Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band at The Lexington

Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band

Midding

Ollie Cook

The Lexington, 23 August 2025

There's been a buzz surrounding Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band since they released their acclaimed second album, New Threats From The Soul, last month, and I must confess I've been enjoying it too, so it seemed fate when I saw they were playing their first headline show in London at the rather lovely and intimate venue, The Lexington. Naturally it was completely sold out.

This show though was part of an annual showcase of up and comers called "Summer Forecast" so there were two other bands on the bill tonight and the first made me feel especially old, as they looked like schoolboys (I assume they were older though as they were all drinking beer!). Ollie Cook, fair-haired with a wispy tache, came on looking tall and lanky and, along with his band, amusingly called The Hogwash, began playing slightly punky, country-fuelled music. My first thought (to these old ears) was Uncle Tupelo, but the thought of a bunch of teenagers from Birmingham digging Uncle Tupelo in 2025 is probably fanciful thinking on my part, but there was definitely a little Neil Young in there.

The band sounded tight and seemed to having a lot of fun and I really enjoyed their set. Cook did say that London audiences were "different" (although he later apologised!), so maybe they are used to a slightly more animated crowd, but I thought they went down well. It did make me smile though to hear their country-rock sounds and then hear their Birmingham accents, but I must say they pulled it off.

The next band, Midding (who are from Cardiff), was a complete contrast. looking more Velvet Underground and venturing more into a psychedelic rock sound, I, of course, was impressed by the fact that three fifths of the band were women, including the bassist, guitarist and the super cool drummer (who drummed standing up and looked like a young Debbie Harry in her beret).

They definitely had a 90s indie vibe and at times sort of reminded me of early Smashing Pumpkins, in that their music was often moody and jangly and then went into more noisy, atmospheric directions (and also, their male singer was probably the least cool member of the band). The last song in particular, ended with a cool distorted jam that allowed all the members to let loose a little. Again, I enjoyed their set and it will be interesting to see where they go from here.