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One of the highlights of the ever-increasing Winter indoor festival circuit is Monsterfest in Inverness. Set in the rather splendid Scottish highlands, it’s a bit of a jaunt for most bands, especially as the last few hours of the journey will be on unforgiving A-roads. Sadly a cloud hangs over this venue; plans have been submitted for a hotel to be built on the site. Should they be passed, hopefully another venue can be found. The bands and the fans who make the long journey certainly enjoy themselves.
To the familiar strains of ‘For Those About To Rock’, 13 year old Geai Thompson takes to the stage in full Angus Young schoolboy attire, and plays all of Young’s guitar parts to a backing track. It’s a fitting way to kick off the festivities, and it’s always great to see the younger generation ready to pick up the torch and run with it.
First band onstage is one of the heavier bands to feature over the weekend, local boys King Kobalt. Playing a loud and muscular brand of modern metal/rock, they certainly make their presence felt. Current single ‘Can You See’ bears all the hallmarks of a Mark Tremonti influence, from the buzzsaw riffs to Craig Kelly’s raw vocals. One to add to the ever-growing list of bands to keep an eye on.
Next up and keeping it Northern is Broadsea from Aberdeen. More of an alternative rock sound, but considering how broad that genre actually is, that could mean almost anything. Similar in a way to early Biffy Clyro, but maybe not as quirky. The sound is very atmospheric with some huge riffs, and if you want to catch some Lego/Flying V action, then check out the imaginative video for ‘Recover’.
Northern Ireland’s Trucker Diablo are old hands at this game and make it look easy. Put them on a bill at any festival and they will come away with scores of new fans. Coming on to a rapidly filling hall, they steamroller into ‘Rock Hallelujah’ and have the crowd on their side virtually from the off. Playing blue-collar rock is not as easy as it supposedly looks; it’s all about the connection between the performers and their audience, and Trucker Diablo is one of those bands that most will connect with on one level or another. Who can’t identify with the bass-driven ‘Drink Beer, Destroy’? The perfect song for a Friday night at an indoor festival. Couple that with the anthemic strains of ‘Other Side Of The City’ and you’re left wondering why this particular eight-wheeler isn’t driving coast to coast in America as we speak. The Yanks would love these guys and I would wager that they would never have to buy one round.
If Trucker Diablo are old hands then what does that make Oliver Dawson Saxon? Seasoned veterans? With a songbook featuring classics such as ‘Strong Arm Of The Law’, ‘Dallas 1pm’, ‘Motorcycle Man’, ‘Denim and Leather’ and many, many more, Oliver Dawson Saxon are a NWOBHM human jukebox, and the crowd knows all the words. With the rise of the NWOCR, the immortal line “Where were you in ’79 when the dam began to burst” is all the more topical, and the call-to-arms chorus to ‘Denim and Leather’ is bellowed out by everyone in attendance. Throw in a medley that featured ‘Loch Lomond’, ‘Into The Valley’ and ‘I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)’, and that would have been the perfect end to the evening. But there’s more to follow as one of the leading lights of the NWOBHM scene passes the torch to the frontrunners of the NWOCR scene – Massive Wagons.
With the now traditional intro tape of Slade’s ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Preacher’ booming out of the impressive PA, Lancaster’s finest take to the stage and slam straight into the Rick Parfitt tribute – ‘Back To The Stack’. Yosemite Sam’s hyperactive brother (also known as Baz Mills) is the usual blur as he covers every inch of the stage in the first few minutes. Bottle what this guy is on and sell it; this time next year we’ll be millionaires.
‘Tokyo’ has the crowd bouncing from the first note, whilst ‘Billy Balloon Head’ has everyone grinning in recognition, as most people will no doubt have someone similar as a mate. ‘Nails’ is still as tough as, well, nails, and the closing twenty minutes or so of the set are riotous. ‘Ratio’, ‘Northern Boy’, ‘Red Dress’, ‘Fee Fi Fo Fum’ and a romp through ‘Cum On Feel The Noize’ sends the crowd home (or back to the bar) with smiles on their collective faces.
The good-time vibes and party anthems often hide the fact that Massive Wagons are growing into a slick, professional outfit. The arena dates with Lynyrd Skynyrd and Status Quo brought the band invaluable experience and they seem more than ready to take it to the next level.
Stay tuned for day two of Monsterfest.
Review and images – Dave Jamieson
