So long, Astoria
The Astoria in London is one of the capital’s most loved music venues, and unfortunately it’s being pulled down next week in order to build a new Crossrail train system. Whilst being a bit of a dump (it’s the kind of place you can’t stand still in for too long without becoming stuck to the floor) it’s a really great, dirty rock ‘n’ roll venue, and there aren’t enough venues like it left these days – mainly thanks to the increasing corporate sponsorship/stranglehold of venues.
I’ve been to several stand-out gigs at the Astoria, gigs that have really stuck in mind as being some of my favourites ever. These gigs were usually to see bands that can fill much bigger venues play small, low-key shows. I remember seeing the Foo Fighters (supported by Ash) playing 24 hours after seeing them headlining the Leeds Festival – I travelled over half the length of the country to see them at the Astoria – one night they were playing to 60,000 people, the next 2,000! I was lucky enough to see the Foos play there again a couple of years later and will never forget them playing ‘Aurora’ – it was awe-inspiring.
I also saw Audioslave’s first UK gig which was at the Astoria – they were never the band they could have been on record, but live they were something else – the energy of Rage Against The Machine, with the vocal power of Chris Cornell was outstanding! Then again a few years later I saw Chris Cornell perform solo – another great gig with many highlights from his career, including several Soundgarden numbers.
And in 2006 I attended what was (and still is) the best gig I’ve ever been to. After not touring the UK for 6 years (and me never having seen them) I saw Pearl Jam perform the first show of their ’self-titled’ album world tour at the Astoria, and by a bizarre twist of fate met all of the band afterwards. That gig has to be one of the loudest I’ve been to – maybe it was just my emotions running away with me, but you could feel the balcony swaying up and down that night as they played ‘Alive’ in the encore. This one stands out as my most vivid Astoria memory and I’d like to think that dark, dank, old building brought me a little bit of luck that night. So long, Astoria! Gone, but never forgotten!
Best Of You
Foo Fighters @ Wembley June 2008, originally uploaded by Chris Wilkinson.
The gig was great from start to finish with The Futureheads and Supergrass in support, before the Foos took to the stage playing ‘in the round’ with the stage in the middle of the pitch surrounded by thousands of rabid fans. The stage rotated 360 degrees so that everyone in the stadium got to see the band front-on, even those sitting behind the stage.
Everything was perfect – the band, the set-list, the stage, the lights, the special guests (Jimmy Page & John Paul Jones from Led Zeppelin!) the crowd, and even the fireworks at the end.
I was really glad we went, as judging by Dave’s comments the band were in agreement that it was the highlight of their career, and I had a great day spent with some of my favourite people.
Where the Foo Fighters will go from here I’m not sure, but if they broke up tomorrow, I think I would be ok with that. On Tuesday we’re going to re-live the show at our local cinema where the soon to be released DVD of the show is being screened in high-definition with 5.1 surround sound. It’s not quite as good as being at the gig again, but it’s the next best thing!
Albums Of The Year: 2007
It’s time for my 3rd annual ‘Albums Of The Year’ round up! 2007 has been another great year for music and I have spent a lot of time discovering both new and old bands, as well as rediscovering bands I’d forgotten about – mainly after going through my much neglected and dust covered CD collection.
Below are my top picks for 2007… (Don’t forget to post yours in the comments!)
Kings Of Leon – Because Of The Times
I’ve never been a particularly big fan of KOL, in fact they’ve annoyed me somewhat in the past being inconsistent and never delivering a great album. I’m pleased to say that with ‘Because Of The Times’ they have finally delivered a great album.
When I saw them in April 2007 the live show more than lived up to the album, in fact there were moments where the live versions of songs outshone the studio recordings. Third time lucky? I think so!
Stand out tracks: ‘On Call’, ‘Charmer’ and ‘Knocked Up’.
Foo Fighters – Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace
‘Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace’ carries on from where ‘In Your Honour’ left off, with a mixture of hard rocking ‘classic’ Foo Fighters tunes and several softer, stripped down acoustic tunes reminiscent of the acoustic portion of ‘In Your Honour’. Add to this a sprinkling of 70’s rock stardust (did Taylor Hawkins’ love of The Eagles finally rub off?) and you have another great rock album from one of the world’s greatest ever rock bands.
Having caught the Foos at the O2 Arena in November (my 10th Foo Fighters gig since 1995!) I was pleased to see that their live show now includes both electric and acoustic sets – perfectly representing this latest album and it’s predecessor. Roll on Wembley Stadium next June – I can’t wait!
Stand out tracks: ‘Let It Die’, ‘The Pretender’, ‘But Honestly’, ‘Home’.
Biffy Clyro – Puzzle
Part of the reason Biffy Clyro are so great is because they don’t do things by the book. Just as you are getting into a big sing-along chorus, they throw in 16 bars of white noise in an obscure time signature. There was a point where I thought Biffy Clyro would never achieve any commercial success, whether they wanted to or not.
With ‘Puzzle’ Biffy have remained true to their ’spaz-rock’ roots, but also managed to include the ‘Questions & Answers’ element they touched upon during previous albums, and produce what is their most commercial sounding and commercially successful album (no.2 in the UK album chart) to date, without becoming a different band.
‘Puzzle’ includes all the things that make Biffy Clyro great and you’ll do well to find a tighter or noisier live band on the planet!
Stand out tracks: ‘Saturday Superhouse’, ‘Get Fucked Stud’, ‘The Conversation Is…’, ‘Now I’m Everyone’.
Wilco – Blue Sky Blue
Wilco are a band I’ve only discovered in the last two or three years and yet they’ve made it into my albums of the year list in both 2005 (with ‘A Ghost Is Born’) and 2007 with ‘Blue Sky Blue’. Because of this I was especially disappointed when they cancelled their UK tour in November this year, fingers crossed they’ll return in 2008!
‘Blue Sky Blue’ opens with what has become one of my favourite Wilco songs ‘Either Way’, a song that embodies everything I love about Wilco. When I listen to ‘Blue Sky Blue’ it reminds me of summer evenings spent in the garden with my girlfriend. To say that it’s ‘more of the same’ would be an insult to a great band, however ‘Blue Sky Blue’ continues the Wilco tradition of beautifully crafted songs, full of subtleties and colour.
Stand out tracks: ‘Either Way’, ‘Impossible Germany’, ‘Hate It Here’.
My Morning Jacket – Okonokos (live)
Like Wilco, I was late getting in on the act with My Morning Jacket. I had ‘It Still Moves’ a couple of years ago and quite liked it, but somehow I missed ‘Z’ until about 6 months ago – once I realised just how good it was, it didn’t take me long to discover ‘Okonokos’ which may just be the best live album I’ve ever heard! Maybe it’s because I’m having a real My Morning Jacket-fest at the moment, but I just can’t get enough of this double live album. I must get the DVD!
Many comparisons can and frequently are made; acts such as Neil Young and Led Zeppelin come to mind and these are conjured by the dreamy epicness created on ‘Okonokos’. There are moments on this album where it sounds as if there are 3 bands playing at the same time, such is the power of the haunting vocals and pounding drums. Even the quieter moments (of which there are plenty) sound truly massive.
‘Epic’ is a word I keep coming back to when describing My Morning Jacket and it’s one I like!
Stand out tracks: ‘Gideon’, ‘Off The Record’, ‘One Big Holiday’.
Albums that only just missed out on the top 5 include:
Idlewild – Make Another World
Mute Math – Mute Math
Bloc Party – A Weekend In The City
Eddie Vedder – Into The Wild
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