This is the third experience I’ve had of Empyre (the first time being in a Library of all places) and like a fine wine they seem to be improving with each year. Constant touring and hard work has honed them into the tightly disciplined and impressively together band that grace the Waterloo’ stage tonight.

With a video screen lurking behind the drummer showing a constantly changing stream of images from their career and back catalogue, it is only apt that there is an Empyre version of the Bond title sequence in there; Empyre deal in big widescreen, cinematic soundscapes, gorgeously painted songs that reward repeat listening, but really soar in the live setting.

Their songs are intense but delicate, often betraying a subtlety and lightness of touch (that is sometimes lacking in many of their contemporaries) whilst never sacrificing power, atmosphere and drama. Everything is perfectly judged, never over played, each band member delivering exactly what the song requires. There is an economy and precision to Empyre’s music that is as unique and intriguing as the band themselves.

Vocalist Henrik Steenholdt is a refreshing anti-rockstar, eschewing the usual rock n roll tropes, instead delivering a fine line in laconic humour and dead-pan put downs, the perfect counterpoint to the dark beauty of Empyre’s catalogue. Introducing track five from latest album “Relentless” he mockingly wonders if we’d actually got that far into the album. Having said that the banter between stage and crowd is never less than entertaining, with Henrik positively encouraging hecklers!

As the set progresses you can visibly see the crowd getting more and more behind the band. This coalesces on the stunning ‘Only Way Out’; beginning with a plaintive vocal from Henrik over a delicately picked guitar line, before segueing into a gorgeously melancholic guitar motif. By its conclusion the crowd are completely with them, garnering the best response of the night so far. So much so that with the announcement of the last song, there are boos as the set draws to a close, but as with all the best bands, Empyre leave the stage with the crowd wanting more…

And so, to The Damn Truth…

There are good gigs. There are great gigs. And then there are those rarest of gigs, where you count yourself lucky to simply have been there. Those gigs where the stars align, and a great band in a fantastic venue combine with a receptive crowd in an alchemy that creates something very special indeed. Tonight, at the Waterloo, was one such night.

To say that The Damn Truth were sensational, would be an understatement. In ninety minutes they deliver a performance of amazing contrasts, at times upbeat and rocking, at others introspective and delicate, interspersed with moments of deep emotion and life-affirming joy. It’s a surprising, wonderfully enthralling set, channelling some of the spirit and vibe of the Haight-Ashbury days into something unique and all their own, whilst also somehow being both timeless and contemporary at the same time.

Opening number ‘This is Who We Are Now’ shows from the outset that whilst peace and love and positivity may be the bedrock of their manifesto, first and foremost The Damn Truth are a rock band. And rock they do, and hard, with Dave Traina’s ferociously rolling snare beat kicking the band into gear, and PY Letellier’s funky grooves and sinuous bass lines providing the unshakeable foundation for The Damn Truth’s set.

Front and centre, Lee-la Baum is quite simply a force of nature, a whirling maelstrom effortlessly delivering in one breath a powerhouse wail and then a fragile beautiful vocal the next moment, sometimes even within the space of the same song. Lee-la sings with a passion and at times desperate intensity, as if there was absolutely nowhere else in the world that she would, or could possibly be, than in Blackpool on a rainy Sunday night. She performs in such a way that is utterly mesmerising, beguiling in a way that is impossible not to be captivated by.

In Tom Shemer The Damn Truth have their own bonafide guitar hero, peeling off the coolest licks with a casual and inimitable nonchalance, switching styles from song to song with a deceptive ease. Clad in his red sequinned velvet shirt he is every inch the gunslinger guitarist, challenging the crowd to get involved with a devil-may-care glint in guy-linered eyes.

And whilst each band member is without doubt a star in their own right, and has their moment to shine, it is without doubt a true band effort. There is not a shred of artifice in this band, they leave everything on the stage and draw the crowd into their orbit and refuse to let go.

‘Lonely’ leans into a more bluesy distorted groove, a delicate whispered haunted vocal, before the riff drives the song forward. It’s a stop-start affair with more gorgeously subtle bass lines courtesy of PY, and another thoroughly impressive solo, before coming full circle ending with Lee-la’s gentle words.

By contrast ‘Only Love’ with its jangling chords and infectious summery vocal is four and half minutes of pure distilled happiness, Tom’s soloing a thing of shimmering beauty. By this point you couldn’t help but feel the wave of energy and positivity, seemingly forming an almost tangible and dare I say, almost spiritual, circuit between band and audience.

‘Look Innocent’ shifts the mood again, the drums rolling thunder before dropping out to an understated, almost conversational vocal, with Lee-la again effortlessly showing her phenomenal range. It’s dramatic, dynamic and utterly beautiful, a masterclass in light, shade and pacing within the structure of a four-minute song.

The main set finishes with the effervescent ‘Tomorrow’, bringing band and crowd together in a rapturous crescendo; stunning encores of ‘Love is Blindness’ and ‘Heart is Cold’ follow, and, in a heartbeat, it’s over, and as the lights go up there is a palpable sense having witnessed something that will live long in our memories.

Tonight went beyond just music; this was a connection between human beings, between those on stage and those of us in the crowd. This was live music at its transcendent best, when the world was a better place for those ninety minutes when we all joined together in a shared experience. And at the end of the day, surely there can’t be anything better than that…

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos!
The Damn Truth, Empyre

Live Review : The Damn Truth + Empyre @ The Waterloo Music Bar, Blackpool on July 23rd 2023