FM + Romeo’s Daughter@ The Asylum, 11th May 2024

19 May 2024

Review by Paul H Birch, photos by Martin Tierney

On stage Romeo’s Daughter are delivering some meaty melodic rock at a time most are sitting down to have their dinner. Guitarist Craig Joiner and bass player Stephen Drennan (who joined last year) sing backing harmonies, drummer Andy Wells is deceptively powerful in his playing, and in a bitter sweet manner albeit wearing a smile Leigh Matty sings about getting ‘Over You’.

She’s the initial focus. You’ll find her vocal talents rated highly on various rock music polls, and there’s no complaints hereabouts tonight; her voice is fulsome and expressive. Indeed, a good percentage of the audience are obviously longtime fans, it’s not only the way they’re clapping along to the songs from early on but the way she talks to them with familiarity between songs. Alas, I’m one of the unwashed ignorant, but my ears are listening. “Lovely to see you all, and we hope you like the music!” she say a few numbers in, all smiles and hand gestures as they perform a number called ‘Enemy’ that features two short but distinctly choice guitar solos.

If there’s a fault thus far, its possibly that several numbers in they’re of a similar tempo. That changes with ‘Inseparable’ from last year’s Slipstream album. “Who would’ve thought you could have so much fun at half-past six in the night!” jokes Matty after they’ve run through it. They then slip further into their back catalogue; ‘Inside Out’ being at turns punchy and jangly with a totally mid-80s pop rock feel, her voice sensually deeper with something of a rasp to it, as the audience sing along.

With two more numbers due, they plan on “going out with a bang!” With Joiner leading the way, they commence to perform ‘I Cry Myself To Sleep At Night’, then amid much clapping of hands above head ‘Wild Child’ chugs and crunches its way to the finishing post, the singer hitting some particularly high notes along the way, and exclaiming: “Thank you so much for all the love!”

An early evening start, it’s put many in a good mood. During the interval and with taps on the shoulder later during the night we’ll be greeted by old friends and that camaraderie befits FM celebrating their 40^th anniversary, playing old songs and new.

As while lights shine out into the audience there’s a fanfare of sound that gives way to Pearl & Dean cinema jingles, before one-by-one, the members of FM stride on, plug in and plough right into ‘Digging Up The Dirt’. Guitarist Jim Kirkpatrick appears to be having problems with either his lead or pedal board as a roadie ducks and dives about on stage, checking matters. If there’s a problem it’s not translating aurally out here in the audience. Mind you, there’s a lovely bass sound coming from across the other side of the stage, and I’m also visually taken with Merv Goldsworthy’s 5-string Gibson, that I’m reliably informed by my mate has been in regular use for a fair-few years now. Pretty much wearing a smile all night, save for when he bursts into laughter amid some whispered comment or occurrence on stage, he remains on cue to add enthusiastic harmonies alongside Kirkpatrick and keyboard player Jem Davis. Also, like frontman Steve Overland, he’s proudly sporting a fulsome head of silver-foxed grey hair – If FM decide to stick around for us another 20 years The Rolling Stones may not be touring and could loan them their hair dye.

This first number’s upbeat, hook-laden, the band working the stage even as they settle in, all decked out in the modern rock dress code of variations on black, save for drummer Pete Jupp who’s sporting what appears to be a white shirt with leopard prints. Many among the audience are decked out in new Old Habits Hard – FM 40^th Anniversary Tour T-shirts, thus their own voices are happy to sing “Wo-ah-wo-oh!” to oldies but goodies like ‘Tough It Out’, wherein Kirkpatrick’s guitar confirms it’s in full working order come its skewering solo.

Thus far, I’ve tried to remain nonplussed by Steve Overland’s vocals – It seems like anytime someone mentions him or when there’s press coverage they rave about his voice, with the disparaging add-on that neither should it be as good as it is for a man his age. I can attest that on the previous songs thus far it’s been just fine, looking to criticise one might acknowledge that it could lack power but it’s made up by the nuances of his voice. With the ironically titled ‘Killed By Love’ proving rather a pop-orientated number, mic in hand, Overland sends all disbelievers running; there’s far more power being issued out of those vocal cords now and with it a more envigored passion, all clear as a bell, that quite frankly leaves you gobsmacked – And it proceeds in this fashion for the rest of the night. Halfway through, Overland’s passed a guitar and the overall sound beefs up too, the deep undertow riff to ‘Someday (You’ll Come Running)’ that follows delivered as a resounding AOR anthem.

Roughing it up, new number ‘Don’t Need Another Heartache’ opens Free-like, opting for Bad Company harmony guitar lines later, before Patrick solos and Overland delivers a dramatic “Whoah-whoah! To end things on. The tempo slips back quietly for a cover of Eric Martin’s ‘Everytime I Think Of You’ where again the guitarists play in harmony, this time with a harder Thin Lizzy tone over an almost waltz-styled section.

Between songs, Overland recalls their forty years together, supporting Meatloaf early on, scoring hits, and how they can see many faces here tonight they’ve seen before. That they don’t rest on their laurels and concentrate on their back catalogue but play a number of tracks from the new album attests to their backbone and ongoing talent. That a goodly percentage of the crowd also raise their hands in the air claiming they’ve purchased copies of Old Habits Hard is good news for the industrious cottage record industry that many bands have worked to develop. The number they play is ‘Out Of The Blue’, a late-night, big-city car-cruising blues-beating rocker, embellished smoothly throughout by Davidson’s keyboards, before Kirkpatrick rips through an unexpectedly savage solo. Next up is the mid-paced AOR of ‘The Dream That Died’ to which the audience is pumping collective fists in the air and wearing beatified faces. More interesting to me, is jagged hard rocker ‘Synchronized’ with its unexpected hooks and twists, varying harmony melodies and band members rocking about the stage.

There’s some onstage banter that doesn’t fully come out clearly over the mics, but revolves around Davis – wearing the same black vest and strides I’m sure he was wearing back in UFO (but possibly not down the old Mercat Cross pub playing with Tobruk) – joking he’s freezing, whereas Overland’s made a mistake wearing what looks to be a leather-styled shirt on what’s possibly the hottest night of the year so far. Beefy staccato AOR follows with ‘Say It Like It Is’ while the pace slows down enough for Goldsworthy to wipe the sweat from his brow on country-styled ballad ‘Closer To Heaven’, with a stirring organ break that gives way to piercing guitar solo.

A few minutes of respite, they now up the ante, preparing to rock through the rest of the set. Jupp strikes his kit hard and sets the beat for ‘Does It Feel Like Love’, clipped chords propelling the song, with Kirkpatrick, Overland and Goldsworthy playing side-by-side over the lead guitarist’s side of the stage as he begins to solo and is joined by Overland. Next up, over a wonderfully galloping bass, some stately electric power chords and Davis’ embellishing the sound throughout we get ‘That Girl’ where Overland’s able to rest his voice – not that he needs to, but because the audience’s mod vocals come the chorus proof deafening, the hefty applause that follows its conclusion could be self-congratulatory. With ‘Bad Luck’ the frontline is shifting here, there and everywhere about the stage while on ‘Hot Wired’ they cluster together once more, the pace intensifying atmospherically even as Davis’ keyboards alongside broken guitar chords enchant, before climaxing with a full-powered drum roll.

“This is fantastic to still be doing this after all these years!” exclaims Overland as he tells us they’re going to perform a number “From Thirteen,” and launch into ‘Turn This car Around’ – A number, that while relating a need to go back to what was important in the past, doesn’t ring true for the band and its fans here tonight. It’s crisp chiming rock with varying melody hooks, another clap along section, and much busy-bee movement about the stage before it ends with a bang and exit stage right.

Returning to the stage, Davis’s keyboards on a harpsicord setting he solos thematically, incorporating classical elements as piano elements begin to take prominence, as Overland joins him on stage, mic in hand, and the duo perform ‘Story Of My Life’ as encore, the singer imbuing this ballad with a depth of personality and implied meaning. Kirkpatrick and Goldsworthy then take up position at their mics, adding Beatles-eque harmonies. Come the final verse Jupp takes to his seat and the power ballad reaches its climax amid Overland’s chalky high notes resounding still strong and clear.

“We could play for you all night,” Overland claims, only The Asylum’s Saturday rock night is due later, and the reason for this early set. That we get another ballad might be a bit much were it not the anthemic ‘Frozen Heart’, where a wry smile falls over my face as I look around at faces, often younger than my own, caught up on the moment; reminiscing about their own first heartbreaks. Well, we get enough of those in our lives, that’s why a good song lasts several lifetimes. Emotionally having crushed it, with an onstage stage cry of :“1, 2… 1, 2, 3!” amid drums and audience clapping Overland let’s rip with a “Way-hey!” and Davis steps forward from his bank of keyboards with a keytar wrapped round his neck and a four-strong line-up emerges across the front of stage to produce ‘the stridently rocking ‘Other Side Of Midnight’ as their final celebratory number. With good humour writ large across band members’ faces they pal-up in different combinations, strike poses, groove collectively then huddle to face Jupp for a final blitzkrieg of notes to reverberate about the venue. Turning to rapturous applause, the band offer thumbs up, two- hand shaped hearts, the odd giggle and what’s become customary these days; a photo of the band and audience, before they wave goodbye and head off.

It would be easy to say FM were preaching to the converted here tonight, but that doesn’t mean they were coasting by any means. Even if you’re not a fan of AOR or melodic rock it would be hard to argue that what we saw on stage tonight was not a class act, with top tunes over a varied, giving it their all and seemingly enjoying themselves. Long may they do so!

Set List: