Artists:   Jaded Heart, Crimes Of Passion & SevenDayz

Venue:  The Corporation, Sheffield

Date:   14th May 2010

Friends are beginning to concern themselves, do I have another home in Sheffield?? The answer is……NO, I just love to RAAAWWWKK!!!  Once again the Corporation draws me to it’s hallowed environs and a night of rock n’roll mayhem. 

So I’ve been suffering with heartburn since the Tesco pasta salad about 3 hours previously and as I walk into the Corp at 7.30 pm, Midlands melodic rockers SevenDayz are already into their first song, so I grab a double vodka n' coke….what doesn’t kill you makes you better!!  

Now I’d seen SevenDayz at Z Rock in 2008 but they didn’t leave a lasting impression on me, but they must’ve been doing something right that day cos’ John Kivel signed them to his label on the strength of that gig.  Well I have to eat humble pie tonight cos’ the band made me look hard and listen closely.  Vocalist John Hampton has a great set of pipes and the band have an arsenal of catchy numbers.   Tunes such as 'Talk to Me', 'Say You Will' and 'Screaming' have me smiling like a Cheshire cat before they finish their 30 minute slot with the Von Groove ditty 'Once Is Not Enough'.  Keep an eye out for their CD on Kivel Records and check em’ out if they’re playing near you. 

Now, since I last saw Crimes of Passion they’ve undergone some more personnel changes, Andy Lindsay has vacated the guitar stool, to be replaced by TWO new six string slingers, Charles and Harry.  The new boys have already undergone a baptism by fire with their first gig being at Hammerfest.  So, here we are 6^th gig in and how are they doing…..DAMN FINE actually!  

The notoriously iffy PA in the small room of the Corp manages to make the drums and bass guitar sound like a fight in a mudbath and the twin guitars are just about there, but luckily Dale’s vox are managing to cut through.  Once again, Dale is master of ceremonies and takes the commanding lead, jumping onto the bass bin stage right on numerous occasions.  Tracks such as 'Pretty in Blood', 'The Me I Lost' and 'Unbreakable' have the crowd in the palm of their hands.  At the risk of repeating myself……AGAIN!! Dale still has that Paul Shortino tone to his voice which I love.  

Now even though the kick drums sound muddy, the snare is fairly cracking the air as Kev beats ten shades of  s***e out of the kit and I have to keep reminding myself how far he’s come along since I first saw him.  Bassist Simon looks and plays as though he’s been in the band since it’s inception, even if the PA is trying to convince me otherwise.  The new boys seem to have renewed the band’s vigour and given the songs some width to them, especially when they play those Thin Lizzyesque twin guitar melodies.  

They play a new song tonight, the title of which I didn’t catch but it still has that COP heaviness to it with a strong melody.  And we get to the final song of the night and the only criticism I have is that the band are still playing 'Holy Diver', time for a change me thinks.  And so it’s onwards for COP, who will be playing Raimes Fest, France and immediately following that with the support slot for the Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens European tour throughout September, before getting down to the business of recording a new album. 

And so to the headliners, Jaded Heart who are only playing a handful of UK dates, this being the opener.  The band have been on the melodic rock scene for sometime and they totally floored me at Firefest a coupla years ago.  I’d have to say they’ve become more melodic metal since the inclusion of vocalist Johan Fahlberg.  This guy is absolutely fantastic, demanding the crowd’s attention throughout and standing about 8 foot tall (only kidding), visually imposing.

Kicking off with 'Love Is A Killer', they tore into 'Fly Away' and 'Justice is Deserved' before I could catch my breath.  This trio of songs proved to be a veritable vocal onslaught, especially on Justice were Henning Wanner unleashes a high pitched scream the like of which has not been heard since the 80’s.

Peter Ostros may look a bit like Adrian Smith from Maiden but he can riff a lot better.

The camaraderie amongst the band was plain for all to see and the small but vocal crowd seemed to feed on this.

We get 'Somewhere' from the 'Helluva Time' CD then 'Rising' off the latest, which sounded tighter than Russell Brand’s jeans.  Then it was back to 'Helluva Time' for 'The Journey Will Never End' followed by 'Tonight', 'Going Under' and 'Blood Stained Lies'.   'Sinister Mind' proved my theory about the band being more melodic metal cos it was just f**kin’ HEAVY.  The band round out the set with 'Tomorrow Comes', 'Paid My Dies' (Anastasia cover!) and 'Hero'.

This was one of those gigs that I was glad I made effort.  The band looked like they were having fun onstage, putting on a fantastic performance and really interacting with the crowd.

If they head to these shores again make it your business to check em out cos you will not be disappointed.

Review by: Brassy

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