Drenge Review

Drenge
The Deaf Institute Manchester, Tuesday 20^th January 2015
Support: Seize the Chair

The Derbyshire duo return for their latest UK tour as a triple threat.

‘Drenge? With a bassist?’ we chorused last month when the Loveless brothers announced that a third addition to the grunge-rock band would be joining them on upcoming gigs and on the impending second album, and our anticipated seal of approval followed.
Their 2013 self-titled record, spouting the thunderous riffs of Bloodsports and aggressive aptitudes of I Don’t Want To Make Love To You, was a satisfying and thorough debut, so Drenge’s new-year dates in Leeds, London and tonight in Manchester’s historic diminutive music venue would prove to be the deciders of how the added depth of bass would fair with their distinctive sound.
Dwelling from Sheffield’s ‘meat scene’, as they call it, comes four-piece Seize the Chair, bringing with them a collection of robust guitar strides and keyboard synths in songs both old and very new. A mediocre initial reaction to the openers of the unceasing set is propelled to riotous by closer I Just Want To Sleep, revving the 300-capacity crowd up for the main event.
Eion and Rory arrive on stage to adorning cheers, the providers of which nonplussed by their third counterpart. Gig-regular but album-absenter Running Wild launches the set, to an immediate response of breakneck thrashing. The vibe remains vigorous through popular tracks and newer songs see no change to this signature trait, with the possible exception of We Can Do What We Want, which seems to have been – dare I say it - made of a lighter substance.
Fan-favourite debut single Bloodsports raised the bar (and the roof) once more in a climactic feat teamed with stage-invasions and adrenaline. The Nirvana-esque Face Like a Skull effectively led into the touching gentler-paced yet crescendo-packed Fuckabout, which oversaw a transition from mosh-to-warble amongst the predominantly teenage gaggle of fans. The previous animated energy in the room didn’t fully recover for the finale of Let’s Pretend, which left the set feeling as if it had ended just a little too abruptly.
With well-selected picks from a well-amalgamated first album on display with a complementary further dash of new tracks, tonight’s performance from up-and-coming’s finest proved that a follow-up LP (rumoured for an April release) from the boys is going to be top notch.

Kasabian Review

Kasabian
LG Arena Birmingham, 22nd November 2014
Support: The Maccabees

Throughout modern history, the world has been trapped under the oppressive cloud of East versus West ideology, but tonight the dividing wall will crumble.
Well, the dividing wall between East and West Midlands, at least, for tonight Leicester rockers Kasabian will take to the Birmingham LG Arena stage as part of their sell-out UK and Ireland tour.

 2014 has undeniably been a huge year for the unstoppable troupe. New single eez-eh brought with it a fresh direction of an electronic dance style and a gleaming monochromic music video to match. A hit with fans and catchy enough for mainstream popularity, the track was soon revealed to be the first release from forthcoming album 48:13. 48:13 turned out to be 48:13 minutes of classic Kasabian anthems merged with futuristic elctro synths; arguably not their best work but a record that they could certainly be proud of. In June, they headlined Glastonbury on its closing night, recalling hits from their epic ten year long career and bringing the newbies to life with phenomenal triumph.
Fast-forward five months and a similar setlist is to be played tonight, to equal success. After a stage-stint from London indie-rockers The Maccabees, whose eleven-piece collection included delicate sing-a-long Toothpaste Kisses, an on-screen countdown dressed in the theme colours of Kasabian’s fifth album (fuchsia beneath black lettering) gears up the fans for the band’s arrival, and the houselights diminish to darkness. Roars of ovation see the foursome on stage and the show begins.
The set is opened with an acoustic verse from bumblebee by spotlighted co-frontmen Sergio Pizzorno and Tom Meighan, poised on opposing sides of the stage, before breaking lithely into the song in all of its vigorous glory.
The set’s highlights are so numerous that the eighty-five minute bounce-fest could be described one continuous pinnacle. Old knockouts such as Underdog and Rewired (which featured an interlude of Cameo’s Word Up) go down a treat with the fans as much as the seven new tracks played including bow and, well, treat.
The era of the obscure and –if we were to hazard a guess- random backdrop slogan continued its reign, tonight comprising of such ambiguous beauties as ‘flannel’ and ‘basket bike’, sadly lacking the comical controversy of “London are full of cunts”-gate which occurred at the Glasgow leg of the tour.
Fire sees it kick off. 16,000 warble through the chorus sending the room shaking and the standing masses wild for the closer of the first act. The encore meets a similar end with the conquering Lost Souls Forever, the clock returning to countdown the start of each vivacious round of “GET LOOSE GET LOOSE”.

My Trip To Malaysia, Unconventionally Told

My Malaysia Experience in Songs

Six months ago to the day, I set off on a World Challenge expedition to Malaysia, which would last four weeks. The trip included a six-day jungle trek, volunteering at an elephant sanctuary, scuba-diving in the ocean, and visiting several places around the country. So yeah, quite a big adventure for a sixteen year old, some might say. On reflection, it was an experience that I can confidently say I’m very glad I did, but probably wouldn’t do again (mainly because of the relentless fundraising, I reckon. Have you ever bag-packed for six hours at a Morrisons check out? Worst. Activity. Ever.).
I could just list in detail everything we did and how this made me feel and what I learned from it, but in my mind there are key aspects of the trip that were highlighted by songs I heard over the month. So here goes;

1. Call Me Maybe, by Carly Ray Jepsen
Malaysia is the furthest away I have ever been from Britain so although I could somewhat accurately hazard a guess, I wasn’t entirely sure how different the South-Eastern nation would be from what I’m used to back home. It turned out upon my arrival not too much.
After two exhausting seven-hour flights (who knew long-haul travel came with such a range of Disney films?), we were finally in Kuala Lumpur Airport and what would the first song I hear blasting out from the tinny ceiling speakers than the chorus that swept the world two years previous. The pop song, seen as - let’s be honest - a joke at the time of its release, was chosen to be propelled into the ears of the Malay people above any of the music which I’m sure their culture is rich in. I think in times like this you reflect on the raging negatives of western culture infiltrating the world, in that yet even more poor unfortunate souls are exposed to death by generic and frustratingly-catchy chart toppers.

2. Ten German Bombers
Not a song, but rather a bonding, slightly contextually outdated chant used to lift morale during the jungle trek, or, as I like to call it, the six days from hell.
Before setting off on this gruelling, unnatural (or perhaps overtly-natural, you could say) fifty-mile walk through uninhabitable terrain, devoid of footpath, I had given the task ahead absolutely no thought. I find that when I’m not looking forward to something, be it exams, trips to the doctor’s surgery, or (as before stated) bag-packing at a cramped till point where your presence is unwanted by both shop assistant and customer, it is forced to the back of my mind, left forgotten, ignored, like a piece of coursework on your desk that’s due in next week. The case of the forthcoming Everest-equivalent was no different.
I don’t know who brought this retro addition to the rainforest playlist, but I do know that I was glad of something to shout along to with the rest of the team, as a vice of distraction and of motivation to continue on at times when the peril seemed eternal.
There were enjoyable moments of that week, but overall I think we can gather that spending extended periods of time in the isolated great outdoors is not my forte.

3. All-Star by Smash Mouth
‘Cause every trip needs a unanimously-accepted theme song, right?

4. Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen
The Malaysian bus service is like our trains’; if you wanna go somewhere out of town, you get a coach. At their peak, our four-wheeled journeys reached ten hours, scaling the country from north to south, east to west.
During one particular late-evening voyage a chorus of warbling cropped up once more. Falsettos aplenty and stares from annoyed/amused Malaysians were rife as we poured our hearts out into every backing vocal and guitar solo of the ‘70s epic. A sense of unity swept through the back of the bus with our high-decibel outburst, reminding us that Mercury’s legend will go on forever, no matter where you are on the globe. Or reminding us, rather, that Brits abroad are inconsiderate and obnoxious on public transport.

5. Let It Go from Frozen
2014 was the year of Frozen. You might argue that it was the year of the selfie, the year that Black Friday really took off, even, but we all know that the omnipresent, media-dominating entity that is the wintery Disney animation was the year’s only true ruler. I work in a retail store and they sell three different pairs of Frozen-patterned leggings, items similar to numerous ones I spotted in (you guessed it) Malaysia also, so I’m not basing my claims on nothing.
The musical number was similarly a popular one amongst members of my group, so the eruption of its chorus – and the rest of the song no less, these guys are experts in the Frozen field – was not an uncommon one. We even heard a Malay version booming from the speakers of one shop. Weird, huh?

6. Someone Like You by Adele
Let’s just start off by asking one question. Is there anything more irritating than this song? Admittedly, yes, but many things? Most definitely not.
The 2011 anthem is played flipping everywhere in Malaysia. And I mean everywhere. On the radio, in the streets, even in the smooth medium of saxophone played repeatedly from some restaurant we passed a few times. Just shows the power of a (overrated, sorry) heartbroken pop ballad.

7. Black Treacle by Arctic Monkeys
Imagine; you have gone four weeks without an iPod. You are in a faraway country. You are sitting in a town centre. Japanese tourists are taking photos of/with you (yep, everywhere we went people wanted pictures of the English kids for some reason). It is the day before you travel back home. Everything is - as much as it can be in this in this situation - normal.
And then you hear the opening guitar strokes of a song by your all-time favourite band. At first you’re confused. Surely you must be imagining things. Perhaps this is just what going from listening to them most days to absolutely zilch all of a sudden for an entire month does to you.
But the chords continue. The verse kicks in. Someone shouts “hey, Rona! Arctic Monkeys!”. There’s no denying it now.
I remember feebly mentioning to the person sat next to me that they were playing, as I’d do upon hearing the band in a shop, or the sixth form common room at school. But this was more surreal. A grin claimed my face and emotion spread through me as I relished in the melodic tune featuring the Alex Turner lyricism that I had oh-so missed once more.
One thing I failed to mention here is that we were stationed nearby Mellaca’s Hard Rock Café, so maybe a feat of western guitar music was not all too unexpected, but it was the first song that was broadcasted from the site that day and the song was hardly a chart-topping single, so hopefully you can muster my surprise/overwhelming joy.

So there you have it.
I must note that this does not cover my whole experience. A simply harrowing reoccurrence whilst out there was the site of the many tributes to the tragic plane accidents that Malaysia fell victim to last year. The latter (the shooting down of the MH17 passenger flight, which was making its way from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, killing all on board) happened whilst we were on the jungle trek, so we only found out about the incident three days later. For the remainder of the trip the case was permanently covered by every news outlet. Our hearts went out to the families and friends of the crisis' victims, and we hoped, and still hope today, that they receive a full explanation as to why both crashes occurred, to at least provide some form of closure.

Courteeners Review

Courteeners
Blackburn King George’s Hall, 3rd November 2014
Support: DMA’s

The Manchester band take Lancashire by storm.

As far as boisterous crowds go, you can always expect it to kick off at a Courteeners gig. The quartet, formerly known to carry a ‘The’ in front of their name before inexplicably changing their title with the release of their third album, Anna, returned to the much-loved Blackburn concert venue for the first time in seven years as part of a tour to promote their fourth and most recent release, Concrete Love. On the surface, critical reception of the 2014 record (It received a mere five out of ten from NME) would predict struggle in ticket sales, but as anyone who has followed their eight-year career knows, the fans are outstandingly loyal and, tonight, enthusiastically large in their numbers, having sold out the 2000 capacity hall weeks before they take the stage.

Support for the sixth instalment of their latest UK tour came in the form of Aussie indie-rockers DMA’s, losing their performing-on-British-soil virginity. An album has yet to come from the trio but tracks from their self-titled EP, released earlier this year and gaining them great recognition on the alternative scene Down Under, was performed in full as the crowd numbers grew. The ‘90s see a revival in both sound and aesthetic with songs that attempt to emulate a perhaps softer style of Manchurian Britpop, and their navy sweatshirts and branded tracksuit bottoms making percussion-playing frontman Took, guitarist O’Dell and a rather drunken Mason look like they could have stepped straight out of an early Oasis.
The multitude of adolescents, many clad dedicatedly in Courteeners’ signature ‘Can You Wear Guitar?’ tees, flocked the floor, awaiting their reason to not do homework and actually leave the house on a dark, damp and dismal Monday evening, along with the older original fans, ready to relive the magic of a night they’ve undergone many times before. These fans know to expect the pyrophoric flares (for what is a Courteeners gig without them?), the fights and the brutally vigorous moshpit, and are ready to recite every lyric and ‘ooo-oooh’ with passion.
Thunderous chanting and cheers greet frontman Liam Fray and gang Michael Campbell, Daniel Moores and Mark Joseph Cuppelloon on stage before they break straight into the theatrical White Horses. The setlist followed a nostalgic path through all four albums; the newest of the tracks, including How Good It Was and Summer are well received buts it’s the classics that are the real crowd-pleasers. Three songs in and Cavorting sends the room wild, and eases the band into the energetic set.
Following the sing-along Small Bones the pace is slowed for Fray’s mid-gig acoustic solo. Sunflower is performed with a sweep of acknowledgement of the fans’ dedication for knowing every word of the B-side and The Rest of the World Has Gone Home is a reminder of how far Courteeners have come. Requests for fan-favourite Smiths Disco are chanted from the stalls and Fray conforms, before being re-joined by the rest of the skinny jeans clad band for the encore.

“Thank you for believing in us, Blackburn, despite everyone who calls us shit,” expresses a gratified Fray in advance of closer What Took You So Long. “We’re here for the fans; we couldn’t do it without you.”

Mandatory Introduction

Hello and welcome to what I hope will become a most humble abode to my thoughts, beliefs, opinions and, I predict mainly, my interests. As unoriginal as it sounds, the reason for this blog’s unsought-after existence is for me to, with a bit of luck and a bit of hard work, gain experience in writing and to develop my linguistic style, in order to perhaps one day have a career in journalism (see, I told you it was unoriginal) - and if anyone out there reads or -dare I say it- enjoys my futile ramblings, then hurrah!
My aim is to regularly post a range of pieces, from my everyday experiences to my favourite things, from my view on topical news to music reviews. I have always loved writing freely and to be able to craft my own work, so maybe with a blog up-and-running (jogging to start with, most likely) I will dedicate a little more time perusing this passion. I guess the only way I can describe why I’m doing this is to give you a little comparison. Do you recall that Saturday primetime slot filler Stars in Their Eyes? Well, you don’t have to because I think it’s making a comeback to ITV1. Anyway, remember when the contestants would boldly proclaim ‘tonight, Leslie/Matthew/Cat, I’m going to be- (insert name of popular music act)’ and waltz backstage to fulfil their dreams of at long last becoming (insert name of popular music act)? Well, that will be me, inelegantly waltzing away from other slightly-more-taxing/slightly-more-important responsibilities to post on here. But with less stage make-up and strobe lighting.
Thank you for visiting, and may you too star in the inevitable remake of the Harry Potter series (‘What? You’ve got already got a part in this yet to be de facto project?’ I hear you cry! Sadly, no, but it’s something I will at all costs make sure happens).