Thursday
31st December
Whaddya
know, my boyhood heroes Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt
of the Quo have both received OBEs in the New Year’s
Honours List. Rossi’s response of: "I’m
not sure that we deserve it, but fuck it, I’m so
made up it's ridiculous. You hear about people refusing
them because it’s not rock ‘n’ roll
but that's a dickhead approach. My partner [Parfitt] is
even more excited about it – he’s probably
blubbing” made me laugh aloud. Congrats from the
Catford Quo Army.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Wednesday
30th December
It’s
cold, wet and depressing here in London, so after a late
night interview with Paul O’Neill, the brains behind
the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, I allowed myself a rare
lie-in. Alas, in getting up just past nine I found I’d
already missed the conclusion of the Second Test. England
had made light work of polishing off South Africa’s
lower order to win the game by an innings and 98 runs
– rather impressive given that back in the summer
the home side had edged past the Aussies to claim the
title of the world’s number one-rated cricketing
side.
The
chat with O’Neill, who is apparently a bit of a
night owl, was fascinating. It was worth going along with
his request that we talk as late as possible… he
rang me at 10pm London time and I finally replaced the
receiver just before midnight… Besides relating
the story of the late Atlantic Records boss Ahmet Ertegun
writing him a blank cheque to get TSO started we spoke
about Winston Churchill (one of Paul’s all-time
heroes – he’s quite an Anglophile), Greg Lake
(who appears on TSO’s current disc ‘Night
Castle’), the TSO-Savatage connection, why it took
five years to make ‘Night Castle’, his enduring
childhood love of prog (“It’s the only kind
of music in which anything is possible!”), and his
hopes and fears for the band’s first ever Euro dates,
which take place in May. If only every interviewee was
quite so giving of their time (and would pay for the call!!).
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Tuesday
29th December
For the past few days I’ve been almost literally
chained to the PC, surrounded by huge piles of CDs, old
magazines and cuttings of vintage reviews, feverishly
completing a detailed sleeve essay for a Universal Records
boxed set. Writing 10,000 words on just about anything
can be a tough ask, but it’s been fun revisiting
a few lesser-played albums by the band concerned as I
hammer away at the keyboard. For instance, I’d **almost**
forgotten just how underrated a disc 1994’s ‘Rock
Art’ was; so there’s a clue for you…
‘The Tall Ships’ is blaring out as I type,
what a truly superb song.
P.S.
Due to my workload, plus the fact that there were no trains
between London and Wales, I was unable to travel to Palace’s
away game with Swansea so I’ve **still** not visited
the Liberty Stadium. A goalless draw wasn’t a bad
result… though having played with ten men for most
of the match the home side will be happier with a share
of the points.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Monday
28th December
Just
before the festive break my good friend John Dryland,
who works for Cargo Records (the UK distributers of Frontiers),
emailed a track from Brian Howe’s forthcoming solo
album, ‘Circus Bar’, which is due in March.
With a slick production worthy of Danger Danger’s
Bruno Ravel, ‘I’m Back’ is an absolute
stormer of song – I just can’t stop playing
it. Funnily enough, Howe was one of the very first musos
I interviewed in my days as a fanzine writer. We first
met when Brian gave me a few minutes of his time at the
Red Lion in Fulham in late 1982 whilst fronting a latter
incarnation of White Spirit. After ending up in Ted Nugent’s
band for the following year’s ‘Penetrator’
album he went on to replace Paul Rodgers for a series
of Bad Company albums, some of which were really rather
good, and we became reacquainted as Brian paid a few social
visits to the editorial offices of RAW Magazine in the
early 1990s. Much alcohol-induced silliness, including
falling into the back of a cab and demanding to be taken
home to Portsmouth (almost 100 miles outside of London),
ensued. I just mailed Howe to say ‘hi’ and
found out he will be returning to Blighty early next month
to see his beloved Pompey lose to whoever they are playing.
Brian might as well enjoy the club’s days in the
Premier League while he can as they will most probably
be facing the mighty Palace next year. Don’t be
surprised if more childish bar shenanigans take place
during his visit.
_
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Saturday
26th December
Just
home from Palace’s Boxing Day clash with Ipswich
Town at Selhurst… my oh my, what a fantastic experience.
Though a rare mistake from Julian Speroni gifted the visitors
the lead, Fonte fired in a thunderblast leveller just
before half-time, and when Town were reduced to ten men
following Jon Stead’s mistimed lunge on Freddie
Sears there would be just one winner; Palace by three
goals to one. The only blot on an otherwise perfect day
was having to endure Ipswich boss R*y K***e’s bellyaching
regarding Eagles players allegedly (and **falsely**) attempting
to influence the referee’s decision to send Stead
off – gross hypocrisy from a player that spent half
his career trying to do the exact same thing to his opponents.
And, looking at the bigger picture, these complaints come
from a Grade-A thug that admitted deriving great pleasure
from dishing out a career-ending injury to a fellow professional,
Alf-Inge Haaland. Neither will Palace fans ever forgive
or forget K***e responding to a ‘keep the peace’
plea from police by stamping on our captain during an
FA Cup Semi-Final replay at Villa Park less than a week
after ManUre supporters had caused the death of CPFC fan
Paul Nixon. The man is low-life vermin scum, and the sooner
he takes the Tractor Boys down to League 1, then joins
the ranks of the unemployable, the happier I’ll
be.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Friday
25th December
Though
it was broadcast a few days ago I’ve only just sat
down to watch Ozzy Osbourne’s appearance in the
UK TV show Grumpy Christmas. Oh dear, Ozzy… what
were you thinking? In entertainment terms, your less than
side-splitting display was somewhere on a par with the
last couple of studio LPs. No wonder the editors consigned
all but a couple of studiously unfunny so-called anecdotes
to the cutting room floor. Otherwise, however, my day
is going rather well. Everyone seems to like the presents
I bought. Mrs L got me a rather unusual gift – one
of those dolls within a doll within a doll, each adorned
with the face of a member of Status Quo’s classic
line-up. I’ll be honest; the image of a youthful
Francis Rossi that adorns the biggest, exterior doll looked
more like Dream Theater’s James LaBrie… but
a lovely, thoughtful pressie all the same.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Thursday
24th December
My
post-Wildhearts hangover was only just subsiding, so the
decision to trek across London to hear FM’s new
album, complete the last of my Christmas shopping and
sink a few jars with various other members of Classic
Rock and Metal Hammer’s editorial teams in the Crobar
was quite possibly suicidal. But what the heck.
Minutes
after walking into Metropolis Studios, FM bassist Merv
Goldsworthy smiled: “Would you like a cider, Dave?
Go on… with this album you’ll need it.”
We joked that I had the headline for my story right there.
Goldsworthy, drummer Pete Jupp and affable keysman Jem
Davis were on hand. A lot of what they played me was also
new to them, having only recently come back from mixer
Andy Reilly in the States. Nine of the record’s
13 tunes were unveiled, a satisfying and diverse bunch
of tunes if ever I heard one. I won’t spoil the
surprise of the actual titles, but ‘Days Gone By’
is based upon a na-na-na hookline, ‘Don’t
Need Nothing’ ratchets up the raunch factor and
‘The Fight Goes On’ is a real scarf-waver
that’ll go down a treat onstage. Newcomer Jim Kirkpatrick
has quickly found his feet with the group, delivering
a terrific guitar solo as ‘Metropolis’, the
album’s title cut, which sets the scene for my pick
of the bunch – ‘Over You’, a Foreigner-meets-Queen
rocker with some Thin Lizzy twin geetars thrown in.
Unsurprisingly,
with depth-charges and potent apple liqueurs all sliding
down the gullet alongside the Voddie ‘n’ Diet
Cokes, it all got a little bit out of hand at the Crobar.
I’m **seriously** messed up this morning. Luckily
there’s not long to go till my annual alcohol-free
sabbatical in the month of January.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Wednesday 23rd December
Oh…
my… goodness. Does anyone know any decent hangover
cures?! Last night was spent at the Islington Academy
(yet again) with my friend John Dryland, who had a spare
+1 for the Wildhearts’ Christmas gig. We started
off with a few too many pints of cider and I’m afraid
I’ve little recollection of the journey home, nor
the set-list, though the band did include a few unexpected
surprises like ‘Liberty Cap’, from their debut
EP ‘Mondo-Akimbo A-Go-Go’, and a version of
Jason & The Scorchers’ ‘White Lies’,
along the way. Sadly, it looks like I’ll be working
right through the festive break but last nite was an excellent
way of getting the celebrations started.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Monday
21st December
As
a long-time follower of Satyricon, I go to watch them
every chance I get. As the curtain-closer to a world tour
for the 2008 album ‘The Age Of Nero’, last
nite’s show at the Islington Academy promised another
incentive – the Norwegian black metal combo’s
final performance before a hiatus of indeterminate duration.
Due to London’s beleaguered, ice-strewn transport
system I arrived later than planned, catching the last
rumblings of a decent set from fellow Norwegians Posthum.
Peppered by unexpectedly melodic bouts of twin-lead guitar
and the decidedly non-BM banter of frontman Morean (“This
one’s for all the ladeeez!”), Germany’s
Dark Fortress were better still. I also enjoyed my first
sight of Shining, a bunch of deeply troubled and wildly
unpredictable Swedes. Singer Niklas Kvarforth has often
spoken out in favour of suicide, and at their past shows
razorblades have been handed to members of the audience.
Last nite the Academy looked on, shocked, as Kvarforth
suddenly seized Andreas Larssen and deep-throated the
apparently passive male bassist, depositing a resultant
pool of saliva at their feet. “He is leaving the
band,” explained Kvarforth casually. Frankly, I’m
not surprised Larssen tendered his resignation…
if my lead singer played tonsil tennis with me onstage,
I’d be calling a taxi and hoping that Lewis Hamilton
was driving.
I’d
seen Satyricon on six previous occasions (twice In Norway,
once in Sweden, the rest in the UK), but last night’s
gig was right up there among the best performances I’ve
seen them give. Beginning with a beautifully savage ‘Repined
Bastard Nation’ and enhanced by a fabulous front
of house sound, the band’s command of textures was
telling from the off. With short, slicked-back hair and
a slim, muscular physique frontman Satyr roamed the stage
looking emotionally detached, like some heavy metal terminator,
sometimes even strapping on a third guitar to enhance
the stunning wall of noise. Drummer Frost, meanwhile,
offered yet another superhuman display of percussion.
Cleary overcome by the enthusiasm of a crowd that was
almost literally raising the roof, at encore time Satyr
finally addressed the subject of the future with the words:
“One day Satyricon will be back in a new way, form
or shape… it’ll be as strong as ever before.”
They’d fuggin’ well better. Here’s the
set-list: ‘Repined Bastard Nation’, ‘The
Wolfpack’, ‘Now, Diabolical’, ‘Forhekset’,
‘Black Crow On A Tombstone’, ‘Commando’,
‘The Rite Of Our Cross’, ‘The Sign Of
The Trident’, ‘Supersonic Journey’,
‘Den Siste’ and ‘The Pentagram Burns’,
with encores of ‘K.I.N.G’, ‘Fuel For
Hatred’, ‘Die By My Hand’ and ‘Mother
North’.
_
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Sunday
20th December
Given
the Arctic-style conditions here in the South-East it
was amazing that Palace’s game with Barnsley went
ahead. The result of 1-1 was disappointing, doubly so
as the Eagles missed a first minute penalty. Had it snuck
under the crossbar, there was no way the visitors would
have claimed a point. From a CPFC perspective, the game’s
main talking point was a sensational equaliser from boy
wonder Victor Moses, who took the ball on his chest and
struck a flamboyant overhead kick into Barnsley’s
net, leaving Steele flapping at thin air. It really was
one of the classiest strikes I’ve seen in 30 years
of following the Palace – worth the price of admission
alone (handy, as the rest of the game was shit). Thank
you, Victor… you’ve just added another £500,000
to your price-tag and I hope you do well when you are
sold to a ‘big club’ in the New Year.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Saturday
19th December
My
return trip from Pittsburgh to London had appeared so
easy but turned into an episode of Planes, Trains &
Automobiles. With Gatwick Airport closed due to snow,
my flight from Charlotte was hastily diverted to Manchester
for refuelling, where we sat on the tarmac for aeons awaiting
a take-off slot. I felt sorry for those whose ultimate
destination had been Manchester (even sorrier than usual,
in fact… haha!), as they were not allowed to disembark,
having to trail all the way back to London, then head
North again. And then… “I have good news and
bad,” announced the captain to howls of dismay,
“Gatwick has reopened, but our departure has been
delayed a further two hours.” Idling away, reading
the duty free magazine for the tenth time, my phone received
a text from my fellow Palace nut, Neil Pudney. “The
club has been given a winding-up order,” he informed
me. “The club owes £1,202,977 and 26 pence.
The petition will be heard in the High Court on Jan 27.”
Jesus H Christ… welcome home, Dave!!!
After arriving home in the early afternoon, I spent a
couple of hours working through my emails. Was happy to
learn of new UK dates from Transatlantic and Bigelf and,
set to join the fellas from Airrace in the West End for
a bit of a Christmas slosh-up, I gradually got into the
party mood. However, I’d figured without the transport
situation. After buying a return ticket and some gut-rot
cider for the journey into town, the indicator at Catford
Bridge station was permanently set to ‘delayed’.
One train after another failed to materialise and was
then cancelled. In the end, after the 8.32 gave up the
ghost I resignedly trudged back up the hill to the living
room’s warmth – bah, humbug.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Thursday
17th December
Prior
to leaving home a surf for ‘used record stores in
Pittsburgh’ had yielded some interesting leads,
a taxi ride directing me to the magnificently named suburb
of Squirrel Hill. Though I could’ve spent the entire
day and a whole heap of cash at Jerry's Records, a warehouse
stuffed to the ceiling with reasonably priced vinyl I
restricted myself to a few select bargains, including
a couple of AOR treasures by cult heroes Donnie Iris &
The Cruisers – one of which actually features a
rocked-up remake of ‘Glad All Over’, the Dave
Clarke Five classic that always plays as my beloved Crystal
Palace take the field at Selhurst. If possible I always
try to get a feel for the areas my job takes me to, so
I took the bus back downtown.
The
shows by Trans-Siberian Orchestra were really, really
good, though whether what I saw here in the States will
work so well in Europe – a territory the band visits
for the first time in May – is debatable. As an
extension of Floridian prog-metallers Savatage, whose
past ‘n’ present alumni of vocalist Jon Oliva,
guitarist Chris Caffery, vocalist Zak Stevens, bassist
Johnny Lee Middleton and drummer Jeff Plate, also former
guitarist Alex Skolnick, are ensconced in its ranks of
around 25 individuals, TSO have somehow transcended the
realms of the hard rock and classically-influenced music
they create to become a theatrical institution. Their
grandly-staged performances draw attendees from all walks
of life, age-wise from eight to eighty – with album
sales of more than seven million, in 2008 alone the band
performed to five million-plus people in 80 North American
cities, shifting in excess of $230 million worth of tickets.
Fellow musos have also stood behind the concept, the likes
of Joe Walsh, Steven Tyler, Greg Lake, Roger Daltrey,
Robin Zander, Jon Anderson, Ian Hunter, Geoff Tate, Tommy
Shaw and Joan Jett all joining them onstage in recent
times.
And
no wonder. Watching a top-end production that somehow
combines Flying V guitars and penguin suits with elevating
platforms, dry ice, a snow machine, a stunning laser display,
a babe-tastic female violinist (the delightful Anna Phoebe
– a fellow Brit), a light show worthy of Close Encounters
Of The Third Kind and enough pyro to barbeque an entire
school of blue whales, it’s obvious why TSO has
taken off so spectacularly. But – and there is a
‘but’ – with so much of the group’s
content based upon Christmas themes, at times the show
is overbearingly, cloyingly sentimental. Indeed, it’s
tough to envisage them connecting anywhere near so well
with the more cynical European audiences. Lucky, then,
that the New Year shows will be based upon their current
(and fifth) disc, ‘Night Castle’, which had
just peaked at Number Five in the Billboard chart. Indeed,
Jon Oliva was still recovering from an alcohol-fuelled
celebration of the above fact as I sat with him in his
dressing room between the two shows.
As
stated, the first half of the hefty 150-minute show is
based upon the trilogy of ‘Christmas Eve And Other
Stories’ (1996), ‘The Christmas Attic’
(’98) and ‘The Lost Christmas Eve’ (’04),
with material from ‘Beethoven’s Last Night’
and ‘Night Castle’ filling its latter stages.
I’d been looking forward to seeing Jeff Scott Soto,
but was disappointed to learn that he is a part of the
Orchestra’s alternate West Coast line-up. That said,
as well as forming a stellar partnership with Skolnick,
Caffery does a terrific job of helming the show. The band
knows that in attempting to carve inroads to the European
market’s cosier venues it takes a leap of faith,
especially as much of their show must through necessity
remain in warehouses at home. But if you dug the albums
then no matter how scaled-down the shows turn out to be,
their quality is sure to thrill you. Here’s the
set-list: ‘March Of The Kings’, ‘An
Angel came Down’, Medley: ‘O’ Come All
Ye Faithful’/‘O’ Holy Night’,
‘Prince Of Peace’, ‘First Snow’,
‘A Mad Russian’s Christmas’, ‘Christmas
Eve (Sarajevo 12/24)’, ‘Good King Joy’,
‘Ornament’, ‘Old City Bar’, ‘This
Christmas Day’, ‘An Angel Returned’,
‘Toccata’, ‘The Mountain’, ‘Queen
Of The Winter Night’, ‘Moonlight And Madness’,
‘Siberian Sleigh Ride’, ‘Angels Share’,
Drum Solo, ‘Wizards’, ‘Mozart’,
‘Christmas Canon’, ‘Nutrocker’,
‘Camina Burana’ and ‘Requiem’.
_
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Wednesday
16th December
I’m
in Pittsburgh to check out a show by Trans-Siberian
Orchestra, though I only made it here by the skin
of my teeth. My flight from London was delayed by an hour,
and with four planes touching down simultaneously in Charlotte,
North Carolina, the immigration desk was overloaded. Ended
up making my connection by six minutes (count ’em!).
I’d been lead to believe that Pittsburgh is a bit
of a khazi, the clue being in the name, but the place
looks quite clean and quite pretty. The band have also
put me in a rather swanky hotel ahead of tomorrow’s
gig – or should I say ‘gigs’ (plural)
– with matinee and evening performances taking place
a few blocks away at the 11,800-capacity Mellon Arena…
both completely sold out, in the middle of the week. I
knew that TSO were big news Stateside but not **that**
big… I’ve already earmarked a couple of second
hand record stories to check out in the morning, so bring
on tomorrow.
_
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Tuesday
15th December
Oh-My-Sweet-Jesus,
it’s actually happening… in Poland and the
Czech Republic, at least. After all of the speculation,
denials and prayers, the ‘Big Four’ of Thrash-Metal
– Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax…
c’mon, keep up at the back! – have announced
a history-making debut joint appearance at next summer’s
Sonisphere Festival (in the nations mentioned). One can
only hope that, with Anthrax and Slayer already confirmed
for Sonisphere UK, Metallica and Megadeth will follow
suit, joining the mighty Maiden on a bill of unprecedented,
underpants-soiling quality. As chief ’Deth dealer
Dave Mustaine so rightly remarks of the liaison: “If
there are any heads left at the end of this festival that
haven’t banged, they don’t belong there.”
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Monday
14th December
So
we’re into the final strait of 2009’s gig-going
activity, and last nite I nipped across London to the
Shepherd’s Bush Empire for an annual end-of-year
showdown with Hawkwind. Alas, Arthur Brown was already
into his support set by my arrival. With his multiple
costume changes, madcap song intros and bizarrely painted
face, the beanpole-like Brown is one of the last remaining
English eccentrics, hurling himself around the stage with
ungainly John Cleese-style gusto. Alas, a recital of the
perennial ‘Fire’ was accomplished minus the
stage prop that everybody remembers, Arthur’s flaming
headwear (I myself once had a burning helmet, though the
cream cleared it up…), but I made a mental vow to
see the 67-year-old vocalist again before too long…
should such an opportunity arise.
The
excellence of Hawkwind’s headlining set was enhanced
by the inclusion of the mighty ‘Levitation’
– title cut of the first of the group’s albums
that I ever bought. I’d been dying to hear them
play it again. Overall, though, the show was first class.
My one complaint was not with the band but the audience
that sat around me in the balcony, chirruping away aimlessly
(some might say ‘gormlessly’) to one another
from start to finish. Such was the extent of their rudeness,
as we left the hall my friend Andy Beare remarked it had
felt less like a rock gig and more of an internet chat
room with some distant background music thrown in. These
people are FUCKING IGNORAMI, and their behaviour is really
starting to get on my wick!!!! Anyway, here’s the
Hawks’ set-list: ‘Lighthouse’, ‘Fahrenheit
451’, ‘Sentinel’, ‘Space Is Deep’,
‘Angels of Death’, ‘Silver Machine’,
‘Green Machine’, ‘Wraith’, ‘Prometheus’,
‘Spirit Of The Age’, ‘Warriors’,
‘Magnu’, ‘Tide Of The Century’,
‘You'd Better Believe It’ and (YAY!!) ‘Levitation’,
plus encores of ‘Right To Decide’ and ‘Hassan-I-Sahba’.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Sunday
13th December
Well,
that was a fuggin’ waste of time. Out of the pit
at 6.30am (impaired by a ferocious hangover from the Quireboys
gig), three hours up the M1 to watch Palace’s game
at Sheffield United, then four hours home again. Only
for the Eagles to be outclassed by a team with a dismal
home record. Pouring salt into the wound, the Blades took
the lead with a ‘goal’ that didn’t appear
to have crossed the line; after the debacle of Freddie
Sears’ disallowed strike against Brizzle, CPFC fans
should by now be used to such injustices – but,
f**k me, they hurt. Especially when you’ve travelled
half of the country to have your intelligence insulted
by a blind linesman. Anyway, the match finished 2-0…
I suspect Palace **still** wouldn’t have scored
if the game was still being played.
The
only positive, apart from spending some father and son
time with my lad Eddie, was reading Brian Tatler’s
autobiography, Am I Evil?, on the journey. The Diamond
Head guitarist has approached his band’s tale with
an unflinching honesty that’s refreshingly free
of bitterness and quite often extremely amusing. Lars
Ulrich and Dave Mustaine’s forewords are touching,
and the book goes into fairly revealing detail about the
fledgling Ulrich’s fact-finding mission at the Woolwich
Odeon in 1981, even printing a hand-written ‘Thanks
for letting me stay at your gaff’ note from Lars.
As someone who’s career is, I guess, interwoven
with that of DH – my first ever published review
was of a February 1982 gig at the Saxon Tavern in London
that appeared in Kerrang! #12, and I had many dealings
with Tatler and vocalist Sean Harris (indeed Brian actually
refers to me in the text as “the seemingly ever-present
Dave Ling”) – I found the book difficult to
put down. Of the band’s failure to gatecrash the
big-time, despite such awesome early potential, the blame
is jointly attributable to poor management – courtesy
of Harris’ mum, Linda, and a local cardboard box
impresario called Reg Fellows, bad luck and the equally
calamitous decision to sign to an ill-suited label, MCA
Records. The mess is best described by Robbie France,
drummer on the ‘Canterbury’ album, who observes:
“[The breakthrough] was never going to happen. Sean
was tied to his mother’s apron strings and Linda
couldn’t have managed a piss-up in a brewery. You’re
only as good as your weakest link, and the management
was ours.” Am I Evil? is available from: www.diamond-head.net.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Saturday
12th December
Though I got stuck in traffic and missed an opening spot
from Wolfsbane, last night’s gig from the Quireboys
at the Forum was a bit of a riot. The band were playing
their debut album, ‘A Bit Of What You Fancy’,
in its entirety and vocalist Spike had evidently joined
the party spirit by swigging the cooking sherry or something.
I felt a bit sorry for him as he threw the mic-stand up
in the air and failed to catch it… HIC! But one
thing I couldn’t fathom was the absence of an onstage
bar – like the presence of Wolfsbane as support
act a feature of the ‘A Bit Of What You Fancy’
dates. Before this tour began guitarist Paul Guerin informed
me that he had taken personal responsibility for designing
its specifications, and that it would look “absolutely
great”, though he did add: “My only fear is
a Spinal Tap/Stonehenge scenario.” Well, something
must have gone awry because the front rows were provided
with a constant supply of booze (“Hehehe…
here’s another little drink from Spikey!”
cackled the singer at one point), they didn’t seem
to come from a bar. Is there, I wonder, an Action Man-sized
saloon scenario, locked up somewhere in a warehouse? Anyway,
the gig was really good and it will have warmed the cockles
of the audience’s hearts to see original guitarist
Guy Bailey, bassist Nigel Mogg and keyboard player Chris
Johnstone all joining in during the encore rendition of
‘Sex Party’.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Friday
11th December
The
new issue of Classic Rock (with Iggy Pop on the cover)
just dropped onto the mat. My interview comments from
the winners/presenters at the recent Classic Rock awards
have been used in a very cool way. I’m also pleased
that my Buyer’s Guide, which was submitted quite
some time ago, finally made it into the print. The new
Airbourne album, ‘No Guts, No Glory’ (due
March 8) is also here. When I interviewed frontman/guitarist
Joel O’Keefe not too long ago, he told me: “All
that’s [different] about this album is maybe there’s
more Jack [Daniel’s] in with the Coke. We’re
a bunch of plumbers, mate. We’re not going to start
building brick walls.” As well as being an amusing
quote, it’s also true. This one kicks like the proverbial
mule…
More
good news: Some additional names have been announced to
the magazine’s High
Voltage Festival, which you’ll most probably
be aware is to be headlined by ZZ Top and the reunited
Emerson Lake & Palmer. The latest additions are: Foreigner,
Asia, Wishbone Ash (the Martin Turner variety), Focus,
The Reasoning and Touchstone. Not too bad for starters…
_
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Thursday
10th December
So
the rumours are true… Iron Maiden will be playing
the Sonisphere festival next summer. The event has also
been expanded to a three-dayer. The only other headline
act confirmed so far, Rammstein, are not a band I can
get too worked up about, but with Mötley Crüe,
Alice Cooper, Iggy & The Stooges, Slayer, Anthrax
and The Cult already booked, and with the Saturday of
Download off the menu due to a clash with England’s
first game in the World Cup, this one has gone into the
diary in very big letters indeed.
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Wednesday
9th December
Still
smarting from Palace’s woeful display against Doncaster
last weekend I decided against travelling to the Madejski
for last night’s game against Reading. What a crap
decision. I should know now that you can usually count
on Warnock’s teams to bounce back after a humiliation.
Lo and behold, The Eagles scored four absolute screamers
to win 4-2… just the type of faith-restoring performance
that was needed ahead of the coming weekend’s road
trip to Bramall lane for eldest boy Eddie and I. Yay,
Eagles we are proud of you… and still only two points
behind the play-off spots.
Just
before tuning into the commentary I received a rather
odd (but welcome) email from Glenn Hughes, referencing
the fact that he may have “stepped out of the building
for a moment” with his recent records, but promising
“The Voice Of Rock is most definitely back”.
Glenn also brought up the rumour of a “supergroup”
that seems set to work with producer Kevin Shirley in
the new year, but beyond a promise of “trust me,
this is the real thing” would not spill the beans
regarding the names of the other artists… doncha
just hate it when people do that??!!
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Tuesday
8th December
Last
night it was back to the Islington Academy, a place at
which I seem to spend a lot of time (and money) in these
post-Astoria days, for a date on Skin’s reunion
tour. In something of a role reversal – the headliners
opened for Little Angels at their farewell Royal Albert
Hall gig during the 1990s – Gun’s Toby Jepson
this time performed support duties, delivering one-man
renditions of seven Angels oldies (‘She’s
A Little Angel’, ‘Kickin’ Up Dust’,
‘Boneyard’, ‘I Ain’t Gonna Cry’,
‘Don’t Pray For Me’, a medley of ‘Young
Gods’ and The Who’s ‘Won’t Get
Fooled Again’ and ‘Too Much Too Young’)
that made me realise I was much, much too harsh on the
band first time around.
Apparently
enjoying the show as much as the crowd from the looks
on their faces, Skin were right on the money. It’s
nothing short of a crime that Neville MacDonald, a singer
that could croon passages from Fly Fishing by JR Hartley
and still sound interesting, has been hidden away for
so long. During an acoustic section the band also introduced
two brand new songs. I especially liked the sentimental
‘Reunited’, which was just on the right side
of cheesy (then again ‘Redemption’ wasn’t
too bad, either). Though the expected departing cry of:
“We’ll see you again next year” went
unheard, I sincerely hope there’s more to come from
these guys in 2010… they’ve still got what
it takes. Here’s the set-list: ‘The Only One’,
‘Spit On You’, ‘How Lucky You Are’,
‘You Blow My Mind’, ‘Experience Electric’,
‘House Of Love’, ‘Colourblind’,
‘Reunited’, ‘Redemption’, ‘Money’,
‘Take Me Down To The River’, ‘Look But
Don't Touch’ and Medley: ‘Tower Of Strength’/‘Listening
To You’ (again, by The ’Oo), with encores
of EMF’s ‘Unbelievable’ (with guest
Toby Jepson), ‘Perfect Day’ and ‘Shine
Your Light On Me’.
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Monday
7th December
With
press tickets in short supply, I’d resigned myself
to missing Alice Cooper’s date at Hammersmith. Then,
late on Friday afternoon both Classic Rock and Metal Hammer
asked me to cover the show (which took place last nite).
Having missed Man Raze – Def Leppard’s Phil
Collen on guitar/vocals, ex-Girl bassist Simon Laffy and
Sex Pistols drummer Paul Cook – till now, I was
keen to check out their support slot. Mixing tracks from
the ‘Surreal’ album with a couple of choice
covers (Hendrix’s ‘Fire’ and ‘Search
And Destroy’ by The Stooges), I thought they were
rather good, though Cooper’s audience seemed to
merely tolerate the trio’s presence as opposed to
appreciating it.
As
someone that has caught just about all of Alice’s
recent tours, his set-lists are starting to bore me. With
a splendid new album to promote, I’d been hoping
Alice would ring the changes. Let’s face it, if
you can’t shake things up a little to feature a
concept album about a serial killer named Spider who leaves
his victims cocooned in a silk web, chances are you never
will. Alas, a solitary song from ‘Along Came A Spider’
– ‘Vengeance Is Mine’, delivered top
a raised podium, six metallic extra arms dangling, Doctor
Octopus-style – was added to the 95-minute display,
which largely adhered to the singer’s tried ‘n’
trusted favourites – including a double-dose of
the seminal anthem ‘School’s Out’, as
its opening and closing strains. That gripe aside, Alice
remains one of the greatest live performers I’ve
ever seen; his stage presence is truly magnetic, and backed
by a hairy, super-tight bunch of young bucks, it’s
hard to tear your eyes away from the stage as he is garrotted,
decapitated, reincarnated and impaled upon a ten-foot
hypodermic needle. I loved it when he introduced the band
and the gorgeous nurse that tries to kill him throughout
the show, then with a grin remembered the name of its
star; “Me! Yeah me!” Here’s the set-list:
‘School’s Out’, ‘Department Of
Youth, ‘I’m Eighteen’, ‘Wicked
Young Man’, ‘The Ballad Of Dwight Fry’,
‘Go To Hell’, ‘Guilty’, ‘Welcome
To My Nightmare’, ‘Cold Ethyl’, ‘Poison’,
‘The Awakening’, ‘From The Inside’,
‘Nurse Rozetta’, ‘Is It My Body?’,
‘Be My Lover’, ‘Only Women Bleed’,
‘I Never Cry’, ‘The Black Widow’,
‘Vengeance Is Mine’, ‘Devil's Food’,
‘Dirty Diamonds’, ‘Billion Dollar Babies’,
‘I Love The Dead’, ‘No More Mr Nice
Guy’, ‘Under My Wheels’ and an encore
of ‘School’s Out’._
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Sunday
6th December
Excuse
me while I hyperventilate. Yesterday’s score-line
from Selhurst… Crystal Palace nil, Doncaster Rovers
three. Having four efforts cleared off the line and enough
chances to have won the game after 20 minutes is hard
to stomach, but watching the team stop caring in its latter
stage was worse. This season the Eagles have shipped seven
– yes, SEVEN – goals to the likes of Scunthorpe
and Donny. At home. Without reply. Believe me, I am one
pissed-off l’il bunny right now.
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Saturday 5th December
Before
dashing off to yesterday’s show, the New York Dolls
at the Forum, I watched the World Cup draw on TV. On paper,
being teamed with the USA, Algeria and Slovenia is a stroke
of good fortune though I’m amazed that the media
is smugly daring to suggest Capello’s men have “a
relatively easy path” (and that’s the Daily
mail, not The Sun) to the Semi-Finals where Brazil, should
potential banana skins be overcome, would be the most
likely opponents. All the same, the tournament’s
commencement on June 11 cannot come quickly enough for
me.
En
route to the Forum I stopped off for a cheeky libation
with Malcolm Dome, who had a package from the Classic
Rock office for me. It contained ‘Amazônia
– Live In The Jungle’, a DVD by the Scorpions,
and the AC/DC boxed set, ‘Backtracks’, plus
a promo T-shirt for the latter. How’s that as a
way of kick-starting the weekend?!?
The
last time I saw the Dolls, at the same North London venue
in October ’06, I was completely and utterly blown
away – even shelling out some hard-earned shekels
on a T-shirt. On this occasion, however, despite having
kicked off with an ass-whuppin’ ‘Looking For
A Kiss’, the band ended up playing a little too
much of their new material for my taste and midway through
set until just before a double-pronged encore of ‘Exorcism
Of Despair’ and the evergreen ‘Personality
Crisis’, the sound began distorting horribly. Kinda
annoying.
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Friday
4th December
Last
night I went to see Sonata Artica and Delain at the Islington
Academy. The place was absolutely packed. I’m a
big fan of ‘April Rain’, Delain’s second
album (due in January). Making their first visit to London
and with Roadrunner UK having passed on their debut, few
seemed too with the female-fronted Dutch band’s
strain of gothic symphonic-rock though awareness built
steadily through an eight-song set that plundered both
records (‘Indivia’, ‘Stay Forever’,
‘The Gathering’, ‘Go Away’, ‘Virtue
And Vice’, ‘Shattered’, ‘Control
The Storm’ and ‘Pristine’). With plenty
to offer musically and a frontwoman as divinely babealicious
as Charlotte Wessels – from my spot at the back
of the hall, the 22-year-old looked like a cross between
Kelly Brook and Rachel Stevens – Delain are unlikely
to be a support act for much longer.
Save
for their set’s frustrating brevity (80 minutes…
WTF?!), unspectacular solo spots from guitarist Elias
Viljanen and keyboard player Henkka Klingenberg and the
fact that Tony Kakko’s vocals were all too often
drowned out by the persistent shrieking of the audience,
it’s tough to criticize Sonata Artica. Charlotte
Wessels duetted with Kakko on the golden oldie ‘Last
Drop Falls’, but the bulk of the show was pulled
from the most recent two albums, 2007’s ‘Unia’,
and the current ‘The Days Of Grace’. Nobody
seemed to complain – far from it; the Finns seem
to inspire a hysterical devotion. Next time they’ll
be back somewhere far bigger. Here’s the set-list:
‘Flag In The Ground’, ‘Paid In Full’,
‘Caleb’, ‘The Last Amazing Grays’,
‘As If The World Wasn't Ending’, ‘Total
Eclipse Of The Heart (Excerpt)’, ‘Last Drop
Falls’, ‘Juliet’, Keyboard Solo, Guitar
Solo, ‘Replica’ and ‘8th Commandment’,
with encores of ‘In Black & White’ and
a medley of ‘Don't Say A Word’/‘Everything
Fades To Gray’.
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Thursday
3rd December
The
news that next year Opeth will undertake a special mini-tour
to celebrate their 20th anniversary caused me, in the
parlance of Bo Selecta, to emit “a little sex-wee”.
I mean, come on… two sets? The whole of their classic
‘Blackwater Park’ album?! At the Royal Albert
Hall??!! So my heart skipped a beat upon opening the desk
diary to jot down the date of April 5,only to find it
clashes with Palace’s home game with Preston…
GRAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!
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Wednesday
2nd December
Yesterday was spend dashing around like a blue-arsed
fly. My day finally finished far later than expected after
a bout of phone tag with Chip Z’Nuff from Enuff
Z’Nuff. Chip thought I was calling him at 12 o’clock
midnight to discuss his band’s upcoming UK tour
with Faster Pussycat. I’d been told to ring at midday
and kept getting his voicemail. Got hold of him in the
end, though, as confirmed by this link to the Classic
Rock website. Earlier in the day I also had a chance
to chat to Stryper guitarist Oz Fox, quotes from which
can be viewed here.
P.S.
The Playlist and YouTube
sections have been given their monthly updates.
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Tuesday
1st December
Like
all those lucky enough to have seen Vain opening for Sebastian
Bach-era Skid Row back in the day, I’ve retained
an extremely soft spot for the San Franciscan sleaze-metal
combo. Sadly, at last night’s Camden Underworld
gig they blew hot and cold despite airing most of 1989’s
classic ‘No Respect’ debut, and whilst Davy
Vain retains one of the most identifiable voices in rock,
also having kept it in good shape, there was **way** too
much superfluous between-song banter. For me, Davy’s
smugly-delivered and yawn-inducing soliloquies upon subjects
such as soaping up tits in the shower (his own, oddly…)
only served to undermine what would otherwise have a been
a pretty good night. Here’s what they played: ‘Secrets’,
‘Love Drug’, ‘Push Me Over’, ‘Down
For The Third Time’, ‘Icy’, ‘Who´s
Watching You’, ‘Smoke And Shadows’,
‘Free’, ‘1000 Degrees’, ‘No
Respect’ and ‘Beat The Bullet’, with
encores of ‘Breakdown’ and ‘Ready’.
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