It's not a good time of the year to be pulling pranks on a train, but that was what happened last night when I was waiting outside the venue. It didn't affect me, directly but a mate who was going to the gig also (and for whom I had the ticket) was detained by a daft kid who decided to pull the emergency brake some distance from Liverpool. That caused a l-o-o-o-n-g delay, and as I did not have my phone on me that night (sod's law, the one time you forget to take it, something happens!) I could only guess at the problem while shivering my extremities on a rather cold December night.
As a result, we missed Wolfsbane who, with their full original line-up including Blaze, were supporting. I would have liked to see them but it will have to be another time, if they keep it going. We only just made it in time for the headline band and the lower floor of the Academy was very full. (Local heroes Echo & The Bunnymen were also playing at the larger upstairs part, so the place was very busy this night.)
The Quireboys opened with 'Mayfair', one of their really old songs that even pre-dates the 'A Bit of What You Fancy' album, which this tour is celebrating. After a few newer songs then, the band proceeded to deliver every track from that album in the correct sequence. It went down great with this crowd, many of whom were probably of a similar age to myself and when singer Spike mentioned the club 'Stairways' in Birkenhead, he got a bigger cheer than perhaps he bargained for (!) It's his down-to-earth charm which holds the crowd in thrall, you cannot help but like the guy. When it comes to singing, his voice is a little more gravelly even than it was 20 years ago, but it is strongly imbued with passion; he is a soul singer in a rock 'n' roll band. It's that quality which makes him so compelling live, when delivering ballads such as 'I Don't Love You Any More' you really believe in it. Between songs, of course, he is cracking jokes and revelling in the crowd banter.
It's as well he connects so well with the crowd, since I reckon most of us couldn't see him properly! I was about two-thirds of the way back and could only see glimpses of a red bandana; the lower floor is not too great for viewing unless you're up at the front, and it doesn't help when the crowd all appear to be tall and lanky! (I'm 5' 11" so not exactly short, even so I struggled to see!) After playing the entire 'Fancy' album they ended the main set, before the encore which included Blaze reappearing for a none-too-serious rendition of 'Sex Party'.
A lot has happened in the 20 years since that album was recorded, but for those couple of hours, it was 1990 once again. Most professional rock writers review gigs such as this with a dismissive statement: 'like Grunge never happened'. It was indeed, but that, in the opinion of this unprofessional writer, is far from a bad thing. Excellent gig and it's great to see Spike and his mates still enjoying themselves.
Saturday, 19 December 2009
Sunday, 13 December 2009
Caught Live: Dragonforce, o2 Academy Liverpool 12 December 2009
I'm kinda confused after watching this gig from the UK-based 'extreme power metallers'; on the one hand, playing the way they do with such intensity and precision really takes some doing but on the other, it's all a bit one-dimensional, if you know one song you know the set. On top of that, they actually acknowledge it - as demonstrated by guitarist/songwriter/stage clown Sam Totman, when telling the audience 'they (the songs) all sound the same anyway!' He and fellow speed-shredder Herman Li were ribbing one another all night, when not swapping hyperspeed lead solos they were taking the mick out of one another between songs!
The impression that they leave me with is that of extremely talented musicians 'slumming it' playing Power Metal; there is no question that these two can really play (especially Li, without doubt the star of the band even over vocalist ZP Theart) but that they just regard a Dragonforce gig as a platform to show off. It's kinda like when an old-school Metal band lets the guitarist take a solo while the rest of the band go off stage, except they just solo all night while the rest of the band stay on stage and bash away behind them! They are surely capable of more than whammy bar dive-bombing and sweep-picking - it's just that this is all we are treated to.
Totman is perceived as the clown, he often takes swigs from beer cans (left on the mike stands for him to grasp at various points) or pulls faces, and jumps about while Li takes the solo, but is always in place to take his own turn when it comes. They'd like the crowd to think they're just goofing around, but you cannot play that way without a lot of practice. Their drummer (Dave Mackintosh) left me gaping open-mouthed; song after song it was badda-badda-bam-bam-bam - not just fast playing but hard fast playing! How he kept that up for the entire set is beyond my comprehension, how he does that night after night especially so! If you can imagine Usain Bolt running the way he does for 100 metres, but being able to keep that going for 10000 metres instead, that's how hard I imagine that to be! Not forgetting bassist Frédéric Leclercq and keyboard player Vadim Pruzhanov, both were up at the front frequently alongside the guitarists and the singer, all competing for the spotlight and the crowd.
Maybe that's their appeal, it is not so much a live gig as a race to see who can be the fastest!
They are incredible players live, but they have little concept of 'light and shade'. It's 'light and even more light' with these fellas! Consequently one song seemed to run into another, when Totman mockingly threatened that the band would not be playing 'Through The Fire and Flames' (their best-known song) it hardly mattered. Almost all their songs are like that, it was a genuine shock to the system when they slowed it down in the fourth song (briefly!) So, even if they had not played it (of course they did - in the encore when joined by what looked like the support band and all their crew) a casual observer wouldn't have noticed and probably thought that they had!
The guitars were dominating the sound to the point where I couldn't always hear vocalist ZP Theart properly, he is a good singer and would probably flourish in another band where he could express himself. As it is, he's totally overshadowed by the Li/Totman antics.
Consqeuently then, I'm not sure whether I enjoyed the gig or not - they strike me as just playing like that 'for the lulz' (to use awful internet terminology). You can't see how they would evolve from this style, they're painted into a corner. And they're far too talented to stay in the corner forever.
I only caught the end of support Sabaton; the Swedish metallers went down great with the early attendees although what I heard sounded very much like Priest/Maiden influenced Metal. I'd probably give them another go if they're around again though, since two songs isn't really enough to assess them with. However, hearing just one Dragonforce number will tell you all what they're about!
The impression that they leave me with is that of extremely talented musicians 'slumming it' playing Power Metal; there is no question that these two can really play (especially Li, without doubt the star of the band even over vocalist ZP Theart) but that they just regard a Dragonforce gig as a platform to show off. It's kinda like when an old-school Metal band lets the guitarist take a solo while the rest of the band go off stage, except they just solo all night while the rest of the band stay on stage and bash away behind them! They are surely capable of more than whammy bar dive-bombing and sweep-picking - it's just that this is all we are treated to.
Totman is perceived as the clown, he often takes swigs from beer cans (left on the mike stands for him to grasp at various points) or pulls faces, and jumps about while Li takes the solo, but is always in place to take his own turn when it comes. They'd like the crowd to think they're just goofing around, but you cannot play that way without a lot of practice. Their drummer (Dave Mackintosh) left me gaping open-mouthed; song after song it was badda-badda-bam-bam-bam - not just fast playing but hard fast playing! How he kept that up for the entire set is beyond my comprehension, how he does that night after night especially so! If you can imagine Usain Bolt running the way he does for 100 metres, but being able to keep that going for 10000 metres instead, that's how hard I imagine that to be! Not forgetting bassist Frédéric Leclercq and keyboard player Vadim Pruzhanov, both were up at the front frequently alongside the guitarists and the singer, all competing for the spotlight and the crowd.
Maybe that's their appeal, it is not so much a live gig as a race to see who can be the fastest!
They are incredible players live, but they have little concept of 'light and shade'. It's 'light and even more light' with these fellas! Consequently one song seemed to run into another, when Totman mockingly threatened that the band would not be playing 'Through The Fire and Flames' (their best-known song) it hardly mattered. Almost all their songs are like that, it was a genuine shock to the system when they slowed it down in the fourth song (briefly!) So, even if they had not played it (of course they did - in the encore when joined by what looked like the support band and all their crew) a casual observer wouldn't have noticed and probably thought that they had!
The guitars were dominating the sound to the point where I couldn't always hear vocalist ZP Theart properly, he is a good singer and would probably flourish in another band where he could express himself. As it is, he's totally overshadowed by the Li/Totman antics.
Consqeuently then, I'm not sure whether I enjoyed the gig or not - they strike me as just playing like that 'for the lulz' (to use awful internet terminology). You can't see how they would evolve from this style, they're painted into a corner. And they're far too talented to stay in the corner forever.
I only caught the end of support Sabaton; the Swedish metallers went down great with the early attendees although what I heard sounded very much like Priest/Maiden influenced Metal. I'd probably give them another go if they're around again though, since two songs isn't really enough to assess them with. However, hearing just one Dragonforce number will tell you all what they're about!
Saturday, 12 December 2009
Caught Live: The Answer, o2 Academy Liverpool 10 December 2009
Midway through this gig, the Answer's frontman Cormac Neeson urges the audience to tell their friends that this show was the "best one they've ever seen, whether or not you believe that yourselves!" I wouldn't go quite THAT far (in actual fact, the best show I saw this year was AC/DC, who were supported by The Answer), but it certainly was an excellent gig.
It's been too long since the Downpatrick lads were in Liverpool; their star has steadily risen in the past three years and tonight saw them play the larger upstairs room at the o2 Academy. When they were here last, they packed out the downstairs and it looked to be a similarly-sized crowd here. Although they did not pack the larger place out this time, those present made a lot of noise and gave enthusiastic support to the guys. The set contained many numbers from the 'Everyday Demons' album alongside selected favourites from debut album 'Rise'. Shamefully, I only got the new album at the gig so I've yet to hear it properly (!) but based on the live performance, it promises to be another goodie. I do feel the band are better suited to a live setting than they are on record; 'Rise' felt a little bit over-produced to me whereas the same songs performed live just kicked that bit harder.
Watching them play again after a prolonged break (apart from the short set I saw them give in Manchester, opening for AC/DC) illustrated how they have stepped up a gear; although they were always powerful live, there's that sense of maturity in the band now; Neeson has the audience in his pocket from first song to last. The real improvement for me though comes with the rhythm section; both drummer James Heatley and bassist Micky Waters are rock-solid, the latter fills in beautifully behind lead guitarist Paul Mahon. Watching them made me think of a far more aggressive version of Free, they are steeped in the same blues tradition as Kossoff and co but they interpret it in a much harder way.
A year on the road playing the big arenas with Angus & Co. has transformed the band; no longer are they just another group of young hopefuls, now they are the finished article, an accomplished live act ready to inherit the mantle of the UK's best rock band. The crowd present tonight will certainly pass on how great this band are; they may not say it was the best show they've ever seen but it was definitely enough to ensure that when they tour again, they'll have yet more along for the ride.
I look forward to seeing the band headline at the Echo Arena in a couple of years time - Sláinte!
It's been too long since the Downpatrick lads were in Liverpool; their star has steadily risen in the past three years and tonight saw them play the larger upstairs room at the o2 Academy. When they were here last, they packed out the downstairs and it looked to be a similarly-sized crowd here. Although they did not pack the larger place out this time, those present made a lot of noise and gave enthusiastic support to the guys. The set contained many numbers from the 'Everyday Demons' album alongside selected favourites from debut album 'Rise'. Shamefully, I only got the new album at the gig so I've yet to hear it properly (!) but based on the live performance, it promises to be another goodie. I do feel the band are better suited to a live setting than they are on record; 'Rise' felt a little bit over-produced to me whereas the same songs performed live just kicked that bit harder.
Watching them play again after a prolonged break (apart from the short set I saw them give in Manchester, opening for AC/DC) illustrated how they have stepped up a gear; although they were always powerful live, there's that sense of maturity in the band now; Neeson has the audience in his pocket from first song to last. The real improvement for me though comes with the rhythm section; both drummer James Heatley and bassist Micky Waters are rock-solid, the latter fills in beautifully behind lead guitarist Paul Mahon. Watching them made me think of a far more aggressive version of Free, they are steeped in the same blues tradition as Kossoff and co but they interpret it in a much harder way.
A year on the road playing the big arenas with Angus & Co. has transformed the band; no longer are they just another group of young hopefuls, now they are the finished article, an accomplished live act ready to inherit the mantle of the UK's best rock band. The crowd present tonight will certainly pass on how great this band are; they may not say it was the best show they've ever seen but it was definitely enough to ensure that when they tour again, they'll have yet more along for the ride.
I look forward to seeing the band headline at the Echo Arena in a couple of years time - Sláinte!
Tuesday, 8 December 2009
Caught Live: Hard Rock Hell (Saturday) Pontin's, Prestatyn, Wales 5 December 2009
Before I go any further it's time for a correction: the Hard Rock Hell event actually commenced Thursday night so the previous blog should really refer to the second night, even if it was my first night there! Anyway, the Saturday was the third and final day/night in Prestatyn, and my second trip into Gogledd Cymru* in as many nights.
As I was being driven this time (I drove the night before) we'd arranged to meet up early evening. As we were coming from different places, it would have been difficult to get there during the day. Anyway, by the time we got to the resort and headed back to the main stage, we caught the end of Rogue Male's set. Based on the one song I heard (Crazy Motorcycle) it sounded loud, proud and ultra-heavy! They're a band I only gave fleeting attention to back in the 1980s but this rendition kicked ass! We then decamped to the second stage in order to catch a few numbers from another 80s band, Demon. They had a pretty dismal crowd for their set, to be honest, as they ran through their old back catalogue including 'Night Of The Demon' and 'The Plague'. A little unfair, as they were giving a decent account of themselves, but their set clashed with that of W.A.S.P. over on the main stage. So we left them after three numbers, and found the floor at the main stage completely and utterly packed out! It seemed like the entire HRH crowd had decided to come over for Blackie and his crew's set, so we were obliged to watch from the sides where the merchandise stalls were and see as best as we could. Considering only Blackie Lawless himself is left from the 80s band, that has to be considered a personal triumph for the W.A.S.P. mainman. They played plenty of the old favourites including 'L.O.V.E. Machine' and 'Blind In Texas' alongside some newer songs, and although only one of the band was an original it really felt like 1986 all over again. They played great, went down a storm and probably were the talking point of the entire weekend. Superb.
Queensryche were the designated 'headline' act for the night and were up next on stage, but once W.A.S.P. had finished there was a total exodus from the main hall. Before they came on we decided to see what was going on over on the second stage, and caught the last number from Onslaught. That also took me back, but high-speed thrash long since lost its appeal to me and we quickly headed back for the Seattle prog-metallers. We had little trouble finding a nice spot in the crowd this time and we settled back as the intro tape began... then stopped again. The start was plagued by a technical problem which caused guitarist Michael Wilton to emerge, then scuttle back off stage again while they sorted it out.
After a short delay they started up again and this time all was well. They played very well, and singer Geoff Tate gave arguably the vocal performance of the entire event, but after the W.A.S.P. set they had a tough act to follow. Their more cerebral brand of rock was probably best suited to either a later slot or a different night after the pure bombast from Lawless and co. Although the vocalist declared early on he'd keep chat to a minimum, as they had a lot to get through (they played tracks from most recent album 'American Soldier' alongside material from 'Rage For Order' and 'Empire'; significantly no 'Mindcrime' stuff), he did actually talk quite a lot between songs, which didn't go down well with everyone. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt though, since those songs are tough to sing even for a vocalist of his calibre and he probably needed a short breather! They did deliver a good if shortened set, and played with the expected precision but the substantially thinner crowd told its own story: the real headliners played during the previous hour.
Following that set we once again decided to check out the other stage; another thrash act were reliving 1985 as we entered and quickly exited. They sounded almost exactly like Onslaught to me, but my moshing days are long behind me!
The last band we wanted to see this night were the New York Dolls; now although I've read plenty about them, and have seen countless bands who cited them as an influence, I'd never seen this band before nor was I particularly well-up on their material. Not that it mattered, since they looked and sounded exactly like I expected, with the frilly shirts, the hats, the posing and pouting from vocalist David Johansen and the sleazy guitar riffs from Sylvain Sylvain and Steve Conte all making up the complete trash rock experience. They managed somehow to show both how much they influenced subsequent bands and also display their own influences; you could see where Hanoi Rocks nicked their look and sound from straight off (notwithstanding the fact that one-time Hanoi bassist Sami Yaffa is now a fully-fledged Doll himself!) and you could also see how much a certain M. Jagger had influenced the stage act of Johansen. Whether or not you consider it a proper revival, considering there are more Dolls pushing up the daisies than there are kicking out the jams these days, it was an entertaining hour of sleaze from the originators (or at least two of them!)
I was ready to call it a night after the Dolls had finished, but once again there was another act to come and close out the night: Lauren Harris was last act up for this year's event. I've seen her before and was surprised when the lads I was with thought they would at least check her out, despite the fact all they knew about her was that her dad is in a very famous Metal band (!). Anyway I elected to take a 'comfort break' at that point, when I came back, she had started her set and the two guys immediately saw me and shouted 'Let's go!!' - with that we made a sharp exit!
It's fair to say I'm not a fan of Ms Harris's singing and, having sat through an entire set of hers once while she opened for another favourite band of mine, I was all too willing to make tracks.
So that was my Hard Rock Hell for 2009, given that I didn't stay on site I cannot comment on the accommodation facilites (which have been slated in some quarters!) but, when you hold a rock festival at an old-fashioned holiday camp straight out of 'Hi-de-Hi', and in the depths of Winter too, you're not gonna please everyone. Fortunately for me the site is reasonably close by and so despite that, I hope they have it here again in 2010 with more great bands!
*North Wales!
As I was being driven this time (I drove the night before) we'd arranged to meet up early evening. As we were coming from different places, it would have been difficult to get there during the day. Anyway, by the time we got to the resort and headed back to the main stage, we caught the end of Rogue Male's set. Based on the one song I heard (Crazy Motorcycle) it sounded loud, proud and ultra-heavy! They're a band I only gave fleeting attention to back in the 1980s but this rendition kicked ass! We then decamped to the second stage in order to catch a few numbers from another 80s band, Demon. They had a pretty dismal crowd for their set, to be honest, as they ran through their old back catalogue including 'Night Of The Demon' and 'The Plague'. A little unfair, as they were giving a decent account of themselves, but their set clashed with that of W.A.S.P. over on the main stage. So we left them after three numbers, and found the floor at the main stage completely and utterly packed out! It seemed like the entire HRH crowd had decided to come over for Blackie and his crew's set, so we were obliged to watch from the sides where the merchandise stalls were and see as best as we could. Considering only Blackie Lawless himself is left from the 80s band, that has to be considered a personal triumph for the W.A.S.P. mainman. They played plenty of the old favourites including 'L.O.V.E. Machine' and 'Blind In Texas' alongside some newer songs, and although only one of the band was an original it really felt like 1986 all over again. They played great, went down a storm and probably were the talking point of the entire weekend. Superb.
Queensryche were the designated 'headline' act for the night and were up next on stage, but once W.A.S.P. had finished there was a total exodus from the main hall. Before they came on we decided to see what was going on over on the second stage, and caught the last number from Onslaught. That also took me back, but high-speed thrash long since lost its appeal to me and we quickly headed back for the Seattle prog-metallers. We had little trouble finding a nice spot in the crowd this time and we settled back as the intro tape began... then stopped again. The start was plagued by a technical problem which caused guitarist Michael Wilton to emerge, then scuttle back off stage again while they sorted it out.
After a short delay they started up again and this time all was well. They played very well, and singer Geoff Tate gave arguably the vocal performance of the entire event, but after the W.A.S.P. set they had a tough act to follow. Their more cerebral brand of rock was probably best suited to either a later slot or a different night after the pure bombast from Lawless and co. Although the vocalist declared early on he'd keep chat to a minimum, as they had a lot to get through (they played tracks from most recent album 'American Soldier' alongside material from 'Rage For Order' and 'Empire'; significantly no 'Mindcrime' stuff), he did actually talk quite a lot between songs, which didn't go down well with everyone. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt though, since those songs are tough to sing even for a vocalist of his calibre and he probably needed a short breather! They did deliver a good if shortened set, and played with the expected precision but the substantially thinner crowd told its own story: the real headliners played during the previous hour.
Following that set we once again decided to check out the other stage; another thrash act were reliving 1985 as we entered and quickly exited. They sounded almost exactly like Onslaught to me, but my moshing days are long behind me!
The last band we wanted to see this night were the New York Dolls; now although I've read plenty about them, and have seen countless bands who cited them as an influence, I'd never seen this band before nor was I particularly well-up on their material. Not that it mattered, since they looked and sounded exactly like I expected, with the frilly shirts, the hats, the posing and pouting from vocalist David Johansen and the sleazy guitar riffs from Sylvain Sylvain and Steve Conte all making up the complete trash rock experience. They managed somehow to show both how much they influenced subsequent bands and also display their own influences; you could see where Hanoi Rocks nicked their look and sound from straight off (notwithstanding the fact that one-time Hanoi bassist Sami Yaffa is now a fully-fledged Doll himself!) and you could also see how much a certain M. Jagger had influenced the stage act of Johansen. Whether or not you consider it a proper revival, considering there are more Dolls pushing up the daisies than there are kicking out the jams these days, it was an entertaining hour of sleaze from the originators (or at least two of them!)
I was ready to call it a night after the Dolls had finished, but once again there was another act to come and close out the night: Lauren Harris was last act up for this year's event. I've seen her before and was surprised when the lads I was with thought they would at least check her out, despite the fact all they knew about her was that her dad is in a very famous Metal band (!). Anyway I elected to take a 'comfort break' at that point, when I came back, she had started her set and the two guys immediately saw me and shouted 'Let's go!!' - with that we made a sharp exit!
It's fair to say I'm not a fan of Ms Harris's singing and, having sat through an entire set of hers once while she opened for another favourite band of mine, I was all too willing to make tracks.
So that was my Hard Rock Hell for 2009, given that I didn't stay on site I cannot comment on the accommodation facilites (which have been slated in some quarters!) but, when you hold a rock festival at an old-fashioned holiday camp straight out of 'Hi-de-Hi', and in the depths of Winter too, you're not gonna please everyone. Fortunately for me the site is reasonably close by and so despite that, I hope they have it here again in 2010 with more great bands!
*North Wales!
Sunday, 6 December 2009
Caught Live: Hard Rock Hell (Friday) - Pontin's Prestatyn 4/12/09
For the second year running my luck was in for this event, held at a holiday centre in North Wales, not too far from Ronsterland. Last year I got to see Black Label Society (plus Clutch and others) thanks to some connections
and this year, a friend of mine won tickets to the 2009 renewal.
So it was that we headed over to Prestatyn late Friday afternoon; we were unable to leave sooner owing to commitments and we got to the main stage to find Gun already on and playing. (We'd missed Logan, unfortunately, and had no hope of catching Voodoo Johnson as I might have liked, so you'll both just have to come back to Liverpool!)
I've never seen Gun before but have seen their new singer Toby Jepson on numerous occasions; it did sometimes feel a bit like Little Angels but Toby is a fine frontman and has been accepted warmly by Gun's fans. Being an Englishman fronting a Scottish band, that in itself is worth a pat on the back (!). A pleasant hour reliving Gun's hits, then, ending of course with 'Word Up'. Quite what that song's writer (Larry Blackmon, of Cameo) may think of his song being played at a Hard Rock event, one can only guess at, but here, it was delivered well, and Toby sounded close to original vocalist Mark Rankin.
A quick 'fred durst' later, we were back in the crowd for what we thought would be Terrorvision. Instead, what looked like Steel Panther's dads emerged - I failed to recognise any of them at first and it was only when I heard the song that I twigged: it was Ratt next on the bill, not Terrorvision! A closer look at the line-up revealed former Quiet Riot guitarist Carlos Cavazo in place of the late Robbin Crosby, and as it had been 23 years since last I saw this band I had few expectations. However, I really enjoyed them! Admittedly Pearcy's vocal is not the best, (then again he never has claimed to be a Dio) but they delivered a short set full of their favourite old songs, mostly from the 'Out of the Cellar' and 'Invasion of your Privacy' albums from their mid-80s glory days. Guitarist Warren deMartini still sounds fluid and they went down very well with the crowd, probably all of whom still have the vinyl LPs in their attics (!)
A pleasant surprise, then and upon double-checking the programme, Terrorvision would follow Ratt (or should that be 'Quiet Ratt'?)
When they came out, I was surprised to see them dressed in suits (apart from drummer Shutty) - Tony Wright was looking very resplendent, as was bassist Leigh Marklew. Guitarist Mark Yates held up the rock look though, wearing suit trousers and a waistcoat with no shirt, showing numerous tattoos! The band ran through all their 90s favourites, yes, that included 'Tequila' (but played properly with the guitars intact - yah boo sucks to Zoe Ball! ) Their set was a short snappy party, Wright was unable to keep still all night, bounding around the stage with commendable energy for a forty-something! They've split and come back a few times now, if they're still capable of this kind of performance they ought to stick around a little longer this time.
Next up were the headliners and a band I'd been looking forward to seeing: Monster Magnet. I've been a fan of these 90s stoners for years but have only seen them live once before, and this promised to be a highlight of the weekend. I got a shock at the sight of vocalist Dave Wyndorf when he came onstage though; he's now a Monster by nature as well as by name! The formerly slim figure has been replaced by a seriously chubby Dave; not so much Stoner rock as 16-Stoner rock!
That said, having been through all manner of drug addictions in the past, if his present addiction is just pies, that is probably the least of his troubles! The band were still awesome, still weighty (in the right sense of the word!) and still produce a 70s-style, satisfyingly sludgy Metal sound that nobody else seems to do any more. They did a long set including an encore with (by my reckoning) 4 songs, so we got the full value here. I'd love to see more from the Magnet, even if Dave stops at every branch of Waterfield's in the UK along the way!!
The crowd had evaporated after the headliners' set, but they were not the last band on. Hard Rock Hell has an unusual setup where they have another band afterward, and this slot was given to Sonata Arctica. I'd actually planned to go to one of their other gigs during this brief UK stop but as I'll be at the second night of Hard Rock Hell instead now, that will have to be postponed. I've seen the Finnish band several times now and thoroughly enjoyed them each time; and I was really looking forward to this especially as they now have a new album out: 'The Days of Grays'. I had managed to grab a spot on the barrier for this set as many of the crowd had left, so I was in a prime spot. They delivered a typically energetic and technically excellent performance, with the expected great playing from guitarist Elias 'E.Vil' Viljanen and keyboard player Henrik Klingenberg. The sound wasn't the best from my spot though, the drums tended to dominate. My only real problem with the set was that it was just too short! They played four songs from the new album, with the only oldies being '8th Commandment', 'Full Moon', 'In Black and White' and 'Don't Say A Word' (with 'Vodka' ending). With it being such a short set I'd have liked one or two more old songs, but I got the impression the band thought that as they were not so well known to this crowd, they may as well play their new stuff as it would all be unfamiliar to the crowd.
Judging from the between-song chat from vocalist Tony Kakko, that seemed to be the case. I still enjoyed it, but it just was not enough for me and I hope that they return to the UK in 2010 for some more dates.
So that was the first night of Hard Rock Hell; a report on the second night will follow, if I can remember it!
and this year, a friend of mine won tickets to the 2009 renewal.
So it was that we headed over to Prestatyn late Friday afternoon; we were unable to leave sooner owing to commitments and we got to the main stage to find Gun already on and playing. (We'd missed Logan, unfortunately, and had no hope of catching Voodoo Johnson as I might have liked, so you'll both just have to come back to Liverpool!)
I've never seen Gun before but have seen their new singer Toby Jepson on numerous occasions; it did sometimes feel a bit like Little Angels but Toby is a fine frontman and has been accepted warmly by Gun's fans. Being an Englishman fronting a Scottish band, that in itself is worth a pat on the back (!). A pleasant hour reliving Gun's hits, then, ending of course with 'Word Up'. Quite what that song's writer (Larry Blackmon, of Cameo) may think of his song being played at a Hard Rock event, one can only guess at, but here, it was delivered well, and Toby sounded close to original vocalist Mark Rankin.
A quick 'fred durst' later, we were back in the crowd for what we thought would be Terrorvision. Instead, what looked like Steel Panther's dads emerged - I failed to recognise any of them at first and it was only when I heard the song that I twigged: it was Ratt next on the bill, not Terrorvision! A closer look at the line-up revealed former Quiet Riot guitarist Carlos Cavazo in place of the late Robbin Crosby, and as it had been 23 years since last I saw this band I had few expectations. However, I really enjoyed them! Admittedly Pearcy's vocal is not the best, (then again he never has claimed to be a Dio) but they delivered a short set full of their favourite old songs, mostly from the 'Out of the Cellar' and 'Invasion of your Privacy' albums from their mid-80s glory days. Guitarist Warren deMartini still sounds fluid and they went down very well with the crowd, probably all of whom still have the vinyl LPs in their attics (!)
A pleasant surprise, then and upon double-checking the programme, Terrorvision would follow Ratt (or should that be 'Quiet Ratt'?)
When they came out, I was surprised to see them dressed in suits (apart from drummer Shutty) - Tony Wright was looking very resplendent, as was bassist Leigh Marklew. Guitarist Mark Yates held up the rock look though, wearing suit trousers and a waistcoat with no shirt, showing numerous tattoos! The band ran through all their 90s favourites, yes, that included 'Tequila' (but played properly with the guitars intact - yah boo sucks to Zoe Ball! ) Their set was a short snappy party, Wright was unable to keep still all night, bounding around the stage with commendable energy for a forty-something! They've split and come back a few times now, if they're still capable of this kind of performance they ought to stick around a little longer this time.
Next up were the headliners and a band I'd been looking forward to seeing: Monster Magnet. I've been a fan of these 90s stoners for years but have only seen them live once before, and this promised to be a highlight of the weekend. I got a shock at the sight of vocalist Dave Wyndorf when he came onstage though; he's now a Monster by nature as well as by name! The formerly slim figure has been replaced by a seriously chubby Dave; not so much Stoner rock as 16-Stoner rock!
That said, having been through all manner of drug addictions in the past, if his present addiction is just pies, that is probably the least of his troubles! The band were still awesome, still weighty (in the right sense of the word!) and still produce a 70s-style, satisfyingly sludgy Metal sound that nobody else seems to do any more. They did a long set including an encore with (by my reckoning) 4 songs, so we got the full value here. I'd love to see more from the Magnet, even if Dave stops at every branch of Waterfield's in the UK along the way!!
The crowd had evaporated after the headliners' set, but they were not the last band on. Hard Rock Hell has an unusual setup where they have another band afterward, and this slot was given to Sonata Arctica. I'd actually planned to go to one of their other gigs during this brief UK stop but as I'll be at the second night of Hard Rock Hell instead now, that will have to be postponed. I've seen the Finnish band several times now and thoroughly enjoyed them each time; and I was really looking forward to this especially as they now have a new album out: 'The Days of Grays'. I had managed to grab a spot on the barrier for this set as many of the crowd had left, so I was in a prime spot. They delivered a typically energetic and technically excellent performance, with the expected great playing from guitarist Elias 'E.Vil' Viljanen and keyboard player Henrik Klingenberg. The sound wasn't the best from my spot though, the drums tended to dominate. My only real problem with the set was that it was just too short! They played four songs from the new album, with the only oldies being '8th Commandment', 'Full Moon', 'In Black and White' and 'Don't Say A Word' (with 'Vodka' ending). With it being such a short set I'd have liked one or two more old songs, but I got the impression the band thought that as they were not so well known to this crowd, they may as well play their new stuff as it would all be unfamiliar to the crowd.
Judging from the between-song chat from vocalist Tony Kakko, that seemed to be the case. I still enjoyed it, but it just was not enough for me and I hope that they return to the UK in 2010 for some more dates.
So that was the first night of Hard Rock Hell; a report on the second night will follow, if I can remember it!
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