Don’t often go to music festivals anymore, the idea of tents, and rain, and portaloos never did appeal, and as I’ve gotten older I appreciate the comforts even more! But when there’s a festival at a time I could take a few days off, it was held in an indoor venue, I was staying in a hotel (which was also the same hotel all the bands were staying at) and I could get hold of a pass for the three days (thanks Andy!) how could I say no. With highlights including Michael Schenker Group, Uli Jon Roth, Paul Di’Anno and Graham Bonnet (unfortunately I arrived too late on day one to catch Pat McManus of Mama’s Boys fame) it was even more so a no-brainer really.
Held over three days in Troon, a little south of Glasgow, Winterstorm has been going since 2016 and from all appearances seems to have a large and loyal following. Venue is the Troon Concert Hall (think it used to be the town hall once?) on the coast which means outside in late November it’s bitterly cold, but it was lovely and toasty inside, with a wide choice of beer on tap and freshly cooked food on the go all day. Organisation was top notch.
Official festival web page can be found here.
Not going to do anything like a proper concert review, so just the highlights.
Favourite oldies: these are the obvious ones, that were the main draw for me going:
- Michael Schenker Group with Robin McAuley on vocals, Michael’s on fire at the moment and looking good, rattled through all the favourites with not too many newer ones. Robin’s voice has always been a great fit and it’s good to see him back at the helm.
- Uli Jon Roth, watched his set from stage right, as usual the band gave a blistering performance. At one point I had to run on stage to tighten Uli’s microphone stand because it kept drooping… I guess this means I’ve now appeared on stage with Uli?
- Paul Di’Anno, set was a little shorter than I think everyone would have liked but he ran through many of the Maiden classics he was responsible for. Although wheelchair bound at the moment he doesn’t hold back and the voice is still there.
- Graham Bonnet, another Schenker/UFO family related act, first time I’ve seen him live. Struggling a bit with the high notes now, but still instantly recognisable and again, plenty of the classics.
Acts I’ve got the CDs and grew up with the music but have never thought to see live:
- FM, great set, was still wearing my UFO t-shirt from the night before (for Schenker’s gig) and got a grin from Jem Davis backstage. He was only in the band briefly (for High Stakes And Dangerous Men in the early 90s) but still considered part of the UFO family.
- Tyketto
- Tygers of Pan Tang
- Praying Mantis
Acts that surprised me or I hadn’t heard of before:
- Focus, not really my thing but they put on a good show and get the crowd involved.
- Chez Kane, hadn’t heard of her before, but had a cracking set and stayed around for the whole three days in the crowd, seems really genuine.
- Massive Wagons, got a couple of their CDs but never really felt compelled to see them live but their set was full of energy and actually much better than I thought it would be. Just wish the vocalist would stop grabbing his crotch all the time, maybe I’m just getting old!
- New Roses, again, another band I’ve been aware of but never really paid much attention to.
Honourable mention:
- Clann an Drumma, Scottish tribal band, men in kilts banging drums! the energy and stamina of these guys was incredible.
The rest! I don’t think there was one band that sucked, so honourable mention for all the others!
Finally special mention to the motley crew I spent these days with, especially the amazing van with the Maiden art down the side! It was a blast guys.
