This is part of Jettblack's first headlining UK Tour and it's about time for a band that have been solidly putting in great support performances for a few years now.
We got into this show in time for the last two acts. NIGHT BY NIGHT came on and by the time the singer had flounced onto the stage and almost pirouetted I already hated him. This was simply one of the most over the top amateur dramatic production of Midsummers Night's Dream as a frontman style performances you'll ever see. He wants to be a cross between Joey Tempest and Joe Leste from Bang Tango, but unfortunately he ends up sounding like Joe Leste after yet another drugs overdose, having been just let out of re-hab once more and trying to sing well enough to get enough money for the drugs to let him have another overdose.
All that said, the band this tosser fronts are pretty much by the numbers landfill indie metal, though they do sport great harmony backing vocals that are at all times stronger than the lead singer. They need to sack him and split the vocals between the guitarist and bass player. Every time the singer flounced forwards with his arms raised again I wanted to laugh at him. It was pretty embarrassing to watch and I can only hope I never have to see or hear them again anytime soon. Oh, how we need Mean Steed to be supporting them once more.
Thankfully, after the awful Night By Night, JETTBLACK don't put a foot wrong all night and are superb from the moment they burst into Get Your Hands Dirty. The Underworld are with them from the off and loving every minute of it. Temptation had a great guitar solo and plenty to get everyone moving to it and as ever the split between Will and Jon as to who is singing the vocals is worked out impeccably.
Less Thrust More Torque has some very good tongue in cheek lyrics over the very potent hard rock they play which borders on Cock Rock on songs like Slip It On. This latter is a real live favourite and has been for quite a while which is why the crowd instantly went nuts for it, screaming the chorus back at them.
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Temptation is one of many songs about love going wrong or not quite right as it does again on Not Even Love whose solo is as classic a bit of late 70's brit metal as any current band could come up with. In-Between Lovers, meanwhile, is a great song and as ever is sung with an almost casual wink of the eye ahead of the sleazy When It Comes To Lovin': a song with as bad an attitude as the band can muster while Jon sings about having no friends when it comes to Lovin'.
It's always good to hear Fooled By A Rose which has been in the band's set every time we've seen them and sees Tom with a bigger grin on his face than usual while his bass underpins the song. The Sweet And The Brave seems to have got crunchier along the way and sounds pretty menacing unlike the two songs that close the set. Prisoner Of Love is as slow as they get and builds nicely before they get the place going mental for Two Hot Girls Coming Out In The Sun which is probably their best known tune at the moment.
They came back and encored with Raining Rock and it did feel like it was raining rock down on our ears with the twin guitars meshing and soloing like crazy as they closed a brilliant set. On this form, Jettblack look set to continue their rise playing ever larger venues all over the place, always worth seeing live.
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