Friday December 1st… A very chilly trip was made up to Wolverhampton to go and see two bands that helped shaped a great part of my youth. Now we’re moving 35 years on from their first releases and the reason why both bands do it SO well – is because they can still do it as well as they did back then.
I enetered The Halls with MMH’s tog, Rob and I took our postions in the very packed circle upstairs and looked down into the standing area in the main room – YOU COULD NOT MOVE!
Could I see anything? Nope! Fans – from every angle of these bands’ spectrum poured in. Some as young as 10 – some of an older calibre. One thing thats wept across the room was excitement. Bumping into a friend, we took to the bar and then attempted to look down as Living Colour took to the stage.
Living Colour
LIVING COLOUR: A band i’d always admired and celebrated but never got the chance to see live – and what a blistering opening set it was. Opening with a cover of Led Zep’s Rock and Roll, it was a treat straight out of the door. From start to finish – the band delivered a crowd interactive set that held it’s own. From what we could see from upstairs in the Circle, I managed to catch glimpses from the packed venue – but audibly it was a serious treat!
Corey, Will, Vernon and Doug took the crowd by the hand as they fed back to their stage presence and whilst Corey erupted by climbing the PA.
One band that I shall not miss the chance of seeing again. Before we knew it – the set was done and dusted. Outstanding!
SETLIST:
Rock and Roll (Led Zeppelin)
Middle Man
Type
Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen)
Open Letter (to a Landlord)
Love Rears Its Ugly Head
White Lines (Don’t Don’t Do It) / Apache / The Message
Ignorance Is Bliss
Cult of Personality
Retreat to the bar and catch a breath – it wasn’t long before we were beholden to Pat, Gary, Nuno and Kevin as they took the stage.
Extreme
EXTREME: Being a long time fan of Extreme and being the third time I have seen them in 31 years (I know, must try harder). This was something you knew you had to embrace every moment. The band are always on form. What could we possibly expect?
For a band that were a sonic blast back in the hey day and all the way up to their most recent release, the band were on that same excellent form. I’m not sure who was doing the sound desk but they sounded FAN-F*CKING-TASTIC. From the moment their sound erupted on that stage – it was encapsulating.
A delivery from recent and classic offerings all the way from a medley of tunes from their self titled debut onwards – the beast in the room didn’t stop throughout that whole double-hour set that had been delivered. And when I say Extreme delivered – THEY DELIVERED. They packed a punch. It made us fans feel youthful as these boys seriously knew what the we wanted. It would be hard to tell how it differed from 30+ years ago to today.
One thing that many of todays bands don’t do is capture the audience and tease them – get them excited. Extreme still pride themselves on this. It doesn’t matter in which capacity you have seen them over the years – it still happens. A live show that leaves you elated, on a natural high and hungry for more, You can’t get that from a Youtube recording. You can’t get that by word of mouth. YOU NEED TO BE THERE!
Despite only being an audible affair for the first part due to overcrowding and then being within short throwing distance of stage left and not being able to move – the buzz was inescapable! As we literally tried to squeeze into the crowd and avoiding accidentally nudging anybody’s unmentionables accidentally, I saw several familiar faces from the West Midlands’ rock scene of years past – we all shared a smile and a nod of agreement.
As the set continued – the heat poured throughout the venue, People dripping from places they never knew existed as the crowd sang along, Gary climbed the stage and surroundings and the crowd applauded the sound and beautiful noise of these boys we all admire and love. And before we knew it – it was all over! 2 hours that flew by!
AFTERMATH: After exiting the venue – one thing that was agreed between fans looking at each other and making conversation – we all had a f***ing fantastic time. Something only live music can capture with the right audience, the right bands on stage and the right vibe.
Extreme and Living Colour are testament to just that! Hoping to catch the boys in 2024 as they draw the tour to a close!
**I write this being virtually bed ridden from catching a strong flu like virus from the gig. Apologies to the PR for the delay in publishing this review – the things we do for Rock N’ Roll!
Setlist:
It’s A Monster
Decadence Dance
Rebel
Rest in Peace
Hip Today
Teacher’s Pet / Flesh ‘n’ Blood / Wind Me Up / Kid Ego
We Will Rock You / Play With Me
Other Side Of The Rainbow
Hole Hearted
Cupid’s Dead
Am I Ever Gonna Change
Thicker Than Blood
Midnight Express (Nuno)
Hurricane
More Than Words
Fat Bottomed Girls / Banshee
Take Us Alive / That’s All Right
Flight of the Wounded Bumblebee (Nuno)
Get the Funk Out
Encore:
Small Town Beautiful / Song for Love
Rise
Here’s To The Losers
**Photo Credits: Rob Billingham
