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Saturday 19 April 2014

LostAlone, Verses and The First

LostAlone, Verses and The First
Sound Control, Manchester
April 14th, 2014

Tonight's show took me back to Sound Control in Manchester to see three bands that I have previously reviewed but as tonight's show was so good I thought I would give them a little more blog space.

First up were The First, who I originally encountered at Hey Hey Hey in Nottingham's Rock City last October.  These guys really impressed me that night and tonight it is safe to say that they were even better.

The First played tracks from both of their albums 'Swimming with Sharks' and 'Take Courage' and gave the audience an amazing start to the evening.  Their set included 'William', 'Shark Attack', 'There's No Place Like Home' and my personal favourite 'Kicks'.

These guys played a blinding set with enough energy and catchy guitar hooks to lift the spirits of even the most deflated soul.  These guys are a must see band for me and I can't wait for the next time I get to see them.



Next up were Verses from Brighton.  These are another band that never fail to impress me although I don't follow them as much as I should.  Verses played a fantastic upbeat and energetic set, picking up the lead from The First and paving the way for LostAlone.



Headliners LostAlone were on top form tonight!  We have followed these guys for a couple of years now, so when they announced a headline tour to promote their new album, 'Shapes Of Screams' it was a no brainer.
Starting with 'The Bells The Bells' they played a good mix of songs including 'Crusaders', 'Hostages', 'Scarlet Letter Rhymes' and 'G.U.I.L.T.Y.' from the new album and 'Creatures', 'Vesuvius', 'Do You Get What You Pray For' and (my favourite) 'Paradox On Earth' from previous albums.

Mid way through the set Steven announced that the next song would be 'Put Pain To Paper' and launched into playing when Alan subtly reminded him that the song wasn't on the set list......  but in true LostAlone style they played it anyway! 


I have seen LostAlone do some things that most bands never do, like when Steven sat in the middle of the crowd last year and played 'Orchestra Of Breathing' completely solo, and tonight was no different.  Steven spent most of the first song playing his guitar in the pit surrounded by fans and then during 'Love Will Eat You Alive' he had about 5 members of the audience up on stage to sing with him and the band.  LostAlone really are a band that seem to thrive on their fans interaction!

Finishing the show with 'Dooomageddon' LostAlone left us wondering how the time had gone so quickly.  



Tonight's show was honestly one of my favourite shows of the year so far! 





The Wildhearts, The Von Hertzen Brothers and Hey! Hello!

The Wildhearts, The Von Hertzen Brothers and Hey! Hello!
The Academy Manchester
April 10th, 2014

Tonight took us back to Manchester for the second half of my birthday present.  Tonight's show was another band that we have been following for years, The Wildhearts.

The night started with Hey! Hello! which is a side project for Ginger Wildheart.  Fronted by Victoria Liedtke and Ginger, they have a good old fashioned rock vibe to them.  Victoria is reminiscent of Debbie Harry in both her style and sound. 

Hey! Hello! have a real energy which gets the crowd going and even with the questionable dancing throughout the instrumental parts they were a brilliant start to the night.

Next up were the Von Hertzen Brothers from Helsinki who, on their Facebook page, describe themselves as three brothers and two others.

The Von Hertzen brothers delivered a hard rock set with some fantastic songs, including 'flowers and rust' and 'Coming Home'.

These guys are perfect for people who love great melodies with a good kick of guitar.

Before headliners The Wildhearts could even take to the stage the crowd was already singing their songs in anticipation so you can imagine the reaction when they did appear on stage.

The first half of the set included all the old crowd pleasing favourites such as 'Caffeine Bomb', 'TV Tan' and 'I Wanna Go Where The People Go', which whipped the crowd into a frenzy of singing and bouncing.

The second half of the show took a slightly different turn as Ginger asked if it was ok with the audience if they played some of the songs that they enjoyed rather than more crowd pleasers, which it turned out were just as pleasing to the crowd, and included 'Geordie In Wonderland', 'Junkenstein', 'Nita Nitro', '29 X The Pain' and 'My Baby Is A Headfuck'.


Just like Therapy? last week it is easy to see from tonight's performance how The Wildhearts are still loved and going strong after so many years in the business.  It was a brilliant birthday present and a good time was had by all. 





Tuesday 8 April 2014

20 Years of Troublegum

Therapy and Lonely The Brave
April 3rd, 2014
Academy 2 Manchester

When it was my birthday earlier in the year my little sister couldn't decide which tickets to get me as a present so she got me two sets, so tonight we went to Manchester to celebrate my birthday (a little late).  Over the next two weeks two bands that we have been listening to for a long time are touring and because my sister is indecisive tonight we are seeing the first one of them, Therapy? 

Supporting Therapy tonight are a band called Lonely the Brave, a five piece band from Cambridge.  These guys had a good old fashioned rock sound to them, very much in the same vain as the band they were supporting, however as much as I enjoyed them there were a couple of things that struck me as odd.

Firstly, the singer did not take centre stage, this place was filled by the lead guitarist, instead he stood off to the back of the stage by the drum kit.  He also never made eye contact with the audience during their set or spoke directly to the audience apart from a single word of thanks at the end of the set.

Although he had a fantastic strong voice his body language said the opposite.  Throughout the set he held onto the hem of his shirt with a clenched fist, letting go only to take a drink during the instrumental parts.  He also looked as though he had his eyes closed the entire time and never faced the audience directly, favouring standing sideways on to them throughout his time on stage, giving the impression that he was either extremely nervous or anxious about the whole performance.

Luckily, their music had the strength to redeem them of this distraction and they delivered a high energy full on rock set, before handing over to Belfast rockers Therapy?

Tonight's show was billed as the 20th anniversary of Troublegum, Therapy?'s 4th studio album, so as many bands do when the celebrate a milestone like this they played the Troublegum album in its entirety, treating us to favourites such as 'Stop It You're Killing Me', 'Nowhere', 'Isolation' and my personal favourite 'Die Laughing'.

After a short break Therapy? returned to the stage and announced that they would like to keep with the older songs for the night and had chosen a few songs from their early discs and EPs. Treating us to a selection of songs including 'Evil Elvis', 'Accelerator', 'Potato Junkie' and a cover of Judas Priests' 'Breaking the Law', they had the audience engaged and in the palm of their hand throughout the show.




The whole room had an amazing energy whether you were in the manic circle pits, crowd surfing or on the side lines bouncing along, you couldn't help but join in.

My only  fault with their set was that there was a lot of strobe lighting used but no warning signs for it anywhere in the venue.


After last night's performance it is easy to see why Therapy? are still going strong and still selling out venues after 25 years in the business. 





Radstock 2014

Yashin, Canterbury, Fearless Vampire Killers, LostAlone, Verses and Bentley Park
March 30th, 2014
Liverpool O2 Academy

Last year we decided to try the new one day music festival, Radstock, which was hosted by the O2 Academy in Liverpool and saw 24 bands across three stages.  It was a brilliant day and we were looking forward to this years following the announcement in October that Kids in Glass Houses, Funeral for a friend and Yashin would be on the set list.  Our excitement was to be short  lived.....

In February Kids in Glass Houses announced that they would be doing a final tour and then splitting up, which was quickly followed with an announcement from Radstock that Kids In Glass Houses had been pulled from the line up and that the festival would now be split across two shorter days, with only six bands appearing on each night. 

As there was only Funeral for a Friend that really held any pulling power for us on the Saturday night we decided to miss the Saturday show and just go for the Sunday.

I had seen all six of the bands on the bill before so I knew that we would be in for some good music but when we got there we found that it was in the small two tiered room and that each band would only be playing for half an hour each, with the exception of headliners Yashin who got 45 minutes.

Unfortunately, due to the amount of smoke and the lighting used in the small Academy room at Liverpool none of my photographs of the actual show are good enough to use, but I have included a few taken when I met some of the bands after the show.

Kicking off tonight were Bentley Park, from Manchester.  I saw these guys back in February when they supported White Clouds And Gunfire, and I wasn't over impressed with them, but tonight they did impress me.  Their performance seemed better rehearsed and a lot tighter than the last time I saw them.  If they continue the way they did tonight I think they will do well.

Next up were Verses, a band I saw supporting The Dangerous Summer last year.  I really enjoyed Verses the first time I saw them and I really enjoyed them again tonight.  Their music sounded great and they had a great presence on stage.  Although they are not a band I have paid too much attention to in the past, I am going to look see what material they have out there and invest in some.  These guys looked like they really enjoyed what they were doing which made us enjoy it more too.



Third band up are an old favourite of mine, Lostalone.  LostAlone used their Radstock set well by playing just the right amount of old songs to keep the fans happy ('Vesuvius', 'Creatures' and 'Do You Get What You Pray For') as well as showcasing a few songs from their new album 'Shapes Of Screams' which is released on April 6th, such as 'The Bells The Bells' and 'Scarlet Letter Rhymes'.  If the live songs are anything to go by then the new album will have been well worth waiting for.








Next up is another old favourite of mine, the Fearless Vampire Killers.  Kicking off with my favourite 'Bows Ties On Dead Guys', they got the girls (and boys) screaming and bouncing.  These guys really know how to put on a good show and never fail to disappoint.  Also taking the set as a good time to showcase new songs we were treated to 'Danger' from their album which will be out later in the year. Finishing with 'A War With The Thirst', they left the crowd on a real high.




Next were Canterbury.  I last saw these guys last April at the Deaf Institute in April and I will admit that they didn't really thrill me that night and I have to admit that of all the bands tonight these guys impressed me the least.  Don't get me wrong, they were good and had good melodies and lyrics, but they lacked a certain something.  Maybe if they had have been on the bill before LostAlone and Fearless Vampire Killers it may have been different but their less energetic set seemed a bit of an ante climax (although it did give us all a chance to recuperate before Yashin).

Last up were the Yashin, another band that never fails to impress.  Their blend of Kevin's screamo lyrics mixed with Harry's melodic singing are the perfect yin and yang.  These guys also treated us to some songs from their new album which is to be released later in the year as well as favourites such as 'Friends In High Places', 'Stand Up', 'Runaway Train' and 'New Year, New York'.  Yashin are a burst of energy and charisma, and whether Harry is climbing around the ledge that runs around the arches to the lower part of the room or hanging upside down from the lighting bar above the stage, there is never a dull moment when these guys are on the stage.



One thing that I love about the Radstock Festival is that the artists wander around the venue throughout the night and hang with fans or simply watch their friends perform. During the course of the show I got talk to Mark from LostAlone and found myself stood next to the lead singer of Canterbury at the bar.  After the show I got to chat to Alan Williamson from Lostalone, Drew, Kier and Laurence from FVK and Connor from the Yashin.


Radstock is a fangirl heaven and even though I wasn't a big fan of the change in the way it was presented over two days instead of one this year, I still had a brilliant time and would still go again next year.