Review: The Milk Men – Live at Milkfest

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Review: The Milk Men – Live at Milkfest

Self-Release (May 16th, 2025)

Reviewer- Paul Dubbelman

Stalwarts of the UK Blues Rock scene, The Milk Men release their latest album ‘Live at Milkfest‘ on May 16th. Recorded live at their own “Milkfest” festival, held at Indigo at the O2 earlier in the year, as a celebration of British Blues and in support of the Brain Tumour Charity. This is a live album in the truest sense, recorded directly into a two-track mono desk feed, NO OVERDUBS, no spit and polish, just pure, raw, as-it-happened rock ‘n’ roll music. Recorded by Leo Mansell and edited and mastered by Wayne Proctor at House of Tone, this album captures the energy and dynamic of the band’s opening set perfectly.

Opening track ‘Shoot the Lights‘ sets the intent for the performance with Jamie Smy’s rasping vocal over Adam Norsworthy’s riffing with Lloyd Green’s sharp-as-a-knife bass throwing a very nice mid-song solo and Mike Robert’s drums crystal-clear and pin sharp. ‘Hungover‘ kicks into gear with punchy drums and incisive bass runs and choppy riffs before Jamie recounts the tale of being, well, hungover. Definitely a song that many will relate to. ‘Cheap Seats‘ opens with a very Feelgood-esque riff from Adam before Jamie’s vocal kicks in with that trademark growl expressing the emotion of the lyrics.

Latest single ‘Fabulous‘, released May 2nd, is another lively rocker with all the hallmarks of a band that are clearly on top of their game and having a great time up there on the stage, this one is almost pure rock’n’roll. A Good clap-along from the crowd suggests they were having a good time too (They were, I was there!).

Paul Long (Burning Rope/Catfish/Riotous Brothers) joined the band on Hammond Organ for the slow-burrnin’ blues bleeder that is ‘Give Me A Reason‘, the scene-setting Hammond and Adam’s blues-infused solo sending shivers down the spine. The tempo goes back up to eleven with ‘One Man Band‘, a proper groover that gets heads, hands, and feet moving in time to the rhythm, and brings the crowd in with the chant of “raise your hands for the one-man band”.

‘Little Miss Attention‘ grabs the spine from the get-go with a sharp and purposeful Bass line from Lloyd before another of Adam’s exquisite riffs, all underpinned by Mike’s sartorially elegant drumming. This is another for the crowd with Jamie hitting the “Ooh la las” with purpose.  A quick tune-up and it’s into the oh-so-familiar riff of The Who’s ‘Pinball Wizard‘, delivered with style and aplomb, every member of the band pulling out all the stops to hit this one hard. 

All too soon we are at the end of the set, and the record, with ‘She Don’t like Rock ‘N’ Roll‘, a song about a surely mythical creature that doesn’t like Rock ‘n’ Roll – does such a thing exist? No matter, it’s another stormer of a track with a Chuck-Berry-esque solo, more cutting bass lines and a sing-back from the crowd.

For a live album with absolutely NO OVERDUBS, the sound quality is exceptional – every instrument stands out, the vocals are crystal-clear, and you really do feel like you are there. Yes, it is raw, warts-n-all, music but isn’t that the beauty of live – that moment in time, that memory of a gig (if you were there) or that feeling of  I-wish I’d-been-there (if you weren’t)  that a truly live album with no overdubs can give you. 

Of course, with anything live, it isn’t going to be perfect, and sadly Todd Sharpville’s guest spot and a cover of Robert Cray’s ‘The Score‘ was lost to technical gremlins. However, I am reliably informed that Todd’s dog Genghis does feature on the album artwork, so all is not lost.

Milkfest ’25 raised over £8,000 for the Brain Tumour Charity and 25% of all physical CD presales of ‘Live at Milkfest‘ will be donated to the Charity. Milkfest ’26 is scheduled at Indigo on March 1st, 2026, and tickets should be on sale in the next few months.

Pre-order ‘Live at Milkfest‘ on CD – here

Track listing:

  1. Shoot The Lights
  2. Hungover
  3. Cheap Seats
  4. Fabulous
  5. Give Me A Reason
  6. One Man Band
  7. Little Miss Attention
  8. Pinball Wizard
  9. She Don’t Like Rock’n’Roll

Line-up:

Jamie Smy – Vocals

Adam Norsworthy – Guitars

Lloyd Green – Bass

Mike Roberts – Drums

Web Links:

Official Website

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