‘Today Blind O’Reilly’s, tomorrow...’ James ‘Leddy’ Leadbeater and Stefan Cloete of Big Machine plan world domination. (0903726)
WITH only two previous gigs under their collective belt, Big Machine really delivered at Blind O’Reilly’s.
On occasion, pub rock cover bands can come off as fairly dull and at worst, shocking. This is certainly not the case here, something that was clear from the opening song to the very end of their impressive set, made up of two 45-minute parts with only a short interlude.
The pub was swarming with an amenable audience in good spirits – no surprise, as the band stated ‘our particular brand of rock always seems to go down well with this crowd’.
Most of the audience was gathered in the area around the stage by the time the five-piece had kicked off their set with a heavy rendition of Holy Diver by Dio.
The band played in this fashion for almost two hours, with covers of popular classics and newer favourites spread evenly throughout. These included songs from the likes of Green Day, Bon Jovi, Audioslave and a very well received Black Sabbath medley.
Frontman James ‘Leddy’ Leadbeater held the crowd well and by the second half of their set things were really moving. The playing was tight all round and the band seemed to feed off the energy of the crowd, becoming increasingly animated as the set drew to a conclusion.
‘We turned it up to 11 and they still wanted more,’ joked bassist Stuart Ferguson afterwards.
With limited stage experience and such long-duration playing, it was surprising how professional the band appeared. With a formidable arsenal of guitars on call for songs which required a different sound or tuning, changeovers were swift and the quality of the sound was good, with nicely contrasting tones being produced.
The great sound and light on the night was a big contributing factor to the success, something the band seem to be very grateful for, remarking that they are ‘still new at this’ and that the support they have received from venues and Mark Guillou and Paul Taylor ‘cannot be understated’.
‘We wouldn’t be anywhere without them.’
The general consensus was that a great evening was had by all.
And this is just the beginning for Big Machine. By all accounts the band have big plans for the year ahead, which they refer to as ‘the year of conquest’. With original material already in the pipeline and plans for recording, it is not unreasonable to assume big things for their future.
* For more information, visit www.myspace.com/bigmachinerocks.
Article posted on 23rd January, 2010 - 2.30pm
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