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With his time with both Ritchie Blackmore, and Michael Schenker now behind him, Chilean-born (now residing in Romania) vocalist Ronnie Romero is out to build an audience on the strength of his solo material. Given the high quality of the material to be found on his debut solo album of original material – ‘Too Many Lies, Too Many Masters’ – Romero’s decision to move on from the role of sideman has been a wise one. He’s still a member of Elegant Weapons alongside Richie Faulkner of Judas Priest, but that is more of a band compared to Romero’s time with The Man in Black, and The Mad Axeman. For now, it’s all about Ronnie Romero the headline act, and the spotlight certainly suits him.
8 shows in 8 days is a tough ask for most musicians, and given how much Romero puts his voice through during his 90 minutes live on stage, there is no sign of any regret about not scheduling a few days off in between. It is easy, however, to imagine Romero being wrapped in cotton wool when he comes offstage.
Along for the ride on this whirlwind bunch of gigs that spread to Europe after a few days of well-earned rest are Manchester rockers Absolva. Confidence can often be confused with arrogance and cockiness. Numerous bands look the part, and can talk the talk only to fall when it comes to delivering the goods onstage. Not so with Absolva.
Led by the Appleton brothers, Luke, and elder sibling Chris, the quartet are a formidable live act that would give any headliner a run for their money. Their connection with Blaze Bayley has meant playing stages worldwide, and that invaluable experience comes shining through once the familiar strains of AC/DC’s ‘Hells Bells’ fade out and the band powers into an impressive opening salvo of ‘Code Red’ (…did you order the Code Red?…You’re goddamn right I did!), and ‘Fire in the Sky’. The chemistry between the siblings is evident from the off and there is a stunning moment during ‘Code Red’ when the pair step to the front of the stage and peel off an impressive joint-guitar solo where they mirror each other perfectly; visually stunning, especially when they move their hands in tandem over and under their respective guitar necks.
Always on the front foot, and thanks to having 2 talented lead guitarists in their ranks, it is a guitar-heavy set. Chris’s solo on ‘Fire in the Sky’ is particularly impressive and when he finishes, Luke and bassist Karl Schramm briefly take over on co-lead vocals as the band constantly mixes it up throughout the set. Schramm’s thick bass rumbles bring a Steve Harris feel to the party (especially when the Irn-Bru swigging bassist locks into a groove with drummer Martin Mcnee) and his fingers are a blur as he assaults his weapon of choice. Mcnee? Like an unmanned jackhammer going off. He hits hard; so hard that a visit to the dentist might be required to fix those fillings that came loose thanks to his footwork.
Confident enough to throw in a new track – new single ‘Find My Identity’, taken from the forthcoming new album ‘Justice’, the studio version features a guest appearance from tonight’s headliner, as well as a blistering solo from Luke – Absolva make it look easy. Find out how easy when they open for Phil Campbell and The Bastard Sons on a few dates later this month.
In a similar vein to Ripper Owens being plucked out of obscurity to front his heroes Judas Priest, thanks to YouTube and Candice Blackmore, Ronnie Romero went from a Rainbow cover band in Spain to lining up alongside Ritchie Blackmore when the guitar legend put away the folk musings of Blackmore’s Night for a short while when he reconvened Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow a decade ago. Watching the ease with which Romero despatched classics from the Deep Purple family tree such as ‘Stargazer’, ‘Child in Time’, and ‘Burn’, in an unwelcoming cavernous arena, one thing became abundantly clear: he was born to sing these songs.
With ‘Too Many Lies, Too Many Masters’ gaining plaudits from fans and critics alike, it’s a juggling act trying to conjure up a setlist that pays homage to Romero’s involvement with Blackmore, and his love of all things Deep Purple-related, while also pushing forward the agenda of Ronnie Romero solo star. So once a storming version of Dio’s ‘Stand Up and Shout’ – which opens the set – fades out, it’s headfirst into ‘Castaway On The Moon’; the opening track of ‘Too Many Lies, Too Many Masters’. Classic hard rock not a million miles from Dio, Rainbow, etc, it constantly hits the mark. As do ‘I’ve Been Losing You’ and ‘Chased By Shadows’ which quickly follow on.
Taking a break from his solo material, Romero causes jaws to drop with a stunning version of the Rainbow classic ‘Stargazer’ where drummer Andy Cobos perfects the thunderous intro from the much-missed Cozy Powell. Very rarely played in its entirety by post-Dio Rainbow – before Blackmore joined forces with Romero that is – it is a respectful tribute to perhaps the greatest classic hard rock song, ever (way better than ‘Stairway to Heaven’, and ‘Smoke on The Water’, but that’s a heated debate for another time). 20 minutes later, Romero and company are back on ‘Rainbow Rising’ territory for a stellar run-through of ‘Kill the King’. Utterly magical.
The card that Romero has up his sleeve is the incredible group of players that he has surrounded himself with. It’s his name on the album, and the tickets, but this is very much a band in the truest meaning of the word. And as Romero points out during band introductions; he has been performing with, and friends with these guys for many years now. And it shows.
The ever-smiling Jose Rubio Jimenez on lead guitar is a joy to watch. Tasked with recreating guitar parts from Ritchie Blackmore and Vivian Campbell, he goes one better by adding his own flair here and there, as well as impressing on Romero tracks (a beautiful live version of the sultry ‘Crossroad’ is preceded by a few short bursts of Whitesnake’s ‘Love Ain’t No Stranger’ where Jimenez and Romero team up to great effect). Forming a fantastic partnership with the powerful Andy Cobos is bassist Miguel Martin, and the glue holding everything together is Francisco Gil Torres whose keyboard intro to Dio’s ‘Rainbow in the Dark’ is met by huge roars of approval from the crowd packed into the best bar in Edinburgh.
With the band coming on, and off through the crowd, encores are kind of redundant. So a thrilling triple salvo of Deep Purple belters brings the set to a close and in doing so, highlights the depth of Romero’s range. First up is ‘Battle Rages On’, the title track to the last studio album from the classic MKII line-up. Often over-shadowed by fans and critics due to the shenanigans that led to Ritchie Blackmore leaving (again), it’s a strong album with the title track being the pick of the bunch. ‘Child in Time’ is up next, and alone is worth the price of admission. Romero seriously pays respect to Ian Gillan, as he also does to Gillan’s replacement on set-closer ‘Burn’, where Romero expertly performs both David Coverdale’s and Glenn Hughes’s vocal parts.
An incredible night from start to finish, and one where you had to be there. What is interesting is that Romero has since announced the May release of his ‘Live At Rock Imperium Festival’ album. One glance at the tracklisting highlights a set that is all original material except one from Romero’s time with The Ferrymen, and set closer ‘Rainbow in The Dark’. Perhaps when Romero returns to these shows the setlist will lean more towards his solo material? The quality is there, especially on ‘Crossroad’ which is arguably the highlight of the album. Watch this space.
Catch Ronnie Romero and Absolva on the last few shows of this tour:
MAR 17 – Yard Club – Koln, DE
MAR 18 – Piano – Dortmund, DE
MAR 19 – De Bosuil – Weert, NL
Connect with Ronnie Romero, HERE
Review – Dave
All images – Callum Scott Photography
