With Lita Ford showing the Indigo At The O2 that she is a hard rock queen still dominating the stage, the evening was completed with performances by ’80s rockers Vixen and Bobbie Dazzle who brought the exciting buzz of ’70s glam.
Vixen – Bobbie Dazzle
Indigo At The O2 – 24 July 2025
Words: Adrian Stonley
Photography: Manuela Langotsch
Vixen have been around since the ’80s, yet had taken a hiatus for a while, so it would be interesting to see what the latest lineup would be like. With only one original member, drummer Roxy Petrucci, left in the band, this is a very different proposition from the band that wrote their classic early albums.
However, we are in the live environment and that is a very different place to the studio. The question is, can Vixen still cut it? 
The answer at the moment is perhaps. They clearly are a group of strong musicians, and they have an impressive legacy to live up to. With Britt Lightning on guitar, she has more than enough ability and can rip up the riffs and shred with the best of them.
Bassist Julia Lage churns out trembling bass lines, one after another and with Roxy provides the engine room for the band, with their strong rhythms and driving core to the band. The lineup is finished with the impressive vocal talents of Rosa Laricchiuta (Trans-Siberian Orchestra).
Setwise all the hits were there. From opener, the title track to their second album, Rev It Up through the Jeff Paris penned Charmed Life they have the songs. It was certainly a start that got the majority of the audience on their feet and singing along. With songs like Cruisin’, and the mega hit power ballad Cryin’ they could do no wrong. 
My only real criticism is the medley in the middle of the set. With an introduction of Van Halen’s Runnin’ With The Devil, Vixen went back to I Want You To Rock Me, which segued into Deep Purple’s Perfect Strangers.
I personally felt this to be unnecessary. The set had been going from strength to strength with their own material, and personally, I think Vixen should have stuck to this rather than break up I Want You To Rock Me.
Play it in its entirety as the great song it is.
From that, we finished with three killer tunes, Hard 16, Love Is A Killer and then finished with the mega ballad and hit Edge Of A Broken Heart, which had the audience in their element singing hearts out with hands raised in the air in adoration.
This was so close to a storming set. Vixen have the tunes, they have the ability, and they have the legacy, yet it did not quite come together.
Perhaps I am overly critical. That said, I would happily see Vixen again and be proved wrong. All in good time.
It is probably fair to say that there were plenty there tonight who would have disagreed with me. 
Bobbie Dazzle
Having seen Bobbie Dazzle at the Maid Of Stone Festival the previous weekend, I felt that I had a good feel of what to expect from her short opening set for Lita Ford. I had been impressed with her on the first outing, so I was interested to see what she would be like a second time around. She did not disappoint at all.
With one album under her glittery belt, she already has some strong material ready, cocked and loaded for performance. The album, Fandabidozi, is a powerhouse of great modern glam rock songs, albeit with an unashamedly ’70s feel. Hearing some of them again in the live environment brings out the intent more.
Bobbie has a great stage presence, and from the moment she leaps onto the stage, she has a ready and waiting audience to win over.
Realistically, it did not take long at all.
First song, Flowers On Mars, with its catchy melodies, driving guitar work, and space-age keyboard sound effects, was all she needed. Dressed in a black catsuit, she appeared as a modern-day Suzi Quatro, and she was factoring the attitude and sassiness as well as her forebear ever did.
Next up was the heads-down boogie of Revolution, with its drum rhythms clearly reflecting The Sweet. This song on its own is worth the admission price as Bobbie Dazzle, the band, and the audience all rock out. 
The introduction to Back To The City has an explanation about where they are from, Birmingham. This brings the inevitable call to Ozzy Osbourne and the appropriate cheering and chanting of the Prince of Darkness’ name. With a faint nod to Mott The Hoople’s All The Young Dudes, Back To The City features keytar and the keyboard skills and eccentricities of Chris Dando shine throughout.
Merry Go Round is another sonic stomper, yet throws in a challenge as it reaches its crescendo. Instead of a guitar solo, we get Bobbie on flute. Perhaps more Thijs Van Leer than Ian Anderson, she could not resist a cheeky one-legged stand and kick before the end of the solo.
Watch Out was introduced as their Abba tribute. Though far heavier than the Swede’s version, there are all the bouncy keyboard elements and big chorus that you would expect.
The set finished with Lightning Fantasy, a tune that was co-written with her father, despite him having departed when she was a child. Bobbie Dazzle found some lyrics that he had written in his youth, and she and the band put them to music.
It is a great piece of extended glam rock, perhaps containing more of a garage feel reminiscent of the US Glam legends such as Iggy And The Stooges and The New York Dolls.
So, another short but thoroughly enjoyable set. Bobbie has more dates lined up later this year, and I would highly recommend catching her if you can.
If nothing else, she has the ability to wash away all the bad times and feelings and, for a while, instil nothing but happiness and blissfulness. At present, then, the world needs Bobbie Dazzle. 
