Caught Live: The Union, Academy 3 Manchester, 15 April 2010

The timing of this gig was not ideal for me but as this show was the nearest one to me on this, the first full UK tour from Luke Morley and Peter Shoulder's new project, I was keen to go along. I was a massive fan of Thunder, Morley's previous band and was also well aware of the talent of Durham's Peter Shoulder, having seen his old band Winterville on many occasions until their sudden, unexpected split in early 2007.

The turnout at the Academy 3 was respectable, if not totally packed and I arrived in time to catch the last few numbers from openers Voodoo Six. Based on what I heard, they're a fine hard rock band although I thought the vocalist was perhaps not at his best, he seemed to be battling with a throat problem. I'd see this band again if they are playing anywhere near me, it's old-school hard rock of the sort I used to enjoy in the 1980s.

The Union came on some time later, to the sound of the Strawbs' song of that name; the irony of hearing that old song in an era when being 'part of the union' means nothing like it did when it was recorded wasn't lost on me (not to mention the fact that the first of the 'election debates' was taking place across town at the same time!)

That's about as political as this blog gets, on with the show!

Although billed as a collaboration between the former Thunder guitarist and the young gun from the North East, the live line-up is a four-piece which includes drummer Phil Martini and former Thunder bassist Chris Childs. The atmosphere at this gig was noticeably relaxed; even from my spot a few feet from the stage there was never any possiblilty of a moshpit developing! Peter Shoulder is no longer the slightly starstruck kid he was back in his early Winterville days, he's now matured into a confident frontman with a very easygoing stage presence. I'd almost forgotten just how good a singer he is too, he has that rich bluesy tone very much in the tradition of great singers from his part of the world.

I was unfamiliar with much of the material presented tonight, although they have made one or two songs available on MySpace or as downloads, and apart from the cover of 'Proud Mary' in the encore all the songs played were new. So, no Thunder or Winterville covers! That was probably a good thing, as this is a totally new project and although the rockier songs played certainly do display some of the Morley songwriting trademarks, there were also more acoustic/bluesy ones which were very suited to Shoulder's vocal. The band did note how quiet the crowd were in between songs (although the reception given to each song was warm); that may have been partly due to the audience's unfamiliarity with the songs but also it may have had more to do with the informal atmosphere. It was more of a club gig than a big production, though no less enjoyable for that.

If you were a Thunder fan then this band is well worth your time; however do not expect it to be Thunder Mk 2. There seems to be more scope in this band to explore different avenues, and I look forward to hearing the finished album and seeing the guys again soon.

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!

Caught Live: Magnum - O2 Academy, Liverpool 29 October 2009

Another midweek night, another gig from a veteran band. This time it was melodic rock survivors Magnum who pitched up at Liverpool's O2 Academy, and it was a substantially different gig experience to the Y&T one of two nights earlier. For one thing, the turnout was only OK - they used the larger upstairs room, but to be honest this crowd could probably have fitted in the downstairs part without too much trouble. A far cry from their arena-headlining days of the late 1980s, but full marks for perservering long after the musical trend shifted away from their style of rock.
However the band have a lot of kit and so the bigger stage did suit them. I only got in around 15 minutes before they were due on, but had no problem finding a nice spot in the middle.



The other thing about this gig was the fact that Magnum chose to play a lot of songs from their new album 'Into The Valley of the Moonking'. It's not a CD I have got hold of yet, and so I was unfamiliar with much of the set played tonight. It seems a brave move from a band with a substantial back catalogue and many classics to choose from, to push their new material so heavily but it does show confidence in what they are doing now, as opposed to what they did 20 years back. In fact, it was at least an hour into the show before I heard anything I recognised, that being 'Les Morts Dansant'.

This did not detract from the band's performance; they still feature three of their classic line-up in keyboard player Mark Stanway, guitarist and songwriter Tony 'No Hat' Clarkin (!) and singer Bob Catley. Now into his 60s, Catley still sounds in good vocal shape and is backed well by bassist Al Barrow. The new songs were well received by those that did show, the crowd once again looked to be full of middle-aged blokes (looks in mirror here!) but there were quite a few women present too, and there were some younger fans in among the oldies (yaaay!) The drum stool is now occupied by everyone's favourite Bald Eagle, Mr Harry James. Harry was in fine form tonight; loud but not overwhelmingly so, he drives this band expertly. Tony Clarkin, although the creative force in the band, prefers to leave the spotlight with the singer; never looking to dominate proceedings with long solos, he always plays for the song.




The crowd really roared their appreciation once the band dipped into their oldies; 'Les Morts Dansant' was enthusiastically cheered and set closer 'Vigilante' ensured they left with loud roars ringing in their ears. Despite leaving out many of their favourites, such as 'The Spirit', 'Soldier of the Line' and 'Sacred Hour' they still delivered an entertaining set. As said earlier it was a brave move to do that and probably one that will irk some of their more long-term fans, but hats off (sorry Tony!) to them for taking the gamble.

Caught Live: Thunder, Manchester Academy 1, July 3 2009

A week has passed since the enforced cancellation of a high-profile series of farewell concerts from one of the world's biggest stars, but scheduled for around the same time (and with a lot less hype) was this farewell tour from Thunder, one of Britain's best-loved rock bands. Fortunately all five guys were present and correct to be able to play this tour, and the Manchester Academy was packed out on this very hot summer night. Thunder announced they were to call it a day (for the second, and presumably now, final time) at around the start of the year, causing much disappointment to their loyal band of followers. After my own initial disappointment at the news, I dealt with it by regarding everything they did since 2002 (when they came back from an earlier split) as a bonus, and figuring that after 20 years as a band, they really do not owe us any more. So it was with calm acceptance that I booked tickets for this tour, and given that my own circumstances have changed substantially since then also, I can sort of understand where the band are coming from.

The audience in the Academy were out to have themselves a great time, the atmosphere was charged from first minute to last and when the band emerged (led by bassist Chris Childs) the newly-refurbished venue was in danger of needing another new roof. The set was substantially different to their previous visit only last Autumn, this time they rolled out many of their best-loved songs from across their back catalogue, rather than pushing the 'Bang!' album as they did last year. Surprisingly, it took until relatively late in the set before we got anything from their legendary first album; the fact that this did not affect their reception one jot shows the strength of the band's material. They could play for about four hours and still leave out somebody's favourite song, they have so many good ones. Once again it was singer Danny Bowes who conducted matters supremely well, he could come on and recite the telephone directory and still be cheered to the rafters! He sang well, as always, but to me not quite at the level he was last year, when he was in spine-tingling form. This time he was at around 80% but even at this level he is still a cut above many other rock singers. He will be a massive loss to the scene. The set seemed to be chosen with a party in mind, there was little respite in the form of ballads and instead it was mostly uptempo stuff delivered. My only real quibble was the out-front sound, I was dead centre about 30 metres off the front in a prime position, but even I found it LOUD in this fairly large hall. At times the sound simply bludgeoned the ears, it could have done with being a little less intense I thought, and I'm not having that I'm getting too old for all this (!) - it really was a bit heavy. The sound out front was almost matched by the audience noise however, they were really up for this and even Danny Bowes was forced to concede it was louder than Glasgow the night before!

Support came from the increasingly-popular Scottish band Logan; the venue was filling nicely as they played, and it was gratifying to see them get a good reception from Thunder's infamously partisan crowd. Vocalist Kenny Collins managed to squeeze in a slagging for Kerrang! magazine, winning some loud cheers (including one from your correspondent) - but it was their playing and especially the vocalist's performance, which won over the crowd. The guys are going places, whatever Kerrang! might think!

Good though Logan were, tonight was all about Thunder. Despite the sheer volume, this was a triumphant night, and definitely they are going out with the BANG! suggested by their last album. The rock scene will be the poorer for their demise, but they have given us a whole lot of studio and live material to enjoy in years to come.

Set list:
Loser
Dirty Dream
On The Radio
Low Life in High Places
Somebody Get Me A Spin Doctor
Empty City
The Devil Made Me Do It
Love Worth Dying for
River Of Pain
Just Another Suicide (You Wanna Know)
Love Walked In
I Love You More Than Rock 'n' Roll
______

A Better Man
An Englishman on Holiday
Dirty Love

Caught Live: Thunder - Academy 1 Manchester, 22 November 2008

On the eve of this tour, the unthinkable loomed: Thunder were to tour without Harry James! The band's website had announced that the irrepressible sticksman was forced to withdraw from the shows, he'd been diagnosed with kidney stones (owwwwieee!).
At extremely short notice, the band recruited John Tonks in Harry's place, and played the first date at Exeter. The next night, the band were due to play a sold-out show at the Manchester Academy, this was the only date yours truly could make this time around. Word came through that Harry was *in the building*, and so it proved, shortly after 9pm when the guys came on stage, and that familiar figure took his spot at the drumkit, Harry - back!
They were greeted like homecoming heroes, Harry especially, as they commenced their set.

This time around, Thunder have a new album 'Bang' to promote, and played their customary solid set, mixing old and new material. They opened with the lead-off from 'Bang', a rant set to music called 'On The Radio' which takes aim at the 'business' in general for not giving the band much in exposure down the years. The packed crowd were into it from the off; this song contains a 'f- you!' which was delivered, with relish, by the crowd after some 'wait for it!' prompts from singer/master of ceremonies Danny Bowes. It was one of those nights where Thunder could do no wrong, MC Bowes once again had them in the palm of his hand. It never ceases to amaze me how good he is at controlling a crowd, as well as being one of the best singers in the business he is a born showman, a leader.

I rave-reviewed their last show at this place last year, when the Academy was a building site. It was essentially more of the same this time round, but in a completed (and much-improved) venue rather than a hard hat area!
The new songs went over as well as the oldies, suggesting many present had already got the 'Bang' CD, but they brought back some of my personal favourite old songs in this set, including the stunning 'Don't Wait For Me', the epic 'Empty City' and the one that tops my favourite songs list: 'Higher Ground'. I only wish I could have seen more of the shows on this tour; I always enjoy Thunder's shows but this one especially so. Basically, see last years' write up and multiply it by two, you might have an idea of how great it was! ;-)

Support came from Get Vegas and Heaven's Basement; I'd missed Get Vegas by the time I got to Manchester (sorry lads, but that's what happens when there's a home game at Anfield!) but I did see Heaven's Basement. Previously known as Roadstar, they've started again after some business-related hassles. They played to an already full crowd, and went over very well. I never really got Roadstar until I'd seen them a few times but this was a definite step up. Singer Richie Heavnz has matured into a more assured frontman and the band are a notch or two heavier than in their previous life. I would like to see the guys again in the near future.

All in all then, a great night for lovers of rock like it used to be; to think that less than a decade ago, Thunder were calling it a day after repeatedly bashing their heads against the music business wall, now here they are, selling the Academy out with very little publicity. If this upward trend continues, they could well be doing the arenas soon, this time as headliners! (We've got one here now lads - oh you know that, you played it in July!)

Go and see Thunder next time they come anywhere near you!

Set list (thanks Thinny!!)
Backstreet Symphony
On The Radio
Carol Ann
Low Life In High Places
The Devil Made Me Do It
Empty City
Dirty Dream
Love Walked In
Stormwater
Can't Keep A Good Man Down
Don't Wait For Me
I Love You More Than Rock 'n' Roll

Encore:
Candy Man
Higher Ground
Dirty Love