Live Review : Rockin The Bowl (Forged In Fire & Steel) – Sunday September 12th at Don Valley Bowl, Sheffield

Sunday starts not with a bang, but more of a splat. There is an Issue with the toilets, namely that the company that was supposed to come and clear them out on a regular basis over the weekend hasn’t turned up. This has led to a bit of a crisis, as those of us camping are faced with (literally) brimming cubicles, and the arena can’t open for health and safety reasons. Thankfully after frantic ringing around a replacement pumping company is found, and the situation is relieved. As are the campers! Anyhow, all this means we are a little late kicking off, but this isn’t a major issue as today was always going to be slightly shorter, and also covid has claimed another couple of band casualties so times and slots can be shifted a little.

Somewhat bleary-eyed from the excesses of Saturday, we stumble into the arena and are immediately woken up by Dukes Of Bordello. (Yet) another 3 piece outfit, and my heart sinks a bit. It’s OK though, because Dukes of Bordello are more Motörhead than Hendrix, more punk than blues.They have a stand-up double bass, short choppy songs that are fun to sing along to and even though the weather today is looking grimmer, they cheer the place right up. They are local to Sheffield so even though the crowd is sparse (I think some people wandered off in search of an actual proper toilet!) it’s enthusiastic and they get a good reception.

I’m starting to sense a bit of a theme when next band Black Whiskey take to the stage. They have a definite Southern rock vibe, mixing classic hard rock riffs with a little yeehaw. Again nothing leapt out at me, but I enjoyed the set and tapped a toe or two during it.

Yep, there’s definitely a theme. Sons of Liberty are all dusty macs, waistcoats, cowboy hats and conchos. More yeehaw. Stompy Southern boogie that brings a smile to the face and a clap to the hands. Unfortunately, they also brought the rain to the festival, but despite that they got a well-deserved rousing reception.

Did I say we had already seen some yeehaw Southern rock? I was wrong, the previous bands weren’t even trying compared to the rather excellent Bootyard Bandits. These are proper cowboys. They have inflatable cacti, silly hats and even a horse. Well a horse’s head. OK! A rocking horse’s head, butstill-a horse right?! They are proper good time good old boys and they really brought the party. They do drinking songs, and what appeared to my ears to be a song about mashed potato. My friend described them as “Wild West on crack”, as she flew past me doing moves that were both line-dancing and head banging. There was heavy metal banjo. Their battle cry was “Let’s rodeo!” and rodeo we did. Loved it!

Quite a contrast to the next band, the awesome stadium rocktastic Collateral. Can’t really do an objective review here because I love this band. They are blatant commercial radio-friendly rock, and they do it with just a little bit of a twinkle in the eye that belies the seriousness of their ambition. This band is going places, they know it, and they are enjoying the ride. I think I described them before as stadium rock on a small stage, and I stand by that 100 percent. The sound is rich and full, they trade moves, but above it all is the music. The well-crafted and well-played songs that pick you up and dance with you. The air-punching, the shapes and poses and pouts, the onstage banter–it’s all there but over it all the music spreads a protective umbrella that says “Don’t just look at us, listen too. We’re worth it”. Even the weather cheered up a bit.

Over on the second stage things finally get going with the appearance of the Eddie Huntley band. Eddie is a blues journeyman in a rumpled shirt. My immediate comparison would be with Jeff Beck, but Eddie has his own twist on things too and manages to make a sometimes tired genre feel a little more upbeat and uplifting than usual. There’s some rather nice honky-tonk piano, and the set is going down very well with the older gentlemen in the crowd. It’s not going to set the world on fire but it’s nice. Cheerful blues, whatever will they think of next?

It’s always nice when you go to a festival and discover a new band that you really like, and for me this weekend that band were The Wicked Jackals. They were a hasty replacement for the sadly covid-stricken Skam, and seemed a little embarrassed that they had managed to sneak in so far up the line up. When they first came on, they played like Motörhead but looked like Bon Jovi so my interest was immediately piqued. As the set went on I found myself nodding along, loving the gravelly vocals and that trad British metal feel. They had everything I like in a band, flying hair, great musicianship, catchy songs, tight trousers. Couldn’t really fault them on anything! They even had a bit of fun with us, the bass player was suddenly behind the kit keeping the beat going while the drummer was down in the pit with a cowbell (and who doesn’t love a band with more cowbell?) and the guitarist had a bit of a wander about in the crowd. For a last-minute shoe-in they did a cracking job, and I am very much looking forward to catching up with them again soon.

Back on the other stage yet another band had had to bail due to the dreaded rona, so Eddie Huntley stepped in without his band and did a laid-back acoustic set. This was a welcome relief and I think I actually enjoyed it more than his set with his full band. He’s a talented guitarist with a decent voice and although there might not have been a huge amount of energy going on there was a lot of soul and it was all rather relaxing.

Main stage time again, and Hollowstar were keeping up the energy and belting out the power. I’ve seen them before and not been overly impressed, but today I really enjoyed them. There’s a new guitarist who seems to have brought a bit of freshness to the sound, and their cover of Free’s ’Wishing Well’ was a bit of a wow moment. Classic hard rock with screaming guitars and a pounding beat–yeah, I enjoyed that. I nipped back to the van for some tea at this point, so listened to Yesterday’s Gone rather than watched them. I heard a competent Brit-rock band who reminded me a lot of Black Stone Cherry, and I heard them getting a great reception from the people who had actually made it into the tent to watch them on the second stage. They were powerful, and there was some really nice guitar work but I personally wasn’t mad about the vocals. A minor thing though as their songs were well put together and well executed. Good stuff.

So finally it’s headliner time, and it’s raining again. Nobody cares though, we have waited a long time for this. Massive Wagons are a juggernaut of a band at the moment (even though that isn’t actually what their name is about, winkyface) and for those of us who have followed them for a number of years, it’s brilliant to see them getting the recognition they have worked so hard for. They come onto fireworks, literally. There is pyro. Who would have thought that Wagons would have fire? But they did, and the band sparkled just as much as the metal salts in the air. Baz Mills is the consummate frontman in a bad suit and “Where’s Wally?” jumper. He knows how to work a crowd and work he does, never staying still, prowling the stage, belting out the lyrics, urging the audience to get involved. There are boxes on stage, and guitarists Adam and Steve make the most of them. Shapesare thrown, wailing solos abound and they have melded into a strong team who bounce off each other and trade licks like something from Wall Street. The solid rhythm section of Bowz (bass) and Alex (drums) stay at the back in the shadows, but they are the force that drives the Wagons and together they keep time and pound out the power. The setlist is heavy on their newer material, but a couple of old favourites still make an appearance (Ratio, Nails) and despite the less than stellar weather the crowd are in fine voice, singing along and baying for more. The main set closes but of course that’s not the end and they come back to deliver to the faithful the triumvirate of the slightly daft ‘Curry Song’, the rock anthem that is ‘Tokyo’ and finally their tribute to the late great Rick Parfitt ‘Back To The Stack’. There are confetti cannons and more pyro, and then it’s all over. The drizzle is relentless but spirits have not been dampened and we are all rather stunned at just how good a show the Massive Wagons put on. They have come a long way, and I strongly suspect based on being able to deliver a performance like this they will go a lot further. Wagons roll!