Tag: Black Diamonds

H.E.A.T. + Degreed + Black Diamonds , O2 Academy, Islington, London, 21-11-17

 

After a great gig/experience in Nottingham, i was really looking forward to this one. Originally, Eva was going to join me, but due to her work place being short staffed, she had to cancel (more than one gig). As i’d booked an earlier train than usual, i had to spend more time in London as there wouldn’t be anyone home at “Hotel Rob” till later in the afternoon. So i went to the usual places like FOPP etc to kill time. Eventually it was time to travel to Stratford to drop of my bag. Had a quick chat with Kristina & then i was off to Islington.
As is the norm nowadays, i’d pre-arranged getting a seat & hoped i’d be up in the balcony. Once i got to the Academy, everything went down hill 🙁
“Why?” You ask. All down to one jumped up, power hungry, “I’m so important” security guy ! (From now on he will be called “Mr Dickhead”)
As per usual, i explained to him how i’d phoned to arranged seat early entry etc. Firstly, he told me to go join the queue. After a while, i got tired & sat down on the floor. Mr Dickhead was walking back n forth along the queue & when he got to me, he had a slight change of attitude ; ” Are you ok?”. My reply was “Well given the circumstances, i suppose it’s as good as it can be”. He then said something really weird “….you’re looking at me like i’m something strange ..” (or words to that effect). I think maybe his few brain cells got confused & he thought i was drunk or on drugs & he was hoping to get some brownie points! At this point, there were many things i would have liked to have said to him. But i didn’t because he was so up himself that i know if i “upset” him, he probably wouldn’t have let me in the venue. Then he came out with something else which i thought was very demeaning towards me…(& everyone nearby heard him say it) “….you realise this is a standing CONCERT you’re going to…”. Once again, there’s so much i could have said, but again i kept my mouth shut. ( Now I’m sure some of you, like myself, will be thinking “As id arranged a seat for the gig, surely this caring (not!) Mr Dickhead would be able to put 2 & 2 together & realise i might ALREADY need a seat outside in this queue “. But no he didn’t.)
Eventually the doors opened & someone walked me through to the disabled area. Looking towards the stage, it was on the right side.It was a very oblique angle of viewing. All it needed was for some tall guy standing at the barrier & there would be not hardly any viewing of the stage. I asked if i could go upstairs, but i couldn’t as they’d not opened it. Shame on you London for not selling enough tickets to open the balcony. Nottingham had already kicked your ass before a band even got on stage ! 😉 So i had to make do with this rubbish position…. oh yeah, it had the added bonus of people walking by a lot to get backstage & also a (different) security guy in the area.
Anyone who checks out this webpage of mine will know i like to take a few photos & video clips of the show. Tonight it was a bit of a dilemma. Crappy angle to the stage & security stood near by. During “Degreed”, i took a couple of pics to see if there was any reaction from the security near me.
It wasn’t until about half way through H.E.A.T.s set, that i attempted any filming. I had to catch Eriks crowd surf to the bar 🙂

What little i did film, was barely worth it as i had no vantage point to shoot from…& i’m also a short arse 🙂
Can’t really say i enjoyed the night, for obvious reasons. It got to the point of wanting it to just finish !
After this shitty experience i very much doubt i’ll go to this venue again unless i’m sure the balcony is open. When i pay money to see a gig, i expect to be able to SEE the gig !! P.S. Would be an added bonus if Mr Dickhead wasn’t there also 😉

P.P.S. Even without all the fiasco, Nottingham had already kicked Londons asses 😉

H.E.A.T. , Degreed, Black Diamonds, rescue rooms, Nottingham ,19-11-17

Nowadays, i prearrange to have a seat/stool when i go to gigs. There were a bunch of shows i was going to at Rock City & i sorted those over the phone. A couple of days before H.E.A.T. at the Rescue Rooms, i realised i’d not sorted out a seat for that one. I tried phoning the venue, but couldn’t get through to anyone. Couldn’t even leave a msg on the answerphone as it was already full. I tried messenging the venue via FB & still no reply. Come gig day, i’d still not had any reply. I was getting a bit paranoid about how this was going to go.
The night before this gig, i was up in Leeds, seeing Wolf Alice @ The Academy. Everything ran smooth with the security, letting myself & Lorah in early etc. As i’m travelling down to Nottingham, i’m thinking “Hope security will be as good as they were in Leeds”.
Once in Nottingham, i go check in to my usual hotel “Roomzzz”. “Oh, it’s you again ! How are you?”. They’re getting to know me there now 😉 After a bit of a relax in my room, i ventured out to get some grub. Along the way, i had a quick look to see if there was a queue outside Rescue Rooms, but there was no one there. After food at the Roebuck, i made my way back to the hotel. As i walked past Rock City, i saw that Opeth were playing there tonight. So wondered how much this would effect the sales of tix for H.E.A.T. (damn, i hope they open the balcony !). After hanging at the hotel for a while, i went to Rescue Rooms a bit earlier than usual. There was only a small queue. I opened the side door & had a chat with security, telling them that the venue had not replied etc. A couple of them looked at each other & laughed ” Yeah mate, that’s the usual thing that happens nowadays!”. They were decent chaps. I asked if the gig would be busy, considering Opeth were playing around the corner. “Yes mate, i think it’s close to selling out”.One of them got me a stool & even carried it up to balcony. Once up there, i saw they’d put the merchandise out downstairs on the raised area on the left. Security chap said “Believe it or not, by having the merch there, it loses space for over 100 people. So it will be very packed down there”.
Eventually everyone was let in & the place soon filled up.
I hadn’t heard (of) the support acts before. The first band “Black Diamonds”, were entertaining in a “cheesy ’80s throw back “sort of way 😉 

But gotta say, i loved “Degreeds” set way more. So much so, that i filmed a couple of songs. I’ve since bought 3 of their CDs. They’re a quality band.

I noticed the chap next to me had been trying to (not very) stealthily record (audio) the show & asked if he’d done it all so far. Apparently, he’d made an error & he’d not got one of the sets. I asked if he was gonna do H.E.A.T. & he said he would try. So obviously, i asked if i could get a copy 😉 He didn’t seem like he wanted to share it. When i told him that i had got loads of old shows from Rock City in the ’80s, he seemed a bit more interested 😉 But so far ,i haven’t managed to get a cdr copy of H.E.A.T.s set 🙁 I later found out from Scott that this chap was part of the Grimsby crew who’d travelled to the gig.

It didn’t seem that long before the Grenn Frey song “The Heat Is On” was being played over the PA.(A great way for the band to take the stage)
No messin about, they hit us hard with a new one,off the latest album “Into The Great Unknown”, namely “Bastard Of Society”. A great song to start off with as even though it’s new, it still has the trademark H.E.A.T. sound we all know & love. Next up, it’s back to the early days, with the great sing a long song “Late Night Lady”

Erik briefly mentions that “…We’ve been waiting for so long….Nottingham it’s like the second city (after Stockholm) which i’ve spent most time in ! It feels so good to be back..we are honoured…Thank you for making this a sold out show. Thank you.” 
We then get another song from the original H.E.A.T. album. The song is “Straight For Your Heart”. It’s kinda strange thinking how they had a different singer on those first albums. Erik really fits well in the band & he really does justice for those older songs. Let me say now, i was a bit late to the “H.E.A.T. party”. It was the album “Tearing Down The Walls” that really got me into the band & 2014 was the first time i saw them live. I really wish i’d heard them sooner than that. Now we get a classic from that album, namely, “Mannequin Show”. I bloody love this song ! 
Towards the end of “Beg,Beg,Beg”, Erik decides to crowd surf to the bar to get a shot (of redemption? My bad). The crowd glide him along & he makes it to the bar (with only a few people “touching” him along the way). Once there, after having a shot, he looks up to the balcony & i know exactly whats going through his mind ! He’s gonna climb up to us. I must be blessed some kind of way because when i saw them at Islington Academy in 2014, Erik jumped into the crowd almost next to me & he carried on singing amongst his brethren (i caught it on camera as well). Tonight, he climbs up to where i am & once again i’m capturing it! Talk about luck…

He then wandered around the other side of the balcony, before finally finding his way back to the stage.Next up it’s “We Rule” closely followed by “Time On Our Side”. What a show this has been & we’re only about half way through ! Sometime during the gig,someone in the crowd throws up some underpants! What does Erik do? He obviously puts then on his head!
I’m not really a fan of drum solos. The only ones i’ve ever really enjoyed were by either Cozy Powell or Neil Peart they did something special. So when the drum solo starts tonight, i’m thinking “hope it’s over quickly!”. But to my surprise, it was rather cool ! “Crash” played to “Flash”, if you get my drift.
Following that, we get a whole bunch more fantastic classic H.E.A.T. songs. How about this for the home run : “Breaking The Silence”, “Living On The Run”, “Eye Of The Storm”, “In & Out Of Trouble”. Makes me breathless just thinking about it !

During “Living On The Run” Erik just cannot stay on the stage so he jumps down into the crowd & they all sing along with him…”Hey someones touching my ass” 😉

The main set finishes with “Inferno”. Before playing it, Erik says ” Nottingham we love you ! Unbelievable ! Unbelievable ! I’ve got goose bumps on my balls! ” (That’s not something you hear very often lol) It always cracks me up when he sings the line ” I like to drink & masturbate” :-). But what a fantastic song this is. Great vocals & they all just rock out like crazy. This is the kind of gig i live for. Everyone having fun both on & off the stage.

Obviously, they come back for an encore , they treat us to “A Shot At Redemption”. Fantastic stuff & what a way to finish this most excellent night.
I loved every minute of this show.

Afterwards, i went for a quick pint at The Gooseberry Bush, then back to my hotel.