Caught Live: Alter Bridge with Black Stone Cherry, Manchester Evening News Arena 24 November 2011

After seeing Alter Bridge play a storming gig at Birmingham's o2 Academy last year I wrote on this blog that arenas beckoned for them next time around. Sure enough here we are 12 months on and Tremonti's troops have indeed made the jump to the cavernous barns of Great Britain. Along for the ride this time out were Canada's Theory of A Deadman, who I missed because of the early start (and traffic jams/ roadworks heading into Manchester, which I won't bore you with), and as special guests, Black Stone Cherry (who I did see).

Chris Robertson's gang were on the stage as I entered the enormous bowl that is the Manchester Evening News arena, and took my seat. The upper tier was curtained off all the way around, with the floor packed and most of the lower tier already filled, it appeared many were there for BSC as well as the headliners. By my reckoning the crowd there would have filled up the Echo Arena, so even though large parts of the MEN were unused, it was still a sizeable crowd which showed.

I've seen BSC on several occasions before, as support to other bands on arena tours similar to this and as headliners at the nearby Apollo theatre, and every time I've been scratching my head as to why such an obviously talented band, with good songs and a great singer, were not 'lighting my fire' in the live setting. They do everything right, performing with verve and enthusiasm, but there was always something lacking which I couldn't put my finger on. That was not the case tonight, perhaps I'm warming to these guys at last but this was finally the BSC gig where I broke out the air guitar - they were excellent. I still can't see what they're doing differently but perhaps it's just a couple more years on the road in this sort of company that's given them that finishing touch - I enjoyed this set much more than all of the previous sets I've seen BSC give. Frontman Chris Robertson looks like he's been following the Dave Wyndorf guide to Britain's pie shops, but his vocals were strong. They had the hardcore fans towards the front bouncing and clapping at will, and when they took it down for 'The Things My Father Said' the invitation to sing the chorus was enthusiastically accepted.

The only -slight- disappointment was that their set was a song or two shorter than at the other shows; no 'Iron Man' cover, nor did they do their HM rendition of Adele's 'Rolling In The Deep', which I was kind of looking forward to despite not being a fan of Ms Adkins herself. However they left us with news that they are to return to the UK for a headline tour in March, and I understand that will call at our end of the M62 so I will plan to be at that show and see the guys again.

Alter Bridge came on after a reasonably short turnaround, with minimal fuss lead singer Myles Kennedy appeared alone to start proceedings with 'Slip To The Void', before being joined by the rest of the band. The set they gave was a rearranged version of that performed last year, with only 'Coeur d'Alene' being added from the new record. Once again, despite 'ABIII' being the newer album it was 'Blackbird' which had most songs in the set. The 2007 album is in danger of becoming a Tough Act To Follow, with so many of its songs surviving into 2011, but there are no complaints from this fan who still prefers that record to the later one.

This was one of Kennedy's better vocal performances, you can always tell when he's suffering when he 'talks' through parts of songs but tonight, there was a lot less of that and more long holding of notes. He's clearly not suffering from a cold like 12 months ago, and when he is healthy it really makes a difference.

Having seen this band climb from small university-type venues to arenas over the past few years, it is gratifying to see them attain arena status, but the step up has come at a price. The show tonight was different to a year ago in that the band seemed more detached, distant on that big stage, they didn't connect in quite the same way as they did when they were playing the likes of the Academy. Although Kennedy did make efforts to reach out to the crowd, the occasional interlude such as during 'White Knuckles' where he performed the time-honoured 'split the crowd down the middle' routine just appeared clichéd. Consequently, despite the excellent vocal performance and solid playing, it seemed just that bit soulless compared to previous tours.

As a live band, AB never disappoint and they didn't tonight - I just get the feeling they're headed down the same path as the Foo Fighters or the Chilis; where they become so big they no longer have that same connection with their dedicated fans. AB are different to Creed in many more ways than just the lead singer, and I hope that the fact they're now performing in the large venues doesn't make them just another stadium rock act.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Edit this setlist | More Alter Bridge setlists

Has it really been twenty years...

On this day in 1991 two rock musicians died; the fact that one of them was Freddie Mercury almost totally overshadowed the sad loss of KISS drummer Eric Carr on the same day, after he lost his own long battle against cancer.

When Eric Carr (born Paul Caravello) joined KISS in 1980 it was at a low point in the band's career; original drummer Peter Criss had parted company with the band amid allegations of substance abuse and the arrival of the new drummer signalled a new character behind the kit: The Fox. His first album with the band was the ambitious concept album '(Music From) The Elder', an intended soundtrack for a film which never came about. The album's musical style completely threw the band's fans, who were expecting a return to harder rock but were instead presented with a radical departure. It would be another year before Carr really got the chance to show himself as a premier hard rock drummer, when KISS fulfilled their promise of a hard rock record a year late with 'Creatures Of The Night'. The lead-off single. 'I Love It Loud' featured the band in full make-up and with Carr, as the Fox, sat atop a drum riser shaped like a tank, pounding out the intro to the song.

The resulting tour proved a success, re-establishing the band who would shed the make-up altogether in 1983. Carr's popularity during his time with KISS was down to his powerful drum sound and his willingness to connect with the fans, and he remained with the band for eleven years.

His cancer diagnosis was in early 1991, with the drummer being given a leave of absence by frontmen Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley so that he could recover. His last appearance on a KISS record was on their cover of Argent's 'God Gave Rock 'n' Roll To You', contributing backing vocals. Carr's death hit the group hard, with drummer Eric Singer coming in to deputise for Carr on the band's next album 'Revenge' it was always intended that Carr would return to the group once fit again. However Singer remains in the band to this day, and KISS dedicated 'Revenge' to Carr with the inclusion of a 1981 studio jam on the record.

As said at the start, Freddie Mercury's death on the same day as Carr completely dominated the news, with the British media having noticed the Queen singer's declining health throughout 1991 and newspapers running increasingly-lurid headlines speculating on his condition. Mercury, as private when off stage as he was flamboyant on it, admitted to nothing until the day before his death when he released a statement confirming his illness and urging his fans to join him "in the fight against this terrible disease" (AIDS).

Mercury had long known of his illness, but had elected to keep it secret, known only to his bandmates and close friends until that statement came out. He was diagnosed about a year after he and Queen had completed their biggest and most successful tour to date, the Magic tour which culminated in a massive concert held in the grounds of Knebworth Park. The attendance that day has been estimated at anything between 150000 to 200000, as one of the fans who was there myself I can only confirm that the huge field was totally packed with people!

1986 was a monumental year for Queen, coming off the back of their now-legendary performance at Live Aid, seen by billions worldwide, interest in the group had rocketed from merely very popular to stratospheric. Nobody knew it at that time, but Knebworth would be Freddie's final live performance with Queen. Anyone who has seen the Live Aid performance, or was lucky enough to see Queen live during that period will know just what a giant of a rock star he was. He bestrode the biggest stages and could enthrall hundreds of thousands of people. With a flamboyant image, a voice that could handle anything from hard rock to ragtime and a neat, self-deprecating line in camp humour, he had the lot. It's difficult to overstate Queen's popularity at that time, although still considered a rock band they had a huge fanbase and extremely broad range of appeal. Mercury was regarded in the same echelon as other high-flyers like Elton John or Rod Stewart, all of whom had began as rock singers but had broadened their appeal to reach almost everyone.

The tribute concert which was held at the old Wembley stadium in 1992, the scene of his greatest triumph, really brought home what the music world had lost. The remaining members of Queen performed a selection of their best-loved songs with a diverse range of singers - it took over a dozen people ranging from George Michael to Axl Rose to perform what one Freddie used to do.

Although I personally did not get to see Queen live until 1984, a whole generation has grown up knowing the band's music and never having seen them at all, so those who did see them must consider themselves very fortunate. There's been nobody who even comes close to taking his crown as the ultimate rock star - there are great singers out there, very good frontmen (or women), and some very showy, flamboyant stars still, but none put it all together the way Freddie did and none have managed to succeed him as the total, complete rock star.

I'll close this by posting a trio of songs that reflect Freddie in different eras; many still think of that bright yellow jacket when they think of Freddie but his look changed radically during the 1970s before he settled on that slicked hair and moustache image remembered today.

The first shows how the band handled 'Bohemian Rhapsody' live when it was first out; from the famous Hammersmith Odeon show filmed by the BBC, here they turn it into a medley incorporating 'Killer Queen' and 'The March Of The Black Queen':

Taken from the 'We Will Rock you' live concert DVD, filmed in Canada, this is 'Crazy Little Thing Called Love' which took on a whole new dimension performed live:

Finally - from the seminal 1986 Wembley DVD, yellow jacket and all, this is 'In The Lap Of The Gods (Revisited)' - which was put back in the set partly for the band's older fans at that point:

I expect that we will still be remembering Freddie Mercury in another 20 years' time!

Commercial Time! Daisy Buttons Calendar 2012 in aid of Fur & Feather Sanctuary

Been a bit fallow on the gigs front for me lately, but I thought I'd write about this charity calendar which features... a cat! 

Not just any cat though; Daisy Buttons is the moggy in question and she is owned - sorry she owns, highly-regarded rock photographer Ash Newell. Ash has put together this calendar featuring his beloved feline in a variety of poses, with all proceeds going towards the Fur & Feather Animal Sanctuary. It's a project with extra special meaning to Ash (and to Daisy, naturally!) since Daisy Buttons was a rescued cat. 

If you've not heard of Ash Newell before, he's a Texas-based photographer originally from Yorkshire, England. He has taken portraits of many big-name stars from the music world, including Whitesnake, Black Label Society, Steve Lukather of Toto, Taylor Swift, Nickelback, and legendary figures such as Duane Eddy and Kris Kristofferson. In 2008-9 Ash was Def Leppard's tour photographer, with the band issuing two coffee table books featuring his photos, and he enjoys a close working relationship with the Leppards still.

I'm the fanboy in the Whitesnake t-shirt here with Ash, taken at Dublin's o2 Arena in 2009 while waiting to get in to see Coverdale and co! 

For more on Ash's work please see his Facebook page at:

Ash Newell Photography

For further details on the Daisy Buttons 2012 Calendar and how to order please visit the Fur & feather page:

Daisy Buttons 2012 Calendar Fur & Feather Animal Sanctuary

Miaow! 

 

Second Test post

Another test autopost for my forthcoming new music site - this should also appear on mymusic.ronniesoo.com - if I've set it up properly!

All music-related content will still appear on Posterous and Blogger; this is merely an alternative place for the blogs to go. So what to put up? What else, but Delain! Embedded are three clips I shot from their concert at Leamington Spa earlier this year. The band are currently working on their third album and you can follow their progress (including several video blogs) at lead singer Charlotte's own site.

Milk and Honey

 

April Rain

 

Pristine

The site is still being constructed at the moment - more details when it is fully ready!

This is a test to try out an autopost to my new site

Been setting up a new site on Wordpress which will be an alternative home for these music blogs. (They will still appear here). It's not ready yet but to test the autopost is working, I'm going to put up a few videos I found from the Mr Big concert last week. Hope you like them! :)

The Drill Song (Daddy Brother Lover Little Boy)

 

Undertow

 

Take Cover

 

Smoke On The water

Caught Live: Mr Big, Manchester Academy 2, 17 September 2011

Not for the first time, an early start caught me out. Arriving at Manchester University for Mr Big, a band I'd never seen before, I got there to find the group already on, and it was so packed I could hardly get through the door! The band were playing at the Academy 2, also known as the Debating Hall, and it was completely rammed. It could justifiably have been upgraded to the main Academy 1 venue in my view, but there we are.

Mr Big are a band packed with so much musical talent that it must be hard making room for everyone - there's a virtuoso guitar shredder in Paul Gilbert on one side, ANOTHER one on the other side in Billy Sheehan, who matches everything Gilbert does - only an octave lower and with two less strings, Pat Torpey keeping everything together at the back (and showing himself to be a good bassist too, more of which later), and to top it all, there's Eric Martin. A 50-year old who looks about 30, and still in possession of a fine singing voice. Nowadays, with his hair shorter, he looks a lot like comic actor Mike Myers!

For all that, the crowd reaction every time Sheehan was namechecked made it clear who the fan favourite was. I don't think I've ever seen a band where the bass player outshreds the lead guitarist before! While Gilbert was taking solos during songs, Sheehan was finger-tapping his way through them. It shouldn't work, but it does; he manages to avoid stepping on the guitarist's toes while still showing off. Gilbert is himself a highly-respected virtuoso, and would need to be, to keep up with the phenomenon across the stage.

When they put everything together, they're untouchable. Unbelievably tight, and still able to express themselves. The only thing I wasn't too keen on was some of the attempts at crowd participation; Martin's attempts to get the crowd to holler back at him fell flat at times. British crowds tend to like it kept simple  and trying to get them to do a convoluted chant just isn't going to work, Martin was met with bemusement! When he stuck to singing however, he was excellent.

Both Gilbert and Sheehan got extended solos, something I could live without but both were well received by the crowd. Sheehan's solo, coming late in the set, segued into 'Addicted To That Rush'. For the encores, inevitably 'To Be With You' was aired (their only genuine chart hit in this country) and a bizarre rendition of Deep Purple's 'Smoke On The Water' followed. The whole band swapped places; Martin took over the guitar, Gilbert took to the drumkit and Torpey was entrusted with Sheehan's bass. Sheehan himself took lead vocals, at least for the first two verses (and he flubbed the first!) before they paused mid-song to change over. Sheehan took the guitar off Martin, who then took over the bass, while Sheehan played a near-perfect rendition of Blackmore's solo. If he's that good on a six-string, perhaps he should take it up full-time! The song continued with Pat Torpey now taking lead vocal for the last verse, showing himself as both a capable bassist and a pretty good lead singer.

They ended proceedings with the players back on their own instruments, for a cover of The Who's 'Baba O'Riley' - no synthesisers, all effects done on guitar or bass!

In summary, this is an excellent live band, one of the very best you'll see - sometimes they do over-egg the pudding and if like me, you're not a musician, occasionally you wonder whether some of what you're witnessing is going over your head, but it is easy to see why they were one of the few classic rock bands to survive the Grunge thing when they just rock out.

Hopefully they'll be back before too long and in a bigger venue (I know a good one at this end of the M62 that needs more good rock bands to play it, fellas!)

 

Edit this setlist | More Mr. Big setlists

Caught Live: Firewind (with Wolf) Moho Live, Manchester 10 September 2011

See the full gallery on Posterous

I'm not seeing as many gigs as I might like at the moment, but this one was on my agenda for a while for two reasons: firstly I saw this band two years ago in the same city, but they were badly let down by the PA at the venue (Jillys Rockworld) which forced a shortened set. Secondly, it was a chance to catch up again with Daniela, a cyber-pal of mine for many years and probably the most dedicated fan of rock you'll meet! She had travelled over from Sweden to catch the band on several UK and European dates; more on her adventures can be read here.

After meeting up and catching up over a coffee, she and I got to the venue in plenty of time to get a spot on the front. Moho Live is one venue in Manchester I'd never been to before; sited in the Northern Quarter and literally next door to the famous Afflecks Palace indoor market, it is set back a little from the street.

After about an hour's wait we got in, to find the venue is set in a basement with the stage on the left hand side as you go through the doors. The place is quite small with capacity probably no more than a few hundred. Having got to the front, there was very little space between the barrier and the stage and the ceiling looked low, so there'd be no jumping from the bands.

Openers were Swedish trad-metallers Wolf, a four-piece led by vocalist/guitarist Niklas Stålvind. They make no attempt to disguise their Maiden/Priest influences and delivered a short set of decidedly 80s style Metal. Stålvind's radio link packed up early on forcing him to plug in directly to his amp mid-song, but it didn't really throw them off. They played well and had a strong following of their own, but it didn't really grab me. One drunk punter behind me was trying to do just that however, whether he was just caught up in the moment or was trying to get me off the barrier I don't know, but I'm not easily budged! One swift elbow from Daniela saw him off, eventually!

Firewind had been forced into a late change in the vocalist department, with regular frontman Apollo Papathanasio sitting out the European dates because of "family reasons", the band hastily recruited journeyman singer Mats Levén for this run of dates. Levén has performed with many acts including Yngwie Malmsteen in his time and quickly stamped his authority on the band with an assured performance. It really didn't feel like he'd been parachuted into the band at the last moment, he was a natural fit. Although the band is expecting Papathanasio back by the time they travel to the US, nobody should be disappointed if Levén is still in place by then.

Whoever the singer may be, the band remains the baby of lead guitarist Gus G. His profile has rocketed since 2009 after he was recruited by Ozzy Osbourne, but he always remained committed to Firewind. He showed just why Ozzy was keen to bring him on board with a virtuoso display. Nevertheless it isn't all about Gus, over on the other side of the stage Bob Katsionis, doubling up on both keyboards and guitar, proved an effective foil for the main man. All in all it was a much more enjoyable experience than the last time I saw the band, with a full set and a PA system that actually worked. The night was completed when Gus threw one of his guitar picks my way and I caught it - with my left hand!

If you're a fan of Power Metal, be sure to check this band out, If you were wavering because of the vocalist situation, go anyway. A great live band, and hopefully one that will get more recognition soon.