THUNDER - DAN REED

Tonight, we are in the stunning surroundings of this purpose-built theater in Gateshead, The Sage is a venue most artists would kill to get the opportunity to play within.

As the final few shuffle in and take their seats Dan Reed wanders onto the stage to entertain us with a short acoustic set, this man is no stranger to the stripped back intimate acoustic show it’s just more of a question as to if this will translate to a much larger stage. There was no need to panic though as Dan is such a presence and he starts the set with ‘Only Love’, the acoustics of the building perfectly suiting his vocal prowess.

With little time to talk he next plays Network song ‘Champion’. It’s surprising to hear the reaction as he introduces ‘Rainbow Child’, obviously more than a few fans in the building and everyone willing to participate in the singalong that ensues mid song.

‘Stronger Than Steel’ follows and goes further to showcase Dan’s incredible range, a cover of Dio’s Holy Diver is next, and you could honestly hear a pin drop on the quieter sections.

‘Get to You’ from the golden years of the Network gets everyone clapping along and as time ebbs away Dan puts down his guitar and ends his set with a vocal performance which in my opinion is second to none as he sings ‘All My Lovin’, seriously a hair up on the back of your neck moment. Before you know it the set is over and with a theatre length intermission the lights again go down.

Without a doubt Thunder were taking a risk with this particular project, taking familiar and surefire classic songs and reworking them into a simpler but altogether different state was a brave move indeed, speaking with them individually last night after the show they were not certain that the fanbase would warm to the new versions, but they needn’t have panicked.

Danny and Luke take the stage as we settle into a long-seated performance, the album is called Please Remain Seated after all.

‘Love Walked In’ sounds just as relevant without the bombast of a fully electric backline, it’s still familiar enough to nod along to and were off. Ironically ‘Stand Up’ is next with the rest of the band making it onstage and you can see were not the only ones feeling a little uncomfortable at having to remain stationary as Danny shuffles to all corners of his seat. ‘River of Pain’ has a great groove and showcases Danny’s immense vocal ability, I’m not about to recount every track played, safe to say we had a lot of variation in music and also theme with the band acknowledging Jazz as well as Blues to breathe new life into these much loved tunes, ‘Higher Ground’ is upbeat while ‘Empty City’ paints a sad image with the track taking on a much more atmospheric twist.

‘Bigger Than the Both of Us’ swings along in fine form, I have to say I actually prefer this to the original, ‘Serpentine’ from the band’s Wonder Days album closes the main set and in such a fine way too, I’d forgotten how much I loved this particular song.

After a few moments the band return to the stage and after a few false starts Luke finally finds the right key as they play Robert Johnson’s Tombstone, out of all the songs tonight this one finds the perfect balance for a crowd that would just love to get up n throw some shapes.

‘She’s So Fine’ again outstanding followed by ‘Resurrection Day’ which also benefitted from the reworked arrangement and here we are at the final encore, ‘Low Life in High Places’ delivered on every level, Danny encouraging the crowd to sing the chorus before a lit backdrop revealed the Thunder Choir winging and clapping along, Dan Reed stood in the middle of them all and clearly loving every minute.

The band take their bows to rapturous applause and finally the crowd are stood cheering them off.

All in all a great evening, the band have succeeded in delivering something a little bit special.

With plans already afoot to record a new studio album the future is looking busy for these boys, I know that whilst this has been an interesting departure, they are more than ready to become re-electrified and soon!
SF