Surprisingly opening up tonight were BRITNY FOX and just about recognisable from the (now) hilarious cover of their eponymous 1988 debut record is the only band member left from those days, bass guitarist Billy Childs.]]> Surprisingly opening up tonight were BRITNY FOX and just about recognisable from the (now) hilarious cover of their eponymous 1988 debut record is the only band member left from those days, bass guitarist Billy Childs. While some may call this nothing more than a tribute, the band Childs has put together really does do great justice to the classic BRITNY FOX material. New vocalist / rhythm guitarist Jamie Fletcher has one hell of a voice, managing to pull off the screeching vocals of 'Long Way to Love' and 'Girlschool' without a problem. This was a terrific set and it was a shame that so few people were in the venue to catch it.

The band I did expect to have opened up was Sweden's FATAL SMILE. The odd ones out on the bill, FATAL SMILE are an up and coming bunch of rockers, not, dare I say it, glam/hair metal has beens. The band have an awesome image and on stage swagger which really brings their material alive. With such catchy rocking numbers as 'Run For Your Life' and 'Learn Love Hate', it's easy to see why this band are so popular in their homeland where their music has reached the top 10 in the national charts. With a brilliant singer in Blades, and a superb guitarist in Y, FATAL SMILE are definitely a band worth checking out when they return to the UK in December as support to VINCE NEIL.

After a public feud in 2007 between vocalist Steve Summers and guitarist Kristy Majors, a reunion of PRETTY BOY FLOYD never looked likely. However, here we are a year later and 3 of the 4 members that recorded classic album 'Leather Boyz with Electric Toyz' (including Summers and Majors) are indeed back together and touring. PBF are masters of glam metal, and still have the look and sound that propelled them to the front cover of Kerrang! back in 1989.

Other than the fantastic party anthem 'Saturday Nite' – all of the set was made up of material from the Leather Boyz… record with obvious stand outs being 'Rock and Roll (Is Gonna Set the Night on Fire)', and the classic ballad 'I Wanna Be With You' - both huge hits back in the day. Steve Summers has a voice sounding very similar to Vince Neil, but he's a much stronger live vocalist, as proven on an enjoyable cover of MOTLEY CRUE's 'Toast of the Town'. 'Rock and Roll Outlaws' rounded off a short, yet tremendous set. PRETTY BOY FLOYD kicked ass.

Playing the headline slot tonight were BULLETBOYS, lead by the highly talented Marq Torien. When the band first burst onto the scene in 1988, sporting long-blonde hair, Torien handled only the vocals, which lead to comparisons to David Lee Roth. These days, now with much shorter, dark hair, Torien also plays lead guitar, and does a great job in both roles. BULLETBOYS certainly don't have the kind of sing-a-long anthems that PRETTY BOY FLOYD played, but instread, their brand of rock and roll is a more groovy affair. 'Talk To Your Daughter' is a perfect example. The essential number 'Smooth Up in Ya' was left to close the show – thus a fitting end to a super night of rock and roll.

OK – all the bands played under 40 minutes, but at least this meant that lesser songs weren't played to pad out the setlists. A thoroughly enjoyable feast of rock – but rather worringly enjoyed by less than a 100 people – a very disappointing turn out for a Friday night. Signs that the credit crunch really is taking effect, or just that hair metal has finally died it's death? I really hope it's not the latter, because this is probably the only sub-genre of rock that has a number 1 priority of fun.

BRITNY FOX Setlist: Six Gun's Loaded / Louder / Long Way to Love / Black and White / Dream On / Midnight Moses / Girlschool

FATAL SMILE Setlist: S.O.B. / Neo Natural Freaks / Out of My Head / Run For Your Life / Straight to Hell / Stranger / Learn Love Hate

PRETTY BOY FLOYD Setlist: Leather Boyz With Electric Toyz / Your Mama Won't Know / Rock and Roll (Is Gonna Set the Night on Fire) / Toast Of The Town / 48 Hours / Saturday Nite / I Wanna Be With You / Rock and Roll Outlaws

BULLETBOYS Setlist: Hard as a Rock / Talk To Your Daughter / Hell on My Heels / THC Groove / For The Love of Money / Kissin' Kitty / Smooth Up in Ya

BRITNY FOX Rating: 4.0/5.0

FATAL SMILE Rating: 4.3/5.0

PRETTY BOY FLOYD Rating: 4.8/5.0

BULLETBOYS Rating: 4.1/5.0

Review by James Allman

Photography by Alexander Shaw

BRITNY FOX

FATAL SMILE

PRETTY BOY FLOYD

BULLETBOYS

Opening proceedings tonight were young Nottingham rockers NEW GENERATION SUPERSTARS. This is a band who play a raw, energetic brand of rock 'n' roll, and judging by the amount of people who rushed down the front to watch their set, they've certainly built up quite a following.]]> Opening proceedings tonight were young Nottingham rockers NEW GENERATION SUPERSTARS. This is a band who play a raw, energetic brand of rock 'n' roll, and judging by the amount of people who rushed down the front to watch their set, they've certainly built up quite a following. Given just over half an hour, NGS left a good impression on the crowd, despite vocalist/rhythm guitarist A.J. vocally suffering from an admitted Friday night of excess after the bands show in Leeds the previous night. Still, the vocals in NGS are a little more punky and shy away from the wails of glam and hair metal – so it didn't affect things too much. The excellent 'Overload' rounded off a really good warm up set and the band will certainly leave Dudley with more new fans gained – me being one of them.

When the NEW GENERATION SUPERSTARS back drop was taken down, the L.A. GUNS back drop graced the stage – however, as expected, it was LOVE/HATE who were up next and nobody was in doubt who it was when bass player Skid was first to enter the stage, bare-chested and sporting a LOVE/HATE tattoo. 'Blackout in the Red Room' proved a popular set opener, with vocalist Jizzy Pearl showing straight away that he hasn't lost his awesome voice – this is of course the guy who briefly replaced Stephen Pearcy in hair metal giants RATT at the turn of the millennium.

LOVE/HATE made their name in the UK after their impressive live shows supporting SKID ROW on their first UK arena headlining tour. Judging by the healthy crowd in JB's tonight, many of the fans they won over back then have stayed loyal to the cause. Tonight, all the most well known songs were played, including 'Tranquilizer', 'Wasted in America', 'Tumbleweed', 'Mary Jane', 'Straightjacket' and the excellent 'Fuel to Run' - where Skid twangs his bass almost in a Flea (RED HOT CHILLI PEPPERS) like fashion. The anthemic WILDHEARTS style 'Why Do You Think They Call It Dope' brought a close to a terrific display, and one that was very well received by the Dudley faithful. At the end of the set, Jizzy Pearl promised that LOVE/HATE would return again one day – lets hope he's a man who sticks to his word!

Now then, as most readers of this will probably already know, there are two versions of L.A. GUNS currently touring the globe. One is lead by original guitarist and founder Tracii Guns - and one is lead by legendary vocalist Phil Lewis. Tonight, it was the Phil Lewis version, and for me, this is the definitive version. While a guitarist can sound exactly like another, and drummer can sound exactly like another etc. – a singers voice is the unique part of a band, and it is the voice of Phil Lewis that you associate with L.A. GUNS. Plus this is the band who have remained formed and have a recent studio album under their belt with the excellent 'Tales from the Strip'.

Opening the set with a rip-roaring rendition of 'Slap In The Face' – L.A. GUNS looked up for the Saturday night party. What followed was a set of top-drawer rock and roll, with Dudley JB's turned into a sunset strip nightclub for the next 80 minutes. Lewis is a great live singer and with such quality hits as 'Sex Action' and 'Never Enough' early in the set, the atmosphere was bubbling. Lead guitarist Stacey Blades isn't an overly flash player, but he does his job and plays the solos true to the originals. Latest addition to the band, bassist Scott Griffin played well, and his setlist request 'Sleazy Come, Easy Go' was good to hear – a song very rarely played live. Still it's hard to pick out highlights with such great sleaze rock as 'One More Reason', 'Electric Gypsy', 'Over The Edge', 'Hellraiser's Ball' and 'Kiss My Love Goodbye' all performed to such high standards.

Initially the band claimed there was no encore, and 'The Ballad of Jayne' and 'Rip and Tear' had seemingly ended the evening's entertainment. However, the sizable Dudley crowd were not going to let L.A. GUNS get away that easilty, and Lewis and the boys duly returned to the stage with the parting shot that was a blistering run through of 'No Mercy'. This was the icing on the cake – a superb show from all 3 bands and a great night out enjoyed by all.

NEW GENERATION SUPERSTARS Rating: 4.0/5.0

LOVE/HATE Rating: 4.2/5.0

LA GUNS Rating: 4.6/5.0

Review by James Allman

Photography by Alexander Shaw

NEW GENERATION SUPERSTARS

LOVE/HATE

LA GUNS

Opening proceedings tonight were young Irish rockers GLYDER. Heavily influenced by THIN LIZZY, GLYDER play a melodic yet powerful brand of classic rock, ideal as an appetizer for tonight's headline act.]]> Opening proceedings tonight were young Irish rockers GLYDER. Heavily influenced by THIN LIZZY, GLYDER play a melodic yet powerful brand of classic rock, ideal as an appetizer for tonight's headline act. With two excellent albums under their belt, GLYDER's 30 minute set was always going to impress the Y&T fans, and they quickly had people interested within seconds of infectious opening number 'Gamblers Blues'.

Superb tracks like 'Stargazer' and 'Colour of Money' followed, delivered with great precision and no shortage of on stage swagger. This band certainly have the look as well as the material. 'PUP' is an excellent dig at the ludicrous behaviour of people on reality TV, and on a more serious note, hard-hitting set closer 'Die or Dance' is one of the best war themed songs I've heard for a while. This was a really impressive set by one of the best up and coming rock bands around at the moment, and by the end of this tour, they'll have certainly won over a few hundred more rockers.

In my humble opinion, Y&T are the most underrated rock band on planet earth. They have produced masses of great songs, and boast in their ranks possibly the finest lead vocalist and lead guitar all-rounder in the business. Dave Meniketti is an absolute genius. Live, his vocals sound almost exactly as they do on record – and as for his lead guitar wizardry – the only word you need is wow!

Y&T are known to give great value for money and after 2 hours and 20 minutes tonight, with the curfew well passed, the PA was turned off on the band halfway through what surely must have been the last song (although you never know with Y&T) 'I Believe In You'. This was an unfortunately abrupt ending to the night, but for those with work in the morning, it was getting rather late!

Y&T are best known for their rousing rockers. The headbanger 'Hurricane' worked great as a set opener, and 'Mean Streak' ensured that no momentum was lost mid-set. A real highlight of the evening was a rare performance of the frenetic 'Squeeze' where bass player Phil Kennemore screamed lead vocals, leaving Meniketti free to concentrate on one of his most over-the-top guitar performances on record. Y&T also like to throw in a good dose of the blues, with 'Dirty Girl' defining the word groovy, and the instrumental 'I'll Cry For You' featuring Menikietti's emotion oozing blues solo, complete with orgasmic facial expressions.

Meniketti also has a great knack for writing power ballads, and his two best examples 'Rescue Me' and 'Forever' sounded as awesome as ever tonight. It was also great to hear the lesser known 'I'll Keep on Believin' - a superb break-up song to rival that of WHITE LION's 'Broken Heart'. Y&T have been touring the UK regularly over the past 4 years, but they always keep things fresh by mixing up the setlist. For example, tonight was the first time I had heard 'Looks Like Trouble' (from the 'Down for the Count' album) played live – and it didn't half sound good.

The band have recently re-released their two hard to find mid-90's albums, 'Musically Incorrect' and 'Endangered Species' and a couple of songs were played from these albums in an attempt to entice the crowd towards the merchandise stand. The Hendrix style 'Fly Away' worked well, but the interesting 'Pretty Prison' showed a more progressive side of the band.

This was yet another fantastic Y&T performance. For those who have been lucky enough to discover the majesty of this band, live shows in such intimate venues are simply awesome experiences. As much as I wish all the success in the world to Y&T, I love the fact that I am able to see a band of such quality up close and personal. If you're into your classic rock, and you haven't yet heard of Y&T – you really need to get hold of some of their classic albums, probably starting with 'Earthshaker'. You will never turn back. Long live Y&T!

Y&T Setlist: Hurricane / Lipstick and Leather / Lucy / Dirty Girl / Don't Wanna Lose / Black Tiger / I'll Keep On Believin' / Mean Streak / Fly Away / Midnight In Tokyo / Loneley Side of Town / Winds of Change / Summertime Girls / Pretty Prison / Rescue Me / I'll Cry For You / Looks Like Trouble / Squeeze / Forever / Open Fire / I Believe In You

GLYDER Setlist: Gambler's Blues / Sweets / Weather The Storm / Colour of Money / Stargazer / PUP / Die or Dance

Y&T Rating: 4.9/5.0

GLYDER Rating: 4.5/5.0

Review by James Allman

Photography by Alexander Shaw

GLYDER

Y&T

Following the withdrawal of AFTER FOREVER, it was Norwegians PAGAN's MIND who opened tonight's show with a 45 minute set. Their musical style is not too dissimilar from the headline band and often gets described as progressive power metal. Their main asset is frontman Nils K. Rue, who has an extremely powerful voice and enjoys a good rapport with the audience.