Blog Post
DeWolff /Silveroller - Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh 14th March 2024
Live Review by Iain McArthur • 17 March 2024
It was a wet night in Edinburgh and colder than a penguin’s balls but support band Silveroller certainly did their job of warming-up a decent-sized crowd in style with a toasty-hot set of retro-rock. Actually, to call them retro is something of an understatement as they looked like they might have arrived in the Tardis rather than a tour bus and between them all, they had more hair than a 70s porno movie with some luxurious bouffant-ness plus double-denim, cravats and a selection of tunes that Bad Company would have been proud of and some that delved back even further to evoke The Doors or Free.
The band turn in a quite glorious set, based around their very recently released 6-track album / EP ‘At Dawn’. Jonnie Hodson is a real star on vocals, mouth organ and sartorial splendour and is an engaging presence throughout. Kudos also to Ross Munro on keyboards who plays a big part in creating the band’s signature sound.
There is one slightly familiar face on show. Once upon a time, Aaron Keylock was a much-hyped teenage blues guitar wannabe. Back then, the young man never really looked like he’d had a hard paper round, and that can be a hindrance in the blues world, but now he’s all grown up, paid his dues, grown some facial hair and he fits right in here, in fact, he really looks like he’s finally found his best groove, not least on ‘Other Side’ where he takes his guitar and slides it in right to the top and ‘Come On, Come In’ where he releases his inner-Kossoff in fine style. Being part of an act that doesn’t have his name in the title seems to suit him and it looks like he welcomes having Hodson take a turn in the spotlight and sharing the attention.
They finish up a short and sweet set by getting their rocks off on ‘Hold’. They are certainly a band I will be watching out for and would like to see again. Jonnie encouraged folks to keep in touch by following them on social media but in view of their vintage chic, I would actually expect to get some telegrams and faxes from them. Back to the future indeed.
There are only three guys in DeWolff but they make a mighty fine noise and I think the keyboard player might actually have had an extra arm based on the way he fills out the band’s sound.
I have seen their music described as heavy psych-blues but you definitely don’t have to be off your tits to enjoy the fabulous noise that these guys make. The fabulous Soul / RnB splendour of opening track ‘Night Train’ immediately defies that description and they go on to deliver exactly the ‘Heart Stopping Kinda Show’ they promised in the second song of the set.
Frontman Pablo van de Poel commands the stage with an engaging turn as a rock & roll evangelist and the band morph increasingly into a vintage jam band as the set rolls on and the songs get extended even further, culminating in a multi-faceted freak out on the epic Rosita. It is a fine blend between showcasing outstanding musicality and highlighting catchy songs such as ‘Double Crossing Man’ but there is something here for everyone to get their teeth into.
These Netherlands guys have quietly been building up a following with their live shows. Pablo reminisced about early gigs in front of around ten punters but there was a fair-sized and highly appreciative crowd in tonight. Maybe by the time that the proposed Martin Delaney Arena in Edinburgh Park is completed in a few years they might be up for filling that if they maintain this trajectory and quality.