Concert review: Young Gun Silver Fox in Hengelo

There are concerts and there are Young Gun Silver Fox shows. We had to wait a long time to finally see Andy Platts and Shawn Lee live again. The buzzkill Covid had put a spanner in the works of the tour for their third album “Canyons”. Now, finally, they were back where they belong: in the spotlight, in front of an enthusiastic audience.

The Metropool in Hengelo, the Netherlands, was well filled on 11 June when Young Gun Silver Fox took the stage at around 9:30 pm. What followed was a high mass of West Coast music that lasted over two hours. It became clear that this band has already created a first-class repertoire with only three albums, which made the concert seem almost like a best-of show: “You Can Feel It”, “Long Way Back”, “Lenny”, “Mojo Rising”, “Underdog”, the list can be continued seemingly endlessly. The songs from “Canyons” naturally joined this list: “Kids” and especially “Baby Girl”, which Platts wrote for his daughter, were among the highlights.

Andy Platts in general. Even if he wasn’t a gifted songwriter and musician, which he definitely is, as a singer he’s a stirring force of nature. Every note was right, he put 100 percent heart and soul into every song. This man is a “West Coast soul” singer in the truest sense of the word, with the emphasis on soul.

To see Shawn Lee back on stage after overcoming health problems was a real joy. Not only was he bursting with the joy of playing, but he was obviously having fun interacting with the audience with a wink – an artist in his element.

The musical flights of fancy would not have been possible without the great rhythm section consisting of Adrian Meehan on drums and David Page on bass. The two played so tight and funky that you had to think of the Average White Band at the latest when the horns started. Furious versions of “Saturday” or “Kingston Boogie” caused enthusiasm in the audience.

As an encore, YGSF played two songs from their soon-to-be-released fourth album “Ticket to Shangri-la”, including the first single “West Side Jet”, which will be released on 17 June – and let me tell you this much, the songs are again the best YGSF material.

If you missed them this time, you can look forward to December, when they will be touring Belgium and the Netherlands with the new album. We also hope for a few shows in Germany. And by the way, we expect a live album after this tour at the latest. What Shawn Lee and Andy Platts get out of the songs live has to be captured. Young Gun Silver Fox are finally back on stage. God, how we missed them!

Read more about Young Gun Silver Fox in our Special!