Dundee funk-rock band Jutebox made their homecoming appearance with a headline show at The Hunter S. Thompson last Saturday night.
Stone Dead John
Glasgow’s psychedelic rockers Stone Dead John opened the evening with some heavy dirty rock ‘n’ roll. Performing tracks from latest release ‘The Easy EP’ as well as few covers, the band soon had the crowd moving. Whenever you see the word psychedelic you know you’re going to witness something a little weird. At times it was but it was certainly entertaining. You could watch Stone Dead John perform for a week straight and you still wouldn’t be bored.
Peached
West coast three-piece Peached were up next. Peached opened with latest single ‘Subway Sky’ which sounds a bit like if Nic Cester of Jet fronted the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Lead vocalist and guitarist Jack Vize provides excellent rock vocals and electrifying riffs and solos in equal measure. Bass player Kai Murdoch and drummer Ally Terrey provide the tight yet skilled rhythm section. Further into their set, Peached showcased their diverse range of tracks, from alt-rock to blues to modern funk. Peached don’t currently have any more shows lined up so in the meantime, be sure to check out Subway Sky.
Jutebox
Topping the bill were Dundee five-piece Jutebox. Vocalist Dan Richardson, who also provides keyboard, is accompanied by drums, bass and guitar but it’s the inclusion of saxophonist Rosie Handley that set the funk quintet apart from other groups. Most tracks are funk based, there are elements of rock, jazz, pop, you’ll find a little bit of something for everyone in their set. Jutebox are clearly a very tight night group, everything flows together nicely and of course, adding a saxophone will almost always make things better. But for me it’s Dan Richardson’s vocals, keyboard skills and crowd interactions that elevate Jutebox. A frontman of his standards really makes the difference between a good band and a great band. We should expect to see some official studio releases from the band this year, the exact time of which are still unknown. Judging by what this crowd witnessed, it’ll be worth the wait.
