Volbeat, Skindred, Napalm Death – OVO Hydro Glasgow – 15th December 2022

Opening up the night are Napalm Death originally from the West Midlands and with this present lineup for approx the last 20 odd years enter the OVO Hydro.

Guitar player Mitch Harris doesn’t have his troubles to seek over the first 3 tracks of the set ‘Silence is Deafening’, the rapid fire of ‘Contagion’ and ‘Scum’ with equipment challenges getting into the way of his guitar playing.

This settles down and ‘Amoral’, ‘The Kill’ and ‘Suffer the Children’ fill the middle of this 8-song set which closes with ‘Dead’ and their legendary cover version of the Dead Kennedys ‘Nazi Punks F.. Off’. They play fast as you like rock n roll that doesn’t take any prisoners, believe me, you need a rest after watching them blast it out.

 

Skindred from Wales is one of those bands that I’ve never been able to see live so waited expectantly to see them hit the stage. Thankfully they had access to the stage/crowd walkways that allowed the enigmatic frontman Benji Webbe to make full use of the set. The band entered to the sounds of the Star Wars ‘Imperial March’ soundtrack and launched straight into a great 9 song set kicking off with ‘Stand for Something’. Following this up with ‘Ratrace’, ’That’s My Jam’, then a bit of Van Halen ‘Jump’ with ‘ Jump Around’, which the crowd certainly did. Benji is a great frontman and can motivate the crowd perfectly.

‘LOVE’, ‘Kill the Power’ then my favourite song of their set ‘Gimmee That Boom’ keep the tempo going. Closing their appearance with ‘Nobody’ and ‘Warning’, rounding off my enjoyable first-time experience.

 

Enter into the arena headliners Volbeat as part of the ‘Servant of the Road’ tour.

Formed in Denmark in 2001 they make a welcome return to Glasgow, launching immediately straight into ‘The Devil’s Bleeding Crown’ from the ‘Seal The Deal & Lets Boogie‘ released in 2016, probably my favourite release from them.

The first thing that struck me was the mightily impressive visual displays that the band have in place. Full screens behind the drum riser, alongside the backline and above the stage, with the walkways stretching out into the crowd and excellent sound quality all contributed to producing the full entertainment package, tremendous.

Next up from ‘Rewind, Replay, Rebound’ from 2019 is ‘Pelvis on Fire’. Michael Poulsen (Guitar/vocals) then introduces ‘Temple of Ekur’ from last year’s ‘Servant of the Mind’, the album that is currently being toured to promote. He also lets the Glasgow crowd know that he’s not feeling too great under the weather and has just flown back into the UK from a short trip home, but keeps the show moving on. ‘ Lola Montez’ the upbeat feel good 1990s type rock tune fills the Glasgow air, again great visual displays on-screen accompany it. This is the only selection of the night from the 2013 album ‘Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies’ and is one of the tracks of the night.

‘Last Day Under The Sun’ from ‘Rewind..’, always reminds me of producing a cool festival-type vibe and rattles around the OVO Hydro perfectly. Michael may not be feeling too great but the performance is still top-notch.

The 6th of this strong 16-song set, ‘Fallen’ from ‘Beyond Hell/Above Heaven’, supports Michael’s guitar work throughout this great song, fellow guitar player Robert Caggiano, produces some brilliant licks that complement it well. Out comes the acoustic guitar with some Johnny Cash melody to begin with at the start of ‘Sad Man’s Tongue’ from ‘Rock The Rebel/Metal The Devil’, then switches back to electric with full-on fast-paced rock n roll, another highlight from the night.

‘Wait a Minute My Girl’ from ‘Servant…’ keeps the fast pace going, and sees Michael still cranking out quality vocals. The exceptional rhythm section with Jon Larsen (Drums), Kaspar Boye Larsen (Bass) sets the pace of the night and supports the two guitar players perfectly.

‘Black Rose’ from ‘Seal…’ is up next and my favourite album song since I started listening to Volbeat. Has everything, great lyrics, musicianship and goes down well with the Hydro crowd. First time I’ve heard it live since my last outing to see Volbeat in 2017, great song. The moody ‘Step into Light’ also from ‘Servant…’ is up next, followed by the pure metal of ‘Seal The Deal’ the title track from the 2016 release and my song of the night.

The brilliant visual displays continue, as huge ‘Volbeat’ logo balloons get punched and bopped above the heads of the standing crowd.

The official set closes with ‘The Devil Rages On’ from ‘Servant..’, then it’s over to the encore with the Glasgow crowd wanting more.

A 4 song encore, kicked off with ‘Let it Burn’ from ‘Seal…’, ‘Die to Live’ from ‘Rewind..’ , pure power of ‘Pool of Booze, Booze, Booze’ and set closer ‘Still Counting’.

 

This was a good show from Volbeat, although I did feel at some points over the set the atmosphere in the crowd was sometimes flat, but can’t let that distract from a band delivering a solid rock show. Get well soon Michael, and get back to Glasgow soon.