After a hectic week or so of dashing around the world in pursuit of musical excellence it’s good to be back in the dark, cool confines of The Tivoli for 2 of the UK’s finest alliterations, Tigertailz and Takeaway Thieves. The bar is cheap, the atmos is friendly and the crowd is keen – just how a good gig should be. 

Blackpool’s Takeaway Thieves are currently in the process of finishing off their second album, but this doesn’t seem to have stopped them from getting out there on the road and it’s good to see them somewhere other than their usual venue comfort zone so to speak. “Diamond Point” is available for pre-order now and will be released later this year, so tonight‘s set featured a handful of songs off it as well as all the old favourites. The sound is not on their side tonight and there are issues with in-ears and microphones but despite this they still deliver the high-energy upbeat groove rock we have come to expect. From opening song ‘Forever Kicking My Heart Around’ to closer ‘This Is Rock & Roll’ they stomp and strut, merging sleazy rock with just a touch of glam and raising our collective spirits high. There are no big surprises, just a solid set of singalong anthems and a chance to join in and clap in all the right places. They may be one of ROCKFLESH’s most reviewed bands at the moment but that doesn’t stop them giving their all and providing a great watching and listening experience despite a couple of technical hitches. 

Headliners Tigertailz have been on and off the glam metal scene for close to 40 years now, all fueled by the effervescent dreams of guitarist Jay Pepper. With a back catalogue of some 9 albums to draw on and a constantly shifting line-up, you never really know what to expect from Tigertailz but tonight they pulled out all the stops and produced a show full of bangers played with breathtaking aplomb. The current line-up is Jay on guitar with his long-term cohort Matthew Blakout on drums. “Dirty” Berty Burton seems settled in the bass corner, and the addition of former Dendera and Powerquest vocalist Ashley Edison has sent the band in quite an unexpected direction. Yes, you heard it here first folks, Tigertailz have finally shed their big hair/big chorus glam image and evolved into quite a stunning metal band. With a 17-song plus 3 encore set lasting 2 hours, you certainly get your moneys worth with these guys too! 

They start right at the beginning with a beefed-up version of ‘Young and Crazy’ which takes us right back to 1987 and their first album of the same name. Already Ashley’s impressive scream is coming to the fore, and seeing this classic performed by someone who probably wasn’t even born when it was released was quite something. Interspersed with Jay’s occasional stories of wry humour and dry Welsh wit they power on through a set that touches on most of their previous releases but somehow seems to give them a harder edge than they had before. Gone are the bubblegum rock days of yore, and instead we see a band with blistering guitar solos, huge vocals, perfect harmonies and pounding beats. Tigertailz always put on a good show in the past, but my word the bar has been raised to stratospheric dimensions tonight. Crowd fave ‘Noise Level Critical’ features early in the set, and the crowd eagerly raise their fists and yell along to the chorus – turn it down turn it down, down! No chance of that though, the sound is now crystal clear (although in places the drums get a little OTT, there are parts of the room where standing is hard due to the vibration from those double kicks) and the sheer force of the noise is felt by everyone. Throughout it all Jay capers and preens, trading licks and having fun. Berty goes low, and even ends up on the barrier playing bass behind his head at one point. Ashley’s vocals are unwaveringly on point, and I think it’s maybe his influence that makes the sound a lot less fizz and a lot more metal. A friend even comments at one point that they sound like Hammerfall – inner jury is out on that one but I can’t stress enough that this is a band that is energised, invigorated and playing the best I have seen them since the very early days.  

That doesn’t mean that all of the old Tigertailz sound is no more though, oh no. The choruses are still big, the whoa-whoas are still inserted at every opportunity and the song titles still retain their tongue-in-cheek silliness. It’s just that the band are playing like they mean it, and that catches and encourages the crowd to join in. I was expecting a night of nostalgia, same old same old songs and possibly even a band going through the motions, and what I got was the experience of a band who have embraced their past and also updated it to make it something entirely different despite so many of the songs being familiar. As the last strains of cult classic ‘Love Bomb Baby’ fade from the PA I muse that sometimes you can find the unexpected where you only went for the familiar, and that in the case of Tigertailz this is a very good thing indeed.  

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Tigertailz + Takeaway Thieves