Live Review : Kickin' Valentina + The Midnight Devils @ Waterloo Music Bar, Blackpool on September 5th 2024

It’s a school night and the Kickin’ Valentina rock n’ roll circus rolls into Blackpool for an evening of rocket-fuelled, high energy sleaze n’ roll, and with the weekend just around the corner the crowd seem intent on starting it a day early. Kickin’ Valentina have forged a hard-won reputation for delivering no-nonsense electrifying live performances, this time around bringing along the effervescent The Midnight Devils, for what is set to be a double-bill of legendary proportions, and another entry into the annals of unforgettable nights at the Waterloo.  And whilst both bands deal in the sleazier side of things and may share a common DNA, their approaches are very different.

The Midnight Devils particular flavour is a fizzing, colourful, glam metal hand grenade, exploding onto the stage in a tidal wave of sequins, make-up, feather boas and fishnets.  Looking like the guys who were thrown out of the Baseball Furies for being way too cool and glamtastic, the trio have one goal and one goal only, simply to entertain and provide the best rock n’ roll party possible. 

Opener ‘Sound of Domination’ is completely apt, as from the get-go they completely overwhelm with their commitment to having fun. It’s fast, frantic and utterly irresistible and the crowd immediately take them to their dark hearts.  Apparently, the last time they played here it was only to a handful of fans but this time around with more than ten times that number in attendance, their delight is evident. Lead singer and bass player, Sam Spade is a spinning whirlwind of necklaces and beads, leaping, bouncing, spinning and cavorting with a boundless energy (that could seemingly power Blackpool’s famous Illuminations single handed) a devilish charm and a hugely likeable persona. With his tongue firmly in his grease painted cheek, he holds the crowd spellbound, whether throwing out $69 bills and flashing green devils’ horns or conducting yet another singalong stood on a chair in the middle of the crowd, clad in flowing purple kaftan and laser-firing hat, it’s an exhilarating, over-the-top, assault on the senses, that leaves us all with stupid grins on our faces, as we’re pulled along in the tractor beam of their performance. 

And whilst it would be very easy to assume that they’re a band of style over substance, that’s really not the case. You want proof? Take their crowd-pleasing mid-set cover of ‘Panama’ with a note perfect solo from guitarist Sniper that EVH would surely be proud of, showing that this is a trio that can play just as fabulously as they can entertain, with Jimmy Mess at the back wildly flailing around the kit, improbably nailing the beats with a deceptively loose attack.

Many bands claim to be wild and crazy, but few genuinely live it with such gleeful pizzazz and abandon as The Midnight Devils; the ultimate rock party band and one that absolutely demands to be seen live, they’re utterly, wonderfully, irreverent, filthy and profane, (at various points Sam has us singing “so hard it hurts” and the deliriously addictive chorus to the glam-punk anthem ‘Get Laid’). They are a magnificent two-fingers up to the boring and the mundane, providing in just forty-five minutes a total escape from reality.  If they come to your town, drop everything, buy a ticket, hell, sell your granny if you have to, but go and see them.

Kickin’ Valentina by contrast are a study in cool, swaggering attitude, clad in black and wearing their tattoos and miles with an easy, supreme confidence.  And so they should, for live Kickin’ Valentina are a ferociously formidable proposition, like a perfectly tuned, full throttle motorbike, powering through their enviable back catalogue and a fistful of exciting new material in tonight’s show. 

Much of the set is made up of songs from this year’s impeccable “Star Spangled Fist Fight” album with a number of choice cuts from their earlier albums thrown into the mix.   The good news is that the new material is just as compelling as the songs we already know and love, the new ones sitting comfortably alongside their earlier counterparts

‘Ride or Die’ perfectly showcases the streetwise, gritty edge of the band, and, in keeping with the rest of their material displays a superbly strong sense of melody, alongside compelling lyrics and Heber Pampillon’s beautifully dirty riffing.  It’s this combination of toughness and sweet melodic lines that is so intoxicating, the harder elements hitting with even greater bite due to this startling effective contrast. 

Lead singer D.K. Revelle never stops moving and refuses to let us do too; he’s a frontman of dynamic skill and presence, and creates such a vibe that Kickin’ Valentina feel like the gang we’d all love to be a part of (but wouldn’t be allowed in as we’re just not that cool) D.K leans over the barrier so much, he gives the impression that he’d almost rather be amongst the crowd than on the stage itself, adding to the feeling of immediacy and closeness for the assembled masses.  He rarely leaves the barrier for the duration of the show, getting as close to the worshipping crowd as he can without actually clambering over it.  As a band they are whip-tight and laser-focussed, Jimmy Berdine behind the kit laying down brilliantly effective grooves and locking in with Chris Taylor’s monolithic bass runs, Heber peeling off glorious solos that would make the angels weep and the demons scream! 

In a set littered with memorable moments it’s almost impossible to choose between them but I couldn’t fail to mention newies ‘Takin A Ride’ and ‘Turn Me Loose’ surely destined to be future classics and set staples. Long time Kickin’ Valentina favourites, ‘Turn Me On’ and ‘Somebody New’ are greeted with a rightfully rapturous response, and just when the excitement levels don’t seem to be able to go any higher The Midnight Devils join them on stage for a rollicking riotous run through ‘Get Ready’, before the band triumphantly leave the stage.  But they’re not done yet and return for a storming ‘Freakshow’, with the whole place moving and grooving, parties in the front row, proving as if it was ever in any doubt that Kickin’ Valentina are indeed “number one with a bullet!”

To slightly misquote one of the new numbers, the thunderously brilliant, bass led ‘Man on a Mission’, D.K, Heber, Jimmy and Chris are all “men on a muther-fuckin’ mission tonight”, that mission being to leave us all, sweaty, exhilarated, and high on the power of good time, in your face, down and dirty rock n’ roll, and damn if they don’t do exactly that. This has surely got to be one of the most, dynamic, electrifying and entertaining tours in the U.K today, so stop reading this and go and grab a ticket if you haven’t already, you’ll only regret it if you don’t…

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos!
Kickin' Valentina + The Midnight Devils