Small correction to that third name actually, as tonight the banner on stage tells us we are watching Dan Byrne featuring… well let me explain… Last year we saw Myke Gray (Skin, Jagged Edge) make something of a comeback in what was meant to be his final year of touring. Dan Byrne helped him out alongside his day job in Revival Black, and was very much a bit player (albeit a good one!) in Myke’s show. Now we have reached the stage where Dan has left Revival Black to embark on a solo career, and this run of shows with Kira Mac were going to be a toes-in-the-water time for him as a solo artist. Life had other plans though and in what might be the shortest retirement since Ozzy’s 10th or so one, Myke is back on a stage and is Dan’s featured guest rather than the other way around! This is great news, as the two go really well together as artists. Dan’s powerful vocals and terrific range complement Myke’s virtuoso guitar playing perfectly, and Myke even deigns to throw in the odd backing vocal here and there too. The set is a mixture of some of Dan’s songs, some of Myke’s, a couple of covers and even a new song written by Myke and recorded together. Despite being acoustic it totally rocks. This is an exciting time in the Dan Byrne camp, and I’m looking forward to seeing where he goes in the future. 

Second band A’priori (which I’m never sure how to pronounce) are local lads and, along with the Takeaway Thieves, are sort of a house band at the Waterloo. Any time an extra support is needed they tend to pop up, so I’m pleased to see that recently they have been able to move further afield and they have been getting some decent support slots all over the UK. This a band who are absolutely rock solid, and it still makes me grin every time I see them because keyboard player Mark plays the bass bits as well as the swirly keyboard bits. They have a classic rock sound and a huge amount of potential. Their songs are hard-edged blues rock that have just enough soft centres to keep my interest. Standout tracks for me are ‘Rain’, ‘Better Man’ and ‘Halo’, plus their singalong ‘Nah Nah Nah Nah’ song which might actually be called that. Sometimes it seems that there are two A’priori, the more bluesy one and then the rock one. I definitely prefer the second one when guitarist Tony Lang goes all-out – shapes are thrown and he goes for a wander about in the crowd for a bit too. They remind me a bit of the Shinedown or Alter Bridge sound, with that kind of modern classic vibe, and I enjoy them a lot. 

The crowd for headliners Kira Mac is a bit out of the ordinary tonight. There seem to be a lot of, how can I put this, non-rock people in the Waterloo this evening, and I’m not sure if this is because Kira has brought her entire family with her, or because she’s managed to pick up a more diverse fanbase following her recent successful audition on TV talent show The Voice UK. Either way, it’s a near-capacity crowd, which is pretty good for a wet and stormy Thursday night. So who is Kira and what is this band all about? That’s a starting point actually, although the band bears her name and she is certainly a focal point on stage this is very much a team effort, a gang rather than just a band even. It's not just Kira and some backing musicians, the stage interaction shows both respect and affection between them all the way through the set. And the set? Wow. The USP is obviously Kira’s powerful blues vocals, but the songs are not “just” about the blues. They are catchy and upbeat, with a range of influences. Here there’s some ZZ Top, there a touch of country, all of it performed with a wry self-deprecating humour. In fact, do you know who Kira reminds me of? Don’t hate me. Marti Caine. Those of you under 40 might need to google that! There are plenty of singalong bits for us to join in with, and the standout track (for me) ‘Hellfire & Holy Water’ has remained an earworm for days after the show. Other highlights were the title track to the very recently released album ‘Chaos Is Calling’ which strayed into power pop territory, and put me in mind of Shania Twain. Current single ‘Mississippi Swing’ is getting some radio play at the moment and is a dirty bourbon of a song with two ice cubes and no mixer. There are a handful of covers, Velvet Revolver’s ‘Slither’, ZZ Top’s ‘Tush’ and an almost-an-encore version of Metallica’s ‘Nothing Else Matters’. This was Kira’s TV audition song and the emotion in it gives me goosebumps. The band are introduced and all get to do a (happily brief) bit of soloing. There’s one last stomper, an original song called “One Way Ticket” that gets the old ticker pumping, and then the band retire to the merch area to meet and greet their adoring public. And adoring that public is, this band have managed to carve themselves out a decent following in a short time by sheer talent and hard work. Even the grumpy husband is impressed (although he has had Belgian beer and is talking broken biscuits) and says she is a modern-day Doro. I’m not sure it’s an apt comparison but I get what he means, I suspect this band might just have the chops to be around for a long time yet.  

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos! Kira Mac, A’priori, Dan Byrne