Halestorm - Sunday 13th March - Shepherds Bush Empire

Brief review:  As I think I have mentioned before, they are one of the bands I am happy to go and see despite knowing a tiny proportion of the set. They are just a proper rock band with great vocals and sound.

One nice touch on this tour is that during the acoustic section the band have been doing a "local" cover, appropriate to where they are playing. I was hoping/expecting to hear a Who song, but instead we got a decent cover of The Clash's "Should I Stay or Should I Go".  An enjoyable evening and I really must get round to buying some of their albums!

Venue and View:  Front of left hand side bar. Packed standing area

Setlist
[Acoustic]
Break In
Dear Daughter
Raise Your Horns
Familiar Taste of Poison
Mz. Hyde
Should I Stay or Should I Go
Apocalyptic
I Like It Heavy
+
[Electric]
Back From the Dead
Rock Show
I Get Off
Do Not Disturb
I Am the Fire
Bombshell
Amen
Drum Solo
Freak Like Me
Uncomfortable
The Steeple
+
Here's to Us
Love Bites (So Do I)
Black Vultures
I Miss the Misery

Halestorm - Friday 28th September - Brixton Academy

A sold our Brixton Academy for Halestorm - a band I'd seen once before and enjoyed at a metal awards show a few years back. I only recognised one song, but enjoyed the evening. It's not often I go to see a band where "official tour tattoos" are available. And no, I wasn't tempted!

Setlist
Vicious
Love Bites (So Do I)
Skulls
I Am the Fire
Do Not Disturb
Amen
Mz. Hyde
Drum Solo (Included Why Don't You Get A Job?)
Freak Like Me
Uncomfortable
Takes My Life
Black Vultures
Killing Ourselves to Live
+
The Silence
I Miss the Misery
Here's to Us

Metal Hammer Golden God Awards - Monday 13th June - Hammersmith Apollo

We booked up for this on the basis that:-

• It cost £6.66 !
• It was at Hammersmith
• Saxon were playing a tribute to Motorhead
• There must be someone else decent on

In the run up to the show - and having seen the other announcements - I was fearing the old adage that "you get what you pay for"! Wrong! What a fun evening!

First up were Amon Amarth. I had not seen "Norse Metal" before. And my, did it make you smile. Extras dressed as warriors beating their shields. Fire (dry ice) breathing giant dragons. And an 8 ft hammer. Wow!

Gojira were up next. Not my scene at all here, although they seemed popular amongst the younger audience members. Just a lot of noise and shouting for me - I must be getting old!

Next were Halestorm. Fronted by the talented Lzzy Hale, musically this was the best performance of the night for me. Great guitar and some catchy songs.

Final act of the night was "A Salute To Lemmy with Saxon, Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee". Whilst I'm not a huge Motorhead fan - I had been due to see them before Lemmy's sad passing. This proved a nice, albeit brief, tribute.

Interspersing all of the above was the awards show. And so what if most of the awards went to modern metal bands I've never heard off and so what if our hair wasn't anywhere as long as 90% of the crowd. There was a moving tribute to the recent victims of a shooting in a gay US nightclub with the message that "metal is non-discriminatory". Here here.

So, against all the odds, a really fun evening.

Setlists

Amon Amarth
The Pursuit of Vikings
First Kill
Twilight of the Thunder God

Gojira 
Silvera
Stranded
The Heaviest Matter of the Universe

Halestorm
Love Bites (So Do I)
Amen
I Miss the Misery

Saxon
Heavy Metal Thunder
Motorcycle Man
Princess of the Night
Ace of Spades [with Mikkey Dee]
Born to Raise Hell [with Mikkey Dee]
Overkill [with Mikkey Dee]