It's always nice to tick a performer off my 'must see musicians' list and tonight I've got a pretty big name to mark a line through - Van Morrison aka Van the Man ('VTM').
I have absolutely no idea what to expect tonight. I've heard infamous stories about VTM being a temperamental stage dweller who pays little or no attention to his audience and regularly chastises members of his band for no apparent reason - yes, I have been warned!
Tonight's show forms part of Bluesfest and as a result I am not expecting a greatest hits set. It's a bonus that my favourite VTM songs lean heavily towards his blues tendencies.
VTM appears on stage promptly at the stated start time of 8.30pm. He is clad is his trademark black suit, black hat and dark glasses (how he can see anything is beyond me as the stage lights are down low already!).
Some of the highlights were:
* The first song is one of my all time VTM favourites - Them's Baby Please Don't Go. I love the down and dirty feeling to this tune be I am always reminded of Robin Williams in Good Morning Vietnam inviting people to 'boogaloo until we puke'. VTM mentions at the end of the song that when it was released they probably sold about 10 copies - I assume this is a noted dig at the fact that he never received any royalties from his work with Them.
* You Know What They're Writing About Lyrics sees VTM's first foray in the sax. He is, of course, known as a formidable guitar player but obviously has musical skills well above and beyond the 6 stringed instrument. It's good to see that VTM is still engaging with an instrument onstage rather than simply providing vocals (and stern directions to his band!).
* 'No Safety net, No Plan B' is VTM's new mantra. It's a great tune which echoes thoughts which perhaps should belong to a much younger man. Perhaps VTM is just touching on Leonard Cohen's invitation of "I'm old, I'm broke - follow me".
* There was only one real divo (as opposed to diva) act of the night during I'm Not Feeling It Anymore where mid-song VTM barks directions at one of his band to charge instruments and his sound. It's not something I have seen before but given warnings previously noted, it is not particularly unexpected. VTM comments with some cheek at the end of this song that 'Paul Macartney says you can't buy love and he should know'.
* I'm a relatively young member of the audience (yay!) and by and large the crowd is very respectful - well until some dufus yells out an ill-timed request for Brown-Eyed Girl. Ahh dude it's Bluesfest - get a grip!
* VTM's voice is strong and easily matches the band's verve. I personally think that is pretty impressive for a 66 year old, and seeing him on sax and harmonica at various points throughout the night (although always of short duration) indicates to me that VTM has a few more years in him yet!!
* The last song of the set is another Them classic - Gloria. It seems to me that this is played more to appease the audience than for any enjoyment that VTM is getting out of it. After his vocals are finished VTM leaves the stage unceremoniously well before the band finishes.
It is a decent set and I'm glad that I've made he effort to see VTM in the flesh. It hasn't however melted my face off or otherwise moved me to rave about his stage presence, but it is another musical 'wanted' poster that I can take off my wall.
Showing posts with label London. Show all posts
Showing posts with label London. Show all posts
Friday, 29 June 2012
Sunday, 13 May 2012
Lisa Hannigan - Queen Elizabeth Hall (Royal Festival Hall) - 13 May 2012
So how's about this? I've never been to this venue before! How could that possibly be given that I've been to more gigs in London over the space of ten years than I've had hot brekkies? Who the heck knows, but I'm glad to have found this little venue attached to the Royal Festival Hall at Southbank - not least because it has the most comfortable seats I've been in at a gig for a very long time (although it does also remind me of a university lecture theatre a little too much!).
The capacity here is 900 and she's full up for tonight's performance by Lisa Hannigan & Friends. Yes that's right I'm seeing another Irish singer/songwriter and yes I know I am making somewhat of a habit of that, but when there is good Irish talent around you definitely want to be in the room partaking.
The opener tonight is John Smith who comments that he needs all the help he can get given his'common' moniker. John gives us some fairly pleasant acoustic tunes on his 'gheetar'. The most amusing part is when he tells us about his fear of breaking a string while he is de-tuning and sending said string into his arm. Sure enough a couple of songs from the end of his set he does just that (although thankfully without the arm injury).
Lisa is on around 8.15pm and when she says 'friends' she means it! I count seven people onstage with various instruments - piano/banjo, violin, double bass, trumpet, guitar (in the form of opener John Smith), drums and Lisa (on guitar, mandolin, percussion and piano accordion). In other words it's a full on Irish festival of sound - giddy up!
This is the last night of the band's European tour but there's no mucking around - we are off instantly and straight into Little Bird. I've not managed to see Lisa live before as a solo artist and it's great to hear her voice echo through the hall. I find that her voice has a delicious raspiness to it which makes it unique, and it's something that attracts me to her work.
Another aspect of Lisa's work that I enjoy is her penchant for tunes with gorgeous and subtle melodies and one is offered up immediately in the form of Pistachio.
I said damn this band are a multi-talented lot! We've got a myriad of instruments being whipped out, and for the next number Ocean and a Rock there is some glockenspiel and accordion action - tidy work!
One thing about Lisa is that she always seems to be to be fully invested in her music. It's as if her own songs captivate her, and that's what I want to see. If music is your passion in life and you are lucky enough to be making a living out of that passion then there is no reason why you shouldn't be leaving everything you've got on the stage every night. You cannot ask anything more than that from any performer. If you leave your heart and soul on the stage then you've done justice to your art - if the audience doesn't get it, then that's their issue. That being said, there's no such issue tonight because the audience are attentive and appreciative at every stage.
Lisa then takes a new mandolin on 'her maiden voyage' with Venn Diagram which is sweet, as is her duet with John Smith which follows (O Sleep).
A slight technical issue (a guitar not tuned to Lisa's liking) has the band changing around the set list slightly and the nest tune - O Sail - eventually has the whole band involved and it sounds wonderful.
One of my favourite Lisa tunes is next - Flowers- there's some great direct lyrics here:
"I don't know the rules of this game,
And I don't think I want to play"
Lisa's moving around the stage like she's been possessed here - her whole body is involved in this process and there's something slightly hypnotic about it.
Paper Hats from Lisa's latest album Passenger is next, followed by Nowhere to Go (which sports a gorgeous violin solo) and then Lisa decides to pull out yet another instrument (this time a melodica) for Teeth- ok c'mon how many instruments does she play?This is making us non-musical plebs feel even more inadequate!
Home, Lille (with great glockenspiel) and Safe Travels (Don't Die) are a lovely threesome with the last tune being dedicated to the band's good fortune at escaping death throughout the tour. I Don't Know and What'll I Do round off the main set. Darn - are we near the end already?
There is a very short encore break and then the band come back on for what, in my view, is the highlight of the night - a musical tribute to Levon Helm in the form of an inspiring version of The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down. It's the band singing all together with only a guitar accompanying them. It's a pretty perfect way to honour Levon and I'm pretty sure this performance wouldn't have been out of place at any of his infamous rambles.
Lisa ends the night with Knots - which is a fantastic ukulele driven track. We are left bopping in our seats on a high and positive note. This has been a very enjoyable night and something which I certainly hope to repeat at some time in the future. Ta muchly to Lisa and her extremely talented band!
Setlist:
Little Bird
Pistachio
Passenger
Ocean and a Rock
Venn Diagram
O Sleep
A Sail
Flowers
Paper House
Nowhere To Go
Teeth
Home
Lille
Safe Travels (Don't Die)
I Don't Know
What'll I Do
Encore:
The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
Knots
The capacity here is 900 and she's full up for tonight's performance by Lisa Hannigan & Friends. Yes that's right I'm seeing another Irish singer/songwriter and yes I know I am making somewhat of a habit of that, but when there is good Irish talent around you definitely want to be in the room partaking.
The opener tonight is John Smith who comments that he needs all the help he can get given his'common' moniker. John gives us some fairly pleasant acoustic tunes on his 'gheetar'. The most amusing part is when he tells us about his fear of breaking a string while he is de-tuning and sending said string into his arm. Sure enough a couple of songs from the end of his set he does just that (although thankfully without the arm injury).
Lisa is on around 8.15pm and when she says 'friends' she means it! I count seven people onstage with various instruments - piano/banjo, violin, double bass, trumpet, guitar (in the form of opener John Smith), drums and Lisa (on guitar, mandolin, percussion and piano accordion). In other words it's a full on Irish festival of sound - giddy up!
This is the last night of the band's European tour but there's no mucking around - we are off instantly and straight into Little Bird. I've not managed to see Lisa live before as a solo artist and it's great to hear her voice echo through the hall. I find that her voice has a delicious raspiness to it which makes it unique, and it's something that attracts me to her work.
Another aspect of Lisa's work that I enjoy is her penchant for tunes with gorgeous and subtle melodies and one is offered up immediately in the form of Pistachio.
I said damn this band are a multi-talented lot! We've got a myriad of instruments being whipped out, and for the next number Ocean and a Rock there is some glockenspiel and accordion action - tidy work!
One thing about Lisa is that she always seems to be to be fully invested in her music. It's as if her own songs captivate her, and that's what I want to see. If music is your passion in life and you are lucky enough to be making a living out of that passion then there is no reason why you shouldn't be leaving everything you've got on the stage every night. You cannot ask anything more than that from any performer. If you leave your heart and soul on the stage then you've done justice to your art - if the audience doesn't get it, then that's their issue. That being said, there's no such issue tonight because the audience are attentive and appreciative at every stage.
Lisa then takes a new mandolin on 'her maiden voyage' with Venn Diagram which is sweet, as is her duet with John Smith which follows (O Sleep).
A slight technical issue (a guitar not tuned to Lisa's liking) has the band changing around the set list slightly and the nest tune - O Sail - eventually has the whole band involved and it sounds wonderful.
One of my favourite Lisa tunes is next - Flowers- there's some great direct lyrics here:
"I don't know the rules of this game,
And I don't think I want to play"
Lisa's moving around the stage like she's been possessed here - her whole body is involved in this process and there's something slightly hypnotic about it.
Paper Hats from Lisa's latest album Passenger is next, followed by Nowhere to Go (which sports a gorgeous violin solo) and then Lisa decides to pull out yet another instrument (this time a melodica) for Teeth- ok c'mon how many instruments does she play?This is making us non-musical plebs feel even more inadequate!
Home, Lille (with great glockenspiel) and Safe Travels (Don't Die) are a lovely threesome with the last tune being dedicated to the band's good fortune at escaping death throughout the tour. I Don't Know and What'll I Do round off the main set. Darn - are we near the end already?
There is a very short encore break and then the band come back on for what, in my view, is the highlight of the night - a musical tribute to Levon Helm in the form of an inspiring version of The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down. It's the band singing all together with only a guitar accompanying them. It's a pretty perfect way to honour Levon and I'm pretty sure this performance wouldn't have been out of place at any of his infamous rambles.
Lisa ends the night with Knots - which is a fantastic ukulele driven track. We are left bopping in our seats on a high and positive note. This has been a very enjoyable night and something which I certainly hope to repeat at some time in the future. Ta muchly to Lisa and her extremely talented band!
Setlist:
Little Bird
Pistachio
Passenger
Ocean and a Rock
Venn Diagram
O Sleep
A Sail
Flowers
Paper House
Nowhere To Go
Teeth
Home
Lille
Safe Travels (Don't Die)
I Don't Know
What'll I Do
Encore:
The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
Knots
Wednesday, 9 May 2012
Garbage - Troxy - 9 May 2012
Now this is a result - a gig over my side of town! The Troxy is an old art deco- styled venue which to be fair is probably more suited to lounge acts or vaudeville shows but which has recently been host to some pretty amazing indie rock artists - such as Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, PJ Harvey and Cake. Tonight the 2,600 capacity venue is putting up the newly reformed Garbage.
I was actually at the 'very last' Garbage show at Brixton Academy years ago and it was an amazing performance. I cannot, however, believe that took place over 7 years ago! Surely not? Where does the time go? And more importantly how old am I - gah!
I first saw Garbage in the origins of their hey day co-headlining with Alanis Morrisette in Canberra (October '99) of all places. I distinctly remember Shirley tearing up the stage and making the night of numerous hapless boyfriends (who had been dragged along to the show by their girlfriends!) by strutting around the front of the stage with her very short skirt and white undies - they were actually very good that night and Alanis had to significantly up the ante to match it.
Garbage, time, were mainly about very slick pop rock songs and some serious Scottish attitude (care of their iconic leading lady). I am keen to see whether they still have the ability to sliver up the goods. I am also somewhat concerned about the fact that yet another band from my own hey day has come out of retirement - where is the new guard? In a perfect music world there would be no room for those who voluntarily left the stage many years ago. Perhaps the fact that bands like Garbage, Blur, Soundgarden and The Stone Roses (amongst others) are able to successfully tour again says something about the dire state of a music industry overrun by artists created by Simon Cowell - or maybe it just indicates that I am getting overly critical in my old age!
At least Garbage are not simply resting on their old laurels - there is an album full of new material on its way and I assume that we going to get a taste of some of the new tracks tonight.
Following a DJ opener (who really did remind us how old we were by playing 'classics' like L7 and The Damned) , the band took the stage just after 9pm. The crowd are full of people around my age in various shapes and forms and lots of goth looking girls with pink, blue and purple died hair - go the youngins!
The supervixen herself stepped straight up and into the track of the same name from Garbage's debut album (yeah that pink one!). She was decked out appropriately in red and black hot pants and heels and proceeded to throw herself around the stage in her infamous 'circling the prey' manner.
Unfortunately the sound system at the Troxy wasn't able to keep up with the band's intent and the result was a really muddy mix where Shirley's vocals could barely be heard - which was somewhat concerning given that I was standing in the front row. I've been at the Troxy a number of times and not experienced muddiness of this level before so I can only think that it's the set up that is creating the problem. It does improve over the course of the set but it's still a little off.
By the time we get to Queer we are able to hear the vocals a little better. The band sound good and the Shirley swagger is in effect - although it is slightly diminished by the minion who appears to relieve Shirley of her heels in exchange for flat boots - fair play!
Stupid Girl a few tracks later gets the crowd going and this is shortly followed by my personal highlight of the night being the triple whammy of #1 Crush (with awesome Madonna Erotica intro), Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go) and excellent new track Blood For Poppies. Really they sound like the 7 year break was only 7 weeks - which bodes pretty well for their upcoming tour.
Shirley takes the opportunity to thank the crowd, their manager and their families (most of whom are here tonight) for their love and support and there is a collective feeling of nostalgia which I think is felt by most in attendance - ahhh the 90s - those were the days!
We then move into full nostalgia mode with Milk and I Think I'm Paranoid. It's good to see that there is still some venom in these tunes - especially given that some of them are over 17 years old!
Man on a Wire and Bad Boyfriend from (album) keep the energy high and we then find ourselves with two further old friends to end out the main set - Only Happy When It Rains (which starts out low key and almost acoustically) and Push It.
I am still yet to hear probably my favourite Garbage tune (Vow) but I have high hopes for the encore - although I am wondering what else they are going to play given that most of the biggest Garbage hits have already been dealt with.
I have to say I am pretty surprised to see them pull out new track Automatic Systematic Habit and The Trick is to Keep Breathing as the first two songs of the encore. It's not exactly keeping in line with the high energy which they had created but it's certainly different and enough to sort the men from the boys in terms of Garbage fans.
We are suddenly at the end of the night and I am rewarded with my favourite track - Vow. This is the song that started it all off in 1995 and is a fitting finale for this 'comeback' show. We even get a tidy sample of Patti Smith's Because the Night at the end before Shirley runs off stage and leaves the boys to finish things up.
It's a fairly satisfying night for us old Garbage fans. It will be interesting to see whether they can garner some interest with this latest album amongst the new brigade.
More photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629670377450/
I was actually at the 'very last' Garbage show at Brixton Academy years ago and it was an amazing performance. I cannot, however, believe that took place over 7 years ago! Surely not? Where does the time go? And more importantly how old am I - gah!
I first saw Garbage in the origins of their hey day co-headlining with Alanis Morrisette in Canberra (October '99) of all places. I distinctly remember Shirley tearing up the stage and making the night of numerous hapless boyfriends (who had been dragged along to the show by their girlfriends!) by strutting around the front of the stage with her very short skirt and white undies - they were actually very good that night and Alanis had to significantly up the ante to match it.
Garbage, time, were mainly about very slick pop rock songs and some serious Scottish attitude (care of their iconic leading lady). I am keen to see whether they still have the ability to sliver up the goods. I am also somewhat concerned about the fact that yet another band from my own hey day has come out of retirement - where is the new guard? In a perfect music world there would be no room for those who voluntarily left the stage many years ago. Perhaps the fact that bands like Garbage, Blur, Soundgarden and The Stone Roses (amongst others) are able to successfully tour again says something about the dire state of a music industry overrun by artists created by Simon Cowell - or maybe it just indicates that I am getting overly critical in my old age!
At least Garbage are not simply resting on their old laurels - there is an album full of new material on its way and I assume that we going to get a taste of some of the new tracks tonight.
Following a DJ opener (who really did remind us how old we were by playing 'classics' like L7 and The Damned) , the band took the stage just after 9pm. The crowd are full of people around my age in various shapes and forms and lots of goth looking girls with pink, blue and purple died hair - go the youngins!
The supervixen herself stepped straight up and into the track of the same name from Garbage's debut album (yeah that pink one!). She was decked out appropriately in red and black hot pants and heels and proceeded to throw herself around the stage in her infamous 'circling the prey' manner.
Unfortunately the sound system at the Troxy wasn't able to keep up with the band's intent and the result was a really muddy mix where Shirley's vocals could barely be heard - which was somewhat concerning given that I was standing in the front row. I've been at the Troxy a number of times and not experienced muddiness of this level before so I can only think that it's the set up that is creating the problem. It does improve over the course of the set but it's still a little off.
By the time we get to Queer we are able to hear the vocals a little better. The band sound good and the Shirley swagger is in effect - although it is slightly diminished by the minion who appears to relieve Shirley of her heels in exchange for flat boots - fair play!
Stupid Girl a few tracks later gets the crowd going and this is shortly followed by my personal highlight of the night being the triple whammy of #1 Crush (with awesome Madonna Erotica intro), Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go) and excellent new track Blood For Poppies. Really they sound like the 7 year break was only 7 weeks - which bodes pretty well for their upcoming tour.
Shirley takes the opportunity to thank the crowd, their manager and their families (most of whom are here tonight) for their love and support and there is a collective feeling of nostalgia which I think is felt by most in attendance - ahhh the 90s - those were the days!
We then move into full nostalgia mode with Milk and I Think I'm Paranoid. It's good to see that there is still some venom in these tunes - especially given that some of them are over 17 years old!
Man on a Wire and Bad Boyfriend from (album) keep the energy high and we then find ourselves with two further old friends to end out the main set - Only Happy When It Rains (which starts out low key and almost acoustically) and Push It.
I am still yet to hear probably my favourite Garbage tune (Vow) but I have high hopes for the encore - although I am wondering what else they are going to play given that most of the biggest Garbage hits have already been dealt with.
I have to say I am pretty surprised to see them pull out new track Automatic Systematic Habit and The Trick is to Keep Breathing as the first two songs of the encore. It's not exactly keeping in line with the high energy which they had created but it's certainly different and enough to sort the men from the boys in terms of Garbage fans.
We are suddenly at the end of the night and I am rewarded with my favourite track - Vow. This is the song that started it all off in 1995 and is a fitting finale for this 'comeback' show. We even get a tidy sample of Patti Smith's Because the Night at the end before Shirley runs off stage and leaves the boys to finish things up.
It's a fairly satisfying night for us old Garbage fans. It will be interesting to see whether they can garner some interest with this latest album amongst the new brigade.
More photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629670377450/
Thursday, 3 May 2012
Dan Mangan - Bush Hall - 3 May 2012
So I am back at the intimate Bush Hall in Shepherd's Bush. I had a pretty great night here in February so the precedent has been set. Tonight it is Canadian indie singer-songwriter Dan Mangan.
I was first put on to Mr Mangan last year by one of my fellow music-loving mates, Leonie. She's one of my Dutchies and has excellent taste in music so I was more than open to her suggestion. The result was the fairly heavy rotation of Dan's 2009 album Nice, Nice, Very Nice 'NNVN' (yep it's a Kurt Vonnegut reference). It's a fun album chock full of skilfully writtenl songs about a myriad of different subjects such as robot love, pining for your home whilst on tour and how humans fit into this thing we call life. I have to say I had a great response to it do I was keen to see what Dan was going to offer up live.
I made it to the venue in time to see the last couple of songs by support group Zeus. They are a Toronto based unit so not physical comrades of Dan's (who is from Vancouver). They make plenty of noise and have a real 70s feel to them. It's not particularly ringing my bell but they get a great response from the crowd.
Dan is on at 9.30pm. He has a full band with him - drums, bass, guitar and even trumpet - and they start without ceremony. Well I say start, but to be absolutely honest it's hard to tell whether they are trying to set an ambient mood or tuning their instruments - we soon work out that it is the former and that they are in fact segueing into About as Helpful as You Can Get Without Being Any Help from his latest album Oh Fortune.
This is not the acoustic Dan Mangan I was anticipating, but I enjoy the fact that he is immediately stepping outside my expectations and pushing the audience beyond it's comfort zone. This is what a true artist should do in my opinion.
It takes the band the first couple of tunes to get into the swing of things - the songs from Oh Fortune are not as immediately accessible as those on NNVN but it's good to know that Dan is stepping outside the well delineated 'folk-rock' mould. It's a very big sound that they are bringing to the stage and I'm finding that the sound mix is not particularly great - as Thom Yorke would say it's 'buzzing like a fridge' at the back of the room where I am standing but to be fair that's not unusual in this box of a room.
The crowd also warm up sufficiently to get into NNVN track Sold. Catchy little number that one - 'it hurts, it kills, it screams' - yep sounds like a normal day at work for me! I always wonder whether the musicians I see realise that they are living the dream whilst us mere unmusical plebs deal with the rat race - these guys are at least having a good time.
Dan is active all over the stage, even dropping back to his guitar player's mic at times to do his own backing vocals (with some effect assistance).
The next highlight for me is Basket - which Dan says is a song really about birth - it's more a song about re-birth at various stages of life to me but let's not be pedantic about these things! This song showcases Dan's songwriting talents - the lyrics are incredibly visual and compassionate at the same time:
"We are old
And our son took the dog away
And fair enough, guess we're tired all the time
All the time
And you know dogs they need ample time outside"
This is closely followed by an all in singalong to one of Dan's most well-known tunes - Robots. I love this track and the audience are well up for some backing vocal duties.
Somehow we've managed to wizz through the set and an hour and bit bin we are already heading towards the 11pm curfew time and Dan notes that the standard action would be for them to leave the stage and come back on however its his view that the best use of their time is to ditch the encore break and just play to the curfew- I am down with that!
We are back into some more NNVN territory with Fair Verona where Dan is cut and pasting the starts to his heart - the boy has got some charisma and he's working it overtime at the moment.
He then invites the members of Zeus back on to the stage for a rendition of Elliott Smith's Waltz #2. It's a cool cover and the stage is suddenly very full of Canadians tearing it up.
Dan saves the best for last - he declares that he is coming on down into the crowd to get amongst it and then gives us some specific backing vocal duties - there's no words, it's just a melody which he is going to sing over and off he goes into So Much For Everyone. It sounds fabulous and the audience collectively decide to really bring it. I live for this shit at gigs - it's entirely engaging and this last five minutes is worth the ticket price alone.
Dan has certainly showcased his talents tonight and I'm glad to have had an opportunity to see him at such close quarters.
I've had myself another night of musical goodness at Bush Hall for a tenner - long may this trend continue!
More pics: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629602394848/
I was first put on to Mr Mangan last year by one of my fellow music-loving mates, Leonie. She's one of my Dutchies and has excellent taste in music so I was more than open to her suggestion. The result was the fairly heavy rotation of Dan's 2009 album Nice, Nice, Very Nice 'NNVN' (yep it's a Kurt Vonnegut reference). It's a fun album chock full of skilfully writtenl songs about a myriad of different subjects such as robot love, pining for your home whilst on tour and how humans fit into this thing we call life. I have to say I had a great response to it do I was keen to see what Dan was going to offer up live.
I made it to the venue in time to see the last couple of songs by support group Zeus. They are a Toronto based unit so not physical comrades of Dan's (who is from Vancouver). They make plenty of noise and have a real 70s feel to them. It's not particularly ringing my bell but they get a great response from the crowd.
Dan is on at 9.30pm. He has a full band with him - drums, bass, guitar and even trumpet - and they start without ceremony. Well I say start, but to be absolutely honest it's hard to tell whether they are trying to set an ambient mood or tuning their instruments - we soon work out that it is the former and that they are in fact segueing into About as Helpful as You Can Get Without Being Any Help from his latest album Oh Fortune.
This is not the acoustic Dan Mangan I was anticipating, but I enjoy the fact that he is immediately stepping outside my expectations and pushing the audience beyond it's comfort zone. This is what a true artist should do in my opinion.
It takes the band the first couple of tunes to get into the swing of things - the songs from Oh Fortune are not as immediately accessible as those on NNVN but it's good to know that Dan is stepping outside the well delineated 'folk-rock' mould. It's a very big sound that they are bringing to the stage and I'm finding that the sound mix is not particularly great - as Thom Yorke would say it's 'buzzing like a fridge' at the back of the room where I am standing but to be fair that's not unusual in this box of a room.
The crowd also warm up sufficiently to get into NNVN track Sold. Catchy little number that one - 'it hurts, it kills, it screams' - yep sounds like a normal day at work for me! I always wonder whether the musicians I see realise that they are living the dream whilst us mere unmusical plebs deal with the rat race - these guys are at least having a good time.
Dan is active all over the stage, even dropping back to his guitar player's mic at times to do his own backing vocals (with some effect assistance).
The next highlight for me is Basket - which Dan says is a song really about birth - it's more a song about re-birth at various stages of life to me but let's not be pedantic about these things! This song showcases Dan's songwriting talents - the lyrics are incredibly visual and compassionate at the same time:
"We are old
And our son took the dog away
And fair enough, guess we're tired all the time
All the time
And you know dogs they need ample time outside"
This is closely followed by an all in singalong to one of Dan's most well-known tunes - Robots. I love this track and the audience are well up for some backing vocal duties.
Somehow we've managed to wizz through the set and an hour and bit bin we are already heading towards the 11pm curfew time and Dan notes that the standard action would be for them to leave the stage and come back on however its his view that the best use of their time is to ditch the encore break and just play to the curfew- I am down with that!
We are back into some more NNVN territory with Fair Verona where Dan is cut and pasting the starts to his heart - the boy has got some charisma and he's working it overtime at the moment.
He then invites the members of Zeus back on to the stage for a rendition of Elliott Smith's Waltz #2. It's a cool cover and the stage is suddenly very full of Canadians tearing it up.
Dan saves the best for last - he declares that he is coming on down into the crowd to get amongst it and then gives us some specific backing vocal duties - there's no words, it's just a melody which he is going to sing over and off he goes into So Much For Everyone. It sounds fabulous and the audience collectively decide to really bring it. I live for this shit at gigs - it's entirely engaging and this last five minutes is worth the ticket price alone.
Dan has certainly showcased his talents tonight and I'm glad to have had an opportunity to see him at such close quarters.
I've had myself another night of musical goodness at Bush Hall for a tenner - long may this trend continue!
More pics: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629602394848/
Monday, 23 April 2012
Ryan Adams - London Palladium - 23 April 2012
So we're off to see the Wizard - well not really but we are at least seeing where he lives. It is Monday night in London which is a day off for the Wizard of Oz musical and a perfect opportunity for someone else to use the Palladium theatre for musical entertainment. Enter stage right Mr Ryan Adams - the alt-rocking, cat loving native of North Carolina.
Ryan pretty much hits London in some shape or form a couple of times a year. The last time I caught him was at Cadogan Hall following the release of his latest album Ashes & Fire and it was a pretty decent solo performance so the bar has been set pretty high.
I am quite surprised about how good my seats are - I have never been to this venue before and, generally speaking, the balconies in London's theatres overhang the back of the stalls. Tonight my seats are in the first row of the lower balcony which I notice overhangs the stalls around the 12th row - result!
The other thing I take note of (given that I am going to see Chris Cornell here in June) is that there is a big gap between the stage and the first seats in the stalls due to the orchestra pit. The result is a bit of a reduction in the intimacy between the artist and the audience but this is what happens when you play venues which are purpose built for musicals as opposed to music.
The opener for tonight is Jason Roberts who declares that he is from Glasgow, Scotland. His set can be described as a number of Scottish tomes set to music which are not necessarily in themselves very musical. They involve tuneless songs of very long stanzas which use phrases like "my bonnie lassie" and which are accompanied by an acoustic guitar which is pretty much made to sound like a lute - man just lose the capo and lute up - it will be a lot more interesting!
Ryan comes on at 8.30pm on the dot -he is just so punctual now! His weapons of choice consist of the twin tricolour guitars, a piano and trusty harmonica. There is a seat with a mic and also a standing position with an additional mic and I always wonder if Ryan's seated posture (which looks completely uncomfortable) just can't be sustained for the whole show :)
He starts with Heartbreaker track Oh My Sweet Carolina. This song is a favourite of mine and it's more than enough to focus the audience's attention. I anticipate that Ryan will be swinging between old and new material tonight and the second track (being the title track from Ashes & Fire) confirms this.
Ryan is a great lyricist, but any punter attending his show needs to be aware that Ryan's muse is pretty much permanently stuck in a dimension which caters for what Ryan himself describes as "miserable bastard music". It doesn't make it any less appealing to me, but then I'm happy to get my misery guts on when required.
Ryan gives us a gorgeous Dirty Rain and Winding Wheel and then heads to the piano for Rescue Blues. Knowing that the subject matter is a little dreary Ryan manages expectations by introducing the next song (Please Do Not Let Me Go) as "another basket of fucking sunshine". Well at least he's got a sense of humour about his misery!
Firecracker - a song apparently about a guy getting drunk and trying to touch someone's boobs - is next. He is in very good form and sounds fantastic and the audience are enthralled.
Of particular comment is his harmonica skills. During Why Do they Leave? the sound resonates throughout the theatre. It's such a small but underrated instrument - tonight it is clear that in the right hands it can really pack a punch.
We then come to the point in the night where Ryan's posture needs correction. He's had enough of his seated Grandpa pose and makes a production of moving all his shit from the chair over to his standing position. We then are treated to a rousing English Girls Approximately - yeah now we are vaguely rocking!
A few songs later Ryan is back over at the piano heading into my personal highlight of the evening which I will call 'Ode to Mr Cat'. Ryan is a big cat-lover (just check out his twitter account) and frankly hearing his off the cuff scat to his 'soft as fuck incorporated' cat makes me wish I could have my own little fluff-ball. It really is funnier than it sounds!
After this brief PC (Pussy Cat) interlude we are hurled back into the joys of Ryan's great back catalog with New York, New York. I said shit, this is a good song - and it doesn't lose anything with this performance.
From the well worn and remembered, Ryan then gets out the cheat sheet (allegedly because he has 'filled up his RAM with bullshit') for Cold Roses tune When Will You Come Home. That one is even better than its predecessor. Stripping everything from these songs other than his voice and guitar really showcases the depth of Ryan's songwriting skills - and yeah he has been known to let his ego get the better of him on occasion (both on and off stage) but if he was to be judged on the music alone it would be hard not to put him up there with some of the best.
'The crazy man with his fucking depressing songs' ends the main set with one of his signatures - Come Pick Me Up. It feels like we're the obedient pet and we've been given a treat - I don't care I'm gonna take it!
Ryan comes on for the encore and declares that at least he is going to leave here happy and launches into Bob Mould's Black Sheets of Rain. It's a one song encore but we really don't need anymore than what Ryan has dished out. The Wizard has conquered the Palladium again - nice one Ryan - see ya next time!
Set list:
Oh My Sweet Carolina
Ashes & Fire
If I Am A Stranger
(Ryan Adams & The Cardinals cover)
Dirty Rain
My Winding Wheel
The Rescue Blues
Please Do Not Let Me Go
Do I Wait
Firecracker
Everybody Knows
Sweet Lil' Gal (23rd/1st)
Why Do They Leave?
English Girls Approximately
Chains Of Love
16 Days
(Whiskeytown song)
New York, New York
When Will You Come Back Home
(Ryan Adams & The Cardinals cover)
Lucky Now
Come Pick Me Up
Encore:
Black Sheets Of Rain
(Bob Mould cover)
Ryan pretty much hits London in some shape or form a couple of times a year. The last time I caught him was at Cadogan Hall following the release of his latest album Ashes & Fire and it was a pretty decent solo performance so the bar has been set pretty high.
I am quite surprised about how good my seats are - I have never been to this venue before and, generally speaking, the balconies in London's theatres overhang the back of the stalls. Tonight my seats are in the first row of the lower balcony which I notice overhangs the stalls around the 12th row - result!
The other thing I take note of (given that I am going to see Chris Cornell here in June) is that there is a big gap between the stage and the first seats in the stalls due to the orchestra pit. The result is a bit of a reduction in the intimacy between the artist and the audience but this is what happens when you play venues which are purpose built for musicals as opposed to music.
The opener for tonight is Jason Roberts who declares that he is from Glasgow, Scotland. His set can be described as a number of Scottish tomes set to music which are not necessarily in themselves very musical. They involve tuneless songs of very long stanzas which use phrases like "my bonnie lassie" and which are accompanied by an acoustic guitar which is pretty much made to sound like a lute - man just lose the capo and lute up - it will be a lot more interesting!
Ryan comes on at 8.30pm on the dot -he is just so punctual now! His weapons of choice consist of the twin tricolour guitars, a piano and trusty harmonica. There is a seat with a mic and also a standing position with an additional mic and I always wonder if Ryan's seated posture (which looks completely uncomfortable) just can't be sustained for the whole show :)
He starts with Heartbreaker track Oh My Sweet Carolina. This song is a favourite of mine and it's more than enough to focus the audience's attention. I anticipate that Ryan will be swinging between old and new material tonight and the second track (being the title track from Ashes & Fire) confirms this.
Ryan is a great lyricist, but any punter attending his show needs to be aware that Ryan's muse is pretty much permanently stuck in a dimension which caters for what Ryan himself describes as "miserable bastard music". It doesn't make it any less appealing to me, but then I'm happy to get my misery guts on when required.
Ryan gives us a gorgeous Dirty Rain and Winding Wheel and then heads to the piano for Rescue Blues. Knowing that the subject matter is a little dreary Ryan manages expectations by introducing the next song (Please Do Not Let Me Go) as "another basket of fucking sunshine". Well at least he's got a sense of humour about his misery!
Firecracker - a song apparently about a guy getting drunk and trying to touch someone's boobs - is next. He is in very good form and sounds fantastic and the audience are enthralled.
Of particular comment is his harmonica skills. During Why Do they Leave? the sound resonates throughout the theatre. It's such a small but underrated instrument - tonight it is clear that in the right hands it can really pack a punch.
We then come to the point in the night where Ryan's posture needs correction. He's had enough of his seated Grandpa pose and makes a production of moving all his shit from the chair over to his standing position. We then are treated to a rousing English Girls Approximately - yeah now we are vaguely rocking!
A few songs later Ryan is back over at the piano heading into my personal highlight of the evening which I will call 'Ode to Mr Cat'. Ryan is a big cat-lover (just check out his twitter account) and frankly hearing his off the cuff scat to his 'soft as fuck incorporated' cat makes me wish I could have my own little fluff-ball. It really is funnier than it sounds!
After this brief PC (Pussy Cat) interlude we are hurled back into the joys of Ryan's great back catalog with New York, New York. I said shit, this is a good song - and it doesn't lose anything with this performance.
From the well worn and remembered, Ryan then gets out the cheat sheet (allegedly because he has 'filled up his RAM with bullshit') for Cold Roses tune When Will You Come Home. That one is even better than its predecessor. Stripping everything from these songs other than his voice and guitar really showcases the depth of Ryan's songwriting skills - and yeah he has been known to let his ego get the better of him on occasion (both on and off stage) but if he was to be judged on the music alone it would be hard not to put him up there with some of the best.
'The crazy man with his fucking depressing songs' ends the main set with one of his signatures - Come Pick Me Up. It feels like we're the obedient pet and we've been given a treat - I don't care I'm gonna take it!
Ryan comes on for the encore and declares that at least he is going to leave here happy and launches into Bob Mould's Black Sheets of Rain. It's a one song encore but we really don't need anymore than what Ryan has dished out. The Wizard has conquered the Palladium again - nice one Ryan - see ya next time!
Set list:
Oh My Sweet Carolina
Ashes & Fire
If I Am A Stranger
(Ryan Adams & The Cardinals cover)
Dirty Rain
My Winding Wheel
The Rescue Blues
Please Do Not Let Me Go
Do I Wait
Firecracker
Everybody Knows
Sweet Lil' Gal (23rd/1st)
Why Do They Leave?
English Girls Approximately
Chains Of Love
16 Days
(Whiskeytown song)
New York, New York
When Will You Come Back Home
(Ryan Adams & The Cardinals cover)
Lucky Now
Come Pick Me Up
Encore:
Black Sheets Of Rain
(Bob Mould cover)
Friday, 13 April 2012
Frank Turner & The Sleepless Souls - Wembley Arena - 13 April 2012
So I know very little about Frank Turner. I know of him but am not really familiar with his catalog BUT my PJ buddy Chris offers up his spare ticket to Frank's Wembley Arena gig in exchange for a place to crash in London - the Gigette is ALL OVER THAT!
We head out to Wembley early in the night to make sure we get the for the openers (of which there are three!) - the first is the solo Beans On Toast who is unusual and amusing and apparently a bit over-awed about playing in front of such a big crowd - to the point where he forgets the words of one song and interrupts two others midway through to jabber on about nothing in particular.
We then move on to poet and DJ duo Dan Le Sac and Scroobius Pip - to be honest, it is not my thing and me and my gig buddies decide to skip it in favour of food and drink so that we are ready to go for primary opener - Billy Bragg.
I have seen Billy a couple of times before and he does his absolute best to advance Joe Strummer's legacy of using music to be politically outspoken. It's a man with a guitar with something to say and he always commands an audience's attention and it is no different tonight. The only disappointment is that he is pretty much preaching to the converted here (given the nature of his audience ie the indi, hard core crowd who are independent enough to have their own thoughts and normally question authority).
And then it's time for Frank. This is the biggest show Frank has ever undertaken (selling out the 12,500 capacity venue) and we have been told that tonight is being filmed for a new Frank DVD so we are to expect a bit of a greatest hits set list which suits my fellow gig buddies (and huge FT fans) down to the ground.
The crowd are with him with a giant singalong from the get go. They are hanging off every word and it is unlikely that 'the FT' is going to do any wrong tonight.
Due to my complete lack of knowledge of Frank's catalog I am left to simply enjoy the songs and performance as they come. I don't have to wait for my favourite or compare live versions - it's great!
That said, there are a number of highlights:
* Frank's Mum (introduced as one of his biggest musical influences) coming out to do the harmonica solo on Dan's Song;
* Billy Bragg coming out to duet with Frank on Dylan track The Times Are A Changing;
* A rollicking cover of Queen's Somebody to Love;
* Frank getting a tatt live during the encore break to commemorate the occasion;
* Frank reminding the crowd of the unusual nature of the night and in particular that approximately 90% of the crowd has seen him previously in venues where he could sweat on them; and
* The strange (but endearing) way the whole standing section crouches down in honour before Photosynthesis which bears the lyrics:
"I won't sit down, and I won't shut up
But most of all, I will not grow up"
It's a good night of music and well worth the trek out to Wembley. I have to say that I would prefer to see Frank in a smaller venue (I am told he is amazing solo with only his guitar accompanying him) but I am glad to be a participant in the biggest FTHC (that stands for 'Frank Turner Hard Core' for the uninitiated) celebration so far.
Set list:
Eulogy
Try this at home
If ever I stray
Reasons not to be an idiot
Nashville Tennessee
Wessex boy
Peggy sang the blues
I am disappeared
Love ire & song
Glory hallelujah
The real damage
Dan's song
Father's day
Substitute
Long live the queen
I knew prufrock before he got famous
Sons of liberty
Four simple words (new song)
The road
I still believe
Somebody to love
Encore:
The times they are a changing
Ballad of me and my friends
Photosynthesis
We head out to Wembley early in the night to make sure we get the for the openers (of which there are three!) - the first is the solo Beans On Toast who is unusual and amusing and apparently a bit over-awed about playing in front of such a big crowd - to the point where he forgets the words of one song and interrupts two others midway through to jabber on about nothing in particular.
We then move on to poet and DJ duo Dan Le Sac and Scroobius Pip - to be honest, it is not my thing and me and my gig buddies decide to skip it in favour of food and drink so that we are ready to go for primary opener - Billy Bragg.
I have seen Billy a couple of times before and he does his absolute best to advance Joe Strummer's legacy of using music to be politically outspoken. It's a man with a guitar with something to say and he always commands an audience's attention and it is no different tonight. The only disappointment is that he is pretty much preaching to the converted here (given the nature of his audience ie the indi, hard core crowd who are independent enough to have their own thoughts and normally question authority).
And then it's time for Frank. This is the biggest show Frank has ever undertaken (selling out the 12,500 capacity venue) and we have been told that tonight is being filmed for a new Frank DVD so we are to expect a bit of a greatest hits set list which suits my fellow gig buddies (and huge FT fans) down to the ground.
The crowd are with him with a giant singalong from the get go. They are hanging off every word and it is unlikely that 'the FT' is going to do any wrong tonight.
Due to my complete lack of knowledge of Frank's catalog I am left to simply enjoy the songs and performance as they come. I don't have to wait for my favourite or compare live versions - it's great!
That said, there are a number of highlights:
* Frank's Mum (introduced as one of his biggest musical influences) coming out to do the harmonica solo on Dan's Song;
* Billy Bragg coming out to duet with Frank on Dylan track The Times Are A Changing;
* A rollicking cover of Queen's Somebody to Love;
* Frank getting a tatt live during the encore break to commemorate the occasion;
* Frank reminding the crowd of the unusual nature of the night and in particular that approximately 90% of the crowd has seen him previously in venues where he could sweat on them; and
* The strange (but endearing) way the whole standing section crouches down in honour before Photosynthesis which bears the lyrics:
"I won't sit down, and I won't shut up
But most of all, I will not grow up"
It's a good night of music and well worth the trek out to Wembley. I have to say that I would prefer to see Frank in a smaller venue (I am told he is amazing solo with only his guitar accompanying him) but I am glad to be a participant in the biggest FTHC (that stands for 'Frank Turner Hard Core' for the uninitiated) celebration so far.
Set list:
Eulogy
Try this at home
If ever I stray
Reasons not to be an idiot
Nashville Tennessee
Wessex boy
Peggy sang the blues
I am disappeared
Love ire & song
Glory hallelujah
The real damage
Dan's song
Father's day
Substitute
Long live the queen
I knew prufrock before he got famous
Sons of liberty
Four simple words (new song)
The road
I still believe
Somebody to love
Encore:
The times they are a changing
Ballad of me and my friends
Photosynthesis
Tuesday, 3 April 2012
Kylie Minogue - Anti-Tour - Hammersmith Apollo - 3 April 2012
Even before I get to this show I am impressed. The concept is genius - Kylie, no outfit changes, live band, no dancers and only b-sides, demos and rarities - this is the Anti-Tour!
Holy shit if only I could get my other favourite artists to do this!
I've never actually heard of an artist as big as Kylie undertaking something like this. Name me another artist who has sold 68 million records and successfully sold a b-sides, demos are rarities only show internationally - I freakin love it! And so do the 5000 other people at the Hammersmith Apollo tonight.
The vibe is good and the DJ who is warming us up certainly knows which buttons to push - there are some great mash ups with Kylie hits (which we are not going to hear tonight) and by the time our Kylie comes onstage around 8.25pm we are more than ready.
The main set starts off with Magnetic Electric - a bonus track from X and already everyone is singing along - behold the Kylie faithful!
Kylie then bursts into Made in Heaven (vintage 1988) straight after the opening track opening up our Stock Aitken and Waterman (SAW) account for the night. Kylie addresses the crowd soon after reminding them of the purpose of the evening and thereby adjusting expectations - there will be no "La, La, La, La, La, La, La, La" tonight. The crowd do not care and eagerly await the next setlist surprise.
The upbeat Cherry Bomb and B.P.M are next. The band sound good - drums, bass, guitar, keyboards/synth and three backing singers. It really is stripped down and back to basics stuff - it makes a pretty big change from the Aphrodite extravaganza I saw at the O2 last year (complete with Kylie mounting a male angel and riding him through the air!). It's different and intimate and has pretty much sorted the men from the boys in terms of Kylie fans.
There are more singalongs for I'm Over Dreaming (Over You) and Always Find the Time and a song later I am rewarded with one of my favourite Kylie rarities - Tightrope. Woo hoo now all I need is for her to pull out Turn It Into love and my Kylie set list dream will be fulfilled! (I am unfortunately denied all but an acapella chorus of this later on!).
A few songs later we hit an Impossible Princess double-shot - Drunk and Say Hey. That album is my second favourite Kylie album (Fever just can't be beaten!) and then she brings it right down with Bittersweet Goodbye which is an ode to a lost friend. It somewhat sucks the 'up' vibe from the proceedings but she is well aware that is it a bit of downer and immediately heads straight into Disco Down to compensate.
We then tread back into a bit of SAW territory with It's No Secret and Got To Be Certain and Kylie gives a shout out to Pete Waterman who is in the crowd tonight. It's so much fun being back in the 80s with Kylie. Hers was the first concert I ever went to - 1989 at the Melbourne Tennis Centre - and I am pretty sure both those songs were on the set list that night!
The most hilarious part of heading way back into the 80s is that good ol Kyles needs the assistance of lyric sheets for a couple of tracks. This does not apply to the audience who assist her effortlessly - we are so KMHC (Kylie Minogue Hard Core)!!
We are then into encore time and we have a cover (Tears On My Pillow) and then a couple of oldies ending with Enjoy Yourself (the title track from the album of the same name).
This has been a brilliant night and well worth the relatively hefty price tag (£70) - I doubt that we are going to ever see such a performance from Kylie again and I am just glad to have be inside the building for it.
Set list:
Magnetic Electric
Made in Heaven
Cherry Bomb
BPM
Mighty Rivers
I'm Over Dreaming (Over You)
Always Find the Time
You're the One
Tightrope
Paper Dolls
Stars
Drunk
Say Hey
Too Much
Bittersweet Goodbye
Disco Down
I Don't Need Anyone
Give Me Just a Little More Time
It's No Secret
Got to Be Certain
Things Can Only Get Better
Encore:
Tears on My Pillow
One Boy Girl
Enjoy Yourself
More photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629370540468/
Holy shit if only I could get my other favourite artists to do this!
I've never actually heard of an artist as big as Kylie undertaking something like this. Name me another artist who has sold 68 million records and successfully sold a b-sides, demos are rarities only show internationally - I freakin love it! And so do the 5000 other people at the Hammersmith Apollo tonight.
The vibe is good and the DJ who is warming us up certainly knows which buttons to push - there are some great mash ups with Kylie hits (which we are not going to hear tonight) and by the time our Kylie comes onstage around 8.25pm we are more than ready.
The main set starts off with Magnetic Electric - a bonus track from X and already everyone is singing along - behold the Kylie faithful!
Kylie then bursts into Made in Heaven (vintage 1988) straight after the opening track opening up our Stock Aitken and Waterman (SAW) account for the night. Kylie addresses the crowd soon after reminding them of the purpose of the evening and thereby adjusting expectations - there will be no "La, La, La, La, La, La, La, La" tonight. The crowd do not care and eagerly await the next setlist surprise.
The upbeat Cherry Bomb and B.P.M are next. The band sound good - drums, bass, guitar, keyboards/synth and three backing singers. It really is stripped down and back to basics stuff - it makes a pretty big change from the Aphrodite extravaganza I saw at the O2 last year (complete with Kylie mounting a male angel and riding him through the air!). It's different and intimate and has pretty much sorted the men from the boys in terms of Kylie fans.
There are more singalongs for I'm Over Dreaming (Over You) and Always Find the Time and a song later I am rewarded with one of my favourite Kylie rarities - Tightrope. Woo hoo now all I need is for her to pull out Turn It Into love and my Kylie set list dream will be fulfilled! (I am unfortunately denied all but an acapella chorus of this later on!).
A few songs later we hit an Impossible Princess double-shot - Drunk and Say Hey. That album is my second favourite Kylie album (Fever just can't be beaten!) and then she brings it right down with Bittersweet Goodbye which is an ode to a lost friend. It somewhat sucks the 'up' vibe from the proceedings but she is well aware that is it a bit of downer and immediately heads straight into Disco Down to compensate.
We then tread back into a bit of SAW territory with It's No Secret and Got To Be Certain and Kylie gives a shout out to Pete Waterman who is in the crowd tonight. It's so much fun being back in the 80s with Kylie. Hers was the first concert I ever went to - 1989 at the Melbourne Tennis Centre - and I am pretty sure both those songs were on the set list that night!
The most hilarious part of heading way back into the 80s is that good ol Kyles needs the assistance of lyric sheets for a couple of tracks. This does not apply to the audience who assist her effortlessly - we are so KMHC (Kylie Minogue Hard Core)!!
We are then into encore time and we have a cover (Tears On My Pillow) and then a couple of oldies ending with Enjoy Yourself (the title track from the album of the same name).
This has been a brilliant night and well worth the relatively hefty price tag (£70) - I doubt that we are going to ever see such a performance from Kylie again and I am just glad to have be inside the building for it.
Set list:
Magnetic Electric
Made in Heaven
Cherry Bomb
BPM
Mighty Rivers
I'm Over Dreaming (Over You)
Always Find the Time
You're the One
Tightrope
Paper Dolls
Stars
Drunk
Say Hey
Too Much
Bittersweet Goodbye
Disco Down
I Don't Need Anyone
Give Me Just a Little More Time
It's No Secret
Got to Be Certain
Things Can Only Get Better
Encore:
Tears on My Pillow
One Boy Girl
Enjoy Yourself
More photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629370540468/
Wednesday, 21 March 2012
Sting - Hammersmith Apollo - 21 March 2012
So I've managed another unplanned gig within the space of a few weeks. I have 'come to the rescue' of my mate Rachel who has found herself without a gig buddy when her husband-to-be was unable to extract himself from work to get to the Hammersmith Apollo to catch singer/songwriter/forest saver - Sting.
I had the opportunity to go and see the reformed Police a few years ago at Twickenham but I frankly could not stomach the price tag and took a pass. I've never seen either The Police or Sting so was more than happy to tag along and get an opportunity to see whether this infamous 60 year-old still had something to give live.
Looking around the Apollo, Rachel and myself were pleased to be amongst the youngest in the crowd as it's normally the opposite for me! The tour is called Back to Bass and I wondered whether this entailed acoustic interpretations of his songs - it didn't! His show started at 8pm (there was no support) and was accompanied by a full band - two guitars, drums, female backing vocalist, violin player and of course Sting on bass.
Two classics open proceedings - All the Time and Police tune Every Little Thing She Does is Magic - sounds pretty good to me so far. There has always been a persistent allegation that Sting is, well, boring. I've never been subjected to this personally, but to be fair I haven't taken a huge interest in his solo career since The Dream of the Blue Turtles (which was his first solo album from 1985).
A few further songs in we get two tunes of Sting's which he says have been covered by none other than Johnny Cash (I Hung My Head) and Toby Keith (I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying) - neither song really does it for me but the band sound good and I'm not bored so we push on.
Next is one of my Police favourites - Driven To Tears - I actually think the song is underrated by many and it is good to hear the original writer and singer perform it - there is also a mad fiddle solo tacked on which I love.
It occurs to me that Sting's extra-curricular activities outside music have somewhat overshadowed his rather significant song contributions. The fact is the man is responsible for a decent amount of very good songs - I just hope that I'm going to get to hear them tonight.
I am almost instantly rewarded following this thought with my favourite Sting solo song - Fortress Around Your Heart. Given that I know sweet fuck all about writing songs I always give bonus points to songwriters who can entwine unusual words within their songs. For this song, the bonus scrabble word is 'chasm':
"And if I built this fortress around your heart,
Encircled you with trenches and barbed wire,
Then let me build a bridge,
For I cannot fill the chasm,
And let me set the battlements on fire"
'Chasm' - tidy work Sting - although certainly not as good as Neil Finn's unbeatable triple word score use of 'cumulonimbus' (from When You Come).
Another big Sting track in the form of Fields of Gold then follows. It is introduced as a track written whilst walking through the fields surrounding his "fucking big castle" - well at least he's not going to lie to us!
This honesty continues further on when discussing the ability of his wife (the lovely Trudi Styler) to completely destroy him whilst simultaneously save him at the same - apparently this aptly describes the balance of their marriage - mmm ok did I really need to know that?
This is where the evening starts to slip somewhat away from me. We are subject to a run of tracks which delve into subject matter which can only be described as bizarre - one is written from the point of view of a petty thief stealing the car of a wealthy businessman and the another is written from the point of view of a fox whose mate is killed by hunters - ok now I'm bored. This is indulgent even by my standards and the songs are nothing to write home about - so not even the music can save them!
The last song of the main set is subject to some mixing problems - he's really gonna have to pull it out to get this show back on track. This silent challenge from me is apparently accepted and the first song of the first encore is crowd-pleaser Desert Rose which is a lot more robust live and really sounds great. This is followed up with probably Sting's most well known song - Every Breath You Take - it remains a lesson in songwriting for anyone.
This very decent double shot is only surpassed by the last song of the night which forms the third encore - a completely acoustic (Sting & guitar only) version of Message in a Bottle - it is magnificent and makes me wonder why the whole show hasn't been similarly presented.
Overall the 'Sting experience' is ok - the great songs have made up for the over-indulgence and I'm glad to have seen the original in the flesh. I can't say I would be forking out £75 myself to see him again - he has enough castles in my view!
Setlist
All this time
Every Little Thing
Seven Days
Demolition Man
I Hung my Head
I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying
Driven to Tears
Stolen Car
Fortress Around Your heart
Fields of Gold
Sacred Love
Ghost Story
Heavy Cloud, No Rain
Inside
Love is Stronger than Justice
Hounds of Winter
The End of the Game
She Was Never Coming Home
Encore
Desert Rose
Every Breath You Take
Second Encore
Next to You
Third Encore
Message in a Bottle (acoustic)
I had the opportunity to go and see the reformed Police a few years ago at Twickenham but I frankly could not stomach the price tag and took a pass. I've never seen either The Police or Sting so was more than happy to tag along and get an opportunity to see whether this infamous 60 year-old still had something to give live.
Looking around the Apollo, Rachel and myself were pleased to be amongst the youngest in the crowd as it's normally the opposite for me! The tour is called Back to Bass and I wondered whether this entailed acoustic interpretations of his songs - it didn't! His show started at 8pm (there was no support) and was accompanied by a full band - two guitars, drums, female backing vocalist, violin player and of course Sting on bass.
Two classics open proceedings - All the Time and Police tune Every Little Thing She Does is Magic - sounds pretty good to me so far. There has always been a persistent allegation that Sting is, well, boring. I've never been subjected to this personally, but to be fair I haven't taken a huge interest in his solo career since The Dream of the Blue Turtles (which was his first solo album from 1985).
A few further songs in we get two tunes of Sting's which he says have been covered by none other than Johnny Cash (I Hung My Head) and Toby Keith (I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying) - neither song really does it for me but the band sound good and I'm not bored so we push on.
Next is one of my Police favourites - Driven To Tears - I actually think the song is underrated by many and it is good to hear the original writer and singer perform it - there is also a mad fiddle solo tacked on which I love.
It occurs to me that Sting's extra-curricular activities outside music have somewhat overshadowed his rather significant song contributions. The fact is the man is responsible for a decent amount of very good songs - I just hope that I'm going to get to hear them tonight.
I am almost instantly rewarded following this thought with my favourite Sting solo song - Fortress Around Your Heart. Given that I know sweet fuck all about writing songs I always give bonus points to songwriters who can entwine unusual words within their songs. For this song, the bonus scrabble word is 'chasm':
"And if I built this fortress around your heart,
Encircled you with trenches and barbed wire,
Then let me build a bridge,
For I cannot fill the chasm,
And let me set the battlements on fire"
'Chasm' - tidy work Sting - although certainly not as good as Neil Finn's unbeatable triple word score use of 'cumulonimbus' (from When You Come).
Another big Sting track in the form of Fields of Gold then follows. It is introduced as a track written whilst walking through the fields surrounding his "fucking big castle" - well at least he's not going to lie to us!
This honesty continues further on when discussing the ability of his wife (the lovely Trudi Styler) to completely destroy him whilst simultaneously save him at the same - apparently this aptly describes the balance of their marriage - mmm ok did I really need to know that?
This is where the evening starts to slip somewhat away from me. We are subject to a run of tracks which delve into subject matter which can only be described as bizarre - one is written from the point of view of a petty thief stealing the car of a wealthy businessman and the another is written from the point of view of a fox whose mate is killed by hunters - ok now I'm bored. This is indulgent even by my standards and the songs are nothing to write home about - so not even the music can save them!
The last song of the main set is subject to some mixing problems - he's really gonna have to pull it out to get this show back on track. This silent challenge from me is apparently accepted and the first song of the first encore is crowd-pleaser Desert Rose which is a lot more robust live and really sounds great. This is followed up with probably Sting's most well known song - Every Breath You Take - it remains a lesson in songwriting for anyone.
This very decent double shot is only surpassed by the last song of the night which forms the third encore - a completely acoustic (Sting & guitar only) version of Message in a Bottle - it is magnificent and makes me wonder why the whole show hasn't been similarly presented.
Overall the 'Sting experience' is ok - the great songs have made up for the over-indulgence and I'm glad to have seen the original in the flesh. I can't say I would be forking out £75 myself to see him again - he has enough castles in my view!
Setlist
All this time
Every Little Thing
Seven Days
Demolition Man
I Hung my Head
I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying
Driven to Tears
Stolen Car
Fortress Around Your heart
Fields of Gold
Sacred Love
Ghost Story
Heavy Cloud, No Rain
Inside
Love is Stronger than Justice
Hounds of Winter
The End of the Game
She Was Never Coming Home
Encore
Desert Rose
Every Breath You Take
Second Encore
Next to You
Third Encore
Message in a Bottle (acoustic)
Tuesday, 13 March 2012
Mark Lanegan Band @ Shepherd's Bush Empire - 13 March 2012
After giving Blues Funeral some serious listening time, I am very excited to be heading to this gig. This latest album from the Mark Lanegan Band is easily one of my albums of the year and it's only March!
I have tracked Mark Lanegan for many years in his various different guises - the Mark Lanegan Band, Screaming Trees, The Gutter Twins, Soulsavers, Queens of the Stone Age and even as a duet partner with Isobel Campbell. The man certainly doesn't accumulate any moss and is well known for being a musical workaholic which works really well for those of us who love to hear Mark sing.
The only downer to this gig is that we have to stand and listen to Duke Garwood (again!). Duke has a long association with Mark Lanegan - they have collaborated on various things and must be good mates because I have seen him open for Mark on at least five occasions, maybe more. Unfortunately for Duke, these numerous appearances have done little to make me revert from my initial reaction to him - being that he is not very talented either as musician or a songwriter. He is, in my humble opinion, the complete antithesis of Mark Lanegan and the only benefit to being subjected to him again is that it makes Mark look even better.
Mercifully, Duke's set is not very long and we are then on to the next openers - Creature with the Atom Brain. As I understand it these guys are from Belgium and actually form part of Mark's normal touring band (Mark has also guested on one of their records). They are pretty damn good and have a kinda 'bizarro rock'n'roll thing going - it's cool and a welcome relief.
Inbetween Atom and Mark at least eight photographers push into the small area in front of the stage to 'take their positions' - I have never seen this many photographers at SheBu and wonder whether there is some kind of competition in play to see who can take a decent picture of Mark - who is well known for performing in almost complete darkness. When Mark comes on just before 9pm I delight in the pained expressions on the many faces of the photographers as they try and find some kind of lighting to assist them - not gonna happen people!
I have been wondering how the very full sound from the album is going to be reproduced live. About two minutes in I know Mark and the band are going to nail it. They sound amazing and they blast through opening track The Gravediggers Song with a deftness which bodes well.
The new album is both an extension of and a departure from Mark's previous work. Some of the tracks are completely surprising and others feel like they are old friends.
The band are really tight and Mark is rock solid vocally - I just love to listen to those gravel-lined pipes.
We are treated to a Bubblegum double-shot of Hit The City and Wedding Dress and then Mark delves into his back catalog with Resurrection Song and (a few songs later) Screaming Trees tune Crawlspace.
My two highlights of the night are One Hundred Days - which really is a pretty hopeful song (well as hopeful as you are going to get from Mark!):
"One day a ship comes in, one day a ship comes in
But I can't say how or when
But I know somewhere, a ship comes in every day"
and Ode to Sad Disco - this is insanely good and something I never, ever thought I would hear from Mark Lanegan. I am seriously in disco rock heaven and am wondering why every dance tune cannot have Mark Lanegan vocals!
The very high standard of performance is maintained throughout the night and as expected there is very little stage banter from Mark - I do believe that a smirk permeates Mark's cool demeanour at a couple of points though.
The main set ends with two further tracks from Blues Funeral - St Louis Elegy and Tiny Grain of Truth. This album sounds as good live as it has pulsing through earphones, but live it has even further depth and power.
The encore is straightforward and to the point - which is how Mark likes to perform. It consists of Blues Funeral track Harbourview Hospital, the somewhat ancient Pendulum and trusty old Bubblegum favourites When Your Number Isn't Up and Methamphetamine Blues. Mark promptly strolls offstage without comment or ceremony when it is over and we are left to ponder just how much our worlds have been rocked tonight. It is easily one of the best live performances I have seen from Mark and I am now eagerly awaiting the next opportunity (which I later find out is likely to be in August). For those lucky enough to have alternative transport home (ie other than the tube), they are treated to an aftershow signing by Mark - oh we'll next time!
Set list:
The Gravedigger's Song
Sleep With Me
Hit the City
Wedding Dress
One Way Street
Resurrection Song
Wish You Well
Gray Goes Black
Crawlspace
(Screaming Trees song)
Quiver Syndrome
One Hundred Days
Creeping Coastline of Lights
(Leaving Trains cover)
Riot in My House
Ode to Sad Disco
St. Louis Elegy
Tiny Grain of Truth
Encore:
When Your Number Isn't Up
Pendulum
Harborview Hospital
Methamphetamine Blues
More photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629585637431/
I have tracked Mark Lanegan for many years in his various different guises - the Mark Lanegan Band, Screaming Trees, The Gutter Twins, Soulsavers, Queens of the Stone Age and even as a duet partner with Isobel Campbell. The man certainly doesn't accumulate any moss and is well known for being a musical workaholic which works really well for those of us who love to hear Mark sing.
The only downer to this gig is that we have to stand and listen to Duke Garwood (again!). Duke has a long association with Mark Lanegan - they have collaborated on various things and must be good mates because I have seen him open for Mark on at least five occasions, maybe more. Unfortunately for Duke, these numerous appearances have done little to make me revert from my initial reaction to him - being that he is not very talented either as musician or a songwriter. He is, in my humble opinion, the complete antithesis of Mark Lanegan and the only benefit to being subjected to him again is that it makes Mark look even better.
Mercifully, Duke's set is not very long and we are then on to the next openers - Creature with the Atom Brain. As I understand it these guys are from Belgium and actually form part of Mark's normal touring band (Mark has also guested on one of their records). They are pretty damn good and have a kinda 'bizarro rock'n'roll thing going - it's cool and a welcome relief.
Inbetween Atom and Mark at least eight photographers push into the small area in front of the stage to 'take their positions' - I have never seen this many photographers at SheBu and wonder whether there is some kind of competition in play to see who can take a decent picture of Mark - who is well known for performing in almost complete darkness. When Mark comes on just before 9pm I delight in the pained expressions on the many faces of the photographers as they try and find some kind of lighting to assist them - not gonna happen people!
I have been wondering how the very full sound from the album is going to be reproduced live. About two minutes in I know Mark and the band are going to nail it. They sound amazing and they blast through opening track The Gravediggers Song with a deftness which bodes well.
The new album is both an extension of and a departure from Mark's previous work. Some of the tracks are completely surprising and others feel like they are old friends.
The band are really tight and Mark is rock solid vocally - I just love to listen to those gravel-lined pipes.
We are treated to a Bubblegum double-shot of Hit The City and Wedding Dress and then Mark delves into his back catalog with Resurrection Song and (a few songs later) Screaming Trees tune Crawlspace.
My two highlights of the night are One Hundred Days - which really is a pretty hopeful song (well as hopeful as you are going to get from Mark!):
"One day a ship comes in, one day a ship comes in
But I can't say how or when
But I know somewhere, a ship comes in every day"
and Ode to Sad Disco - this is insanely good and something I never, ever thought I would hear from Mark Lanegan. I am seriously in disco rock heaven and am wondering why every dance tune cannot have Mark Lanegan vocals!
The very high standard of performance is maintained throughout the night and as expected there is very little stage banter from Mark - I do believe that a smirk permeates Mark's cool demeanour at a couple of points though.
The main set ends with two further tracks from Blues Funeral - St Louis Elegy and Tiny Grain of Truth. This album sounds as good live as it has pulsing through earphones, but live it has even further depth and power.
The encore is straightforward and to the point - which is how Mark likes to perform. It consists of Blues Funeral track Harbourview Hospital, the somewhat ancient Pendulum and trusty old Bubblegum favourites When Your Number Isn't Up and Methamphetamine Blues. Mark promptly strolls offstage without comment or ceremony when it is over and we are left to ponder just how much our worlds have been rocked tonight. It is easily one of the best live performances I have seen from Mark and I am now eagerly awaiting the next opportunity (which I later find out is likely to be in August). For those lucky enough to have alternative transport home (ie other than the tube), they are treated to an aftershow signing by Mark - oh we'll next time!
Set list:
The Gravedigger's Song
Sleep With Me
Hit the City
Wedding Dress
One Way Street
Resurrection Song
Wish You Well
Gray Goes Black
Crawlspace
(Screaming Trees song)
Quiver Syndrome
One Hundred Days
Creeping Coastline of Lights
(Leaving Trains cover)
Riot in My House
Ode to Sad Disco
St. Louis Elegy
Tiny Grain of Truth
Encore:
When Your Number Isn't Up
Pendulum
Harborview Hospital
Methamphetamine Blues
More photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629585637431/
Friday, 9 March 2012
Florence + The Machine @ Alexandra Palace - 9 March 2012
As I trek out to Wood Green I try to recall that last time I was at Alexandra Palace (affectionately known as Ally Pally) for a gig - it was almost 5 years ago when I went to see Arcade Fire touring their second album (Neon Bible). The venue is not bad at all - the walk up the hill is, however, a pain in the ass.
I arrive with my gig buddy at the start of the set by second opening band The Horrors. I know little about them other than they are from Southend-On-Sea - as far as I am concerned they get points just for that fact because I have been to Southend-On-Sea and there is nuthin there!
They are what I would describe as an up-to-date 80s techno band trying to pull off a 'Joy Division' type attitude. The lead singer is certainly doing his best Ian Curtis impression. It's a fairly upbeat set until the last song which is a real downer - so much for warming up the crowd!
Florence comes on stage around 9.15pm. The stage is impressively 'art-deco-ed' out with the set itself doubling as a screen. It looks good and fits right in with the Ceremonials aesthetics.
Our flame-haired songstress is also suitably decked out in an all black, guided body suit with a huge black and white zebra striped cape - it's quite an entrance. Add to that the huge amount of people on the stage - band, choir and orchestra - and you've got yourself a very expensive little touring group.
The night begins with Ceremonials track Only for a Night. The majority of the crowd is young and receptive and they seem to get going with the next track - What the Water Gave Me - which has an exceptional live sound. There is no doubt that Florence Welch has decent set of lungs on her - her voice is very strong and the music matches it. The only thing which she seems to lack is the matching stage persona. When she first speaks to the crowd her voice is tentative and nervous and she admits that she is suffering from the jitters and is somewhat lost for words. This is a little surprising given that she has sold out three nights at Ally Pally and has shifted a decent number of units of her album - she clearly has the support of her fans and cannot be nervous about that. This coquettish banter is endearing to begin with but several giddy laughs and nonsensical comments later and it is starting to detract from the very strong stage presence that her voice and her music originally set up. Perhaps she needs to take a leaf out of PJ Harvey's book and ditch the stage banter entirely and let the music do the talking.
The highlights of the set are the songs that soar - Shake It Out, Dog Days Are Over and Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up) (where Florence invites all the ladies in the audience to jump up on the shoulders of their men or mates). There's obviously not a lot of material for Florence to work with so the gig runs just over 90 minutes.
The punters are happy and its a good performance but not a great one. I am hopeful that Florence's onstage confidence with improve to the level of her voice and music - I suppose that we'll find out the next time.
We then start the long trek down the hill to the tube station - my biggest tip: skip the buses and walk.
More photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629562884925/
Set list:
I arrive with my gig buddy at the start of the set by second opening band The Horrors. I know little about them other than they are from Southend-On-Sea - as far as I am concerned they get points just for that fact because I have been to Southend-On-Sea and there is nuthin there!
They are what I would describe as an up-to-date 80s techno band trying to pull off a 'Joy Division' type attitude. The lead singer is certainly doing his best Ian Curtis impression. It's a fairly upbeat set until the last song which is a real downer - so much for warming up the crowd!
Florence comes on stage around 9.15pm. The stage is impressively 'art-deco-ed' out with the set itself doubling as a screen. It looks good and fits right in with the Ceremonials aesthetics.
Our flame-haired songstress is also suitably decked out in an all black, guided body suit with a huge black and white zebra striped cape - it's quite an entrance. Add to that the huge amount of people on the stage - band, choir and orchestra - and you've got yourself a very expensive little touring group.
The night begins with Ceremonials track Only for a Night. The majority of the crowd is young and receptive and they seem to get going with the next track - What the Water Gave Me - which has an exceptional live sound. There is no doubt that Florence Welch has decent set of lungs on her - her voice is very strong and the music matches it. The only thing which she seems to lack is the matching stage persona. When she first speaks to the crowd her voice is tentative and nervous and she admits that she is suffering from the jitters and is somewhat lost for words. This is a little surprising given that she has sold out three nights at Ally Pally and has shifted a decent number of units of her album - she clearly has the support of her fans and cannot be nervous about that. This coquettish banter is endearing to begin with but several giddy laughs and nonsensical comments later and it is starting to detract from the very strong stage presence that her voice and her music originally set up. Perhaps she needs to take a leaf out of PJ Harvey's book and ditch the stage banter entirely and let the music do the talking.
The highlights of the set are the songs that soar - Shake It Out, Dog Days Are Over and Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up) (where Florence invites all the ladies in the audience to jump up on the shoulders of their men or mates). There's obviously not a lot of material for Florence to work with so the gig runs just over 90 minutes.
The punters are happy and its a good performance but not a great one. I am hopeful that Florence's onstage confidence with improve to the level of her voice and music - I suppose that we'll find out the next time.
We then start the long trek down the hill to the tube station - my biggest tip: skip the buses and walk.
More photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59794835@N00/sets/72157629562884925/
Set list:
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-
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-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- Encore:
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(The Source cover)
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