The Treatment / Airrace / Tequila Mockingbyrd + Federal Charm / The Bad Flowers -
Corporation, Sheffield, Friday, 28th September, 2018
Set List: Money Tree/Never Go Home/Enjoy The Ride/Pretty Picture/Sex Bomb/So Not Me/I Smell Rock & Roll.
Tonight as you may have noticed it's two shows at once so I had my work cut out! It's the big room first for a trio who are getting rather popular here in the area – a trio from Melbourne, Australia who rock really good with a line-up made up of Jacinta Jaye, Louisa Baker and Josie O'Toole.
There's plenty of confidence in this young outfit too who are pretty damn ballsy. They really show you who is boss in here – that's the 'byrd's for definite. They tell us about having their gear stolen and have had to use gear from The Treatment for the tour. Hope I got that bit right!
Anyways, they packed many a punch in their opening set with cooking cuts like 'Money Tree' that started it up; 'Enjoy The Ride' we certainly did and Sheffield was even treated to a cover of Tom Jone's 'Sex Bomb'. Would like to see them do a headline show some time as these girls have got it!
Set List: I Don't Believe It/Lions Blood/Be Your Man/Secrets/Let's Misbehave/Who Needs A Soul/Yonders Wall/I Ain't Ready/Can You Feel It?/Thunder Child/Rich Man/City Lights.
A nicely pace walk around to the small room next to catch the proceedings in there only to find that the opener's 'Those Damn Crows' have cancelled due to band illness... oh well be rude not to chill with a pint of 'Trooper' right? Not a bad beer that! The Bad Flowers are milling about a little bit before taking to the stage. They are pretty damn solid when they crank up though with those in here who made it out giving these 'Flowers full attention.
The folk who made their way to the Corp's small room are well up to get bad with the band from Cannock tonight who deliver plenty of cracking songs from their recently released album 'Starting Gun' that we reviewed earlier this year such as 'Thunder Child'; 'Secrets'; 'Rich Man' and 'Let's Mishave' alongside other good cuts tonight.
There may only be three of them made up of Tom Leighton (Guitar/Vocals); Dale Tonks (Bass/Vocals) & Karl Selickis (Drums) but they create enough sound to be a four or five piece. Nice work tonight lads. Would like to see 'em crank up in the big room some time.
Set: I Don't Care/Eyes Like Ice/Caught In The Game/New Skin/First One Over The Line/Not Really Me/Summer Rain/Promise To Call/Running Out Of Time/Different But The Same/Brief Encounter.
These boys are still doing it with their blend of classic AOR that sooths the crowd of a hard week at work and rocks them up when needed too. Utter perfection from Cambridge too on both a musical and vocal level with Rocky Newton (Bass) and Laurie Mansworth (Guitar) still there in the fold – the original members.
The rest of the band is made up of Dhani Mansworth (Drums – Son of Laurie and also The Treatment's Drummer); Adam Payne (Vocals) and Linda Kelsey Foster (Keys). Right from 'I Don't Care' through to the closing number called 'The Brief Encounter' with numbers like 'New Skin' or 'Running Out Of Time' they deliver what the people need. In fact, Steve Cooper even said they should have been the headliners here tonight.
Be interesting to know what others think to that statement as well.... verdict is out there somewhere in the cosmos... Maybe it was kind of a double headliner just about when all was said and done – with the older band opting for a shorter set – if that makes any sense.
Set List: Swing Sinner/Guess What/Can't Rule Me/Death Rattle/Master Plan/Choke/Get Through/Nowhere Is Home/Halo/Silhouette/Parting Words/Speak Out/Gotta Give Up.
Okay, I must admit that I didn't realise that it was these guys who were going to be headliners in the small room. Four guys from Manchester comprising of Tom Guyer (Vocals); Paul Bowe (Guitars); L. D. Morawski (Bass) & Josh Zahler (Drums) who are getting noticed pretty good – in fact they recently played another festival down the road not long back that they happen to mention tonight, asking us who was there for it.
They have a Rival Sons & The Answer meets Led Zeppelin groove about them which totally sells it to me with opener, 'Swing Sinner' from new album 'Passenger' being a perfect example of this with its solid riffing and blues exquisiteness that's followed up by the equally excellent 'Guess What' from 2012.
Elsewhere in the set worth mention the crowd enjoyed the full on 'Get Through'; the deep, ambient sounding 'Parting Words' with various tempos in it and brilliant finisher in their 2011 number 'Gotta Give Up'. Must see them again and it full as well.
Set List: Let It Begin/Let's Get Dirty/On The Money/Drink Fuck Fight/Doctor/I Bleed Rock And Roll/Running With The Dogs/Cry Tough/Generation Me/Fear Nothing.
Encore: Party/Shake The Mountain.
Now here's a band from Cambridge who have been around the block a bit over the last years, played everywhere, supported loads and done a fair few headline tours and shows. It seemed I ended up missing them every time they hit Sheffield but not tonight. I never got to see them with their original frontman but this new guy, Tom Rampton seems pretty good.
The whole set was simply a hard rock avalanche of fun-packed melody and bombastic freedom for a Friday night that was fully enjoyed by everyone present in the Corporation's large room. One of those performances that doesn't slow down for a second – well apart from in between songs, that goes from beginning to end without a ballad in sight. They really are like Airbourne gone down a few tempos meets a speeded up AC/DC – all balls, dirt, meat and potatoes that get your heart racing!
You'd think they'd fancy a breather at some point but no, it's full on rock and roll songs all the way from the aptly placed opener 'Let It Begin' to the closing 'Shake the Donkey'.... sorry I mean …. 'Shake The Mountain' – my ears are funny things at times – lol. Everyone's in party mood and we get a ton of cliched lines such as 'You're the best audience we've had' and other various compliments to saying, “Don't you want to go home yet? Do you want some more? Etc... you know the drill...
Very confident members right here with amazing vocals, spot on Guitar soling and posing from Brothers, Tagore & Tao Grey, whilst Dhani Mansworth (Drums) and Rick 'Swoggle' Newman (Bass) make a perfect rhythmic unit too. This is killer showmanship all round as The Treatment whip us up for the weekend with to-die-for cuts that include 'Let's Get Dirty'; 'Drink Fuck Fight'; 'I Bleed Rock And Roll' and of course 'Party' which we had been doing right the way through.
This was 1988 all over again but 30 years later. Young guys showing us how it should be done!
By Glenn Milligan
