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Tonight is an early anticipated gig by many people I speak to. An opportunity to see their band in a great small venue, as opposed the stadia of previous tours. The mixed crowd of rockers and mid-twenty somethings are buzzing and excited to be here, in a packed Civic Hall - tonight we’re here to see Incubus. |
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Is post hardcore (for the tidy purposes of this review let’s make the sweeping generalisation that all of tonight’s band were/are post hardcore) the new jazz? I only ask ‘cos there was plenty of head nodding and beard stroking going on this evening and, like jazz, the music itself has a similar level of complexity that you either get or...well...don’t. |
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It specifically said on the flyer, ‘Emma Scott Presents...’ Well, I looked high and low at the Hare and couldn’t find her anywhere! A promise more honoured in the breech than the observance, me thinks. Honestly! |
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The downgrading of this gig from the Institute to The Rainbow was a blessing in disguise. The graffitied walls, dirty concrete floor, exposed rafters and numerous obstacles for people to climb up or hang off makes The Rainbow the perfect venue for tonight’s show. |
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First up tonight are the tech metallers of Visions; but it's an early set and cold crowd, they really have their work cut out for them. Unfortunately the sound for these guys is very muddy, and despite hands moving as fast as lightening over the frets, there's nothing but a low rumble and the pounding drums to be heard. |
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For the discerning Deathcore enthusiast, there was no hotter ticket in town than this show, and within the half hour between doors and opening band the tight confines of the Academy III was rapidly filled with rabid fans eager to get their mosh on. |
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We’re pampered, invitation only, guests at St. Paul’s Gallery. Hosting a hallowed collection of iconic limited edition portrait album covers and associated Rock/film ephemera it seems a fitting venue from which to launch West Midlands based Isolated Atoms’ debut single, ‘Play’. |
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Pretty busy here at the HMV Institute as we wait for the new emerging talent of Imelda May to appear on stage. Still lovin’ the HMV Institute as a venue - you can clearly see the stage wherever you stand. |
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With a studied introspection possibly brought about by having to wear his Nan’s Christmas present cardigan, Brum’s I is Cinema’s lead singer, Dominic, presents an ambivalence that equally might convey total indifference and/or an agonised wrestling with his tortured muse. |
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As Imelda May took to the stage, to maybe an unknowing audience, I was certain that she, if anyone, could win over such a dedicated fan base as Meat Loaf has. And she sure did just that. Giving her take on rockabilly to a packed house, hits such as Psycho and Mayhem rang out in triumph. |
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With a suspiciously fey band name it shouldn’t come as a too much of a surprise to see frontman/guitar David Martin sporting a face-hugger full-set beard/moustache and, intriguingly, a naval lieutenant’s blazer. |
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There’s something big happening at the Academy tonight. Not every gig would you expect to see three identical Austrian registered double-decker tour buses, two identical Swiss registered container trucks and a cherry picker parked at the rear of the venue. Anyone would have thought there was an American Idol performing… |
