Dogs D’amour, Rebellion. 20th December 2017

Guess what, another gig review!! New venue tonight. Rebellion, basically a roadhouse, with a good bar and a pretty decent sound-system. Kicking off were Gorilla Riot, local band playing blues rock. I know that doesn’t sound very ‘manchester’, but they’re really good! Tight, fun and loud! The singers admission between songs that he’s “no good at talking” really doesn’t matter, he’s nervous but comes alive as soon as the songs start and has a killer voice. It’s great to watch and the set is bloody good! Manchester knows how to do good bands. Next up were The Main Grains. Now I wanted to like this band, mostly because Danny used to be in The Wildhearts. They sound very similar, but live it’s a bit ropey. A shame as by all accounts Danny has had a bad time of it the last few years. He seems in good spirits though and seems happier on stage as the set goes on. They do sound a bit tired after Gorilla Riot though, but are definitely good at on stage banter. Old pros that have done the club circuit for years. It’s not until Dogs D’Amour come on though on that the crowd fills in and the singing begins. Granted this is Tyla’s Dogs and thus it’s very much the nostalgia trip, but the new stuff sounds good and lands with the audience. The real foot stomping is reserved for the 90s faves and a slightly chunky Tyla really delivers. Banter again is red hot, during an impromptu break to discuss wine, the drummer yells “Enough! I WANT TO PLAY DRUMS FUCKING FAST!” and that he does, bloody well! Line him up alongside the bassist with cheekbones to set your watch by and rhythm to match and this band are solid... really solid. Yes the setting is small, yes the songs are old, but Rock n Roll is timeless and played loud enough to make your pint shake it’s marvellous!