LIVE REVIEW : DAN BAIRD AND HOMEMADE SIN AT THE 100 CLUB 01/12/2013

Another Sunday night gig  but this one couldn't have been more different than the Autumn Defence show last week. I had heard of Dan Baird and The Georgia Satellites previously as I used to read French magazine Crossroads that championed them pretty often. I was browsing gig listings a couple of weeks ago when I noticed him and his backing band Homemade Sin were playing two nights in a row at the 100 Club on Oxford Street. I checked a couple of songs on you tube and decided that at 15 pounds the ticket it was definitely worth checking them out.

I arrived at the venue just before 8PM thinking that as it was a Sunday gig, it might start early but discovered that I was there 15 mins before the opening act was due to start. The 100 Club is a bit tired looking, I was expecting something similar to The Jazz Cafe in Camden but it was a lot rougher. Opening act was a hard rock cover act (apologies to them, I forgot their name) that featured an ex Judas Priest drummer (recently recruited apparently). Apart from the last song ("Breaking the Law" by Judas Priest) I didn't recognize any of the numbers.

Dan Baird and his 3 piece band came on stage rather casually, they just sound-checked and when everybody was ready started their set straight away. The rhythm section is made of 2 ex-members of The Georgia Satellites : Keith Christopher (bass and impeccably dressed) and Mauro Magellan (drums). The other guitar is played by Warner Hodges who also a member of Jason and The Scorchers. The venue wasn't full (150-200 people when the club can accommodate 350) , maybe most of the fans came to see the Saturday night show ? The sound in the club wasn't the best and Baird was struggling with his monitors and his mic for quite a few songs at the start of the gig. After a change of microphone, things were better but still a bit cavernous (I'd love to hear how they would have sounded in a place like The Half Moon or The Lexington). I'm not familiar at all with their back catalogue but I recognized the cover versions of "Don't Pass Me By" and "Quinn The Eskimo (Mighty Quinn)". The band definitely models itself on the Rolling Stones pre 1973 with a bit of Hard Rock thrown in. The chemistry between band members is is clearly evident, a fact that's highlighted by the great guitar interplay between Hodges and Baird. Their seemed to be a little tension between Christopher and Baird after the second told the first to bring down his volume after the first couple of songs (end of the tour nerves maybe ?). I've got a feeling that I should have gone to the Saturday night gig. The band comes to London every December so I'll make sure I see them again to form a final opinion (and I'll check out their albums too).