The Struts : Live at Pub Rock

2015 has been a huge year for Jed Elliot, Gethin Davies, Luke Spiller, and Adam Slack, the men in the British rock band The Struts. While they’ve recently been selling out stadiums near home, on their first U.S headlining tour they’ve played mostly smaller venues such as Pub Rock in Scottsdale, Arizona which likely didn’t have more than 100 attendees. With such an electric presence, it was truly special to be able to share such an intimate venue with them.

The crowd itself was an interesting one, to say the least. Both young and old patrons filled the tiny bar, with children as young as 10 years old getting what was possibly their first taste of “real” rock and roll, and teenage girls drooling over the much older musicians as well as the music itself. Adults left their kids home with a babysitter in order to come out and experience what one (very) drunk patron described as, “It’s like Cream, Zeppelin, and Queen got together and had a baby. This shit is incredible! You’ll never get this close to The Struts again. You’re one lucky girl to be here tonight.” Nonetheless, age was a non-issue as soon as The Struts took the stage.

Around 9:30, the lights dimmed and a guitar began to play, and Spiller could be heard introducing The Struts. This was definitely unexpected. But when the band came out, they gave a brief hello and dove right into “Roll Up”. From the first beat, the crowd was giving off an insane amount of energy, with everyone jumping and screaming and generally losing their shit. Luke Spiller has a presence that commands the attention of every person in the room. He had the crowd in the palm of his hand, and was clearly enjoying every second as much as we were. “There’s no need to be shy! Let’s put the fun back in rock n’ roll!” he bellowed, and we certainly did just that.

The Struts then played “Could’ve Been Me” and “Kiss This,” two of their most popular songs. If there was any doubt that these guys were natural born performers, the four Brits killed it. No one missed a beat all night, with guitar, drums, and bass having no issues at all keeping up with the high energy show. The rhythm section (made up of Elliot and Davies) churned along all night, and failed to fade into the background of the performance as bassists and drummers are often wont to do. Slack, the sole guitarist, kicked undeniable ass. With all the confidence and sex appeal that was oozing off of the stage throughout the show, it was extremely difficult to keep your eyes on just one band member.

As gimmicky as all of the costume changes (there were two of them from Spiller), theme songs, and posing for pictures during the show could’ve been, The Struts made every move feel completely genuine. It was clear from the get-go that these guys absolutely love what they’re doing, and that they know they do it well. All were eager to interact with the crowd (which is easy to do in such a small venue), and they gave a spectacular performance. Taking influence from Queen, Michael Jackson, Led Zeppelin, and AC/DC, it’s easy to compare The Struts to these monumental names in music, but these guys are something all their own. Keep an eye out, The Struts will be joining these names and faces on the posters in your bedroom.

Though the set in its entirety was only eight songs, it felt much longer. Looking back on the show, it’s hard not to want to go back and relive it, especially knowing that these guys will never play a venue with 100 people and a $9 ticket ever again. I can’t wait to see them in a stadium and see if these guys will have every member of the audience on the floor (twice) like they did at Pub Rock. I wouldn’t be surprised if they did. With all of this in mind I only have one lingering question: had I ever really been to a rock n’ roll show before this one?

Set list: 1. Roll Up 2. Could’ve Been Me 3. Kiss This 4. She Makes Me Feel Like 5. Let’s Make This Happen Tonight 6. Dirty Sexy Money 7. Put Your Money On Me 8. (Encore) Where Did She Go