Mick Birchall Reviews

Where do you think your passion for music came from? Hi, I am  Eric Gynan  co-founder of the rock band Leaving Eden and Nice to chat with you today. When I was a youngster since I could walk I played instruments that my family had. I never stopped playing. Definitely listening to rock ‘n’ roll was certainly a catalyst for my passion. It runs in the blood two of my great grandfathers had their own orchestras. Who are your biggest influences? I get this question a lot. We’ve been fortunate enough to share the stage with some of my biggest influences like Black Sabbath, Shinedown, Disturbed, Alice In Chains and Steven Tyler to just name a few. So it’s kind of like full circle being able to play with them. To you, what is the most important thing about playing live? Great question. I think the most important thing is having confidence when you walk out on the stage. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: people Are like dogs who can smell the fear. If you have confide...

I think in the last blog I wasted a little to much time with pre-emptive waffling. If you haven't read Part 1 covering the bands that played on Saturday, then please do so here - Part 1 . I'll admit I wasn't feeling so well going into the Sunday, as I got hit with the mother of all colds. So I decided to take it easy and just hang back on every band set. Which I will admit did make this day a little more enjoyable. Still, I decided to soldier nonetheless. With that out of the way let's dive into the Sunday of HRH C.R.O.W.S. Since there was nothing happing on the main stage for a little while, I spent my early afternoon upstairs at the second stage. Opening the day was country-rockers Stevie Jones and The Wildfires  and let me say that this was an excellent performance. I was immediately hooked on their sound. It was a lot less hard rock than anything that was played on Saturday. His songs were filled with these sharp singer-songwriter like details that really kept m...

Another year and another,  Hard Rock Hell  festival has come and gone. This year, their southern rock showcase C.R.O.W.S., had a superb line-up. I remember seeing the announcement last year and immediately wanting tickets. Not only were a few of my favourite bands playing but also it was an opportunity to see quite a few bands that I have never had the chance to watch live. This year was headed up by three massive acts, the Tasmanian guitar devil Rob Tognoni , country-rock icons Jason and the Scorchers and southern-rock legends The Kentucky Headhunters . That alone would be worth the price of admission but HRH didn't just leave it there, they stocked this weekend up with some of the finest in the outlaw and southern rock genre.  Now, because this weekend was so chalked up with excellent music, it was nearly impossible to watch every band and give them the proper time. So, this account will be everything that I saw over the weekend and I will try to give every ac...

Where do you think your passion for music came from? For me it all started in my childhood, I come from a music family, my father has always played music and still does, and I grew up with Amps and speakers/guitars/drums and Hammond organs all over the house, so for me music is part of my life ever since I can remember. So it’s kinda natural for me to play music. Who are your biggest influences? We have a lot of influences, going back to the 60/70’s, that said we have a certain love for the energy that came out in the 90s with bands like Nirvana, Alice in Chains and Soundgarden, but we also listen to fuzzier and Stoner vibe bands like Fu Manchu, Clutch and Tool, and going for a more desert vibe kinda bands like Queens of the stone age. To you, what is the most important thing about playing live? The connection between the audience and the band, when it all comes together and things go to a higher level, that's really what it’s all about… take something with you hom...