It’s been an exciting month for the fans of Brian Fallon with the release of his remarkable new solo record Sleepwalkers and the anticipation to hear these songs performed live for the first time on his upcoming UK tour only grew stronger. Seeing all the fantastic responses from the first two shows at Kingston and Birmingham, I was buzzing as I jumped on a train to Manchester early Wednesday morning, ready to see Fallon doing his thing in one of my favourite music cities. I have seen the man perform on many occasions with The Gaslight Anthem as well as The Horrible Crowes, but what happened at The Ritz on Wednesday night was certainly one of the most memorable shows Brian has put on.
Swedish masters of melodic rock H.E.A.T kicked off their 4-date UK tour last Friday at The Garage in London and honestly, I feel truly sorry for anyone who was not a part of this incredible night.
Some of you my friends have heard of The Revival Tour, some of you haven’t, so let me tell you something about it and why every music lover should experience this wonderful musical event.
The Revival Tour is about a bunch of great musicians/songwriters hitting the road together and bringing people a real musical experience. It’s about sharing music in an old fashioned way, a collaboration of great artists who come to our towns to remind us what real music is about.
Chuck Ragan (Hot Water Music), whom you’ll never miss on The Revival Tour, came up with the idea of this event about 5 years ago, and it’s had a great success in America, UK and Europe since, gaining more and more followers each year. There have been many great artists involved in the past, including Frank Turner, Dave Hause, Brian Fallon of The Gaslight Anthem or Dan Andriano of The Alkaline Trio…
But this years line up has been as outstanding as the previous ones. The Revival Tour came to Brighton and I was there, happily enjoying and absorbing each moment of it. Chuck Ragan was joined by his good friends – Joe Ginsberg and Jon Gaunt, as well as an American singer/songwriter Cory Branan, Australia’s Emily Barker, Canada’s Jay Malinowski (Bedouin Soundclash) and Texan Rocky Votolato. Each one of these artists put on a beautiful performance and each one of them brought something original to this event. They joined each other on the stage, wholeheartedly sang each others songs as well as their own, and gave the audience an unforgettable and truly unique experience. Their humble and gracious approach to people was inspiring and it was really good to see, that there are artists out there, who care to come out and give us – music lovers, something to remind us why we actually love music.
True words written by Jonah Bayer: ‘There really is no other experience like the Revival Tour.’
The Revival Tour will be back in the UK in November, so make sure to check the links below for more info!
Whales in Cubicles have released their new single Nowhere Flag on 6th of August, and with this kind of occasion, there usually comes a single launch party. The special event took place last Thursday at the Hoxton Bar and Kitchen in London, and of course we were there.
I’ve seen the band perform a couple of times before this year, but this time, they were not the supporting band.
This show was all about Whales in Cubicles. And what a show it was.
In June, the band went to Wales to record their debut album, that is set for release in early 2013 and we simply cannot wait for it!
The Hoxton Bar and Kitchen was full of friendly and relaxed atmosphere. After having a couple of drinks and grabbing a few WIC cd’s at the merch stand, we headed inside to watch the first support act, a London based duo Shuga. A perfect start with music that’s powerful, moody, has a great melody and gets right under your skin as soon as you hear the mesmerizing voice of singer Emma Chitty. The great example is their track The Darkness, which you can watch here, and also check out their Facebook Page for updates. They are recording some new tracks, so watch out!
Up next was a London indie rock band Fractures. Just before they were due on stage, I was chatting to Alex from WIC, who told me how good this band was . And damn, he was right. As soon as they started playing, I exchanged a few ‘wow’ glances with my friends. In that moment, I was glad that I am one of those people, who never skip the supporting bands. Each song they played, was an instant ear catcher and the energy coming from their performance was almost hypnotic. Earlier this year, the band has released a video for their track Ride, so I urge you to go and check it out now (here) and give them a like on their Facebook Page.
After short break, we headed to the front and waited impatiently for Whales in Cubicles to come up and rock the show. I kept telling my friend, whom I took along: ‘If you think the first two bands were good, just wait for this.’
Proudly wearing a WIC t-shirt and cheering loudly with the rest of the crowd, we watched as the band came up on stage and kicked off their set with the guitar packed Never and Ever. And the guys sounded better than ever!
They were receiving well deserved love from the crowd, among which were their families, close friends and fans. We got to hear some great new tracks like OCD, Tired, Daphne and Wax and Feathers, that surely made us even more excited for the upcoming album. The favourites, We Never Win and the song we were all celebrating – Nowhere Flag went down extremely well with the whole audience singing along. The good old rough Golden Metal followed, after which the band closed this fantastic gig with my personal favourite, Across America.
Whales in Cubicles gave us their best show yet and I was very proud and happy to be there and support them. They are on the way to big things and this is only the start. They are about to make it as a band with a great message, passion, big heart and most importantly, cracking music.
Go and catch them live in September in Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, Northampton and Reading! Details here.
When you keep hearing amazing things about your favourite band’s live performances and you haven’t got a chance to see them yet yourself; it’s quite painful.
The Gaslight Anthem’s music has been blasting out my stereo and cheering me up with their lively punk/rock sound ever since I got to discover this brilliant group from New Jersey. The dream to see them perform live has been growing with time so when I found out they were going to do a special show at KoKo, which must be one of the greatest venues in London and promote their upcoming album Handwritten (out in July), I simply told myself that this time I will get to see them no matter what.
The tickets for the show were sold out in a blink of an eye and I am so happy that this time it was clearly meant to be that I finally got to see Brian Fallon and the rest on stage rocking away all my favourite tracks.
Brian Fallon is one musician I truly admire and everything he’s done so far is incredible and inspiring. So when you know you’re about to see someone whose music means so much to you in reality; it’s the most amazing feeling ever.
After releasing their new single 45, followed by an official video for the track (watch below), there has been a great buzz and impatience to finally experience the promised special event at KoKo.
And what am I about to write is an experience from one of the best gigs I have ever been to.
TGA have chosen their support act very well. A Stockholm based band Twopointeight opened the show in a big style with their punk/rock music packed with loud guitars and strong vocals. Highly energetic performance and a really good stage presentation must be credited to these guys. They really kicked off the great atmosphere and received a well deserved cheering from the audience. Check out their music on their Facebook Page!
After getting impatient and really excited as the big moment was about to come, The Gaslight Anthem finally appeared on stage opening the set with Great Expectations. A great song to get the party going in the crowd.
We had a really good spot on the balcony, just at the front so we could see the whole stage and the audience perfectly. The connection between the two was getting stronger as We Came to Dance, Casanova, Baby!, Old White Lincoln and The Diamond Church Street Choir followed. Brian Fallon kept dancing and jumping around the stage with a smile on his face and giving the crowd what they came for. A true legendary performance.
The air was filled with such a happy and uplifting vibe with people of all ages chanting to each one of the songs.
The time has come for the band to perform their new single 45, proving that the upcoming album Handwritten will be with no doubt another fantastic record to add to our TGA collection.
The band carried on with some early days tracks like I’da Called You Woody, Joe or Angry Johnny and the Radio followed by Even Cowgirls Get The Blues, one of the evening’s highlights – Old Haunts, Drive, Blue Jeans & White T-Shirts and Film Noir.
Probably one of the most epic and memorable moments came just after performing Wherefore Art Thou, Elvis? when Brian disappeared off the stage and shortly after appeared on top of the balcony, daringly climbing through and leaning down towards the crowd while all of us watched in shock as he jumped onto people’s raised arms! We all stared in awe as he was raised up and passed around, trying to get back to the front and after being successful in doing so, he acknowledged everyone that he is ok by raising and waving his arms around in the air. It was one of the craziest wow moments which surely won’t be forgotten by any of us or Brian himself. Watch the whole moment here at the 3:15 mark!
Getting back on stage, Brian and the band simply carried on rocking with Wooderson. At this point I knew this was about to become one of the greatest gigs I have ever experienced. The relationship between the band and the crowd grew so strong as both naturally fell in love with each other. It was one happy place to be.
Brian took on a cover and gave us a heartfelt vocal-killing performance of House Of The Rising Sun (The Animals cover). After the famous American Slang, a truly special moment happened as one of my favourite songs of all time Here’s Looking At You Kid was performed and I just stood there taking in every second and every emotion of it.
The Backseat was supposed to be the last track but of course it wasn’t. We knew they will be back on stage as we all cheered.
The encore consisted of 5 more tracks: She Loves You, Biloxi Parish, The Queen of Lower Chelsea, ‘59 Sound and the closing track that left us all speechless was The Who’s cover of Baba O’Riley.
I knew that seeing The Gaslight Anthem live will be a spectacular moment for me. But it was so much more than I imagined. The performance and personality of the band left me speechless.
But now, I had to share the experience and feelings from such a magic night with the world.
Even the band classed this show as one of their top 5 ever! And I am so happy I was part of it.
The Gaslight Anthem will be back in the UK this fall. If you’re reading this and you haven’t seen them live yet, get your tickets as soon as they become available. I know I will. If I’m that lucky again.
Music Gets Me By 