Gig Addiction – Page 13 – Life on the road

Virginmarys, Michael Monroe,Therapy?, Darkness, Alice Cooper, StoneFree Festival, Indigo at O2 , O2 Arena, London 18-6-16

No, it wasn’t a complimentary ticket (you hand them in on entry & collect them after gigs finished), i paid over £70 for a CRAP service, but to got see some good bands 🙂 * Let me just get this rant out of the way *

From the start, i knew this one would be a balls up.In their wisdom, they didn’t post out the tickets (a service i paid for). When i chased them up, they said could be collected from the box office from 11am on gig day.I then requested my postage costs to be refunded, as i paid for a service they didn’t provide. Got the reply : ” Unfortunately, we are unable to refund your transaction as this also covers the cost of placing your tickets for collection from the venue box office”. Oh how typical, anything to rip off their customers.Well,before we got there, Jim contacted me to say the box office wouldn’t be open until 12pm ! Yeah, just know how this is going to go….
When got there, had a little wander around & bumped into my old mate Dave Ling. Not seen him for ages. I asked him how he was & his reply was something like “More to the point, how are you?” That was nice of him. Next we had a little wander around the venue looking at the overpriced eating places 😉 Then i noticed a familiar face coming towards me. It was a lad from Sheffield, Tonito, who i’ve met at loads of gigs (Sheffield/Nottingham etc). Thought it was time we connected on Facebook, so we did 🙂 Went to join the box office queue & after a while, Eric & Sonia arrived. First thing Sonia said was “You’re looking well”. That was very nice to hear. It may seem small, but to me, that’s a big boost to my well being/confidence.
When box office opened, a few people in front of us came away with no tickets! Strange eh? Once it was our turn, they said that the tickets hadn’t arrived at the box office yet! Oh See Tickets/O2 arena are such professionals ! (sarcasm). Every subsequent customer was told “The tickets will be here in an hour”. So, the first act started at 12.20 & majority of us didn’t have tickets yet ! Personally, i don’t think these so called “professional companies” should be able to get away with this. We paid for a service which they did not provide, TWICE now. Cunts.
Eventually we get our tix & just hope that not many have gone in before us. Poor old Jim was STILL left waiting as his ticket (different company) had still not turned up. Now, i’d planned to go in the balcony & it seemed empty. Asked security & they said ” We won’t open the balcony until the main floor fills up”. I was still livid from the ticket B.S. so had a word with the production manager, a very nice American lady. She said i could have a seat. Well, it turned out it WASN’T in balcony, but in the disabled area, which wasn’t that great a view. So i went back to her & said we had crossed wires. She then told me ” The balcony is closed & only VIPs can go up there” (erm, so the security had totally sold me a bullshit line eh?!!) Well, i gave up on that goose chase & went back in. Place was busying up. Partly cos i was pissed off & partly as i didn’t think the place would get all that busy, i decided to go front row! Watched “Jackaman”, who were new to me & pretty good. Damn, can she sing !

Next up, it was the band which were the main reason for me coming here : The Virginmarys :-). I absolutely LOVE the latest album, ” Divides”. There’s not many bands i can say i like every track on the album, but this is certainly one of the special few. Songs such as ” I Wanna take you home” really resonate with me. It was a well thought out set list to hit hard & fast.

The set just seemed to fly by. Ally, as ever, showed his appreciation for the crowd turning up to see them. He also briefly told how they were delayed because of Alice Coopers snake 🙂 They were easily my band of the day.

To my utter shame,after all these years, i’ve still not got a VMs t-shirt ! (only got a beanie hat ). I didn’t see any merchandise for them around the arena ( The O2 probably wanted too big a cut to sell there 😉 ) so i sent Gareth a msg to see if i could buy one. Unfortunately, they only had ” Tent ” size in the one i wanted 🙁 So still haven’t got one…

Michael Monroe was running around like mad. He was making Dunc work hard as regards his microphone stand. I reckon MM does it deliberately 😉 Reminded me of the show at Camden Rocks in 2015. I was stood on the left & we had a moment where i could see the exasperation in the eyes poor old Dunc 😉

Well, whatever, MM played a typical upbeat set. A few times he came down to the barrier to meet his people. Thinking about it, i’ve never seen a bad show by him. He has a solid band behind him & they always seem to have fun. Great stuff.

Next it’s Therapy? Again, you know what you’re gonna get with them. Never seen a bad gig by them. Fun with a capital F ! 🙂

We then move to the main arena, where things are already quite busy. I must say, i really don’t think the organizers really thought things through as regards the Indigo O2 room. I mean, what would have happened if a lot of this crowd had wanted to see the acts in the smaller room ? It’s obvious not everyone would have fitted in & there was potential for even more unsatisfied punters…
So, first band up in the arena was ” Blackberry Smoke”. They were ok i suppose. Next it’s Apocalyptica. They were a great novelty act when they started about 20 years ago, because it was an original idea. I guess it was always going to be a limited potential though, when just playing the cellos. So along the way, they got guest singers for some songs. The standout one for me was when Sandra Nasic (Guano Apes) did “Path Vol 2” back in 2001 (If my memory is correct, she also had the honor of being the first person to add vocals to an Apocalyptica song). I’ve not really followed their career since then, but did notice they had some great guest vocalists/collaborations along the way. Can’t say as i like the band nowadays & if i’m honest, i’m amazed they’ve managed to make such a good career out of it all. However, i respect the fact they’ve worked for everything & are now even able to play a gig at Royal Festival Hall !

Somewhere during the night, i bumped into Adrian Hextall. I first met him at the Camden Rocks show a couple of years back. Again, such a nice chap that he asked how i was doing with regards to my tumors etc. Was really appreciated. Next it’s The Darkness. They’ve certainly had some HIGHS 😉 & lows over their career. I reckon one of my fave times seeing them was at the MTV birthday gig at Brixton ,back in 2003.(Along with “The Music” & headliners “Janes Addiction”). They were just starting to become well known at the beginning of their meteoric success. As with many bands, internal problems & drugs caused them to implode & they were away for some years. I wasn’t sure what to expect of them tonight.I could take it or leave it tbh. But, as it was, i mostly REALLY enjoyed their set. It was fun & a laugh. What i DIDN’T like though was when Justin started trying to guess audience members names! Just seemed stupid how he was rambling on. Maybe there was a reason for it ? 😉

Finally it’s time for Alice Cooper. By now i’m starting to feel tired as it’s been such a long day. I was enjoying the set a lot, but, after maybe 40mins or so, i just felt like if i stayed i’d pass out (or something worse). I know when to not push myself.

So i said goodbye to everyone & arranged to meet Ady back at Stanmore tube. Despite the initial tickets clusterfuck, the day did end up ok. Apologies for my initial rant, but, i just cannot take it when there is such incompetence !

Garbage, The Pearl Harts , Rock City, Nottingham, 14-6-16

Garbage, The Pearl Harts ,Troxy, London 13-6-16

Well, this was always gonna be a special one thanks to some of my great friends with who i go to the Garbage shows. After i was diagnosed with having brain tumors, totally out of the blue, slightly after my birthday, i got this card from my wonderful friends :

It’s times like these that you know who your true friends are. Yes, i admit it, this did make me cry, but it just shows the love from everyone.

The previous day we were in Nottingham for Download Festival. On the morning of Troxy gig, we drove from Nottingham to Lincoln, so i could have my treatments. Then drove back to Boston, where i caught a train to London ! Yup,takes a lot to stop Mr Gigaddiction.
Straight to Troxy where i met Rob & a bunch of others. Eventually the M&G people go inside. Had a bit of a false start as they let us in main room, then asked us to go back out ! Had to feel for Tess as their travel wasn’t going well & they had M&G tix as well. Could see they wouldn’t make it in time. When we got in proper, it was cool seeing the band soundchecking. They even played a song which wasn’t going to be in the setlist that night 🙂 After that, they stayed on stage for the Q & A session. That was quite interesting. The best thing i heard though was that they want to do a Version 2.0 anniversary tour. Now THAT’S something i want, to relive those heady days again 🙂

Afterwards, we were took backstage to a room where we get the photo opportunity with the band. As i was wearing my ” 50 ” badge, i was wished a happy birthday. I explained my birthday was in fact back in April & how my wonderful friends bought me the M&G package. I showed them my card & got them to autograph it. Duke, being the wise guy, asked ” Are you Daddy Cool ?”
Of course, he had just looked in the card 😉

I kind of embarrassed Stevo as i told him how we (myself, Rob, Rijkels) started the Steve-o chants… he went a bit red 😉 Finally, i gave Shirley a copy of the Angelfish film i made in Glasgow last year. ” Oh, it was you who was filming it !”
We then were given posters for the Troxy show. I noticed the guy giving them out had extras, so, i just asked if i could have another.
He was fine about it….& then everyone near me was grappling for them lol. Some lead,others follow 🙂 ( I gave my extra one to Rob)

We then went back into the main hall. I got a great spot on the raised area, left side obviously, next to mixing desk. Later Tess, joined me there, along with Rob , Jess, Jeff & his missus & Jim. Also saw some other friends including Becky, who i always see on the Garbage tours 🙂 Once again, it was nice seeing everyone again. Eventually,the rest of the Trashers joined below us on the floor. But Diana kicked ass the most, as she came up & stood other side of barrier,near to the mixing desk ! Stayed there for quite a while as well with no one contesting if she should be there. Maybe they all just knew she is the “Bitch Babe” not to be messed with?

Pearl Harts opened the night & as ever, i enjoyed their little set. Strangely, i didn’t take any photos or video of them! Probably because i was otherwise occupied ? 😉 Whatever, they got a decent reaction from the crowd,but, we were there for the main course; Garbage !
There was a lot of expectation on my part as Paradiso had been so good. Not only that, but, the last few London shows just seemed to get better each time.
Whilst i think it’s brave of them to open with ” Sometimes”, i think it’s a rubbish opener ! Honestly, i just don’t like it ! I guess the idea is to show a somber mood, but i find it meh. At least they go straight into “Empty “. I love that song. Nice energy pop music 🙂

Then we have the killer old classics “Stupid Girl ” followed by “Special”. It’s great seeing everyone getting off on these songs. Already, i don’t think i’ve enjoyed myself this much at a Garbage gig ever before 😉 It was quite a surprise for them to add “So Like A Rose” into the set & lucky i decided to film it.

Actually, i didn’t film much as i was just enjoying the moment so much. Once again, it was fun to be rocking out etc with Tess. ” #1 Crush ” was pretty intense tonight. Loved ” I Think I’m Paranoid” as always. Bit of jumping around etc. The whole evening was just great. Shirley did quite a talk, including band members introductions, before “Automatic Systematic Habit “. Stevo got embarrassed 😉 Mr Avery just showed what a bass god he is & we also were told that Duke is the only member of the band to have not cancelled a show due to being fucked up (So, does that mean he has played a few when he WAS fucked up ? 😉 )

Tonights version of ” Vow ” , was easily the best they’ve ever done (that i’ve seen anyways). Shirley was just so wrapped up in it…as were we. They finished with “Only Happy When It Rains” & everyone was rocking out & singing along. Hmm, cannot remember exactly if it was here or before, but, the girls went further into the crowd. I guess they just couldn’t stay at the back 😉
The first song of the encore was ” Even Though Our Love Is Doomed “. Myself , like many no doubt, can really relate to the lyrics in this song. It’s dark & moody & for me, probably my favourite track on the album ( With ” Blackout ” being a close second fave ) . We get the final songs “Why Do You Love Me” & “Cherry Lips”. Before “WDYLM” Shirley made an impassioned short speech about us, their crowd. She genuinely seems to appreciate us all supporting them over the years.

What a night it was ! Finally meeting the band after all these years supporting them, a fantastic show & probably the best London gig i’ve seen, some dancin & ass bumping, full of true friends. Just amazing. Once again, huge thanks to the Trashers who clubbed together to buy the M&G for me. It was truly appreciated like you’ll never know. Today was a day i’ll never forget for so many reasons. Mr Gigaddiction is STILL going strong 😉

Download Festival, Iron Maiden, Janes Addiction, Halestorm, Delain, Shinedown, Donington park 12-6-16

Back in 2012 i vowed i’d never go back there again until they improved the set up for the punters. Awful memories of the car getting stuck GOING IN on first day, rivers of MUD & generally a crap festival.I’m only going Sunday, mainly because Maiden are headlining & being a British band, they STILL wont do a proper UK tour – bunch of cunts! There’s a couple more decent bands & i’m also really looking forward to meeting friends there 😉

I realy shoulda listened to myself hey ? It was as crap as 2012, if not worse ! The day started early with Andy picking me up & driving us to our “usual” hotel in Nottingham. There we met Ady & went off to the gig in his car. I’d got the disabled parking permit, so, that was a bonus as we get to park on the hard standing surface instead of the rivers of mud. As i’d arranged this a bit late, it seems they’d cocked up & didn’t send something to get me in on the disabled entry though. First stupid thing : The portacabin for disabled tix etc was all muddy in front of it. An easy example of how they could improve things for the punters : How about some tracking or pallets placed in front of it? After some discussion, eventually a guy came to see us & after i complained, he took us to the disabled entrance,thus jumping the massive queue 😉 Good chap.
The festival site was an absolute mess! Talk about rivers of mud ! I’d hate to think what crap was in there & it’s really not the best place for me to be,due to my immune system dropping right now. But i am rock n roll & i’m doing this mofo !
I didn’t take hardly any photos/videos, due to the crap weather…
First band we saw was ” Monster Truck ” on the main stage. Good old school, kinda southern rock n roll. We stayed there to watch Amon Amarth. They had some nice fire breathing dragons onstage, & we were asked to raise our horns 😉 First time seeing them for me & i doubt i’d go out my way to see them again. Musically good,entertaining yes, but vocals meh !
We then went to the other stage to watch Delain. Finally the weather got a little better & could use camera. I was surprised how it wasn’t very busy. But they did a nice little gig.

We then made our way back to the mainstage for Halestorm. Whilst there i met Tina & her friend Carol. Tina seemed very impressed with Halestorm, especially Lzzys great vocals 🙂
As the lads are not into Brent Smiths over talking, we decided to move to the other stage (We all like Shinedowns music, but, Brent just goes on too much between songs…”Look to your left…shake the hand off that person..blah blah lol). They went to watch Breaking Benjamin, whilst i waited around to meet Tess. Stood near the “Big Download Dog” (a photo opportunity similar to the Harry Potter thing down London, except, you didn’t have to pay here lol) i could watch a bit of Shinedown on the screens. Totally thought of the lads when Brent did his preaching 😉 With Ghost having cancelled earlier, there were really only two bands i really wanted to see : Janes Addiction & Maiden.The weather was still rubbish & walking through the mud was a PITA. Once Tess arrived,we decided to make our way over to the Encore stage & get a coffee before Janes. Totally random, we bumped into Matt & Vicki Wright ! Was great to see them again. We then all carried on in the direction of Encore stage. Myself & Tess nipped to get a coffee before Janes Addiction. Now i love Janes, have done for many years, but sometimes the “same” show gets a bit much. Today however, was different as i was watching it with a fellow Janes lover who totally gets them 🙂
Starting with the usual “Up The Beach” we float into Janes world. Perry is still the Pimp Daddy, in his great old style clothes.

Then it’s the familiar “Stop” quickly followed by “Ain’t No Right”.Cannot help but shake my ass to this stuff ! Bloody love it.
Tess is beaming as classic after classic is played. During “Mountain Song” the world was exposed to my crappy vocals 😉
Next they play the only really modern song of there’s ” Just Because”. To think this came out in 2003….how quickly time flys.
Next it’s the monumental ” Three Days “. This is one of my all time fave songs by any band. I just love how the bass starts things off & the song ebbs & flows. It’s just amazing

Next it’s the song that everyone knows by Janes Addiction ” Been Caught Stealin “. After “Ocean Size”, there’s a shock when they cover Bowies ” Rebel Rebel “. I really dunno if it worked on not tbh.

Finally we get “Ted Just Admit It”. During which, we had the
suspension girls flying above the band. Why does it not surprise me that Tess said she wants to do that ? 😉
The encore is the usual ” Jane Says”. Cracks me up how “comfy” Navarro looks 🙂

So that was that. Easily my highlight of Download 2016.
Said my goodbyes to Tess,then me & Andy wandered off to see Maiden.
Maiden is a band i’ve followed for many years. Back in the day, i followed tours around the UK. I’m lucky to have seen a bunch of shows from the real “glory years”. In fact, they are in 2nd spot for the band i’ve seen the most. Strangely, it’s a certain German band that currently hold to top spot… So anyway, as soon as you hear UFOs “Doctor Doctor”, you know it’s time. First song was “If Eternity Should Fail “. Took them that song & “Speed Of Light” before it sounded any good. Particularly thought the Nickos drums sounded very tinny. But they got it better for “Children Of The Damned”. An old chestnut. It was a nice moment when Bruce dedicated “Tears Of A Clown” to the late Robin Williams. Was great to hear the classics “The Trooper” & “Powerslave”. Brought back so many memories of the ’80s for me. I think we stayed untill encore time. It had been a long day & it really was taking its toll, so myself & Andy decided to leave early & wait for Ady at the car.

My highlights of the day were Janes Addiction & finally meeting Tess properly. So nice to have a real good chat etc. It was a good craic 🙂
So, once again, i say to myself i won’t go to Download again….& this time i mean it ! The money grabbing bastards !

Camden Rocks, Virginmarys, Pearl Hearts, Hyena Kill, Dirty Thrills, Creeper, London 4-6-16

This was my 3rd Camden Rocks festival & tbh, once the set times etc were announced, i thought it sucked due to clashes etc. We decided to travel down on the Friday & crash at Robs. Unfortunately, at Grantham train station, Andy lost his footing on the steps & badly twisted his ankle. This is now the 2nd time he’s done Camden Rocks with a messed up foot! Saturday morning, we set off early & i realised i’d lost my booking reference number for ticket collection! Soon got it sorted though. We then went to the usual Ice Wharf for breakfast. First band we went to see was The Peart Harts @ Belushis Cavern. It was quite busy & a whole bunch of the VMs family were there as well! Bonus 🙂 I was stood at the side w/Tina & it was quite a good view until some ignorant lanky git decided to stand in front 🙁 The Pearl Harts went down very well. Initially, the sound wasn’t great,but, as Rob pointed out, their manager near us told the sound guy what needed doing 😉 I must also say, in that small place the sound was just great & so much better than when i saw them open for Garbage in Amsterdam last week. We then made our way towards The Black Heart where we were gonna split up. Funny coincidence, again , i bumped into Eva as she was crossing the road ! The other guys went off whilst myself & Eva went into the venue. Got drinks & joined the others upstairs. I didn’t know anything about Dirty Thrills, but thought i’d give them a go. Obviously, being a London band, they had good support. I really dunno what to make of them! Need to hear them again. Next up it was Hyena Kill. I watched a few songs before i got a msg from Rob saying i should check out what they were watching at the Barfly. Even though i DIDN’T make it there in time, it was probably the most decisive moment of the day : I got in upstairs before it got busy with queues. I saw ” Qemists” & was very impressed with them. Was the most lively set so far of the day.

I then decided i wasn’t gonna move & stayed for “Creeper”. What can i say ? The kids loved them 😉

Both Qemists & Creeper had very busy crowds & even circle pits. Pretty sure it will stay like this for rest of the night…

So, to the main act ; The Virginmarys. I was wondering if they’d pull out anything different in this short time slot they had & was very impressed with how they started the show, doing “I Wanna Take You Home “. Totally unexpected & it made for a great opener. Looking over, seeing people really singing along was great. No letting up, they went into ” Halo ” & already i felt the atmosphere in there was electric. I was very pleased to be in my little spot front left as i sensed everything was really gonna kick off tonight & i didn’t want to have to drop back (for obvious health reasons). I filmed “Falling Down ” & from then onwards, the short set just sped by. I gave up trying to take photos or any more video as things were not easy down there.

Later on, seeing the whole front row to my right basically falling over onto the stage, numerous times, was just crazy. Good old Ally did tell everyone to look after each other, for what it was worth 😉 This was easily the most active crowd i’ve seen at a VMs show, hell it was a total mosh session in there.

The last song ” Just A Ride ” took things past overdrive. It really was a bloody mess in that crowd. I’m sure there will be many bruises, sore arms n legs & general “battle scares”. I hope everyone came out of it reasonably well ! Afterwards, once again Gareth gave me the set list (cheers mate) & we all soon went outside to cool down etc.

I had a nice chat with Ally & Danny (got photos which will follow when Andy sends them to me!) & arranged to maybe meet at the Stone Free festival. There wasn’t any other bands i really wanted to see now & as Andy was in considerable pain, we decided to leave. I few quick hugs & goodbyes (sorry to a bunch i know i missed) to the VM family & we were on our way. Final thought : Over all it was a good day,but, easily the weakest Camden Rocks i’ve been too. Too many clashes & not the best headliners. I reckon i’ll probably only go next year if Virginmarys are headliners. Well come on, they deserve it i reckon ! As ever, thanks to all the VMs family. It’s always a pleasure to spend time with every one of you beautiful people. Roll on the next gig (s)

Garbage ,Paradiso, Amsterdam 30-5-16

So, Garbage in Amsterdam, for numerous reasons, i really thought i wouldn’t make it , one of which was being able to get to Luton airport !
Once again, an old school friend, Dusty, came to my rescue & offered to drive me to Luton & pick me up on return! Thank you mate, it was really appreciated. The journey got off to a bad start as once on the plane, we were delayed 2 hours ! (Due to thunder storms in NL). Once in NL ,everything ran smooth. First walked to Jeffs hotel near Leidsplein

Then we went to meet Greg & Jerome at a bar. As we walked up, both Rob n Rijkels were also arriving. Later Marta joined us. All the other girls were still out shopping 😉 Come 18.30 some of the guys were talking about going to the ” J.P. bar ” instead of Garbage gig !. Notice the empty pint glasses. If you’ve ever wondered where the phrase ” Rijkeling a pint ” comes from, he’s demonstrating it here 😉

Myself & Rob left for the venue where there was already a few awaiting such as Anette, Paul, Marco, Boris etc. Rob & Rijkels had already decided they would join me up in the balcony tonight 🙂 In a total shock, i saw Greg & Jerome take opposite position on other balcony ! (Though it didn’t last long) The Pearl Harts were their typical rocking selves. The audience did seem to take a while before waking up though.

So to the headliners ; Garbage. I thought opening with “Sometimes” was a bit strange (& the lighting was rubbish!), but at least “Empty” brought up the vibe.

We then got a couple of old classics ; ” Stupid Girl” & “Special” which brought things into overdrive. It was great to see a bunch of the Trashers down near the front just rocking out…yes, i kinda wished i could have been down there 🙁

A very special moment for me was during ” #1 Crush” where Shirley sang directly at me 🙂

Breaking Benjamin , Starset, koko, London 27-5-16

Well this one came out of the blue! A while back, when i posted about my health issues, i got a very nice PM from Adam asking if i’d like to go to the Starset + Breaking Benjamin gig at Koko, London. I’d last seen Starset when they opened for In This Moment at beginning of 2015, so obviously jumped at the chance! I arranged to crash down at Robs place & also to meet my mate Andy Avery before going to the gig. I met Andy & Nina at the Ice Wharf in Camden & had a nice catch up. Also met Jim there. During our time there, i got a msg from Adam saying there was a problem with guest list, but he’d try sort it out. As doors were early, me & Jim got there just gone 5pm. After a while Adam came out to see me & after a bit of discussion with venue & production staff, he got us passes for the “Directors Box”! Pretty cool huh ? Eventually Kristina arrived & we were soon in the venue. As it was,we decided not to go in Directors box as the angle to the stage wasn’t as good as being a bit more central.

We had a great view of everything.(On 2nd balcony,slightly to one side) This was a VERY busy gig.
Starset rocked the house & got a very good audience reaction. I’m sure they will have picked up a number of new fans after tonights performance.

As ever, they finished their set with the excellent ” My Demons ”

It’s probably shameful of me, but, i don’t know much about Breaking Benjamin ! If i’m honest, i had heard them years back & thought they were a bit of a typical “sounding like Nirvana” type band. Yeah, i know… Anyhow,i knew it would be a special gig as it was their first European gig EVER. I’ve never heard an audience as loud as that before in Koko, so respect people.

Overall, the gig was pretty decent. Some great singalongs from the crowd as well.

A funny moment was during ” Breath ” , firstly when the crowd were shouting for Ben to take his top off & his reply was ” i want you all to follow me in instagram & secondly when Adam came over & had a brief chat with me (sorry for the shaky video part lol)

Afterwards we hung with Adam & the guys for a while (kinda reminded me of when saw them during the ITM shows) Before we left, i was given a couple of drumsticks.

Once again, my huge thanks to Adam for arranging all this. The night was more than special.

The Virginmarys @ Fopp (Acoustic) & @The Black Heart, with Fizzy Blood Camden 9-5-16

So this was a pretty much last minute gig for me. Huge thanks to Ally & Danny for looking after me for this sold out gig. All along, i just knew it would be a big day for me as so many of the “VMs family” were gonna be there. My train was delayed so i went straight to FOPP area. Nothing had been set up when i got there, but, i saw this poster & thought “I want that!”.

Decided to go down the road to Montague Pyke for some grub & who should i bump into, but my mate Jim! So we both went in.
I’d previously had a msg earlier in the day (well, i had a few actually) where Eva said ” So i finally get to meet you then !”
It was so funny how we met : Myself & Jim went back to Fopp & i saw Eva trying to get her bearings on the Shaftesbury Ave/Charing Cross Rd junction. It was kinda funny how she was walking towards me & i deliberately made sure i was in her way…. once she realised it was me, we just hugged each other. It felt like we’d known each other forever (even though we’d not previously met properly). So we all went to Fopp ready for the gig. We were told to queue up outside & that’s where we met Jody. Then it started raining. After a while, someone came outside & said we could queue up inside. Yay ! Once inside, we gradually saw some of the “VMs family”, including Eric, Ony , Jill & Andy.

Later, my old friend Kristina arrived. We also saw Dante Bonutto. When we were finally allowed in the basement, i ended up on the front row. I just thought “It’s acoustic so i doubt there will be much craziness “. It was a great little show. But my god, was it hot in there ! As ever, i recorded a could of songs

The band were doing a signing session but i hadn’t brought my CD with me, so, just had a brief chat & was about to leave. Then i remembered that poster upstairs ! So went & asked if i could have it & got the ok. So, back down into the basement we went 🙂 Also got a flyer from Dante Bonutto. We were pretty much at the back of queue, but, it still worked out fine. Was so nice to get the nice messages off the guys :

We then went to Camden, had a quick look in the Black Heart venue & decided to go to The Worlds End pub. As we walked in, we saw Rob arriving!
So the 4 of us had a drink in there. Somehow, i’d lost where Eva & the others had gone to, so sent a msg to find out. By the time we got back into the Black Heart, most of the VMs peeps soon arrived. Had some quick chats & Eric came over & told me of a photo he had for me! You’re such a dude Eric ! 🙂 After a while we decided to go upstairs to watch the openers, “Fizzy Blood”. Now, i hadn’t planned on going down the front, but once in there, i just thought to myself “If i go there on the left, i’m out the way”. Not only that, but Rob stood behind me & was all set to protect me if things got crazy (There were a couple of chaps who’d obviously had a few ales, so eyes were on them 😉 )
Fizzy Blood were quite entertaining. A lot of energy up there, no denying that. Bit unsure about the whole “tops off” thing though lol. I think i remember one of our crowd saying they were trying to be different or original, to stand out….
Well, eventually, it was time for the Virginmarys set. It was the usual hard core VMs fans on the front row. Could tell it would be a good one.
I had a brief chat with Gareth as he was gonna be down the front looking after Ally. Nice chap. He even saved a set list for me later 😉
Virginmarys started their set with “Push The Pedal” & then pretty much went straight into “Halo”. That front row was up & down rockin out. After “Halo” Ally said “Hows it going?”. “Great to be here, thank you very much..”.

A brief drink & we get another new one, “I Wanna Take You Home”. I scan the crowd & its great to see smiling faces. Then it’s time for an old classic “Dead Mans Shoes”. It really goes off now. I’m bloody loving the show.

Whilst i’m not gonna mention every song of the night, i will say that the set was nicely balanced & the new songs sound fantastic in the live setting. Also, i’ve never seen The Virginmarys do such a fantastic show as tonight. Add to that that we had a great amount of VMs hard cores in there, it just made for a fantastic night.

I’ll finish with mention of a totally unexpected moment, which really choked me up : Come encore time, Ally dedicated “Moths To A Flame” to me. Saying something like i’d been to loads of VMs gigs & that i was fighting a struggle now. The words “…My Brother be strong my brother hold on…” meant so much in this situation. I don’t mind admitting, i had tears in my eyes, especially when looking at the VMs crowd. Thank you Ally. Oh yeah, finally after the last song, Ally gave his guitar pick. Again, a nice touch. I felt i had to go downstairs to both cool down & so i wouldn’t blub in front of everyone 😉 Eventually, it was time to go back to Robs,but, not before saying goodbye to everyone. Lots of hugs etc with the VMs guys. What a fantastic emotional day it had been. Thank you everyone who was part of it, you really have no idea what it all meant to me.

Once back at Robs, i’d imagine i was in a similar position as a lot of people tonight : High as a kite & not able to sleep. Somehow i missed saying goodbye to Eva & around midnight i got a message from her suggesting we meet up tomorrow before i go back home. Perfect ! Again, i don’t have a clue how much sleep i got cos i was just buzzing all night. But as usual nowadays, i was awake around 05.30 am. I decided i’d get up & leave when Rob was going to work (8am ish) . Then later that day i met Eva at Kings X before travelling home…perfect ending to a nice trip away

Juliette & The Licks , Waco, Kenneths, Heaven, London 4-5-16

A big day for me. In the morning i went to Lincoln hospital to get fitted out with my Gimp Mask preparing for radiotherapy treatment (+ I’m also gonna have chemotherapy). I have a couple of tumors in my brain…..yeah, even i am surprised they could find my brain! But as i wrote on my Facebook page ” Did anyone ever doubt that a couple of tumors would stop me going to a gig? Of course not, Mr Gigaddiction returns next week to see Juliette Lewis & The Licks in London ! “:-) I couldn’t think of a better more genuine rock n roll band than Juliette Lewis & The Licks.
Not only was i looking forward to the gig (having missed 8 shows recently due to the health issues) but i was REALLY looking forward to hanging with good friends again. My travel went well & i was at venue from about 4pm i think. First of my friends to arrive was Jim. We had a bit of a natter & then i noticed Juliette walk by. It was quite funny seeing pretty much ALL of the queue go after her to get photos etc. As i’d been waiting since the Garage show of ’05 for such an opportunity, i just had to go. I never do selfies, i couldn’t even work my phone! I asked Juliette to do it & she obliged. I know i look rough & am not even looking in correct direction, but i GOT THAT PHOTO ! Woo hoo

Later, when back in the queue, i saw Todd walking back to the venue. Had to have a chat with him.Strange i didn’t see anyone else chat with him. Don’t forget people, he’s been with Juliette a long time.To me, he’s just as important. Later my old mate Rob arrived. Originally, he wasn’t going to the gig, but once he knew i was doing it, he decided to get a ticket off a tout. Not long after that, Julia & Nadine turned up.Again, great to see them.After a brief chat, they went off to grab food…or rather, started to : Julia saw a guy in the queue selling a ticket, so came back & told Rob. Job done ! Thanks Julia. Looking at Heavens website, i’d worked out the best place in the venue : a raised area at the side.(I’m no longer allowed to go down the front in the pits 🙁 ) This was perfect as far as i was concerned. We got the “front row” there. Jim tried to get a photo of me up there, but didn’t quite manage what i was after. Then a lass behind me offered to try as it was a different angle & voila, perfect ! Thank you, who ever you were 🙂

Whilst waiting around, another old friend came & joined us. Hadn’t seen Patricia for ages. So again, very nice to see her & have a good catch up. Eventually, it was time for the first act, ” Kenneths”. Totally new to me, but they made a great impression. Just great fun rock n roll.

Next up its Waco. It’s probably the wrong attitude,but, i just took an instant dislike to them, sorry.(I wasn’t the only one as Rob, Patricia & Jim also thought they sucked. We all thought it would have been better if they’d switched places with Kenneths 😉 ) I’m not saying they didn’t go down well with the majority of the crowd though…

Finally, it’s time for the main event & man you have no idea how much i’d been looking forward to this! A great start to the show, with the classic “Smash & Grab”

Straight away, Juliette is doing her crazy rock star moves. It’s so obvious that she just gets lost in the music. The rest of the band are very tight & again, it’s obvious who’s having fun up there. We get a very varied set which includes a couple of new songs, plenty of old classics & a couple of unexpected covers…i really wouldn’t have expected “You Really Got Me “, but it was great.

Todd Morse does some acrobatics at the end 😉

After the gig, we went down to have a chat with Julia & Nadine, before we went to the pub. We also had Diletta join us there. So all in all, a great day out with good old friends. No one will ever know how truly special this day was to me

#LONDON you were an absolute dream! So much love! We will do it again later this yr I promise! #JLtour #HelloHero pic.twitter.com/aI5wc9kdD2

— Juliette Lewis (@JulietteLewis) May 5, 2016

PVRIS , K-Flay, Bones, UEA, Norwich , 2-4-16

My first time seeing PVRIS headline (having previously seen them at SlamdRunk, Leeds last year). Today i’m taking my niece as she loves this band. Decent drive there, we met one of Alices friends who is pretty much following the whole tour. This girl also made jackets for the band, which she gave them during the M&G. The M&G was pretty good. We were about 10th position. I told the band we’s travelled from the ORIGINAL Boston, Lincolnshire. When i said “It’s only about 2 hours drive, it’s nothing to me”, Lynn said “It’s so nice to hear someone not moaning about the journey to the show” 😉 The meet was very relaxed & the band were pretty talkative. The local UEA security organisation was rubbish whilst the other M&G peeps were going through as people were not getting lined up as per entry. One woman had a chat with security, but he basically washed his hands of it. Useless ! I got a short video of when PVRIS left the area…

Despite a few peeps jumping the queue, i still managed to get front row spot for Alice, whilst i dropped back to 2nd row. This was her first time ever to be on front row,so it was pretty special for her. First band up were the great ” Bones”. I’d seen them open for Skunk Anansie & i loved them. When i saw they’d open for PVRIS i thought “great bonus!”. They were obviously new to many people, but they soon won over the crowd.

Next it was ” K-Flay”. Totally new to me. The singer kind of raps to the songs. It was ok. Then it’s PVRIS time. The venue is heaving & the kids have high expectations…though some of them would probably scream at a fart in a crisp packet they’re so excited lol. They kicked off with “Smoke/Mirrors & then White Noise. Good sound & Lynn was singing fantastic. The backing vocals from the crowd were also great (Apart from the bloke who was in my right ear who sounded as flat as a pancake!). I’d noticed 2 or 3 loud mouthed geezers quite early. One of them shouted something to Lynn about checking her shoelaces. They’d obviously had a few ales before the gig. Well, unfortunately, they couldn’t hold their beer & were maybe even looking for trouble, but there was a little ruckus between them & a girl. Lynn saw this & stopped the song. Security jumped into the crowd & kicked the blokes out. Well done. Job done. The gig for the most part was great, if the set was a bit short. I’d imagine they only played for just over an hour. My niece really enjoyed the show, so that meant a lot.