Being a devout follower of Ginger Wildheart doesn't come without its rewards, and at the announcement that Ginger would be playing not just 1 but 2 sets for free at The Asylum in Birmingham in preparation for Sonisphere the following weekend, I felt among the most rewarded of rock fans on the planet because let's face it - how many other artists with such a prolific career can boast that they give as much to their fans as the fans do to the rock stars themselves? The show itself was organized to have a local act open (Vincent And The Onepotts), followed by a half hour acoustic set by the Wildhearts frontman himself which would then be broken up by another support act (Exit_International) before closing the event with an electric Wildhearts set, rounding the evening out nicely with a mix of different styles.

With the event being free, featuring an artist who can fill large venues it was surprising when upon arrival The Asylum looked almost empty, despite the fact that Ginger was due onstage not an hour and a half after doors opened (7PM). The room still hadn't filled by the time opening act Vincent And The Onepotts arrived onstage, and the band were met with a somewhat subdued crowd (whether this was due to the fact the show fell mid-week, or if it was simply opening act etiquette is debatable), though they put their best in to provide the crowd with a strong half-hour Punk Rock warm-up, before closing with a frantic cover of Motorhead's aptly named Ramones Tribute song - 'R.A.M.O.N.E.S'.

The initial sparseness of the venue was soon forgotten though, and by the time Ginger took to the stage for the first part of tonight's set the room had filled comfortably. To anybody that saw Ginger on the first leg of his acoustic tour in May 2011 the setlist remained largely unchanged, and was therefore familiar, although the choice to break into the intro to Wildhearts classic 'Sky Babies' (a song that Ginger has repeatedly refused to play upon request) was a shock to many in the audience. Filled with classic Wildhearts sing-along tunes (as well as several interludes which were played throughout the acoustic tour including 'Summer Nights' and 'Making Plans For Nigel') the set was a great warm up for things to come, with Ginger playing material both old (Earth V's era tunes 'Miles Away Girl' and 'Loveshit') and new (material like 'You Took The Sunshine From New York' from The Wildheart's 2009 release 'Chutzpah!') to provide the crowd with one of the things that The Wildhearts do better than most - tunes which you can rock out to as well as sing along. Closing with the drunken pub sing-along 'Geordie In Wonderland' the set was received extremely well, and Ginger retired to the dressing rooms to get ready for the electric set later in the night.

To follow a set like that is difficult enough under any circumstances, however to violently contrast it with a noisy alternative metal band like Exit_International seems almost insane, and indeed no sooner had the band made it to the stage than the room had emptied once again. Undeterred however, the band put in a powerful and noisy performance, and vocalist Scott's screams could have made even Rob Halford's backside pucker with their intensity and ear-splitting delivery.

To round up tonight's proceedings Ginger once again took to the stage alongside ex-Cardiac "Random" Jon Poole, Rich Jones and drummer Denzel to provide the crowd with one last Hurrah! For the evening, opening with The Wildhearts classic 'I Wanna Go Where The People Go' it seemed the band were pulling no punches, and indeed throughout the set all the major singles were aired and given to the sweating, heaving congregation of fans who readily jumped, moshed and sang along to the music provided at fever pitch. As the setlist unfolded, rolling out tunes like 'Vanilla Radio', 'TV Tan' and 'My Baby Is A Headfuck' it seemed neither the band nor the fans were willing to let up on the Rock 'n' Roll assault being offered, and by the time set closer '29 X The Pain' finished the crowd were still hanging around singing Wildhearts classic 'Don't Worry 'Bout Me' long after the band had left the stage.

At one point Ginger took a moment out to address the crowd; "The past year I've been playing with someone else, so I haven't been able to speak to you like I normally would... And I've missed ya. So here I am, and I don't think I'll be going away again for a very long time" and at this news the crowd that evening, and indeed any rock crowd that has ever enjoyed the musical mayhem that is inherent in a Ginger Wildheart set could rejoice, as when it comes to anarchic Rock 'n' Roll with a dash of Metal, there really ain't none better.

SETLIST:

Acoustic: The Miles Away Girl/Summer Nights, So Into You/Making Plans For Nigel, When She Comes, You Took The Sunshine From New York, Loveshit, Sky Babies (intro), Geordie In Wonderland

Electric: I Wanna Go Where The People Go, Vanilla Radio, Mazel Tov Cocktail, TV Tan, My Baby Is A Headfuck, The Revolution Will Be Televised, Sonic Shake, Suckerpunch, 29 X The Pain