Reviewed by Trevor Locke, photographs by Kevin Gaughan
It seems Leicester-based New Age Grace were brought in, at short notice, to replace a band, The River, that had dropped out. The two members of NAG performed an acoustic set. The female vocalist, Amy Louise, was accompanied on guitar by singer/gutarist, Kenny Cassells. Even with two out of the usual four members, the guitar work was excellent and the vocals clear and sharp, whether performing as a duet or a band. They put on a strong performance and their alt-rock songs had plenty of impact. They gave us a cracking start to the evening.
Hymns for Horses came from London. This three-piece band had a lead vocalist who said he last played here twenty years ago. The songs were carried forward with plenty of rich guitar sounds. Musically, the set was very inventive. The band’s style is described as ‘bittersweet grungefolk.’ I see the band had played at Duffy’s bar before now.
Amy Dx, known as Amy Daniels to her friends, played keyboard and sang with a couple of guitarists alongside her and a drummer at the back. They churned out an engaging set of tunes, some of which had been featured on one of their previous albums. This local band has been making waves recently. The vocals were clear and the music engaging. It was an enjoyable set that went down well with the audience. I am sure that its reputation will grow and more and more people will be making their way to see this band at our local gigs.
We covered Amy Dx before when they played at Duffy’s bar – click here for that review.