Fontaines D.C. @O2 Forum Kentish Town - November 27, 2019

review to come...

Setlist:
Hurricane Laughter
Chequeless Reckless
Televised Mind
Sha Sha Sha

Lucid Dream

Television Screens
The Lotts
Roy's Tune
Too Real

Liberty Belle

Boys in the Better Land
Dublin City Sky
Big

Stiff Little Fingers @ O2 Forum Kentish Town - March 24, 2019

review to come...
























Setlist: 
Law and Order
At the Edge
Suspect Device
Guitar and Drum
Strummerville
16 Shots
Silver Lining
Harp
Guilty as Sin
Wasted Life
Can't Get Away With That
Listen
State of Emergency
My Dark Places
Just Fade Away
Nobody's Hero
Gotta Gettaway
Encore:
Drinkin' Again
Tin Soldiers
Alternative Ulster

New Model Army @ O2 Forum Kentish Town - December 13, 2018

Arrived at the Forum in time to see most of Shattercones set. It gave me a Nick Cave, David Lynch vibe with a twangy old-fashioned rock weirdness.  I really liked them. They played about 6 songs including A Cheat and In Relief, and I believe The Butterfly Song, all of which you can find on youtube or through their FaceBook page.

I'd heard a lot of good things about Seán McGowan from comments on Solo Armada's social media pages. Tonight he was doing a solo acoustic set which I believe is his norm rather than backed by a full band. He was chatty and personable and funny and seemed genuinely grateful to have been asked to open for NMA. He did a short set of mostly upbeat catchy songs that didn't fully win over the talking audience, but seemed to please quite a few.

Setlist:
Spancil Hill
Off the Rails
Romance Ain't Dead
Springhill
Cuppa Tea
No Show

New Model Army came on at 9:15. This London gig is one of their shows for their annual Winter Gatherings, but it's my first time seeing them. I discovered them sometime around 1991 and became obsessed with their Son of Cain album, and to a lesser degree some of the following LPs like Thunder and Consolation. Unfortunately they played nothing off my favourite album, including 51st State which was a staple on mixed tapes for years, but I realized how much of their other work I really like, so I didn't mind too much.

They have many albums to chose from and seemed to select songs that worked with the winter theme and the current political climate. The later in the set, the more the setlist seemed to be off the cuff with requests from the crowd that it was unclear if the band could hear or not, since many were shouted out in a jumble.

I had agonized a bit about whether to brave the cold evening to see another show alone, but knew I would regret missing a band I have liked for so long, and as always, was happy to have seen them finally.  They have a nice rapport with the fans, who seemed to be a touch on the crusty side, but less so than I feared. Most were in the mid 30- mid 50 age range I would guess, and there were many, many New Model Army T-shirts being shown off. I even dug out my old "Get Me Out" one for fun, and after a wash to shake off the years of musty box smell it was good to go. There was some fairly mellow moshing and a few people not just sitting on shoulders but standing on shoulders, which would have annoyed me, had I not been down the front with a good view.

Justin Sullivan the main and only persistent member of the band repeated a theme of political divisiveness a few times as he spoke to us between songs. His main message being that the politicians will only achieve their selfish aims if we let ourselves become divided; a fitting message for such a divided mid-Brexit country. Nice to hear that NMA's political messages haven't softened any.

Setlist:
Whirlwind
Burn the Castle
Drag it Down
Devil
States Radio
A Liberal Education
Brother
Winter
225
Better Than Them (as a tribute to Pete Shelley)
Too Close to the Sun
Guessing
Today is a Good Day
Autumn
Fater
Green and Grey
Encore:
Drummy B
Waiting
Island
Encore 2:
Stupid Questions
Betcha

shame @ O2 Forum Kentish Town - November 30, 2018

After the Touts debacle, we got to the venue with plenty of time to get a drink and a position in front of the stage before the 1st opener's start at 7:45 p.m. We were some of the first to get there and it was nice to see the Kentish Town Forum with the lights up and not jammed with people. It's a beautiful old Art Deco cinema that now has a 2300 capacity.

Not wanting to miss out on a great band, I did my research ahead of the show and thoroughly checked out both Sorry and Fontaines D.C. I'm really impressed by the Fontaines D.C., a young sort of post-punk meets 50s surf band from Dublin City (thus the name). Their sound is fresh and infectious with a Irish literary and cultural influence in the lyrics. I was so looking forward to seeing them and was even more impressed with them after their compelling eight-song set.

They did a great job winning over the initially tame audience, having them whooping and clapping by the end and sounding like they would be happy for more. They didn't play my favourite track of theirs Winter in the Sun, but ran through just about everything else I'd heard and couple I hadn't and had to look up after the show. They only have 4 singles (all double a-sides if you ask me) released, but I read they have recently been signed to Partisan Records (Idles are their new label-mates) and hopefully we'll see their debut album soon rather than just an EP. For such a young band they seem plenty prolific, so fingers crossed.

Their look is very interesting if initially a tad bizare. Four-fifths of the band remind me of 70s rock fans looking out-of-date by the 80s with straggly hair, some dodgy beards and questionable thrift-store gems.  I think I remember a Velvet Underground tee. The singer, Grian Chatten, seems to be chanelling Ian Curtis with his sad eyes and frenetic energy; a throw back to a working class past where your da's hand-me-downs would have to do, and you're just going to have to pull off that dress shirt and corduroy pant look. He paced the stage repeatedly looking as though he were about to go ten rounds with the audience. Quite mesmerizing.

While the rest of the band had a bit of a dazed, or overly-chilled, look to them, the sound they produced was the opposite: tight and driving. Several of the early songs (like Big) began or were driven by Deegan's bass and then layered upon. You then can't help but hear the influence of the Beach Boys and other surf sounds (Link Wray) as well as Buddy Holly in the dual guitars and be thoroughly charmed. The cherry on top is the Irish accented voice of Chatten, echoey and atmospherically droning in the best post-punk sense. Fontaines D.C. have created an exciting, new sound out of some stellar and diverse influences.

After the show I bought an awesome band T-shirt of a grubby, little kid smoking a roll-up, and within a couple of days had bought tickets for their next available local show at the Garage in April.

Setlist:
Chequeless Reckless
Big
Sha Sha Sha
Too Real
The Lotts
Liberty Belle
Boys in the Better Land
Hurricane Laughter


shame review and setlist coming...

Jane's Addiction @ O2 Forum Kentish Town, London - June 13, 2016

Sometimes I go to concerts to experience a band live and get to know them a bit better. But tonight, I went to relive a piece of my past. The early '90s to be precise. Right before alternative music broke into the mainstream, Jane's was paving the way, like NIN and a few others. This music feels very personal to me; it was mine before I had to share it with the rest of the world. And when we did have to share it, in that post-Smells Like Teen Spirit world, Perry Farrell was the main curator through Lollapalooza.

I never saw Jane's Addiction live and missed the first couple of Lollapaloozas as I wasn't in the country, but I was at the 3rd one, and the 5th one. I had friends who'd followed them around on tour, inspired to be in bands themselves. I was a particular fan of Nothing's Shocking. Honestly, I found the song and video for Been Caught Stealing ridiculous and cartoonish. But this album was special as it was released after I already loved them and was eager for more. Reliving the album in full in concert was a bit like discovering it the first time, unwrapping the CD. Yeah, they're still pretty awesome, was the exact feeling of relief I felt on both occasions.

The first thing that I was impressed by was the gogo dancers on scaffolding, gyrating behind the band on the opener, Stop! How perfectly Jane's, and how perfectly Ritual. So few bands do more than just show up, stand there and play. I really should have known to expect more from these inveterate showmen!

The band looked like they were having a good time with plenty of smiles and interaction. They sounded good and looked dapper and showy with just the right dash of maturity to acknowledge the 25 years past. I don't think I could have taken Perry in braids and a sundress.

The truly jaw-dropping moment of the show came at the end of the first encore when they play Ted, Just Admit It... Two girls in bondage gear thrashed around at the end of long lines dangling from the ceiling on either side of the stage. And yes, they were hooked through the skin, in the old native american sun-ritual way. The song's phrase "Nothing's Shocking" was surreal: I was genuinely shocked, and yet I would have been less shocked in 1990. Is this a function of aging? I don't know. I saw the Jim Rose Circus Sideshow back in the day (an act that benefited from Perry's promotion), but it's been so long since I've seen a band that want to play provocateur with their art. I miss it.

The evening wrapped up with a stripped back performance of Jane Says, encouraging the sing-a-long atmosphere everyone knew was coming. The band were all at the front of the stage with bongoes and acoustic guitars, with all the go-go dancers, satyrs and suspension girls joining them, making for an intimate finale, complete with theatrical bow.

Setlist:
Stop!
No One's Leaving
Ain't No Right
Obvious
Been Caught Stealing
Three Days
Then She Did...
Of Course
Classic Girl

Encore 1:
Mountain Song
Rebel Rebel (Bowie Cover)
Just Because
Ted, Just Admit It...

Encore 2:
Jane Says