Mud is the title of the new Whiskey Myers album and deep
down on terra firma is also where they take their live show. Raw energy and a
powerful punch ruled the evening as this Texas combo, steeped in the lore of
Southern Rock, continued their current UK tour with a sold out show at
Birmingham’s O2 Institute. The venue had called time on ticket sales for its
second room just prior to the gig and fans flocked from a multitude of angles
to view a band subject to serious press in recent times.
Two possible routes into Whiskey Myers are from their
association with country music, albeit on a distant right field edge, and a far
more straightforward rock perspective. Traditionally the latter has been an
easier sell in the UK and it is more convenient to define the live show from
that angle. However the near two hours on stage could not be wholly described
as a full-on rock show as the band was not afraid to bring the fiddle to the
forefront and frequently intersperse ballads heavily reliant on the acoustic
guitar.
One clear assertion on this show was that the refinements of
the latest album, produced by in-vogue country fringe steering man Dave Cobb, were
left in the studio and there was a significantly different feel to the band
live than on record. Of course these two mediums for listening to music are,
and should be, different beasts with the live element probably best served in
the moment and far more face value centric. On that note, Whiskey Myers led by
frontman Cody Cannon and flanked by his stalwart guitarists John Jeffers and
Cody Tate, delivered ferociously to this packed gathering. Maybe a different
sound environment could have served the band better, but this was not going to
detract from what this seven piece line up intended to do.
On the set list front, an older song in ‘Early Morning Shakes’ started things off
on the stroke of nine and the venue’s curfew was getting close when the
impressive ‘Stone’ from the new album
acted as the pre-encore finale. Early in the gig, parts of the audience
participated passionately in ‘Bar, Guitar
and a Honky Tonk Crowd’ and midway through there was widespread approval
for an emotive version of The White Stripes standard ‘Seven Nation Army’. Perhaps summing up the flexibility of the show,
apart from frequent bursts of fiddle, keys and brass, was a top live version of
‘Trailer We Call Home’, and a slight
hint of sensibility.
The evening’s entertainment began with an acoustic set by
John David Kent who later doubled up as Whiskey Myers bass player. This was
followed by the support band in the guise of Birmingham’s own Broken Witt
Rebels who far from held back in exuding their brand of blues rock. Both acts
were synonymous with the tone of the evening and ready to strip down a sound
before building it back up in an organic way, whether acoustically or in full
amplification.
Maybe Whiskey Myers will remain a conundrum for those who
engage in overt analysis, but they are far from complicated when strutting
their stuff on stage led by the charismatic posturing of Cody Cannon complete
with archetypal bruised rock vocals. Few would argue that Whiskey Myers is a market
leader of what we refer to as contemporary Southern Rock in 2016, and an exporting
one as well. Many in this sold out Birmingham crowd would testify to the
justification of their standing.