Music I Want My Child To Listen To

So, I just encountered this meme for the first time and thought "Hell yeah! I wanna join in!" Music is where my heart has always been. I guess it's taken a bit of a backseat for a couple of years but I regret that and I'm hoping this will give me the incentive to get back into music. Recently I've been listening to some old favourites while I write, partly to help inspire my writing but also taking a trip down memory lane, following the recent photo storm among my old school friends on Facebook.

But I can't really start there, I have to go further back. Where did my love of music really take root? Easy, in the folk festivals my parents took me to as a small child. Most of the time spent at these folk festivals I was off playing with other kids, exploring and occasionally curled up asleep on, or sometimes even under a chair, while my parents watched the bands and artists perform. However, distraction and sleep both became impossible whenever Spirit of the West came on stage.

I remember the way the tiny platforms that formed a stage at some venues would shake under the thump of the bass drum and the weight of the lead singer jumping around. The whole floor would erupt with energy and enthusiasm, with otherwise stationery crowds leaping from their seats to dance to this high-energy band. Once, I even got sung to directly, having requested my favourite song (what band can't resist a cute 6 year old girl with pigtails who loves their music?!)

Spirit of the West are a Canadian folk band, who still occasionally do the rounds of folk festivals in North America. Their album Save This House still warrants the odd airing in my house now, twenty-odd years after it's release and the last time I saw them live.

Home For A Rest is one of my all time favourite songs, though obviously I didn't understand it as a child! Amid the frantic flute play, chaotic chords and lyrics about being drunk for a month there is an understated poetry, especially in the line "The spirits we drank are now ghosts in the room".

Here's a clip so you too can savour these Canadian delights. Enjoy.

One more thin gypsy thief

I won't attempt to write a full review, words fail me. All I really have is... wow.

I am of course talking about seeing Leonard Cohen at Birmingham NEC on Saturday. Two and a half hours of genius and stunning, understated charisma. He's a surprisingly humorous guy and full of energy quite striking for the grand old age of 74.

Unlike many crooners of his generation, Lenny's voice has not cracked with age and drugs, he sounds as good now, if not better, as on his recordings from the start of his extensive career.

I feel privileged to have seen him live, especially as I had long given up hope of the opportunity after his 14 year hiatus from live shows. I know that it is an experience not likely to be repeated. The baby seemed to enjoy it too, I could feel it grooving away right to the end of the long set!

Anyway, 5 stars. One of the best gigs I have ever been to and certainly a moment I am likely to cherish for the rest of my life.

Something in the air?

Gig - The New Root - Saturday 31st May 2008 - The Croft

Maybe there was something in the air at last night's New Root gig. Waiting in the bar before the bands started, Dave told me he was feeling nervous. Fresh from the band's second UK tour and having performed countless times by now, this was a little surprising. He explained the feeling he had that in Bristol there is more expectation from the crowd than when they play in other parts of the country where they are still relatively unknown.

I can certainly see how after a string of performances around the country to smaller audiences who have no idea what to expect from TNR, a packed gig at The Croft could have that effect on experienced performers. There may well be a high level of expectation from their Bristol fan base, however, I explained to him, their loyal fans will enjoy the show tremendously no matter how well they feel they have performed afterwards.

TNR's material is so exceptional now, after an extended period of creativity that has brought a richness and depth to their set quite beyond their youth. Well, it stands on its own. And Trish performs with such natural, but understated charisma that they very rarely need to be concerned about pleasing the audience. A few technical problems or the odd lapse in cohesiveness will largely go unnoticed by the crowd, or if they do notice, they likely won't care.

I can only speak for myself, but generally I care less about a perfectly polished performance from a band and more about how they engage with the audience and how their material sounds live. These are two things that TNR manage every time I see them.

But there was something even more potent about last night's gig. I came away feeling incredibly emotional. Songs I have heard a dozen times or more moved me in new ways, Crazy had me in tears and Sick of Me fired me up almost to combustion! It hit me as we were congratulating them on an awesome show and heading home afterwards that Andy and I may not be able to see TNR as regularly as we're used to soon. Though their tours are taking them to Sheffield and Hull these days, so I'm sure we will see them in Yorkshire and I don't doubt that we will visit Bristol occasionally when they have big gigs here, but our special place at the front of the crowd won't be ours any more.

More than this, of course is how much I will miss two very dear friends of almost ten years when we move away. With ex-Root bassist Craigos moving to London this certainly feels like the end of an era. My hope is that these moves will open up exciting new doors for TNR with the opportunities for more touring and the fans we can introduce from our new locations. Those that we have introduced in Bristol will undoubtedly continue to attend the gigs without us and there are whole other groups of friends, old and those yet to be made, just waiting to be inspired by this incredible band.

Gigs - VNV Nation

Tuesday 11th December - Thekla Social, Bristol

I had never been to a gig at the Thekla before, so didn't really know what to expect from the venue. But I had high expectations from the band, having seen them earlier this year at Infest, where they blew my mind and gave my OH an epiphany regarding glow sticks!

The support act, Kloq, made a good go at warming up a tough crowd, who only reluctantly gathered around the stage and barely even tapped their feet along to the catchy synth rhythms. I enjoyed them, but confess I was impatient for the main attraction - VNV Nation.

My friends and I managed to get ourselves right up front as soon as Kloq left the stage and we waited as the crowd pressed in behind us. Glow sticks at the ready, the crowd broke into hysterics waiting for the band to come on stage. One girl off to our left kept screaming, and I mean, horror movie, lung-ripping screaming. The crowd began telling her to shut up, but every couple of minutes she would let out another great scream.

The audience were not disappointed when one of the first things Ronan said was to tell this girl to cut it out.

"It's funny... once. After that it's just annoying."

I had been struck on seeing VNV previously how funny Ronan is as a frontman. He engages the crowd with anecdotes and moments of wit to rival the best stand up comedians in Britain, but more than this he is an expert at getting the crowd involved. He encourages movement and singing along, he covers the stage thoroughly and being up front as we were, we were treated to regular grins from him as he towered right over us. At one point he saw me holding my camera up and made sure to pause long enough for me to get a clear photo of him.

VNV have produced some incredible tracks over the years. Anthemic dance tracks as well as heart-felt ballads and as at Infest, where they dedicated 'Illusion' to Sophie Lancaster, I was moved to tears during this powerful slow track from their latest album, Judgement.

A technical problem forced the band to leave the stage and the crowd waited patiently for the issue to be resolved. Great relief swept over us when the band returned to play another few songs and we were treated to a standard encore after that.

Knowing the latest album significantly better than when I last saw VNV certainly heightened my enjoyment of the gig, which is saying something. Exhausted though I was by the encore I couldn't help but dance with all the energy I could muster and I found myself the following day barely able to walk; my back was so sore!

A heck of a gig, here's hoping that VNV Nation return to Bristol often.

Gigs - Within Temptation

Birmingham Carling Academy

This was my third time at a WT gig. I have come to expect certain things.

1. A huge crowd
2. Epic sound
3. Brilliant charisma
4. To dance my arse off

I was not disappointed. I have mixed feelings about this venue. I have seen NIN there in the past and on both occasions I have had trouble getting to actually see the bands performing. The venue is simply too big for a standing only gig. The ground floor fills up very quickly and from about ten feet back from the stage all the way back to the bar there is no view. There is a balcony upstairs, but once there are about two rows at the railing someone of my height can see nothing.

On this occasion we took up position three rows back on the balcony for the support act, however, I couldn't see so found myself a comfy spot under the large plasma screen and watched the support act from there.

Once WT took the stage, however, I was not content to sit back and wandered off to find myself a better spot. I got lucky and managed to squeeze in by a pillar dead centre on the balcony, with a few rows in front of me but a little gap through people's heads afforded me an intermittent view! Andy joined me and we enjoyed the set from this position.

The thing that struck me about this gig was that it was evident that we were witnessing the tail end of the tour. When we saw them in Bristol in April the band were energetic, fresh and incredibly tight. That was lacking a little this time, Sharon took a good three songs to warm up properly and even then her voice wasn't as strong as I have heard it in the past.

The set was incredible with us being treated to a few older tracks as well as the usual hits from Mother Earth, The Silent Force and The Heart of Everything. Despite the end-of-tour feeling, it was a very good gig, full of great interaction with the crowd and a fantastic energy from the audience.

Next time we see them it will, hopefully be back in Bristol at a better sized venue. Here's hoping that they keep playing the smaller venues though and that their tour manager doesn't ditch those gigs.

Tonight: VNV Nation!

Gigs - The New Root

Allflaws/Red Vein/The New Root – 14th November 2007 – The Louisiana, Bristol

The night opened with rap-duo Allflaws, sadly not to this reviewer's taste. The second performance came from Red Vein, who provided a more inspiring set of lyrically and musically interesting tracks. They set the mood well for the main attraction; The New Root.

However, I find myself at a slight loss for words as I try to begin this review. What can I say that I have not said before? Am I a fool for having praised TNR so highly in the past? I ask that not because I have ever had any doubt that they deserved my praise, but because I find myself struggling to describe just how amazing they were on this occasion. Having given them such glowing reviews in the past there are very few more rungs on the ladder to go up to and in this case they really need more rungs.

I have always been a Rooter, I have always enjoyed their gigs; loved their songs, revelled in their performances and come away glowing with pride. But this night was different. This night they were headlining, they had a longer set and the biggest audience. There may have been nerves there, but I didn’t see them, all I saw was excitement and joy from the band. It was evident that they were enjoying themselves more than ever and that showed in their confidence and stage presence.

They opened their set with my old favourite, Cruel. This Rooter was overjoyed to see the return of this song to their set. It has been slightly rearranged, the acoustic guitar has been replaced with electric and Trish now plays the key part as well as singing, the whole song has a little more oomph than it did before, and it was always one of their more pounding songs, so that is saying something.

The treatment upon the band’s older material from newest band members Joel and Tony has brought a heavier, more edgy sound, more appropriate for moshing to than previous versions. And mosh we did. Regular Rooters took up position at the front and much vigorous dancing ensued throughout the set, with quiet pauses for Still Near and Crazy.

Other returning track Tell It Like It Is went down well as did their newest track with its irregular rhythms and slamming guitar. In a recent conversation with Dave and Trish Boothby, they said that they wanted to be able to take the audience on an emotional journey in their gigs and that certainly happened with this longer set. We were set up marvellously for the very emotive Crazy, drawing a tear from more than one audience member's eye and the set was brought to a fantastic climax with So Alive.

The Rooters weren’t going to let the band get away without playing crowd-pleaser My Truth, though and calls for an encore were, thankfully, given into by the venue, who gave the go ahead for another song.

Their would-be closing track says it all really, this gig made me feel so alive. I left the venue with friends, all bouncing merrily in the street, elated and exhausted at the same time from all the dancing. TNR have reached a new level in excellence. More confidence, I believe is the key, they pulled off a tight performance and were engaging to watch. As ever, I came away feeling very positive about the future success of the band.

Gigs - Kosheen

Andy & I have been going to a lot of gigs lately. At the nudging from a mate I am going to blog about them.

Wednesday 19th September - Kosheen - Bristol Carling Academy.

I have been a Kosheen fan for several years, since the 2nd album, Kokopelli came out and I was working at the Virgin Megastore. The band actually played there on my first day, but, having not heard of them at that point I didn't go to the gig. Afterwards everyone was talking about it and the Virgin Megastore radio station started playing Avalanche, the single at the time, with some regularity. I noticed the album creeping up the chart as I restocked it daily and realised I needed to get a copy myself - I loved the single so that was enough for me. I quickly learned that they were a Bristol band and they became a firm favourite of mine very quickly.

The band then went off to tour Eastern Europe, so I had to content myself with listening to the albums. My heart skipped a beat when I saw their gig at Aberystwyth Student Union appear on their tour dates list and I went about planning a bit of a reunion with my friends from uni there to coincide with the gig. Alas, people couldn't make it along and then the date disappeared off the list. Another opportunity lost.

I was eagerly anticipating their third album, Damage, but for whatever reason, all thoughts of them touring had slipped my mind. It didn't occur to me that they would be supporting the new album back at home... until I descovered that Darren Beal, one of the founding members of the band, would be mixing The New Root's next release. I quickly checked the tour dates and my heart leapt into my throat to see that they were playing Bristol in a few days time! I bought tickets immediately, not willing to miss another opportunity to see them.

I have to say, as impulse buys go, this was probably the best of my life. Although Andy wasn't feeling well and had to go and sit down after the two support bands finished, he wanted me to stay up front and enjoy the show. The support came in the form of Sub Line, a local band with some interesting tracks and Rochelle, an upbeat act with bouncy female vocals on a similar line to Republica. The vocals were a bit weak however, and the constant demands from the lead singer that we all dance were somewhat trying.

I was impatient for the main event and had been edging forward throughout the two support acts, managing to get myself a spot in the second row for Kosheen. After the typical build up, the crowd itching for the band to come on stage, Kosheen entered, beginning their set with the title track from their new album. From there they embarked on an impressive set; taking us back to the beginning with legendary tracks like Hide U and Hungry; through the highlights of Kokopelli: Avalanche, Crawling, Coming Home and Wish; and mixed with some great new tracks from Damage including Overkill and Guilty.

Sian worked the crowd as a pro, commanding the stage magnificently with a presence I don't think I have ever seen before. The crowd was fuelled with the energy and love coming from the band. Maybe because this was their homecoming gig, the first time they had played Bristol in several years, or maybe every set they play is like that, but the atmosphere was electric and very moving. There were screaming fans in tears from the love they felt for the music and musicians - something I haven't seen since my Boyzone days!

I got friendly with the woman I was stood next to and by the end we were dancing together with her friends and the other strangers around us. It was a shame that Andy had to pull back, as I would have loved to experience that with him, but it was interesting to be up at the front on my own. I feel like I bonded with the crowd more than I typically do at gigs, maybe that was the power of Kosheen more than anything.

I can't recomment Kosheen highly enough. Their albums are beautifully produced and packed with haunting and anthemic tracks. But live... live they shine.

The best gig of my life?

A good question. I've seen a lot of bands live, some of the highlights have been Rammstein, Within Temptation, NIN, David Bowie, Terrorvision (back in the day!) and Queen (with Paul Rogers).

While all of these bands, with the possible exception of Terrorvision, are huge successes with legendary live shows and the kinds of artists you expect great things of, there is something about big venues and fancy light shows that makes you forget about what's really important... the music, and the chemistry between musicians and audience.

Terrorvision is in that list for the very reason that back when I followed them around Yorkshire playing pubs and small clubs they gave me my first taste of live music. They were accessible and created an amazing atmosphere in limited space with limited shiny resources.

The screaming, the palpitations and me being star-struck at any of those huge gigs you care to refer back to is not to be sniffed at. Gigs of that scale (David Bowie drew a crowd of over 100,000 at Glastonbury 2000) can be awe-inspiring and incredibly atmospheric (NIN). You can get up close too, within mere feet of your idols, the lead singer can make eye contact with you and make you feel like she's singing just to you (Sharon del Adel, WT). They can fill you with the trembles from the power and shock of the performance (Rammstein). They can send you home singing at the top of your lungs and desperate for more (Queen). These gigs and many more were each amazing for these very reasons and more besides.

But sometimes, like Terrorvision at the Harrogate Arms before they got big, a gig in the back room of a pub, with no more than 50 people in attendance can blow your mind. Just sometimes, the chemistry is just right between the band and the crowd. Sometimes, despite mistakes and having to restart the opening track due to amp-error, a band you've seen a couple of dozen times before can give you chills again. Sometimes a band you see for the first time can remind you what live music is really all about. It's not about the lights or the pyrotechnics. It's not about 100,000 people screaming and singing along. It's not about fainting from the crush and heat of the mosh pit or the charisma of the lead singer!

It's all about the music and the atmosphere. And you don't need tricks to create the atmosphere. You just need really, really good music, played with energy.

And that is what happened last night. The venue: The Croft. The music: The Sky is Blue, The New Root & Seagull Strange.

The fist band, The Sky is Blue had some good material but their frequent need to retune and a slight lack of stage presence let them down. The New Root started their set in the manner that those of us who have seen them play a lot have become accustomed to, taking to the stage one by one as their intro track plays and that kick ass whammy riff from Dave leads them into their opening track, My Truth. It's always a good start, high energy, quality rock. Last night, however, there was a problem with Trish's amp and she had to stop the band, something that has never happened before. They handled it professionally and started up again quickly, taking the track from the top and playing it at a fantastic pace to get in their full set with now limited time. Sped up the song rocked even harder than ever!

The bulk of their set is made up of fairly new material, each song a new twist and emotional turn. I spotted my other half wiping away a tear at the end of "30 Years of Our Marriage" and "So Alive" always gives me chills. They finished the set with the re-vamped version of Tell Me, which I absolutely love to pieces and left the stage to massive applause and me literally bouncing off the walls. Despite the hiccup at the start, or maybe because of it, the set was exciting, entertaining and rocking. "That's the best they've played in a long time!" Was Andy's first comment, but he says that every time, testament to The New Root's constant improvement.

The friend we had with us, for whom this was only his second TNR experience was grinning like a loon and bouncing almost as much as me. Another happy fan. I didn't think the night could get any better. How good would a band have to be to follow that performance by TNR?! I have always liked Seagull Strange, but hadn't seen them live before. But as Trish said before the gig, "Live is better". And she was spot on.

It's easy to see why they are signed to a label. They have charisma oozing from every pore, their songs rock and they know how to interact with the crowd. After a couple of songs, the lead singer, Dan told us that due to there being a "fire hazard" at the back of the room, we all needed to move forwards. Obediently we did so, filling the few feet gap right in front of the stage and I think it was only once the crowd had moved that anyone twigged the ruse! From that moment on the front section of the audience loosened up, there was much dancing and jumping about, especially during "La La La Ley"! Andy dived from our spot at the side right into the middle to mosh with a fellow regular-Rooter and I got to jump about like a crazy person right at the front too.

Rapturous applause had them perform an encore and more dancing ensued. We left the gig hyper and feeling that something special had happened in that little room at the back of the Croft. We kept bursting into song all the way home and when we got back played songs from the gig at top volume, singing along and dancing around the house, probably to the deep annoyance of our neighbours! But that is the price you pay for great rock.

Jack Black stated that "One great rock show can change the world!" Well I don't think it did that this time, but this show reminded me about the point of live music and made me feel once again, as I did when I saw Terrorvision that first time, that everyone in the world has to hear these guys. If they don't, if people miss out on this, they will never know what live music is.