News and Reviews: 17th March 2006

16 March 2006.The Choreographers Ball And Awards at Hammersmith Palais, London.Of course this event was not on the same scale as last months BRIT or NME awards but its great that there is an bash like this to honour choreographers and dancers who unless they are lucky enough to get a gig with someone like Madonna are often much over looked and rarely given due credit. I mean how many times have you seen some rubbish song on tv with half a dozen dancers in the background trying to make the song more interesting.A mad mix of faces here included Kid Creole ,Noel from Hearsay and Una Stubbs??? Lots of cool dance routines feat hip hop, ballet, funk , tap and performance art and a lively crowd too..... Iron Maiden + Trivium play a UK tour in Dec with the London date at Earls Court Arena on Dec 22 ..... and The Eagles have sold out their massive show at Twickenham Stadium and now play Wembley Arena on June 18.......... Ted Nugent will soon announce a few UK shows for early June .......... Monday 13th March punk legends The Sex Pistols get their first ever major award in New York for The American Hall Of Fame. The band will not be there but congratulations are in order........ 10 March 2006. The Buzzcocks + The Slits live at Selfridges, London.Back here again for a neat double bill of old school punk rock.Up first are all girl band The Slits . Singer Ari Up is mad as a hatter but on stage is full of charisma.For their 30 mins set they are joined by Holly Cook on backing vocals.(her dad is Sex Pistol Paul Cook). They play a few old tracks inc " Shoplifting". As its another free gig The Buzzcocks only play for 40 mins instead of the usual 80 mins. Opening with a few decent tracks from new album "Flat Pack Philosophy" they then play some old gems like "Harmony In My Head" , "I Dont Mind ","What Do I Get" ,"Ever Fallen In Love" and a mega " Orgasm Addict" .Must see a proper set on their UK tour. Sex Pistols Glen Matlock and Paul Cook were both here tonight......... 09 March 2006.New York Dolls live at Selfridges, London. Blimey i have been to some special gigs but this was right up there .Punk legends NY Dolls in town to play a secret gig for 200 invited guests to mark Selfridges 3 weeks celebration for 30 years of punk rock.All night free booze and food as well. A full band set up play 8 songs in 35 mins as follows "Looking For A Kiss ","Puss N Boots" ,"Private World" ,"Pills" ,"You Cant Put Your Arms Around A Memory" ,"Trash" ,"Jet Boy" and finishing with a stunning " Personality Crisis" . David Johansen has let his hair grow and his wrists are covered with bangles. Its all over far too quickly but it was incredible. Here to watch inc Glen Matlock, Chris Musto ,Koozie, Don Letts, Bob Gruen, Marco Peroni,Patti Paladin,Philip Treacy,Kieth Allen, Charles Shaar Murray and Chris (3 Colours Red). One of those mega "i was there " gigs ........... 07 March 2006.David Gilmour live at The Mermaid Theatre , London.Another DG show this time for 500 seated punters(400 comp winners and 100 guests of BBC and the band)for a future Radio 2 broadcast.The night before was a real one off event but this show felt more like the show he will tour Europe with for the next two months. On stage for 90 mins the sound was amazing. Thankfully they dropped some new album tracks and played a few Pink Floyd classics instead inc "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" ,"Wearing The Inside Out" and a stunning " Comfortably Numb" .David took a 5 mins loo break during the show. Incredible guitar playing and the new songs sounded better.Midweek sales of "On An Island" seem certain to make it number 1 in the UK album charts at the weekend............ 06 March 2006.David Gilmour live at Porchester Hall, London.Pink Floyd legend holds an invite only party for 500 to celebrate the launch of his new album "On An Island" and his 60th birthday. Lots of free booze and food until midnight and the venue is tastefully decorated.Lots of celebs here like Jools Holland ,Mike Rutherford (will be hosting a big Polo Rocks concert at The Royal Albert Hall in the summer),Robert Wyatt, Twiggy ,Roy Harper, Ray Cooper, Damon Hill, Alan Yentob(BBC top brass),Paul Gambachini, Nick Mason,Rick Wright, Phil Manzernera (Roxy Music to play UK dates in July),Bob Geldof (still a bit vexed that NME gave the best live event of 2005 to The Reading Festival instead of Live 8),Harvey Goldsmith,Paul McCartneys keyboard player(confirmed there would be no Macca shows in Europe this year) and not forgetting the nicest person in the room tonight Linda Lewis (has a new album out this month and plays Pizza On The Park Knightsbridge this month). David and his great band did a 65 mins set which featured all of the new album and at the end he played a Syd Barrett song followed by " Wish You Were Here". Mr Gilmour is a stunning sublime guitarist but the new material sounded only average and lacked real passion and excitement. Dreamy and atmospheric though it certainly is. The event overall though was excellent........ 03 March 2006. Dressed To Kill live at The Standard ,Walthamstow ,London.Here we are in E17 in the home of tribute bands in London. A packed pub of 200 punters all here to watch the UKs number one KISS tribute act. Like the times i have seen them before its a stunning 2 hour set with a full monty production of costumes ,make up,fireworks, explosions, blood spitting, fire breathing and guitars that smoke and shoot rockets out of their necks.They start off with " Love Gun" and most of the set is based around the classic KISS of the 1970s with a few of the later tracks as well.Gems like "King Of The Nightime World" ,"Do You Love Me?","Creatures Of The Night" ,"Beth" ,"God Of Thunder" ,"Lick It Up","I Was Made For Loving You" ,"Strutter" , "Flaming Youth" ,"Crazy Nights" and " Black Diamond" .Brilliant encores of " Detroit Rock City" and " Rock And Roll All Nite" where they were joined on stage by big KISS fan Ian Lee who ia a dj on XFM and a tv presenter.Dressed To Kill may only be a tribute act but tonight they were just fantastic.Check the bands website on www.kissinuk.com/dtk for more dates and check the venues website www.standardmusicvenue.co.uk for other tribute bands playing here soon........ 01 March 2006.Last Man Standing + Baxter Dury live at Madame Jojos, Soho, London.Neat double bill of two up and coming bands. First up is Baxter Dury(son of legend Ian Dury)who play tunes off last years Rough Trade album "Floor Show" which includes their stunning last song played tonight " Francescas Party" .Headliners Last Man Standing feature Glenn Max on vocals who in his day job has booked all those amazing shows at The Royal Festival Hall such as Brian Wilson ,Morrissey and New York Dolls so full respect to him for putting in time and energy to do his own thing.The sound is blues with a dash of funk with a brass section as well. Hints of Little Feat i thought at times. A great mix of all things good. Glenn has a big voice for his small frame. This was only their 5th or 6th gig but check them out in the summer when they will be playing some of the festivals ........... 28 Feb 2006. Dave Matthews live at Kings College, London. This was a one off UK acoustic show to promote his new album " Stand Up" .Still hardly known in the UK Dave is massive in America where he can easily can play outdoor venues holding 50,000 or more.The crowd of 550 is mainly from across the pond who lap up every minute of seeing their hero up close. Dave chats a lot between songs and gives the impression of being a regular guy who you could meet at any bar in the states. He joked about the posters all over London from his last visit a few years ago that said " Who Is Dave Matthews?".In an acoustic setting the songs had a Jack Johnson feel about them as they sounded good but not great. Tunes played included " Bartender" ,"So Damn Lucky", "Stay Or Leave" ,"Gravedigger" a cover of "All Along The Watchtower" and final song of the night " Everyday" which was superb.On stage for 1 hour 40 mins it was ok overall...... 27 Feb 2006.Chris Difford live at Abbey Road Studios, London.This was a "picture" auction held by Cooper Owen in this famous building. Some 100 photos raised a decent £50,000. Music supplied by Chris Difford who played a 6 song 30 mins set of Squeeze classics. Not the ideal crowd as some were boozing and chatting through his set."Up The Junction" ,"Tempted" , "Pulling Mussels From A Shell" ,"Take Me I'm Yours" ,"Black Coffee In Bed" and " Cool For Cats" all went down well......... The NME Awards was the 4500th live music event i have been to since 1973........ 23 Feb 2006.NME Awards at Hammersmith Palais , London.Annual event held by the UKs coolest music mag which still discovers all the new talent way before the rest.About 500 seated for dinner and we are part of the 200 or so stuck with the buffet. Loads of bands and celebs here like Arctic Monkeys, Strokes, Antony And The Johnsons, Bloc Party, Bob Geldof with daughters Peaches and Pixie,Dirty Pretty Things ,Babyshambles, Editors, Elbow, Elizabeth Jagger, Harry Potter Boys,Jarvis Cocker, Jo Whiley, Kanye West, Kaiser Chiefs, Pete Shelley ,Jade Jagger,Cribs, Kasabian,Maximo Park, Mystery Jets, Peter Hook, Plan B ,Preston(Ordinary Boys),Razorlight, Shaun Ryder, Sugababes, Teddy Sheringham, Magic Numbers, Tim Westwood, Zane Lowe and We Are Scientists.Host was Russell Brand. Day went 4.30pm drinks reception then 5.30pm food served. 7.15pm awards started and a few bands played live.Razorlight played a couple of new songs, Plan B did a song. Dirty Pretty Things played "Bang Bang Youre Dead" , Sugababes did a fun cover of Arctic Monkeys "Dancefloor" hit.Pete Dochery did a Madonna by being in the venue for just 30 mins to play " Albion" flanked by loads of security. Ian Brown finished the night with a 20 mins set inc " Fear" and " I Wanna Be Adored" . Ian Brown insisted to NME that they get a current or ex Man Utd player to hand him his Godlike Genius Award so Teddy Sheringham did that. Arctic Monkeys won 3 awards i think. Apart from Pete Doherty actually turning up the main madness was when the Cribs singer launched himself onto The Kaiser Chiefs table knocking all the booze flying. I was surprised as Bob Geldof that the Carling Reading Festival won best live event over Live 8. (nothing to do with Carling sponsoring the free beer tonight then?). At 10.30pm they let in another 500 for the party at the venue but most of the bands have left by then. We end up at The K West Hotel near Shepherds Bush Green where from 11pm a lot of the nights bands appear Kasabian ,Arctic Monkeys, Carl Barat with his own personal security guard, Razorlight, Jo Whiley, and even Kelly Osbourne amongst others i cant put faces to bands. Very lively buzzing atmosphere with about 200 here. We leave at 1.30am and its still rocking. An excellent evening all round......... 22 Feb 2006. Editors + Brakes live at Astoria, London.This was one of many shows in the build up to the NME awards the following night .First are Brakes who have at least half a dozen tunes that last 30 seconds or less which was fun.Their best song "All Night Disco Party " was really good . They have an album out called " Give Blood" . The Editors have had a really good 12 months as their album " The Black Room " has charted. In the slower songs they still sound like Joy Division and on the uptempo ones they sound like New Order .They play well and are very confident in their 70 mins set .Lots of really good tunes like " Munich" ,"All Sparks " and " Bullets" . In May they return to London to play a 3 night stint at Brixton Academy........ 20 Feb 2006.Elle Style Awards at The Atlantis Gallery, Brick Lane, London. With loads of celebs in town for The BRITS ,BAFTAS and London Fashion Week this annual bash for what is probably the UKS top fashion mag attracted a stella collection of film stars ,supermodels ,designers and even a few rock stars. 7pm Drinks reception and 3 course meal for the 500 or so guests.9.30pm awards are given out.Event is hosted by Zoe Ball and its in the centre of the venue which worked great. Here goes with who was here Sean Bean, Kelly Osbourne, Danni Minogue, Marilyn Manson and Dita Von Teese, Rachel Weisz, Thandie Newton,Matt Dillon, Will Young, Sugababes, Shirley Manson(Garbage) ,David Walliams ,Sadie Frost, Donna Air, Jay Kay(Jamiroquai),Sara Cox, Elle McPhearson, Erin O'Connor, Jamie Theakson, June Sarpong, Myleene Klass, Patrick Cox, Yasmin Le Bon, Kirsty Gallacher, Charlize Theron in a very sexy short skirt raised a few laughs . Who put Will Young and Marlilyn Manson on the same table ??? opposites attract i suppose. Jamie and Louise Redknapp, Sophie Ellis Bexter, Calum Best and not forgetting Coleen (Wayne Rooneys girlfriend) .After the awards the booze flowed for the aftershow party until 2am .A few celebs got on the dancefloor.Massive goody bag for all at the end.A superb party......... 17 Feb 2006. 7pm Sparks at HMV ,Oxford Street, London then 8.30pm The Counterfeit Stones live at The Riverside Studios, London.Two good events tonight .First 1970s legends Sparks play a short 4 song 20 mins set in store to promote new album " Hello Young Lovers" .Ron and Russell with full band play 2 new songs "Perfume " and "Waterproof" and 2 fantastic oldies " Amateur Hour " and " This Town Aint Big Enough For The Both Of Us" .Short but sweet then a mad dash over to Hammersmith to see the UKs top Rolling Stones tribute act who are always great fun. The current Stones tour is called "The Bigger Bang" tour and this lot call theirs " The Bigger Bong" tour as one of many drug related jokes. No support so i missed a few songs but still saw 90 mins of their set. Superb costumes ,film clips and mad onstage banter mixed in with all those fab Stones classics inc "Miss You " ," Jumping Jack Flash" ,"Start Me Up " and " Satisfaction " and loads more. A must see for any Stones fans. Check their website www.thecounterfeitstones.com for more dates on their UK tour.............. 15 Feb 2006.BRIT AWARDS live at Earls Court Arena , London. With rumours this massive event would move to a new location the organisers pulled out all the stops to make it the biggest BRITS ever. They moved it to the larger Earls Court 1 from Earls Court 2 which meant a staggering 4000 people seated for dinner and another 4000 up in the balcony area.Our great day out went as follows. 5pm free drinks reception as you watched some of the stars pull up on the red carpet. 6.15pm more free booze and a lovely 3 course meal feat prime scotch fillet of beef coated in wild mushrooms. The awards were on from 7.25pm to 10.25pm . We were in block D about halfway back but an hour into the show we got into vip block A sitting mere feet from Madonna, Paul Weller, Hard Fi, James Blunt, Craig David, Frank Lampard and Paris Hilton. Pretty amazing to see Prince play live again. The live bands were Kaiser Chiefs, Prince who played a 4 song medley of 2 new tunes and hits "Purple Rain " and " Lets Go Crazy" , then Coldplay , James Blunt, Kelly Clarkson, KT Tunstall did a song each . Kanye West had 77 girl dancers in gold body paint. Jack Johnson and Gorillaz did a song each. Paul Weller collected a well deserved "Outstanding Contribution To Music Award" played a few songs finishing with " A Town Called Malice" . The Kaiser Chiefs were the main winners on the night with 3 awards followed by James Blunt, Coldplay and Green Day who won 2 awards each. Only rock n roll mayhem i saw was members of Hard Fi spraying bottles of champers at the Atlantic Records table. A couple of the Atlantic Records guys tried to do the same back to them but where bundled to the ground by security. An excellent evening from start to finish. See aftershow page for this event.............

Posted 17th March 2006