Whole Lotta Led

MR KYPS 27-6-08



I’ve heard good things about tonight’s band and I’m glad to say I wasn’t disappointed. Billed as a ‘sound a like’ rather than a ‘look a like’ tribute band, they take to the stage and deliver classic songs from Led Zeppelin’s immense back catalogue with aplomb.
The audience, granted, consist mainly of middle-aged blokes, but there is also a smattering of the younger generation. Kids probably curious about Led Zeppelin after reading about them in the rock press and having their fave bands cite them as a major influence. And not being able to afford £160 for a ticket to the O2 gig, this is as close as it’s gonna get.

There is no support band, so the show is split into two halves with a 15 minute break or thereabouts, in between. Singer Lee Addison does a fantastic job, as Robert Plant isn’t the easiest of singers to emulate. He also introduces each song and tends to give out a bit of relevant trivia i.e. if the song was ever played live; what album it was on; which gig etc.

These guys have a serious passion for their idols and the second half of the set is filled with the showpiece songs. Bass guitarist Geoff Hunt makes ‘Dazed and Confused’ a set highlight, as does Graham Twist on ‘Moby Dick’. Drum solos don’t usually go down too well in this MTV influenced age but this was a faithful recreation of John Bonham’s solo on ‘The Song Remains The Same’ album and I’m glad to say it went down a treat with the Mr Kyps faithful.

Of course the yardstick which every Zepp tribute act will be measured by is ‘Stairway To Heaven’ and they pull out an absolutely amazing rendition of this much loved classic. Climaxing with ‘Whole Lotta Love’ and with ‘Communication Breakdown’ slotted in the middle for good measure, guitarist Nick Ferris excels himself and shows off his six string skills to the max.


If you haven’t seen this band before and you like Led Zeppelin, beg, borrow or perhaps more sensibly buy a ticket and be prepared to have one of the best musical experiences around. I know I did.

Never the Bride, 29 March 2008 @ Mr Kyps

Arriving early, we found out that the doors didn’t open until 8 on the dot. So we chatted to some of the other early birds that were gathered out of the cold, in the tiny foyer of Mr Kyps.We quickly found out that Never The Bride has some devoted fans in the South West and were assured that we would be in for a real treat tonight.

All alone on the stage, except for her Guitar and her voice, Susy Thomas quickly shows the steadily growing crowd that these two things, combined with an exceptional song writing ability, is enough to warrant an acoustic performer supporting a fully fledged band. Singing powerful ballads with real emotion and happily chatting away to the audience in between songs, she delivered an electrifying performance.

Never the Bride take to the stage and from the moment Nikki Lamborn starts to sing, you could tell we were all going to have a blast. And I do mean blast; Nikki’s outstanding vocal capacity near takes the roof off. Roger Daltrey described her as ‘best female rock voice since Janis Joplin’, well… add Robert Plant and a touch of Meatloaf’s rock operatics thrown in for good measure and you’re close. But kudos has to go also to her partner in crime Catherine ‘Been’ Feeney on writing such magnificent songs with her to compliment that voice. Catherine plays the keyboards and guitar and with talented musicians such as Murray Gold on lead guitar, Greg Harwood on Bass and Richard Newman (who played with my favourite guitarist Rory Gallagher) on the drums.
Live, their Ballard based blues-rock sounded awesome, all of these guys clicked and delivered a polished and exhilarating performance that had the crowd ecstatic. Highlights were ‘Kiss, Kiss’ and ‘The Living Tree’ which has been covered by Dame Shirley Bassey, various cover versions were aired but all had Never The Brides own unique stamp on them.
An audience member bought a round of Tequilas and had them delivered up on stage to the band, who were visibly moved by the gesture.

A great night was had by all and I for one will definitely catching them again the next time they are down here.