Looking at their current releases Walker County may not initially have seemed to be the ideal band for the rowdy post Main Stage performance, but how wrong you would be. In previous years this late night slot has yielded some of the most memorable performances of the entire festival, Delta Rae and Lainey Wilson are two that immediately spring to mind and in future years we may be recalling this show in a smilar vein.
From the moment they took the stage there was something magical about them, for while Ivy took her position as expected at front of stage, her sister Sophie, spectacularly attired took her place behind the drum kit. With the addition of their father on lead guitar and a perpetually smiling bass player, they were ready to rock All Bar One to its very foundations!
Sophie was no token presence on the drums either, as she powered out a fearsome backbeat that was matched with their Dad's driving electric guitar and Ivy's soaring vocals all coming through at a fearsome volume as they immediately launched into their single "Shovel". It's important to get the crowd on your side on these type of nights and Walker County immediately had the audience waving their arms as Sophie laid down her next power rhythm, for "Someone's Someone", a song filled with multiple hooks. This was not a night for subtlety but for sheer unadulterated enjoyment and enthusiasm it could not be beaten.
The next song "Between Boyfriends" had the audience providing the requisite "Hell No's" & "Hell Yeahs" for the chorus which ended up speeding to a furious pace as Ivy matched the searing guitar note for note in a race to the finish. It was an impossible pace to continue and things had to slow down to allow everyone to catch their breath, and the ballad "Drag It Out" afforded Walker County that opportunity, although it still saw Ivy powering out the vocals pointing out her joy at seeing people singing along. If things had been a little rawkus up until this point, then that was only an appetiser for what was to come as we went full scale 80's super ballad with a cover of Hearts "Alone" - it may have started quietly but each time they hit the chorus the whole venue seemed to erupt. Replete with the requisite big guitar solo this was what the aftershow parties are meant for.
The 2 sisters were then to take control with Sophie moving to front of stage ,while the rest of the band took a break, having played together since they Spophie was 9 they had lovely sibling harmonies and a new song "Yours Tonight" let them really shine. With a chorus that that seemed to forever rise this was highly impressive stuff and seems destined to be a future single. They continued as a duo for the next song "Mirror Mirror" which had some really uplifting words about being too hard on yourself.
For Sophie it was back to the drums to lay down a pounding beat while the sound effect of a wind blowing through played, for "I Loved You First" - which turned into an outright stomper. If All Bar One went mad for the Heart cover, it was nothing for the reception that greeted their cover of Four Non Blondes "What's Up?" which saw the whole bar rocking and singing, the band fading away so that they could hear the audience belting out the chorus. There was still time for a couple more Walker County singles, "Liar" was slightly slower yet saw Ivy delivering the lyrics at top speed before heading into the blur of noise chorus before finishing on the sassy "Bits and Pieces". The enjoyment the band were having was written all over the bands faces - this was one hell of a way to make your UK debut.