Review by Karen Hamilton for MPM
It’s a weekend where it feels like half of Northern Ireland has migrated south to Dublin for the hugely anticipated Metallica concerts. We are heading to the Limelight in Belfast for a more intimate gig in the company of Halestorm’s power couple. Singer Lzzy Hale and guitarist Joe Hottinger are bringing their Unplugged shows to a close with us and if friends are to be believed then it’s to be one of the best nights in a while. Now when I say unplugged don’t be fooled into thinking it’ll be a night of easy listening because it’s anything but!
We get there a good half hour before doors open and the queue of eager fans (or the Freak Fam as they’re known) is already snaking its way around the building. It’s brilliant to see such a diverse crowd but then again Lzzy is an icon for women and the LGBTQ+ community.
Dublin and Belfast are the only two nights on the tour to have a support act. Dublin three-piece For Nina are Holly, Ben and Max and it’s hard not to like them. Lzzy and Joe have stripped back their set, so these guys have done the same. One of their first offerings is Swallow which is their 2025 single. Holly tells us we’re in for a treat with their next song and at the end she admits she launched into the wrong song and thanks her bandmates for catching on quickly.
They have a great energy about them, and I’ll definitely be checking out their songs at full throttle. They play Labour of my Love which is their most recent single and follow it with Low which is the first song they wrote together. Holly asks if anyone else is sweating and who knew it could be so hot at an acoustic gig. It’s a valid question and I’ve concluded that a fan is just as important at a gig as the ticket is!
Lzzy and Joe take the stage just after 9pm and launch straight into White Dress. She announces that the last time they were in the Limelight was back in 2015 and it’s great to have them back again. She introduces the next song by saying they’ve seen it tattooed on our bodies and in our hearts as they play I am the Fire.
Gather the Lambs is from Halestorm’s latest album Everest which was released last year. The banter between the two of them is great craic and the chemistry is so easy to spot. Lzzy acknowledges some fans who have followed them on this tour saying there is no rest for the wicked and this prompts Joe to ask if that’s why she doesn’t sleep.
Amen is their next song and Lzzy’s powerful scream shows off her amazing vocal abilities. She commends Joe for sticking around after seeing so many different sides to her, but he jokes he just really likes playing guitar. Apparently, he doesn’t know lyrics because he doesn’t pay attention, but his excuse is that he’s not the singer as they play Mz Hyde, inspired by Lzzy’s different personas. As they catch their breath one guy shouts Slayer hoping for a rendition but not this time although they say maybe they’ll come back and play it. Instead, we hear Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance and, while it wasn’t what that one guy hoped for, it was definitely a firm favourite with the crowd.
Lzzy gives us a little insight to feeling out of place as a young girl because her music tastes were so different from her friends. I mean what 11-year-old girl doesn’t love Ronnie James Dio or Alice Cooper? Her dad’s reaction was to tell her to let her freak flag fly as they play Freak like Me. Joe is then kicked off stage as Lzzy takes her seat at the piano to play the hauntingly beautiful Dear Daughter. Joe rejoins her to play the dark, emotional ballad Shiver from their Everest album.
Rock Show is next followed by their debut single I Get Off from way back in 2009. Lzzy professes her love for Belfast as they play Love Bites with her kneeling on the stage when she hits that scream. Do not Disturb leads Lzzy to tell us that the band members had auditions for the moan in the song and it was almost Joe but he showcased his version which turned out to be “Aw Papi!’ giving some of the biggest cheers of the night! Then the air turns electric when Lzzy blows the roof off the Limelight as she screams the opening note of I Miss the Misery.
The couple leave the stage as the crowd chants one more tune but we are treated to three beginning with their cover of Fleetwood Mac’s Gold Dust Woman. Like a Woman Can is another from the Everest album and has been described as a ‘sultry, bluesy tribute to bisexuality.’ Tonight’s final song is a salute from Lzzy and Joe as they play the anthemic Here’s to Us with the deafening roar of the crowd ringing in our ears as we pile into the street. So absolutely listen to friends when they tell you it’ll be one of the best nights you’ve had in a while!
Photography by MPM
