Nozfest 2023

August 12, 2023 Off By Jon

1865, Southampton

Featuring Chez Kane, Hollowstar, Collateral, South of Salem, Beth Blade and the Beautiful Disasters, These Wicked Rivers, Sam Millar and the Sass Bandits, White Raven Down, Black Lakes, and Vambo

Once again for the fourth time the rock-motivated Nozfest returns to the 1865 venue in Southampton. Jodie Bowie and her team have worked tirelessly to bring a 10 strong line-up of Rock acts to the stage for this self-funded budgeted festival. The event has already achieved its own regular following with many people returning year after year to reunite themselves with the warm friendly atmosphere.

On the stroke of 1pm with a sizeable amount of the crowd already in attendance, our first band London’s Vambo take to the stage after a quick introduction from Si. Possibly the smartest turned out Rock band you will see on the circuit today, no ripped jeans here. They are equally smart with the performing with a tight chemistry between the quartet and some masterful musicianship on display. The crowd are warmed up with opening number “Hey Willy” along with some atmospheric Classic Rock including “Running in Circles” and the momentous “Fast Car”.

Vambo 1–2–3–4–5–6–7

Each act is given a 40 minute set and that gives us between 15-20 minutes to get their equipment on stage and the next band on. At times it can be a bit hectic, though all of these bands are really professional and work with us to get the job done.

At the end of the day we all have the same goals of putting on the show for the paying audience. Next up from South Wales are Black Lakes, a band that I became acquainted with at the Love Rocks Festival in June of this year. The five-piece create a heavy melodic sound bolstered by solid rhythms, twin guitars and the fine dual style vocals of singer Will Preston.

Black Lakes 1–2–3–4–5–6–7

These attention-grabbing Alternative Rockers mix together a host of elements to create a highly visual and audio enhancing experience. It was a joy to see them perform again at such close quarters once again and they certainly impressed the audience with all they had to offer.

At one point it was touch and go as to whether White Raven Down would even make their 3pm slot, as there had been an accident on the motorway and their journey had ground to a halt. The band soldiered on and arrived just in the nick of time and started their set on time. Despite the considerable amount of stress, the band settle down and the trio deliver their opening number “Mind Reader” in some style.

White Raven Down 1–2–3–4–5–6

There is a considerable following for these guys here today and the reaction from the fans certainly have a hand in driving the bands performance. With the creative Stu Bailey on Vocals/Guitar along with the powerhouse rhythm section of Luke Chappell on Bass and Tom Mrazek on Drums, we are treated to a masterclass in Classic Rock with a host of eclectic influences.

Next up is Sam Millar And The Sass Bandits, some of you may recognise Sam from the first Nozfest when he played with his then band Big Foot. Let’s say Sam takes quite a satirical look at life and his lyrics are full of his fun observations. He has some unique sounding vocals and has surrounded himself with three musicians to help bring his original tunes to life. They feature James Thorley on keyboards, the very animated Benji Faith on Bass with Alex Lacy on Drums/Backing Vocals. Together they treat the audience to a great set full of musical and lyrical highlights. These include “Chardonnay”, “Boiling Yourself”, and the totally infectious “Levis”. The majority of the audience lap up all they have to give and show the band plenty of positive appreciation.

Sam Millar And The Sass Bandits 1–2–3–4–5–6–7

The next band I have been waiting to see for a long time since getting my hands on a preview copy of their debut album Eden, to which I wrote them a sterling review. These Wicked Rivers from Derby don’t usually get this far South, so to have them playing here is an absolute pleasure. They are not only one of the most stylish bands on the circuit, they are also five of the nicest guys you could expect to meet. As they took to the stage, I could feel my excitement levels exploding as I first heard their guitars light up.

Their Classic Rock, fused with a large slice of Blues is just the ticket and with their opening number “Shine On” I’m sure I saw a few grown men cry (including Me) at the intensity of the instrumentation. Their momentum is kept up with the beautifully crafted “Evergreen”, a new song entitled “Black Gold” and their latest single “Testify”. The atmospheric and impassioned twin guitars; coupled with the spot on rhythms, along with the understated keys tug at my heart strings and show me just why I love Rock n’ Roll music so much…..Hey hey, my my Rock N’ Roll can never die! The wonderful news is that they are returning to Southampton in December as part of a Full UK Tour……I cannot wait!!

These Wicked Rivers 1–2–3–4–5–6–7–8

Right, time to compose my old emotional self and get the next band on stage on time or Jodie won’t be happy because it’s her old mate Beth Blade with her Beautiful Disasters. Thankfully their will not be any disasters on my shift and the band take to the stage on time, with the ever smiling Rock Princess and her band kicking off with “Tonight I’m With You”. This quartet perform like a well-oiled machine and the chemistry in the band is shown with their tight and forthright, energetic performance.

This band is well known amongst the Nozfest community and the crowd are with them right from the off, with much of their material being familiar. Tracks like slightly risky “Down & Dirty”, the explosive “I Ain’t Got Nothing (If I Ain’t Got Rock N Roll)” and a salute to Rock God Motorhead’s Lemmy Kilminster with “Jack ‘N Coke”; show off the band at their best. A fine set from a band who are welcome here down South any time; just ask the Nozfest family…

Beth Blade And The Beautiful Disasters 1–2–3–4–5–6–7–8–9

After a Summer full of notable festivals, along with the completion of the recording of their second album; South Of Salem return to the South Coast and manage to pull the biggest crowd of the day.

As the band’s intro is drowned out by the noise of the crowd; Walking Dead’s Negan shouts “I hope you Got Your Shitting Pants on” and the band launch into “Let Us Prey”, the crowd join frontman Joey singing the lyrics out loud. Each member of the band injects their own individual energy and skill into the set, creating a heavy alternative sound that seems to be radiating with an army of fans up and down the country. The band have been working at “Longwave Studios” in Cardiff with Rock-producing legend Romesh Dodangoda.

South Of Salem 1–2–3–4–5–6–7–8

Tonight we are gifted a preview of the new album with a track called “Static” and another called “Death Of The Party”, both are destined to become future live favourites. The set continues with more familiar tracks and the crowd return to singing along with “Pretty Little Nightmare” and “Cold Day in Hell” ramping up the atmosphere. I’ve said before that I have big expectations for these guys and I predict 2024 will be a huge year for them, watch this space…..

Collateral after performing at a host of festivals throughout the Summer; along with touring with Reckless Love and Skid Row, arriving here with a momentum that is culminating with the release of their second album later this year. Frontman Angelo Tristan on Lead Vocals/Acoustic Guitar along with Todd Winger Electric Guitar, Jack Bentley-Smith on Bass, and Ben Atkinson on Drums energetically power through their opening number “Mr Big Shot”.

Collateral 1–2–3–4–5–6–7–8

The crowd are with them from the start and noisily show off their approval. With the band’s wonderful eclectic mix of influences they deliver a great mix of tracks including Country-tinged “Midnight Queen” and the uplifting rocker “Promiseland”. We are also treated to a brand new track called “Glass Sky” from the new album, where Tristan shows off his considerable vocals on this hook-laden number. The track has a rolling lyric “And now we know we’re not alone, out of the shadows we’ll be coming home” that the audience get behind. The set ends on a high with a uplifting version of the popular tune “Merry Go Round” and the band leave the stage with plenty of positive support for their efforts.

The penultimate band of the evening are the ever popular Hollowstar, who this year have been a bit quiet as two members of the band have become Fathers and have clearly taken the parental duties seriously. So with this being only one of five live outings so far this year, it is time to make the most of all the band have to offer. With the quartet raring to go they take to the 1865 and get a warm welcome from the Nozfest crowd.

The band write songs that take on issues that virtually everyone comes across in their lives; with their powerful lyrics on tracks like “Let You Down” and “Good Man Gone” all really hitting the spot. We get a wonderful note-perfect version of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man” as well as a couple of new tracks from the bands forthcoming release. These include fast-paced “Little Miss Perfect” (which surprisingly includes a snatch of Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal”) about some characters from school and another about life in a band called Price Of Fame.

Hollowstar 1–2–3–4–5–6–7–8–9

The four guys, like those in Those Wicked Rivers, are some of the nicest in the business; who are the most humble, grounded artists one could wish to meet. They are also a damn fine Rock band who deserve to be moving up the ladder performing on larger stages, let’s hope the next release gives them the further success that they deserve.

Tonight’s headliner, Welsh Rocker Chez Kane is a very different prospect to the bands that this Nozfest crowd are usually used to. It’s certainly a brave move by Jodie to bring her to Southampton for the top slot. Personally; having never seen her before, I was interested to see what she had to offer.

My first thoughts were her music reminded more of a more theatrical style of entertaining, I recently saw the stage musical of “Rock Of Ages” and her style is certainly influenced by the 80’s and 90’s American Rock bands seen in this production.

Chez Kane 1–2–3–4–5–6–7–8

First of all she is a fantastic entertainer with a powerful voice and puts 100% into her performance. Her tight quirky band provides some notable backing and lots of energy to her all original material. There are plenty of fans in the audience that faithfully sing along to tracks like “Love Gone Wild” and “Rocket on the Radio”, though honestly through no fault of Chez’s; for me there are other bands on this bill that would have been better suited to the headline slot due to their popularity.

Another Nozfest done, and its been an utter pleasure to work with this team of people once again; they all have a passion for what they do and the events benefit from it. Thank you so much to all the faithful Nozfest crowd, whose continuous support each year provide the reason to keep putting events like this on. Also thank you to the 1865 staff and all the bands who made it so easy to work with. Until next time, and as Def Leppard say “and there will be a next time!!”

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