Review by Lindsey Appleton
Photos by Lindsey Appleton – LA Photography and Mark Coxon
https://www.facebook.com/pages/LAPhotography/455274801180656
First band i stumbled across on day 2 was Gurt , a young group from London. They had a very sludgy sound, vocals were a little demonic with heavy pounding drums which dominated most of their set. If your a fan of Napalm Death then these boys are right up your street, Hard Core with a good following.
Next up are The Poodles from Stockholm, doing an acoustic set in the Dark Circle area at the back of the Mash & Barrell, for those that don’t know the Dark Circle is the exclusive VIP members club of both Hammerfest & Hard Rock Hell.
The Poodles melodies are very deep very ballad’esque. Jakob a very soulful singer putting all his emotions into the songs shows pure essence and skill, one of the best vocalists ive seen throughout the weekend thus far. A very intricate set played by very skilful musicians, a band i could sit and watch all day.
We then catch Houston a little later on in the Dark Circle area for their acoustic set. These guys totally sucker punched me with their amazing set. A complete cross of Europe in the early days, with a hint of Bon Jovi & Cinderella thrown in, a blend of pop rock and AOR. Hailing from Stockholm these guys show pure talent, they all work well together as a group showing great synchronicity. The songs energizing , getting the crowds uplifted with such songs as ‘That Girl’, which really got everyone pumped up with adrenaline for the rest of the evening.
Think they have found a new fan in me, will definitely be following these guys from now on.
After this we headed over the bridge to the Sleaze stage to catch Falling Reds set. Now having seen these boys many many times before i have to say i am a little bias when saying they are a fantastic band that shouldn’t be missed. After a few minor technical hitches this band were well on their way to getting the crowds completely buzzing. I have got to say its so nice seeing these guys hitting the stages at festivals after watching them work their way up from little pub gigs, and these guys definitely deserve all the success they have had. Pure talent, no other way to describe it – i did say i was bias but its true, if you have seen them you’d agree wholeheartedly. Rozey the frontman on vocals and lead guitar has pure showmanship along with a sexy sleaze edged look, really wowed the audience with his lightning performance.
Last band of the day for us was the almighty Stop Stop hailing from Barcelona & Bulgaria, these sleazy glam metallers really know how to mix things up.
They wow the crowds with their crazy stage performance plus their outrageous get ups, vocalist Jacob is like a young version of gene simmons (KISS) mixed with steel panther with his crazy facepaint and outrageous dress sense.
They rock the stage with favourites such as ‘toilet party’ which get the crowd pumped up, these guys really know how to rock.
This trio really brings rhythm and melodies together for a great close to the end of the night.
https://www.facebook.com/thepoodles
https://www.facebook.com/Houstonsweden
https://www.facebook.com/fallingredofficial
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