Live Review: Drive By Truckers @ The Empire.

by | May 19, 2014

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

I had never seen Georgia based band Drive By Truckers before, and I was extremely excited to photograph and experience a night of live music at Shepherds Bush Empire. The band’s music dates back three decades now and I spent the days prior to the show catching up on the music I was previously unfamiliar with.

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

The show was the closing date of their UK tour and it looked to be a really cracking gig with the crowd at the Empire  eager for some great rock music.

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

Heartless Bastards, a four piece from Ohio, opened the show up. Front-lady Erika Wennerstrom delivered a powerful performance with a strong stage presence. The opening act had a good mix of blues and country music and I would recommend giving them a listen.

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

Heartless Bastards play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

The now packed venue greeted the band with a roar as Drive By Truckers casually entered the stage. Vocalists Mike Cooley and Patterson Hood rotated vocal duties, with Cooley opening the set up with Made Up English Oceans from their 12th album English Oceans, followed by Patterson with Girls Who Smoke.

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

Some of the many highlights of the show were the great southern drawl cover Play It All Night Long written by Warren Zevon with the chorus  line “Sweet Home Alabama, play that dead band’s song” and the  song Lookout Mountain from the 2004 album The Dirty South. If  you have never been to Lookout Mountain in Georgia then Google it to see what they are sing about…watch out for that drop.

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

The band played for about two hours building up a wholesome sweat, dedicating the emotional closing song ‘Grand Canyon‘ to a friend of the band, Craig Lieske, who died last year.

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

Drive By Truckers play Shepherds Bush Empire (Solange Moreira-Yeoell)

Live review and photographs by Solange Moreilla-Yeoell. Drive By Truckers @ Shepherds Bush Empire 13th May 2014.

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000UDZhuMOHjxk” g_name=”Drive-By-Truckers” f_show_caption=”t” f_show_slidenum=”t” img_title=”casc” pho_credit=”iptc” f_link=”t” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”t” f_fullscreen=”t” f_show_watermark=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_mtrx=”t” fsvis=”f” width=”600″ height=”450″ f_constrain=”t” bgcolor=”#ffffff” bgtrans=”t” btype=”new” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” crop=”f” twoup=”t” trans=”flip” tbs=”4000″ f_ap=”t” linkdest=”c” f_topbar=”f” f_bbar=”f” f_bbarbig=”” f_smooth=”f” f_up=”f” target=”_self” ]

 

LØLØ @ Electric Ballroom (Kalpesh Patel)

LØLØ Brings Catharsis, Chaos And Confetti To Camden’s Electric Ballroom

“Holy shit, this is insane!” exclaims LØLØ as she stares out across a packed Electric Ballroom. “On my last tour, London was the best show and I can already tell that this is gonna be the best show.” By the end of the night, few inside Camden’s famed venue would argue otherwise.

Sophie Grey @ Hammersmith Apollo (Kalpesh Patel)

SOPHIE GREY. Expands Her ‘Retro Electro’ Universe With New Single ‘Cyberspace’

Rising electronic pop innovator SOPHIE GREY. has unveiled her bold new single Cyberspace, arriving alongside a visually striking new video and a packed run of international live dates for 2026.

Cody Simpson (Rashaun Richardson)

Cody Simpson Returns With Joyful New Singles ‘Baby Blue’ And ‘When It Comes To Loving You’

Australian singer-songwriter and multi-hyphenate Cody Simpson has officially stepped back into the music world with the release of his first new material in six years. Sharing the vibrant new singles Baby Blue and When It Comes To Loving You, Simpson marks the beginning of a fresh creative era following his remarkable chapter as an elite competitive swimmer.

The War And Treaty (Luke Rogers)

The War And Treaty Announce Star-Studded New Album ‘The Story Of Michael And Tanya’

Acclaimed husband-and-wife duo The War And Treaty have announced their signing to Atlantic Outpost alongside details of their forthcoming new album The Story Of Michael And Tanya, set for release on 19th June.

Angus & Julia Stone (Sean McDonald)

Angus & Julia Stone Announce New Album ‘Karaoke Bar’ And Share Dreamlike Title Track

Australian sibling duo Angus & Julia Stone have announced details of their forthcoming seventh studio album Karaoke Bar, set for release on 4th September, alongside unveiling the album’s warm and wistful title track.

Rosa Walton (Nicole Ngai)

Rosa Walton Shares Euphoric New Single ‘Heart To Heartbreak’ Ahead Of Debut Solo Album ‘Tell Me It’s A Dream’

Rosa Walton continues her emergence as one of the UK’s most compelling alternative pop voices with the release of her shimmering new single Heart To Heartbreak, the latest preview of her forthcoming debut solo album Tell Me It’s A Dream, arriving on 5th June.

Glu (David Dean)

GLU Shares Sun-Soaked New Single ‘LA’ Featuring Lily James Ahead Of New ‘PONY BOY’ EP

Michael Shuman – best known as bassist and songwriter with Queens Of The Stone Age and Mini Mansions – continues to carve out a bold creative identity with his solo project GLU, unveiling the shimmering new single LA featuring actor and singer Lily James.

SOFY (Oliver Day, ARLODAY)

SOFY Announces Debut Album ‘How To Perform Magic’ And Shares Defiant New Single ‘DooYaa’

Leicester-born, London-based rising star SOFY has announced details of her long-awaited debut album How To Perform Magic, arriving on 25th September. Alongside the announcement, she has unveiled the album’s lead single DooYaa, a sharp-edged blast of guitar-driven indie-pop that takes aim at industry nepotism and the frustrations of trying to survive as an independent artist.

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This

Share Thing