LIVE REVIEW: COUNTRY CALLING 2026: NASHVILLE SOUNDS IN THE ROUND - GASOLINE & MATCHES, RYAN EVANS, NAOMI CAMPBELL, SIMEON HAMMOND DALLAS

With Nashville Sounds In The Round being based in Birmingham, it is only when it ups sticks and moves to a Festival setting that we get to see it. With Gasoline & Matches playing hosts, they'll invite a three guests for a number of rounds, today just three, yet within those rounds, there will be little moments of magic, that possibly the artist when playing solo, might not be able to create.

Gasoline & Matches would start each round, and after initially introducing everyone, they pulled out one of their ace cards in "Never Have I Ever", a drinking game, which really needed no explaining seeing as it felt like half the crowd were wearing G&M merchandise. It did allow Sally Rea to say she would not be joining in, as she was currently "growing a human". Always a crowd pleaser, it let us ease our way in.

G&M had lured us in with a light hearted opener, it was like a boxer setting up his opponent for the knock out punch, for their second song "Time Don't Knock" was exactly that. The intro from Steve, referencing both his Mum death, after suffering from Alzheimers, and the recent untimely death of Glen Hansard was extremely heartfelt. It made the point of how quickly things can change and was so moving you wondered what song could possibly live up to it. Steve would take the first verse on his own

"Time don't knock it just walks right in

Makes itself at home and then

Before you know it, it's gone again

Time don't knock it just walks right in

Sally Rae would join for the second verse, and the next verse formed the conclusion that none of us really like to think about.

"It doesn't pick, it doesn't choose

It doesn't really care who's who

In the end it doesn't lose

One day it's going to get me too"

It was a lot to lay on a Sunday audience, but if this music is not "Three Chords & The Truth" then what is it? Sometimes reality, no matter how unpalatable has to be faced, the ultimate take away is not to concentrate on the ending but to make sure you truly savour all the bits between now and then. It was as good a song as G&M have ever written, and if it helps them and anyone else that is touched by it, ( and it resonated very strongly here at #TEAMw21 Towers ) then surely it was worth it.

G&M would close their contributions with "Glory Hunter", an unreleased song that has been floating around for a while. Blessed with bluesy verses that lead into a irresistible chorus, and replete with a Steve solo, it would eventually turn into something of a guitar fest of an ending!

It was a first time for #TEAMW21 seeing Ryan Evans, who would keeping the drinking theme going with "The Bar Closes At Midnight". There was clearly a degree of familiarity between himself and G&M, both being Birmingham based, that allowed them to provide both additional guitars and backing vocals for each others songs. It was a suitably upbeat number to rouse the Country Calling crowd up and about before Midday.

Ryan would be faced with following G&M's second round bombshell, "Absolutely beautiful" he would say though secretly he must have been swallowing something jagged. He in turn rolled the songwriting dice, with a new song tracing his family history back to Ireland.

Ryan's guitar playing would be at its most subtle as his vocals became ever more stirring on "A Town Called Drogheda". There seems to be a habit that songs about Ireland, subliminally make the artist performing them drift into an Irish accent, and so it was with Ryan but in no way did it take away from the spectacle.

Ryan would open his final round with a bit of a singalong, and within seconds the whole tent was clapping along. G&M would add additional vocals and guitars to "I Swear", which sounded like it could be ramped up into a big Brothers Osborne style anthem rocker. It certainly saw Ryan rock the tent, and no doubt added a few more patrons to his 18:30 Caffe Nero set.

Third up would prove to be a first sighting of Naomi Campbell for #TEAMw21 since 2019 when she was in the group The Hard Road Home! Slowing the mood with an Emmylou Harris inspired song "The Room" from her more recent band Motel Sundown. If the previous songs were the "Hair of the dog", this was more a reflective "Black coffee", as Naomi pulled out some big extended notes.

This was proving to be a tough old second round as the stakes were being raised with each song. Naomi has an EP due in November, and the next single from that "Comfort From The Breeze" would be her second round offering. Musically inspired by Elton John's country phase, it did have his presence sprinkled over it while remaining resolutely Naomi's song.

Naomi would close with a fun song, "Green Eyes, 63 Main Street" which would see her add in a magnificent piece of harmonica work on this tune that had echoes of the great 60's British singers in it's phrasing.

It's also been far too long since we caught up with Simeon Hammond Dallas hence our preview of her being one to watch. Placed next to a fan which played havoc with her hair, each round Simeon seemed to extract a sound from her guitar and vocals quite unlike anyone across the whole weekend. It's what makes her such good fun, true to form and as predicted in our preview she did turn up in a sparkling pair of shoes! Simeon's opening number "Come My Way", was magical, her guitar playing made a bed for her vocals to veer off in whichever direction they felt, safe in the knowledge that they had somewhere to return to for the songs title. All inspired by a Camden barman's not exactly complimentary comment.

Simeon would shake up Round 2 with "Bad Liar" from her "Seventeen" EP, she would joke that with the fan blowing at her that she had far more than the comfort of the breeze! A warning not to cross her, would come with Simeon playing with volume and phrasing to great effect. The guitar here was much more in line with the vocals, strategically used to reinforce certain words. Simeon's vocals would alternate between being intense, then sassy and then accusatory in the chorus

"Ooh you’re a bad, bad liar

You should have just stayed quiet

Dragging my name through the dirt’s only gonna hurt you when it backfires

Ooh you’re a bad, bad liar"

The subsequent chorus would ramp things even further, Simeon's vocals found another level entirely and on completion even Steve admitted he could already hear the whole band version just from this bare bones sketch, such was the power.

#TEAMw21 have railed since the release of "Do I Die?" that it should have become enshrined in the public conscience, such is its brilliance, in not just one but two different versions. Hearing its Nashville origins was fascinating, travelling en route in an Uber to the "Airport station!", a melody had arrived in Simeon's mind that she had to capture, singing into her phone to the amazement of her driver.

This version, initially slower than the recorded version, was simply divine, with Simeon letting her vocals head off in all sorts of directions before circling back for the chorus. Finishing by getting the audience to join in on an unlikely singalong

"Do I die before I'm done?"

this was the way to close out Round Three.

A group finale would see the Round close out on a lovely version of "Rocking All Over The World" with Naomi, once more adding some killer harmonica.

Additional Photography Courtesy of DC Brown