Review written by Dave Franklin for Puttyfoot Promotions
Following their usual format of two local acts and an out of town headliner, tonight’s show had a lot to offer, on paper anyway, the proof would be in the playing and first up to prove themselves were Teabo. Although it was a name that I had heard buzzing around for a long time, I had never managed to actually get myself to a gig so I was looking forward to this. Teabo, by their own admission, are difficult to easily categorise, but then most good music is. Right from the opening chords you can see that they are a band that certainly have their act together, experience has left them a tight band and their song writing ability also has all the hall marks of a band that have found their own unique sound. As one song follows another, they offer up bluesy grooves, funky pop, country tinged rock and seem to visit every reference point in between. Front man Mark has a great voice whether kicking it out or delivering more soulful strains, in fact this is mirrored by the whole band in the way that they seem easily at home at either end of the spectrum, the dynamic of the songs is used to great affect and amid some solid basslines, tight backbeats and great guitar work, Teabo manage to give us something well crafted, well executed and well received by the audience which for once looks like a half decent turn out. Nice one lads.
From here The Knott, slowly becoming Puttyfoot regulars, take it up a level. The one thing about this band that grabs your attention is singer, Lee, a man that is a combination of consummate showmanship and the very essence of Manchester distilled down to fit into a single body. That said it isn’t a one-man show by any means and the band manage to match musically the charisma of the bands focal point. All the regular favourites are there such as Gone Fishing, Politics for Lunch and even a new number which may or may have not been called Bloodstream, but it is Road to Freedom that impressed me most tonight, with its heavy beat and crunchy rhythms in my mind, an obvious single if ever there was one even though it may not be obviously pop orientated. Its not pretty, its not big and clever, but it will make you dance, well not dance, more like stomp for England, which for my money is more fun. Added harmony vocal work from Matt and Andy help to enhance the songs and the whole package comes together to great affect. At the end of the day the music comes very much from a centre ground, but there is nothing wrong with that. Not all music has to change lives or smash the system, isn’t it enough just to be appealing and entertaining, The Knott certainly live up to that. It will be interesting to catch their acoustic show with The Squirrels at Riffs Bar in June and see another dimension of their musical persona.
If the night had gradually risen in energy from one band to the next, it was about to undergo vertical take off and disappear out of sight courtesy of Wolverhampton’s finest, Showdown City. This is a band that understands that rock and roll is a theatre, its best when not trying to be too refined or serious, content just to kick out some big sounds and put on a show and what a show they put on. Visually they are a whirlwind of chaotic energy, between all of the leaping and running into the audience, I doubt if more than tow of the band where ever in their designated place at any given time. At times there seemed to be a giant game of hide and seek going on with band members mingling into the crowd, appearing behind the bar, in the car park, local shops and recreation grounds nearby?¢‚Ǩ¬¶probably. Thank god for radio mics. Musically they seem to be repackaging all that was good about the old school rock and still managing to keep it fresh by mixing it with more contemporary sounds. Iron maiden-esque riffs run side by side with more punk derived deliveries and twin guitar attacks, reminiscent of Thin Lizzy, blend with the more throwaway style of glam rockers like Faster Pussycat and any number of cool retro rock references that you care to think of. Singer Natalie could teach up and coming wannabes a lot about how to front a band. This feisty little package is totally hypnotic as she belts out these high octane numbers, strutting her stuff between stage and audience and really keeping our attention. That’s not to say that the boys behind her aren’t pulling their own weight, Tom seems to be flying whilst in possession of a bass guitar and guitarist Ade is just a loose cannon, splitting his time between tearing the place up with his guitar, and performing dexterous juggling tricks with it. Great music, great show, great people, rumour has it that they are back in the area in a couple of months time, so no excuses. If you are a fan of any type of rock or just want to be entertained then a Showdown City show is the place to be.
