Nervous! That’s what I am right now as I’m typing this review, why you ask? Well, I’m a newcomer to this reviewing malarkey, for many, many years I’ve thought about what I’d write if I ever got the chance to say how this band and particular artist make me feel, whether it be through albums, gigs, or on a general day-to-day basis. Of course, I am talking about THE WiLDHEARTS and Ginger Wildheart. 

For those who know me, they will tell you my passion and borderline obsession with this band and the great man who has lived and breathed it, for anyone who doesn’t know me, I’ll try and summarise….. I was relatively late to the party being born in 89 I missed out on the madness of the 90’s but in the early 00’s I was introduced to them through my brother Mike and good friend Dom Daley, I think it might have been Vanilla Radio or Zomboid, one song the catchiest thing you’ll ever hear and the other a wall of noise, two songs that couldn’t be more different but that’s Ginger for you and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

I first got the chance to see The WiLDHEARTS in 2003 I believe, Cardiff Uni with Amen supporting, at the time believe it or not I’d have probably have said that the support band were the band I preferred, that ended that night….. roll on 23 years later and I can say I have seen Ginger live one way or another around the 40-50 times mark, not bad going yeah? I’ve lost count on the number of T-Shirts, Hoodies, CD’s, Cassettes, VHS and Records (That includes the holy grail of FFML on vinyl) I’ve collected over the years, I am well and truly all in on this band so to have to write a review that’s out there for fellow fans and possibly the band to see, yeah that’s why I’m nervous!!! 

I probably should get on with the review now….  Well okay so it’s about 7 months on since I last seen the band in Pontypridd and what a glorious night that was, during that said gig Ginger said on stage that he had been under the weather a few months later in March Ginger then announced the news that he has Mantle Cell Lymphoma, I like many was truly shocked and honestly didn’t have the words but Ginger the man he is has told everyone to be positive and celebrate so that’s what I am going to do and what this gig in Newport was! 

Hot on the heels off a Download festival set which by all counts went down a absolute storm (Ginger on his Patreon said it was his greatest moment on a Donnington stage) THE WiLDHEARTS a week later grace the stage in South Wales in the Newport Corn Exchange for a one day festival called Day Of Wreckoning, I’ll be honest I can’t comment on anything on else to do with the festival, I was just here for one thing and one thing only and that was to see the headliners (the classic t-shirt didn’t apply here, if you know you know ha ha). 

I make my way straight to the barrier and get chatting to fellow fans, we discuss the just announced Ginger Birthday Bash on December 17th and the glorious line up that has been assembled for which I truly cannot wait for, ticket and hotel already sorted! 

The band make their way to the stage and jumps straight into the epic “Failure is the Mother of Success” the closing song to the brilliant “Satanic Rites” album. “You took a lot of knocks to get where you are today” is the first of many goosebumps moments for me in this set, those lyrics hit so heavy!!! 

Straight after that, we go back to the very beginning of the Mondo Akimbo E.P., the absolutely glorious “Nothing Ever Changes, But The Shoes” and my bottom lip is going, I sing my heart out as does the rest of the audience and of course, so is Ginger who is on absolute fine form here. 

Ginger asks the audience how everyone is doing and the crowd is loving it, he then says he can’t remember what this album the next song is off it’s “Sleepaway” off ‘21st Century Love Songs’ and what a belter it is, one of my personal highlights of the evening is watching the absolutely lovely Carol Hodge on Keyboards marching along with a smile that could light up a room on the hup, 2, 3 section of the song, such a beautiful moment. Speaking of smiles honestly I cannot remember Ginger looking so happy up on that stage, it’s a testament to how damn good this line up is, when Ginger isn’t at the mic he’s going around his band mates one by one, laughing and joking with Mr Random Jon Poole on bass, these two men have been working together for close to 30 years now and what a ride it has been, Jon was also on bass that first time I saw the band back in 03 and what a fantastic musician he is!!! 

Next up, we get the big crowd participation moment. Ginger asks the audience to sing along to the chorus, it’s easy, it goes “woah woah” of course it’s the euphoric ‘Mazel Tov Cocktail’, one of the biggest crowd pleasers there is bar none. After that we get a double whammy off ‘Satanic Rites’ “Kunce” which had me smiling from ear to ear “there’s always some kunce in the way” indeed and the brutal “Maintain Radio Silence” with one of the many massive riffs we are going to be treated to this evening, if you wanted proof of how good this line up is then you’d have to look no further than this, Charles is a absolute beast on the drums, he smashes the shit out of his kit and doesn’t miss a beat!!! 

Ginger then tells the story of how the next song was championed by Chris Moyles on the radio and with every passing play the song went further down the charts which made the audience chuckle it is of course the classic “Cheers” a song that never fails to bring joy to everyone, another mass singalong ensues, Ben, Carol and Jon with some stunning backing vocals and massive smiles, beautiful stuff. 

If anyone doesn’t know there’s a new Wildhearts record on the way, it’s been done for about a year now and it’s just awaiting the green light from the record company for the release, Ginger says it should be here by the end of the year, the album is titled ‘Northern Spirit’ and tonight we are treated to hear one of said album called “Spider Beach” which I’m sure is going to be fan favourite once the album drops. 

I mentioned riffs earlier, well, ladies and gents, for the next 20-odd minutes or so you will not hear as many monster riffs by anyone anywhere, in what is probably the best moment of the current setlist. First up we go old school and honestly if the band were to only play one song off Earth VS the wildhearts again for the rest of time it would be this masterpiece for me, in a career of hundreds and I do mean hundreds of life changing/affirming song this has to be right at the very top I’m talking about non other than ‘Everlone’ I absolutely adore this song and from Gingers reaction I’m pretty sure he does too! 

Then the riffs just keep coming, the band is as tight as they have ever been and the riff medley section is outstanding, as much as I love a singalong you just have to be in awe and the musicianship on display here, they do not miss a beat, 

snippets of classics like ‘Do The Channel Bop’ and ‘Shame on Me’ thrown in, this is brilliant. Riff after motherfucking riff indeed! 

As the medley comes to an end, we go straight into another epic off the much underrated self-titled (white) album ‘Slaughtered Authors’, the Assault on Precinct 13 opening riff never fails to get me. This song has everything: monster riffs, time changes galore, epic chorus,  breakdowns, and yet another pinnacle of an unbelievable songwriting career Ginger has had. 

I’m repeating myself here, but again, the next song is one of the greatest Ginger has ever written, ‘Diagnosis’ off the excellent ‘Renaissance Men’ album, which anyone who’s suffered with mental health can relate to, yet another moment in this set where I’m fighting holding back tears because of how much this song means to me. “I’m not an animal, I am A HUMAN BEING”

We’re approaching the end of this incredible set just before the band go off for a few minutes respite we have another epic to close the main set the title track of the ‘Chutzpah!’ album another song with twists and turns, pure aggression one second, euphoria the next, I haven’t highlighted Ben Marsden yet but oh boy it was worth the wait, the guitar solo outro to this song was mesmerising, absolutely stunning! 

The band take the well earned break before the crowd breaks into a rendition of ‘Don’t Worry About Me’ as always, the band then return and give the audience a couple more classics to send everyone home with smiles on their faces a frantic one two off ‘Earth Vs.’ the moshpit favourite ‘Suckerpunch’ and ‘My Baby Is A Headfuck’ which never fail to get me headbanging, screaming and shouting along, if I could do this every day I’d never get bored. The band finishes and before they leave the stage give thanks to the crowd to mass cheers and applause, Ginger is the last one on stage and is serenaded with chants of his name, you could see how much it meant to him and looked very emotional as was the audience, I’ve said a couple of times that I could feel my bottom lip going and eyes welling up none more so than this moment, what a roller coaster ride that was indeed! 

So a parting word….. 

God Bless THE WiLDHEARTS

God Bless GINGER WiLDHEART

Author: Christian Davies