Jettblack

16.02.2015

It was the final night of the Jettblack UK tour in Southampton and all 3 bands were there to end the tour on a high.

Taking to the stage as the song ‘Take My Breath Away’ was playing, it seemed rather apt as LTNT play it very loud for a 3 piece. With the filthy sounding guitars and a rhythm section that reverberated around the venue, this was a high energy performance from the band. Starting off the set with tracks ‘Body Blood’ and ‘No Home’ it was full on fuzz from the very first note. With the vocals powering their way through the set, the evening kicked off to an excellent start and the crowd were certainly getting into what LTNT had to offer. Their drummer was pounding those drums so hard that the kit was slowly edging its way towards the crowd,and it was a monster sounding rhythm section that complimented the heaviness of the guitars on tracks such as ‘Sleeper Wakes’. ‘Meat Market’ had guitar notes so high during the solo that all dogs in the local area probably pricked up their ears to the impressive sound, and ending the set with ‘Wear It Well’, with it’s delicious grooving bass line and guitar riffs full of fuzz, LTNT played an excellent opening set. This is definitely a band you are going to be hearing a lot more of in the future.

Having seen Sons Of Icarus support The Cadillac Three in London late last year, this was a band that was going to continue the evening with more excellent live music. With R.O.B. opening their set, the guitars and rhythm sounded immense. Combine that with the powerful vocals of singer Andy Masson and this is a band that everyone needs to see live at some point. Even with the slightly slower and more bluesy/southern sounding ‘Please Come Home’, it still packed a punch and with the final three songs from their EP (which had sold out by the time they made it to Southampton as the previous crowds must have been more than impressed by their sound), this was brilliant live performance of their tracks that are full of a massive guitar sound, from the upbeat ‘Not Myself’ to ‘You Want It All’ that is full of dirty sounding guitars, and a vocal that is off the scale. Ending with the fast-paced ‘Let It Burn’ that was full on throughout, the band slowed it down, before crashing back in with those impressive guitars. With a much anticipated album due out this year, based on their excellent live performance alone, Sons Of Icarus are going to be even more popular over the coming year.

Jettblack didn’t just come to play a gig, they came to put on an entire show as the venue was bathed in additional lighting and smoke, and they were here to melt faces. Starting the set with ‘Raining Rock’, the drums thumped out around the venue before the massive sounding guitars blasted the crowd. It was loud, it was heavy, it was everything rock should be all about. With the crowd handclapping through the second song ‘Slaves’, the crowd were loving every moment of the set. As Will Stapleton and Jon Dow effortlessly switched between vocal duties, this was a set of high octane guitars and an immense sounding rhythm section, that kept up the pace throughout. With shouts of “Hey” from the crowd throughout the combined songs ‘Comes To Loving/Mother Fucker’ with its heavy guitars speeding through the tracks at an impressive pace, this was a final night party that was going to rock until the very last note. Telling the crowd “It’s good to be back in Southampton, you never let us down” brought shouts of delight from those there, and even the slightly slower songs, with their dusky sounding vocals and melodic tones, still had the crowd moving along to the songs. Standing on the speakers at the front at times for some serious axe-wielding guitar riffs, Jettblack were highly entertaining throughout the entire set. With a set packed with favourite songs, ‘Something About The Girl’ showed the versatility of the band live and it was an atmospheric moment to the set when during ‘Black Gold’, the band were drenched in golden coloured lights. ‘Get Your Hands Dirty’ had the crowd singing through the entire song as fists were punched into the air, and turned the song into an anthem, before ending the set on ‘Holding’. It had been a brilliant set but there was more to come with a final 2 songs, starting with ‘The Sweet And The Brave’ which was a powerhouse of a track. Dedicating the final song to Western Sand who unfortunately had to cancel their appearance, Jettblack raised the roof with their latest single ‘Explode’. The band gave it their all, the crowd went wild and a times it was difficult to know who was singing the loudest. As the final notes ended and JettBlack ended their brilliant set, chants of “JettBlack” rang out around the venue.

Southampton may never fail, but Jettblack certainly didn’t disappoint either on what had been an incredible night of loud rock from them, and the tour definitely ended on a massive high.