Layla Zoe certainly didn’t make it easy for herself. 2018’s superb double-disc ‘Gemini’ seemed to say everything that could be said and in the best way possible. It was electric, it was Blues, Funk, Gospel and Rock. It was the sum of all the releases before it. The subsequent ‘Retrospective Tour’ and disc suggested a watershed moment had been reached. Did it also leave the self-proclaimed firegirl literally with ‘Nowhere Left To Go’? – is this perhaps the aptest album title ever penned? Well, no, as it thankfully turns out. Whilst NLTG doesn’t re-invent the wheel as far as Layla’s music is concerned it is, thanks to plenty of new faces behind the songs, still a fresh as well as a strong statement from the heart. It also still showcases the lady’s amazing voice with that trademark emotional intensity that is the secret of Layla Zoe’s success.
Stan’s Blues Band has come a long way. The band formed in 1977 changed it’s name in 1979 to the sharper Nine Below Zero which was a wise move – can you imagine a band without an actual ‘Stan’ surviving with that name so long? Forty years on, and still rocking as one of Britains premier RnB bands, they took the temperature up despite their name with a lively set at Bonn Harmonie.
“Just got home after a hell of a gig in hell’s kitchen: the Harmonie Bonn” – Julian Sas describing his sold out 15th gig in consecutive years at the venue. If this is Hell then maybe the Devil does indeed have the best music…
There are three ‘givens’ in life: Death, taxes, and a Julian Sas gig at the Harmonie in November. At least it seems that way. The only change I can remember from the shows past is that I seem to vaguely recall there being room to move from one part of the hall to stand somewhere else. Or maybe that was just a fantasy. Certainly it hasn’t been possible for several years now – and Saturday night was no exception.