Iconic 70’s rock band Angel returned to Ohio for a sold out show at the Empire Concert Club last Saturday night, March 11th.
I last saw Angel about four years ago at a small club near Dayton, along with fellow 70’s rockers Starz. I had also seen them a few days prior to that near St. Louis with Ace Frehley and Enuff Z’Nuff.
At that time in 2019, Angel were preparing their first new studio featuring original members Guitarist Punky Meadows and singer Frank DiMino since 1979’s Sinful.
Risen was released in October of 2019 and the band had plans to tour throughout 2020 to promote their new album. Of course, that happened right before the world shut down for a couple years. The album was very well received by fans and critics but plans of touring became difficult due to the pandemic.
In early 2021 Angel announced that they had begun working on a new album for Cleopatra Records and that album, Once Upon A Time will be released on April 21st 2023.
With their new album in the can and it’s first single “It’s Alright” recently released, Angel is once again out on the road bringing their music to their fans that have waited a long time to see them.
As mentioned previously I got to see Angel a couple times in 2019 and they were fantastic. I had only seen them one time prior to that and that was in 1978, during their Casablanca Records heyday opening for Blue Oyster Cult in Huntington, WV. Columbus legends The Godz were also on that bill.
So, here we are four years since the last time I had seen Angel and I am ready for some rock and roll.
This Empire Concert Club is a small venue but full of Rock N’ Roll attitude. Great stage setup with killer sound and lights.
Angel took the stage around 9:45 and delivered a nice mixture of classics from their five 70’s Casablanca albums, including fan favorites “On the Rocks,” “Can You Feel It,” “Wild and Hot” and “Got Love If You Want It.” They also threw in some deep cuts like “Mirrors,” “Bad Time” and one I had never heard them do before, “Pressure Point” from their 1976 Helluva Band album.
Not sure if the band actually has any “hits” but they definitely covered all the ones that should have been hits, including “I Ain’t Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore,” “Feelin’ Right,” “Rock and Rollers” and “Don’t Leave Me Lonely.” They closed the set with their signature tune “The Tower” from their 1975 debut album.
The crowd was also treated to a couple newer Angel tunes, “We Were The Wild” from 2019’s Risen and “It’s Alright” from their upcoming album Once Upon A Time. Both are great tunes that seamlessly fit right in the set next to all their 70’s material.
The band is in top form. Frank DiMino is singing as well as ever and Punky Meadows’ guitar playing is always top notch. Punky is one of my favorite players. He possesses all that cool 70’s swagger and every note is so tasteful. Rumor has it Punky turned down an offer to join Kiss when Ace Frehley left. While that would have been interesting to see, I am glad Punky is still with Angel and making new music.
The current line up is rounded out by Danny Farrow on guitar & vocals, Steve E. Ojane on bass & vocals, Charlie Calv on keyboards and Billy Orrico on drums.
Angel had the sellout crowd singing along all night long. Cool to see a band that is nearly fifty years into their career have such loyal fans showing up to support them.
It was a great show and seemed to go by pretty fast but the good news is, Angel has three more Ohio shows coming up later in the year and I am going to try and make as many of them as I can.
If you are interested, here are the other upcoming Ohio dates….
August 23, 2023 - Ludlow Garage - Cincinnati, OH
August 26, 2023 – King Of Clubs - Columbus, OH
August 27, 2023 – The Robins Theatre - Warren, OH
I am sure I am forgetting some stuff but check out the pics and videos below to get an idea of how it all went down.
One last thing…..make sure to pre-order the bands new album Once Upon A Time. It is available on vinyl, cassette and CD via Cleopatra Records here.
Angel Meet and Greet prior to the show. Thanks to my buddy Chuck Oney for inviting me ride along with him to show and the meet and greet. Good times.
Swag from the show and a set list.
Scott Carr is a guitarist who plays in the Columbus, OH band Radio Tramps. Scott is also an avid collector of vinyl records and works at Lost Weekend Records. So...if you are looking for Scott....you'll either find him in a dimly lit bar playing his guitar or in a record store digging for the holy grail.