Now Christmas might be around the corner, but that didn’t stop the North East rock fraternity from descending upon Newcastle’s Wylam Brewery on Wednesday night. Perhaps you could say, the city’s rockers wanted to round out this year’s gig season with a bang (if you will excuse the pun) via an audience with Gun. But what was even more special about the show was the bands that Gun selected for their tour support on this run.
With a three-band bill and no time to spare, openers Collateral took to the stage at around 7.30 pm as the Kent-originating quartet blasted their way through an arsenal of crowd-pleasing rockers. Lead vocalist Angelo Tristan is the consummate frontman. As he stalked the stage, Angelo showcased all the hallmarks of the great frontmen of yore. But not only that Collateral have the songs to boot. Tracks like Glass Sky, Elysium and No Place For Love from the band’s sophomore album Should’ve Known Better deserve to be heard pumping across our radio airwaves. Furthermore, closer Mr Big Shot was certainly welcomed by the band’s old-school fans in attendance. Just like the band name illustrates, Collateral are a valuable asset on the UK rock scene and beyond. The four-piece certainly deserves to be on the road with big Guns like their Scottish touring counterparts.
Kira Mac was the precursor to the headliners. And just like RNB star Mark Morrison once sang, the Newcastle crowd welcomed the “Return of the Mac”. And what can we say? Kicking off the set with a double dose of radio hits like the country rock-tinged sounds of One Way Ticket and Dead Man Walking was always going to grab the audience’s attention. But perhaps what was most interesting about the set was the new material featured in the show which gave an indication of the group’s musical trajectory. Kira Mac are exploring a much heavier sound in their forthcoming material, and throughout the set, the band teased the audience with a bit of what is to come further down the line, and let me tell you this – it did not disappoint. Kira Mac brought the heat, and certainly warmed the Tyneside faithful up on what was a chilly night in the North East.
Gun have a strong relationship with the North East, you could say that the band are our Northern Kin from just over the border. So, it was no surprise the Wylam Brewery was packed out to witness their return. And what’s more, Gun returned to Tyneside with a new award-winning, top-ten album under their belts. And deservedly so. A testament to the group’s consistency and staying power for over 30 years.
As the headliners took to the stage, they kicked off the proceedings with a run of tracks from their new album Hombres. This in turn showcased not only how proud the band is of their latest offering, but also the quality of the material featured on the record. Lucky Guy opened the show, with the band’s astonishing recent single All Fired Up following shortly after. A song which does exactly as it says on the tin, it got the crowd all fired up.
Gun is presently celebrating the 30th anniversary of their seminal album Swagger, and an early airing of Vicious Heart cemented that landmark anniversary.
But what Gun have always been great at is producing huge rock anthems. Throughout the band’s headline set, they highlighted the undeniable quality of their songbook. Fan favourites such as Welcome to the Real World, Don’t Say It’s Over, Steal Your Fire and the band’s much-celebrated cover of Cameo’s Word Up are a testament to this, and had the crowd singing at the tops of their voices throughout.
On Wednesday night, mark my Word, the legendary Scottish rockers returned to Tyneside with all guns blazing.
Words and Photos by Adam Kennedy
