SWERVEDRIVER - Norwich Arts Centre 26.05.2015

I don't get out to gigs very often these days but a chance to see Swervedriver promoting their great new LP was too good to miss. I made the long and arduous trek up the A140 to Norwich Arts Centre where I, along with 100 or so others (mainly blokes of a certain age!) witnessed a blistering set. I last saw them in 1994 and whilst age has taken a bit of a toll (Adam Franklin's dreads have been replaced by a cap and a beard, the bass player has been entirely replaced by the bloke from Supergrass) they still made a glorious racket. I was right at the front and my ears are still ringing. I wish I was articulate enough to express how great it was. Here are some pics:

 

Dinosaur Jr Helsinki 25.02.2013

Just got back from Helsinki where I saw Dinosaur Jr on Monday night. It was just a great show if a little loud. I shouldn't complain as I was right on the barrier in front of J. I saw them at the same venue in 2010 and it was definitely way louder this time around. Forgot my ear plugs as my friend kindly reminded me 5 minutes before showtime. I made do with my train ticket screwed up and shoved in one ear and my kebab receipt in the other. Proved to be very effective if not particularly comfortable! No real surprises in the set. J had all Marshall heads (no Hiwatt) and two Fender combos, one to the left on the floor and one at head height. His cabs looked quite new and I wonder if he just hired some for the tour. Murph's snare broke as did Lou's Rickenbacker. Something to do with one of the switches but I couldn't really see from where I was standing. He had a bright red P bass as a substitute and he seemed a little embarrassed by it. It fell off his strap about every three songs too. J wandered into the audience behind us during the Finnish hardcore support bands set and seemed to be into them. He filmed a song on his phone before strolling away. Their drummer sat in and beat the hell out of the drum kit on Training Ground. Murph looked happy to get a rest! I got J's set list at the end and I have attached a photo of it. Fill in the gaps at your leisure! They played SWAN instead of GARGO. Had a chat with roadie Graham at the end and he was a really nice guy. No surprises for the guitarists. J uses 10s now as he thinks they sound just as good as heavier strings. His bridge saddles go straight across (no intonation variation) and he has a wedge under the bridge to lift it even higher than the max height setting. I first saw Dino at Brixton Academy on 28.02.93, (almost) exactly 20 years ago and they are way better now. Another night to remember!!!

Robyn Hitchcock - Tromso, Kaptein

With little fanfare and virtually no prior warning, Robyn Hitchcock has a fantastic new LP "Tromso, Kaptein" out on the Norwegian Hype City Label. Having purchased the CD and digital download yesterday I'm pleased to report that his first LP backed by his English Band, including lovely cello by Jenny Adejayan, is just great. It looks like a low budget release and is described as a limited edition CD on Robyn's website but the quality of Paul Noble's production is top notch. I'm loving this LP. It's an absolute delight. Quite Egyptiansesque (!?) which is a good thing as far as I am concerned. Light Blue Afternoon could slot right into Element of Light. Elsewhere, Old Man Weather, Erasing Your Life, August In Hammersmith and The Abyss are as good as anything he's done.I would highly recommend that you buy it right away!

"In the late summer of 1982 I first visited Norway. A yellow van containing the London band Motor Boys Motor, my own rock trio, a sound engineer and our tour guide set off from Oslo up to the Sognefjord, down through Lillehammer, back to Bergen and through the Sognefjord again, and returning again to Oslo. We played in fallout shelters to AC/DC fans, in small town festivals in the rain, in beautiful wooden hotels by the water's edge, and sometimes in actual clubs. Our yellow van drove through endless tunnels that finally emerged onto fjord-side roads with 1000-meter drops to the water on one side, and cliffs that vanished in the clouds on the other. Ferries took us across stretches of water where the rain seemed to be falling up into the sky. Mist and alcohol were everywhere. One morning I was wakened by a man who was wearing nothing but an air pilot's cap and clutching a glass of moonshine. It was 7.42 by his watch.

Since 2005 I've visited regularly, making new friends in Bergen and beyond. In Egersund, I met Frode Strømstrad whose band I Was A King were playing there. He very kindly offered to release a record of mine in Norway on his Hype City label. So I went home and disappeared into myself, as if I was roaming the fjords; I let one side of myself argue with the other, as if I was roaming the fjords with a therapist. I let the songs come out of me, and here is the result - sung in English for Norwegian ears."

Robyn Hitchcock
London, 2011

Robyn Hitchcock - Light Blue Afternoon by Hype City Recordings

Dinosaur Jr - Helsinki 30th May 2010

I went over to Helsinki at the weekend to meet up with some old friends and to see Dinosaur Jr. It was the first time the three of us had all been at the same Dino Jr gig since 1993 and it was a truly awesome night. Small venue was sold out and there was no support act which was a bonus as far as I was concerned. We were chatting outside when Lou Barlow strolled up the street and into the front door of the venue half an hour before showtime. The Finnish audience were surprisingly subdued. They seemed to be into it but not in a screaming and jumping around kind of way. We did our best to liven things up. My voice is still hoarse! It was one of those nights that remind you it's great to be alive.

Setlist:

Thumb

Budge

Imagination Blind

No Bones

Pieces

Out There

Feel the Pain

Over It

Little Fury Things

Raisans

Freak Scene

Gargoyle

Encore:

Just Like Heaven

Chunks

Rain Parade - Crashing Dream on CD

Just discovered that Rain Parade's final official LP, Crashing Dream, is going to be released on CD on 23rd November 2009. Undoubtedly the best of the Paisley Underground bands, they were the first band I ever went to see. It was 14th October 1985 at The Electric Ballroom in Camden and I was just 17. They were fantastic and I think this LP came out a short while later. Needless to say it was roundly slagged by the music press and didn't fare too well. I thought it was great then and I still love it now. My only gripe was the cover which showed the band members submerged in a swimming pool. The back cover had a really cool picture of a wrecked car and I hope they have the sense to switch them around for the CD release. It's out on Lemon Records, a sub division of Cherry Red who say that it will have enhanced artwork and liner notes by some guy who seems to write about metal bands more than anything else! Sadly, former band leader Matt Piucci doesn't seem to know anything about it. Do yourself a favour and pre order now from Amazon.

Mellow Drunk - One Thousand Lights

Mellow Drunk's fabulous third album, One Thousand Lights will finally be released on 27th October 2008 by Berlin based label Vollwert Records who describe it thus:

A great new Album with rockin' and rollin' tunes and a

big touch of melancholy.

Leigh Gregory the great San Francisco Singer/Songwriter

played with his band a modern Independent Rock Sound with a great

touch of Californian coolness.

For me this is definitely the album of the year. Buy it now!

Mellow Drunk - One Thousand Lights

One Thousand Lights is the third, currently unreleased LP by Mellow Drunk. Recorded in 2005/2006, it is only available as a podcast on Podbean and Itunes. It is such a rare treat these days for me to get excited about a new record but I discovered this band towards the end of last year and this is just great. I can't believe that they don't appear to have a record deal. Looking at leader Leigh Gregory's site seems to suggest that he's moved on from Mellow Drunk but it would be a crime if this brilliant recording wasn't put out by someone.