Review by Markus Hamence – Eric Gales – Performance date: Monday 24 November 2025. The Gov, Hindmarsh, South Australia
Blues powerhouse Eric Gales has returned to Australia this November for a full national tour. A tour that delivers the utmost combination of fiery guitar mastery and soul-stirring emotion. Five years sober and creatively reborn, Gales is riding high on the momentum of his masterful album Crown, produced by Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith.
“Often hailed as the second coming of Jimi Hendrix“ – Many people
Often hailed as the second coming of Jimi Hendrix, the Grammy Nominated Eric Gales has redefined blues playing with his rock swagger, searing guitar solos, heartfelt lyrics and a stage presence that absolutely commands your attention. He is boldly vulnerable, uncompromisingly political, unflinchingly confident and has absolutely earned his status as a true guitar hero.
Now, let’s discuss the Adelaide performance…
Presented by Gerrard Allman Events, Gales’ 2025 Adelaide show at The Gov hit with a solid hour and a half of crafted music from the soul. From the second he stepped out, he carried that unmistakable energy of an artist right on the crest of something big – sharpened, focused, and already glowing with the momentum that would later carry him into his 2026 well deserved Grammy nomination. You could feel it in the air before he even touched the fretboard. Then he did, and the entire room shifted. We were there for it.
But first his support, Karen Lee Andrews, opened. And she was magnificent.
When Karen Lee Andrews too to the stage the punters engaged instantaneously. With a voice that blends raw edge and velvet tones, Andrews commanded attention from the first note, turning what could have been a standard opener into a headline-style moment. She navigated a mix of originals and select covers, each delivered with genuine emotion and stage presence – reaching that sweet spot where intimacy meets rock-soul fire. Backed by her tight musicianship and a crowd already primed for Gales’s virtuoso set, she didn’t just warm the floor – she lit the fuse and owned a rightful moment in the spotlight and was mighty clear Andrews was there on her own terms.
“She navigated a mix of originals and select covers, each delivered with genuine emotion and stage presence – reaching that sweet spot where intimacy meets rock-soul fire…” – Markus Hamence
Then, after a quick re-set, it was time for Gales and co. I love a gig at The Gov, with its close-knit layout and gritty, heartbeat-in-the-walls atmosphere, amplified everything Eric and the 4 piece band brought. Erics tone was rich and contemporary, with a polish that never diluted the raw intensity underneath. He played like someone actively rewriting what modern blues-rock can sound like. His riffs hit with a bold, forward-facing edge, and his phrasing felt almost sculptural, stretching beyond genre labels and landing somewhere fresh, stylish and unmistakably current. Adelaide crowds love authenticity, and he served it with a fire that never flickered. The banter was cool and he lives in the moment. And considering the plane scare and delay from Sydney (Google it), Eric was in the finest form.
Across the night, his band matched his instincts with uncanny precision. There’s a unison they shared, and the band live and breath of Eric every cord. They back him and they mirrored his shifts, expanding into wide, cinematic grooves one minute, then tightening into razor-sharp freakin’ funk punches the next. The interplay was so fluid that whole sections felt improvised yet perfectly aligned, like a living organism breathing with the room. Gales, riding that synergy, shaped solos that weren’t just technically impressive but emotionally loaded, bending notes into confessions, declarations and challenges all at once. You could feel the 2026 Grammy (congratulations Eric btw, well deserved, your brother would be proud) buzz in every passage – not because he performed like he was chasing it, but because he performed like he already knew where he was heading.
“Gales, riding that synergy, shaped solos that weren’t just technically impressive but emotionally loaded, bending notes into confessions, declarations and challenges all at once…” – Markus Hamence
The band consisted of ONLY the finest. Trevor McKay on Rhythm Guitar, who slayed some serious solo work. Fitzgerald Tate with Bass Guitar, not only does this guy know how to play his weapon of choice but his style is killer and his adoration of Eric is evident with every gasp and smile he puts out. Nicholas Hayes & Ladonna Gales (Eric’s wife) on percussion, and percussion they did, on an epic level not even breaking into sweat. The talent was INSANE on stage. It was a music moment.
His vocals were another standout – gritty, soulful and full of a clarity that hit differently in a venue that intimate. Between songs he spoke honestly (many years sober), grounding the high-voltage moments with reflections that felt real and direct. That vulnerability made the explosive moments hit even harder. There was a sense of growth in him, the kind of artistic maturity that becomes impossible to ignore once you’ve seen it up close. The crowd caught onto it too, and The Gov turned into a feedback loop of energy: he pushed, the room pushed back, and the night kept levelling up. Credit.
As the set rolled toward its final stretch, it became clear that we weren’t watching a blues guitarist having a good night – we were watching a modern artist operating in full flight, unafraid to innovate, unafraid to stretch, and thrilled to take everyone in the room with him. The closing moments felt almost cinematic: a sustained note that hung in the rafters, a groove that pulsed like a heartbeat, a crowd that refused to look away.
“It was not hard to feel his pain and frustration but delivered with talent and the pure joy of music… How the f*ck did someone get so much talent?”
– Markus Hamence
A Few Highlights:
- ‘You Shouldn’t Have Left Me‘ – was pure emotion and a beautiful heart-felt dedication to his late and loved brother, Manuel ‘Little Jimmy King’ Gales
- BUT then also ‘Too Close To The Fire‘ lyrically tears and rips you apart. It was not hard to feel his pain and frustration but delivered with talent and the pure joy of music.
- His obvious love of his band (his friends on stage and in life) too, the looks he gives them during numbers, the smiles, the nods, the appreciation – None of it went unnoticed.
How the f*ck did someone get so much talent???
Is he ‘a modern day Jimi Hendrix’ as some say. I don’t think so anymore. Eric Gales stands alone and defines a brand new musical and soul presence. His spirit is of the musical god, and long live it.
When it wrapped, the applause hit like a tidal wave – loud, insistent, and touched with the recognition that Adelaide had just witnessed something rare. Not just a great show, but a snapshot of an artist on the rise, heading into a Grammy-nominated era and playing with the urgency and hunger that comes just before a breakthrough. Eric Gales owned The Gov that night – he expanded it, elevated it and pushed it into a new orbit. And Adelaide walked out buzzing, knowing they’d caught him at exactly the right moment.
Keep coming back Eric Gales… Your art is a vibe. AND, best wish for the 2026 Grammy Awards, you deserve it all!
Tickets to remaining shows HERE!
Check out our professional PHOTOGALLERY of the night HERE
