Robert John & The Wreck

Artists: Robert John & The Wreck

Venue: Holmfirth Picturedrome

Date: 27 April 2025

"At the very end, after the four other musicians had left the stage, the frontman, dripping in sweat, held his guitar aloft, thanked the crowd and said, “We are Robert Jon & The Wreck.” Indeed, they were and those who saw them this evening will not forget them in a hurry. Another big step in the rise up the popularity ladder."

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If there was a league table for the hardest working bands, then Californian Southern rockers Robert Jon & The Wreck would be a permanent fixture in the Champions League positions. They tour Europe and the UK at least once a year and are continually writing songs and releasing new albums. Every tour sees the Southern rockers playing in larger venues, and tonight they were at the 690-capacity Holmfirth Picturedrome, which was very close to full capacity. For this evening, I positioned myself upstairs, looking down on main man Robert Jon Burrison (lead vocals, guitar) centre-stage.

At eight-thirty, the band members casually strolled on to the stage, setlists in hand, picked up their instruments and launched into set opener ‘Hold On’ from last year’s ‘Red Moon Rising’ album. There was no support this evening, which afforded the band time for a one-hour-and-forty-minute, fourteen-song set. Unlike most of their contemporaries, their setlist changes for each tour, indeed each night, which keeps it fresh, although on the downside, some personal favourites do end up getting dropped.

‘Trouble’ saw the first of many blistering guitar solos from Henry James Schneekluth (lead guitar, backing vocals). Contrary to the guitarist’s showmanship, the rhythm section of Andrew Espantman (drums, backing vocals) and Warren Murrel (bass, backing vocals) kept it plain and simple, but oh so effective. At the end of the song, RJ looked out at the sea of fans in almost disbelief and said, “Where did you all come from?” Then, to massive cheers, they launched into the Skynyrd-like ‘Blame It On The Whiskey’. New song ‘Highway’ had a real Thin Lizzy vibe, whilst Jake Abernathie (keyboards, backing vocals) provided the intro to another new song ‘Ashes In The Snow’, which also featured some outstanding slide guitar by the Afro-haired James.

Robert Jon admitted, “Wasn’t sure where Holmfirth was, but after seeing you all in this room, I’d love to come back,” quickly followed by, “I know where it is now!” An extended version of ‘Red Moon Rising’ featured both keyboard and guitar solos. I have to say I’ve never heard the band sounding better, so it was rather prudent that RJ announced that this was Eamon’s (sound monitoring) last ever show after ten years. They dedicated the hard rockin’ ‘Sittin’ Pretty’ to the engineer. The latter was the third song of the evening from the forthcoming album ‘Heartbreaks & Last Goodbyes’, which by the quality of these tracks is shaping up to be another belter.

Espantman’s drum solo followed by another James’ guitar solo led into the anthemic ‘Don’t Let Me Go’. Now, those that have read any of my reviews will recognise my quote “worth the admission price alone” and tonight was no exception as we were treated to my all-time favourite Robert Jon & The Wreck song ‘Gold’; RJ’s impassioned vocals were simply breathtaking, and I was not alone in my thinking by the reception he and the band received at the end of the sublime rendition. “Are you ready to sing? Are you all warmed up?” The Holmfirth collective didn’t need asking twice as the crowd sang along to another fan-favourite ‘Oh Miss Carolina’.

Henry James’ guitar solo paved the way for ‘Ballad Of The Broken Hearted Man’ as the Southern rockers kept on knockin’ ‘em out of the park. Robert Jon introduced his fellow bandmates during an impromptu jam session, which led directly into the Allman Brothers-flavoured ‘Cold Night’, with yet another stellar solo from James and keyboard solo from Abernathie, back to duelling solos between the two talented musicians. After over ten minutes the song finally concluded with the band receiving a standing ovation, before briefly leaving the stage. They were back within a few minutes for a deserved two-song encore starting with ‘Do You Remember’ from their 2020 ‘Last Light On The Highway’ opus. The crowd started clapping in unison as the whole evening was brought to a fitting finale with the rockin’ and rollin’ title track of their 2021 oeuvre ‘Shine A Light On Me Brother’. It included a reiteration of the band introductions with further solos from each of the members. At the very end, after the four other musicians had left the stage, the frontman, dripping in sweat, held his guitar aloft, thanked the crowd and said, “We are Robert Jon & The Wreck.” Indeed, they were and those who saw them this evening will not forget them in a hurry. Another big step in the rise up the popularity ladder.

Setlist

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Review: Mark Donnelly

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Location:

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