08 June 2017 (gig)
11 June 2017
The steady growth of Vintage Trouble is a lesson in how a band can grow an audience and develop their music without ‘selling out’.
Stepping on to the stage at Shepherds Bush was a band who are completely happy with their music and completely in tune with their crowd without either stagnating or changing too radically.
They have been together since 2010 and the same four guys form the band then and now – and you can hear the closeness of the musicians in every song. The undoubted front man of the band is the amazing Ty Taylor whose dancing harks back to the showmanship of the R&B greats – the James Brown or Wilson Pickett or Otis Redding moves – as well as the charisma and the voice that he brings to the party. But the others in the band are no slouches either; Nalle Colt is a superb guitarist and a perfect texture to the band’s music whether he is playing slide or riffing away and the engine room of Rick Barrio Dill (bass) and Richard Danielson (drums) is incredibly powerful and also subtle, able to change pace and direction in a moment.
This is true, classic R&B with a rock edge and more soul than almost anyone else on the scene today.
The set covered some old material as well as a fair number of new songs that were written on the beaches on the Cayman Islands – Taylor almost taunting the crowd with his verbal images of crystal blue waters and white sands – but they are all sexy and sassy, perfectly suited to the youth and verve of the band.
The more subtle material went over as well as the dance numbers – ‘Another Man’s Words’ is a gorgeous soul number and had the capacity crowd silent in rapt attention to some beautiful singing from Ty and a gorgeous solo from Colt – but the biggest cheer of the night was probably for the single ‘Knock Me Out’ which had the crowd dancing and jigging from the first riff to the last.
Last year I saw them at the Forum Kentish Town and they were a revelation, this time around I knew what to expect and they were still an explosive show with more high points that the Alps.
They are a must see if they are playing anywhere in reach, probably the most exciting night you could have in an auditorium.
Support was from the excellent Laurence Jones and he played a short but very tight and powerful set of modern British Blues/rock. Introduced by Ty Taylor who described laying out on the beach in Curacao when this “Skinny white kid came running over and said he wanted to play with us”. After jamming together they have become close and the reward for Jones was a slot that did him no harm. The new band has power and a lot of youth and he seems to be happier playing than I have seen him for a while. The audience took to him massively.
A great night in Shepherds Bush – there have been so many over the years but this was special.
Picture by Laurence Harvey
