A few Sheffield (& area) Rock Bands.

Many of these lineups no longer gig. But because they have a (sometimes irritating) habit of reforming when one of them gets the bailiffs round, the entries have been left. Even Fleetwood Mac would be listed here.

Where would Northern music be without the Rock of the North web site? (Be warned - the ROTN website plays music at you without asking.)

• Betty Black - how many bands make a serious attempt at White Room in front of a live discerning audience armed with chairs? Twenty in three decades? See them at least once. Worth a long drive, but make sure they're going to turn up - they didn't at the Riverside on 27th October 2008. A sixty mile round trip wasted, despite calling the venue.
• Storm Bringer - Deep Purple, Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy, ZZ Top and Pink Floyd - rarely appear in Sheffield itself. Also worth the drive.
• The Call - prompt start, short break, played to the end. Good repertoire (nine instruments between three guitarists) and definitely worth a drive.
• Charlie Don't Surf - know rock. And they know loud. And continuous. And heavy. If they lay something down, it don't get up in a hurry.
• DO$CH - a band and an act - see them live and keep the aisles clear. Rhythm and Blues? And the rest!
• Kickback
• The Phil Brodie Band - (also links to Bitter Suite - much the same lineup but different music).
• Actionier - own material - they've played together before. Get up close. Backing vocals have better pitch than lead, but they shouldn't swap.
• Blitz - few more tracks on the next CD, lads. Or the world will hear about that Olive Grove gig. One-two, one-two. Fun bunch - bit of leaping about usually goes on.
• Mag 7 - don't be fooled; there are now only four of the Magnificent Seven. And does he ever actually play that flute? They don't sound as good. Popular band - get there early.
• Piston Broke - a Wakefield band - Judas Priest, Motorhead, etc.
• Rodger - think Pink Floyd/Dire Straits with snatches better than the originals. Good following these days - get there early.
• Raw Gallagher - pretty loud for a three-piece, good instrumental sections (not a put-down of the vocals) - CD's worth a fiver.
• Fade2Black - Niagara Forte CD is good value.
• Suite Zero
• Stumble - Stones to Badfinger, Faces to Counting Crows, Bryan Adams to Foo Fighters. And usually back to the Stones.
• 24th - Top Gun - Free, Meatloaf, Bon Jovi, Steppenwolf, Pink Floyd, Ozzie Osbourne, Thin Lizzie, Gary Moore, Metallica, Whitesnake, Faith No More, Black Crowes, AC/DC, Van Halen, Guns'n'Roses, Rod Stewart, Gary Moore, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Queen
• Coast - usually seen a bit further north - sadly rare visitors to Sheffield.
• Optic Nerve - Formed in 1981 - AC/DC, etc.
• Red Mosquito - another memorable Woodseats Hotel gig - the staff playing football behind the bar. Mel's across the road in the Working Men's Club now,and took the music with him. Not seen since 2007.
• Sour Mash - balance. If you've never made out the words to your favourite piece of mega-rock, go to a Mash gig. If you don't know where the next one is, follow Pauline. Hell, you can even hear the second guitarist. Bring back Animal.
• Carnival - A Sour Mash spinoff - therefore sometimes late starters - but not at the Broadfield on 2nd October - 21:03. Own material - mostly good but some offended by the language.
• Don't Shoot the Messenger - another Sheffield covers band.
• Little Vegas - Yet another Sour Mash spinoff. Temporarily not gigging.
• The Unforgiven - excellent name.
• Shrine of the Monkey - long hair lives. There's a guitar under there somewhere!
• The Crashers - breaking the habits of a lifetime, The Crashers have started turning up for their gigs. Good value and commendable vocals.
• Grey Cooper - Blues and more blues. A five-piece with tenor sax. Fun if one of them twats a string - these guys could jam their way out of Dartmoor.
• Vamp - classic stuff from a digital-free (and largely transistor-free) Barnsley rock band. Really - thermionic valves. Warm your hands. Seem to have tapped the mother lode of female bass players - "Hi" to Jane.
• Voodoo Van Boogie
• Treebeard - claim to play "heavy wood" music. No electricity is used in the commission of the offence. Not even batteries. Like the steps at St David's cathedral, no two people will ever count the same number of instruments. Or, indeed, realise that many of them ARE instruments. It can't be described - you have to see it live. Vaguely like the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band on speed locked in Steptoe's yard for a weekend, except there's no teapot. Yet. Count the hats and wait for someone to shake the pineapple. A box of frogs comes to mind. Or, in their words, a bag of weasels. And there's always Bollox the Dog.

The drummer jokes have been moved to make this page more handheld-friendly

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