As one party ends another one begins and that’s exactly what happened on Thursday 18th July at The Victoria in Swindon
Firstly a big shout out to Darren Simons and his team at The Vic as they definitely know how to run an event.
So to the reason we were there, Preacher Stone are back in the UK, hot off the back of their tour with Tom Killner. They have teamed up with Sons Of Liberty for a couple of UK dates and Swindon was on the list of places to play.
The Victoria in Swindon is a great venue for getting up close and personal with the bands, so if you get chance to get there to see a gig I would definitely recommend it.
Preacher stone kicked off the evening, opening their set with the new single It Ain’t As Easy As It Looks from their latest album V. They then just wowed the crowd with their twin guitar, bass-driven drum pounding attack that complements Ronnie’s North Carolina drawl.
Describing Preacher Stone as “just a Southern rock band” would be unfair. I spoke to Rob Walker (ex Sons Of Liberty / currently with Yesterday’s Gone), and asked him “would you say Preacher Stone are Southern rock or just a classic rock band?”. His answer; “it’s hard to call”. Let’s just go with the fact they’re a hard-hitting rock outfit.
The interaction between the band and the audience is a really grand thing to see. It was almost like the band wanted to be part of the audience and the audience wanted to be up on stage as an extra member of the band. In such a small venue, the connection was tangible.
Next to take to the stage were Sons Of Liberty. I have seen Sons Of Liberty before but the line up this time included their new vocalist, Russ Grimmett. His addition to the band brings a fresh contemporary feel to the front of the band. All the classic Sons Of Liberty tracks, like Beef Jerky Boogie and Ruby Starr sit well with their newer tracks, like their current single, Tertulia TIme.
Russ’ humour, along with the depth and range of his vocals, makes this new line up one to see. They did an acoustic track, which I can’t recall the name of, and this demonstrated how Russ has successfully blended into the band.
Tracks Time To Fly and Light The Fuse are great examples of the direction that the band are undertaking. Join the journey; it will definitely be worth it.
A big thank you to Preacher Stone, Sons Of Liberty and The Victoria for a great night, keeping music live, real and local.
Remember to check out your local venues, buy tickets in advance and support live music.