Nashville band Striking Matches at Union Chapel, gig review: Fierce chemistry catches fire on stage

The duo deftly meld slick country with pop-smart lyrics

Striking Matches (Press shot)

Brought to international attention after their songs were covered in ABC drama Nashville, Striking Matches have been busy growing a reputation for incendiary live performances.

Arguably their fanbase is bigger in the UK than it is than the US – perhaps down to the lack of a serious country scene in the former – yet Sarah Zimmerman and Justin Davis still seem taken aback to find the audience knows all the words from their debut album, Nothing But The Silence.

Fierce chemistry catches fire on stage – simultaneously collaborative and competitive – the duo lean over one another to see how fast things can be taken as their shadows spar on the wall behind them.

'Missing You Tonight' has that tortured regret found in Lady Antebellum’s ‘Need You Now’, while ‘Miss Me More’ is a cheerfully defiant break-up song: both have potential to become crossover hits.

'Make A Liar Out Of Me' – one of the closers – deftly melds slick country and pop-smart lyrics; its grit emerging from accomplished blues riffs and some serious shredding.

Nashville might come calling for new material as it puts a fourth season together, but in the meantime Striking Matches are doing just fine in their own right.

You can listen to Striking Matches on our Spotify playlist