Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some form a band...

Er… excuse me lads you do know we have a support act to fit on that stage….

The trick with Wille and the Bandits is to make sure you book a solo artist as the support! There may only be three members of the band but once their equipment is set up on stage you struggle to find a spot for another mic stand! Good job that Josh Healey was booked - a singer-songwriter, one man, one guitar, he just about fitted on the stage!

Booking Josh was a good move for another reason too  - his support set was quite simply beautiful. His natural rapport with the audience the perfect segway to his finely crafted acoustic songs, delivered with a purity and control of voice that defy his age.

It all about the sum of the parts….

In my last blog I was extolling the virtue of Dan Patlansky, and I would still urge everyone to catch him live, but tonight was different. Patlansky’s bassist and drummer, while essential to the gig, were only really on stage to showcase the great talent of Patlansky. Matt and Andy are no foil to Wille - they are an integral part of the sound that is Wille and the Bandits. The sound is fuller, more powerful, tonally richer and prone to greater light and dark than Patlansky’s.

The first time I saw this incredible band live I kept finding myself counting the band members on stage, because I just couldn’t believe that this wonderwall of blues-rock that was assaulting my ears was made by only three musicians. 

Watch Matt’s fingers moving quicker than most lead guitarists on his 6 string base, or Andy’s syncopation with one hand and a driving rhythm with the other and you realise this is no average rhythm section!

Add Wille’s husky blues voice, incredible slide guitar, and stunning songwriting and its is no surprise that Wille and the Bandits are far greater than the sum of their exceptional parts.

Mission from God

I’m back up in Cheshire, a flying visit, for another Malt’n’Music night. This is the second time that Wille and the Bandits have played in Moulton. The first was a brilliant night that quite simply blew the village away. It blew the band away too, they were keen to come back - maybe it had something to do with the Bandit Ale at the Lion!

‘I’ve always wanted an ale named after us’ quipped Wille. ‘It’s the pinnacle of a musician’s career, we can retire now.' Please don’t. There are millions of so-called music lovers who need to be saved from the over-produced mediocrity of commercial music. It’s a mission from God.

There was only one phase on people’s lips. ‘Better than the first’. Hard to believe, but they were tighter, more energetic and powerful than the first time (and Wille was ill). 

Malt’n’Music in every sense 
At previous Malt’n’Music gigs the audience have hung back like worshippers at church, congregating safely close to the exit! Tonight they were drawn forward, the sheer intensity of the music pulling people closer to its source. There was barely room for the Malt’n’Music team to find a path through the crowd to keep Wille plied with cough medicine for the soul (or whiskey to you and me!). The perfect cure for man-flu!

I could have talked all night...  
This truly was Malt’n’Music not just because Single Malt was soothing the vocal chords of the lead singer but once again the community turned out to support live music in the village. What people often don’t realise is that live music is a partnership, a relationship and a dialogue. Too many audiences demand to be entertained without giving anything to the event, to take and only give back once they feel gratified. The Malt’n’Music crowd had always been aware that bands feed off audiences just as much as audiences feed off bands. 

As the set progressed the atmosphere grew and deepened as band and audience, responding to each other, gave their all. The crowd were tremendous singing, dancing, cheering and having a wonderful time. Such a vibe from the audience can’t fail to ascend to the stage and as the band finished the last song, the simply sublime ‘Angel’, the smiles on their faces said it all – Once again we were blown away and once again so were they. No wonder in their latest tour email Wille and the Bandits declared ‘including a long awaited return to some of our favourite venues including:- The Malt 'n' Music Club’

Even the vicar wants them to play louder…. 
So just how good are Wille and the Bandits? Go. Go and see them for yourself to find out just how good, but before you get the chance here are a couple of indications from the gig; 

1. As they returned to the stage for the encore Wille announced ‘this is for all the Dire Straits fans in the audience.’ People went wild - that’s how good they are. No-one normally admits to being a Dire Straits fan!

2. After the gig the local vicar, only a few years from retirement, was asked what he thought. ‘Not loud enough’ came his reply - that’s how good they are. Even the vicar wants them to play louder! (I told you they are on a mission from God!)

Life is too short

I had to head straight back down the M6 so was unable to stay for the legionary Malt’n’Music after show party. If last time was anything to go by the Lion would be full, the Bandit beer barrel empty, and the morning very early…

Was I shattered as I crawled into bed? Yes! Did I regret the feeling of being barely alive the next day at work? No! Would I do it again today? Without hesitation! Life is too short not to experience such evenings they are gifts from God.

Gig: 7 of 50

Date of Gig: Sat 2nd May 2015


Venue
Village Hall, Moulton


Artists
Josh Healey
Wille and the Bandits

Running total of artists seen 21

The Curse of the Blues Guitarist's Face

 

Angels have been killing themselves

In one of the early scenes of Kevin Smith’s fantastic film Dogma the heroine Bethany asks the voice of God “What's he like?” The Melatron replies “God? Lonely. But funny. He's got a great sense of humour. Take sex for example. There's nothing funnier than the ridiculous faces you people make mid-coitus.” “Sex is a joke in heaven?” enquires Bethany. “The way I understand it, it's mostly a joke down here, too” replies the voice of God!!

During Dan Patlansky’s brilliant set, a real master class in blues-rock guitar playing, the angels must have been killing themselves laughing, as with each bent note he contorted his face! Perhaps the blues guitarist mid-chord was God’s prototype for the lover mid-coitus! Maybe this explains why even the ugliest guitar player gets the girl before the rest of the male population – or probably closer to the truth why so many of us (the male population) attempt to master the instrument!!!! 

But what is it about blues guitarists that makes them so prone to such weird facial expressions during a solo? Let’s be clear Dan Patlansky is not the worst offender – will anyone ever beat Robin Trower, who is still delighting and slightly disturbing blues audiences at 70 with his strange pouting!! 

The grotesque macho stance of the longhaired Heavy Metal Axeman complete with outstretched arm raised high in clenched fist and tongue wagging does not come close. The seated balladeer’s closed eyes and slowly swaying head is not half as stupid! The pogoing Punk is perfectly palatable, even the arched back or bent low guitarist is acceptable, but the distorted face of the blues guitarist unnerves me!

Check it out….

Don’t let this put you off. If you get the chance go and see Dan Patlansky – GO. The angels maybe laughing but this was a seriously good gig. Master of instrument and genre, he quite simply silenced the mainly middle aged male audience (who must have seen every blues guitarist to emerge in the last 30 years) as suddenly from a room full of sound he continued the solo at a whisper; not a voice was heard, so enthralled were this experienced audience. 

He is a lion-tamer who has a roaring, ferocious and vicious beast which he holds on the edge until the song demands acquiescence, and the animal is submissive at a simple slide of his fingers.

He let his guitar do most of the talking but any introduction to a song was concluded with the phrase ‘Check it out’.

The week before I had listened to the band that won best Welsh Album of 2014 and the only conclusion I could come to was that there couldn’t have been much competition. So I was a little apprehensive when this gig was advertised as ‘Dan Patlansky – Winner of World’s Best Blues-Rock Album 2014’! He promised to play it all and I’m glad he did and I’m glad I checked it out.

Who needs a right hand anyway….

As the set came to an end – Patlansky casually wandered over to his amp and turned it up as a roadie removed his mic and stand and we were treated to an instrumental virtuoso Voodoo Child cover – a large majority of which was played one-handed. It was an amazing performance – at times you had to remind yourself to breathe as you hung on every note. Not too far from me one member of the audience fainted.  I knew it had been good, but at least I had remembered to breathe!

Patlansky finished with his tamed lion of a Strat dangling from the bottom e-string under his complete control and the crowd screaming for more…

…and in heaven the angels stopped laughing and joined with the crowd to demand an encore…

Gig: 6 of 50

Date of Gig: Mon 27th April 2015

Venue

Borderline, London

Artists

Tristan Mackay

Dan Patlansky

Running total of artists seen 19