As early as the opening song, it is clear that Kasperia are drawn towards the mystical. By the second, it is equally evident that they possess plenty of confidence.

“Dead Letter”, one of the few tracks they currently have on Spotify and one MV had listened to earlier in the afternoon, finds singer Leah declaring: “We’re gonna be rich, baby.” On this evidence, you would not bet against them.

The Stourbridge quartet apparently wish it was still the 1970s—a decade none of them are old enough to remember—and there is something of Jefferson Airplane about “Keep Walking”, the other song MV had heard in advance. At least there is until it suddenly goes full-on Black Sabbath.

Their songs are enchanting, psychedelic things, although they occasionally inject a little more energy into proceedings, not least during a shameless “la la la” singalong. At heart, though, Kasperia are a jam band, and proudly so. Their music is allowed to breathe, wander and find its own path rather than being forced towards an obvious destination.

They groove, too, as their closing track—possibly entitled “Dig My Grave”—underlines one final time. Their talent is obvious. Whether they actually become rich remains to be seen, but Kasperia are undoubtedly a band worth keeping an eye on.

The bass hums ominously at the start of “Dead Man Walking”. Then Michael Hobby strides out in his shades, looking every inch the rock star, and A Thousand Horses are off.

All the catchiness remains, but White Flag Down was more than a mere change of direction. It was the sound of a band digging deeper, turning up the guitars and emerging as something heavier, more personal and altogether more defiant. Tonight, they play like men utterly convinced they made the right choice.

“Suicide Eyes” is thunderous. These days it sounds like arena rock, but its roots stretch back to the band’s earliest work and its appearance in the 2011 remake of Footloose. It is proof, perhaps, that this side of A Thousand Horses was always there. It has simply been allowed to take over.

“Travelin’ Man” follows, its harmonica absolutely filthy, and it underlines what a truly brilliant band they are. Bill Satcher’s guitar work is sublime, but more importantly, everything here feels instinctive. They play with the looseness of a bar band and the precision of one capable of filling much larger rooms.

The riff to “First Time” is dark and bluesy, but the song itself is energetic, joyful and shot through with class. It feels like a homage to good nights, loud music and all the reasons people fell in love with rock ’n’ roll in the first place. It is the sort of thing The Commoners have made a career out of, and that is meant as the highest possible compliment.

“Shadows” illustrates how different the newer material is from the country rock of Southernality. Different, though, does not mean unrecognisable. The melodies, the soul and the unmistakable class remain intact. A Thousand Horses have merely broadened the canvas and added darker colours.

Hobby straps on an acoustic guitar for “Part Of My Story”, before bassist Graham DeLoach explains that the song is particularly close to him because, as he puts it simply, “I lived it.” Written from the aftermath of his divorce, the big ballad from White Flag Down begins tenderly before building towards one hell of a crescendo.

The acoustics stay out for the beautiful “Room Full Of Strangers”. Co-written by Hobby with Chris Stapleton, it is their hymn to life on the road and the loneliness that can exist even when you are surrounded by people. Then Satcher cuts loose, because even the quiet moments have to contain a magnificent guitar solo.

“Blaze Of Somethin’” comes from the funkier end of their work. As befits a band that recently toured with The Black Crowes, it is dosed liberally in slide guitar and Southern swagger. It grooves rather than simply rocks, the whole thing sounding wonderfully relaxed.

Before “The Passenger”, Hobby talks about White Flag Down being a record the band genuinely believes in. That much is obvious. These lyrics are surely drawn from the heart, and there is none of the distance that can sometimes exist when bands are obliged to promote their latest release. A Thousand Horses sound as though they need to play these songs.

Then comes “Smoke”.

Over a decade ago, MV fell in love with A Thousand Horses through the Southernality album, and its signature song still sounds glorious. Somehow, it segues into a snippet of Oasis’ “Champagne Supernova” and, even speaking as an Oasis fan, it works.

Sorted.

“Voices” was the first glimpse of the brave new world represented by White Flag Down. Darker, heavier and dealing with isolation and recovery, it was a bold choice for a returning single. The response justified the gamble, but hearing it tonight makes its success feel almost inevitable. This is not a band chasing fashion. It is one following its instincts.

“Highway Sound” earns immediate vocoder bonus points. Beyond that, it is precisely the sort of song that does more to sell “the South” to blokes from the Midlands than any tourism campaign ever could. It eventually opens into some wonderful Allman Brothers-style jamming, A Thousand Horses stretching out and allowing the music to breathe.

The encore begins with “(This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial”, and whether they are playing the modern, muscular rock of their latest work or this more country-tinged material, they are magnificent at it.

“Heaven Is Close” brings the evening to an end. Its promise of going anywhere they want to go may or may not have been written with Wolverhampton in mind, but tonight it hardly matters.

Five men out of Nashville walked onto the stage at KK’s Steel Mill and owned the place.