As a member of the successful hard rock / heavy metal team VOODOO SIX, Glasgow-born guitarist MATT PEARCE has supported Iron Maiden on the tour and appeared in front of tens of millions of fans around the world.
But after having left the tatters of a tired relationship eighteen months ago, he found himself at a crossroads in his life: “I felt disobedient… I felt defiant… I felt I had to mutiny…” He says he had always engaged with funky bands like Little Feat, Gov’t Mule and Tedeschi Trucks, so he began to bring together some of his own funk, blues and soul songs for a solo album, released in 2019, titled “Gotta Get Home”
On Thursday we saw MATT PEARCE AND THE MUTINY perform their first major head-lining show in London in the neat place formerly known as Thousand Island and now reconsidered as The Grace (in other words, Upstairs at The Garage) — and above an explosive concert “Thunder” in the main showroom. So it was genuinely a case of lightning above, Thunder below…
A friendly atmosphere of bonhomie spread across the Islington upper-room venue when Matt came out to greet fans before the main show. He’s not only a prodigiously talented and highly polished musician, but perhaps more importantly, he comes across as a genuinely warm and relatable human being who has a keen sense of humility and a noble and relentlessly sincere state-of-mind.
With special guests including the impressive flame-haired songstress Daliah Sherrington, and a dose of sexy-fab sax work by (brother ☺ ) Chris Backhouse this was one helluva ride: If you can imagine Peter Green (with the voice of Joe Walsh) playing groovy jams along with Bootsy’s Rubber Band, you wouldn’t be far from describing the bouncy elan on stage on Thursday night at The Grace.
The show opened-up with the funky dance-rock number “Scarecrowing” with chewy organ, scorching rhythms and bright accompaniments. It was an expressive power-packet of damn sexy beats and sineralative emotions.
Soon after , we were treated to the the roguish and delicious: “Like a Hammer” with chorus that burst forth to obliterate, perhaps, the concealed reflexivity of the lyrics.
And the slide-driven raw blues of “Gotta Get Home” reminded us of something from Elmore James, with slippery organ sounds, spongy rhythms and a swampy feeling in general .
“Set me Free” towards the end was molten glory… a painful and plaintively lyrical treasure-box that yielded, despite the sense of confinement, a vivacious liberation that brought us bounteous delight.
This was a show that merged smoky blues with Philadelphia soul, and included a touch of Soul Survivors and even the sexy push of The Brothers Johnson to create a variety of funkadelic vibrations that were all beautifully crafted and performed, by the Mutineers, with enthusiastic excellence.
Gotta Get Home by Matt Pearce & The Mutiny is OUT NOW
Words & Pictures by @neilmach 2019 ©
Link: https://www.facebook.com/mattpearceguitar/
RAW RAMP 