Decisions, decisions.
You know what it's like - sometimes circumstances conspire and you're presented with a choice. What to do?
The chance of a night away in St Anne's combined with a Jaggies show in Blackpool seemed like a good idea but we arrived just in time to catch the local news telling us that the illuminations were being switched on by Dr Who and that there was an open-air gig on the prom by Natalie Imbrunpronouncable, G-g-g-gareth Gates, Daniel Beddingfield's slightly-less-annoying sister and McFly.
Blimey. Four chart-toppers (OK, Natalie's never had a number one, but she's had two number twos*) PLUS David Tennant for free, or pay a quid to see Jagged Edge?
No contest, really. Until the day the Rosinganas split to join Gareth's backing band (cover of My Generation, maybe?).
Faced with a Blackpool full, not only of pissed-up stag/hen parties but of families there to see the lights being switched on, we were slightly stunned to land an empty parking space about 25 yards from the Royal Oak. The pub is a big, imposing building in what would once have been quite a prestigious location in Blackpool's heyday. These days it's just a great big town centre pub on a major junction with very little convenient parking, so the evening looked like it was starting well.
Greetings and salutations were exchanged and the boys hit the stage in front of a medium-sized crowd. Dave B had been enthusing before the show about his new, more portable PA kit. The sound tonight was marvellous, so he's quite entitled to be pleased with both kit and crew.
After Journey, Jovi etc, the first treat of the night was an absolutely storming version of Styx's Blue Collar Man. In this country, Styx (along with REO, Journey and Foreigner) tend to be best-known for their gentler numbers, but they were a sensational pomp-rock band and BCM is possibly one of their finest moments. A great choice (those of you who don't know it will pick up on it very quickly indeed) and a song destined to become a Jaggie favourite, I feel.
A surpise airing of Poison's Every Rose Has Its Thorn brought the tempo down nicely for Comfortably Numb and a sizable chunk of the crowd went ape for Dan's guitar work.
That was noticible; the crowd were very into the music. There was none of the stand-offish "too cool to bop" nonsense I've seen at other venues - these guys were enjoying themselves and were very appreciative of the talent on display.
The second half featured (I've finally seen it and, boy, was it worth the wait!) Carry On, Wayward Son and then a guest performance by young Jo Shorten. Now, I'd been warned about this. In fact, dear reader, a lesser man might've been intimidated by the massed ranks of the Shorten family who confronted your reviewer at the interval. He would be fair, wouldn't he? He wouldn't be too harsh? Please?
I'm going to upset someone, aren't I?
Sweet Child o' Mine isn't one of my favourites, but Jo nailed it. Just as well for Dave B that she only performs in Blackpool.
The seventies stuff led into the linga-longa-Jovi spot and Dan's solo then the new-look Dave Rosingana took centre stage for his lung-busters. I won't spoil the surprise for those who haven't seen him yet, but think "Gary Moore's better looking younger brother".
The crowd were pretty rabid by now and another, really well-deserved, encore was demanded.
In summary; excellent set, great sound, fab crowd. A really, really good show. And we had the golden mile pretty much to ourselves to see the illuminations on the way back. Only downer is I think I've caught Dave B's lurgy.
See you all at the Waterloo...
* Yes, I looked this up. I might be a bit of a music geek, but I have no knowledge of the charts post-Duran Duran-ish.
Friday, 31 August 2007
Friday, 6 July 2007
Jagged Edge - Queensbury, Bradford, July 2007
Remember Wurzel Gummidge? Well I've got my grumpy head on today.
"If it's too loud, you're too old!"
That was the slogan on the back of a Kiss t-shirt I used to own (Creatures of the Night-era, I think).
I felt positively ancient this morning, my ears still ringing from last night's onslaught.
Queensbury Conservative Club is a small venue and has the potential to host a very enjoyable, intimate club-show, but last night's wasn't it; as I say about 16 times a day to our darling daughter, "turn it DOWN!"
Volume aside, there were other problems;
* It's slightly ironic that the boys' first show in a smoke-free venue (OK, Slawit sports centre excepted; you know what I mean) was the first time I've seen Dave B's voice dry up on him.
* The stage ceiling was just too low for Dave R who looked fearful of banging his head on it at times.
* Strange crowd.
It was a fairly standard set, so I'll skip on the play-by-play. The sound balance (especially on the vocal harmonies) on Higher Place was absolutely spot on and had me really excited for a great show but, by the time Danny had solo-ed out ...Miss A Thing the problems had kicked in and it was all a bit muddy.
Then Mr Bamforth put himself on my hitlist.
"This is the point in the show where we do a cheesy number like Boston, or this one by REO Speedwagon".
Cheesy.
Cheesy?
CHEESY???
Look, I try not to take my music too seriously. Back in the day I had a perm and even appeared in public wearing spandex trousers, so I'm in no position to take my music seriously. But, you do not, ever, call Boston "cheesy". Not when you play Thunder covers.
Not without terrible retribution being exacted.
Sweet Child O'Mine was accompanied by a young lady channelling mad-dancer-Gordon from Huddstock. If you're reading - yes, we did notice you almost go A-o-T. I laughed. Sorry.
Faithfully is really coming together musically - it gets better with each performance - but Dave's voice was starting to go by this point and the vocal sounded a bit forced. I know you don't want to do a straight copy of the original, but just a little gentler?
Biggest surprise of the night was the crowd suddenly waking up after ...Rosie and demanding another encore - they'd been pretty unresponsive for the rest of the night, but it gave the guys the opportunity to give us another.
They chose More Than a Feeling.
Cheesy, huh?
Next home gig isn't for about 10 weeks - I suspect we'll squeeze in an awayday before then!
An edam sings Thunder. Yesterday.
Saturday, 2 June 2007
Huddstock Festival - Castle Hill, Huddersfield, June 2007
By the time we got to Woodstock, we were half a million strong...
Well, maybe not, but the Huddstock crowd was into three figures when we arrived, and half of them seemed to be the Still Buzzin' entourage!
First band, 10 Floors Below Society were well into their set and my first thought was, "Oh god, I hope we're not in for an afternoon of Coldplay wannabes".
Actually, TFBS didn't make me want to kill anyone; decent tunes, well played. The singer looked a bit uncomfortable stuck behind his keyboard, mind. Or maybe it was just that he looks uncannily like William'n'Harry's locked-in-the-attic secret brother?
Next were Still Buzzin'; our reason for being there early. This lot have been heavily plugged on these boards, haven't they? A good, fun set which led to the invention of our pastime for the afternoon – Edge Bingo, or the "what songs won't the Jaggies be playing?" game.
Very good covers of When September Ends and I Predict A Riot were overshadowed by a storming version of Hanging On he Telephone. Guys, you have no idea how close you came to being burned inside a giant wicker Debbie Harry. Covering Blondie is dangerously close to sacrilege in my book, but you pulled it off – back of the net!
Singer Nat has a fabulous set of pipes - thought about having a go at any Annie Lennox numbers?
Oh, yeah - scratch Jaggie song number 1 - It's My Life
With all due respect to those who'd already played, Red Star were the first act of he day who looked like a rock band. The singer, Will, prowls the stage like the bastard offspring of Johnny Lydon and Joey Ramone and sports the best sideburns since Charlie George. His attitude is love-me-or-loathe-me-you-will-not-ignore-me and, on top of all of this, he can actually sing! The acapella introduction to the set was almost prog rock-like and the music, although obviously heavily influenced by punk, Oasis and assorted other Manchester bands, owes more to Sunshine of Your Love than Wonderwall.
Me likey!
Oh, Red Star also gave us our first mad dancer of the day, a borderline-anorexic named Gordon.
Next up were Chasing Amy, a band popular at the YorkVic, apparently.
They opened with Teenage Kicks which, I have to say, was a bit creepy coming from a bloke on the wrong side of forty. Among unusual covers (I have never heard anyone play a Cult cover - Li’l Devil was pretty damned good), the Amy boys went overboard in helping us chalk off songs from the Jaggie set as favourites like Sweet Child o' Mine and Whole Lotta Rosie were "borrowed". The vocalist sounded a lot like Feargal Sharkey on the higher-pitched numbers and a bit like Larry the Lamb on more than one occasion.
Now, here's a confession; I likes me a bit of well-executed soul/ska. The whole Two Tone thing blew up when I was at high school and, much to the wife's dismay, I know all the words to Too Much Too Young to this day.
I had high hopes for Northern Beats, but they didn't quite scratch me where it itched. "Best dancers of the day" to their little group of followers, though, and their guitarist wins the "least rock'n'roll name at the festival" award. Cecil, mate, you need a nickname.
Remember that first time you bumped into one of your old schoolteachers in the pub and it took a few seconds to recognise them in unusual surroundings? Top marks to whoever lifted Give Me What’s Mine for interval music – it sounded fabulous through the big PA! Give me a shout if you want the rest of the album – a real overlooked 80s gem.
But then…
Aaargh! My ears! Bleeding! The noise! Make it stop!
It's official. I am Getting Old. It is the duty of youth to produce music which their elders do not understand. When they fail to do this, we end up with a hundred Coldplay soundalikes.
Ridgevex fulfil their duty admirably and I salute them for that.
But can they do it somewhere else in future?
Oh, mad Gordon had a dance partner by now – a somewhat larger chap the sun was slowly turning into a pink Tellytubby. I’ll bet he suffered come Sunday morning.
Bongos and a trumpet made an appearance on-stage and my heart sank just a little.
From what I could gather, Steam Powered are a sort of local blues/jazz/funk supergroup. Sounding like Robert Johnson meets Carlos Santana this is not normally my idea of fun but, given the weather and the vibe of the day (man!), a perfect fit.
Anyone get a full house in Edge Bingo? I was waiting for More Than A Feeling for my fourth corner.
Jagged Edge opened with the Higher Place/Runaway/Don't Want To Miss A Thing trifecta and, for the first time all afternoon, Dave B was looking chilled (stressful day behind the desks, eh?).
I don't know how well it fed back to the stage, so I'll tell you - that bloody Aerosmith song got the biggest, most overwhelmingly positive reception of anything, by anyone, all afternoon.
Danny's solo was awesome. I think he got The Bumper Book Of Guitar Hero Poses for Christmas as he made use of the extra stage space to throw all the shapes from Aldo Nova to Zakk Wylde.
Love Walked In led to Separate Ways (top vocal from Dave R) and Don't Stop Believing before Comfortably Numb inspired all the stoners to light up (again). Danny owned the stage.
Way too short a set, but that's the nature of festivals.
Modeliste were nex...
Oh who cares? The headliners have left the building...
Footnote:
Anyone else been watching Any Dream Will Do? We got home in time to see Lee doing a damned fine Living On A Prayer and it got me thinking; that Will from Red Star? He could be Joseph.
Well, maybe not, but the Huddstock crowd was into three figures when we arrived, and half of them seemed to be the Still Buzzin' entourage!
First band, 10 Floors Below Society were well into their set and my first thought was, "Oh god, I hope we're not in for an afternoon of Coldplay wannabes".
Actually, TFBS didn't make me want to kill anyone; decent tunes, well played. The singer looked a bit uncomfortable stuck behind his keyboard, mind. Or maybe it was just that he looks uncannily like William'n'Harry's locked-in-the-attic secret brother?
Next were Still Buzzin'; our reason for being there early. This lot have been heavily plugged on these boards, haven't they? A good, fun set which led to the invention of our pastime for the afternoon – Edge Bingo, or the "what songs won't the Jaggies be playing?" game.
Very good covers of When September Ends and I Predict A Riot were overshadowed by a storming version of Hanging On he Telephone. Guys, you have no idea how close you came to being burned inside a giant wicker Debbie Harry. Covering Blondie is dangerously close to sacrilege in my book, but you pulled it off – back of the net!
Singer Nat has a fabulous set of pipes - thought about having a go at any Annie Lennox numbers?
Oh, yeah - scratch Jaggie song number 1 - It's My Life
With all due respect to those who'd already played, Red Star were the first act of he day who looked like a rock band. The singer, Will, prowls the stage like the bastard offspring of Johnny Lydon and Joey Ramone and sports the best sideburns since Charlie George. His attitude is love-me-or-loathe-me-you-will-not-ignore-me and, on top of all of this, he can actually sing! The acapella introduction to the set was almost prog rock-like and the music, although obviously heavily influenced by punk, Oasis and assorted other Manchester bands, owes more to Sunshine of Your Love than Wonderwall.
Me likey!
Oh, Red Star also gave us our first mad dancer of the day, a borderline-anorexic named Gordon.
Next up were Chasing Amy, a band popular at the YorkVic, apparently.
They opened with Teenage Kicks which, I have to say, was a bit creepy coming from a bloke on the wrong side of forty. Among unusual covers (I have never heard anyone play a Cult cover - Li’l Devil was pretty damned good), the Amy boys went overboard in helping us chalk off songs from the Jaggie set as favourites like Sweet Child o' Mine and Whole Lotta Rosie were "borrowed". The vocalist sounded a lot like Feargal Sharkey on the higher-pitched numbers and a bit like Larry the Lamb on more than one occasion.
Now, here's a confession; I likes me a bit of well-executed soul/ska. The whole Two Tone thing blew up when I was at high school and, much to the wife's dismay, I know all the words to Too Much Too Young to this day.
I had high hopes for Northern Beats, but they didn't quite scratch me where it itched. "Best dancers of the day" to their little group of followers, though, and their guitarist wins the "least rock'n'roll name at the festival" award. Cecil, mate, you need a nickname.
Remember that first time you bumped into one of your old schoolteachers in the pub and it took a few seconds to recognise them in unusual surroundings? Top marks to whoever lifted Give Me What’s Mine for interval music – it sounded fabulous through the big PA! Give me a shout if you want the rest of the album – a real overlooked 80s gem.
But then…
Aaargh! My ears! Bleeding! The noise! Make it stop!
It's official. I am Getting Old. It is the duty of youth to produce music which their elders do not understand. When they fail to do this, we end up with a hundred Coldplay soundalikes.
Ridgevex fulfil their duty admirably and I salute them for that.
But can they do it somewhere else in future?
Oh, mad Gordon had a dance partner by now – a somewhat larger chap the sun was slowly turning into a pink Tellytubby. I’ll bet he suffered come Sunday morning.
Bongos and a trumpet made an appearance on-stage and my heart sank just a little.
From what I could gather, Steam Powered are a sort of local blues/jazz/funk supergroup. Sounding like Robert Johnson meets Carlos Santana this is not normally my idea of fun but, given the weather and the vibe of the day (man!), a perfect fit.
Anyone get a full house in Edge Bingo? I was waiting for More Than A Feeling for my fourth corner.
Jagged Edge opened with the Higher Place/Runaway/Don't Want To Miss A Thing trifecta and, for the first time all afternoon, Dave B was looking chilled (stressful day behind the desks, eh?).
I don't know how well it fed back to the stage, so I'll tell you - that bloody Aerosmith song got the biggest, most overwhelmingly positive reception of anything, by anyone, all afternoon.
Danny's solo was awesome. I think he got The Bumper Book Of Guitar Hero Poses for Christmas as he made use of the extra stage space to throw all the shapes from Aldo Nova to Zakk Wylde.
Love Walked In led to Separate Ways (top vocal from Dave R) and Don't Stop Believing before Comfortably Numb inspired all the stoners to light up (again). Danny owned the stage.
Way too short a set, but that's the nature of festivals.
Modeliste were nex...
Oh who cares? The headliners have left the building...
Footnote:
Anyone else been watching Any Dream Will Do? We got home in time to see Lee doing a damned fine Living On A Prayer and it got me thinking; that Will from Red Star? He could be Joseph.
Saturday, 12 May 2007
Jagged Edge - Hartlepool WMC - May 2007
Once upon a time, in those happy, clappy carefree years BM (before marriage) we all used to have season tickets at Leeds Road. Part of the masochistic ritual of being a Town fan was to take in at least one away game per season. These occassions, awaydays to near-neighbours (Bradford, Sheffield, Barnsley), journeys into the unknown (Bristol, Stoke) or expeditions into deepest, darkest Lancashire (Oldham, Rochdale) were all unique experiences; exciting and terrifying in equal measures and never, ever disappointing.
It was the spirit of these old times which took us to
Hartlepool Working Men's Club, 12 May 2007
We approached the venue with trepidation; it resembles those "secure facilities" the BBC reporters in Baghdad broadcast from - thick, brick-proof glazing and surrounded by an 8-foot high steel fence; "Toto, I don't think we're in Gledholt anymore."
Fortunately, we found some familiar, friendly faces in the hall and settled down for a night of high jinx and laughter.
"Eyes down for a full house!"
Oh dear. Albert Haller the Bingo Caller has been booked as support act.
Someone cracked a joke.
Someone laughed.
"A little order, please!"
The command was issued in the same tone of voice (albeit different accent) I last heard about 20 years ago when a 7'6" biker in a Glasgow eastend pub told me I'd spilled his pint. I didn't argue then and I'm considerably slower and less pissed these days.
We shut up.
The band played their first set to a generally receptive if not exactly enthusiastic audience. Old Albert, doing his best impression of that guy in the Wheeltappers' and Shunters' Social Club (I'm not the only one who remembers that, right?) had said that they'd be playing for 30 minutes, but thankfully, that message hadn't reached the guys who gave us a normal-length mix of Journey, Jovi, Aerosmith and Boston before a really good and appropriately-spaced-out-feeling Comfortably Numb.
As soon as the stage was clear, Albert was at it again.
How long? Half an hour? I don't know, I'd lost the will to live.
They do take their bingo seriously in Hartlepool.
The second set opened and I was surprised at the number of unlikely-looking people who were word-perfect in Journey-ese; don't judge a rocker by her floral-patterned Etam dress, I guess.
The dance floor was kept full with G'n'R, Free, Bad Company and Bon Jovi numbers and a number of requests were being passed to Dave B by now; happy birthdays, happy anniversaries etc. I must confess, I wanted one of them to say "Can you play The Crystal Chandeliers" but the only surprise was the jammed version of Smoke On The Water the boys knocked out.
Special credit to Dave R here - his, erm, improvised lyric probably went un-noticed among the drinking hoards. How can someone with so much hair not know the words to Smoke...?
A somewhat curtailed Adagio led into Rock'n'Roll and ...Rosie as usual; a rockin' good end to an interesting night.
Nice to know away matches are still fun.
It was the spirit of these old times which took us to
Hartlepool Working Men's Club, 12 May 2007
We approached the venue with trepidation; it resembles those "secure facilities" the BBC reporters in Baghdad broadcast from - thick, brick-proof glazing and surrounded by an 8-foot high steel fence; "Toto, I don't think we're in Gledholt anymore."
Fortunately, we found some familiar, friendly faces in the hall and settled down for a night of high jinx and laughter.
"Eyes down for a full house!"
Oh dear. Albert Haller the Bingo Caller has been booked as support act.
Someone cracked a joke.
Someone laughed.
"A little order, please!"
The command was issued in the same tone of voice (albeit different accent) I last heard about 20 years ago when a 7'6" biker in a Glasgow eastend pub told me I'd spilled his pint. I didn't argue then and I'm considerably slower and less pissed these days.
We shut up.
The band played their first set to a generally receptive if not exactly enthusiastic audience. Old Albert, doing his best impression of that guy in the Wheeltappers' and Shunters' Social Club (I'm not the only one who remembers that, right?) had said that they'd be playing for 30 minutes, but thankfully, that message hadn't reached the guys who gave us a normal-length mix of Journey, Jovi, Aerosmith and Boston before a really good and appropriately-spaced-out-feeling Comfortably Numb.
As soon as the stage was clear, Albert was at it again.
How long? Half an hour? I don't know, I'd lost the will to live.
They do take their bingo seriously in Hartlepool.
The second set opened and I was surprised at the number of unlikely-looking people who were word-perfect in Journey-ese; don't judge a rocker by her floral-patterned Etam dress, I guess.
The dance floor was kept full with G'n'R, Free, Bad Company and Bon Jovi numbers and a number of requests were being passed to Dave B by now; happy birthdays, happy anniversaries etc. I must confess, I wanted one of them to say "Can you play The Crystal Chandeliers" but the only surprise was the jammed version of Smoke On The Water the boys knocked out.
Special credit to Dave R here - his, erm, improvised lyric probably went un-noticed among the drinking hoards. How can someone with so much hair not know the words to Smoke...?
A somewhat curtailed Adagio led into Rock'n'Roll and ...Rosie as usual; a rockin' good end to an interesting night.
Nice to know away matches are still fun.
Sunday, 15 April 2007
Jagged Edge - Golcar British Legion - April 2007
Y'know how sometimes you put something down and you can see in your mind's eye where you left it but you can't quite put your hand on it?
Maybe it's my age, but I did that with a word recently; it was at the Slaithwaite show and I was buggered if I could find it. This afternoon, it popped back into my mind, but more of that later.
Winkle Club Benefit. Golcar British Legion, 15 April 2007.
Unusually, we got to hear a bit of the boys' soundcheck today and rather enlightening it was, too. The brothers Rosingana have a very exciting version of The Trees by Rush hidden away in their not inconsiderable repertoire which I'd like to hear and I really, really want to hear all of Carry On Wayward Son, because that teaser was just awesome.
I expected this afternoon's set to lean heavily on that from Thursday and so it turned out, but the variations were just enough to keep us from getting complacent; we had Journey, Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, REO Speedwagon, Pink Floyd; all good, crowd-pleasing stuff in the first half. In the second, Don't Stop Believing and a bunch of oldies - (Love is Like) Oxygen, Jump and Bed of Roses - were highlights, but I don't want to spend too much time on the songs this time out (other than to complain about the absence of Faithfully).
Big kudos to the sound guys - this was streets ahead of the Rock Cafe sound throughout - the harmonies sounded great and the instrumental/vocal mix was spot-on.
Dave Bamforth excelled on his big ballads; Don't Want to Miss... (NOT my favourite song, normally) and Bed of Roses sounded better than they have in ages; I don't think I'm the first to suggest that the Jaggies' Bed of Roses is better than the original.
Anyway, "Soaring" was the word I mislaid. Careless of me, really - it doesn't hide itself particularly well between "soap" and "soave" in the OED - but I couldn't find it until this afternoon.
"Soaring" is the word I wanted to (indeed, am about to) apply to Dave Rosingana's backing vocals; his Wanted, Dead or Alive could strip paint at 50 yards; you're left wondering if he really needs that microphone.
Best things about today? A lot to choose from. The best news for the band is that I heard a fair few Jaggie-virgins saying they'd be back. My good lady was delighted to see Dave B's leather strides make a rare appearance in the first half (honestly, if it wasn't for Lady Bamforth, I'd find this really worrying).
Worst thing? Well, it's probably the last gig we'll be at until Huddstock, so someone else is going to have to contribute to this thread between now and then.
Now, can someone tell me what a winkle club does?
Maybe it's my age, but I did that with a word recently; it was at the Slaithwaite show and I was buggered if I could find it. This afternoon, it popped back into my mind, but more of that later.
Winkle Club Benefit. Golcar British Legion, 15 April 2007.
Unusually, we got to hear a bit of the boys' soundcheck today and rather enlightening it was, too. The brothers Rosingana have a very exciting version of The Trees by Rush hidden away in their not inconsiderable repertoire which I'd like to hear and I really, really want to hear all of Carry On Wayward Son, because that teaser was just awesome.
I expected this afternoon's set to lean heavily on that from Thursday and so it turned out, but the variations were just enough to keep us from getting complacent; we had Journey, Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, REO Speedwagon, Pink Floyd; all good, crowd-pleasing stuff in the first half. In the second, Don't Stop Believing and a bunch of oldies - (Love is Like) Oxygen, Jump and Bed of Roses - were highlights, but I don't want to spend too much time on the songs this time out (other than to complain about the absence of Faithfully).
Big kudos to the sound guys - this was streets ahead of the Rock Cafe sound throughout - the harmonies sounded great and the instrumental/vocal mix was spot-on.
Dave Bamforth excelled on his big ballads; Don't Want to Miss... (NOT my favourite song, normally) and Bed of Roses sounded better than they have in ages; I don't think I'm the first to suggest that the Jaggies' Bed of Roses is better than the original.
Anyway, "Soaring" was the word I mislaid. Careless of me, really - it doesn't hide itself particularly well between "soap" and "soave" in the OED - but I couldn't find it until this afternoon.
"Soaring" is the word I wanted to (indeed, am about to) apply to Dave Rosingana's backing vocals; his Wanted, Dead or Alive could strip paint at 50 yards; you're left wondering if he really needs that microphone.
Best things about today? A lot to choose from. The best news for the band is that I heard a fair few Jaggie-virgins saying they'd be back. My good lady was delighted to see Dave B's leather strides make a rare appearance in the first half (honestly, if it wasn't for Lady Bamforth, I'd find this really worrying).
Worst thing? Well, it's probably the last gig we'll be at until Huddstock, so someone else is going to have to contribute to this thread between now and then.
Now, can someone tell me what a winkle club does?
Thursday, 12 April 2007
Jagged Edge - Rock Cafe, Huddersfield - April 2007
The Rock Café's usually a nice spot for a quiet pint of an afternoon, but I really don't rate it as a live venue, especially for the Jaggies. The sound's always a bit iffy (moreso than normal, tonight) and the boys deserve a proper stage. Hey, just my opinion…
Higher Place is a great set opener (as a Perry fan, I've never really rated Augeri-period Journey, but this is an exception) and leads us into a fine set of JE standards with a few not-heard-in-a-while tracks to keep us on our toes; it's great to hear More Than A Feeling and Take It On The Run again.
One thing the Rock Café does allow is for us to study the craftsmanship that goes into a JE show. Getting up-close'n'personal makes it easy to pick out the different parts in the harmony that we take for granted; it means we feel Alan's (under-appreciated?) drumming; it lets us taste the sweet, sweet chemistry the boys have (sorry, this is starting to sound all NME, isn't it?)
You know the band are on form when they're ready for a break before you are; tonight's is one such performance. Dan, whether producing a note-perfect Schon reproduction or improvising like crazy over Dave's lush keyboards is absolutely smokin', his fingers utterly mesmerising as he fits more notes to the bar than Mariah "warbling harridan" Carey.
The second half is a romp; Sweet Child o'Mine, a version of Faithfully which is a massive step up from the Slaithwaite show, Give Me All Your Love Tonight (look, Whitesnake are not, never have been and never will be "heavy", OK?) and the obligatory Bon Jovi singalong lead us into Dan's solo and the encores.
I love the change in dynamic the band undergoes when Dave'n'Dave swap roles; the gum-popping bassist becomes a different person when he takes the lead and (literally) lets his hair down. Old Percy Plant himself would love tonight's Rock'n'Roll and ...Rosie was a blast as always.
Thanks guys, great show. What's that? Time for one more?
Oh boy, Girl Can't Help It is an earworm to keep me going until…
OH YA BEAUTY! I've got tickets for Sunday!
Higher Place is a great set opener (as a Perry fan, I've never really rated Augeri-period Journey, but this is an exception) and leads us into a fine set of JE standards with a few not-heard-in-a-while tracks to keep us on our toes; it's great to hear More Than A Feeling and Take It On The Run again.
One thing the Rock Café does allow is for us to study the craftsmanship that goes into a JE show. Getting up-close'n'personal makes it easy to pick out the different parts in the harmony that we take for granted; it means we feel Alan's (under-appreciated?) drumming; it lets us taste the sweet, sweet chemistry the boys have (sorry, this is starting to sound all NME, isn't it?)
You know the band are on form when they're ready for a break before you are; tonight's is one such performance. Dan, whether producing a note-perfect Schon reproduction or improvising like crazy over Dave's lush keyboards is absolutely smokin', his fingers utterly mesmerising as he fits more notes to the bar than Mariah "warbling harridan" Carey.
The second half is a romp; Sweet Child o'Mine, a version of Faithfully which is a massive step up from the Slaithwaite show, Give Me All Your Love Tonight (look, Whitesnake are not, never have been and never will be "heavy", OK?) and the obligatory Bon Jovi singalong lead us into Dan's solo and the encores.
I love the change in dynamic the band undergoes when Dave'n'Dave swap roles; the gum-popping bassist becomes a different person when he takes the lead and (literally) lets his hair down. Old Percy Plant himself would love tonight's Rock'n'Roll and ...Rosie was a blast as always.
Thanks guys, great show. What's that? Time for one more?
Oh boy, Girl Can't Help It is an earworm to keep me going until…
OH YA BEAUTY! I've got tickets for Sunday!
Saturday, 24 March 2007
Rock 4 Kids Charity Gig - Slaithwaite, March 2007
Rock 4 Kids - Colne Valley Leisure Centre, 24 March 2007
Ah, dear, dear Slawit. It's a funny place; whenever I visit, I feel as if I've just doubled the gene pool.
And labels are funny things, especially when applied to music. If you've never heard a band before, all your preconceptions are built on the label someone has stuck on them. We all do it; music is one of the few things which haven't been "PC"ed yet - it's still acceptable to dislike various types of music; you don't have to tolerate other people's (lack of) taste and accommodate their wishes; you can just tell them to **** off and turn your Walkman up to 11.
Hence, without fear of imprisonment, I can state that hip-hop makes me run screaming from the room, that opera leaves me cold and that MariahHoustonDion is the three-headed beast in the Gospel According to Tommy.
Two labels always make me nervous, though. The first is "alternative"; alternative to what, exactly? The second is "Indie".
Now, I'm old enough to remember what "Indie" meant; it was a post-punk thing, independent record labels releasing material the big boys wouldn't touch. It was Postcard (Orange Juice, Aztec Camera), Rough Trade (Scritti Politti, Spizz Energi) and Factory (Joy Division). Not any more; "indie" these days seems to mean blokes with guitars playing vaguely 60s-revivalist stuff; The Answer and Kaiser Chiefs have a lineage that goes back through The Jam to The Small Faces and The Kinks; a very London-centric commercial sound; and the big labels love it. What's "indie" about that?
So you see, Friends of Dave had all this to contend with before they'd even played a note, and all because of a label. They opened the show with a Snow Patrol number and, right away, you could tell they were enjoying themselves (even if they looked as if they should be in the pub along the road watching the England game). What's not to love about a band with Lee Hurst's long-lost brothers playing lead and rhythm guitars? Material was as you'd expect - Kaisers, Killers etc - a good start to the night.
Next up was Vital Signs. They were billed as "Colne Valley's answer to The Commitments". Now, there's another label for you. One which displays a singular lack of ambition. You wouldn't get a comedian calling himself "Lindley's Jim Davidson"; you wouldn't get on the shortlist at Home FM if you called yourself "The Simon Bates of Dalton".
Simon Cowell would have had a field day with them; this was really, really bad karaoke. Hook up a dynamo to the recently-departed James Brown because he's spinning in his grave a damn sight faster than those turbines on the Civic Centre roof; "I Feel Good" appeared to start in 3 different keys. They almost rescued the set with a politically-corrected "Sweet Home Alabama" but, from there on in, they clearly started making it up as they went along. The random song selector threw up Coldplay, Kaiser Chiefs, Bryan Adams (I giggled at the thought of Dave hastily rewriting the Jaggies' setlist), Oasis and - horror of horrors - REM (the appearance of a mandolin onstage these days has the same effect a saxophone used to because, just as "sax = Baker Street", "mandolin = Losing My Religion"). The cherry on the cake was the inclusion of "Pride" by the most over-rated band in living memory, U2. This was clearly shoe-horned in because the singer thinks he's Bono. Someone needs to tell him he isn't.
I thought the mini-moshers in the crowd were really cute. Everyone should have one as a pet, but they're messy little critters, aren't they?
It's over 20 years since my college mate, Brian, started raving about this new, super-charged rock music he called "thrash". He dragged me along to a gig in Glasgow (2 quid, if memory serves; bear in mind that it used to cost a fiver to see the top bands at the Apollo at this time, kids; none of your £80-to-stand-in-a-field nonsense back then) featuring two up-and-coming acts of the genre. Anthrax were really funny. Noisy as hell, but heavy on the humour. Metallica scared the living bejesus out of me.
Icarus very much reminded me of Anthrax. The image is straight out of 1985 - Dom should have arrived on a skateboard! Thrash musicianship is under-rated; the key and tempo changes are legion and unpredictable to the casual ear but Icarus were very tight; a very talented bunch of guys (much more so than they deserve to be at that age). I was particularly impressed by the brave but expertly executed cover of Maiden's "Phantom of the Opera" (even if it was a bit rushed to begin with; it's fast enough guys, you don't need to prove anything!) and the great Sabbath medley. Nice touches of humour; they didn't take themseves too seriously under the lights, though singer/lead Sam could smile a bit more off-stage! Oh, bassist Dan looks like Captain Caveman.
Y'know what? I'm going to let someone else write up the Jaggies' set. I'll only make one comment; "Faithfully" has the potential to be very, very special, but that's my school disco memories you're playing with, boys - it needs a bit of polish yet...
Whatever happened to number 48?
Ah, dear, dear Slawit. It's a funny place; whenever I visit, I feel as if I've just doubled the gene pool.
And labels are funny things, especially when applied to music. If you've never heard a band before, all your preconceptions are built on the label someone has stuck on them. We all do it; music is one of the few things which haven't been "PC"ed yet - it's still acceptable to dislike various types of music; you don't have to tolerate other people's (lack of) taste and accommodate their wishes; you can just tell them to **** off and turn your Walkman up to 11.
Hence, without fear of imprisonment, I can state that hip-hop makes me run screaming from the room, that opera leaves me cold and that MariahHoustonDion is the three-headed beast in the Gospel According to Tommy.
Two labels always make me nervous, though. The first is "alternative"; alternative to what, exactly? The second is "Indie".
Now, I'm old enough to remember what "Indie" meant; it was a post-punk thing, independent record labels releasing material the big boys wouldn't touch. It was Postcard (Orange Juice, Aztec Camera), Rough Trade (Scritti Politti, Spizz Energi) and Factory (Joy Division). Not any more; "indie" these days seems to mean blokes with guitars playing vaguely 60s-revivalist stuff; The Answer and Kaiser Chiefs have a lineage that goes back through The Jam to The Small Faces and The Kinks; a very London-centric commercial sound; and the big labels love it. What's "indie" about that?
So you see, Friends of Dave had all this to contend with before they'd even played a note, and all because of a label. They opened the show with a Snow Patrol number and, right away, you could tell they were enjoying themselves (even if they looked as if they should be in the pub along the road watching the England game). What's not to love about a band with Lee Hurst's long-lost brothers playing lead and rhythm guitars? Material was as you'd expect - Kaisers, Killers etc - a good start to the night.
Next up was Vital Signs. They were billed as "Colne Valley's answer to The Commitments". Now, there's another label for you. One which displays a singular lack of ambition. You wouldn't get a comedian calling himself "Lindley's Jim Davidson"; you wouldn't get on the shortlist at Home FM if you called yourself "The Simon Bates of Dalton".
Simon Cowell would have had a field day with them; this was really, really bad karaoke. Hook up a dynamo to the recently-departed James Brown because he's spinning in his grave a damn sight faster than those turbines on the Civic Centre roof; "I Feel Good" appeared to start in 3 different keys. They almost rescued the set with a politically-corrected "Sweet Home Alabama" but, from there on in, they clearly started making it up as they went along. The random song selector threw up Coldplay, Kaiser Chiefs, Bryan Adams (I giggled at the thought of Dave hastily rewriting the Jaggies' setlist), Oasis and - horror of horrors - REM (the appearance of a mandolin onstage these days has the same effect a saxophone used to because, just as "sax = Baker Street", "mandolin = Losing My Religion"). The cherry on the cake was the inclusion of "Pride" by the most over-rated band in living memory, U2. This was clearly shoe-horned in because the singer thinks he's Bono. Someone needs to tell him he isn't.
I thought the mini-moshers in the crowd were really cute. Everyone should have one as a pet, but they're messy little critters, aren't they?
It's over 20 years since my college mate, Brian, started raving about this new, super-charged rock music he called "thrash". He dragged me along to a gig in Glasgow (2 quid, if memory serves; bear in mind that it used to cost a fiver to see the top bands at the Apollo at this time, kids; none of your £80-to-stand-in-a-field nonsense back then) featuring two up-and-coming acts of the genre. Anthrax were really funny. Noisy as hell, but heavy on the humour. Metallica scared the living bejesus out of me.
Icarus very much reminded me of Anthrax. The image is straight out of 1985 - Dom should have arrived on a skateboard! Thrash musicianship is under-rated; the key and tempo changes are legion and unpredictable to the casual ear but Icarus were very tight; a very talented bunch of guys (much more so than they deserve to be at that age). I was particularly impressed by the brave but expertly executed cover of Maiden's "Phantom of the Opera" (even if it was a bit rushed to begin with; it's fast enough guys, you don't need to prove anything!) and the great Sabbath medley. Nice touches of humour; they didn't take themseves too seriously under the lights, though singer/lead Sam could smile a bit more off-stage! Oh, bassist Dan looks like Captain Caveman.
Y'know what? I'm going to let someone else write up the Jaggies' set. I'll only make one comment; "Faithfully" has the potential to be very, very special, but that's my school disco memories you're playing with, boys - it needs a bit of polish yet...
Whatever happened to number 48?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)