Wolf Jaw / Liberty Lies / False Hearts
The Station Cannock - 6/8/21
Live review by; DeeDee
Photos by; Martyn Turner
This event has been a long time coming, but at last we get to see Wolf jaw, ahead of their appearance at Bloodstock Open Air Festival. Avoiding the closed M6, (thanks for the heads up on Facebook) it was a case of heading north on an alternative route, but all was fine. Then in The Station I met up with gig buddies and being surrounded by friends, it’s something to appreciate even more these days.
FALSE HEARTS - Led by the fiery Emma Hodgson, the Cambridgeshire band have a stand in guitarist tonight, by way of Phil Haines from ‘Hollowstar’, as Ben Grass is laid up for a while. Having only around three days to practice, he soon shows us he’s a quick learner. From the ‘Dirty Little Soul’ and ‘Remedy’ EP’s the band shoot ‘Addicted To Pain’ and ‘Cynical Love’. Emma has distinctive vocals that linger and fade with equal strength and tonight she is near perfect, capturing ‘Enough Is Enough’ and ‘Remedy’ with precise and haunting tones. Bassist Phil Benton and drummer Adrian Bowes make up the quartet and tonight the set is well received by the Cannock audience. ’Take Control’ carries on the same lines and Phil is let loose to handle the introduction, the room loving his performance. ‘Misery Loves Company’ has a more hard surface and there’s a shift in gear. After the constant and regular ‘Dream On’ we hear the new single ’See Me Now’ with more introductory chords from Phil and it’s a winner. Ending quite a long set with the cooler ‘Breathe Again’ I have to agree with most, that False Hearts were quite amazing tonight, has to be one of the best performances from Emma I’ve witnessed.
LIBERTY LIES - The band from down the road in Wednesbury also had a change in the ranks, as former member Liam Billings stepped up in the hour of need. Also due on the Sophie Lancaster stage at Bloodstock, it was no surprise that the levels were raised tonight and we had a slightly heavier repertoire. As Shaun Richards took to the deck, a warm cheer went around the room; we have missed these guys, lots of LL’s shirts about and a mass of faithful supporters. From the hit album ‘It’s The Hope That Kills You’ we hear ‘A thousand People’, ‘United Nothing’ and ‘Coming Home’ which remind me how exceptional these Black Country guys are and how well they play live. Up next is the new single ‘Find Me’ another well penned number that runs pure and the vocals from Shaun are absolutely stunning. ‘Mouth Breathers’ allows guitarist Josh Pritchett to demonstrate his skills and it’s all backed up on drums by the loveable Adam Stevens. As this was a late additional gig and with Liam joining them, it was a shorter set than we would have wanted, but the decision to cover ‘Highway To Hell’ went down well and made up for it. Going out on the thrashing of ‘Are You Listening?’ yes we were and it was brilliant.
WOLF JAW - The trio are well stoked to be on home turf tonight and it must be a massive relief to stand in front of such an appreciative crowd. Opening tracks are off the new album ’Starting Gun’ and first on the menu is ‘Hurricane’. Punching guitar chords and robust vocals come from frontman Tom Leighton, who stands defiant but actually entertains us in between songs, with warm and poignant chat, yes I remember when they had all their gear stolen, how well to recover from that and the amount of support they had was incredible. ‘Who Needs A Soul’ has a belter of an intro, screaming guitar and a bounce of a rhythm that soaks up the atmosphere. I like the way the three are so knitted together, bonding in crashing melodies and giving off such an intense sound and we are allowed to join their microclimate of noise. The previous release ‘The Heart Won’t listen’ which is from 2019, is stuffed with great tracks and ‘Hear Me’, ‘Beast’ and the ear worm ‘Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda’ are next on the set list. Karl Selickis is like a drummer possessed, often standing to play, his wild antics add to the visual experience. The incredibly sulky and groove stacked, ’City Lights’ sees the band out to rapturous applause. The final line on the set list, which I begged off Tom, states ‘Wing It’, I would never have guessed, love their sense of humour.
A different night of sorts with the substitutions coming on and the revised sets, but thoroughly enjoyed it and as the bands head off to festivals and touring, we can finally start to kick those cobwebs.
Photo credit and big thanks to - Martyn Turner Photography
Special Thanks to - Brett Hall, The Station Cannock, Muttley at Iron Road Talent Management and Doddy White of Rockers Through The Ages
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