FM, Del Bromham & Simon Rinaldo.
Lev 2 Esquires Friday 13th March 2015.
For live gigs in 2015, things have been a bit barren so far on the prestigious Esquires main stage. More and more shows are being held downstairs where the inferior surroundings have the feel of a fifties function hall. Thankfully FM, in conjunction with Pete Burridge, have delivered a real stonker of a Friday night for all the local AOR and melodic rock fans who are usually starved of this particular avenue of music in Bedford. A turnout of just over half capacity is certainly not the best reward for a lot of hard work and effort. It is especially disappointing when you consider the magnitude of reputation that FM have built up since their formation back in 1984. In their early days they had been touted as this country's answer to Bon Jovi. Fleeting album success followed, but the band finally imploded in 1995 when Britpop and grunge were at their full zenith.
Their comeback was sealed when they played a momentous last minute replacement slot at the 2010 Download Festival. As we journey through the second half of this decade, FM's stock has possibly never been higher in their entire career and they have a busy touring schedule. More at home in large arenas and stadiums, this is somewhat of a rarity for them to play in a tiny intimate club, sometimes endearingly known as the 'toilet venues'. Although Esquires is handicapped by a lack of decent sound and light equipment and a stage that has not changed in over twenty years, the five piece take it in their stride. This gig has primarily occurred due to the sterling efforts of FM keyboardist Jem Davis who is a local lad.
The vibe and mood had been set before any musicians had picked up their instruments as the constant and nostalgic sounds of eighties AOR cascades around the room, especially Foreigner's classic "Urgent". With their own soundman at the controls, the FM roadcrew specifically asked the lighting lady to effect a most startling and atmospheric intro in combination with the band's own audio welcome. "Tough love" is a laid back opener and is the first of a few tracks taken from the album "Rockville", which Classic Rock magazine listed in their top fifty of 2013. Vocalist, songwriter, guitarist and founding member Mr Steve Overland is our genial host for the evening. He effortlessly acts as the vocal conduit between band and audience. I always like a friendly informative face at the helm for an evening such as this (Bedford Esquires are spoilt in this respect as we are used to the witty charm of Spike when The Quireboys are in town).
"Good evening, how you all doing?" he pleasantly enquires. He tells us that this is the band's "first gig of the year". FM have obviously thought long and hard about tonight's set list and the balance of old and new appears to be just about right for their followers. The early days of firstly "Indiscreet" bring "I belong to the night" and "That girl". The follow up album "Tough it out" sees them performing, amongst others, "Don't stop" and "Burning my heart down". However, don't imagine that this is a nostalgic walk down eighties memory lane as FM creatively continue to write new material. This year sees the release of new album "Heroes and villains". The aforementioned Classic Rock has already described it as "possibly their finest to date" and the band have spent the last six months recording. The first track to get highlighted is called "Digging up the dirt". It induces more handclapping and, I feel, possesses a sound faintly reminiscent of Def Leppard's "Hysteria" era. Although FM follow the same melodic formula throughout their performance, there is more than a whiff of country rock about "Crosstown train" which comes at the fag end of their set. After a dozen songs FM leave the stage to cheers, however they soon reappear for an encore. This three song bonus firstly sees Jem leave his trusty 'big box of tricks' and strap on a keytar, enabling him to dance jauntily about the stage. The final highlight of the evening comes when Bedford's 'adopted' Welsh songstress Cherry Lee Mewis joins the band for a rousing and fun-filled rendition of Rod Stewart's 1978 hit "Hot legs". Everyone on stage looks to be having tremendous fun during this. Credit must go to the band who adapted so well to these small and alien surroundings. FM, no static at all!
Support tonight is provided by DEL BROMHAM of Stray and SIMON RINALDO of Pearl Handled Revolver. They offer up musically stripped down versions of their respective bands repertoires and a few covers. Armed with his trusty guitar, Del is strident with "The devils highway" and "I believe it". Dark haired Simon sits in front of his Wurlitzer piano to enchant us, especially on the divine "Robin's garden". The combination works well and is further enhanced by Mr Bromham's between song comments. He informs the crowd "if you throw money, make sure it's notes. They don't hurt"! Prior to "The ballad of JD" he tells us the story of the sad demise of the legendary whiskey maker who died from gangrene of the foot after kicking a safe. This esteemed musician also recalls seeing Steve Winward at Dunstable's California Ballroom when Del was just sixteen. His most observant quote is when he and Simon get ready to perform "No quarter". With a mischievous grin, the Stray frontman states "This was by a band called Led Zeppelin and I think they're going to do quite well"! In fact, very much like these two marvellous and skilled musicians who earned some meaty applause at the close of the set.
Review by Martin Stapleton. www.bedfordalternativemusic.co.uk