Muse - Metro Arena, Newcastle (19/11/2006)

We hauled ourselves out of bed, checked out, eventually found a Wetherspoons for breakfast (note to self, locate nearest Spoon's to hotel BEFORE leaving home), went to Fopp to spend far too much money and then felt ready to hit the road back down South. We arrived in Newcastle around 5pm, and ended up in Zizzi's for a pizza - great food, appalling service. We decided to park behind the Academy and walk down to the Arena as it was cheaper and would probably be easier to get out of after the gig, so this we did and then followed the crowds to the Metro Arena.

It's not bad for an arena. A nice, spacious entrance hall, plenty of food, drink and merch stalls. I don't normally buy band t-shirts, but Darren offered so I picked a lovely black & white striped one (I normally object on fairtrade grounds, but these are made by Continental who apparently are sweat shop free, so that's good!). Of course, only one stall took credit cards - inevitably it had the longest queue and a £1.50 charge, but it wasn't as long as the queue for the £1.75 cash machine, so not all bad.

After seeing a video of Muse live we decided to go for the easy option and buy seated tickets. We were second block away from the stage, so we had a pretty good view. Support was provided by the Noisettes, who were late taking to the stage and who the less said about the better. They were pretty awful.

I wasn't sure how much I'd enjoy this gig. I love Muse's latest album Black Holes & Revelations (BH&R), but I'm less keen on some of their earlier stuff. I also wasn't sure how much I'd know, how many singles they would perform or whether they would do many album tracks. I needn't have worried as I recognised virtually every song they played! However, I'm a bit hazy as to which title relates to which song which has made this reviewing lark a bit difficult!

They opened with the first track from BH&R, Take A Bow with it's powerful, "you will burn in hell" lyric. The previously hidden stage set included the most elaborate drum riser I've ever seen and a large video backdrop on which either animation or live, often treated footage of the band was shown. I was surprised by how many anthemic, almost sing-alongable songs there were, most notably Starlight, Invincible, and Time Is Running Out. Supermassive Black Hole had a brilliant video starring some dancing robots, and Matt Bellamy had a full-on rock star moment at the end of Stockholm Syndrome (I think), dropping his guitar on the floor, pulling the amp on top, lying on the amp and promptly falling over the back of the riser!

As heavy as they are, there is a precision in Muse's music that is unusual among the genre. I'm pretty sure that Matt Bellamy has a knowledge of classical music, it's certainly evident in his piano playing. Even when his guitar is laden with effects, there is still a classical feel to the way he plays. I was also amazed by the playing of the other two members, especially drummer Dominic Howard. Like Gomez the night before, this is a band with immense technical ability.

We were certainly glad of our seats! The floor looked a bit crazy for swaying and crowd-surfing! The sound was excellent for an arena, and the lightshow complemented the music perfectly.

After Bliss closed the first encore, six massive balloons were floated into the back of the arena. One by one, they started to pop - by the time the last one went the audience were heavily involved, disappointed sighs when they landed and didn't pop, cheers when they did. Witht he last balloon the second encore started, with one of my favourite songs from BH&R, Hoodoo. The final song of the night was the incredible Knights Of Cydonia. Believe me, when you're singing the following with 11,000 it's an amazing feeling:

No-one's going to take me alive
Time has come to make things right
You and I must fight for our rights
You and I must fight to survive

Then the crowd REALLY started jumping. The entire floor, moving up and down together. It was an incredible sight from our vantage point. As the band rounded off the song and the show, jets of steam sprayed up from the stage. And I suddenly realised that I had enjoyed the show so much, I hadn't wondered what the time was once (which is rare for me!).

Although I'm not sure if I'd go to see Muse again. It was almost so perfect, another gig would take away from the experience.

Setlist
Take A Bow
Hysteria
New Born
Butterflies and Hurricanes
Assassin
Map of the Problematique
Starlight
Invincible
Forced In
Time Is Running Out
Plug in Baby
Supermassive Black Hole
Stockholm Syndrome
-------------------------
Apocalypse Please
Bliss
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Hoodoo
Knights of Cydonia

Gomez - Barrowlands, Glasgow (17/11/2006)

I've been following Gomez for quite a long time now, and seen a fair few of their live shows. Having missed them earlier in the year and seen a far-too-short set at V Festival in August I was determined to catch them while they were over here promoting their new Best Of release. Unfortunately they decided not to play anywhere near me so it was a choice between the two Saturday nights - Glasgow or Newcastle-Under-Lyme. I've heard great things about Barrowlands, so Glasgow it was.

We arrived at our hotel around 3.30pm, checked in, and went to a nearby Scream bar for a drink. At 5pm, we thought we'd better look for something to eat. It was absolutely pouring with rain, so we thought we'd make our way to the venue and hope to see somewhere on the way. We ended up in Tiger Tiger - the food was ok, but over-priced. Fed and watered, we made our way in the still-pouring rain to Barrowlands.

I think we got there about 10 minutes after the doors opened. Barrowlands is a confusing place, but we managed to put our coats in the cloakroom, buy a T-shirt and a limited edition poster (on thick card, thanks to the merch guy for looking after it during the gig!) and grab a drink before making our way up to the stage area. We were amazed that we managed to bag a front row spot, right in front of where Tom would be playing. Maybe it was the rain, maybe it was the smoking ban, but we were more than happy with this vantage point.

The Barrowlands is an old ballroom dancing hall. It holds about 2000, and it's quite square which I imagine gives a good view for all. Support was provided by Josh Ritter, an American singer/songwriter who looked like he was having far too much fun! He obviously had some fans in the crowd, but his enthusiasm was infectious and we very much enjoyed his set.

By the time Gomez came on the hall had filled up, althought we still felt like we had plenty of breathing space (in my experience Gomez gigs can get quite rowdy!). California from Liquid Skin was an unusually quiet opener, but the song picks up pace towards the end and was followed by uptempo number Shot Shot and Love Is Better Than A Warm Trombone. It was a fantastic setlist drawn from across their career. Personal highlights included the beautiful Free To Run, We Haven't Turned Around and an amazing extended version of How We Operate.

During the course of the gig the band often swapped instruments - for example, guitarists Ben Ottewell and Ian Ball would join Dajon Everett on his percussion or play Tom Gray's keyboards while Tom plays guitar. Ben, Ian and Tom share vocal duties - Ben and Ian often performing in a more insular way while Tom is happy to conduct the crowd. The combination of personalities and the lack of one single "lead singer" makes it feel like more of a group effort, and gives a wonderful balance of fun with the amazing technical abilities of all 6 members.

There was probably only one lowlight - some drunk bloke singing very loudly and very out-of-tune in my ear during the quiet instrumental section of Charley Patton Songs. Otherwise the crowd were friendly and incredibly loud - the roar of appreciation at the end was deafening! Enforcing the smoking ban obviously meant more interference from security than usual, but it didn't detract too much from the performance (and it was fantastic to come out of a gig NOT stinking of smoke!). The sound quality was excellent, and I can fully understand why Barrowlands has been voted the second best venue in the world by bands.

The main set finished with the manic Whippin' Piccadilly, and the encores were three more classics from the first two albums, finishing with one of my personal favourites Devil Will Ride. And it was all over, far too soon. I could watch Gomez play for hours and not get bored. They are possibly the best live band on the planet at the moment, criminally ignored here in their home country. Go see.

Setlist
California
Shot Shot
Love Is Better Than A Warm Trombone
See The World
Hamoa Beach
Free To Run
Blue Moon Rising
Notice
Get Myself Arrested
How We Operate
Ruff Stuff
Ping One Down
Silence
Charley Patton Songs
Girlshapedlovedrug
We Haven't Turned Around
Whippin' Piccadilly
----------------------------
Make No Sound
Fill My Cup
Devil Will Ride

Hayseed Dixie - Carling Academy, Newcastle (15/11/2006)

If you have a look at my little ol' diary dates you'll notice that this week is packed full of gigs. Last night Darren picked me up straight from work and we went up to Newcastle. After getting a bit lost and eventually finding the right car park we needed to get fed. We ended up at Luigi's Ristorante on Groat Market. Absolutely fantastic. They do a "happy hour" special where you get a starter (choice of 4), any pizza or pasta dish and either ice-cream or a coffee for £5.50. We went for the potato skins and the garlic dough twists, then Darren had an arrabiata and I had the marinara. It was a good sized portion (sometimes you feel a bit cheated in happy hour), and there were loads of prawns and mussels in my dish. The meal including drinks came to £15 for the both of us - we'll definitely be going back if we get the chance.

We made it to the Academy in plenty of time for the gig. The support band were called Dark Water and they were excellent. I'm not generally into gothic emo-rock, maybe it works better live for me - I bought a sampler CD so I'll find out when I listen to it. They have a female lead singer with a lovely voice and good rapport with the audience. Heavy but melodic and passionate, very enjoyable.

I think there were a few Dark Water fans in the audience - I'm not sure what they'd have made of Hayseed Dixie! I've seen them a couple of times before at an HMV in-store and at V Festival (review here) but not for a full gig so I was a bit unsure as to whether I'd enjoy them for 2 hours. Still, it was just £12.50 a ticket, so I considered it a bargain. For the uninitiated, Hayseed Dixie are a rockgrass band. Basically they play rock classics (and a few of their original compositions) in a bluegrass style. There are four members, playing acoustic bass, banjo, mandolin and the lead singer who also plays guitar and fiddle. They set up the stage themselves, completely unpretentiously, and seem genuinely touched and amazed by the rapturous reception.

I love covers. Not your bog-standard, karaoke style covers, but I love it when someone takes a song and reinterprets it, and that's what Hayseed Dixie do. The set is largely made up of AC/DC tracks, but my favourites in their repertoire include Queen's Fat Bottomed Girls, Ace Of Spades by Motorhead, Walk This Way by Aerosmith, Black Sabbath's War Pigs and Whole Lotta Love by Led Zeppelin. Also making an appearance was the Hayseed Dixie classic I'm Keeping Your Poop to huge applause.

They went off stage for just seconds before coming back for the encore - as singer Barley Scotch says, it's somewhat arrogant for a band to go off and drink beer just to hear the crowd shout their name. They finished with their fantastic version of Green Day's Holiday and a breathtaking performance of Duelling Banjos (originally written by the father of two of the members fact fans).

The set was beautifully balanced, a couple of covers then a couple of originals, so no-one who didn't know the band could get bored. They're really good fun, totally unpretentious, and I have a feeling that if you've got the time to hang around after the show (and don't have to get up for work in the morning) you'd probably see them in the bar within ten minutes of the show finishing. Go see!

Going Backwards

It's fantastic when you see a minority group really make inroads into being more integrated into society. When you see a group of people change and adapt to the 21st century. And it's so sad to see one small thing undermine all of that. Luton Town manager Mike Newell did that this week. And it's not women that he undermined. It's men.

I'm a full advocate of freedom of speech, especially if it means people actually say these things because it proves just how stupid they really are. If someone says something racist, sexist, xenophobic or homophobic, I don't get annoyed or offended. I laugh. It makes me laugh that people really think these sorts of things.

The even funnier thing is that Mike Newell didn't try to qualify his statement or back it up with any fact. He said, "I know that sounds sexist but I am sexist." As if he wants a medal for it!

I don't know how many women support Luton Town, but I hope they make their presence felt this weekend. Women now contribute a massive amount of cash to the ever-increasing football pot. I hope none of these supporters start feeling alienated just because of this idiotic comment.

Personally I reckon women would be able to control those 22 men much better. One flicker of nonsense and she'd get the red card out, no questions. The male refs are far too soft. Hmmm, maybe I've missed my calling...

20 Glorious Years

20 years ago I was 8 years old. I had absolutely no interest in football. But something happened that would probably add a new dimension to my life. It took a few years for the seeds to grow, but Alex Ferguson's appointment as manager of Manchester United was to be a life-changing moment for me...

It was 4 years later that I started to take an interest in the beautiful game. Back in the days when they used to show games every week on normal telly, my dad would watch and I found I actually enjoyed watching. The FA Cup Final seemed somehow magical, although I didn't really know why. I decided that I'd support whoever won. After a replay Manchester United were victorious and my fate was sealed.

I flirted with Spurs, especially when my dad took me to White Hart Lane for my first ever football match and I met Gazza and Gary Lineker. But it was never quite right. In my heart I was still cheering "United!" and enjoying their wins in the European Cup Winners Cup and League Cup. When they won the first Premier League in 1993, it was a truly joyous feeling. Even though I hadn't experienced the 26 years between League titles, I could still feel the relief of finally winning.

Eric Cantona was my hero. Still is. You can keep your Viera's, your Zidanes and your Henrys, Eric IS the greatest French footballer that the world has ever seen. He just added the final spark that was needed to fire up the great Red trophy winning machine. He won us the two Doubles, and inspired the team that won the Treble in 1999. I always thought it was a shame he never stuck around for that one...

Winning the Premiership doesn't get any less exciting the more you do it, although the ones that go down to the wire are always the most fun. Pipping Newcastle and Kevin Keegan is one of my favourite moments, listening to the commentary on the radio because we never had Sky. But cup finals are something else entirely. Knowing that it's a one-off, one slip up will cost you the title. Losing the FA Cup to a penalty in 1995, and losing again in a penalty shoot-out in 2005 hurts. But it makes the winning all the sweeter. Those last few minutes against Bayern Munich in 1999 will live forever in my memory. It was just the most amazing, ecstatic feeling.

I went to Old Trafford after that victory to join in the parade and the celebrations. I've never had the chance or the privilege of seeing Manchester United's first team live, but I have been to Old Trafford for a few England games. And the strange thing is, it feels like home. I've been to other football stadiums, but it's never the same as the warm fuzzy feeling I get at Old Trafford. People always throw criticism at me, saying I should support a club nearer to home or that I'm not a true supporter because I don't go to games. Have you ever tried getting tickets for Man Utd games? They're like gold dust! As for local teams, when you grow up in Essex there really aren't that many local teams! I've been following Colchester's excellent progress though, and I've been to Victoria Park to support Hartlepool a couple of times too. But my heart is in Old Trafford, and Old Trafford alone. After 16 years, I couldn't possibly change allegiance.

And so to a more local team for me in Southend. It looks like Sir Alex is taking this one a bit more seriously after the last gasp at Crewe a few weeks ago. It's a bit strange for my club to be playing one so close to where I'm from, but I'm definitely more of a Colchester supporter so beating Southend shouldn't be too much of a hardship for me! I hope that we can round off an excellent anniversary for Sir Alex, what with the league results all going our way last weekend. The man has achieved so much, you can't help but admire him.

I suppose ultimately I want to thank him. Manchester United have provided me with so much happiness over the last 16 years. Sometimes I think, if things had gone the other way I could have been a Crystal Palace supporter! And for rescuing me from that fate I am truly grateful.

I can't imagine the club without him, although we all know it will happen one day. Hopefully not too soon. Here's to another 20 years!