Twenty years of friendship, musicianship and groove have created one of the South Coast’s most respected live bands.
Band Feature • 20 Years of Live Music • Music Scene Magazine Essential Artist ★★★★★
Angie Restorick – Vocals
Steve Brennan – Lead Guitar
Paul Tasker – Saxophone
Melvyn Lockyer – Bass
Elrad “118” Matthews – Drums
Jim “Pinkerton Smalls” Mitchell – Keys
For more than twenty years, Chicago 9 have quietly become one of the South Coast’s most respected rhythm and blues bands. Music Scene Magazine explores the story behind the musicians, the music, the friendships and the performances that continue to fill venues across Southern England.
Some bands are remembered for a song.
Some are remembered for a moment.
Some are remembered because they happen to be in the right place at the right time.
Chicago 9 are remembered because they have consistently delivered quality live music for more than twenty years.
In an industry where bands form and disappear with alarming regularity, simply surviving for two decades is an achievement in itself. Remaining relevant, continuing to attract audiences and filling venues after all that time is something else entirely.
I’ve known of Chicago 9 for many years (in fact Bass player Melvyn Lockyer was the bass player in the band I sang with in the early 1990’s), and have followed their journey across various venues throughout the South Coast. Like many local music fans, I’ve seen them in tiny pubs, larger venues, beer festivals and community events. What has always struck me is not simply the quality of the musicianship, but the consistency.
The rooms are rarely empty.
The audiences are rarely disappointed.
And the band always seem to leave people smiling.
The Story Behind The Name
Chicago 9 was formed in 2002 through friendship, mutual respect and a shared love of live music.
The band’s name was chosen by original member Mark Nolan and takes inspiration from the route travelled by many blues musicians during the great migration north from Memphis towards Chicago.
As the story goes:
“Muddy boarded the Chicago 9.”
It is a fitting name.
Because whilst the band draw heavily from blues traditions, they have never been restricted by them.
Their sound reaches across generations of music, blending Chicago Blues, Delta Blues, Rhythm and Blues, Swing, Soul, Rock and Roll and Rockabilly influences into something that feels uniquely their own.
The Room Tells The Story
Perhaps the easiest way to understand Chicago 9 is not to begin with the band.
Begin with the room.
I’ve watched Chicago 9 perform in venues where they barely fit into the corner.
I’ve watched them squeeze six musicians and their equipment into spaces that appear physically impossible.
And yet the same thing always seems to happen.
The room fills.
Then it fills some more.
Then people start standing.
Then people start dancing.
I’ve seen this happen at small pubs such as The Wheatsheaf, Shedfield.
I’ve seen it happen at larger venues such as The Platform Tavern.
I’ve seen bars that begin the evening half-full become packed and moving by ten o’clock.
Glasses shake.
Dance floors appear.
People who intended to stay for one drink remain for the evening.
After witnessing this repeatedly, it becomes difficult to dismiss it as coincidence.
Not Just A Blues Audience
Perhaps the most fascinating thing about Chicago 9 is who comes to watch them.
The audience is never limited to blues purists.
You’ll find long-time blues enthusiasts standing alongside younger music fans discovering the band for the first time.
You’ll find couples dancing.
Groups of friends laughing.
Musicians watching closely.
And occasionally you’ll find somebody who simply wandered into the venue and unexpectedly stayed.
During a recent performance at the South Western Arms in Southampton, a lady moved across the room and stood nearby to watch the band.
At the end of one song she turned to her friend and said:
“Wow, they are really good.”
The song finished.
She pulled out her phone and started filming.
A few minutes later she said exactly the same thing again.
“Wow, they are really good.”
Sometimes audiences say it better than reviewers ever could.
The South Western Arms
I arrived at the South Western Arms whilst the band were setting up.
There was no glamour.
No entourage.
No elaborate production.
Just six musicians preparing for another evening of live music.
Cables crossed the floor.
Amplifiers were positioned.
Instruments tuned.
A crumpled setlist sat amongst the organised chaos.
After a brief off-the-record conversation about arranging a future interview, I left them to get the show on the road.
Before long the first song was underway.
A drum beat.
A guitar chord.
And suddenly we were off on another Chicago 9 journey.
It had been almost twelve months since I last heard the band perform live.
If I’m honest, I think I’d missed them.
The Musicians
At the heart of Chicago 9 sits bassist Melvyn Lockyer.
His bass playing provides the foundation upon which everything else is built.
His walks up and down the fretboard are a genuine pleasure to listen to.
If bass players had personalities, Melvyn’s would be Barry White.
Smooth.
Deep.
Warm.
And effortlessly cool.
Alongside him sits drummer Elrad “118” Matthews.
Elrad keeps time with the confidence and consistency that only comes through experience.
Singles, doubles, fills, backbeats and cymbal work are all present and correct.
Nothing is overplayed.
Nothing is forced.
Everything simply works.
Paul Tasker’s saxophone remains one of the defining sounds of Chicago 9.
Never rushed.
Never overplayed.
Always tasteful.
Always arriving exactly when the song requires it.
Then there is Jim “Pinkerton Smalls” Mitchell.
His keyboard work quietly fills the spaces between everything else.
It rarely shouts for attention.
Instead it builds atmosphere, depth and texture.
The result is a sound that feels far bigger than six musicians on a pub stage.
Why Steve Brennan Demands Attention
Every great band has something that captures your attention.
For Chicago 9, one of those things is Steve Brennan.
Quite simply, Steve Brennan is one of the best guitarists I have seen in a very long time.
His playing is not merely technical.
It is emotional.
He appears to feel every note, every string and every vibration travelling through the fretboard.
There are moments where it feels less like watching somebody play guitar and more like watching somebody have a conversation with it. Its like an artist painting with sound and not colours.
Listen carefully and you can hear echoes of blues history throughout his playing.
There are hints of Robert Johnson.
Touches of B.B. King.
The emotional phrasing of Peter Green.
The confidence of Stevie Ray Vaughan.
Occasional flashes of Gary Moore.
And sometimes, particularly during slower passages, there are moments where Brennan quietly reminds me of Slowhand himself.
Not because he copies Eric Clapton.
Quite the opposite.
Because, like Clapton at his best, Brennan understands that every note matters.
He understands restraint.
He understands space.
Most importantly, he understands how to serve the song.
Having watched him repeatedly over the years, it remains a mystery to me why his name is not better known outside the South Coast music scene.
Angie Restorick
Then there is Angie.
A few years ago I wrote that Angie Restorick had come on leaps and bounds as a vocalist.
Today I’m doubling down on that statement.
The transformation has been remarkable.
Her range, control and confidence are now exceptional.
No rushed phrases.
No chasing notes.
No breathless moments.
Everything lands exactly where it should.
Without hesitation, I would suggest she possesses the quality and professionalism required for studio session work.
Watching her front Chicago 9 today, it is difficult to imagine the band without her.
The Sound Of Chicago 9
Trying to define Chicago 9 by a single genre is almost impossible.
One particular highlight came during C9 Boogie.
Listening to it felt like stepping through multiple decades of music history at once.
There were echoes of 1920s big band sounds woven throughout the arrangement.
Steve Brennan’s guitar carried traces of electric blues pioneers from the 1930s and 1940s.
Paul Tasker’s saxophone lifted the entire performance, adding energy and movement to every phrase.
The result was part blues.
Part rhythm and blues.
Part swing.
Part rock and roll.
Yet somehow completely cohesive.
At another point in the evening, a newer addition to the band’s repertoire featured a remarkable call-and-response exchange between Angie, Steve and Paul.
The timing was so tight it felt rehearsed to perfection, yet retained all the spontaneity that makes live music exciting.
The Evidence Speaks For Itself
If all of this sounds exaggerated, simply look at their diary.
Chicago 9 are not an occasional band.
They work.
Repeatedly.
Across pubs.
Clubs.
Festivals.
Beer festivals.
Private events.
Music venues.
The 2026 calendar alone demonstrates a band that continues to attract bookings across the region.
More importantly, venues continue inviting them back.
That matters.
Because audiences voting with applause is one thing.
Venues voting with repeat bookings is something entirely different.
The evidence is sitting there in black and white.
A diary full of gigs.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Twenty Years Matters
How does a band survive for more than twenty years?
The answer is not talent alone.
Talent rarely survives twenty years.
What survives twenty years is respect.
Friendship.
Understanding.
Patience.
Enjoyment.
The ability to spend thousands of hours together and still want to do it all again next weekend.
Chicago 9 have clearly discovered that formula.
Because what becomes obvious watching them is not simply musicianship.
It is enjoyment.
They still genuinely look like they love doing this.
Final Thoughts
There is a lesson here for younger bands.
Watch how Chicago 9 perform.
Watch how they interact.
Watch how they build atmosphere.
Watch how they read a room.
Watch how they make audiences feel included.
Then pay attention.
Because there is much to learn.
Ultimately, live music is not complicated.
People attend gigs hoping for happiness.
For connection.
For escape.
For a reason to smile.
Chicago 9 understand that better than most.
After more than twenty years, countless gigs and thousands of miles travelled, they remain one of the South Coast’s most dependable live bands.
If you have never seen Chicago 9 before, perhaps the question is not whether you should.
The question is:
Why haven’t you already?
I Have always Admired the BAND.nd kept my Eye on them.
Keep on Keeping on .😎