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"Blues In Britain" Magazine (UK)
Rob Tognoni October 13th 2010 - Charlotte St., London UK Mike Hellier (drums) and Gary Rackman (bass) Rob Tognoni occupies the ‘heavy blues rock’ camp. There was barely pause for breath in his breakneck-paced set as he squeezed 15 songs into a little over an hour. Given the influences he has listed in the past it was no surprise to hear shades of Hendrix in many of the numbers, with much use of wah-wah in his extended solos, culminating in a cover of Hey Joe very much as Jimi had done (which included a pianissimo middle break showing Rob is not just ‘heads-down, turn-it-up-to-11’). In the rocking Bad Girl the AC/DC influence was clear, as was that of Rory Gallagher in the bluesier (but still heavy!) Drink Jack Boogie. Dirty Occupation, a heavy stomping rocker, featured more wah-wah soloing over a Moby Dick-style riff with powerhouse drumming from Mike Hellier, while My Acid Is Kickin In had a raucous, Alice Cooper Elected feel. There was a mellow opening to Product Of A Southern Land, a southern rock flavoured number with Rob showing finesse and feel in his first solo, before breaking loose in a howling flurry of wah-wah to close. Itty Bitty Mama was another southern rocker that featured a fine bass solo from Gary Rackham and then a bass / lead duel, before becoming a heavy almost Schools Out blast. Other numbers included the more standard blues of Mr John Lee, and Jim Beam Blues, a little reminiscent of Lynyrd Skynyrd, which included a middle break with a jokey cover of Rehab, before the set closed with a storming This Is Rock’n’Roll. Moray Stuart |
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