Vintage Trouble play the Electric Ballroom - An exhilarating performance

Sadly its not often that I get to attend gigs, but when I do they are always the most entertaining, inspiring and amazing few hours that I will have had for a few months. This evening was no exception. Not only did my headlining band completely blow me away, but the support act, Kill It Kid, were something special too. Its not often that happens for me.

I have spent this cold wintery evening in Camden's Electric Ballroom, keeping warm by singing, clapping and dancing along to the blues, soul and rock n roll of Vintage Trouble. If you haven't come across them before then you're missing out! They originate from California and play energetic good old-fashioned rock n roll with a bluesy soul feel. Their live performances are amazing, giving me the urge to share with everyone my experience tonight.

Frontman Ty Taylor is a born performer. He's engaging to watch with his crazy twirling around the stage and he remembers one of the most vital ingredients to a fantastic performance, audience participation; he commands the audience, holding us all in the palm of his hand. We sing lines back to him, sing with him, and clap and cheer on queue. With his cheeky charismatic persona, his energy and enthusiasm are infectious, generating the fantastic crowd response which the band received.
Taylor exposes the bands hidden depths informing the audience that Nobody Told Me is about not accepting the wrong-doings in the world. After speaking briefly in a preacher like style about worldly troubles, Taylor lightens the air and injects some light-hearted comedy into the moment, introducing Jezzebella with "songs about politics are important, but so are songs about whores!" Then, halfway through the song, he boldly entered the audience, dancing as he sings with the women who cross his path! 

VT's impact isn't just the result of Taylor's showmanship. The band are extremely tight and fantastic musicians. Their songs are simple, catchy and singable but expertly constructed. Guitarist Nalle Colt plays some perfectly crafted blues solos while Rick Barrio Dill and Richard Danielson hold everything together with a solid backbeat. The most perfect musical moment of the night had to be Nalles solo in Run Outta You which they played as an encore. It is a solo which begins very simply, very quiet with lots of space for it to breath and gradually grows to a frenzy of emotive noise. On the CD it sounds wonderful but live it was louder, it grew more, I felt it more and it had a bigger impact. In those moments I truly lost myself in the music.

One of the wonderful things about VT is their genuine appreciation to their fans, something I think all bands/artists should remember when they become famous. After all, it is the fans that put them there in the first place.

I can't recommend Vintage Trouble enough. Their songs are catchy and fun and their live performances are well crafted, lively and engaging. Tonight they gave me the release from the monotony of finish-one piece-of-coursework-and-start-the-next which I seem to have become stuck in over the last month and sincerely needed a break from. It is a release which I haven't been able to get any other way. I finally feel elevated out of my rut so for that I thank both Vintage Trouble and live music in general.

For any of you who don't know their music and are interested, check out their official website and I will post my review of their album at a later point. 

Happy listening everyone and keep on rockin' \m/