The Spot Entertainment Centre Derby reviews by real event-goers

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

Review of Clash of the Tributes: Surreal Panther and Foo 5ighters

Great night and great music

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

Had a great time :-)

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

A really well run fun event. A great afternoon/evening of classic rock.

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

great gig, great venue.
only one little moan the website said doors open at 1PM but didnt open til 2PM.
having been on nights i could have had extra hours sleep!!!

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

The Just Say Yes/ARfm charity festival was an amazing day with some of the best British bands around and a wonderful atmosphere. It was a great event last year too but this year it was taken to another level, both in terms of the quality of the bands and reaction of the audience. The organisers also confirmed that over 8k was raised for the charity from the event, making it a huge success all around.

The first band on go by the name of Dirty White Boyz. They are a new band with a soon to be released debut album, however the members have been around for a while in various bands, re-presenting the likes of Kiss of the Gypsy, Bailey, Lifeline, Three Lions, Lawless and Demon. They got the day started off well with a fine set of melodic rock.

C.O.P. UK kept the momentum going with a fine and enthusiastic performance. Having seen them multiple times in the past, including twice last November in support of Eden's Curse, I expected nothing less from them. Closing their set with a cover of the Journey song 'Separate Ways' is something that C.O.P. UK were doing throughout that tour and based on the two shows I went to, it always went down a storm, therefore it was a no-brainer to go for it here and indeed the audience lapped it up and why not? A fine rendition of a fine song.

Front man Dale then announced that his "second favourite band" Blood Red Saints were up next and soon on they came, showcasing two new band members for the first time, a new guitarist and new drummer. Judging by this performance, they have recruited well as their talent and enthusiasm was there for all to see. A stellar set from the 'saints as always but on the odd chance that you are not entertained by their music, chances are you'll be entertained by the humour of front man Pete Godfrey who has the driest northern humour imaginable! They'll be releasing their second album later this year and showcased a new song from it. The fact that this song fitted in so well after their brief rendition of Warrant's 'Cherry Pie' is a good sign of what's to come. We could be in for some major anthems!

Dante Fox were up next. I was massively looking forward to seeing them and on the whole they did not disappoint. The majority of the songs in their set were from their latest album 'Breathless' and it's easy to see why. It's arguably their best and most refined album to date and has been getting rave reviews from here, there and everywhere, fully deserved it is too. The other songs in the set came from the band's first two albums, with the first track from the first album 'Lost and Lonely Heart' going down a particular treat. They ended their set as they always have done at previous live shows with a rendition of 'Remember' originally by Stevie Lange. The enthusiasm and beaming smiles from the band members was evident and Sue Willetts' voice was in fine form, all the more impressive considering she was not feeling her best as she explained on stage, meaning she was not able to move as much as she normally would on stage. This is a band that deserves more shows and more success and hopefully it comes their way soon.

It might have been an impressive day so far but it was time for last three acts to take it to another level. First off Steve Overland, with all FM band members, aside from the drummer (with Neil Ogden from Dirty White Boyz filling in) put on an astoundingly impressive acoustic guitar set made up with fantastic renditions of fine rock covers (the Paul Rodgers presence was heavy in the song choices), along with a couple of FM songs and more. The audience reaction was at another level and you were left thinking how on earth were the last two bands gonna follow it up?

There were more surprises yet however...enter the next band Romeo's Daughter. I've seen this band many times now and they are mightily impressive and simply fun to see live every time. Professionalism and talent in abundance, with Leigh Matty's lovely voice always accompanied by beaming smiles and enthusiastic dancing and interacting with the crowd. This show for them was in between three shows they had supporting Tyk*tto on their recent UK tour, but here they were able to play a longer set. Plenty of songs from their debut album sound as brilliant as ever, 'Attracted to the Animal' always goes down a treat, but also their material from the latest two albums fits in perfectly along with this, making for pleasant and easy to listen to melodic rock all around. Just as it seemed their set was done after their usual last song 'Wild Child', the band welcomed Steve Overland and other FM members back on stage for more songs. Hearing both Leigh Matty and Steve Overland taking on the roles of Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty respectfully for their rendition of 'Stop Draggin' My Heart Around' was an absolute treat and more yet possibly a one-off you won't see anywhere else. This was followed by 'That Girl' by FM and the "wild card" as Leigh Matty put it came in the form of a cover of Van Halen's 'Panama' to close the set. If anything was wild about it, it was the reaction of the crowd as this supreme performance got the applause it deserved from the crowd.

And finally it was time for the headlining band Vega to try and follow up. They did not disappoint and neither did the crowd. They are growing in popularity and deservedly so, their performances always chock full of talent and enthusiasm with front man Nick Workman possessing a fine voice and commanding the stage. Tonight was no different. Their latest album has much critical acclaim and plenty of songs from that album were played here, opening with the first track 'Explode' and the likes of 'Every Little Monster' and 'White Flag' sounding fantastic. Songs from the 'Stereo Messiah' album are still worthy of their place in the set too, with the title track, 'All or Nothing' and 'Gonna Need Some Love Tonight' always going down a treat. The highlight of the set for me though was their performance of the first song of their first album 'Into The Wild', an absolutely incredible song that delivers live. Going back to the latest album however, it says a lot from its quality that 'Saving Grace' has become their staple closing song in the set ever since its release and it went down a storm once again here.

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

A great day/evening out. Liked the 1 hour? gap halfway through the event so people could pop out for food etc if they needed to, nice touch and it meant we didn't miss any bands we wanted to see. I did notice food being served in the venue also. Only downside I found was no cloakroom! This was such a shame for an alldayer, I think most of us would have welcomed something like this to leave our coats/jack*ts. Thank you to the Rockingham merch stall for having an alternative cloakroom to hand. Nice venue, first time for me at The Spot and really close to city centre/transport links.

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

The whole event was awesome. It was well organised and all of the bands were great. I hope to go along to next year's event too.

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

This wqs a really good gig. Great line up, good sound and a very well organised affair. I particularly liked that we could come and go or take a breather in another room.

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

Fantastic event, great bands, atmosphere can't wait for next year!

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

Great night and I hope it raised a lot of money to help this worthy cause. All the bands were on top form and it was a highlight to see the surprise collaboration between Romeo's Daughter and FM. I was expecting Steve Overland to do a set of Overland songs, but he have no complaints. Venue was very clean and the sound was clear and a good level. Soft drinks a bit pricey though.

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

A fabulous brilliantly organised event with top line bands and like minded people from far and wide. The Spot is a great venue as well.My only gripe is the traffic /parking system in Derby

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

Great venue, easy to get to and I could park nearby. The event itself was excellent with some great bands.

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

An excellent event held for an excellent charity. The Spot is s great little venue

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

Excellent day

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

This as some others have already said was one of those I WAS THEIR gigs ,small, friendly,and looking at the bigger picture in my eyes ,cost NOTHING.Some awesome musicians giving their all for FREE.I for one will be back next year,and if it cost twice as much,it would still be good value.I dont know what else to say,i will see quite a number of gigs this coming year,but i can say now nothing will touch my first of 2017.

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

Absolute banging day. Great bands, friendly atmosphere and will look out for it next year if they do it again. £4 a pint maybe a bit too pricey when you know everyone is there all day. Cracking day so well done organisers. see you next year.

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

Never been to The Spot or the JSY event before (or Derby for that matter) but the sheer quality of the line up meant that this was a must see for me. Unfortunately we missed the first two bands so can't comment there but caught the end of Blood Red Saints, who I had seen once before. A fine selection of quality melodic rock before the mid event 'lunch break' was a good introduction to the day for us.

After the break, Dante Fox took the stage and we were treated to Sue Willets amazing vocal range. Some old songs and some from their latest fine album, Breathless although I was a little disappointed that Broken Hearted Man has not made it into their set list yet.
Steve Overland was up next with the first surprise of the evening-he had brought with him most of the rest of FM! Although sadly no Pete Jupp on drums. A nice semi acoustic set of mainly covers focusing strongly on Paul Rogers material was a treat as well as a marvelous almost accapella version of Story of my Life, finishing with Rocky Mountain Way sung by Jim Kirkpatrick on guitar-wow he has a great voice to-who knew?

The wonderful Romeo's Daughter were up next and they never disappoint. The usual mix of old and new from their two early albums and their two more recent-I don't understand why they have dropped 'Cannot be the One' from their set-a melodic masterpiece that one. Oddly no keyboards tonight & a new(?) bassist. Second wonderful surprise when they were joined by most of FM for a semi spontaneous jam comprising 'Stop Draggin' my Heart around, That Girl & Van Halen's Panama. The atmosphere at this point was electric.

After the raffle was drawn (I didn't win as usual) we had a full set from Vega-which seemed to be the same set as I saw at The Electric Ballroom in Camden last November with the addition of a ballad. I should know Vegas stuff much better by now having seen them half a dozen times and I do enjoy their brand of really catchy melodic rock, but for some reason I don't feel I do. That's on me, not them-they are entertaining, professional & fine songwriters so I will stick with it.

A great night for a great cause. A nice small, if a little hot venue. Drinks were not as cheap as I had hoped-as a Londoner, Derby is north to me so I expected cheaper beer-but still cheaper than London prices so a win anyway. Everyone was friendly and the event had a nice atmosphere which peaked dramatically during the Romeo's Daughter/FM jam.

Seems to be a yearly event and if the lineup is as good next year then I will be returning.

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

Great venue for swing bands up close and intimate...Nice touch to have food available via buffet...could perhaps do with more seating available around the venue but that's only a very minor concern...would definitely recommend

Review of JSY/ARfm Rock

Great day's entertainment and for a good cause. Plenty of excellent bands - good to see there is still an audience for this sort of thing out there despite mainstream media ignoring rock music. Venue was decent enough, bar staff were quick which seems to be unusual in most venues these days. I jope they organise another one for next year.