Live Review: Stonefield, King Of The North, Millar Jukes, The Bandits

The slightly awkward high school formal atmosphere, with people mainly lining the walls, is thankfully broken when Millar Jukes & The Bandits hit the stage. The group seem relaxed and stoked to be on the bill, glancing at each other and smiling. Jukes is an affable frontman who is at ease in his role. At one point during the set his mobile phone's alarm sounds – to literally remind him about tonight's gig – which he shrugs off with a laugh. The band have a blues-infused folk sound that works well with the melodic vocals of Jukes, whose pipes at times bring to mind a husky Caleb Followill.

With minimal fuss, King Of The North now proceed to level the stage with their pounding up-tempo stoner riffs. KOTN's vocalist/guitarist Andrew Higgs employs his loop pedal to great effect to give the duo's sound some added protein. Drummer Danny Leo brings the thunder, nailing his toms with hard-hitting rolls that fill the room. Higgs compensates for the lack of accompanying axemen by dominating the stage with his low-slung guitar. More Than You'll Ever Know adds swagger to their set and gives Higgs's vocal cords a good workout. “You want to hear a slow one or a fast one?” he asks the crowd, who respond with “FAST!” Requesting that the audience begin to actually act like they do and move forward, he jokes, “Don't make me get angry again!” Guitar feedback now introduces the frenetic Ride. Doing well to elicit some crowd participation this early on a Wednesday eve, the pair exit the stage having made their presence well and truly known. 

The four Findlay sisters, with Manny Bourakis on drums, make up the touring contingent that is Stonefield, and they serve blues-rock guitar up on a platter. The girls look like they've come straight from a party with Janis Joplin tonight, with their crushed velvet, leather fringing and long straight hair. Vocal harmonies flesh out the songs and Bourakis steps off the stage to allow lead vocalist Amy Findlay to get behind the kit for a cover of Steppenwolf's Magic Carpet Ride. Their own To The Mountains has Stonefield firing on all cylinders and Bad Reality sees the band stepping it up a notch. By now it seems the girls have well and truly found their groove and, with show closer Through The Clover, they sign off, having delivered a tight performance that belies the tenderness of their youth.