I am well aware most of my gigs for 2006 include Kaiser Chiefs and the Pigeon Detectives. This is cos these are the bands I regularly pay out to see and I wasn't having my gig addiction supplied by nice PRs at this time...
Words - Suzy Sims
Previously published on Native.tv http://www.native.tv/
(c) Niche News & Publishing Ltd
THE LONG BLONDES
@ Southampton Joiners, 27th October 2006
I love everything that comes out of the supposedly-labelled ‘New Yorkshire’ scene. The Long Blondes are one of the most exciting bands, with their ‘glamour punk’ melodies making tidal waves in the indie underground and swamping some of the plainer rock acts of the moment.
The band is made up of the stylish Kate Jackson on vocals, Emma Chaplin on guitar, keyboards and backing vocals, Reenie Hollis on bass and backing vocals, Dorian Cox on lead guitar and vocals and the wonderfully named Screech Louder on drums. Unfortunately they suffer from frequent comparison to Pulp, which is something they are proud of but which dogs (are) every (where) single review about them. Oh, done it again. It’s easy to see why though, with the cheerful keyboards, quirky key changes and seriously cool singer.
There’s a bit of a delay before they come onstage, which is good for us because we’ve just come from a friend’s birthday party and hadn’t arrived much before 10pm. Kate strides on in a slinky, figure-hugging striped dress. It’s easy to see why she’s as well known for making the NME Cool List as the band are for their songs.
Kate sneers her way through songs, dancing away and smiling at the audience, quickly switching between friend of the fans and untouchable rock chick. She has an amazing presence and the crowd love it. The setlist includes ‘Weekend Without Makeup’, ‘Appropriation (By Any Other Name)’, ‘You Could Have Both’, ‘Giddy Stratospheres’ and it ends with a happy sing-a-long to ‘Separated By Motorways.’
My friend turns to me halfway through. “I’ve fallen in love,” he says dreamily while gazing at Kate. He’s gay. There’s a girl in the crowd called Rachel and it’s her birthday, so the band quickly adapt the lyrics of new single ‘Once And Never Again’ to “18, you’re only 18 for God’s sake, oh you don’t need a boyfriend.”
“Come back next year and we’ll sing the proper one at you,” says Kate. The birthday girl and her friends are pretty chuffed, judging from the whoops I can hear coming from the front.
There’s a stage invasion at the end. Instead of people crowdsurfing into the drum kit and being pushed offstage, everyone is stood with arms round one another and trying to sing into the microphone. Kate manages the great facial expression of having bewildered, nervous fun. It’s been a great show. The tracks are all catchy and danceable. My friend did complain that some sounded the same, but as he hadn’t heard much of their songs he may just not be used to the style.
My sister comes up to me and gives me a Long Blondes sticker which the man on the merchandise stall gave her for having good hair. She said it was free, but I’m not so sure seeing as I had to give her a tenner for a t-shirt in the first place. The Long Blondes are good, spikey, classy pop fun and I’m sure their album will get the recognition it deserves.
http://www.thelongblondes.co.uk
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02 NME ROCK AND ROLL RIOT TOUR
The Fratellis / The Dykeenies
Portsmouth Guildhall, 8th November 2006
The NME Tour stops off in Portsmouth. Or rather, half of it does
About time. This gig was meant to take place about a month earlier but a change of venue meant a change of date, and of acts.
The Horrors couldn’t make the rescheduled date because they’re causing chaos in the States while the Maccabees are rocking up Leeds. On second thoughts, perhaps we should have been refunded half the ticket price to make up for the fact that half the advertised bands weren’t there. No-one seemed to be complaining though, probably because everyone only wanted to see the Fratellis.
We arrived just before the Dykeenies took the stage. This lot are from sunny Glasgow and are Brian (vocals/synths), Alan and Steven (guitar), Andrew (bass), and John (drums).They were dressed a bit nu-rave, as I’m sure the NME would put it. I wasn’t familiar with any of their tracks, although I did know the name from reading the magazine. The NME had described them as having ‘a natural knack for constructing snappy pop songs,’ and they weren’t wrong. Every song seemed full of excitement, catchiness and synths.
“They’re the British Killers,” my friend says, quite rightly.“Hello Portsmouth!” shouts Brian. “Looking forward to the Fratellis?” Roar. “Can you understand our accents?” Another roar.
We decided to nip out for a quick lemonade as I’d been out all day and was really thirsty. The band hadn’t been playing for long so we thought it would be fine to disappear for a quick drink. We hadn’t banked on the fact that the Guildhall bar is crap. There was a queue about four people deep and twenty across. Around ten minutes later and the queue was still four people deep and twenty across. Another five minutes and we were getting hot and annoyed. A bit of exploring around the venue and we discovered all the vending machines were switched off. Great. We arrived back in to see the end of the Dykeenies as they roused everyone in readiness for the headliners. They were an excellent sounding band that I’ll definitely have to check out.
A few ripples of ‘Chelsea Dagger’ travelled around the venue as people get worked up about the Fratellis. The band haven’t been playing together for long. Jon, Barry and Mince (according to their website, Mince was a (lovable) stoner, Barry was a car thief and Jon was just a Jon) formed in spring 2005 and soon caught the attention of everyone with their raucous tunes. The first track of theirs I’d heard was ‘Cigarello’ which I thought would be a cracker live; however friends had warned me they had a habit of sounding a bit like a redneck hoedown, what with all the whoops and the country-style chords.
The Fratellis stepped on stage with a wave and a smile. Mince was proudly showing off his Scottishness by wearing a vest and drinking from a two-litre bottle of Irn-Bru onstage from behind his drums. Jon waved at a few people in the front row, then the band kicked into ‘Creepin’ Up The Backstairs’ and everyone went nuts. Other songs they played were ‘Doginabag’, ‘Flathead’, ‘Ole Black and Blue Eyes’, ‘Everybody Knows You Cried Last Night’, ‘Cigarello’, ‘Vince The Loveable Stoner’ (cue audience ‘Ah-ha’), all familiar to people with the album (as it seemed everyone in here owned) or with access to the Budhill Singles Club. Unlike many of the other shows on this tour, the whole show wasn’t taken up with the crowd singing the ‘Chelsea Dagger’ riff – yes, there was a bit of it here and there, but not as much as people say in there was in other shows.I was a bit tired after my day so I hadn’t stood too close to the front.
Halfway through I felt a bit disappointed that I wasn’t closer, with crowdsurfers and the odd beer hurling through the air and the crowd rising with their hands up in sheer joy. I was also getting fed up of the woman next to me. She looked about 45 and had clearly drunk too much. Much of the floor was her own as she danced around into everyone, once grabbing the couple in front and saying ‘So which of you liked the Fratellis first then?’ Her friend stood stock-still behind her, probably because if she moved she’d have gone down like a felled tree. Her eyes were glazed and she wasn’t doing much. After a failed attempt to enter the moshpit, they retreated to the corner and collapsed on the floor.
I glanced up to see how everyone on the balcony was doing. Everyone was swaying in time, and one person was standing up and having a little jig. There’s not very much in the way of audience interaction, but Jon occasionally smiles at people in the front row. The odd plastic cup is lobbed on stage, though whether a sign of appreciation Glasgow-style or someone hating the set, I can’t tell.
The band are good at rocking their way through the tracks and the audience love it, but there’s something missing. The band almost seem to be on autopilot and while the song’s are great and the crowd are energetic, something doesn’t quite feel right.
There was a brief interval so we popped out for some light and cool air. My friend nudged me and pointed out the Dykeenies stood in a group chatting by the bar. Hopefully they had a rider, either that or the poor bastards had been queuing for the past hour like everyone else. We bumped into a friend as she rushed out the bar. She’d been queuing for half an hour so had missed half the Fratellis and looked a bit harried.
Jon reappeared to sing a solo acoustic version of ‘For The Girl’. The Fratellis got on with their last track, which sounded a lot like T-Rex. After a few seconds I realised it was a dirty glam rock version of Goldfrapp’s ‘Ooh La La,’ which sounded ace.
The show finished early – well, they couldn’t really do a two hour set each - and we got out the car park and were home before 11pm, even with stopping to buy a cheap poster on the way out. I was sad to have missed the Maccabees, pleased to have heard the Dykeenies, and was buzzing after the headliners. Mon the Fratellis!
http://www.nme.com
http://www.thedykeenies.com
http://www.thefratellis.com
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KAISER CHIEFS / THE PIGEON DETECTIVES
@ Hof Ter Lo, Antwerp, 10th November 2006
There’s something we have to get straight. Travelling abroad to see a band does NOT count as stalking. Travelling and learning about the world is good. And if you can see some bands while you’re there then that’s just an added bonus.
And that’s why I was stood outside the Hof Ter Lo in Antwerp, shivering slightly and waiting to go in and see the Kaiser Chiefs. There was a large group of us who had made the journey all the way from the UK (or Germany, or Finland) and we were keeping warm by drinking cans of raspberry beer in between cans of cherry beer and other cans of raspberry beer. A few of the girls were very excited because a couple of the Chiefs had been outside to say hi and sign autos a few hours earlier. The door wasn’t properly locked and occasionally someone would fall through it with a crash and a shriek, causing security to frown at us.
At the moment, excitement was building again because the camera crew which had been marching in and out of the venue was walking in our direction. The smiley Belgian reporter (a friend later told us it was Dave Peters, a famous radio presenter) makes a beeline for us, so three of us English girls linked arms and grinned slightly manically.
“Where are you from?” he asks.
“English!” Oh dear. “Are any of you from Leeds?” Helen and Sarah are, and they let loose with a war cry of “LEEEEEDS!”
“I’m from Portsmouth,” I mumble, all too aware that there is a camera lens in our eyes and my hair has chosen to wind itself across my face. “They’re from Leeds, I’m from Portsmouth.”
“LEEEEEDS!”
He asks us why we had come all this way, so we all talk loudly over each other about how we like music and how we like travelling and how it is good to do the two and the Chiefs have a great live reputation. “Are you crazy to come all this way?” Dave asks.
“Nooo…”
We keep our wide grins in place. After a few minutes the Belgian turns back to the camera and begins spouting his finishing link in Dutch. The only intelligible words we pick out are ‘Ricky and Nick’ so the fangirls start elbowing each other and giggling. A few people may have fallen through the door again.
The Kaiser Chiefs’ European tour was exciting for several reasons. Firstly, they usually play festivals and the like abroad but this tour was in venues of around 1,000 people; much smaller than usual. Secondly they would be showcasing a lot of material from their forthcoming second album, the follow-up to ‘Employment’. The odd track had been heard (and bootlegged) in the summer months but a lot more was promised this time round.
By the time doors opened, the polite British queue had turned into a large mass of people (those foreigners… tsch) pressed against the glass, a couple of them yelling “GOING OUT WITH! GOING OUT WITH!” along to the Pigeon Detectives soundcheck. The door was wrenched open and there was a hectic rush straight to the front of the stage, with the poor girl who’d come all the way from Finland bouncing along right on her arse after falling down the steps. I gave her a badge to patch up her broken trousers with, after tripping over the last step and scuffing my big toe painfully.
With our places all saved nicely, it was time to check out the merchandise stall and the new range of t-shirts. The prices all looked extortionate, but they were in euros and I couldn’t be bothered to work out the exact pound sterling equivalent.
The Pigeon Detectives came onstage to tear through a short set, which included the usual suspects ‘Don’t Know How To Say Goodbye’, ‘Romantic Type’, ‘In Your Trap’, ‘I’m Not Sorry’, ‘Can’t Control Myself’ and ‘I’m Always Right’. The crowd started to wake up slightly as the band crashed around on stage and happily sung along with ‘I Found Out’ (think we might have taught them the lyrics to that one outside earlier). The mic lead wrapped itself around one of the cymbals and brought it down which the crowd thought was funny. It felt very strange to be one of only a few people dancing and singing away because the band are barely known in Belgium (they’re still barely known in the UK, let alone mainland Europe) and the crowd was very tame.
The Pigeons had to unplug most of their own equipment, so I amused myself by yelling and waving at them in turn. Most looked scared, but waved back. There were classic tracks put on in the background; a bit of the Beatles, the Clash, Rolling Stones and so on. Plus there was a Mr Man book sat on top of one of the amps. A bit of investigation revealed it was Mr Strong, although I’m not sure what significance this has if any.
The Kaiser Chiefs may have been slightly annoyed to travel all this way only to find the front row occupied by giggling Brits who quite obviously had bootlegged their new songs, but if they were pissed off they didn’t show it. Ricky, Nick, Simon, Whitey and Peanut looked calm and happy to be on stage and they were displaying a chirpy cheekiness not evident in the mega-big gigs.
The set opened with new track ‘Angry Mob’ and the band started laughing when they saw most of the front row already knew the lyrics. The other new tracks they played were ‘Heat Dies Down’, ‘Everything Is Average Nowadays’, and the even newer ‘Ruby’ and ‘Retirement.’
The band have played a lot of festivals this year but haven’t toured for several months. Frankly it showed, as Ricky looked knackered and spent most of the gig stood in front of the mic stand, only tearing around occasionally. At one stage he walked up to the drumkit and rested his head down, while Nick called out to him: “Do you want someone else to sing this one? Do you want us to get Whitey to sing it?” There was little crowd interaction despite being a small venue and no crowd surfing, which was a bit of a disappointment.
The new tracks are sounding catchy and certainly grow on the listener. Everyone was singing along to the ‘Employment’ songs - ‘Everyday I Love You Less and Less’, ‘I Predict A Riot’, ‘Modern Way’ and ‘Caroline Yes’. Again the crowd was tame. Usually during ‘IPAR’ you have several people clawing their way up your back and an elbow in your throat. This time, I had one person bump into me twice and plenty of breathing space. Whether that means the crowd aren’t into it as much or just have more manners, I don’t know. It felt wrong.
It was a short set, finishing dead on an hour, including a two-song encore (‘Retirement’ and an extended ‘Oh My God’). The whole thing is over by about ten, so we hang around chatting then head outside. Nick and Peanut stay around signing autographs while the others walk past with their heads down, flanked by security guards. I smile and say hello, and only Ricky is friendly enough to say hello back. (I put this down to my short dress). He’s looking more awake now than he was all night. The Pigeon Detectives are kindly handing out beer off their rider, then everyone’s off into the night and I’m aware that it’s fucking freezing and blowing a gale.
It was a top effort from the Pigeons considering they were playing to a crowd who’d never heard of them. The Kaisers were entertaining as usual but in places seemed a little unenergetic and worn; despite this, their new tracks are sounding excellent and more UK shows surely beckon. And we got to have a nice little sightseeing holiday around Belgium, which was very entertaining and worth the trip alone. More people should travel abroad for gigs.
http://www.kaiserchiefs.co.uk
http://www.thepigeondetectives.com
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THE FUTUREHEADS / THE MACCABEES / THE ENEMY
@ Portsmouth Pyramids, 3rd December 2006
Decent days, and nights spent dancing
Ah yes, I remember the Futureheads. They were on the NME tour early last year, but seemed to have been left slightly behind after the Killers and Kaiser Chiefs rocketed into the indie stratosphere. Everyone told me their most recent album wasn’t as good as the last, and they were dropped by their record label only the other week. And with tickets available on the door for a mere (!) £15, I wasn’t sure what size crowd would turn up.
I’d never been to the Pyramids before. It’s got a lovely location along the seafront. Or it would be lovely if it hadn’t been about minus seven with strong winds and a road closed off, forcing me and my friend to drive around in panicked circles for a bit.
First onstage were the Enemy. The name sounded vaguely familiar but I wasn’t sure why – MySpace perhaps? Liam, Tom and Andy are a three piece from sunny Coventry. As soon as they began swaggering around the stage, immediately Oasis popped up in my head, and wouldn’t get out. They appeared to be one of those bands which seem good at the time – yeah! Guitars! Rock! – but ultimately were forgettable. Still signed up to their mailing list in case I had missed something special by being stood at the back.
Got ticked off by my friend for leaving my mobile in my bag somewhere so she couldn’t get hold of me (not deliberately, honest). And finally it was time to see the Maccabees. A few people I had spoken to also missed out when they failed to rejoin the rescheduled NME tour last month, so it was a huge round of applause they got when they came onstage. The band are from Brighton, so they’re practically local. Their names are Orlando (vocals), Rupert (bass), Robert (drums), Hugo and Felix (guitars) – possibly the poshest sounding names for a band I’ve heard for a while, although you wouldn’t guess it by looking at them. They turned out to be very enjoyable, with jerked guitars, slightly strangulated and emotional vocals and an intriguing quirkiness about them. The biggest cheer and moshing was reserved for single ‘First Love’, which had managed to sneak into the Top 40 shortly before.
“Did you like the Maccabees?” I said to some people near the bar afterwards. “I thought they were brilliant.”
“Are you going out with one of them?” was the reply. Oh well. Different people, different tastes.
But I was right.
Then it was time to push my way nearer the front for the Futureheads. The Sunderland boys are Ross, Barry, Dave and Jaff, and they’re nearly at the end of their current tour. I have to confess that I don’t actually have ‘News and Tributes.’ In fact, I don’t even have ‘The Futureheads’ and that came out about two years ago. Frankly, I’d forgotten how good they were. They opened with ‘Area', then ripped right through tracks including 'Yes/No', 'The City Is Here For You To Use', 'Worry About It Later', 'A To B', the ever-popular 'Decent Days And Nights', 'Skip To The End', and others. Despite the fact they don't run around the stage as much as some, their powerfully tense and crunching guitars had so much heavy energy the crowd couldn't help but be stirred into excitement.
Come ‘Hounds of Love’, and it's time for audience participation. Jaff’s side cheered the loudest. (Ross later complained that Jaff always wins because he can point and wave to encourage everyone, whereas poor Ross can’t. Let’s start a campaign to Make Ross Win). A man stood right behind me in the mosh pit and put his hands on my waist, but before I started getting any wanton ideas it transpired he just wanted to fling me out the way so he could rush into someone else. A young teen was lifted up to crowdsurf and was instantly dropped on his head. He nodded he was fine, and tried again.
“Out of my way! This man has no shoes!” shouted one guy, trying to launch his friend above everyone’s heads. The crowd was crazy and loving it, and were far more into the show than I had expected they would be. As we were the best crowd on the tour, we were lucky to get a few extra songs and it was a nice long set. The show finished with 'Return Of The Berserker', 'Carnival Kids' and crowd favourite ‘Picture of Dorian Gray.’ The front few rows were dripping with sweat and the bouncers amused themselves by spraying cold water at people, although far too many ladies got soaking wet tops.
I waited around at the end and got the band to sign a ‘Hounds of Love’ 7” for my sister’s Christmas present (which sounds generous but it wasn’t. It was hers anyway. I just stole it off her shelf and rewrapped it). The band thought the crowd was brilliant and I'm inclined to agree - it's been a while since I saw a mosh pit quite so buzzing, and I honestly hadn't been expecting to find one here. But I'm glad I did, and I'm looking forward to seeing what the band's next move will be.
http://www.thefutureheads.com
http://www.themaccabees.co.uk
http://www.myspace.com/theenemycoventry
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