I have been to many gigs promoted by the very talented Simon Pattinson of Northern Radar and so far he has never let me down with a deluge of incredible lineups. Will tonight live up to that reputation? Read on to find out! This was two nights in a row for me at the magnificent Fulford Arms, Sweet May are the headliners, but before them, we were offered a nifty selection of support bands. So let’s talk about those for a while. First up were the Corsairs, a very young (all 14 and 15 I believe) York band playing their first gig at a packed, sold-out Fully Arms. What a great first gig for a young band, who despite their youth oozed confidence on stage. They were a bit Kooksy with elements of the Coral too. The B-Side (how do kids know what that is?) of their single sounded like a classy acoustic track from Just Jack. Definitely, a band to watch out for, if they are this good now what will they be like when they come of age? I love it when a band looks to be enjoying themselves on stage and the Corsairs seemed to be loving it! Following the Corsairs, it was the turn of another talented local band, Pavilion. They were incredibly well-rehearsed and tight and this lot gets better every time I see them. They write and perform epic story songs in the British rock lineage that goes back to the Kinks, and heads to the future via the Smiths and the Libertines. The sound is supremely enhanced and given immense depth by the Ray Manzarek-style keys. It brings a depth that is deeper than the San Andreas Trench. Keep your ears open, there is new music from Pavilion on the way!
Next up was Sun King, a band that I have never seen before, in fact, no one had, this was their first gig. The vocals were monumental, a bit of Robert Plant, some Paul Rodgers in his Bad Company pomp, some soulful Steve Marriott tones and then when he hit those falsetto lines a lot like Prince. The band played wonderful classic rock styles with a nod to soul, jazz, and funk, perhaps taking some influence from the Average White Band, Steely Dan, and a pre-Michael McDonald Doobie Brothers. This is a band I must see again and you really need to as well, that’s an order! Headliners Sweet May kicked off with two heavy tunes, but not just heavy, we are talking as heavy as fuck and heavier than osmium. But it wasn’t all heavy, as along comes “Deep Space”. The intro on this track lulls you into thinking it’s a prog-jazz thing and then it becomes a ground-shaking metal funk workout. Sweet May were on fire and blew the roof off the Fully, only metaphorically of course, but they definitely had the power to do it in real life!
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