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<\/a>The last 12 months or so Ryan Hamilton has released a critically acclaimed album with his band The Harlequin Ghosts, toured with The Alarm and Blondie\u2019s Clem Burke, and yet he ends the year divorced, battling online bullies and doing a bit of soul searching. What better way to drown his sorrows with a one-off UK Christmas show billed as The Holiday Hoedown.<\/p>\nMiles from Nowhere (or MFN as it is more commonly known) is a biker bar\/club literally miles from anywhere in the Nottingham countryside. As we follow the sat nav down a dark and damp country road in the scenic (maybe in daylight) countryside, I do wonder if the postcode is wrong, but lo and behold here we are at a very cool looking venue, several hours before show time to catch up with the man himself for an exclusive interview which you will be able to listen to very soon.<\/p>\n
Turns out we are in the wrong bar! A door at back of the pub leads into a much bigger, proper club sized venue. Shit, this place is an actual tardis of a venue! No wonder the band have returned here for a one off, this is a very cool venue and I\u2019m surprised more bands don\u2019t have this place on their radar. While it may not quite have the size of Nottingham\u2019s iconic Rock City, it certainly has the \u2018cool\u2019 factor and bands who maybe aren\u2019t quite big enough for the city centre gig could well find it in their interests to search this place out.<\/p>\n Following bluesy prog 3 piece led by local singer Danny Beardsley and a rather fine set from punky rock \u2018n\u2019 rollers Steam Kittens (check \u2018em out if you dig the likes of Cyanide Pills and Buzzcocks, I definitely recommend these geezers), Ryan Hamilton & The Harlequin Ghosts take to the stage to great cheers. Gone are the suits, big hats and pigtails of recent shows. Shorn of the locks, sporting John Lennon shades and a tan suit jacket, our favourite Texan troubadour has gone for the casual look. Whether this is a long term image change or just a sidestep for the Hoedown, we will have to wait and see.<\/p>\n Strumming a Martin acoustic picked up during his recent road trip, (from the man who provided guitars for Tom Petty, no less) Ryan and his band get the party started with a one-two from his debut solo album. Opener \u2018Be Kind, Rewind\u2019 is a gloriously upbeat power pop delight that incites the first of many crowd sing-a-longs, but it\u2019s the following \u2018Smarter\u2019 that takes the party up a notch for sure.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know if its Ryan\u2019s recent circumstances, the setting, or a combination of both, but there is something extra special about tonight\u2019s performance from the off.<\/p>\n The band are tight as ever, the sound is crystal clear and the crowd are rowdy and up for it. Between songs, the frontman swigs from a bottle of red wine, as he jokes and enjoys banter with the crowd, yet there is understandably a hint of sadness and edginess to the man tonight. Coming straight off a soul searching road trip, the singer is mourning the end of a relationship and going through a period of unexpected change in his life. Playing a bunch of party anthems to his UK fanbase is just the therapy he needs methinks.<\/p>\n The likes of \u2018Bottoms Up\u2019, \u2018Karaoke With No Crowd\u2019 and the sublime \u2018Records & Needles\u2019 should be enough to convince any naysayer in the room that Ryan Hamilton is a match for his peers as a songwriter and an entertainer.<\/p>\n<\/a>Turns out MFN is owned by former Showaddywaddy drummer Malcolm Allured. Gold and silver discs adorn the walls alongside 50\u2019s and 60\u2019s rock \u2018n\u2019 roll memorabilia. It\u2019s pretty cool, but also pretty small. A small kit and a couple of Fender amps are set up near the bar. A tad underwhelmed that the band appears to be playing a pub gig, we grab a drink and a seat. Slowly the bar empties and I wonder if maybe this is not where the band are playing after all.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n