Sergeant Thunderhoof & Duskwood @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024

As the weather in the UK took a turn for the colder, a Wednesday night in the market town of Frome was probably not the first thought for a midweek week jaunt up the A303. However, on the strength of Sergeant Thunderhoof‘s magnificent new album The Ghost of Badon Hill, the chance to hear their new material live made the nearly two-hour trip too tempting to ignore.

Sergeant Thunderhoof & Duskwood @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 flyer

Like the launch party for the previous album, 2022’s This Sceptred Veil, it was a family-like affair heralding the start of a run of dates, so before they headed off to the bright lights of London, Nottingham and Sheffield, they kicked into gear in the intimate 110-person capacity Somerset venue.

Making the gig even more appealing was the frankly ridiculously good value entry price of £6.50, meaning for roughly the price of a pint, you could witness one of the finest bands on the scene right now plying their trade up close and personal.

If you were somehow still on the fence, support came from fellow county natives Duskwood. The four-piece, whose phenomenal The Last Voyage album was released through Ripple Music, were one of my highlights of Desertfest London back in May when they did their best to blow the roof off the Black Heart.

The Tree House itself is a lovely space to see a band with a proper stage set up and lighting gear, exactly the type of grassroots venue that needs to be supported and thankfully I overheard one regular outside saying it was a great turnout for a ‘freezing hump day’.

Opening with the languid tones of Space Craft from their The Long Dark EP, the teasing tones of Greg Watts’ guitar rang out as they powered into the deliciously fuzzy soup. Aaron Tinsley noodling on bass adding to the thumping rhythm of Hugh Landon on drums before Liam Tinsley’s incredible vocals joined the fray. Having never heard them before, my friend, and snapper for the night, Tim Seelig remarked it was like ‘Kyuss colliding with Soundgarden, the vocals, gritty with a touch of Chris Cornell’s soaring melody’.

Duskwood @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig

Hammering through a lengthy set that featured gems such as Gammon Lord and Blackhand from their Ripple Music debut, they threw in tracks like The Watcher (from 2020’s The Lost Tales EP), She Calls and Vagrant. The band let their music do the talking as they jammed through the set, lost in the spacey moments and rocking the raging instrumental parts that make them such a captivating listen.

Subtly cranking up the energy and power with a massive Deathproof and Kenosha, they thanked the crowd and wished the ‘Hoof well on their upcoming tour before tearing into the stomping riff of Nomad to finish, leaving those unfamiliar in the crowd as newly minted converts to the cause. Duskwood are extremely underrated in my opinion and outings like this show that they should be shouted about far and wide.

After a short break, it was time for Sergeant Thunderhoof to try and raise the already high bar set for the evening. Opening with lead single from the new album, the massive, chunky sounds of Blood Moon positively smouldered. The five-piece have really grown in stature from Desertfest, the addition of guitarist/producer Josh Gallop into the ranks pays dividends. Not only in the filled-out studio sound but in the thick, nuanced delivery of the complex material, providing a foil for Mark Sayer to dazzle with his stellar lead work and adding backing harmonies to vocalist Dan Filtcroft’s vocals which cut through with assured command.

Not even a rare, minor technical mishap could stop them from ripping into the bounce of Devil’s Daughter with the rousing ‘woooa-oh’ singalong and the extended jam at the end of Another Plane had the rapt crowd marvelling at the ability to lock into a serious groove with drummer Darren Ashman even teasing a thunderous double bass barrage.

Sergeant Thunderhoof @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig

Debuting new tracks like Salvation For The Soul and the mesmerising The Orb Of Octvia with the extra dalliances that they trimmed from the recorded versions made them even more special, with Sayer and Gallop breaking out twin harmonies as bassist Jim Camp kept everything anchored in the resonant low end.

Clearly relishing the home crowd, this gig may have been a warm-up for the bigger dates down the road, but despite the relaxed atmosphere that saw Ashman attempt to start the wrong new song (which they corrected humourlessly and effortlessly), the band still made sure they executed each moment with the confidence of a collective who know they have hit on something special.

After a rousing Diesel Breath, Filtcroft thanked the crowd and told them it was time for their last track. My mate from a few towns overlooked at his watch with a flash of disappointment until I told him not to worry as it was probably about an hour long (sorry boys, couldn’t resist), and the Hoof began the intro to the closing track of This Sceptred Veil, Avon & Avalon, Pt. 2.

Saving the ten-minute epic till last meant they closed with all the bombast and power that they could muster, the echoey opening vocals gave way to the climatic ‘the sun will rise again’ showing that if you could bottle the feeling of momentum and sell it, the band should be on top of the world right now. They left the stage to deserved applause.

After damaging my bank account at the merch table with the tour-exclusive vinyl and bidding farewell to the band and friends, we managed to escape back to the ‘Jewel of the South West’ to make it home before the white stuff started falling and Exeter descended into chaos the next day.

A top night and well worth the trip – catch either of these bands when you can, you won’t regret it.

Sergeant Thunderhoof

Sergeant Thunderhoof @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig
Sergeant Thunderhoof @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig
Sergeant Thunderhoof @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig
Sergeant Thunderhoof @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig
Sergeant Thunderhoof @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig
Sergeant Thunderhoof @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig

Duskwood

Duskwood @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig
Duskwood @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig
Duskwood @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig
Duskwood @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig
Duskwood @ The Tree House, Frome 20th November 2024 – Photo by Tim Seelig

Scribed by: Mark Hunt-Bryden
Photos by: Tim Seelig