Buckcherry + Michael Monroe – Brighton Chalk – 8th March 2026

Words: Mark Kelly | Photos: Cris Watkins

A co-headline tour with Buckcherry and Michael Monroe has got to be a must-see for anyone with a gram of rock ’n’ roll in their soul. And if that wasn’t enough, we have Rubikon as the opening act – a veritable musical feast indeed. It’s also the last night of the tour, and it feels like it’s going to be a bit special.

Rubikon are a hard rock band from Boston, Massachusetts. They’ve actually been around for quite a while – the best part of twenty-five years – although this is the first I’ve heard of them, which is my loss, I suppose. The opening song is bluesy with a touch of funk and has a very Free / Bad Company feel about it. The bass lines are wonderfully fluid, and guitarist Josh’s soloing is ace. The drumming is powerful, and singer Jae is clearly influenced by Paul Rodgers.

The second song has a definite Soundgarden feel about it, and Jae sounds more like Mark Lanegan. Josh sports a spikey guitar strap – presumably an anti-theft device – and plays a serious-looking PRS. In fact, he’s got two of them. I’m not in the least bit jealous. No, really, I’m not.

The band have a new album called Wasteland, and they play Leave It Alone from it tonight. It really is excellent. Discovering bands you haven’t heard before is always cool – although it can’t half get expensive.

I make no bones about it: I’m a huge fan of Michael Monroe, and have been since the days of Hanoi Rocks. In my opinion, the man can do no wrong. That doesn’t mean I won’t give him a fair and balanced review, though.

Michael’s band has had a stable line-up for around seven years now, and it feels very much like a band rather than simply a singer with a backing group – although Michael is much more than just a singer, of course. The band explode onto the stage, Michael chucks his fan into the crowd (a man has to keep cool), and proceedings are kicked off with Dead, Jail or Rock ’n’ Roll from the Not Fakin’ It album, complete with some excellent harp playing.

This is quickly followed by the Hanoi Rocks classic Motorvatin’ (not to be confused with the Chuck Berry song) from the Oriental Beat album. As opening one-twos go, that’s pretty hard to beat. By this point, Michael has already been in the pit trading harp solos with the guitarists.

Hanoi Rocks were very much a London band for a number of years, and Old King’s Road from 2015’s Blackout States harks back to that era. Michael isn’t one to rest on his laurels either – he has a new album out entitled Outerstellar, and the first track aired tonight is the opening song Rockin’ Horse. It has the word ‘classic’ written right through it like a stick of rock.

Michael tells us the album is at number one somewhere. Quite where exactly, I’m not sure, but I’m sure he keeps a closer eye on chart placings than I do.

Monroe is by no means a static performer, but I’m surprised to see him standing on the bar during Last Train To Tokyo from One Man Gang. He very carefully steps over my pint as he passes, which I’m extremely grateful for.

There’s a return to the Hanoi Rocks catalogue with I Can’t Get It and its fantastic dual guitar riff. Shinola from Outerstellar is another classic in the making. Although Rich Jones mostly plays rhythm guitar (with Steve Conte taking the lead duties), he’s a hugely important part of the band’s machine, writing or co-writing much of Michael’s material.

For Hammersmith Palais from the short-lived Demolition 23 project with Sammi Yaffa, Michael is back in the pit again – the man simply can’t stay still for long. He also pauses to salute the fact that today is International Women’s Day.

We return again to Hanoi Rocks territory with Don’t You Ever Leave Me Baby, with Rich Jones handling the late Razzle’s vocal part and ace solos from both guitarists. We also get the classic Boulevard Of Broken Dreams.

Next up comes something unexpected. Michael announces that UK Subs vocalist Charlie Harper is “in the house”. Charlie often pops up at Brighton gigs, but what is unusual is that he joins the band on stage for a cover of Endangered Species. It’s awesome – a genuine moment.

Michael and Steve Conte sit on the edge of the stage for the start of Ballad Of The Lower East Side, before the song explodes and Michael ends up on the pit rail yet again. Malibu Beach Nightmare inevitably carries some tragically ironic overtones but features a cool saxophone solo from Monroe.

The set ends with a rip-roaring run through Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Up Around The Bend, famously covered by Hanoi Rocks on Two Steps From The Move back in 1984.

It’s an absolutely incendiary set, and I’m tempted to say “follow that Buckcherry!” However, I’ve seen them before – and I know they can.

Prior to Buckcherry taking the stage, it’s obvious tonight isn’t quite sold out, which is surprising given the quality of the bill. It’s still comfortably full, though.

Buckcherry aren’t showmen in the same way as Michael Monroe’s band. They’re less in-your-face, preferring to let the music do the talking. Opener Lit Up – which may or may not be a hymn to cocaine – features a blistering guitar solo complete with slide work.

Roar Like Thunder from last year’s album of the same name is faster and heavier, while So Hott sees both Stevie D and Billy Rowe playing slide guitar – albeit not at the same time.

Bassist Kelly LeMieux has the most astonishing wide staring eyes, giving him a rather satanic appearance. Meanwhile, vocalist Josh Todd’s torso is entirely tattooed – he looks like a walking work of art.

Let It Burn, another track from last year’s album, bears a passing resemblance in the verse to Motörhead’s Ace Of Spades. If you’re going to steal, you may as well steal from the best.

Before covering Icona Pop’s Say Fuck It, Josh asks the crowd, “Everybody’s got the ‘fuck’ record right?” I haven’t, but this is a great rock reworking of an electropop hit, and Buckcherry make it entirely their own.

Gluttony is harder and heavier than the title might suggest, while Sorry is an AOR-style ballad – though thankfully not the cheesy variety.

The set closes with a medley built around Crazy Bitch. Given the current debate about misogyny in society, I wondered whether they might skip it, but the crowd clearly doesn’t mind. The medley also includes snippets of James Brown’s Sex Machine, Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Proud Mary and more – an excellent end to a great set.

There’s always a temptation at co-headline shows to decide which band “won”. It’s unfair, really – it isn’t a competition, and the artists are probably touring together because they respect each other’s music. Still, comparisons are inevitable, and on this occasion, I’d say Michael Monroe just about shades it.

Then again, I did say earlier that I’m slightly biased.

WORDS: MARK KELLY PHOTOS: CRIS WATKINS