Last Live Listen

[Grumpytim]

North East Calling Festival at Northumbria Uni SU - 11 bands over 10 hours - on Saturday gone. I ached a bit on Sunday.

Missed Slalom D and Guitar Gangsters due to traffic and finding parking.

Arrived halfway through Millie Manders & The Shut Up - they were having a lot of fun, and got the early crowd going well. Bits of Skunk Anansie and RATM in there. Cool bassist.

Resistance 77 - a street punk band that have been going since around 1980 without ever getting a big following. The bassist was around a second behind everyone else - he must own the van.

Dirt Box Disco - very enjoyable. If Green Day were not cynical rip-off merchants, they might sound like DBD.

The Outcasts - one great song: The Cops Are Comin' ...everything else was just rock and roll chivvied up a bit.

Gimp Fist - local band (around 3 miles from me). Sharp and catchy North-East working class anthems. The biggest mosh-pit of the day (and at least 10 crowd surfers). Finished with 'Here I stand' - 'So, here I stand, for the working man, I think it's time we got our share'.



Subhumans - 40 years since I last saw them but Dick Lucas hasn't changed one bit. My cue to join the mosh. Awesome.

GBH - easy to see hear why these are quoted as influencing the likes of Metallica. The guitarist is ridiculously good. Had a bop to 'No Survivors'.

Ruts DC - played the classic 'The Crack' album through, then finished off with 'In a Rut'. I knew every word.

The Skids - Jobson is still a great front man, and he still can't dance in time. Of course they finished with Albert Tatlock...

£25 quid a ticket and less than £4 a pint, and the sound was great. The organisers did a top job. We got dirty kebabs on the way home.

[CN211276]

Saw Uriah Heep last night on their 50th anniversary tour, delayed two years. Mick Box has been the only original member for some time. There were tributes to past members dead and living, notably Hensley and Byron.

The set was split into two with a break, acoustic followed by the heavier stuff. Demon's and Wizards, one of my all time favourite albums, featured prominently. A very enjoyable evening and the sound in St Davids Hall wes very good.

[slinger]

Mark and I had a fabulous time at the opening night of The Unthanks tour, at The Fire Station in Sunderland, on Wednesday night. A captivating performance in a brilliant venue. Try to get to one of their gigs - they are very special! https://www.the-unthanks.com/schedule/

[NSNO2021]

Super Saturday.
My day started with a big cooked breakfast, then over to Owston. I arrived circa 12 just in time to hear Nicks wonderful perspex framed Quaser open baffle speakers. Then one system demo followed another. Occasionally the music was a tad loud but the range of systems was totally eclectic, every system contained some homebrew kit.

The buffet was good and plentiful and I got to say a brief hello to Ant and his very engaging dad. I had to leave around 4.30 to get over to New Century Hall in Manchester to see the Gabriels.

There is a fascinating back story to the New Century Hall and when I saw the elaborate acoustic treatment of the ceiling I was optimistic that the sound quality would be good - it was actually much better than good and the Gabriel's were outstanding, it was a totally joyous gig in a fabulous hall and it took a long time for the Cheshire Cat smile on my face to disappear.
Happy days

[NSNO2021]

[NSNO2021]

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk ... n=sharebar

[NSNO2021]

Apparently back in the 60/70s New Century Hall hosted stellar names like Jimi Hendrix, Tina Turner, Pink Floyd, Kinks, Rolling Stones etc

[Firebug1]

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk ... n=sharebar

That place looks awesome!

[CN211276]

Saw Saxon last night at a packed St Davids Hall. Have been seeing them for forty years and they never disappoint with sensibly priced tickets. Biff Byford might be pushing 72 but still has the voice and the charsma. The band have an affinity with South Wales as they built up a following playing small venues in the valleys before fame in the early 80s. As their origin is Yorkshire mining communities it is easy to see why there is a bond. The hour and three quarter set comprised newer material and the old classics. Some of the clichied lyrics of their "Denim and leather" encure anthum seem amusing now in these modern times: "queue for your ticket through the ice and snow", "read the music papers from the back until the front....find out where to see your favourite band", "listen to the radio every Friday night". Brings back fond memories of a time gone by and the New Wave of British Heavy Metal.

A word about the support band Diamond Head who were very good. They were at the forefront of NWOBHM but blew it through a combination of poor management, an over adventurous second album and an ill advised Kerrang interview in which they slagged off major bands. Brian Tatler is the only original member and came across as a nice bloke when I met him at a minor venue some years back. He has commented that punk made him believe that you did not need to be a Richie Blackmore to play guitar in a heavy rock band, not that he is lacking in technical ability. He has also said he is doing ok from the royalties from Metallica's cover of "Am I evil", the song they closed the set with. Diamond Head were quite influential in the early 80s and could have achieved a lot more.

[CN211276]

Saw Saxon last night at a packed St Davids Hall. Have been seeing them for forty years and they never disappoint with sensibly priced tickets. Biff Byford might be pushing 72 but still has the voice and the charsma. The band have an affinity with South Wales as they built up a following playing small venues in the valleys before fame in the early 80s. As their origin is Yorkshire mining communities it is easy to see why there is a bond. The hour and three quarter set comprised newer material and the old classics. Some of the clichied lyrics of their "Denim and leather" encure anthum seem amusing now in these modern times: "queue for your ticket through the ice and snow", "read the music papers from the back until the front....find out where to see your favourite band", "listen to the radio every Friday night". Brings back fond memories of a time gone by and the New Wave of British Heavy Metal.

A word about the support band Diamond Head who were very good. They were at the forefront of NWOBHM but blew it through a combination of poor management, an over adventurous second album and an ill advised Kerrang interview in which they slagged off major bands. Brian Tatler is the only original member and came across as a nice bloke when I met him at a minor venue some years back. He has commented that punk made him believe that you did not need to be a Richie Blackmore to play guitar in a heavy rock band, not that he is lacking in technical ability. He has also said he is doing ok from the royalties from Metallica's cover of "Am I evil", the song they closed the set with. Diamond Head were quite influential in the early 80s and could have achieved a lot more.