A little calmer this year with 65 gigs – well 61 gigs (one for each of my years) and four days at festivals, three at Victorious in Southsea and one at Poole Harbour Festival with jet lag. After a gig free January and a slow February, November and December were a non-stop feast of music.
In all, 128 different live acts with two Stranglers gigs, three Red Rum Club sets and a headline and a support set for both The Damned and The Skids.
42 different venues visited in 18 towns and cities in four countries – Spain, Northern Ireland, Wales and England.
My gigs this year have been mostly in London (18), Bournemouth and Poole (18) and Southampton (10) and I am pleased to say that the place I have been to most is Poole Lighthouse, walking distance for me, with its three venues of varying sizes, the smallest being the Sherling Studio holding about 90 people, a little more relaxed than the 90,000 experience of Wembley Stadium.
There are some newer bands that are worth a big shout. These are all bands that I want to see again as soon as possible. A couple I saw in poor circumstances but still they left their mark: Clockworks had equipment problems and were left with a 20 minute set at a Victorious Festival small stage in the trees and Wunderhorse, support band for Declan McKenna, appeared unwell for his short set. The Kairos, The Royston Club and The Clause, all brought me enthusiasm for more and hope that they can grow like Red Rum Club and The Lathums have: a few other recent years’ new favourites of mine.
A special mention for The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Damned and Echo and the Bunnymen, two lots of familiar faces still at the top of their game and Biffy Clyro for a Victorious Festival headliner set that blew away the weather.
But my top ten, in reverse order and after careful consideration, are these for 2024:
10 AC/DC
(Wembley Stadium)
I was handed the opportunity and I had to be there, just once. An unmissable experience of a band I don’t know that well but they have always been there and best seats.
9 Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds
(O2 Academy Bournemouth)
This smaller warm-up gig was a special opportunity and lived up to the high expectations after the clammer for limited tickets.
8 The Skids
(Engine Rooms Southampton)
Richard Jobson punches his way into my top ten with his new four piece line up and a great set. Sometimes less is more and the smaller venue experience wins.
7 Hard-Fi
(London Roundhouse)
The Staines Massive come to town and round off their autumn tour for a celebration of their first album in 2005 and a new EP.
6 Killers
(O2 Arena London)
Las Vegas comes to London with the showmanship of Brandon Flowers and a string of sellout gigs at the O2 Arena. It is so much better to see them at an indoor venue.
5 The Stranglers
(Royal Albert Hall)
My favourite band over many years and great night out in an iconic venue. A superb set to celebrate 50 years of the band, in various forms.
4 The Stranglers
(Bristol Beacon)
Shared blog with Royal Albert Hall gig.
The postponement of this gig meant I was able to make use of a mate’s front row seat for this one – yes seat, but don’t worry, we were up on our feet.
3 Stiff Little Fingers +Damned+Skids
(Custom House, Belfast)
Stiff Little Fingers in their home city. Unimaginable in the 80s and beyond but we got there. A fantastic experience with some very special guests.
2 Green Day
(Wembley Stadium)
I have had a natural resistance to gigs a Wembley Stadium over the years – often so far away that you may as well not be there and a real challenge of the sound in such a place. Several bands and events over the last few years have overcome my negativity – doesn’t mean I wouldn’t rather see bands somewhere else but they can be so good they overcome it. Green Day managed it with ease.
1 Amyl and the Sniffers
(O2 Academy Bristol)
The sheer excitement of this powerball of a band, over here from Australia, playing live and loud, was irresistible. The standout performance of the year, the decade and probably this century so far. It’s a very long time since I got a buzz like this.
That’s my 2024 picks. Rock until you drop!
This blog, gigswithivan.uk, continues to grow with over 10,000 views this year, three times more than last year.
Photos and videos, good and bad are all my own – phone and Panasonic pocket zoom – I say if there are any occasional ones that are not.
My Grey-haired Gig Goer YouTube Channel holds my videos and clips @grey-hairedgiggoer that I link to. 29 videos have over 1,000 views, a rather random five have over 10,000 and the channel has over 500 free subscribers.
Gigs with Ivan 
Great read as ever. Good to see some new bands as well, music involves. The enthusiasm for music comes out throughout ever review. Keep rocking and enjoy 2025!
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Cheers Nige.
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