It’s a mere two days since we were last in Nottingham, to catch Beth Hart at the Royal Concert Hall, and the temperature has finally caught up with the fact that it’s May. Either that or the very presence of Philip Sayce has caused the mercury to soar which, given the intensity of tonight’s performance, is actually feasible.
We arrive just in time to catch just a few moments of Tom Moriarty’s acoustic set. An acclaimed sing/songwriter with a dusty voice and a line in tasteful roots rock, he appears to have the audience hooked, but it’s a touch too staid for our tastes and sits in sharp relief to Philip’s explosive take on the blues.
It’s 9:00 on the dot and the venue has filled nicely when Philip Sayce bursts onto the stage in a blaze of feedback and fret wizardry. Blonde of coiffure, he looks like a member of The Offspring and plays like the lovechild of Jimi Hendrix and Robert Cray, his fingers racing over the frets of his worn guitar like a man possessed.
And this is how the night goes. The Rescue Rooms, always a solid venue for a gig of this kind, is decently full, hot, and sweaty; while the sound that rolls from the stage in waves is ferociously loud and crystal clear.
Sayce has us from the from the moment he rips through Out Of My Mind. A hard rocker with a great Rory Gallagher vibe, it’s delivered with the feverish intensity of Hendrix on speed. Factor in a frenetic Ode To Joy interlude and you have one hell of an opening number.
And his band…
His band, comprising Sam Bolle (bass) and Bryan Head (drums), have they got tighter still? I think maybe yes, because fuck me the blues is taking a battering tonight!!
Even when Philip deploys a smoother blues in the vein of Kenny Wayne Shepherd, such as Bitter Monday, it still packs a stabbing riff and a chorus to die for… Seriously, we’ll be singing this bugger for weeks. Even with an unexpected tempo shift into psych territory, the track keeps its hooks firmly lodged in your cranium. Damn it’s catchy!
What else? Well, there are plenty of covers sprinkled throughout the set, although Philip has a tendency to bend these so spectacularly to his will you’d think they were written for him. Take Taj Mahal’s Chevrolet or Don Covay’s Blues Ain’t Nothing But A Good Woman On Your Mind. The former is built around an explosive riff and backed by a dirty groove that sits perfectly alongside the opening numbers, all the more when Phil leads his band into a heavy funk breakdown that is stuttering harmonics and crashing cymbals. The latter is delivered with raw, bludgeoning power leavened only slightly by a snaking baseline that weaves its way around the riff, all leading to a series of increasingly frantic solos.
Elsewhere, we get a monstrous showcase in the form of Standing / Aberystwyth, the latter delivered with a flaming intensity that blows its studio incarnation clear out of the water. This, and the similarly paced Tongue Twister both do much to demonstrate Philip’s awesome skills as a guitarist. At the same time, coming so close together, they do throw the pacing of the set off a touch, with a little too much emphasis on pyrotechnics at the expense of the great melodies Philip pens so well.
Fortunately, the likes of Burning Out and Chosen One (the latter with a guest spot from Chris King Robinson of Pedal Pawn fame) are more traditionally song-oriented, while the swirling, tremolo-laden psyche rock of Angels Live Inside provides a nice, Robert Cray-esque number to the mix.
Philip Sayce is one hell of a blues rock gunslinger. An engaging presence, a phenomenal guitarist and an impressive singer, he never fails to deliver in the live environment. At the same time, tonight’s show does threaten a touch of fatigue, and you can’t help but wish he’d occasionally step off the gas, if only to allow the songs themselves to breathe a little more. This is, however, a minor gripe and the evening – as is so often the case with Philp Sayce – passes in a heartbeat. With a handful of UK dates left, don’t miss this tour, you will not leave disappointed.
MAY/JUNE 2026 UK TOUR
SPECIAL GUESTS:
TOM MORIARTY (ALL DATES) AND
*CHANTEL MCGREGOR (HOLMFIRTH ONLY)
TICKETS: THEGIGCARTEL.COM & PHILIPSAYCE.COM
BRISTOL, THE FLEECE
TUESDAY 19th MAY 2026
Tickets: The Gig Cartel
Facebook | X | Instagram
2 St Thomas St, Redcliffe, Bristol, BS1 6JJ
https://thefleece.co.uk
NOTTINGHAM, RESCUE ROOMS
WEDNESDAY 20th MAY 2026
Tickets: The Gig Cartel
Facebook | X | Instagram
Masonic Pl, Goldsmith St, Nottingham, NG1 5LB
https://www.rescuerooms.com
HOLMFIRTH, PICTUREDROME
FRIDAY 22nd MAY 2026
Tickets: The Gig Cartel
Facebook | X | Instagram
Market Walk, Holmfirth,
West Yorkshire, HD9 7DA
https://www.picturedrome.net
GLASGOW, ST LUKES
SATURDAY 23rd MAY 2026
Tickets: The Gig Cartel
Facebook | X | Instagram
Calton, 17 Bain St, Glasgow, G40 2JZ
www.stlukesglasgow.com
NEWCASTLE, ANARCHY BREW
SUNDAY 24th MAY 2026
Tickets: The Gig Cartel
Facebook | X | Instagram
Benfield Business Park, Unit A1, Benfield Rd,
Newcastle upon Tyne NE6 4NQ
www.anarchybrewco.com
BASINGSTOKE, HAYMARKET
WEDNESDAY 27th MAY 2026
Tickets: The Gig Cartel
Facebook | X | Instagram
Wote St, Basingstoke RG21 7NW
www.anvilarts.org.uk
BURY ST EDMONDS, THE APEX
THURSDAY 28th MAY 2026
Tickets: The Gig Cartel
Facebook | X | Instagram
Charter Square St, Bury St Edmunds, IP33 3FD
www.theapex.co.uk
CHESTER, THE LIVE ROOMS
SATURDAY 30th MAY 2026
Tickets: The Gig Cartel
Facebook | X | Instagram
1 Station Road, Chester, CH1 3DR
www.theliverooms.com
CARDIFF, THE GLOBE
SUNDAY 31st MAY 2026
Tickets: The Gig Cartel
Facebook | X | Instagram
125 Albany Road, Cardiff, Wales, CF24 3NSA
www.globecardiff.co.uk
LONDON, ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY
WEDNESDAY 3rd JUNE 20206
Tickets: The Gig Cartel
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Upper St, Islington, London, N1 2UD
islingtonassemblyhall.co.uk
