Steelhouse Festival 2023 review ft. Black Stone Cherry, Airbourne, Kris Barras Band and more

There’s something about Steelhouse that simply connects, embraces and holds together. It has something to do with place and community. This isn’t a new thing; the mountain-top event began in 2011, the brainchild of local buddies Mikey Evans and Max Rhead. They've built around them the Steelhouse ‘family’, a small army of volunteers and professionals who look forward to ‘doing their bit’ every year.

But there’s more this time. You’re first aware of it when stuck in traffic on Friday, becoming expert in clutch and handbrake control as your vehicle edges up that rocky hill. The event, supported as usual by Planet Rock, is something everyone wants to be at, and it’s been sold out for weeks. This, during the worst economic crisis any of us can remember. That growth has enabled Steelhouse to bag its biggest headline act yet, Kentucky legends Black Stone Cherry, whose recent Planet Rock fave ‘Out Of Pocket’ aptly summarises the difficult times we’re living through.

When you reach the top of that hill, you’ll probably be greeted by Alan Evans, Mikey’s 80-year-old dad. See what I mean? The spirit of family, both literal and by association, prevails.

FRIDAY:

To Dan Byrne falls the honour of opening the whole shebang, and rise to the occasion he does, despite this being only his third gig as a solo act. The former Revival Black singer plays muscular hard rock in the tradition of Whitesnake and Skin – ‘Like Animals’ comes with suitably libidinous thrust while ‘Death Of Me’ is a bluesy ballad that showcases Dan’s multi-faceted voice. Newcomers Jordan Red also show potential, their slick hard rock redolent of Swedish band H.E.A.T in its polished surfaces and elevated hooks. Time and patience could see them push for promotion.

The Karma Effect are probably in that position already. They’ve grown in confidence even since February when they impressed us at Planet Rock’s Winter’s End. Theirs is a bluesy strut that catwalks its way into hearty hard rock like ‘Steal Your Heart’, ‘Mercy’ and brilliant set closer ‘Testify’. It’s easy to compare them to Rival Sons, but there’s something of Reef’s bass-humping, surf-ready groove in their DNA too.

It was with the latter that we most recently saw When Rivers Meet, whose live shows are never less than an aural and visual treat. They’re exceptional today – soulful blues led by Grace Bond’s heaven-sent vocals and husband Aaron’s cooler-than-thou guitar work. There’s an almost preternatural clarity to their sound, a sense of space that enables all elements to stand up and be counted. Add songs as good as ‘Walking On The Wire’, and ‘He’ll Drive You Crazy’ which builds to a symphonic finish via Grace’s electric violin, and you have Friday’s stand-out performance.

The sight of Ginger Wildheart’s custom Hagstrom guitar poignantly propped on stage creates a wash of feelings. There’s sadness, of course, that Ginger can’t be here with his ‘other’ band, The Sinners, but also a sense of relief that he’s now tackling his mental health challenges with professional help. The word ‘genius’ is overused, but Ginger is that, and we want him happy and well, a point that The Sinners’ Neil Ivison emphasises during his band’s performance – which is boosted by Black Star Riders and Wayward Sons guitarist Sam Wood. Playing heartland country rock, Ivison turns out to be an amusing host, even congratulating the organisers on “the quality of the water pressure” backstage. There are Quo and Georgia Satellites covers, and with the hungover country rock drawl of new song ‘Walk Of Shame’ and ‘Lately Always’, this is – against the odds – a success.

Their Winter’s End performance removed any doubt that the Kris Barras Band can effectively headline festivals – and we’re not just saying that because he is, clearly, the most physically intimidating frontman you can think of. Barras, a former MMA fighter, has proved himself all over again. This is not only a commanding performance, but you can see how the audience has grown with the band. On this stage two years ago, the multi-talented musician’s hard-as-nails stare broke when the crowd carried on singing ‘My Parade’, then unreleased, even after the band had finished debuting it – and that was just a sign of things to come. Tonight’s set is full of sandpaper vocals, meaty riffs and, at its best, perfectly directed hooks, with Barras as nimble-fingered a guitarist as any. It’s tempting to assume that his music is all muscle, but it has surprising soul in its genes too.

SATURDAY:

With headliners Airbourne and special guests Those Damn Crows both doing stints at Planet Rock’s busy signing tent, there are long queues snaking around the site early on. Openers Dead Man’s Whiskey nevertheless manage to make themselves known. While the outfit aren’t breaking new ground or solving global famine, they’re a decent blood-and-thunder heavy rock act. The response afforded to ‘Make You Proud’, about singer Nico Rogers’ mother who survived brain cancer, sees the frontman genuinely moved – a sweet moment.

There’s a few of those during Austin Gold’s set too. The superb ‘Mountain’, with its ascendent chorus, always seemed tailor made for this stage. The Peterborough rockers have cherry-picked the best things that Foo Fighters and Bad Company do and given those influences their own twist. There’s light and shade in the band’s thoughtful hard rock – frontman David James Smith ensures that the guitar notes he picks out actually matter. During the magnificent ‘Never End’, set to be a new single and video, the crowd take up the song’s skin-tingling mantra “when it all goes down, keep going” – and sing it straight back. A ‘My Parade’ moment? Let’s hope so.

There’s never a bad time to see Black Spiders. Featuring Planet Rock’s very own Wyatt on drums, the band have stepped in at short notice to replace the sadly unwell Blues Pills. Their addition is even more noteworthy given that they have a second festival to play later – Derbyshire’s Rock & Blues Custom. Never short of a quip, frontman Pete Spiby likens his band to “Phil Collins at Live Aid, playing two countries in one day”. As ever, they’re a joy to behold – three guitars, filthy riffs and rabble-rousing hooks. ‘Destroyer’ nails a chunk of Marilyn Manson’s ‘mOBSCENE’ into its walls, while the pairing of ‘KISS Tried To Kill Me’ and recent barnstormer ‘A Rat Is A Rat’ will take some topping from any band on this bill.

Belgium’s Black Mirrors seem somewhat out of place after this – the PA is surprisingly quiet which means their velvety grooves and Marcella Di Troia’s big vocals don’t punch like they ought. There’s plenty to admire – ‘Lost In Desert’ is a cross between earthy rock and avant-garde songstress Poppy, while ‘Burning Warriors’ rides out on a florid musical freakout – but the lack of familiarity is a dividing factor, and they’d certainly be better in a sweaty club.

More overseas visitors, Canada’s The Damn Truth, sweep around in a blur of leopard print, pink guitar, purple boots, and striped flares. If we could get close enough they’d probably smell of patchouli, too. ‘This Is Who We Are Now’ is their defiant, self-introducing anthem, but there’s many a tonal change within their ear-catching set. Singer Lee-La Baum likens her band to a group of travelling hippies, and her Joplin-kissed vocal talent and constant expressions of delight signify that being in The Damn Truth must be as fun as it looks.

‘Fun’ isn’t the first word you’d use to describe local heroes Florence Black, or at least not in the frivolous sense. Few rock trios this side of Motörhead feature quite this much heft. Classic rock? It’s closer to Metallica today. There are call-and-response hooks, a furious performance from drummer Perry Davies (especially during ‘On The Ropes’) and perhaps the biggest bass sound of the weekend, courtesy of Jordan Evans. Yes, they finish with the comparatively restrained ‘Sun And Moon’ preceded by their always enjoyable bludgeon of Budgie classic ‘Breadfan’, but make no mistake, this is a more honed, hungrier and downright meaner Florence Black than we’ve seen before. During ‘Zulu’ someone taps us on the shoulder and shouts: “This is ‘kicking somebody’s arse music’!” Agreed.

There’s also something we can agree on about Those Damn Crows: this band will be back – as headliners. There’s never been a better example of a group and a festival that has grown together, almost organically, interconnected, that whole family thing again. Tonight they’re the finished article, infinitely better than they were just two years ago on this same stage. ‘Man On Fire’ and ‘Wake Up (Sleepwalker)’ are songs of such international poise that even greater things beckon, and the Steelhouse crowd understandably adores them. “Just shush for a moment,” jokes frontman Shane Greenhall, “it’s like talking to my nine-year-old son!” The only odd thing about tonight’s championship-winning performance is that when they play ‘This Time I’m Ready’, near enough the finest song they’ve ever written and certainly their most emotional, the crowd mysteriously turns off. That surreal moment aside, Those Damn Crows win big.

Airbourne frontman Joel O’Keeffe has been hobbling around backstage with his smashed right foot in a surgical boot. There’s no rock n’roll story behind this – he kicked a door, and the door won – but what is remarkable is that it barely slows him down on stage. The never-say-die Australian rockers sound exactly like they always do, with everything louder than everything else. It’s mental, over-the-top hard rocking bedlam, and of course Steelhouse loves them for it. There are even circle pits during ‘Breakin’ Outta Hell’, and on stage there’s a bit of old school co-ordinated guitar swinging, a ride out into the audience from Joel and his customary trick of smashing a beer can open on his head, proving his cranium is made of stronger stuff than his toes. Meanwhile, Justin Street and Jarrad Morrice, bassist and six-stringer, sprint in opposing directions like the Red Arrows synchro pair. In a nod to their location, they play ‘Steel Town’ for the first time since 2011. Mission accomplished.

SUNDAY:

Magazine editors would traditionally warn festival reviewers not to waste column space writing about the weather – but sadly, pretending the latter doesn’t affect things is as good as lying. To Steelhouse’s credit, today’s relentless rain doesn’t actually stop anything from happening. Even after the show, Planet Rock’s Ian Danter is entertaining mud-encrusted festival stalwarts with a DJ set (under cover, thankfully), with Shane and Ronnie from Those Damn Crows stepping up to offer ‘support’.

Much earlier though, Troy Redfern has the deeply unenviable task of being the first onstage act. The only thing muddier than the sound is the stuff glued to the boots of the few people braving the elements this early. Troy’s groovy slide guitar and sweet, summery sounds belong in less clouded climes. It simply isn’t his day – but that day will come. Far better suited to the conditions, and luxuriating in them, are professional gloom purveyors Empyre. Like a more contained Paradise Lost, the band’s dark, emotive melancholia is impressive, but has been known to fall on deaf ears in sunnier conditions. Henrik Steenholdt and men take a deserved, if somewhat ironic, victory today.

The Cruel Knives work like troopers to make connections in the drizzle. Their stop-start energy, a genre guessing game, is neither pure rock or punk, but something incorporating all of the above. Featuring songs that keep you on edge, they’re an outfit who know how to hold the attention, and in former Heavens Basement guitarist Sid Glover they have a great six-stringer who could probably turn his hand to any musical brand.

Kira Mac are unperturbed by the conditions, spending more time on the stage’s (unsheltered) catwalk than any other act today. “We’re northerners!” is how singer Rhiannon Hill justifies the matter. Much loved by Planet Rock listeners, the band smash through the likes of ‘Hit Me Again’, ‘Chaos Is Calling’ and ‘Scorned’ with the co-ordinated grace of a band clawing its way into ever higher echelons. In contrast, The Vintage Caravan have come from even further north (Iceland) but need every bit of the sense of humour they’re blessed with. Despite the quirky tunes, there’s not enough connection here to engage an audience that needs at least a drip-feed of something it recognises. For what it’s worth, they’re ace in small clubs.

Aside from the headliners, it’s The Answer that provide the set of the day. Singer Cormac Neeson calls for “good karma and positive vibes”, but in reality he’s the one providing it. At times he dances with arms aloft as if being controlled by a smirking puppeteer, but it’s the songs – ‘Blood Brother’, ‘Under The Sky’, ‘Sundowners’ and ‘Come Follow Me’ – that grip and even energize the hard-pressed audience. At the end, during ‘Preachin’s irresistible, twisted gospel, Cormac climbs down into the crowd, emerging finally with face smeared with mud and dirty handprints on his once white jacket. This compelling performance was the answer we needed, in more ways than one.

Elegant Weapons, making their UK debut, are a vehicle for the talents of Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner, and are fronted by rent-a-throat Ronnie Romero, clearly the vocalist of choice for star guitarists needing singers. Faulker is never less than impressive, both as a musician and as a human being, having survived a heart condition that would’ve killed most people. Hunched over his Flying Vee, all fibrous tone and glorious note-making, he’s the walking epitome of metal. A cover of ‘War Pigs’ seems suitably apocalyptic with eerily lit trees at either side of the stage being almost pulled apart by the stiff wind and sheets of illuminated rain. It's a decent introduction, but one wonders how much more there can be to come, given the members’ other occupations.

To have Black Stone Cherry, eight albums old and genuine top shelf rock stars, up the mountain is all the evidence you need to understand how far Steelhouse has come. You can kid yourself it’s the main stage at Download when this astute and utterly professional act are banging out classics like ‘Me And Mary Jane’, ‘Like I Roll’ and the aforementioned, zeitgeist-capturing ‘Out Of Pocket’. Then frontman Chris Robertson talks about how petrified he was in the bus coming up the mountain (honestly, it’s not that bad) and you remember exactly where you are, and what this all means. Also, Black Stone Cherry are a perfect headliner, a positive, unifying force that instinctively evokes a sense of hearth and home; the importance of community. It is, as they sing, ‘In My Blood’. As they bow out with a buoyant ‘Blame It On The Boom Boom’ and ‘Lonely Train’, the latter a trip back to where it all began for them, you do get a poignant sense of distance travelled. For them, and for all of us.

Steelhouse Festival 2023 in photos:

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• steelhouse festival
• Black Stone Cherry
• Airbourne