The Struts at the Rooftop at Pier 17

Luke Spiller

As a child in Bristol, England, the only music Luke Spiller heard at home was gospel. At age seven he discovered pop music, at age 11 gravitated to hard rock, and at 16 Spiller began singing in local bands. After relocating to nearby Clevedon, in 2009 he met Derby-based guitarist Adam Slack, who similarly had been playing in bands since his teens. Spiller moved to Derby, where he and Slack formed the Struts. After success in the United Kingdom, the Struts relocated in early 2015 to Los Angeles, California. The band quickly gained the attention of major rockers and opened concerts for the Who, Guns N' Roses, Mötley Crüe, and the Foo Fighters. The Struts presently consists of Spiller, Slack, bassist Jed Elliott, and drummer Gethin Davies. The Struts' second and most recent album, Young & Dangerous, was released on October 26, 2018.

The Struts played the Rooftop at Pier 17 tonight as if the venue was a stadium. You want spectacle? Spiller started the performance by riding a mint Harley-Davidson motorcycle to center stage. Throughout the set, Spiller's swagger, from which the band drew its name, was lavish and mesmerizing. Spiller's larger-than-life showmanship and the musicians' professionalism matched in outsized proportions, as Spiller's multi-octave vocals soared for the skies and the band played booming riff-heavy anthems. The band's high fashion attire was part of the glam and Spiller gave it more wham with plenty of sparkle and spangle in his wardrobe changes. Fortunately, the presentation was not all in the visual; the songs, mostly taken from the Struts' two albums, featured the best components of classic rock composition, including flashy leads and sing-along choruses, and the band rocked them well. The Struts studied Queen very carefully and could become successors to that royal throne for a new generation. In short time, the Struts will be huge.

Setlist:

1. Primadonna Like Me
2. Body Talks
3. Kiss This
4. In Love with a Camera
5. Fire (Part 1)
6. One Night Only
7. Dirty Sexy Money
8. Tatler Magazine
9. The Ol' Switcheroo / Black Swan / Roll Up / Young Stars
10. I Do It So Well
11. Mary Go Round (acoustic, with Spiller & Slack only)
12. Dancing in the Street (Martha Reeves and the Vandellas cover)
13. Put Your Money on Me
14. Where Did She Go

Encore:

1. Somebody New (Spiller solo on piano)
2. Ashes (Part 2)
3. Could Have Been Me