I ummed and ahhed about going to this gig up to the last moment; the venue is not my favourite in the country (not even my favourite in Manchester; the Academy is a far better place since its recent revamp) but as it's been a while since my last 'proper' gig and as I'm currently not able to get to as many as I might like, the decision was taken to check this show out.
I got there in plenty of time to catch Loaded, and a decent-sized crowd was already standing in the stalls awaiting Duff and his crew. 22 years ago I saw Duff McKagan play this same place with Guns 'n' Roses when their star was very much in the ascendancy. Only last year, he was in Liverpool with this band and went down a storm with a small crowd, who had come mainly to see the big name. However this time around his band had a much harder job with the crowd, despite Duff's status he had his work cut out to get anything going beyond the first dozen rows. The band's set was mostly the same sort of punk 'n' roll delivered last year, but there were some songs which slowed things down a bit. That was probably not a great idea when supporting; with a limited time you have to keep it short and sharp, and hit hard. It was when they did the harder songs, including covers such as 'Attitude', 'New Rose' and even set closing treat 'It's So Easy' that they went down best. So not quite the stormer they played last year, but I did note the great performance of drummer Isaac Carpenter, and was especially impressed with bassist Jeff Rouse, he possesses a better singing voice than the main man and was given a chance to show it just before the end.
Up to now I've only seen Black Stone Cherry as support for bigger bands; they got their break last year as openers on the Whitesnake/Def Leppard arena tour and it's clear from the turnout tonight (a close-on full Apollo) that they've won a lot of friends since then. When I first saw them last year I wrote in an earlier blog that they were 'solid but unspectacular'. That's still the impression they leave me with now; all the ingredients are there, a great singer in Chris Robertson, energetic sidemen in guitarist Ben Wells and bassist Jon Lawhon (they never stood still all night, frequently swapping sides and climbing the monitors) and a sound drummer in John Fred Young. They also have some good songs to back all this activity up, but something for me doesn't quite hit the mark, they don't send the shivers down the spine, they don't leave me walking out of the venue in a near-trance, blown away by what I've just seen. That is not to say they were bad; not at all, they were very good live, they make all the right moves and they say all the right things. They just don't seem to be quite matching up to the status they now find themselves in, headlining large theatres like the Apollo.
Perhaps Black Stone Cherry are just one of those bands you have to stick with and watch them grow into their role; or perhaps it's simply me who doesn't get it. There were certainly enough there who did, Robertson was often able to leave the singing to the crowd and most notably so on the poignant 'The Things My Father Said'. But for me, although those ingredients are in place, the cake isn't quite fully baked, they're not yet the finished article.
One last thing; the sound in the theatre once again did neither band any favours; the bass was so loud especially during the headline set that I'm still buzzing from it now! As said at the top, this place is not my favourite venue and I don't make a habit of going there these days. Just a shame so many acts choose it! Perhaps if they had played the Academy I may have enjoyed it more, but as it was, the air guitar remained in its case.
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