Review: Jack J Hutchinson/The Swamp Born Assassins – Glasgow

Turn on the TV: wall-to-wall doom and gloom as the world lurches towards the “brink of all-out war” (sidebar – for an eye-opening expose on how the media manipulates war for various reasons, check out the movie ‘Wag The Dog’). Turn on social media: wall-to-wall bullshit as Westminster lurches from one lie to another without blinking an eye. Switch off both. Nothing quite provides respite from the white noise of the modern world like an amp being switched on and a Gibson Les Paul being plugged in, and son of Blackburn now London-based, Jack J Hutchinson made the long journey North for his debut gig in Glasgow and, along with special guests The Swamp Born Assassins, provided a welcome night off from the shenanigans and twattery of life in 2022.

Local purveyors of Swamp Rock, The Swamp Born Assassins are playing their first gig of 2022, and if there are any nerves amongst the six-piece then they aren’t showing. A quick glance around the venue finds each member of the band chatting with family, and catching up with old friends; until it’s showtime and they saunter over to the small, low stage to plug in and wait for MC Pete K. Mally to get the party started. Founding member and head swamper Charlie Moffat (Li’l Charlie) is without his trademark orchestra lectern so a bar stool makes do, but he’s brought his harmonica though, and after a few issues with the sound are resolved, it can be heard loud and clear. Playing the role of an orator, or preacher even, at times Charlie works from the Alex Harvey playbook and his almost spoken-word poetic delivery is a delight to witness; would be great to hear him tackle ‘Midnight Moses’ or ‘Faith Healer’.

With guitarist Craig Buchanan joining in 2019, and the more recent addition of Todd Macleod on drums, The Swamps have grown into a stronger, more cohesive unit and this becomes all the more apparent in a live setting. The guitar work from Buchanan and his six-string compadre (and the hardest working guitarist in Glasgow) AndyPaws Christie is at times staggering. Christie goes with a Fender Telecaster, while Buchanan favours a Gibson Les Paul; the difference in tone is crucial to the makeup of The Swamps sound and the mixture of the lightness of the Fender with the weight of the Gibson is sheer perfection. Two lead guitarists are always fantastic to watch, but all the better when they each have different styles and sounds: from Craig Buchanans impressive slide work on ‘The Weeping Tree’ to the combined grunge overtones of ‘Crawl’ and the fat licks of ‘Better Off Dead’, this is a magical, guitar-heavy set. Todd Macleod has quickly formed a strong partnership with bassist Allen Bell and the pair especially stands out on the percussive mid-section of ‘Rise Up’ where one just might find oneself having a little jig. With Kirsty Moffat adding some strong backing vocals (in particular during the epic-sounding ‘Gates Of Hades’) it’s obvious that whatever work The Swamps have put in in the rehearsal room has paid off.

Since the restrictions on live music were lifted last year, Jack J Hutchinson has been traversing the motorway networks of the UK filling up on Greggs and spreading the good word on his new album ‘The Hammer Falls’ wherever live music is played- and it shows. After a break for the festive period, Jack and his bandmates – Laz (bass) and Felipe (drums) – are back at it and immediately picking up the momentum that the fearsome trio built upon 2021’s various legs of the tour. If anything the trio is tighter and more in tune with each other. So much so that one of the highlights of the set arrives during ‘Down By The River’; there is a brief pause from Jack before he launches into his guitar solo front stage and as he pauses, he waits for Felipe to come crashing in, and once the monster behind the kit does come crashing in, Jack’s face breaks out in a mile-wide grin before peeling off some incredible licks. Likewise, it’s a sight to behold when both Jack and Laz gather around the drum kit, and along with Felipe lock into an almighty groove during a towering cover of ‘War Pigs’. This is very much a “band” in the truest sense of the word.

The difference between the live shows in 2021 and this burst of dates is that the new album ‘The Hammer Falls’ has finally seen the light of day, and punters have had a chance to get familiar with the tracks included within. There are a few Kickstarter patrons in tonight and Jack points them out and thanks them for helping fund the album. Always a great feeling when you realize that by paying upfront for an album, you are helping birth it, and ‘The Hammer Falls’ was not just birthed, it was dragged into this world kicking and screaming, and the material aired from it has sprouted a pair of size fifteen Doc Marten boots and packs a kick like the star of a Mexico donkey show wearing a cock ring three sizes too small. Those riffs, man, are monstrous.

The setlist is, as you would expect, centered around the new album, and ‘Straight To Hell’ opens the live show as it also does the album. With his vocals reaching a higher range for this one, Hutchinson shows that although he is better known for his guitar work, he has been working on strengthening his vocals and this area shows real growth; not just on ‘Straight To Hell’, but also on moments like ‘Angel Of Death’ (“A cheery number…”) and 2017’s ‘Written In Stone’. His guitar work is top-notch, full of emotion and gorgeous tones, and devoid of any hints of flash-bastard syndrome that can blight so many guitarists today. ‘Call Of The Wild’ is getting bigger and bigger with each airing, in much the same way that ‘I Will Follow You’ gets more emotional with each airing. ‘Sleep, Awake, Obey!’ gives the crowd a chance to join in with some audience participation in a call-and-response from Jack…although for one geezer it translates to “Feed, Away, Bay!”…one of those you had to be there moments.