Here we are back at Bannermans. “Again?” you say. Well, with the talent that they keep putting on here, it’s no wonder we are back again. Tonight it is for the bass man himself, Marco Mendoza.
First up tonight though are The Addiction. Though the boys have only been together as a band since the start of February this year, you would never have guessed listening to the band who were tight and performed a great set of hard, classic rock and roll.
I was well impressed by the band; singer/guitarist Adam Methven, Alex Methven on bass, Terry Emmerson on drums and David Scott Lees on lead guitar are definitely one of the bands to catch right now. Starting off with the excellent “Cut the Wire” and “It’s Alright”, we had some “Honey”, followed by a lively “Love Gun” Kiss cover. The boys give us a couple more excellent tracks before ending the set with a tasty Velvet Revolver cover in the form of “Slither”, on which David was rather good. I look forward to an album when it appears. If you can, catch the boys live if you like your rock music full on with lots of guitar and a singer who can wail as you will not be disappointed.
Next up are Inverness based AnnaKii, who I caught acoustic a few weeks back opening for Doug Aldrich so I was looking forward to seeing them electric tonight. The band are led by singer Anna McWhirter who has a voice you really need to hear live as they kick things off with “Soul Feeder” before we get some “King Love”. After a great version again tonight of The Dead Daisies, “Miles in Front Of Me”, we head back to the acoustic with the wonderful “Save My Life” before Anna lets loose those vocals on The Cranberries’ “Zombie”. The band finish off a fabulous set with a couple more including my favourite “Walk Away” before ending the set with “Beautiful Lie”. Acoustic or electric, catch this band live with one of the best female singers out there.
The venue is pretty full for Marco Mendoza as Tommy Gentry on guitar (Gun) and Kyle Hughes on drums (Bumblefoot) take to the stage and start the music rolling. As the bass starts from somewhere inside the venue, “Sunshine Of Your Love” by Cream kicks in and the man himself strolls calmly through the audience, playing away and smiling as he strolls onto the stage. Marco definitely likes to see the audience involved as we clap, snap fingers and sing along all night. Tommy Gentry easily had the guitar talent required for the music tonight and looked so relaxed playing away, not to mention Kyle Hughes behind the drums was a joy to watch play and never stopped smiling. Both are the perfect band for Marco on his Viva La Rock tour.
We are treated to a number of originals from Marco’s solo albums including “Rocketman” & “Lettin’ Go” as well as a great cover of “Higher Ground” but in the Red Hot Chili Peppers style which was fantastic. We were also treated to two amazing versions of Thin Lizzy’s “Chinatown” & “Jailbreak” which had the place absolutely bouncing and singing along before the end of the main set. The band end the night with the title track of last year’s excellent Viva La Rock album. This was a fantastic night of music from Marco and the boys, he was loving every sweat-drenched moment as were the crowd and I thought his voice was just fantastic tonight. If you can get out there and catch the band in action before he goes back to the day job with The Dead Daisies. You will regret it if you do not.
Photos by Gary Cooper Photography
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