Richard Hawley live @ Hammersmith Apollo

Rock ‘n’ roll stalwart Richard Hawley played the Hammersmith Apollo last night, his biggest London gig to date. His quiff was impeccable, comic timing perfect and guitar playing to saviour.

Hawley’s breakthrough as a solo artist came in 2005 with the classic ‘Coles Corner’. Remarkably, it only charted at 37 but is there a BBC6 listener who doesn’t own it now. Hawley, like Paul Weller, possesses a drive to work only with new material and leave nostalgia to the meek. As a result, ‘Coles Corner’ and ‘The Ocean’ only make the encore.

The bulk of the set consists of 2012’s psyche-drenched ‘Standing On The Sky’s Edge’ and his latest offing ‘Hollow Meadows’. ‘Don’t Stare At The Sun’ and ‘Down In The Woods’ are propelled with such genius, the tag guitar legend is not far away for Hawley.

Recent single ‘Heart Of Oak’ is given the full beans to mesmerise whilst slower efforts ‘Tuesday pm’ and ‘I Still Want You’ allow for soul searching and lumps in throats.

It’s no surprise to see Hawley cutting loose on the guitar but, with three crooning classics ‘Coles Corner’, ‘Lady’s Bridge’, and ‘Truelove’s Gutter’ in his arsenal, the urge to use that material is highly commendable.​ 

States Of Emotion live @ The Underworld

States Of Emotion in large, played to a packed audience of loyal hometown followers from Essex at the Underworld. It’s a poignant moment for the band, their debut album has finally been released and based on this showing, they are set to far outrun their roots in terms of fans.

They open with the defiant ‘I Broke The Mould’ and the intimate venue suddenly feels like a big academy venue. It’s clear to see why Huw Stevens and John Kennedy are championing this single.

Defiance is key to States Of Emotion as a band and this gig. Crowd favourites ‘The Way That I’m Wired’ and ‘The Unsung’ are thrill seeking and recalcitrant to the core. They also offer a sense of ambition which, many profess but few deliver in the indie world.

Amid the anthems comes a resounding gear change with ‘Rag n Bone Men’. This diversion combines a more desolate electronic sound with some more familiar psyche guitar parts. A tough sell amongst fine indie bangers but, from the moment frontman Olly Hookings laments his former label Rinse FM, a sense of anticipation is in the air. The slow building number hits a heavenly crescendo and the audience are eating out the palm of his hands.

The desire to make this succeed is bursting from States Of Emotion so much during this gig it seems almost impossible not to imagine bigger venues awaiting them in the future. 

The King Blues: Chinnerys, Southend

Well on a cold Tuesday evening, The King Blues walked into Southend’s Chinnerys and took pride in who they wanted to be punk rock legends.

For only their second gig in 4 years, opening with a spoken word piece might have been a risky move. For King Blues’ leader Itch, however, this was no gamble. For any budding performers, this is how you do it. During ‘What If Punk Never Happened’ he makes the crowd laugh, angry, cry, hopeful, and entertained by the meaning of every single word of the poem.

New single ‘Off With Their Heads’ sends the crowd into a frenzy and ‘Taxi Driver’ almost brings about a riot. This is no reunion gig to earn a few quid. The band are back and their small army are ready for the journey once more.

The rest of the gig is made up of their back catalogue and in short, is punk rock heaven. ‘Mr Music Man’ has the crowd skanking as one whilst ‘Headbutt’ and ‘Lets Hang The Landlord’ to name but two, send a raucous crowd into a frenzy.

Every band will love their fans and vice versa. With the King Blues though, it’s different. There is affection between the two as if their performance is an act of kindness where they drag a mate out of the gutter. Not to do a disservice to the band but this largely comes from Itch. Is there anybody who embeds as much emotion into each song?

10 years on, he still has time for everyone at the merch stall afterward and for this drunk adoring journalist in the bar afterward. It’s not for good PR or the chance to sell a few more t-shirts. It’s because he genuinely got love, so much love, love in his heart and it’s a feeling he will never let go. 

The Sherlocks: Borderline, London

The Sheffield four-piece played only their second London date at the Borderline on Tuesday.

The two sets of brothers are both still young, and this youthfulness, at times, is a real weapon for them. Crowd favourites ‘Live For The Moment’ and ‘Escapade’ are so free-flowing that you can almost touch their teenage escapism.

There are other moments though, where their brazen rock ‘n’ roll loses identity and impact. Kieran Crook’s vocal delivery can imitate The Courteeners’ Liam Fray heavily and some of the guitar playing strays deep into The View and The Rifles territory. All good bands do it but, they are in such recent memory you have to question whether they need revisiting just yet.  

Nevertheless, you fault The Sherlocks too much. They have come a long way quickly and already look set to soundtrack many boozy nights out. Their performance is laden with versus the world attitude and you know what? They look like they will win.