When you think of the best of British Classic rock you might think of Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple or Iron Maiden. One thing all these legends have in common is they are old! So who are the new standard bearers of British Rock? Well I think I saw them tonight!
The band is called Helvelyn II and they average about 18. I had been invited to the famous Berlin Studios in Blackpool, England to watch a web cast featuring these young guys. I went more out of curiosity than anything else, I mean, c'mon, a bunch of 18yr olds playing classic rock? It's a joke yeh?
Well the jokes on me! These guys played an explosive sixty minute set and barely paused to take a breath. The first song "Tired" is fast, short and in your face! That set the tone for the rest of the set. Twelve hard hitting tunes, that belied the youth fullness of this band.
Antony Ellis the lead singer and youngest member of the band, is a guy who could step into Bruce Dickinsons shoes now! Hell, what will he be like when he matures! His performance is pure theatre and is as good as any performance I have seen by a front man in my many years of following the rock scene.
Young lead guitarist Stefan Finney might not move a lot but his fingers make up for that, his speed of delivery is machine gun like and the audience were bowled over by his Hendrixesque playing with his teeth!
David "Ishy" Isherwood is all a bass player should be, big, lots of hair and bags of ability. While drummer James Eccles-Churton does a mean Keith Moon backing for the band and, when you consider that they weren't even born when their rock heroes were at their peak you wonder where they get it from!
Alongside me in the audience was the lead singer of Saxon, and I'm telling you, he was stunned!
I read somewhere that classic rock is the vestige of middle age. Nothing could be further from the truth, in the safe hands of these young guys British Classic Rock has a tremendous future!
If you don't do anything else this year make sure you check these guys out! You can hear them on www.myspace.com/itshelvelyn2 and shortly you will be able to see the whole web cast at www.globegig.com Be sure to look in you will be mightily impressed!
