When Ward Hayden & The Outliers return to Klubb Uffe at Katalin, it feels like a kind of homecoming. The Boston-based band has played at Katalin several times before, and they truly feel at home here. The evening before, they had landed in Sweden following an 11-day tour of Italy. The five-piece band delivers a high-energy performance for nearly two hours in front of a highly enthusiastic crowd.
The gig at Katalin is thus the band’s first in Sweden on this tour. After an introduction by one of the club’s hosts, Dan Lindberg, the band steps onto the stage. The small, intimate venue is filled to the bursting point. They are a popular band returning to Uppsala. It is easy to understand their popularity, as they are a very outgoing and inclusive band. The audience feels like their friends. I first saw them 9 years ago, back then as Girls, Guns & Glory. Granted, Ward Hayden himself is the only one who has been with the band since then, but the current lineup has also been here before.
Today, the band consists of Ward Hayden on vocals, acoustic guitar, and harmonica; “Handsome Greg” (Greg Hall) on electric bass and vocals; Tyler Marshall on B-Bender Telecaster electric guitar; Pat Brown on drums; and Sam Crawford on pedal steel and electric guitar. They kick off the evening with Bruce Springsteen’s “Youngstown” and then continue with “Maryanne,” an old song from the Girls, Guns and Glory era. “Write A Song,” which follows, comes from their 2023 album South Shore. Only then comes the first longer stage banter of the evening from Ward Hayden. He mentions that he is from Scituate, Massachusetts, a small town just south of Boston. He left the town and went out into the world, only to later move back with his wife. Leaving the small town and returning after several years has given him perspective, as well as material for songs, including “South Shore,” which they play next.
On the song “Blink of an Eye,” we even get to hear a little yodeling from Ward Hayden. It is not hard to see that Hank Williams is a major influence. Ward goes on to say that when they were in Italy, people offered them a lot of food because they looked a bit skinny. They had a great time in Italy, but sitting on the plane to Sweden, they got nostalgic and felt like they were coming home. Once on Swedish soil, this meant a visit to a Max hamburger restaurant and buying large quantities of Swedish candy.
Last year, the band released two albums featuring their own interpretations of Bruce Springsteen. They recorded no fewer than 16 of his songs in “The Outliers style,” as Ward Hayden calls it. He also mentions that Springsteen is a big influence. We then get to hear two of the songs they recorded, “Glory Days” and “Used Cars.” Their country renditions are beautifully done and offer a completely different feel from the originals.
It is very noticeable that Ward Hayden & The Outliers are a tight-knit band that has fun together. Whether they are playing a country waltz or rocking hard, they do it very well and with great joy. The song “Hackensack” is a crowd favorite, though actually not an original composition either. It feels like a bit of a tradition when “Handsome Greg” takes over the lead vocals for Willie Nelson’s classic “On The Road Again.” Greg Hall, like Ward Hayden, is a very good singer. Furthermore, the two of them recently made an album together, which they brought along to sell during the tour. The album has not yet been officially released.
At the end of the concert, the band treats us to two encores featuring a number of songs that altogether last for nearly 30 minutes. It feels like they are enjoying themselves so much and having such a great time together that they almost don’t want to stop playing. The audience doesn’t seem to want them to stop either, but after almost two hours, the gig is over. Ward Hayden & The Outliers truly deliver and prove that they are a highly entertaining live band. Make sure to check out the rest of their tour schedule for a show near you.