SHOW REVIEW AND PHOTOS: GRAVEYARD/SPIDERS

Graveyard last played in Maryland on a warm spring night on May 16, 2015, when they opened for Clutch and Mastodon at the Pier 6 Pavilion in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. On February 9, 2016, the band returned to Baltimore and headlined at the Baltimore Soundstage. The faithful Graveyard fans ignored the cold temperatures and the fact that the area was under a Winter Storm Warning, and filled the venue to near capacity.

The Swedish rock band, Spiders, is touring with Graveyard as the supporting act and they are promoting their 2014 album, Shake Electric. When they took the stage, the concert hall was half full, with many fans still trickling in from the street. Anyone that missed the Spiders’ set, missed a great performance. The band is a hard rock band, with a blues influence. The group was formed in 2010 and is fronted by singer, Ann-Sofie Hoyles. Hoyles has fantastic vocals, with an appealing warmth to her tone. She was energetic onstage and during the performance she sang, played guitar, harmonica, tambourine and maracas. Guitarist John Hoyles provided some amazing old school riffs, while Olle Griphammer and Richard Harryson played bass and drums, respectively. When the band announced the last song of their 45 minute set, the growing crowd let out a collective groan. They wanted to hear more, and for good reason. Simply put, the Spiders are a solid live band.

Connect with Spiders (click icons):

After a brief interlude, Graveyard took the stage to raucous applause. The band is supporting their fourth studio album, Innocence and Decadence, which was released in September 2015. Singer/guitarist, Joakim Nilsson, is a pleasure to see live. Graveyard has a classic rock vibe both in their sound and presentation, which pairs perfectly with Nilsson’s gritty, yet soulful voice. While onstage Nilsson sways, rocks and throws his head about as he seemingly becomes one with the music.

They opened with “No Good, Mr. Holden”, off of their Hinsingen Blues album. Bassist, Truls Mörck, took over the vocals for “From a Hole in the Wall”, from their new album. From there, they stayed with a few older tunes, “Buying Truth” and “Seven Seven,” before playing the bluesy, “Exit 97.” In total, they ripped through an 18 song set, including their encore, which included “Stay for Song,” “The Apple and the Tree,” “Ain’t Fit to Live Here” and “The Siren.” The set was sensational and superbly played. Guitarist, Jonatan Larocca-Ramm, recently rejoined the band and was great on lead guitar and backup vocals, while drummer, Axel Sjöberg, was fantastic on his single bass kit.
Listening to Graveyard, there is no doubt they are heavily influenced by the hard rocking blues sound of the 60’s and 70’s, but you’ll also find aspects of punk and folk in their music as well. The band is finishing up the U.S. portion of their tour this month, before heading off to their European dates which run through June 7. If you have the chance, do not miss the opportunity to catch Graveyard live. They will not disappoint.