Reckless Love - Manchester Club Academy, 15.10.12, Live Review

So chilblains, the Reckless Love machine rolled (or should that more appropriately be 'rocked') into Manchester last night. I can honestly say that I felt 20-odd years younger, dropped into 1985, LA, the Rainbow Bar & Grill watching glam/sleaze/hair metal unfold right before my eyes.

Reckless Love have the looks (and in Olli Herman, have one good lookin dude), and more importantly the songs. Sure its music by numbers, but fuck me, they havent half got the formula spot on. If catchy hooks and choruses were currency then these Finnish guys from Kuopio would be millionaires many times over. They dont fuck about, every song goes straight for the jugular, and seem to have attracted every horny female from 15-50 in the locality

If they went for the Finnish entry in Eurovision Im absolutely certain they have the right songs and image to piss all over the competition. Forget Steel Panther, these guys are doing it 'for real', and for that they have my utmost respect and support

The set was short and sweet, but when you dont really have songs longer than 5 mins, they pack more clout than a roundhouse kick in the nuts from Chuck Norris. This more than anything is down to Pepe's 80s guitar shredding, Herman's shrieking vocals, and more harmonies than you can shake a stick at. Bloody marvellous. 

Reckless Love ripped into modern classics 'Animal Attraction', 'Speedin', and 'Badass' with a mix of the best of the likes of Def Leppard and making for the RL experience! Anthemic songs lie Beautiful Bomb and Feel My Heat from the debut followed. My only (very small) gripe was the need for both drum and guitar solos, the only things being carried over form the 80s that seem a bet tired nowadays. Id rather have more excellent songs in the set list. An unreleased track followed (Push) whereby our intrepid Mr Herman, unusually for him, took his shirt off!!! Go figure! Back to Paradise followed, or should that be 'I Was Made For Loving You' as the chorus had Kiss written through it like Blackpool rock. On The Radio is a song so Bon Jovi like, Jon Bon probably gets royalties sent to his house instead of Hermans. 

All too soon it was over, but they took little cajoling for the encore of the (Im touting this for Finlands 2013 Eurovision entry), Hotter Than Hell, before finishing the set with  One More Time. 

If this was the 80s (and it sure felt like it) Reckless Love deserve greatness. Judging by some of the women in the crowd, they've already made it. Im just glad my daughter doesnt leave the house just wearing a pair of knickers!!!

Setlist

Animal Attraction

Speedin

Badass

Born To Break Your Heart

Beautiful Bomb

Dance

Drum Solo

Feel My Heat

Push

Back To Paradise
Guitar Solo
On The Radio
Wild Touch

Encore -
Hot
One More Time