When something is good sometimes once isn’t enough and you need to go back for more. Well that’s what the Town Ballroom in Buffalo, NY did in bringing back Rival Sons after they just played here back in December. They are a great band that has been around for 6 years and has cranked out 4 studio albums in that short amount of time.
You won’t find a singer on the planet who can combine the elements of classic rock, blues, hard rock and sometimes psychedelic and still maintain a powerful punch while doing it. Jay Buchanan is a rare breed and if you have never had the chance to see him you have no idea what you’re missing. He took the stage encompassing all of these elements and much more. Besides Buchanan on lead vocals, the band consists of Scott Holiday on guitar, Michael Miley on drums and Dave Beste on bass.
The band started off with a bunch of blues rock songs before they changed it up some delivering the psychedelic tune “Manifest Destiny, Part 1.” The band then went into a short acoustic set in which they played 4 songs using a standup bass, shaker, a snare and a kick drum during the set. The band exited the stage and returned tossing out water bottles to the crowd before “Torture.” After the song ended the crowd kept on singing part of the chorus to which Buchanan replied, “You are spoiling us Buffalo. You know what happens to spoiled kids when they grow up?”
Holiday is as smooth of a guitarist as you will find. He really plays his parts well without over playing at all. He was able to step out and finish the song “Tell Me Something” with a solo. Miley did a drum solo before the band’s biggest song “Keep on Swinging.” As a hard hitting drummer Miley stays in time and doesn’t miss a beat. The band also did a ballad to mix things up a bit called “Where I’ve Been.”
All in all, the band played a great variety of songs with intensity and perfection. I’m so glad I will be lucky enough to see them again later this week when they take part in the Rock on the Range festival. I suggest you catch them too when you can.
Setlist:
Electric Man
Good Luck
Secret
You Want To
Pressure and Time
Manifest Destiny, Part 1
Nava (acoustic)
The Man Who Wasn’t There (acoustic)
Burn Down Los Angeles (acoustic)
White Noise (acoustic)
Torture
Tell Me Something
Rich and the Poor
Where I’ve Been
Get What’s Coming
Encore:
Open My Eyes Keep On Swinging
We would like to thank Sarah Facciolo form Press Here Publicity for the credentials to review the show. please stay tuned for an exclusive interview with Jay Buchanan conducted before the show.
