Chantel McGregor should be on every rock fan's wish list
Chantel McGregor, support from Blue Nation, at Arlington Arts on Friday, September 9. Review by BRIAN HARRINGTON
Blue Nation are a power trio based around Birmingham, they performed tonight with a stand-in drummer because their regular drummer was performing with Robert Plant, a fact which tells you a lot about the regard in which their musicianship is held and what their music is about. Riff laden strong guitar-led rock, with a blues edge, Blue Nation put on a great opener for Chantel McGregor.
They opened with Gimme Some Time from their 2017 album The Kaftan Society and rapidly established their credibility as an excellent live act. I'd love to see a longer set from them. They have a new EP set for release on September 24. I loved Echoes, a haunting track about grief, and the rocking I Feel Low as well as Melody - which morphed briefly in to the George Harrison classic While My Guitar Gently Weeps. Definitely a band to watch.
Chantel McGregor arrived onstage barefoot; her diminutive figure giving no clue to her huge vocals and massive guitar skills. Her five albums (two of which were released during the covid lockdowns as "shed sessions") have received consistently great reviews. Her joy at gigging live again was self-evident and her performance was electrifying. With an easy rapport with the audience and stunning playing this was a show to remember. She opened with Southern Belle from her 2015 album Lose Control and included the touching Eternal Dream, a song she wrote about Jeff Buckley, who was an inspiration and one of her favourite artists.
With vocals that soar from a whisper to a full-blooded battle cry Chantel McGregor is a blues/rock performer whose live shows are well worth attending. Add her incredible guitar skills to the mix and, in my opinion, she is an artist whose gigs should be on every rock fan's wish list.
Lose Control, Burn Your Anger and Take The Power were all stand-out tracks for me in what was a superbly judged show.
Brilliant.
