Live Review : Gypsy Pistoleros + The Outlaw Orchestra + Dixie Dix @ The Waterloo Music Bar, Blackpool on May 1st 2025

Three performances, three very different styles, the one thing bonding them all, regardless of genre or approach, is uniqueness. Often a scarce commodity, tonight’s bill is a celebration of that uniqueness, of bold originality and distinctive creativity that is so vital in a too often identikit and anodyne world. It also means that this is a night quite unlike any other… 

Taking to the stage armed with just their acoustic guitar, Dixie Dix, proves immediately that they are a force to be reckoned with. The singer/songwriter approach is one that may have been devalued in recent years, but Dixie seems to be on a mission to reinvigorate it, taking the best elements of the style and spinning them into an alternative, punky and utterly essential form, angst and beauty challenging each other and spinning off into whole new spaces.  

Possessed of a voice that ranges from plaintive and haunting one moment to a passionate high the next, Dixie is clearly an artist with something to say and the talent and fire to do it in a way that makes you sit up and listen. Opener ‘Perfect Girl’ shows off their stunning tone and erudite and intelligent lyrics, whilst ‘21st Fucked Up Century Teen’ punks things up with a fast almost spoken lyrical delivery, street poetry spat out with precision and energy.  Dixie Dix also throws in a cover of Gorillaz ‘Clint Eastwood’, and whilst the cover itself is excellent, it’s when Dixie Dix intercuts it with their own words and musical passages that it elevates into something truly special. This is how to do a cover, take something familiar and then make it completely your own (and I’ll come back to this point again later!).  We also get ‘Messed Up Century’ and next single ‘Smoking Kills’ to round out a powerful and memorable set; if you’re planning on going to any future dates on this tour, do make sure you get down early and catch Dixie. 

And now we have a sharp gear change to something completely different as the tremendous trio of The Outlaw Orchestra step up to the Waterloo stage. Having weathered a seven-and-a-half-hour journey to play tonight you would never know it from the energetic and dynamic performance that the band deliver. The incorrigible and mischievous Dave Roux on guitar and vocals leads the band with a glint in his eye, a devil-may-care charm and a brilliant anecdote for every song. This is muscular country rock imbued with wit and fun and some of the greatest musicianship you’ll see this side of the Mason-Dixie line. We’re only three songs in and multi-instrumentalist extraordinaire, Pete Briley has had a different instrument for each one; there’s guitar, cigar-box guitar, banjo, and later on, electric lap steel and possibly mandolin (I think!), each one played with a fabulous expertise and delicacy of touch, that gives the band their beautifully evocative and wide-screen sound.  

We get an eight-song romp across their back catalogue including the glorious ‘See You in Hell’, with some seriously cool slide guitar from Dave and judicious use of cowbell. There’s also an unexpected segue into The Proclaimers ‘I’m Gonna Be’ which shouldn’t work but absolutely does. Dave dons a huge sombrero for ‘Back to Georgia’ which features an extended instrumental break quite unlike anything you’ve seen before, weaving an epic tapestry of sound and atmosphere. It’s a remarkable display of phenomenal musicianship that also allows drummer Ryan Thundersmith to show his chops too.  It has to be said that Ryan’s drumming is superb throughout, not merely laying down the beat but using his rhythmic arsenal in innovative and inventive ways to punctuate and colour the songs. 

The Outlaw Orchestra are a deceptive band, hugely entertaining and playful, but behind the crowd-pleasing antics, you’ll find a trio of staggeringly talented musicians playing right at the top of their game, the interplay between them nothing short of magical.  There’s a brilliant rendition of ‘Blame it on the Horse’ before their set ends after a hilariously meandering intro leads into a final joyous ‘Bag of Bones’.  Truly one of the most memorable, irrepressible and entertaining bands you’re ever likely to see, The Outlaw Orchestra are a band not to be missed! 

The stage is bathed in violet light as we at last come together to worship at the altar of the Church of the Pistoleros. Clad in their new aesthetic of long hooded robes the face-painted four-piece pose a striking vision alongside a stage-set echoing the religious imagery of this new iteration of the band. The ever-magnetic Gypsy Lee’s whispered opening of his version of the Lord’s Prayer’s launches tonight’s headline set as they barrel into the stunning title track of the new album. Whether it’s the imminent release of that album (due out the following day), the chance to perform the new songs live, or the addition of new drummer Pip Sampson, there’s an extra urgency and bite about the Gypsy Pistoleros tonight that cranks their already legendary performance to a whole new level. Regardless of those other factors Pip’s drumming is definitely a key element in this new era of the Pistoleros; there’s more double kick drums, more rhythmic firepower than we’ve seen before but this absolutely suits the new material and revitalises the older songs in a way that seems perfectly natural. 

Much of the set comes from the new album but this can only be a good thing as with “Church of the Pistoleros” the band have raised the bar to a new spectacular level. Gypsy Lee, one of rock’s great lifers, is the band’s prophet, charisma-personified, tongue firmly rooted in his cheek, whether casting water out and blessing the crowd, brandishing a light-up Sacred Sword of Truth (yes, really) or running through a gloriously irreverent ‘Livin’ La Vida Loca’, you can’t take your eyes off him. An encyclopaedia of rock n roll anecdotes of a life spent in the rock n’ roll trenches, Lee captivates, grabbing each song and attacking it with a theatrical intensity. Kerry White meanwhile, spins and stomps like she’s possessed by the Holy Spirit of Rock n’ Roll, a constantly moving, whirlwind of wonderful bass lines, the bookend to Shane Sparkz’ dazzling guitar and devilish moves on the other side of the stage.  

Of the new songs on display tonight ‘I’m In Love with Myself’ is the bastard offspring of Generation X and Slade, punk riffage melded to a Glam Rock Seventies style drum beat, ‘Shadow Walker’ one of the heaviest tunes they’ve every written, Last Train to Nowhere a propulsive upbeat number bearing all the hallmarks of the Gypsy Pistoleros, brilliant, lyrical imagery wedded to big melodic hooks. Each one a potential classic there’s still room for older material; ‘Wild, Beautiful and Damned’ gets an airing and still has that old-school Pistoleros swagger and power.   

The sets draws to a close with a delirious run through of the epic ‘Ballad of Tommy Shelby’ with the band coming back (in fact they never leave) with ‘Revolution’ from 2023’s “Duende A Go Go Loco” and the utter singalong joy that is the band’s version of ‘Come On Eileen’; earlier we mentioned that a cover version should do something different to the original, well this is the blueprint for that ethic. Lee informs the crowd that this is therapy to wipe away years of having the original played at us at dodgy family events and in the hands of the Pistoleros is transformed into an utterly riotous, utterly wonderful singalong to close what has been an amazing night of unparalleled rock irreverence. 

Iconoclastic, revolutionary and gloriously subversive, with their new album about to be unleashed on the world and performances like this one Gypsy Pistoleros are surely poised for world domination and ready to step up into the pantheon of the greats…so as the title track says come and join the Church all you beautiful weirdos…. 

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos!
Gypsy Pistoleros + The Outlaw Orchestra + Dixie Dix