It’s weird when you see a band on tour with only one original member left and it’s the bass player.  That’s how Britny Fox has been touring the last year or so.  I figured for a $5 show in Waterloo, it would be worth going to get my Britny Fox CD covers autographed.

Britny Fox walked in just before the second to last band’s set.  They took a seat next to our table at Spicoli’s.  I walked up to the singer and asked if they were selling any merch and we struck up conversation.  Jamie was glad to share about the band and how things were going on tour.  He introduced me to the others in the band and I had a chance to visit with them all.  I got a copy of the set list for them each to sign and Billy signed my CD covers.  I told them I’d heard good things about this lineup and was anxious to see the show.

Kicking off with Six Guns Loaded and Louder from my favorite Britny Fox CD “Bite Down Hard” was definitely the way to get everyone on their feet and rocking at the front of the stage.  These guys aren’t just some hack musicians playing in another 80’s band to keep the name in the public eye.  These guys are pros and they rock as a unit!  There is natural chemistry and camaraderie on stage that makes them fun to watch and most importantly translate the songs live.

The set list included Long Way To Love, Dream On, Hair Of The Dog, Girlschool, and a couple others.  It was a powerful set from beginning to end.  Jamie’s voice is more like Tommy Paris, the second Britny Fox singer.  He has a smooth run from low notes to high notes and he handles rhythm duty easily.  Greg’s guitar work is some of the most fluid I’ve seen.  He makes it look effortless from rhythm to solo and back.  Kato’s power on the drums reminded me of being close to the stage when Quiet Riot played.  You could feel the drums just like someone was hitting your chest.  Kato hits hard and his groove is right in the pocket.  Billy is the ultimate class act on bass.  He wrote a lot of this music so it’s a natural extension from inside.  Billy and Kato have the foundation down.

Britny Fox used backline provided by Iowa favorites Grave Corps.  Apparently the cow bell had come loose so Kato caught my attention and called me up to the stage during Hair Of The Dog.  He undid the cow bell WHILE PLAYING and handed it to me.  I played the cow bell STAND during the rest of the song!  I’ve actually played cow bell for certain songs in the bands I used to be in, but this was the first time I’ve ever been a cow bell STAND or a part of the gear on stage before.  It was absolutely hilarious!  Now if they make that a part of their show when they stop in Iowa…  Hey, for a part of a song, I got to be in Britny Fox, right?

One of the things I’ve always liked about Britny Fox music is energy of the groove.  The songs are fun to sing along to.  They make you move.

With this Britny Fox lineup, there looks to be a bright future for this band.  They may be playing the past hits now, but keep an eye open for better things built on the sound and groove of Bite Down Hard!