Whiskey Myers + Buffalo Summer @ o2 Institute, 21st May, 2017
Promoting their fourth album, ‘Mud’, Whiskey Myers played Birmingham as part of a UK Tour. Supported by Buffalo Summer, the smaller Library part of the Institute venue is close to full when they played their excellent thirty minute set of rock with a tinge of blues. We often try to pigeon hole and make comparisons of bands, and Whitesnake, Rainbow and Led Zeppelin have all been mentioned in relation to the sound of Buffalo Summer, and after watching them live it’s hard not to disagree.
There isn’t a bad song in the set and they really are very good. I wasn’t around for early Zeppelin days but it’s not just the mane of lead vocalist Andrew Hunt that made me think of the comparison. Their current album ‘Second Sun’ is out now on UDR Music and these lads from the valleys are ones to watch.
The main event, Whiskey Myers is a different scenario. Studio recordings are a laid back, almost sedate affair, but live it’s an electric set with amps up to eleven. Opening with ‘On The River’ I was glad I’d got my ear-plugs as the sound was very loud and given the intimate venue size there was no escape from the volume.
Cody Cannon is a great frontman, and his performance appears to be without effort, it’s like popping into a bar and your mate get’s up on stage. The band are accomplished but special mention must go to Tony Kent on “second drum kit” (it’s more percussion to be fair) who comes stage-front with a cow bell towards the end of the set, and to describe him, just think Animal from the Muppets, with his wild hair, manic grin and non-stop bashing of his drums. It’s a joy to see. I believe he’s recently “joined the family” and as band numbers grow surely stage sizes will need to as well to accommodate the ever increasing musicians.
Even during ‘Early Morning Shakes’ the live version takes a more electric edge and anyone coming tonight to chill and relax are in for a shock. ‘Ballad of a Southern Man’, possibly their quietest song is also given some power, but it works. There’s little in the way of between song chat, which would simply get in the way of the songs, but there is a genuine connection between audience and band. This is seen none more so than on set closer “Seven Nation Army”, yes the White Stripes song, which at first I was puzzled why Whiskey Myers needs to do this cover, but it’s a stroke of genius, the audience providing backing clapping and vocals.
Planet Rock has long championed Whiskey Myers and it’s not hard to see why. They are a no-nonsense band, playing their music, having a beer. I walked out into Birmingham, West Midlands, but after the past hour I could’ve been walking out into Birmingham, Alabama.
Review: Glenn Raybone
Photographs: Arta Gailuma