Cheers to Gareth for giving me the setlist 🙂
A while back i thought to myself “Next time i’m in London, i wanna visit The Shard”. Originally was gonna do this with Eva, but her studies kept her away. As luck would have it, another friend, Anette, was coming over from Norway to see the VMs, so we arranged to meet up & do the Shard. (Good thing also was that Eva would be at the Tunbridge Wells gig following day, so we still get that long overdue meet up)
Typically, my train was slightly delayed. Always happens with Hull Trains ! Whilst it was tight, still got to Shard only about 5mins late. Anette & Marco were waiting for me.
My ticket was a bargain at only £ 11.95 for myself & a carer (Would normally be £21.95). It was quite surprising how quick the lift shot up to level 69. After a while there, we went up to level 72 which is more open to the elements. We got lucky with the weather & saw some great views. For sure i’ll visit there again 🙂
We then went for a quick drink in the nearby “Bunch Of Grapes ” bar. Time was getting on & Marco had to leave, so, myself & Anette headed towards the city centre nearer to The Borderline. Had a quick look & there were a couple of people already queued up ! The guy thought he’d got the wrong place till we confirmed he was correct….if a tad early 😉 We then went to my usual stomping ground ; The Montague Pyke. It was very busy. Finally, we went & met up with Rob at The Royal George. Me? At 3 different pubs in one day? With my reputation? 😉
There was a decent queue forming at The Borderline, amongst which were a few of the “VMs family”. But as it was my first time going into the referbed Borderline, i needed to get sorted out with security etc. They were very helpful on the doors & we were soon inside. I couldn’t hardly believe how they’d changed the venue. Yes, it had got a bit shabby over the years so was really in need of a lick of paint. But i didn’t understand how they would take away the raised area & have a totally flat floor. (Well, i did actually as it probably increases the capacity of the venue). If you’re in a wheel chair, i’d advise you to not bother visiting this venue. I had a seat which they’d originally placed on that flat floor on the right. Ridiculous ! Didn’t want to see the backs of the crowd. I moved it to the only place where it was slightly higher, but a pillar partially blocked the view.
I’d never seen The Hyena Kill before tonight,so was interested to see how they’d be. There’s no denying they were both giving it their all. But with a combination of poor viewing & a rough sound i wasn’t very impressed . Sorry. (Maybe it’ll be better tomorrow night in Tunbridge Wells?)
During the course of the night i met a bunch of the VMs family including Eric, Sonia, Andy, Jill & Jim. Still yet to meet/chat with both Glyn & Jody who were also there. Sure it will happen in the future 🙂
The venue got quite busy & i noticed a couple of “Tourists” (A phrase i picked up from Dee Snider of Twisted Sister. At their gigs, if there was someone who didn’t look like a typical Twisted Sister fan, he’d call them “Tourists”. Most times, by the end of the set they were either “converted” or left early haha). I think they were just there to get drunk etc.
As previously on the tour, Virginmarys kicked off with “Dead Mans Shoes” before going straight into “Halo In Her Silhouette”. The crowd was into the show straight away. As the VMs played pretty much the same set each night, i won’t bother listing every song.
Ally introduced the next song by saying “We are Virginmarys from the North !”. He had a right smile on his face whilst saying that. He’s proud of his roots for sure 🙂
The more i hear “Sweet Loretta” in the live enviroment, the more i love the song. In fact, all the new songs sound great.
After “Running For My Life “, we got a bonus song tonight, namely, “Push The Pedal”
Sometime during the night, it kinda kicked off a bit in the crowd (the “tourists”? ). Also , during “Ends Don’t Mend” (i think) someone got a little over excited & stumbled onto the stage. He was a BIG mofo, but wee Gareth aka “Azda”, soon saw it & totally owned the guy getting him off stage promtly ! Respect to you sir 🙂
We’re now at encore time & they come back playing the usual finish of “Motherless Land” & “Bang Bang Bang”. Before BBB, Ally has a little rant about Trump & Brexit also saying that “…we wanna spread some love. Don’t let them fuckers win!”. He asks if everyone has enjoyed themselves & says they’ll return if we do. Of course we will mate. He also asks if we thought the night was worth £12.50 (what a fookin bargain in this day & age when some bands want £100 to see em i a stadium & you’d end up watching the tv screens) then please buy a t-shirt or other merch. I think many people don’t realise how important it is to support the band this way, as they’re certainly not “well off” & the passion for their art will only take them so far.
Afterwards, the security are quick to try get everyone out of the venue. I honestly didn’t understand that because, as far as i’m aware, there was no “club night” afterwards & it probably lost the VMs sales of their merch. We said our goodbyes & went for a swift drink in Montague Pyke again before going back to Robs.
Overall, a great day/night but i doubt i’ll visit Borderline again due to sight lines & the lighting in there.
Tomorrow we’re off to Tunbridge Wells 🙂
