was great to see the Welsh band giving it their all in front of a pretty healthy London crowd. The setlist was:

Young and Crazy

Do It Up

Star Attraction

Noise Level Critical

Wazbones

Livin' Without You

One Beat of Your Heart

You Can't Stop the Rock

Sick Sex

Murderess

Call of the Wild

A Little Bit of Rock

Love Bomb Baby

Half an hour later, and following an overly long intro tape which included basically all of both Pat Travers' Snortin' Whiskey and Queen's We Will Rock You, Quiet Riot hit the stage - and for the next 80 minutes they delivered many of the band's best anthems with ease. It was very much a greatest hits set, but given the band's current line-up I expected nothing less - and given that it is likely that I will not get to see the band live again it was great just to hear the favourites. Following the long intro, the band hit the ground running with Run for Cover - one of my favourite Quiet Riot songs. The up-tempo rocker proved to be a great set opener, with Grossi's guitar driving everything and Sarzo's bass high in the mix. Having recently seen Pearl with his version of Love/Hate, I knew that his voice remains intact. He is perhaps raspier and sleazier than DuBrow ever was, but he did the songs justice. He is the right kind of singer for Quiet Riot and he has likely known those involved for a long time. He is a strong frontman, too, and clearly loves playing in the UK - sharing lots of jokes and banter with the crowd. Early on, for the most part, the hits came thick and fast. The sleazy Slick Black Cadillac certainly got the crowd going - but it was perhaps Mama Weer All Crazee Now, the first of two Slade covers played, which kicked things up a notch. The O2 Academy was not full, but there was certainly a pretty healthy crowd in for a Sunday night and there was plenty of singing during the song's chorus. There was a fair amount of singing generally, though, and the atmosphere throughout the set was pretty strong. The band were clearly enjoying themselves and did not seem to be going through the motions - and the inclusion of the newly-released I Can't Hold On showed that the set was not all about nostalgia. A song demoed by DuBrow and Grossi before the former's death, it has recently been finished up and released - and the ballad provided a brief change of pace, before the anthemic Sign of the Times returned to firmer ground. Another slower track, Love's a Bitch, then allowed for a bit more of a bluesy strut. There are ballad-esque parts to the song, but in general it was just more of a groove-fest - and Pearl really let rip during the chorus with some throat-shredding vocals. The only track that felt a bit flat was the leaden Condition Critical, which has never been a massive favourite of mine, but the song's big riff still filled the venue - and provided some primal rock before another ballad in the form of Thunderbird. Sarzo spoke to the crowd beforehand, dedicating the song to DuBrow, Banali, and Randy Rhoads - and it was poignant to reflect on how many previous members of Quiet Riot have died. It was the last slower track, too, with Party All Night and Blackout in the Red Room from Pearl's day job whipping up plenty of hard rocking excitement. As the set wended towards its close, too, there was a bit of a chance for all to show off. Sarzo took a bass solo during The Wild and the Young, whilst Grossi shredded aplenty during Let's Get Crazy - whilst also throwing in a snippet of Ozzy Osbourne's Crazy Train in a further tribute to Rhoads. By this point there was not much time left, sadly, and it was time for the second Slade cover, Cum On Feel the Noize, to rock the house. It was sung loudly by the crowd and it set the scene nicely for a set-ending rendition of Metal Health - which was easy the song of the night which featured the loudest singing. Everyone was on board by this point, and the O2 Academy rocked - bringing an evening of hair metal to a powerful close. The setlist was:

Run for Cover

Slick Black Cadillac

Mama Weer All Crazee Now [Slade cover]

I Can't Hold On

Sign of the Times

Love's a Bitch

Condition Critical

Thunderbird

Party All Night

Blackout in the Red Room [Love/Hate cover]

The Wild and the Young

Let's Get Crazy/Crazy Train [Ozzy Osbourne cover]

Cum On Feel the Noize [Slade cover]

Metal Health

Given that I had initially been reluctant to go to the show, I had a great time with both bands last night in London. Given that Quiet Riot do not visit the UK very often and Tigertailz seem to be calling it a day I doubt I will get another opportunity to see either live again - so I am very glad that I got to see both at least once. Both bands put on great shows and complimented each other well - and the decent-sized crowd likely went away happy after an evening of powerful hair metal anthems.