Gigs with Ivan

Gorillaz in the Smoke

Gorillaz 11.8.21 London O2, Greenwich

This was exploring, as indeed was the previous 36 hours in ‘the smoke’. An opportunity to see Gorillaz, a Covid postponed gig, which intrigued me although I hadn’t previously delved into this now 20 year old project of ex-Blur frontman Damon Albarn. I hear stuff on the radio of course but hadn’t particularly gone looking specifically until I knew I was going to see them; then playing the first and most recent albums, not the middle five.

Described as a virtual band, and with cartoon characters featuring heavily in the visual presence of this …er .. band I was half expecting a focus on some unusual visuals without much focus on live vocals and instruments. Papier-mâché heads or holograms wouldn’t have surprised me – there were flags paraded at one point – but this was more of a musical carnival. Damon did introduce a couple of new tracks well into the set which he said were an attempt to create a carnival feel (‘Meanwhile’ and ‘De Ja Vu’) and they did just that – the whole set though had that carnival style celebration of music, drawing in sounds from different sources and with a wealth of guest input: DJs, MCs and rappers, plus Sean Ryder of the Happy Mondays; the heavy drums of Slaves; the low slung throbbing bass of Peter Hook and the whirling echoing guitar and pop-goth cries of The Cure’s Robert Smith.

Shaun Ryder – it’s a long way to zoom from the rear ‘deck’
of The O2

A hint that Robert Smith is emerging from the smoke

Smith features as the main input on the second song this evening, or do we call them arrangements: ‘Strange Timez’, title track of the 2020 album ‘Song Machine. Season One: Strange Timez’.

Another recognisable guest as far as I was concerned was Peter Hook waving his low slung bass, again featuring on the latest album with ‘Aries’ and early on in the set tonight.

The procession of guests makes this the post-Covid restrictions carnival party that I guess everyone was looking for. I confess not to know of the rappers – I may be misusing this generic – that join in but everyone else seems to – each stage entrance greeted with a new burst of arm waving – a heartwarming sight from where we are sat, mid-way up on the rear banking, on the ‘deck’ at the top of the lower tier. A great view of the whole event which suited me for this spectacle.

Little Simz is the rap input that wins for me with two stints – yes I had to look her up. But it all works. No chance for lulls.

Damon remains as the conductor of about 15 performers on stage at times, up to 25 by the end, orchestrating this diverse 21st century sound. A jaw dropping feat. He is singing mainly but also plays guitar and the distinctive melodica makes an appearance – I think that’s what it is – my sisters used to play them.

The distinctive melodica makes an appearance

When we arrived for this – with gig buddy Dave (DPi) for this indulgent excursion – and were sat in Pizza Express in the O2 outer concourse the diversity and cheeriness of the passing crowds was striking, a lot of different age groups – the different genres Damon has brought into Gorillaz does a great job at broad appeal without any pop blandness. The crowd feel outside translated into the party or carnival feel inside. As with the other recent post-Covid restrictions gigs I’ve been to, I’m left reflecting that there is no better time to see live performances. Everyone is so up for it and grateful.

A full set list gives more detail. ‘Kids with Guns’ (from the second album) for me made an impact and I noted Damon doing ‘Don’t Get Lost in Heaven’ from the piano (with the lyric “stick me in a cab to suburbia….”) but I can’t but help to like the most familiar ‘Clint Eastwood‘ best. That’s the earworm I leave this big carnival with.

The O2 Greenwich

This is the first time since doing these blogs of my gig going activities that I’ve been here. I am wary of such huge venues, they do have a place and the only time I’ve felt hard done by here is when sitting right up on the top tier for The Killers – and Brandon Flowers had a sore throat. I really wouldn’t bother with any seat above the mid-tier boxes. Everything else has been a good experience. This evening it was all standing on the main arena floor but if it is seated on the flat you want to be in the blocks in the front half or I wouldn’t bother. I took my mum to ELO and sat/stood by a chair in the front half and that was fine.

The lower tier of banked seating, ideally half way up, and up the stage end half is ideal. That’s the sort of view I’ve had for gigs here for Neil Young, Pearl Jam and the Stone Free Festival (Prog rock!) I’ve been to – the latter including Yes and Rodger Hodgson (staggeringly good) the voice of Supertramp .

Tonight we were on ‘the deck’ at the back of the lower tier which goes all the way round, and near the back.

The view is good of the whole proceedings with easy access and a few drinks or food included with the ticket piece. You sit on stools at a bar raised up a bit from the aeating in front. My pocket camera needs to zoom intensely but you get the picture picture.

As regards the food and drink if you’re new to the place I’d just get to the O2 complex early and embrace the false food quarter idea – it can be over busy and rushed so just give yourself time. O2 phone contracts win again with queue jumping priority and optional access to The Blue Room free, which is a more relaxed secret world, often with other live music and a decent haven for pre or post gig drinks. Camden Pale Ale on the tap. Cocktails on the mezzanine bar.

For this gig we were happy in the Blue Room as the support was listed as ‘DJ’. That’s no support in my book, whoever it is.

Earlier in Abbey Road Studios

Earlier in the day, being out in London for the first time two years, and seeing the visit coincided with a rare Abbey Studios open week, we took to opportunity to do a tour. Fascinating. Smell the music history: The Beatles, Oasis, Elgar, Pink Floyd… Mrs Mills….film scores…and the comedy recordings: Spike Milligan, Morecambe and Wise.

I was particularly taken with the Lennon and McCartney fag burns on one of the pianos on show.

No photos allowed inside but chances for a touristy pose outside and an opportunity to annoy St. John’s Wood motorists. I’m surprised more don’t get run over on the infamous zebra crossing.

A first visit to Ronnie Scott’s

We had arranged to be in London the night before so as to be at the rare Abbey Road opportunity in plenty of time. Obviously that gave the opportunity for more gig related entertainment. A late social isolation requirement on a Bruce Dickenson, once of Iron Maiden, diverted plans last minute and we found our way to Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club for some jazzy rearrangements of David Bowie numbers.

Again – no photos during performances – fair enough in these tight and sophisticated surroundings. Doesn’t do much to enhance a blog though.

Bit of a departure from the norm and again a sense of history. Having started up in 1956 nearby it moved to its current site in 1965. Can’t believe I’ve never been to see anyone here before.

David McAlmont – he did an album with Suede’s Bernard Butler – has an incredible voice and the jazzy arrangements were certainly a novel take on some Bowie classics and lesser know tracks.

There we are then. A 36 hour music based excursion to the capital covering a fair bit of ground. After the Covid hiatus there’s no time to lose.

That’s Entertainment: From The Jam

From The Jam 7.8.21 The Brook, Southampton

Another postponed gig I wondered about ever happening. It’s arrived. Hopeful Lockdown bookings are now finally rolling out – hope I haven’t bitten off more than I can chew 🤔 in what could be a monster run up to the end of 2021. Each booking I thought was a roll of a dice. They can’t all come up with a six can they?

It’s a fabulous time to catch a band and lap up that return to business enthusiasm from artists, doormen, bar staff, punters and all. Tonight a return to The Brook, Portswood Road, Portswood, Southampton…and it’s been a while, even pre-Covid, since I’ve been here.

The Brook

Always a good menu of tribute and local acts with the added spark of the occasional bigger name.

I usually end up driving to this one – or being driven as with tonight – as it’s a fairly inhospitable walk down the busy 1.7 miles from Southampton Parkway station or an ambitious 2.7 miles up from Southampton Central. Parkway and a cab is probably the best option coming from outside the city but you need to get your act together to get one back later at some unpredictable time.

It’s a big old Victorian pub converted to be one of the bigger pub venues, with 600 capacity – the speciality being the split level and large overlapping upper, casually seated area which gives a view that almost feels like you are hovering over the stage. There’s a bar upstairs as well. You need to get there as the doors open to get a seat with a view – more popular the older the band. The view is good downstairs though with a high stage.

My history here is a relatively recent – 2005 – but the gigs started in the current setting in 1994. While it is a tribute band heaven, Absolute Bowie is the only tribute act I’ve seen here – excellent. Other bands I can remember seeing and I’ll note here for my record are: The Undertones (post Feargal obviously); Secret Affair; The Rifles; Buzzcocks, Cush and Swill from The Men They Couldn’t Hang and The Rezillos.

We arrive about ten minutes before doors open thinking we will be early enough for an upstairs seat – foot ailments continue – and it is, just. The queue is an eager one tonight and leads round the corner and down the Portswood Road.

A feast of bands on the posters outside to attract pointing fingers at future suggestions and booking acknowledgements from queuing punters.

We are soon in, greated by smiling faces – everyone’s happy to be back.

Support Band: Nine Below Zero (Dennis and Mark)

Bit of a bonus this. Not seen anything about the support and as I am trying to see what the case of things is on the stage when I heard a mention of Nine Below Zero… it was a case of about 20 harmonicas….Mark Feltham’s harmonicas. Mr Harmonica himself.

Dennis Greaves and Mark Feltham of Nine Below Zero have arrived from doing Wickham Festival and provide the opening set this evening with some harmonica heavy blues – more traditional ‘Move it on Over’ to the new material ‘Wannabe Wannabees’ (a dig at modern celeb culture youth) of a near current album.

The harmonica playing was an obvious highlight. I bought one myself in Lockdown, maybe inspired by seeing Nine Below Zero at the 2019 Butlins Minehead Great British Alternative Music Festival. (Alas I can only manage Twinkle Twinkle Little Star so far.)

Greaves encourages visits to the merch stand to pick up a CD, pointing to the woeful earnings from Spotify in particular. He reflects on the Spotify owner’s wish to take a big stake in Arsenal Football Club with all the money he’s made from everyone’s music and Dennis declares his Spurs loyalty before some light hearted abuse.

Dennis Greaves – Nine Below Zero at The Brook, Southampton

I Never Saw the Jam

I can’t believe I never saw The Jam. I bought Jam singles in my school days – not albums until later – and despite going to see bands while at school and in the Jam active years after I never got to see them. I remember scouring Sounds and NME at school hoping to rumble an ad for a Jam secret gig (they were a thing around London) but I don’t remember trying for tickets anytime. When it came to the last Jam tour, while I was in Birmingham, I didn’t join the scramble for tickets at the huge Bingley Hall gig. Despite all this The Jam were a big part of my musical backdrop 1977-1982, The Jam years. I just missed the bus on the live front.

On the live gig front my regrets are pretty limited but my few are never seeing The Jam or The Clash live. In both cases I’ve seen the dismembered parts but not the whole body of these bands.

I’ve seen Weller a handful of times – Pheonix Festival, Bournemouth BIC, Poole Lighthouse and Victorious Festival 2018 (best one) – but he is focused on his solo material and Jam songs are heavily rationed. What From The Jam offer is some Jam indulgence….unrestrained indulgence.

From The Jam

When From The Jam emerged in 2007 it was with bassist Bruce Foxton and drummer Rick Buckler, from the Jam, plus a new Jam fan front man Russell Hastings. Rick has since left.

I caught up with them in the unlikely surroundings of Ferndown Barrington Centre, East Dorset on 20.5.2016 and again at the aforementioned Butlins Minehead event in March 2020.

They recorded an album of their own material, ‘Smash the Clock’ in 2016 in Paul Weller’s Black Barn Studios. Bruce must of patched up his differences with Weller by then. These differences, and Weller’s complete separation from Bruce and Rick, are well documented in Rick Buckler’s absorbing autobiography ‘That’s Entertainment: My Life in the Jam’.

From The Jam Tonight

This evening is billed as ‘up close and acoustic’ – Bruce Foxton and Russell Hastings sat front stage and with regular FTJ keyboardist Andy Fairclough. No drummer.

They start with ‘Liza Radley’ (from Sound Effects) and then a Bruce fronted classic ‘David Watts’ – the Kinks cover – the place is absolutely buzzing. A few feedback problems in ‘Eton Rifles’ with some sound level corrections before we are in to ‘So Sad About Us’.

The roadie support is introduced – Russell Hastings’ son who lurks behind the amps centre stage.

One more recent FTJ song I note is ‘Number 6’ and aside from a couple of songs the set is a barrage of classics including ‘That‘s Entertainment’, ‘Smithers Jones’, ‘English Rose’…the latter not getting the quiet it needs and deserves. This is no traditional acoustic set. It couldn’t be – they need the volume or all would be lost amongst a chorus of aging voices singing along to every line of every verse.

I’m upstairs looking down through wide bars so photos are a bit select. It was too hard to wander about – Jam packed it was!

I’m wondering if this is quite as high on the sheer excitement front as last time I saw them, then ‘When You’re Young’ starts. The neck hairs are bristling. Brilliant.

You used to fall in love with everyone
Any guitar and any bass drum
Life is a drink and you get drunk when you’re young
Life is new and there’s things to be done
You can’t wait to be grown up
From ‘When You’re Young’

The hits continue and this is heart warming stuff. The singalong crowd are getting more raucous: ‘Town Called Malice’ and one of my favourites ‘Saturday’s Kids’ which appears as a raw demo version on the first Jam CD I bought, the compilation ‘Live Extras’.

Hastings is so Weller-like on the vocals that if you shut your eyes you might not tell it wasn’t him. Actually if the lights were dimmed more and you’d forgotten your glasses you still might be fooled, aside from Hastings’ more up beat banter.

Foxton is quiet meanwhile and is coaxed for comment by Hastings.

To finish two of the best ‘Strangetown’ and ‘Down in the Tubestation at Midnight’ ….of course they can’t just leave it and back for an encore of ‘In the City’ and ‘Going Underground’.

After all that I just want to see them again. Full band next time in a more conventional set up. The songs are so good and so familiar.

90s Revival at Poole Harbour

Toploader, Dodgy, Oasiss 01.08.2021

Poole Harbour Festival, Baiter Park, Poole

A handy Sunday afternoon option down in the park. We just popped along the road for the last day of this three day festival of music with added distractions. Booked a ticket just days before, having assessed the risk of get a soaking as probable but likely short lived.

The Poole Harbour Festival has run for several years and this looked better than ever in terms of set up, attendance – a couple of thousand maybe – bars, food stalls and children’s attractions – I still don’t know what ‘Rent a Dinosaur’ is but it sounded innovative. For starters the no wait cans bar has sorted a lot of prevous years’ queueing out. Main stage was much bigger than most previous years and not in a tent… which looking at the sky later I thought we might regret.. we didn’t…as predicted our soaking happened but was short lived.

Fair sized queue to get in and at 11.15am I could honestly feel the urgency of wanting to get inside in time to Oasiss, the tribute band due to start at 11.30am…. they’re good. Seen them here before and at Parkstone Labour and Trades Club – local band.

We got in in time for kick-off. Sun out. Lovely. I confess to taking camping chairs – foot ailments and age taking it’s toll eh.

Oasiss

Oasis music live in the sunshine on a Sunday morning: can’t be bad. I know some get a bit sniffy about Oasis. I loved ’em. Saw them several times – Rose Bowl, Wembley, Reading – and always enjoyed it, as well as the seperate Liam, Beady Eye and Noel performances in the decades that followed. Liam at Glastonbury 2019 – faaantastic…. so on a Sunday morning down in the park this is a treat.

Toploader

On the menu for lunch…Toploader. I saw them during Lockdown at a socially distanced gig in Bournemouth’s Madding Crowd – some Toploader blog notes at this link. This time they have a crowd 25 times the size but less focused I guess.

Toploader – Dan Hipgrave on bass, Rob Green on drums

Joe Washbourn is centre stage and pleased to be amongst us. I wonder how long the relief to be playing normally will last: will it be allowed to last? I am seeing this as a current window to leap through and am under no illusions that the Covid thing is over.

As this is outdoors and local I had my better camera with me for this and, having featured Toploader recently in a blog, this piece is more a photo story.

Joe Washbourn – Toploader – Poole Harbour Festival

Of course they played ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’ which is clearly the moment the penny drops for many… ‘oh I do know them’ and the lunchtime dancing mums were off. It is a very heart warming moment to see a big crowd in the local park singing along and jigging about on a Sunday lunchtime.

A no encore festival set approach to keep the timings going but really enjoyable. Joe Washbourn mentioned that the pre-gig sandwiches were denied them due to ‘the bridge being up’ allowing the band to share in some regular local traffic frustration – the snacks must have been coming from Hamworthy – “do you lot only eat when the bridge is down”.

“I’ll have cheese and pickle on wholemeal”

Washbourn has a spell on acoustic guitar away from the keyboards which are at the core of the sound…and indeed the vision.

Dodgy

And so to Dodgy. I’ve never bought a ticket to see them and never bought any albums or singles by them but they have appeared at several festivals I’ve been at. With several hit singles they seem much more familar and a significant sound, which is perfect for the Summer festival…even with a shower in their set.

Victorious Festival 2019 was a more recent performance I can pinpoint but I’d struggle to nail down which V, Reading or Phoenix Festival I watched them at.

Sunday lunchtime at Poole Harbour Festival

Although formed in Hounslow (1990) – something of a rarity as an origin label – main man Nigel Clark’s midlands origins (Worcestershire) are apparent from his engaging intra-song chat.

‘Free Peace Sweet’ is Dodgy’s big album, their third (1996), reaching number 7 in the UK album chart and it’s in there you find the hits: ‘If You’re Thinking of Me’; ‘Staying out for the Summer‘ and ‘Good Enough’.… which were brought out to enjoy at Poole’s Baiter Park.

One of the opening songs was another from that hit 1996 album: ‘In a Room’ and Nigel Clark pointed to the Lockdown relevance to the lyrics:

In a room there’s no other faces
I sit alone here let through the night
In a room, we’re slowly wasting
I don’t belong here, it don’t seem right
In a Room – Dodgy 1996

Clark, like all of us, is pleased to be out. Mid-set and with a warm reception he commented “you look as though you’ve been doing this for years”. Many of us have… decades in fact.

A happy feel to ‘Staying out for the Summer’ despite the clouds and let’s hope we all are. If we can make Victorious Festival without some further Covid shackles that will be a start.

A relaxed afternoon with three bands so overtly pleased to be there and entertaining us again. I’d say the best Poole Festival set up to date so here’s hoping for next year. Good to see some known original names in the line up this year – today anyway – to go with the local acts and trubute bands.

Staying out for the Summer …. hopefully: Nigel Clark, Dodgy

We’d had the best of the day and seeing the dark clouds above and a bag of empty cider cans under my camping chair, headed home before the Queen tribute act, the last band of the festival.

The Spitfires Return to Normality

The Spitfires 22.7.21 The Holroyd Arms, Guildford

Making hay while the sun shines – not literally unfortunately – with my second gig in two days. Don’t know where we are going Covid-wise so just getting out there. In hindsight, this update being a week after the event, two gigs with a trip up to Guildford thrown in might have been ambitious given I had a cellulitis infection in one leg from insect bites. A gig propped on one leg and limping about took it’s toll this week. Groan.

On The Stranglers trail to Guildford

We had the day off and for ages I’ve been meaning to visit some of the old haunts of The Stranglers, once The Guildford Stranglers. We headed for Chiddingfold.

South of Guildford, the picturesque village of Chiddingfold was a place The Stranglers lived and rehearsed for a while. The Crown Inn, just by the large village green and over the main road from a lily pond is a very historic – 14th Century origins – beauty of a pub. A watering hole frequented by the band while at their pad – a house rented by drummer Jet Black up Coxcombe Lane – a few hundred yards away. We took a wander to have a look – all very up market these days.

The old Stranglers’ house and rehearsal pad – Coxcombe Lane

Apparently one of the early suggestions thrown around for The Stranglers band name was The Chiddingfold Stranglers.

This was enough for me, as a life-long Stranglers fan, to arrange a very pleasant lunch stop around this unassuming village. Pretty smart place these days with some good beer, including a Sierra Nevada California IPA – I was being driven by wife Sally due to my leg ailment.

The pub clearly don’t value their rock history in quite the way I do, preferring to focus on royal visitors from 600 years beforehand. There is an old Sudan Chair in the lobby but no Jet Black drum stick or Hugh Cornwell guitar.

Genesis were another band that frequented the pub when they were using The Farm studio they had built nearby in the early 1980s. Also it’s said to be the place where they agreed Phil Collins would take a break from the band…which lasted quite a while. Guitarist Mike Rutherford even recorded a video for Mike and The Mechanics 1995 single ‘Over My Shoulder‘ on and around the village green.

My plan was to seek out some more Stranglers haunts such as The Star Inn in Guildford where they played in their very early days. This will have to wait. Today was not the day due to rain and leg pain. I have some tickets for Guildford next year on what will be the last and Covid delayed full tour by The Stranglers, alas now without the lost and loved Dave Greenfield on keyboards.

Return to The Holroyd Arms

The night’s gig was a return to this gigcentric pub on the edge of Guildford: The Holroyd Arms aka The Sound of the Suburbs. My first visit to this place was for The Spitfires Covid dodging seated and spaced gig in a tent in the garden last Summer. My blog details this last one along with background on The Spitfires, one of my favourite bands of recent years.

We arrived for a drink in the garden, once wristbands had been applied. The garden was a sea of familar names: Ben Sherman, Lambretta, Fred Perry and Gabicci and some half familar faces from the last gig, including a guy whose top intrigued me last time and led me to some Modfather on-line lockdown shopping….not that this is a fashion show.

Yes plenty of grey haired gig goers here this evening. Looking around, despite the recent addition of Gabby Kenny on keyboards, this is predominantly ‘boys noise’ territory.

Inside, unlike the previous tented gig here, is a small low ceiling stage area – so low there is padding on the main beam across the stage to prevent band head injuries.

Beyond the stage area is a more conventional pub space with the addition of tv screens for an alternative sound and visual experience, and you can watch while queueing for the bar. I’m happy – Beavertown Neck Oil and London Pride on draught. I guess the whole place must hold about 200 people max.

First Up: Samuel Rodgers

Sammy Rodgers from Kinghurst, Birmingham was the support. Him, his guitar and a bassist for company. I enjoyed his modster sound – bit of a Weller and Liam Gallagher thing going on. A short insight but enough to raise interest. Had a chat afterwards, always inquisitive about a Brummie on tour, and sounds like your more likely to catch him around the West Midlands. generally. (He managed to nudge half my pint down my Fred Perry but a good lad 🙄)

Spitfires tonight

This was the last but one gig for drummer Matt Johnson. With the relatively new addition of a keyboard player Gabby Kenny to the band, that’s a fair bit of change. The brass players are out on tour again and on certain songs this adds massively to the raw guitars and drums, even with the added keyboards.

The first few songs are from the 2020 Lockdown release ‘Life Worth Living’. It must be so frustrating releasing and album and not touring it properly. The album makes up about a third of the set, ‘Tear this place right down’ being a favourite of mine later on.

Some crackers from the ‘Year Zero’ album: the title track, ‘Remains the Same’ and the brilliant ‘New Age’.

Low ceiling with the low low stage beam – The Spitfires

This was good old fashioned dark ‘n’ dirty gig in a great little pub venue. Pretty hopeless to take photos but hey ho. Perfect punk band venue these days by the look of it, and the posters, and in this case some punchy mod style rock. It did really feel like post-Covid normality. Not a mask to be seen and everyone was enjoying it….around the main bar and stage area. I’d love to live down the road from a venue like this, maybe not next door to it mind.

Billy Sullivan is whirling around giving his guitars a hammering with that brash, early Jam, Weller style and managing to dodge ceiling head injuries, between upright and steady bassist Sam Long keeping the rhythm to his left and Gabby up front on keyboards to his right, while the soon to depart drummer sets the pace at the back – he just said ‘his contract was up’ on social media. I wasn’t hearing the keyboards that clearly – a larger venue may bring them to life more.

As a break near the end of the set Billy Sullivan did a solo of ‘4am’ from the 2015 first album ‘Response’.

Three more to finish, including ‘Over and Over Again’ (have listen to the official version on YouTube), after the solo piece and the return to small gig normality is done.

Another thoroughly enjoyable Spitfires gig. See you again soon …with a new drummer. I wonder if someone has been lined up 🤔

Alice in a Sweaty Wonderland

Wolf Alice 22.7.21 at O2 Academy, Bournemouth

Back again to a normal gig. The first ‘make up your own rules’ gig for me since Lockdown, and this happened to be the place I last went to a ‘normal’ pre-Lockdown gig, that night to see Blossoms. (Blossoms blog here.)

Back in March 2020 we were nervous but had no idea was was coming in the full 15 months of varying restrictions that have followed. So much dirty water under miserable bridges since. We’ve kept it going with sit down, spaced out gigs, local bands playing outside and live streams but this, tonight, was what was missing.

A few days before I got an email setting out some entry rules: proof of double jab; recent lateral flow test pass or some other comfirmed exemption from that. It showed willing but it would be easy to fabricate I guess. The only rules left are basic routine health and safety risk assessment and a miriad of govt guidance to have a think about.

As we walked in to the main street through Boscombe centre, where the O2 Academy is, we saw the huge queue snaking down and round the end of the shopping area as punters waited patiently to share their medical credentials for entry. The O2 phone account priority entry is worth remembering if with O2. Show your App signed in and you can just wander in jumping the whole queue which felt like cheating.

I was angling for the middle balcony standing area to just keep a little bit out of the main potential infection risk area. When we got in though we saw that the top balcony – The Gods – was open and went for the wide back row of the three up there. Surprisingly good view as the venue is not large but it’s often shut.

The ground floor was already bouncing. I wasn’t aware of who the support act was and I think it was a ‘DJ set’, just some decent tracks playing that most of the ground floor were singing along to with huge enthusiasm – Valerie, Amy Winehouse; One Way or Another, Blondie; Pulp and many more. Stifling heat made it a sweaty start. This build up was quite euphoric – out out at last. A bit of mask wearing round about and at the bars and the odd bottle of hand gel but this was a ‘trust in the vaccination’ night out. Brilliant atmosphere. Really quite special and we hadn’t really started.

Wolf Alice

I bought these tickets quite recently, just a few months ago, when their tour info popped up on my phone – not many acts were risking July dates unless already booked and postponed to new dates. I’d been playing the new album – ‘Blue Weekend’ – but didn’t know their stuff that well. I saw them support Foo Fighters at West Ham United..The London Arena in Summer 2018 (26 June), captured here by someone on You Tube who was there. Having vowed to see them again they took a bit of a break and then it was Covid time so it’s no wonder their return is so enthusiastically awaited. It’s two years since Wolf Alice played a ‘normal’ gig.

Wolf Alice formed in London in 2010 with the core being Ellie Rowsell with Joff Oddie on guitar, a few years later adding Theo Ellis on bass and Joel Amey on drums. This was the band tonight with the addition of a keyboard player for the tour. (My pics aren’t the best but I was up in The Gods.)

Joff Oddie – guitar/ vocals – O2 Bournemouth

Ellie Rowsell – vocals/ guitar – O2 Bournemouth

After a few singles in 2013 they released debut album ‘Love is Cool’ in June 2015. This, along with their two other albums, was listed for the Mercury Prize but it was the second album ‘Visions of Life’ that won that prize in 2018, after its 2017 release.

‘Beautifully Unconventional’ is my pick off that one, here performed in the Radio 1 Live Lounge.

Tonight’s Wolf Alice set

By 8.45pm the singing, sweating crowd were at bursting point and on came Wolf Alice. Relief and euphoria. They started with ‘Smile’ from the new album, one of eight tracks taken from the new album – ‘Blue Weekend’ – some of these never having been performed live before. No I wouldn’t have known this but there is enough intense interest in this band to guarantee a well scrutinised and updated set list on-line within hours.

The crowd was as bouncy and mobile as I can remember at the O2 here in Boscombe, spurred on by the early appearence of ‘Beautifully Unconventional’ and ‘Formidable Cool’ in the set. Mosh pits opened up all over the place – these vaccines better be good. I was happy to watch from above tonight with the near aerial view…not ideal for my pocket zoom pics mind.

The Gods – three rows of seats on the top balcony

Barely any chat between songs beyond a whoop here and there and smiling appreciative faces at this frenzy. It might have been two years since the last proper show but no one had forgotten them.

They do have a really good mix of material with the wild and more aggressive bits further fuelling the mobile pockets of moshing. Atmosphere was dripping down the walls.

You get the drift from this phone clip from above – this was one from the latest album: ‘Play the Greatest Hits’. (My phone clip on YouTube)

I can hear bits of Siouxsie in there at times on the punchy ones or Liz Fraser, Cocteau Twins on the quieter ones. I imagine quite a cross over with a Florence and the Machine audience. Hard to guage trend mind as most were dressed for the beach.

Not a particularly long set but an intense hour and a quarter before they finish with the title track from their last album, ‘Visions of Life’ before one more as an encore from the latest one ‘Last Man on Earth’.

A brilliant performance in front of a brilliant and very sweaty audience. Even The Guardian reviewer must have enjoyed it and could feel the heat – Guardian review.

Home for a Lateral Flow Test. 😁

Basement Blues: keeping it local… again

Andy Grant Band 8.7.21 at the Four Horsemen, Bournemouth

With England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 having secured a place in the Euros final last night, it’s off to Bournemouth to a gig venue I’ve not been to before: The Four Horsemen in the Triangle area of central Bournemouth.

Tonight it’s a chance to catch up with another Lockdown livestream regular for me – Andy Grant, tonight in the Andy Grant Band format as opposed to solo. This fantastic blues – rock guitarist is the voice as well, with the smiling drummer Jack Revy and Simon Rashbrook on bass guitar, band based up the road in Dorchester.

Andy Grant Band site link gives a more comprehensive and self- descriptive overview.

Pre-Lockdown I’d not heard any of Andy Grant’s music but earlier this year we became regulars on the Facebook sessions Andy put on and with the more ocassional full band sessions. As part of our appreciation for these streams, that relieved the live music silence, we started aquiring CDs mailed from Dorchester HQ, in lieu of the virtual tip bucket – ‘Champagne on a Beer Budget’, the instrumental ‘Spirals’ and the most recent and very much the best for me ‘Dig the Darkness’.

So here we are at a new to me venue. Arrived a bit early and the ground floor pub bit was full, easy done in these controlled and spaced out times. The gig room wasn’t ready to open up yet so we had a wander around the closed café, tattoo parlour and barber shop filled block to find the pleasant and empty Tipsy Cow for a beer – one worth remembering – small café bar, with cocktails and mocktails.

Back to The Four Horsemen then and after some email rummaging and attachment downloading we’re in.

Big range of beer taps, fridge bulging with craft ales and food available. Huge front windows allow the place to be opened right up – Professor Chris Whitty would approve of the ventilation.😷

I was intrigued as to what the 90s reference on the pub sign was. A trip upstairs to the gents and I get the idea: lots of film references like posters and photos; a large Keith Flint mural; video casings and outer cases used to decorate and a large music cassette mural on one wall downstairs.

Keith Flint remembered – on each gents visit

It would be such a shame to miss out on the trip up to the toilets. Some ‘of the moment’ Covid humour and a gig calendar to browse – I see Poole punk band The Mistakes are here in August. I’m busy but I’ve put it on ‘the subs bench’ just in case.

The gents – Four Horsemen – sign of the times

Yeah..I know….a bit of caution taking photos in a public toilet eh…watch the door and watch your aim when checking out that gig calendar.😎

And on down to the basement for the gig with a pint of Tiny Rebel Electric Boogaloo from the tap.

Cosy. I guess it would normally hold about 75 at a push so good place for small bands, in fact the stage area at one end would have trouble accomodating more than literally a small band. Tonight we are seated in small rows in the sell out crowd of 22! 😷😯

This place is conducive to the music though – the dark basement. I could almost imagine being in an early Rolling Stones gig.

Great sound level – just enough to drown out the three cackling women at the back (I just dispair at some people) and with just three instruments you can listen to the component parts so clearly – hard to take my eyes off the drumming at times with a top draw, yet casual, solo when Jack is introduced, in classic meet the band style later in the set.

A two part set. In the first bit was ‘Thursday’s Child’, the obvious pick of the most recent release ‘Dig the Darkness’. If you’re curious then pile in with this one and you’ll know pretty quickly if it’s your thing or not. YouTube link: Thursday’s Child.

Two of note from the ‘Champagne on a Beer Budget’ album in the first part of the set were ‘Miss Particular’ and, just before half-time, ‘Need’. Great stuff.

A chance for a peanut butter stout at the break – from the well stocked fridge – and see if the mention of a dog called Maggie…I think.. in the audience was true….it was. A black Spaniel with dashing eye lashes (extraordinarily large lashes – maybe glammed up for tonight) was down the front with mini-merch stand mum. This is quite normal apparently.

In the second section were two belters from ‘Dig the Darkness’: ‘Driving West’ and ‘The Healer’. There’s a pretty special video of ‘Driving West’ that you can find here.

A good night out, with real live sounds and great guitar as we venture gingerly out. One of those local bands I can’t believe are not more popular.

Before we left, another CD purchased, an older one: ‘Hope in the Sky’ from 2008.

So good to see artists who have kept us going in the nonsense. Keep it live. Rock on. 😎

They think it’s all over… it’s not yet.

I really thought we were within touching distance of the Covid curtain going up. As I tapped away with this, my latest grey haired gig goer excursion was axed as a message came through that our trip to London to see Sleeper on Saturday night was cancelled. Six hours notice. One of the band had tested Covid positive with symptoms. What can you do?

As long as the social distancing is required and cases rise, without being a threat to life, there is a growing risk of more postponements and cancellation stuff. I’ll still be dodging the advanced rail tickets and non-cancellable hotel options for now.

Bring on the 17 July.

Keeping it Local: it’s com-ing home 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Live and Unheard. Lighthouse, Poole. 3.7.21

More..more..yes back again for more Live and Unheard at Poole’s Lighthouse arts centre. Always a good place to hear some new local artists as Previous Live and Unheard blogs have pointed to.

Today’s feast has been squeezed a bit to make way for the England v Ukraine Euros quarter final ⚽️. Two of the three acts for the evening session here in the outdoor theatre have been incorporated into the afternoon ‘bit on the side’ session, to give six acts from 1pm… a great gig goer’s build up to the England game later…and all for a tenner.

Six bands and pretty much all original material…a few covers crept in but limited. Around 65 people in the bring your own camping chair or picnic blanket arrangement. Normally the Live and Unheard sessions would hold about 80 in the indoor Sherling Studio within the Lighthouse building. People like the banks of the outdoor theatre with a bit of tree cover, and with a wind and threat of rain today.. no actual rain today after the music started.

They are watching from the bank behind, honest.

These events throw up some amazing local talent. I’ve become a regular and while not every band in the pot pourri is necessarily your cup of tea, the quality is reliable.

Will any of these make it big? Will I like any of them? It’s not all about what I like I know but this is from a personal perspective. My favourites of the six this afternoon are the first and last – Carley Varley, who kicked it all off and Lee Rasdall Dove, who rounded it all off.

Carley Varley. Very Taylor Swift in folk mode. Impressed. The line is ‘yes it really is her name’. Apparently her parents had a sense of humour. A selection of singles and EPs on Spotify to listen to…and a bit of YouTube: Honest Conflict – a song she played second in her set. You’ll recognise the jumper.

Carley is getting married this week – I doubt she’ll change that unforgettable surname as she’s got it known locally.

Other songs from her set that can be found on Spotify are ‘Dirty Laundry’, ‘Going Under’ and ‘Since you Left’. Also in the set is her next release ‘Miss Me?’ before she finished with a Whitney Houston cover, ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’.

My runner up, or is it runners up as he’s playing with a full band today, is Lee Rasdall-Dove.

From Bournemouth and just 21 years old, playing for the first time with this band which add a great guitar, bass and drums to go with his acoustic guitar and central feature…Lee’s voice. Remind me a bit of Blossoms, with light pop rock and slight folky.

With these Live and Unheard sessions there is that wondering if anyone will break through into something big. This guy has a chance surely. Give him a spin: YouTube Lee Rasdall-Dove

By the time they were on people had started to shuffle off home or wherever to watch England beat the Ukraine by a very convicing four goals to nil 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿. Another performer to look out for on the local circuit.

I’d like to thank you all for coming- goodnight!

In between my winners for the day were four other acts that all entertained. A lovely afternoon.

Jazz Wrann and the Ruby Welts threw in more covers than the others – great rock ‘n’ roll voice. From Southampton. Their double bassist was otherwise engaged but the beat box and two acoustic guitars did the job.

There was a Levellers’ song in there, Cure’s ‘Love Cats’, ‘Jolene’, and wow.. ‘Chocolate Jesus’ by Tom Waits. The covers do make it easier eh.

Two loop guitarists played – if that’s what we call them – both solo artists and clear illustrations of how much one person can do on stage with a loop pedal, guitar and and some immaculate timing. I saw Ed Sheeran take this loop stuff to the limits at Glastonbury 2017 and left before he finished so I maybe I’m not the best person to offer any assessment.

Marco Di Gaetano, from Ringwood and the probably more experienced Tim Somerfield who added some humour and more punch. Tim was selling his CDs ‘for anyone who still uses them in the car’ 😁 and looking to do a deal on his t-shirts between his loop guitar funky stuff.

Also today Plastic Jeezus. What are you going to get with a name like that? A surprise. Uke and bass duo with some humorous ditties that make you listen carefully. ‘Patchwork Covers’ was a clever knitting together of a bagful of stolen hits and lyrics. I’m thinking Victoria Wood meet Chas ‘n’ Dave with essence of Two Ronnies at times.

Never disappointed by these Live and Unheard events. The outside arena gives another Step 3 option. Not long now. Two more constrained, seated, distanced gigs for me before we escape… for a bit anyway. Grateful for all the Lockdown Live and Unheards.

Keep it live! 😷😎

Forest Folk – A Man They Couldn’t Hang

Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers at North Boarhunt Social Club, Hampshire 21.6.2021

This was a special Monday night trip into the unknown….the wilds of …well I didn’t know where…but what I did know was that I wanted to catch Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers on his return to the stage for the first time since Covid was unleashed on us.

North Boarhunt? I had no idea…but we found it OK. Down the M27 motorway towards Portsmouth and off left somewhere. Tickets bought by sending a cheque – had to ring the bank to check if my chequebook was still valid. Excellent.. all worked and tickets arrived. Just 30 tickets available for each of two performances on the same day. 8pm for us.

My first tickets obtained by posting a cheque for decades

Why my keeness? I like The Men They Couldn’t Hang yes….but in Lockdown Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers emerged as one of my Lockdown heroes.

Those months of boredom and Covid nausea were given a musical boost by Swill’s Sundays night sessions – free on Facebook – a relaxed homely feel – and for me and many others these became a regular Sunday night fixture. Not just a relief to find some virtual live performances but it relit my Men They Couldn’t Hang interest.

Swill’s Sunday Sessions were made available on CD subsequently

During Lockdown I was also watching the sessions by (Stefan) Cush from the Men They Couldn’t Hang (TMTCH)…Thursday evenings after the NHS clap….they stopped after a several months and then one day there was the awful news that Cush was dead.

Stefan Cush was 60. A shocker. This tribute published by Louder Than War was fitting. https://louderthanwar.com/we-pay-tribute-to-stefan-cush-effervescent-front-man-of-the-men-they-couldnt-hang/

It felt personal although it wasn’t. When we grow up with certain bands that are a backdrop to aspects of our lives it’s like that, especially when they are or were one of ‘your bands’.

In 2018 I bumped into Cush at Glasgow Airport one Sunday afternoon, while flights were delayed for hours, after TMTCH played King Tuts. I’d been to another gig (Slow Readers Club). He said ‘don’t I know you’ and we had a chat. The previous time I’d met him was in the gents in The Crown Inn in Digbeth, Birmingham before a gig at the Civic Hall/ Irish Centre I thought…I can’t find any evidence of this gig.

Stefan Cush RIP
CD released to raise money for his family

TMTCH were an important part of my tunes in the late 80s…not even particularly seeing them live at that point but just the early albums at that time which I savoured… often with my mate Sean in Weston-super-Mare in our room while on training courses…and anywhere we could find a juke box.

The TMTCH boomed alongside The Pogues’ popularity and brought their lively brand of folk to a post-punky scene. Their cover of Green Fields of France was a huge fave for John Peel listeners and was Festive 50 No.3 in 1984 and Ironmasters No.11 the following year.

YouTube clip: Cambridge Folk Festival, Green Fields of France

I’m a bit rusty on early TMTCH detail but first gig I saw I’m sure, was in 1985 at Battersea Park as part of a series of GLC ‘free’ festivals: this one ‘Jobs for Change’. There were some festivals and the Birmingham gig which I can’t really be sure about and I must check back on but it was more listening to their records than gig activity for me at that time.

I found an old ticket for one at Goldwyns in Birmingham but that’s the only one I still have.

In more recent years a group of us were gigs at Winchester Civic Hall (Oct 2016, including some old Weston buddies) and then Joiners, Southampton (Nov 2017) .

Also a night at The Brook sticks in the mind for a ‘Two Men They Couldn’t Hang’ gig.. Swill and Cush. Cush was reluctant to come off stage after numerous encores and a boozy night: so much so he was virtually dragged off the stage before the place had to close.

So I wanted to be in North Boarhunt Social Club on a wet Monday, on the longest day of the year. TMTCH face mask at the ready and Swill Sunday Sessions t-shirt on.

Forest Folk: North Boarhunt Social Club

It’s show time. Stage is set. Stage door left.

As with Kirk Brandon earlier in June, and a few more things lined up in the Lockdown ‘bonus’🙄 of July, this is something of a unique opportunity. Seeing a performance in secret gig like surroundings. A small community hall with an audience of 30 seated, carefully spaced at a selection of tables. I’ve never been to a whist drive but I imagine this is how the room would be set up.

With it being part of a regular folk night – Forest Folk’s first of 2021 – you get that added benefit of a hushed and appreciative audience. It’s different but it works for a man with a voice like Swill and guitar. We later hear that this was the fourth time Swill had played here – I presume from having that affinity with the area when his parents moved down here with him way back.

No wandering with a camera, so trying to be discreet I took a few pics zoomed from our table top.

Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers live

Phil Odgers – Forest Folk night at North Boarhunt Social Club

The day’s two performances, one in the afternoon and this 8pm start, were Swill’s first outings since before Lockdown and the first since the loss of fellow TMTCH frontman and co-songwriter Cush.

On with the first few songs, including Dusty Fields from the 2013 Odgers album The Godforsaken Voyage, which stirred me enough to buy it from the merch stand in the interval – yes there was a merch stand. Some normality returns.

Sound was really good. Clear and strong in the otherwise silenced room, which enabled more focus on the lyrics and the emotion of it all. A slight distraction as one of the lights near us smouldered a bit and popped just when I thought I’d raise the alarm.

Phil is a good between song talker which is why the virtual Sunday Sessions were so appealing and it was clearly hard to introduce songs without slipping to a Cush reference, which he was saving to confront properly later.

So much material to choose a set from: TMTCH, solo material and some covers – in the first half including Gordon Lightfoot’s ‘Early Morning Rain’. Swill said he was taking the opportunity to air some lesser known TMTCH material…which I looked up later.

Songs prompted his recollections including of an MTCH tour of Egypt, funded by the British Council to spread the word on British culture. ‘Mist on the Water’ (from Swills last studio solo album Roll to the Left) written by Swill remembering sneaking onto boats on The Hamble for the night, in his youth.

Today’s two performances totalled 3½ hours I read later, each with an interval – time for a few ales from the well stocked bar – some nice bottles including an Old Thumper. (This social club bar looks like a community lifeline, especially in times like these – no pubs I could see in the immediate area.) I was in the bar queue with Swill so was able to have a masked chat.

After the break a song to fuel my fridge magnet interest: Brooklyn Bridge, a Swill adaptation of a Joe Solo poem about dementia. Bandcamp demo.

Phil talked more about Cush and the huge loss as we went on, sharing the emotion – ‘like losing a brother, worse even’, he reflected. 30 odd years of writing, playing, touring and hanging about together is over. He played ‘Salutations’ in particular for Cush near the end but the one that hit me was ‘Heartbreak Park’, from Devil on the Wind (2009). You know that feeling when your eye sockets ache and you feel like balling your eyes out.

The title track from that album and Mrs Avery both featured in the second half. Mrs Avery is written as a sequel to Dr Hook’s ‘Sylvia’s Mother’, which didn’t meet their approval sufficiently enough to get their involvement apparently. I’ll have to play them through consecutively sometime.

With the TMTCH old favourites in mind I was pleased to feed my Isle of Wight fixation when the brilliant ‘Islands in the Rain’ appeared. I recently picked it up on 12 inch single from a local second hand record shop. YouTube version.

I’ll take a journey through the town to dock gate one
and there I’ll take a ferry boat; That ferry sails across the Solent waters deep
to an island like a castle with a moat…
…I’ll leave the empty shores of Hythe and Netley Bay; The smoke of Fawley will soon fade…
Islands in the Rain MTCH

Ironmasters was as punchy and stirring as ever, and to finish, perhaps inevitably, the single the started it all: Green Fields of France.

A special evening. Thank you Swill and Forest Folk. Emotional.

Next gig for Swill is Water Rats in London, with a bit of late distancing arrangements required as the Lockdown lift is delayed.

Bath time for Kirk

Kirk Brandon at Chapel Arts Centre, Bath 4.6.21

Chapel Arts Centre – a much awaited and much rearranged Kirk gig

We finally made it to Bath. This solo Kirk Brandon gig was booked for 13 November 2020 originally. I bought tickets in the desperate search for a live gig that would likely go ahead. A socially distanced and seated arrangement that was still thwarted by restrictions and rearranged several times until we were finally able to stick on June.

With the Covid caution continuing it really was a believe it when you see it gig but that didn’t stop us – wife Sally with me on this one – booking a week’s holiday around Somerset all based on this gig. It worked. The final anxiety came as the thermometer gun was pointed at my forehead on entry to the Arts Centre, on hot Summer’s evening…I passed, we both passed…we were in. Tense moments.

Royal Bath

I hadn’t been to Bath for about 25 years and had never seen a gig there. Not sure it crops up on the main or secondary tour circuits, given its proximity to gig-rich Bristol. A great place to visit if a gig does crop up, once you’ve found a parking space.

A wide array of bars, pubs and restaurants obviously – many smart ones. I’d recommend The Raven for the more traditional pub feel , complete with two bespoke Raven ales and The Stranglers’ Raven album framed on the stairway wall. Without booking places, it being Friday night, we were a bit restricted and committed the schoolboy error of failing to eat before a night out on the pop. We should have had a pie in the Raven – they’re renoun for them I’m told.

Doing a JJ outside The Raven – one for Stranglers fans

One pub that looked interesting but a bit out of the way was the Bell Inn on Walcot Street, on the edge of the City Centre. We wandered up there the following night but it was brimming over – Peter Gabriel and Robert Plant have had something to do with raising money to keep it open….another time perhaps.

Chapel Arts Centre

In the heart of the old city, the Chapel Arts Centre used to be known as the Central Club and Window Arts Centre, and the Invention Studios, and normally has a 200 capacity standing, 150 seating or 105 with the exotic sounding caberet style seating which we had for this gig – with the little round tables. With anti-social distancing this brought the capacity down to 48 people. The gig sold out and Kirk added an extra night on the Thursday which sold out also.

To ward off the virus we were treated to the usual ‘masks unless seated’ arrangement along with track and trace and ventilation to go with the distancing – it’s getting tiresome isn’t it, especially having been double jabbed. However, the bonus was we could walk up to the bar and buy a drink (!) – worth the ticket price alone surely. And some decent local beers at the bar, bottled.

A rare Covid walk up to a bar scenario – I made the most of it – we were on holiday after all

The rare opportunity to actually walk up to the bar for a beer was explained carefully on the Arts Centre website, quoting the Bath & North East Somerset Council licensing officer – as it is considered a concert hall and not a pub then as a ticketed event we were free from the shackles of having waited table service. A double edged sword this given our lack of food. 🙄 (I wonder if I’ll find this excessive detail of interest in years to come.)

All very relaxed. Lovely place that have patiently rearranged and promptly communicated throughout the numerous changes brought on through the winter of discontent.

Kirk Brandon solo

I’ve seen Kirk’s Theatre of Hate and Spear of Destiny many times, way back when (ToH at Hammersmith Palais takes some beating) and in recent years, covered in My Kirk Brandon Years blog, this was only my second solo Kirk gig – well there was a cello accompaniment at the first at Winchester Railway about 10 years ago.

(My last Spear of Destiny outing at 1865, Southampton)

A great idea these shows in these viral times. It suits a seated lower capacity event when everyone’s struggling for ideas about how to legally enjoy some live music.

Kirk has been one of my Lockdown legends: releasing weekly Monday night videos of old Spear of Destiny and Theatre of Hate gigs, free on Facebook mainly, for long periods over Lockdown/up. Mondays for me, and many others in Kirk’s loyal legion, became Kirk night from 9 til 10pm and then I would listen to Teenage Kicks on Forest FM to round off the night. These were the sort of things that kept me going…I say were, let’s hope this nonsense is over soon 😷

There were also a couple of great paid Kirk solo livestreams from a proper venue and really well produced. A brave move the solo gig: a recorded live session is one thing but touring solo when you’ve been fronting bands live for decades is another level….and it worked for Kirk.

The sound was tops and what a great voice, accompanied by his guitars. It was pure Kirk – no support and a two part set plucking songs from through the decades.

Harlan County was one I noted as a fave from the first half. I particularly enjoyed Grapes of Wrath and Love is a Ghost from the second half and. A great selection.

Second half set list – Kirk Brandon – Bath, Chapel Arts Centre

A track I’m less familiar with but have been playing a lot since the gig is Judas . Pumpkin Man from the Outlands album is another classic. I only have that album on pre-recorded cassette – remember those? – so I’ve given that less of an airing from the earlier Spear of Destiny years. (During Lockdown/up I have retreived a cassette playing device from the shed. What a novelty. I notice some bands are starting to release new stuff on cassette: Gary Numan and Maximo Park for example. Not sure where we are going with that….maybe a re-release of Bow Wow Wow’s cassette single C30,C60,C90 …I keep looking for an original one.)

(One of the reasons I started recording some notes from the gigs I go to was to park photos in some context. I’m usually armed with my Panasonic pocket zoom and a mobile phone and only include my own snaps. Obviously at the Covid restricted seated events you can’t wander about and get the best light. This place was good though. The lighting was sympathetic, good view – even enough to check the turnup size on Kirk’s jeans – got to keep an eye on the fashions – and no bobbing heads and jostling so some benefits eh.)

A live gig in the Covid era – now there’s a turn-up.

Yup, really enjoyed this…and after such a wait it was worth it. This was making the best of the black cloud of Covid. An opportunity for these more up-close and personal gigs and I appreciate that the limited capacities mean it’s not great for artists and venues so good on those having a go.

It’s not every gig that you get to have a chat with the artist in the gents before they go on stage, and then meet them afterwards👍Cheers Kirk. Nice one. Will catch up at a few Spear gigs later in the year….all being well. Jab up everyone.

Kirk Brandon and a grey haired gig goer post-gig, Bath

Next stop for me is to see another of my Lockdown legends: Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers from The Men They Couldn’t Hang, in another Covid busting setting.

Five Months of Silence is Over: Toploader play Bournemouth

Madding Crowd, Bournemouth 28.5.21

At last. A gig….after five months, five frustrating months of cancellations, postponements and gloom mongering. I know, I know, many people, notably performing artists, have waited much longer and have their livelihoods at stake with this virus induced hiatus – and there’s still some waiting to go – but I am so happy to have a night of near normal live music.

Back at The Madding Crowd, Bournemouth again where I last was in December. I’ve only been here in the Covid era so tonight feels normal. Yes everyone is seated and at spaced tables like a cocktail lounge but I don’t know any different. Not even any odd plastic shields and screens, just a bit of mask wearing and mic spray to remind us.

Came here a few times at the end of 2020 for The Hoosiers where I gave a bit more detail on the venue and location, and a Matt ‘X-Factor’ Cardle gig, and like tonight each with three mainly quite local up and coming acts.

Come to think of it I haven’t been on a bus for over six months so the £3.60 return fare on the M1 from Poole is a welcome novelty in itself.

Arrived enthusiastically early having misread the ticket email so didn’t miss anything. There had been a rock art promotion the night before and many of the pictures adorned the walls. Caution required not to let the ale flow and take an expensive credit card purchase home on the night bus later.

Mikey Ball

First on Mikey Ball. Pre-gig Googles bring up loads of Michael Ball stuff so I get the ‘Mikey’ bit. Described as Hampshire born, folk rock/ acoustic, singer songwriter, we got the rockier end delivered as a four piece with Mikey clearly a great guitarist frontman.

With our stage side table for two – here with my wife Sally tonight – there is a close up appreciation of the prep, stresses and anticipation of the support bands and we can have a word.

I’d look out for any of tonight’s support acts playing locally, particularly Mikey Ball with a band – enjoyed them all. At times sounded a bit Gaslight Anthem.

The confusing sea of wires, amps and pedals slowly clears through the evening, but not before some additional heavy duty amps from Bournemouth rockers Saints of Sin.

Saints of Sin

Surprised I haven’t bumped into this band before. They’ve been going since 2013. Classic rock and metal with the unmistakable look that exudes a good rock night out – I read that their last album includes a bit of hip hop.. really?

Quite a short set with three supports to pack in but time to include a crowd wander while playing and include their most played Spotify tracks I was listening to beforehand: ’21 Shots’ and ‘Heart Attack’.

Our stage proximity has me keeping an eye on the guitarist Sparkxx’s red wine which wobbles to the performance and is finally rescued when the tension of a wine shower gets too much…it would have been quite rock ‘n’ roll I guess.

More about them in this local Echo piece. Cheers guys.

The stage side setting continues to bring new perspectives as we wait for Fredrik Ferrier to take the stage.

There’s also the chance to catch up on hip footwear in the band world 😁

How rock n roll are those Converse boots worn by Saints of Sin front man

Fredrik Ferrier was in Made in Chelsea which isn’t something I would go anywhere near but my mum and sister were quite animated when I mentioned this. Expecting to be repelled I thought his brief and much shortened performance was top notch even if not my bag exactly. This maybe his first proper gig: I may have misheard. I’m sure he’ll succeed. Clearly talented and will get the airing from his Chelsea thing.

Time was not on his side and only three or four songs possible. This was clear given the set lists we gathered from our roadies’ eye view. We have sat here before. I like this table.

Toploader

Here we are then. Toploader’s first gig in 18 months and one to kick start, all being well, this big tour to commemorate 20 years of their first album ‘Onka’s Big Moka’ – released in Novemeber 1999 so a virus induced belated commemoration. The album reached number 5 in the charts selling 2 million copies, spending 6 months in the chart. I bought my copy 3 days ago in a second hand shop. Not exactly a hard core fan eh but this was a local opportunity not to be missed.

I’ve been listening to this first album and moreso ‘Magic Hotel’, their second, on Spotify though and who doesn’t know ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’. Easy listening pop rock. My anthem should be one of my favoured tracks ‘Achilles Heel’ – my Achilles Heel is my Achilles heel which has hampered the odd gig or three – and ‘Just About Living’ is another fave. Both of these from Onka.

‘Achilles Heel’ performed live on TFI back in 1999.

But ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’ was monster big. THE most downloaded 1999 track by anyone, this single being released in Feb 2000 and re-released in the November went triple platinum. Tonight’s version did it full justice – a classic to hear live in these up-close surroundings: maybe 100 people watching.

The originals from the early line up of the band from Eastbourne are Joe Washbourn, lead vocals and keyboards and Rob Green on drums and they are playing as a four piece. Not sure I’d recognise Joe from pics I’d seen but I think I could do a go of that haircut.🤔

Rob Green – Toploader – Madding Crowd, Bournemouth

Band are really together and looks like they are all set for a string of festivals and the tour, including a local one at Poole Harbour headlining, accompanied by a string of humourously named – as usual – tribute bands (Including The Fillers and Stereoironics). Not sure if I can fit that one in but will try. Being outside maybe a better shout of it being on. I’d like the chance to see this performance in front of a big, standing crowd.

Joe Washbourn – Toploader – Bournemouth Madding Crowd

Quite a diverse set given the focus on the first album on the tour promo material, including The Waterboys’ ‘Whole of the Moon’ and rounding off with the first track from Magic Hotel: ‘Time of my Life’. At least four I note being from the first album, which will really stick with me now.

The recently acquired bargain *Onka’s Big Moka*, now signed by Joe Washbourn

Set list – Toploader – Bournemouth 28.5.21

Thoroughly enjoyable night. Good to be back out to some sort of near normality and good luck Toploader for the tour. Let’s hope we’re out of this mess by the end of June.