Danny Bryant – Islington academy 2, London – 9th May 2018

First up was Steve Hill – a one man blues rock act. He really has to be seen to be believed – he not only sings and plays guitar, but also plays drums at the same time. He stands and plays guitar, using pedals to drum and one of the cymbals. For the main cymbal he has a drumstick attached to the head of his guitar. It sounds like an odd setup, but when he plays it really sounds good. He’s got a great voice and his guitar playing is excellent. The percussion is fairly limited by necessity, but it works well in the songs. If you closed your eyes you’d assume there are several musicians playing, not just one – it’s impressive playing, and if you don’t get to one of his live shows, his brand new live album is worth checking out instead. His set tonight ends with a Hendrix cover (Voodoo child) and he does a great job covering it.

Next it was time for Danny Bryant. I’ve seen him several times before and he’s always good, with a great band around him. Tonight part way through the set, he did a short acoustic session, playing “Someday the rain will fall”, one of my favourite songs on the new album, “Revelation”, which sounds fantastic tonight. It’s only a brief interlude in the set though, with the rest of it being electric – in fact straight after the acoustic song he kicked the tempo up with “Truth or dare”. The keyboards with the rich Hammond organ sound really add to the overall feel of the songs and gives them more depth. His latest album is fantastic so I was pleased to hear several songs from the album in the set tonight. Danny Bryant is a very passionate player and it’s really visible as he plays, particularly during the solos.

About Ant May

I spend half my life at gigs or festivals and the other half writing the reviews and editing photos, and somehow find time for a full time job too. Who needs sleep - I've got coffee.