REVIEW – The Alex Voysey Trio & Hardwicke Circus @ LSBC, Con Club, Devizes – Saturday 19th November 2022

Double-header, Double the Fun!

by Andy Fawthrop

In yet another busy musical weekend for Devizes, it was hard to choose where to go, with gigs all over the place. A nice problem to have I guess, but on Saturday night I threw my money into the Long Street Blues Club hat to see two bands that were completely new to me.…

First up was the Alex Voysey Trio. Alex had previously played the club back in February as support to Mike Zito. On that occasion he played a solo acoustic set and impressed enough to be invited back with his full trio. Alex has worked as a session and support musician to many big names in the business, and in many musical genres. He’s a passionate advocate for blues music, and used his trio to great effect here, covering both traditional numbers and to his own modern compositions.

With Paul Arthurs on drums and Ben Hands on bass, Alex hit the stage with a range of snappy and upbeat blues/ rock numbers. He soon had the crowd on-side, and used the opportunity to mix it up a little with a couple of slower, more laid-back numbers. His one-hour set was sound, competent and thoroughly professional, featuring some nice flourishes on lead guitar.

The second half featured the first D-town appearance for Carlisle-homed five-piece Hardwicke Circus who, quite rightly it seems to me, are being tipped for big things. They’ve already opened for mega stars such as Bob Dylan at Hyde Park and for Southside Johnny. Paul McCartney allegedly persuaded Glastonbury festival to get them to play, which they duly did. And it didn’t take long for everyone last night to see why they’re so well thought-of.

The band featured Jonny Foster (lead vocals and guitar), Tom Foster (drums and vocals), Joe Hurst (bass and vocals), Lewis Bewley-Taylor (keyboards), Jack Pearce (saxophones). This combination provided a great solid and multi-dimensional sound.

They’re a hard-working, hard-gigging band and it showed. They’re young, sparky, almost punky, occasionally poppy, accompanied by some healthy doses of attitude. But they’re very good, and they know it. Their sound is strong and fresh, and has brought comparisons to all sorts of bands. For me that included Dexys, Wilko Johnson, Madness, Fratellis – a little bit of something for everyone.

Straight from the off we knew we were in for a great set. Lots of heft and drive, fast numbers, no messing about. Loads of healthy banter with the crowd, and some well-placed audience participation in some of the choruses (“Hands Up, Don’t Shoot” springs to mind). There were plenty of good tunes, catchy hooks. No long intros, just plenty of songs packed into their 90-minute set. The crowd absolutely loved it, and an encore was never going to be in doubt. But what an encore! The band were joined on stage by Texan Joe King Carrascoa, guitarist and vocalist, and proceeded to deliver a six-song masterclass in how to play a crowd. In among there were a solid rendition of The Band’s “The Weight” and a stonking version of Gerry Rafferty’s “Baker Street”.

If the future of music is in the hands of bands like this, we really have nothing to worry about. This was an old-fashioned rock band in very capable young hands.