The GODS 2002
Pennington’s
Bradford 2nd, June 2002

This year’s GODS show was held in Bradford. Yes, Bradford. Many attendees had made the trip early to attend the pre-show party featuring Shotgun Symphony. Sadly, too appropriate. There were news reports that 4 people had been gunned down in a shoot-out the night before the gig. A police statement assured the populace that there would be armed patrols the following night. I can bear witness to this. Many of us watched as an “armed response” vehicle flew by the venue at a high speed, followed by an ambulance. And so, on to the show.

The actual venue was absolutely perfect for a 14 hour+ show (not including the England vs Sweden match being shown before the gig). With its many levels, ample seating, decent loos (complete with fish-pond), in-house chippy, and numerous bars, P’s is one of the most impressive venues I have ever seen. The venue seemed to swallow the crowd with great ease. I am actually looking forward to attending the next GODS at the same location.

Now, onto the 14 hours of hard rock that filled the day. Pulse began the day with a competent set of blues-edged hard rock. The band were still getting used to their brand new singer and Ten’s former keyboardist. Those who attended the previous year’s gig assured me the band showed great improvement. The band were lumbered with having to overcome the malaise of a crowd who had just watched England’s disappointing match performance. The band played several songs from their debut as well as a few new tracks.

What followed came close to eliminating much of the improved mood of the crowd. Bailey’s Comet delivered an appallingly bad set. Tony Martin (Black Sabbath, The Cage) as their vocalist did not improve things, as his voice did not raise the overall level of the performance. The band should have been run out of town for their dire rendition of Sabbath’s “Headless Cross” and Blue Murder’s “Valley of the Kings”. The audience was relieved when this lot finished. How this band got a higher billing than Pulse is a mystery.

Shotgun Symphony could do no wrong with their set and the level of performance to that point had been set pretty low. The band produced a stellar set which got everybody back in the mood to rock. There is no doubt SS are a great band, and their live performance proved it. This tight professional group got the crowd going with music from their Now & Then albums, as well as debuting material from Tracy White’s (vocals) solo album. The performance was all the more special as it was SS’s last ever gig as a band. Sad that they are no more. But we can be assured that their parts will continue to produce great music under many other banners.

Honeymoon Suite were next up and came across as a tad limp. The crowd was a bit indifferent to the arrogant Canucks as they debuted new material very few had ever heard before. While it could be said many in the crowd were unfamiliar with the group’s 80s hits, those of us who knew them then would have upped the tempo a tad. Once they began playing their older music the crowd got going. The solos the band indulged in nullified the mood. It was only the last three from the 80s ending with “New Girl Now” that really got it right. A mixed performance that. One soon forgotten.

After an extended interval, Jeff Scott Soto appeared to remind us all why the hell we were there in the first place. From the opening note to the amazing finale of Rising Force’s “I’ll See the Light”, JSS had the entire crowd eating out of his hand. This best of gig show was a stunning piece of showmanship that left many wondering why he was so far down the playing order. The gig was a bit of a greatest-hits performance featuring material from both his solo albums and his time with Eyes, Talisman, and Humanimal. The band was tighter than a Scot’s wallet, and Howie Simon (Tamplin) on guitar was stunning. Pontis, from Humanimal, joined JSS on stage. JSS also treated the audience to an acoustic medley of some of his more famous ballads including cover of Seal’s “Crazy” and the stunning “Nobody Said”. He left the crowd panting for more. For good measure, he spent several of the breaks outside the venue, where many of us were getting fresh air, signing autographs and chatting to punters. (Yeah alright, chatting up the crumpet as we…bastard!)

Eric Martin, sans Mr Big, had the task of following JSS. Quite frankly he did not quite live up to the task. He produced a lack-lustre set, even downright boring at times. His band were a bunch of faceless dummies who played flawless if uninspired music. He made the crucial mistake of leading off with new material, which most of the crowd had not heard, instead of beginning with some more recognisable Mr Big music. In fact, the only time he really got the crowd going was when he sang the huge hit “To Be With You”. Interestingly enough, he got JSS and Catley (Magnum) on stage for this cracking finale.

AOR darlings Harem Scarem made their UK debut next and did not disappoint one bit. The crowd was with them the whole time as they played music from their recent Now & Then release and their extensive back catalogue. They even dared to play a few tracks from their Rubber iteration. The announcement of this was greeted with one cheer. The band were tight as hell and produced a brilliant set that had the entire crowd going. Many wondered aloud why HS were not given a long set in the end. HS held their own against several great bands.

Ten followed HS and proceeded to bore many in the crowd senseless. Ten, led by Gary Hughes, have zero stage presence. The are extremely competent musicians, but live, not terribly inspiring. There was a fair percentage of the crowd that left the venue during the band’s set, preferring fresh air to the band. The band played material from a wide range of their albums, including their widely acclaimed release on Now & Then, “Far Beyond the World”. Trust me on this one. Buy their albums. Just don’t go see them live. Definitely, they are one of the few bands that were not meant for live performance.

Headlining the show was the triumphant return of Hardline after 11 years. As one could expect they played virtually all of “Double Eclipse”, their debut. They debuted several tracks from their forthcoming release, “II”. As one of the new tracks was featured on a recent Now & Then compilation, only two tracks were not known. Needless to say, the band have wisely stuck to a winning formula. It was as if grunge had never happened. The band knew they had to pull out all the stops. They provided us with 9 on stage. 2 female and 1 male back-up singers complemented the band which now features the talents of former Nelson drummer Bob Rock and former The Storm/Two Tribes guitarist Josh Ramos. It was obvious the band were well rehearsed. This truly stunning performance was enhanced by Johnny Giolli’s brilliant vocals. Ramos was a more than an adequate replacement for Neal Schon. It is a great shame that due to time constraints, the band were unable to do an encore. If it had not been for Jeff Scott Soto’s stunning set, these guys would have been the best band on the day. Still, they lived up to the hype and delivered a cracking set. The crowd were with them all the way.

All in all, it was a brilliant 10th anniversary gig. The throngs headed off into the very early morning hours. While not necessarily agreeing on who was best, they all agreed that the GODS 2002 truly rocked!

My thanks to Mark Ashton and his team at Now & Then for everything. I can’t wait to make the long trek up to Bradford, though perhaps with some kevlar protection, for the GODS 2002 Part 2!