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Now, you know a gig is going to be “different” when you are handed a leaflet explaining the evening on entry! I will be honest and say that for various reasons, I wasn’t a fan of the format, but, in a spoiler alert, that didn’t affect my enjoyment of the Wayward Sons set at all. Firstly, a crumpled white sheet was stretched across the stage. It turned out that this was because the first “act” was actually the series of videos Wayward Sons recorded for songs off their album. Played together, they run as a zombie film with great music. However, the screen was so creased, it was almost impossible to see any detail for anyone close to the stage, and watching and listening to songs that I assumed would make up most of the set seemed a waste of an opportunity to give a young local band some stage time. Following the film, we were treated to a short set from a stand up comedian. Again, it was gently amusing, and his material was very appropriate to a rock gig, but it hardly ramped up the energy in the room ready for a band to shake the walls. So, a few reservations, a short break, and on came the main event……. Bang! No warm up needed for us or them! Wayward Sons hit the stage to “Alive” and the crowd went nuts. One thing they can’t be accused of is not having stage presence. Jepson himself, low slung guitar and powerful vocals, Nic Wastell never still for a second, throwing his bass around with abandon, and Sam Wood, blonde hair flowing as he picks all the right rock poses. Providing depth to the sound is keyboard player Dave Kemp and keeping everything moving forward with pace is drummer Phil Martini. The music is what rock should be; guitar driven, catchy, and delivered with panache. The set is naturally mostly drawn from “Ghosts Of Yet To Come” with “Ghost”, “Don’t Wanna Go”, “Give It Away”, “Killing Time”, “Crush”and “Small Talk” before we were treated to “Stand By Heart”, the first song the band recorded together, but not featured on the album. Jepson had a wonderful rapport with the crowd. The set was filled with little anecdotes and stories as the band took well deserved breathers, and then it was back to the power. “Be Still”, “Radio Denial”, and “Something Wrong” keep the pace up. The set closes with “Kicking Up Dust” from Toby’s back catalogue, and then the song that really showcases Wayward Sons; the Lizzy-esque “Until The End”, with it’s catchy guitar hook and sing-a-long chorus. The band were quickly back for an encore, with “Backslide” and another blast from the past, “Young Gods”, leaving a sweaty, satisfied room full of Welshmen and women more than happy. Review and photos by Rob Wilkins [gallery type='flickr' user_id='132278830@N06' view='photosets' photoset_id='72157696508104625' columns='3' tag_mode='any' sort='date-posted-desc' per_page='22' layout='square' caption='title' thumb_size='s' main_size='z' ] ]]>
