Blues-Rock Extravaganza: Jared James Nichols Lights Up Tufnell Park Dome. Gig Review

October 15, 2023 rocknews

We had been looking forward to this one since we reviewed Jared James Nichols supporting the Winery Dogs back in June, take a look here , and his headlining show at the Tufnell Park Dome was worth the wait.

First, though, we had two support acts to keep us entertained and warm up the growing crowd.

Doomsday Outlaw

Sheffield’s Doomsday Outlaw took to the stage first. Their short set went down a storm, and won them some new fans. New album ‘Damaged Goods’, their first since 2018’s ‘Hard Times’, got plenty of airtime but we got a career-spanning set from all four of their albums. New songs ‘Turn Me Loose’ and ‘If This is the End’ blended seamlessly with the old-school feel of ‘Blues for a Phantom Limb’. This quintet ooze blues-rock sleaze, with the singer Phil putting us in mind of Chris Robinson and David Coverdale.

Doomsday Outlaw have been on the radar for quite a few years, and it’s easy to see why they are making a name for themselves in the blues-rock space. Bassist Indy, Alez and Rowan (guitars), Nic (drums) and Phil have musicianship and attitude in spades. We thoroughly enjoyed their set.

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DeWolff

Next up were Dutch psychedelic trio DeWolff, and boy did they take the roof off! The front of the crowd were singing along, fists in the air and showing the band a lot of love.

They have developed their classic sound since their appearance on the scene in 2007 through a slew of albums and live performances. Guitarist / vocalist Pablo, drummer Luka and Robin on the Hammond organ blazed through a short set that drew from this years ‘Love, Death and In Between’. Both ‘Night Train’ and ‘Will o’ the Wisp’ blended with older material in their inimitable style. Closing track ‘Deceit and Woo’ felt like it was never going to end – and we got the feeling the crowd didn’t want it to. They left the stage a sweaty mess to rapturous applause, and they’d earned it.

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Jared James Nichols

Jared James Nichols is one of the happiest performers we’ve seen! He is a joy to watch, and clearly loves being on stage with bassist Louis Collins and drummer Ryan Rice playing their unique brand of blues-rock that has been thrilling audiences for almost a decade.

This headline performance is his only London date of this tour, and the crowded Dome meant that his audience weren’t going to miss it.

Nichols is supremely talented, and plays his Les Paul (He is one of only four guitarists to be awarded the accolade of Gibson global ambassador) with such passion. A mix of ferocious riffing and gentle, almost tender picking sets him apart from his contemporaries and it’s mesmerising to witness.

Both he and Collins bring the energy and they move around the stage like men possessed, working the crowd and making the sort of human connection you only get in venues like this, where the front row are pinned to the front of the stage.

His new, self-titled album featured heavily in the set, with eight songs getting the live treatment. They sound great on the album, but live, songs like opener ‘Easy Come Easy Go’, latest single ‘Down the Drain’ and ‘Shadow Dancer’ take on a whole new life. Nichols’ energy, musicianship and obvious pleasure shining through.

The set went by in a blur and before we knew it we were at the encore – a spectacular reimagining of the Black Sabbath classic ‘War Pigs’.

The crowd who were at the Dome tonight witnessed something very special. We suspect the next time Jared James Nichols is in London he will be playing to much bigger crowds – and quite right too!.

Jared James Nichols is on tour in the UK and Europe until October 25th, then across the USA for the rest of 2023 and into 2024. https://www.jaredjamesnichols.com/#page-section-609d6df2ac2411726898cbcd