Live Review: Nebula - Boston Music Rooms, London
12th October 2023
Support: Josiah, Dvde
Words & Photos: Jacob Schwar
On a wet, rainy and miserable day in North London, a contingent of stoner fans descended upon the Boston Music Rooms venue, all here with one thing in common, to see one the best bands the genre truly has to offer! This was to be the first UK date of Nebula’s Live Wired In Europe Tour 2023 including 6 dates total in the UK and a selection of dates across mainland Europe including some festival appearances, tagging along in support were some excellent UK bands who were sure to get this crowd warmed up.
Kicking the night off in style we have UK rockers DVDE playing good old anthemic rock n roll with plenty of big sleazy riffs harking right back to the 70’s, I had the pleasure of seeing these chaps at this year’s edition of Desertfest and they sure put on a cracking show. Tracks such the biker rock-esque ‘Shit Don’t Stick’ and the Thin Lizzy inspired ‘Mother Nature’ with its sweet twin guitar harmonies really showcases the era these guys are most influenced by. An absolute set highlight was with the new track ‘Magnetised’, a truly rockin’ number with plenty of cowbell throughout, there’s something so fitting about a cowbell in rock music I don’t know why!
Keeping the energy splendidly high we come to our second band of tonight Josiah, a band with a strong connection and history within the UK stoner rock scene, who were laying down some rockin’ riffs with an ample dose of psychedelia in the mix. This was my first time seeing this band and they sure did come across heavier than the records, I was practically reeling from the fuzz and distortion of leadsinger Mat Betancourt’s guitar! Some set highlights included the groove-laden ‘Spacequake’, the mysteriously doomy ‘The Dark’ and of course a real fan favourite ‘Malpaso’ which transforms into trippy, space rock halfway through. Much praise to drummer D.C Lockton who was absolutely on fire, ferociously battering his kit and pulling out some cheeky drum solos as the other members tuned up, truly entertaining to watch.
Finally we come to the headliners of tonight, all the way from Los Angeles, California… this is Nebula, true purveyors of classic stoner! Without any fanfare or lengthy intro song, out on stage came the trio with the one and only Eddie Glass at the helm, wearing his shades and firing up his guitar they kicked straight into the speedy number ‘Giant’. Following this up with a real trippy tune ‘Highwired’ from their most recent release titled Transmission From Mothership Earth (2022) which is a perfect example of what this group are all about!
As always it was a treat to hear some tracks from their classic debut To The Center (1999) such as the punk influenced ‘Come Down’ and the desert rock epic with the title track which no Nebula set would be complete without! Some more set highlights included the groovy track ‘The Dagger’ and also ‘Tomorrow Never Comes’ another epic of a track with hints of doom, psychedelia and little bit of occult rock perhaps, undeniably a set highlight for myself which the band absolutely tore through. Nebula once again put on an awesome performance tonight, proving to me that these chaps are the top in their game, not to mention they’re a band with pedigree and a history in the genre, I look forward to seeing what they get up to with the next album, rock on!
All photo credits: Jacob Schwar / Darkness Before Dawn
