This Canadian five-piece grab show why they are one of the great hopes of rock 'n' roll.

The Sheepdogs

Norwich Arts Centre

This is the second time the Sheepdogs have played in this neck of the woods recently.

A couple of months ago, they were the support act for the Temperance Movement at the Waterfront. On that occasion, they played more like headliners than a second-string band, and this show gives them the chance to show they are worthy of topping the bill.

The Canadians grasp the opportunity with both hands, and they deliver a tour de force of boogie-rock equal to anything that has come out of the southern US in recent times. And although influences from the likes of Lynyrd Skynyrd shine through, they are no 'do-it-by-numbers' outfit.

The boogie feel to proceedings begins with opener Where I Can Roam, which is off new album Future Nostalgia. Indeed, many of the highlights of the evening are from that record. One of them is Back Down, which would have fit comfortably into any Black Crowes show, and it's foot-tapping rock at its best.

The only slight disappointment is the cover of the Allman Brothers' Whipping Post as the encore. Not that there's anything wrong with it in itself, but I Don't Know – which had brought the main set to a close – was such a terrific slice of bounce-along blues-rock that pretty much anything that might have followed it would have been a backwards step.

That said, it's refreshing that the Sheepdogs perform so many of their own songs rather than lazily relying on a whole batch of covers as some others might do.

Having long ago conquered their homeland, don't be surprised if the Sheepdogs soon get a greater profile over here, too – and one day, it might be their songs that others are covering.