Support to the Orianthi show at O2 Academy Islington came in the form of James Bruner and his band. With an early start and only a thirty-minute set, they were hard-pressed to deliver, yet deliver they did.
James Bruner
O2 Academy Islington – 29 January 2026
Words: Adrain Stonley
Photography: Robert Sutton
There was joy and energy to the James Bruner set, which was no-nonsense, no frills, just good-time hard rock.
Arriving on stage with shades that Elton John or Buggles-era Trevor Horn would have been proud of, James turned up the heat with a set of hard-driving, fun-time rock ‘n’ roll.
Switchblade set the scene, as the band, opened up on the arriving audience. If James was working the stage hard, then bassist Shannon Wilk, looking everything like the consummate rock chick, was clearly there to outshine him.
Shannon has worked with MetalTalk USA since 2021, and there was excitement among the UK team to meet the now Nashville bassist in shows on this tour.
Red Light saw the band getting down and dirty, the stage swathed in, unsurprisingly, a vast wave of red light, every tog’s nightmare.
Due to the time limitation, James Bruner and his band tore through a medley of songs before closing out with I Get Everything, which opened with a bluesy guitar solo before cranking up the volume.
Certainly, those who made it into the venue realised that they were in for a great show, and the audience reaction bore that out.
James Bruner headlines The Treehouse in Frome tonight, with four more shows to follow. For more details, visit jameshbruner.com.
