Luke La Volpe - The Hunter S Thompson, 27 Feb 2020
Luke La Volpe is the pseudonym of Bathgate singer Luke Gibson, it derives from an apparent obsession with foxes, Volpe being Italian for fox.
When he plays live he is joined by his band, so as well as Luke (vocals/guitar), there is Ben McDonald (guitar/keyboard), Ewan Butler (bass) and Colm Boyle (drums).
Luke La Volpe bring together a mixture of blues and rock and roll giving them a very unique live sound, they have been tipped by many to be the ones to watch in 2020 so I was keen to catch them in a small venue, especially given the last time I saw Luke perform it was at my brothers wedding reception !!
Now before Luke took to the stage he was ably supported by Logan Gilmartin, an up and coming acoustic artist from Perth and he put on a very good showcase of his songs. The second support act was Rennet and again another solo artist armed with guitar and laptop giving us a polished set of some well structure songs.
And then we come to the headliners and they kick off the set with a new song Post War Ghost and it immediately sets the tone for the evening, with a heavy bass, great guitars, drums keeping the song on pace, and Luke’s fantastic vocal introducing us to rock and roll blues. This is followed up by another new one Full Moon and again is the perfect vehicle for Luke’s meaty vocals.
Next up is Can’t Seem to Get Enough which is one of my favourites and is absolutely banging when played live, great guitars riffs, drumming and bass spot on again.
Luke announces “that they are trying something new for this tour” as he abandons his guitar for The Ribbon but there’s no let up on the sound as the rest of the band bring their skills to the fore with a great little solo from Ben.
We have a change of pace for Dead Mans Blues as Ben plays keyboard and Ewan and Colm get the chance to put their feet up ! This is one of Luke’s newer songs and was showcased recently on a set played for TenementTV in Glasgow. There is some banter on stage over the cost of buying the keyboard for one tune, especially when there is a false start with it and Luke declares “£1800 for a keyboard and needs fucking fixed”. This is a fantastic tune live and is my favourite of the evening so far.
Luke picks back up the guitar, the rest of the boys are back for Tommy, which is a real rocky number underpinned with some fantastic blues riffs. This is followed by Nightmare which is introduced with a clever drum beat, before the bass and guitars jump in, again the song has that real bluesy feel.
Dancing with Shadows is a slower tune, the heavy blues bass and drums being dulled down on a lovely tune, which highlights the range in Luke’s voice, leaving it more exposed to the slower melody.
It’s then Luke on his own with Familiar Bliss which is a beautiful song about growing old together and was even someone in the crowds wedding song, so was received rather well.
After a couple of slower songs we are promised a couple of belters to finish and we are not disappointed as we end with two real crowd pleasers in Judging Books and Your Apology Burns, both performed brilliantly with real guile and craftsmanship, the latter song being my personal favourite of the evening.
Overall a brilliant show, the band are tight and the sound the produce is fantastic and I really can’t say enough about Luke’s voice, this is a young guy who is definitely going places in the next few years. Lewis Capaldi look over your shoulder, West Lothian’s next superstar is on your tail.
Setlist
Post War Ghost
Full Moon
Can’t Seem to Get Enough
The Ribbon
Dead Mans Blues
Tommy
Nightmare
Dancing With Shadows
Familiar Bliss
Judging Books
Your Apology Burns
On tonight’s performance Luke La Volpe will be hitting new heights in the near future, catch him in intimate venues whilst you can, he is still on tour and can be caught at the following:
Aberdeen - Cafe Drummond, Friday 28 February 2020
Edinburgh - The Mash House, Saturday 29 February 2020
In the meantime have a listen to what was my favourite of the evening: