Review & Photography by Ritchie Birnie for MPM
It is the first night of the UK/EU tour and I am sure the cold has already faded these L.A. sex bombs tans, it also wiped away any frost from the sold out crowd as they put on a show that arena headliners could only dream of.
It is the third time the boys have played in Glasgow with it being the city of their first ever UK headline show so it is fitting that the tour kicks off here and I have a feeling the boys may like the city and I have no doubt they loved the venue as it is an old church. The sound is always spot on and the surroundings are sublime.
In a year we have had three shows from the boys, each show growing in venue size and every one having the Glaswegians clamoring for tickets.
With this show sold out I wonder where will be next as they are jumping a lot of venue options with their popularity so it is looking like a trip to the hallowed halls of Barrowland Ballrooms await and this band was made to play under those stars with more than a thousand people bouncing on the tennis ball sprung floor…make it happen guys.
Things are running a bit late tonight and as I am in the photographers pit waiting for them I ask the tech if there is a set list to which he answers they are still writing it, jeez, 9 hours on a flight and a good 7 hours in a bus and this isn’t sorted yet? Jet lag is a bitch.
The show opened with the title track from the latest album and instantly the audience is in the groove with Glenn Hughes love child Justin Smolian battering us with his bass and hiding his face and a pair of John Lennon shades in that mop of crazy, curly hair.
Next up is “California Dreaming” with singer Marc LaBelle and John ‘Fuckin” Notto taking centre stage and driving this catchy little bugger of a tune. This was followed up quickly with “Get a little High” and it was here when I played the comparison of them and Black Crowes in my mind. I was as fan boy crazy about them as I now am with DH. Back in the day I followed them everywhere and I watched them also outgrow venue after venue and with songs this good and with a band this tight I expect Dirty Honey to emulate the same rise to success.
Next up is the tripped up fuzzy monster that is “Scars” that slithers across the room and takes the crowd on a journey that leads to “Dirty Mind” and onto the amazing “Tied Up”. This has everyone singing their lungs out and we all feel we are home, there may not be an alter in this church but we are the choir and we are being saved by what is definitely the best young American band in some time. There are a lot of drunk, out of tune people here trying to recreate the female backing singers from the recording but trust me they failed.
We then have a kind of interlude to the night as we get a one two of different feels with “Coming Home” and a hillbilly mash up of the Stones “Honkey Tonk Women”. The acoustics come out and it is hell yeah time. Marc should have been passing round the moonshine down the front for full effect. All we needed were some banjos and we would have been in full deliverance mode.
From here in I just settled down and enjoyed the show with friends new to the band lapping up the show and rather than give you a full on break down of numbers I will let you do the same. If you have seen the boys you know they are awesome, if you haven’t take my 100% guarantee and get a ticket(if you can) and go see them now.
With songs like “Heartbreaker”, “The Wire”, “When I’m Gone” and “Rolling 7s” in the set you cannot fail to be entertained and you will view in real time a coming of age of a band that are going to go on and conquer the world one stage at a time.
