PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
From the ashes of Black Snake Moan come Jokers Hour, formed in March 2012 and based in Winsford/Macclesfield. They are a 5 piece hard rock/blues band in their early to mid 20’s and at The Commercial Hotel in the quiet village of Wheelock in Cheshire last Friday they had the daunting task of opening the 2nd heat for Scar Wars to earn themselves a place on the bill for that festival in August but there were no signs of nerves when they launched into set opener Cold Fever bringing to mind an uptempo version of Nothing But A Good Time by Poison but with a prominent punky bass lines from Joe Wilcock.
All the band members seem to gel onstage belying the short period of time they have been together but the focal point is vocalist Jimi Ray who seems to have been born to be onstage. He has an impressive range but his stage moves are a cross between Jim Morrison,Ian Astbury and Steven Tyler making for a captivating performance. 2nd song was Bring Out Your Dead,another hard rocker in the vein of early Def Leppard following a snappy snare intro from Max Hodson. Hospital Bed was announced as to be played at a slower pace than usual and it certainly paid off as it filled the room with a Southern swagger.
As the band were allotted an extra 5 mins stage time they fitted in a storming cover of AC/DC’s Whole Rotta Rosie with lead guitarist David MacBryde nailing the studio version of Angus’ solo note for note! Back to the original material and the chugging riffs of Season Of The King flew from the stage giving the song a Tesla feel. Final song and the strongest of the set was the hard hitting (no pun intended) Wrecking Ball. Similar to a heavier UFO, Jimi actually did sound like Phil Mogg on this one as the whole of band thrashed the song to a close.
All in all a very tight performance from Jokers Hour which saw them winning this heat and they are currently recording their first ep.
Jokers Hour band line up :-
Jimi Ray – Lead vocals.
David MacBryde – Lead guitar/backing vocals.
Joe Wilcock – Bass guitar/backing vocals.
Tom McKay – Rhythm guitar/backing vocals.
Max Hodson – Drums.
Setlist :-
Cold Fever.
Bring Out Your Dead.
Hospital Bed.
Whole Lotta Rosie.
Season Of The King.
Wrecking Ball.
