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Review by Dave Hunter of GRTR!
Sacred Heart seem to have been dogged with ill luck
over the past couple of years, yet unbelievably they manage to retain their enthusiasm, perhaps they even appear to be thriving
in adversity. It doesn’t matter to them, if their stage times clash with Thunder, they open a stage at a festival where
the previous evening had finished in the wee small hours, or half the band are stranded elsewhere, forcing them to play, a
high profile support slot, as an acoustic duo. So tonight’s small issue of a blown amp, causing the withdrawal of one
guitar, is simply one more challenge to take into their stride.
Even though the venue was sizeable, cramped conditions
in the stage area necessitated the drums being pushed to one side, rendering debutant Dave Thurlby’s splendid performance
almost invisible to most. Returning bassist Darren Jhuboo slipped straight back into the groove on the opposite wing, leaving
centre stage free for the irrepressible Paul Stead. Mainly free from the confines of guitar duties, he was able to ‘visit’
the audience, mic in hand, for impromptu duets and general mayhem throughout. Forget the guitar, his most important instrument
is his voice; the tone and clarity were spot on again tonight. The imposing figure of the man in black, Mark Stephenson, completed
the line-up. It’s testament to Mark’s confidence and ability that he was able to cover most of the missing second
guitar’s parts so admirably. Seldom was its absence noticeable, such was his competence, a truly impressive and memorable
showing.
Despite the earlier equipment failure, Sacred Heart were able to treat the good-size crowd to a full 90
minute show, omitting only a couple of numbers which were deemed unsuitable. Opening with old favourite ‘Lay It On The
Line’ quickly following with the title track from ‘Shake’ they set themselves a high bar, one, which they
constantly raised. ‘Afraid’ led into ‘Welcome To The Jungle’ heralding a tasteful spattering of cover
songs, spread throughout the set. These showed they no longer feel the need to prove their own writing ability, instead having
the confidence to demonstrate where their own influences lie. A welcome addition to their armoury, giving those not so familiar
with their own music, something recognisable to savour. ‘Down’ the outstanding opener from their latest album,
perhaps lost some of its edge tonight, the only slight disappointment of the evening. By now though, Paul’s voice was
flawless and following the excellent ‘Tonight’ Mark was able to take centre-stage for his solo and soak up the
applause that his performance thoroughly deserved.
Fortunately,
they had managed to wire Paul’s acoustic guitar through the house system, therefore saving a truly hair-raising rendition
of ‘No-one Knows’. Stood alone in front of a sea of lighters, Paul Stead delivered their tribute to the troops
in jaw dropping fashion, easily the highlight of the show. A rousing version of another recently updated tune and long time
live favourite, ‘Rock n’ Roll Away’ closed the main set. At first, I thought the choice of Bryan Adam’s
‘Summer Of ‘69’ as the first encore was a mistake, until I realised just how damned good it sounded and
saw the audience reaction to it. As if to prove they can write an equally catchy pop rocker, a great nights entertainment,
was brought to a close with ‘Top Of The Class’ and yes, I think they were!
Sacred Heart’s enthusiasm
is born out of their belief in their collective abilities to pen and perform great sounding, modern British rock with a classic
feel. On this showing and with a well-received new album ‘Darkness Falls’ on sale, who can blame them?
Set: "Lay It On The Line", "Shake", "Afraid",
"Welcome To The Jungle", "Best In Me", "Down",
"On My Way", "Paradise",
"Burn It To The Ground", "Tonight", Guitar solo/"Darkness Falling",
"Behind These
Hazel Eye's" "No-one Knows (War)", "Here I Go Again"
"Perfect", "Music Man",
"Rock 'n' Roll Away"
Encores: "Summer Of '69", "Top
Of The Class"
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