Fans of classic rock and Southern rock were in for a treat on Satuday as two of very best exponents of the genre’s new guard made for a tantalising bill at Rock City in Nottingham.

The early curfew at Rock City can sometimes be a bit of a curse, and tonight sees These Wicked Rivers alloted just 30 minutes for their support slot, but boy do they make use of every second. ‘Shine On’ opens with its monumental riff being as much a statement of intent as the lyrics. With their new album, Fire And Folklore, released just 24 hours prior, they’re embarking on a number of support and headline shows over the next few months to promote it so naturally ‘Ain’t No Smoke’ is the first of a couple of songs from it played tonight. The laid back rhythm section and heavy guitars make for a massive sound and Arran Day’s high kicks ensure even those towards the back can get a good glimpse of his fabulous red boots.

‘Testify’ mixes dark grungy riffs with psychedelia and hard rock with John Hartwell delivering the lyrics with power and conviction. ‘Horse To Water’ is rooted more firmly in 70’s classic rock. ‘Don’t Pray For Me’ remains their signature tune and the ballad is now something of an epic live as it ebbs and flows with some exceptional guitar solos from Arran Day and the slower parts into which they work a small section of Neil Young’s ‘Hey Hey, My My’ and as Hartwell sings “rock and roll will never die” you know with These Wicked Rivers its in good hands.

Robert Jon & The Wreck are surely in the running for the title of hardest working band on the circuit. It seems the Californians are hitting our shores at least a couple of times a year and usually with new music on their merch tables each time. In their 15 years they already have 10 full length studio albums behind them and fresh off the press now is their 3rd ‘Wreck Age’ album that does a good job of mopping up the B-sides and live tracks they accumualte along the way. The upshot of that is that you get a a slick machine with an ability to mix up the songs from night to night so much so that you could catch two shows on the same run and only see a couple of songs twice.

Nottingham has them opening with an energetic ‘Waiting For Your Man’ where Henry James Schneekluth’s frantic riff is complemented by swirling organ sounds from Jake Abernathie who is up front stage left. ‘Hey Hey Mama’ is straight out of the Southern Rock songbook with the laid back swagger of Blackberry Smoke. ‘Arroyo’ brings guitar harmonies from Schneekluth and Murrison to the fore evoking the spirit of the Allman Brothers while also capturing their Californian heritage. The song also highlights how well the band lock in and play off each other and this is very much part of the appeal of the band; they are not just simply running through a five minute song and then moving on to the next.

Their more recent past continues with a number of choice cuts taken from Wreckage 3 and last years Heartbreaks & Last Goodbyes. ‘Back To The Beginning Again’ has them yearning for simpler times to a grungy blues riff, and ‘Sittin’ Pretty’ is a hard hitting rocker with the urgency of early Tom Petty driven along by Andrew Espantman’s ferocious drumming. By contrast, ‘Highway’ starts off a much more laid back affair, as heartfelt love songs all so often do, but continues to build and the twin harmonised guitars add to the heaviness without losing the melody.

Familiar fan favourite ‘Rescue Train’ belts along at a fair pace and allows Henry to stretch out on an extended solo and you just can’t help but marvel at this man’s extraordinary talent. ‘Oh Miss Carolina’ is the ballad that has the crowd singing along, and ‘Cold Night’,  another lengthy hard rocker, closes the main set with Abernathie and Schneekluth trading lines, its a joy to experience, and in some ways after that the encore almost seems superfluous, but when they walk back on they pick up where they left off seem to elevate things further still with a terrific  energy filled ‘Life Between The Lines’ and the gorgeously sentimental ‘Do You Remember’ capturing the true essence of rock ‘n’ roll. A better live band you won’t see and the pairing with These Wicked Rivers makes for one of the best gigs of the year.

Setlist:
Waiting for Your Man
Hey Hey Mama
Arroyo
Back to the Beginning Again
Sittin’ Pretty
Highway
Dark Angel
Keep Myself Clean
Rescue Train
Oh Miss Carolina
Cold Night

Encore:
Life Between the Lines
Do You Remember