Hats off to Gun and Backyard Babies for their well-received support slots, the former managing to squeeze seven songs into their allocated 30 minutes, including She Knows, a preview of a brand new album due in September.
No one, however, is stealing Black Star Riders’ thunder on St Patrick’s night and the 66th birthday of guitarist Scott Gorham. After five years together and with three albums and numerous tours under their belt, Gorham, Ricky Warwick and company have found a sound of their own. Understandably, it’s unmistakably indebted to that of Thin Lizzy, but a notch or two harder; the two bands will always be neighbours, but those positive reviews for BSR’s new record Heavy Fire and its No.6 chart placing confirm this theory.
Kudos go to the band for including one solitary Lizzy classic – The Boys Are Back In Town, what else? – in a rapid-fire, tight-as-fuck, 18-song set, although an argument could be raised for them to play only BSR originals on their next tour. Lynott’s old warhorse still elicits such a euphoric, nostalgic tidal wave of approval that it exerts an anti-climactic effect on the rest of what is an undeniably marvellous set. But that hardly matters, and tonight Black Star Riders have every right to be pleased with themselves.
