Fozzy, Tailgunner, & Marisa And The Moths - Tramshed, Cardiff, 17.02.26
They should be cheering the venue up, pushing their new single and getting everyone ready for their new album, but instead Marisa And The Moths (8) are really, really hurting tonight. A key member of their touring team passed mere days ago, and yet here they are contractually obliged to be warming up a cold room on an even colder night when in all honestly no-one would have blamed them if they had cancelled the tour and focussed on dealing with what is quite frankly an awful experience.
The show tonight is dedicated to the memory of Dave, and Marisa Rodriguez is struggling to hold it together as she tells the audience straight after the opening number what has happened. Their performance is a radically different one from the last time I saw them, in the sunny days of July when they really warmed up the Welsh Valleys at Steelhouse, and the emotions they are experiencing are challenged into one of the most powerful and soulful performances I have ever seen. Rodrigues, dressed more demurely that we are used to delivers a powerful, gut-wrenchingly and heart felt performance.
What she loses from the impact all this is clearly having on her voice trying to reign things in, gets torqued and transmuted into a sheer, raw, emotional power. That blend of Grunge and Hard Rock vibe becomes something truly deep and impassioned that leaves many of us with slightly damp eyes. Their professionalism and commitment deserve the utmost respect, and quite frankly the whole place wants to give them a huge hug. They turned a pile of awfulness into something quite special tonight, and we love them for it.
Tailgunner (10) are seemingly unstoppable. When I first saw them in the tiny sweatbox that is Fuel in 2023, they blew me away with their youthful energy and solid retro NWOBHM delivery, having seemingly stepped out of a wormhole in the space-time continuum from circa 1982.
Since then, I’ve seen them quite a few times, and been hugely impressed by the way they’ve scaled that performance up to much larger stages and crowds effortlessly, and all still off the back of their debut record Guns For Hire. They clearly aren’t going to have a problem with a stage this size (or at least the parts of it left that aren’t taken up by the headliner’s gear), but despite being here to push the recently released sophomore Midnight Blitz.
They still have a few flies in the ointment jar for this leg of the tour, with half of their twin axe attack Rhea Thompson being temporarily substituted for this leg of the tour due to health reasons. She’s a vital core of the band, so the unexpected presence of Jara Solís (of Hunger) on stage is a surprise, but not a concern. Hunger are pure Speed Metal, and Jara can shred with the best of them, so effortlessly and seamlessly steps into the fray. She may not be familiar enough with the material to prowl the boards blindfolded (or the handful of them that are available), but she doesn’t miss a beat, and her performance is top notch.
As indeed is the whole of the band's performances.
I’ve not had a chance to spin the new disk fully yet, but it’s gone a bit more mid-80’s for sure, with more of the more commercial kind of pitch that bands like Judas Priest were aiming for when they aimed for US radio hits back when these things actually made you money - so lots of studded leather as per, plus a load of reverb and gloss, but that also reflects the fact that this is a much bigger and slicker act than the raw upstart of their debut.
As indeed is the whole of the band's performances.
I’ve not had a chance to spin the new disk fully yet, but it’s gone a bit more mid-80’s for sure, with more of the more commercial kind of pitch that bands like Judas Priest were aiming for when they aimed for US radio hits back when these things actually made you money - so lots of studded leather as per, plus a load of reverb and gloss, but that also reflects the fact that this is a much bigger and slicker act than the raw upstart of their debut.
Their performance is short, given there’s three acts to get through, but the sheer pace at which they deliver the seven songs, four of which are new, is whirlwind fast and seems to be over very quickly. This band is incredibly tight and blisteringly expert at bringing an audience with them, so once again I notch up watching another performance for which the review scale of up to ten is not quite sufficient. I suspect the next time I seem them in this building, they will be headlining it…
Fozzy (9) are one of those bands that when you mention to people that you are going to see them, tend to sneer and scoff a little. This is something I have struggled to understand. Tonight’s the first chance I’ve had to see a full set from them, as twice now I’ve only caught the tail end of their set at Bloodstock and both times kicked myself for not going earlier.
Fozzy (9) are one of those bands that when you mention to people that you are going to see them, tend to sneer and scoff a little. This is something I have struggled to understand. Tonight’s the first chance I’ve had to see a full set from them, as twice now I’ve only caught the tail end of their set at Bloodstock and both times kicked myself for not going earlier.
I’ve reviewed a couple of their more recent albums and enjoyed them, and this venue is pretty darned full for a Tuesday night in February, so again I have to query why some folks have a downer on them. I suspect that this has more to do with the influence of social media over lived experiences… That and some of the early antics as a covers band and shenanigans regarding Chris Jericho's alter ego, which given that he was more about wrestling than rockin’ in those days, with the band very much a side project at the start. Not so now, and it really is time some people updated themselves.
The band hit the stage bang on 9.30 p.m. and proceed to deliver value for money, and a full ninety-minute set. For a man the same age as me, Chris Jericho is in remarkably good shape. He may have lost some of the bulk as he heads towards his sixth decade, but he’s still toned enough to get away with nothing but a series of ever-changing sequined jackets over his otherwise bare chest, and has a huge amount of onstage energy.
The band hit the stage bang on 9.30 p.m. and proceed to deliver value for money, and a full ninety-minute set. For a man the same age as me, Chris Jericho is in remarkably good shape. He may have lost some of the bulk as he heads towards his sixth decade, but he’s still toned enough to get away with nothing but a series of ever-changing sequined jackets over his otherwise bare chest, and has a huge amount of onstage energy.
The band sensibly split vocal phrases to allow for him to both move and for the flow and mix of the vocal lines to be done as live very effectively, because quite frankly there is nothing worse than a vocal click track in my opinion. In that respect Fozzy are true rock ‘n’ roll in their delivery, and the ethos of ‘if you can’t play it live, don’t record it in the studio’ seems to be in play here tonight apart from a few backing tracks for intros.
For a band everyone is supposed to deride, it’s a remarkably full house for a Tuesday night, and Fozzy play the crowd like a sixth instrument, such is the love here. Welsh audiences are always wonderfully vocal, and this feeds the band like nectar, with smiles and energy all round. Even when things get a bit random with a mid-set cover of S.O.S. the audience is still lapping it up, and there are few sights so heart-warming as a room full of metal heads singing ABBA tines at the top of their voices.
On the subject of songs, special mention must be given to the first global performance of the Slug And Lettuce song. For the benefit of our global readership, The Slug And Lettuce is a chain of fairly naff high street pubs here in the UK serving overpriced generic beer, non-descript microwaved UPF meals and absolutely zero atmosphere, but there happened to be one next to Jericho's Cardiff hotel last night.
For a band everyone is supposed to deride, it’s a remarkably full house for a Tuesday night, and Fozzy play the crowd like a sixth instrument, such is the love here. Welsh audiences are always wonderfully vocal, and this feeds the band like nectar, with smiles and energy all round. Even when things get a bit random with a mid-set cover of S.O.S. the audience is still lapping it up, and there are few sights so heart-warming as a room full of metal heads singing ABBA tines at the top of their voices.
On the subject of songs, special mention must be given to the first global performance of the Slug And Lettuce song. For the benefit of our global readership, The Slug And Lettuce is a chain of fairly naff high street pubs here in the UK serving overpriced generic beer, non-descript microwaved UPF meals and absolutely zero atmosphere, but there happened to be one next to Jericho's Cardiff hotel last night.
It’s the kind of branding decision that completely bemuses a Canadian, or indeed anyone outside of the UK where this kind of self-deprecation in marketing happens a lot (the yanks would probably spend a fortune with a global marketing firm and come up with something like ‘The Lucky Lettuce’, but hey, this is the country that gave the world Marmite and it’s love it or leave it marketing approach).
Jericho asked the audience if it was a good restaurant, which inspired a singalong with the name, and thus history gets made. Maybe we will see it on an album or EP soon…
For a quiet school night, this was a blast.
For a quiet school night, this was a blast.
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