Rivals Sons has grown into a world act

At half past seven, LA Edwards starts their 45-minute set. The American country rock quintet is completely unknown to the vast majority of visitors and this is reflected in the lukewarm reception and scant applause after each song. The band gives an uninspiring show and does not seem particularly driven. The vocals and instrumentation are far too dull and the drawling vocals certainly do not invite enthusiasm. Even with a song title like Let It Out laziness remains trump. The song material is full of influences from Tom Petty, John Mellencamp and The Band, but they never reach that level for a moment. As expected, there was no rush to the LA Edwards merchandising stand afterwards.

After a half-hour conversion break, Rival Sons enters the stage and the mood is immediately good. The sound mix is ​​excellent, vocals and instrumentation are perfectly balanced and Michael Miley’s drums in particular have a pleasant, full sound. People start energetically Mirrors which is immediately followed by Do Your Worst and the very strong Electric Man. Singer Jay Buchanan sings great and is so busy that you feel like he is doing a cardio exercise. As in previous performances, he is the energetic and charismatic center of a fantastic rock band. Guitarist Scott Holiday, dressed in a smart suit and wearing a Zorro hat, throws out one riff after another and solos as if he were having fun. After each song he switches guitars so that a complete collection including two doublenecks passes by. The first highlight is Darkfighter, one of the more experimental songs from the last album that evokes memories of Led Zeppelin’s heyday. What class the band exudes when they improvise and deepen the melodies even more. The beautifully arranged Face of Light is a textbook example of how to give a song a little more shine in a live setting. Considering the quality the band exhibits, it would be nice if a live album from this tour was released.

By the time the title track of Pressure & Time is played, the room swirls and people clap their hands from left to right and from back to front. Jay Buchanan tells the audience that he is struggling with the wars and conflicts that are currently going on and dedicates his acoustic contribution to all the innocent people who are currently suffering from the violence of war in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He knows how to create an intimate atmosphere and once again proves to be a top-level singer. How on earth is it possible that this band is not in the Ziggo Dome and Greta van Fleet is? Perhaps the average age of the audience has something to do with it because we don’t see too many visitors under the age of twenty.

Bassist Dave Beste does his job competently, but remains somewhat in the background like a kind of Cliff Evans. This also applies to the new keyboardist. On previous tours a keyboardist with a beard of ZZ Top-like proportions played, but today there is a person with a smooth chin behind the keys. With no fewer than two album releases in 2023, Darkfighter and Light Bringer, there is of course plenty of material to choose from. Fortunately, the band plays material from their entire career to date and not just new material. We therefore have no comments on the set list. The band is visibly impressed by the response they receive. The public is thanked more than once for their support. After all, the Melkweg in Amsterdam was the fastest selling concert of this European tour. Two absolute highlights conclude the 2-hour concert, the experimental one Mosaic with great string work from Scott Holiday and the stirring Keep On Swinging that turns the room upside down. Hopefully they will come back soon.