These words are all about my experiences watching Live Music. I wish all of these experiences were good ones but alas, they were not.
LIVE
This was to be a lesson in popular culture, as much as a lesson in pop gigs. There were no check shirts or beards in sight, just hoodies and pink jeggings. Steve Lamacq was nowhere to be seen, and I stood alone in bewilderment at who all these people were, whilst my companion was being […]
The main problem with most of the music that appears by our ears every day is that it doesn’t come from anywhere. It doesn’t force its way out through the body of the messenger, cross a mountain range and still have the energy to slap us in the face. No. Instead it limps through the […]
For a bunch of young, excitable kids with guitars to be so friendly is a novelty in London’s gig scene. Gigwise aren’t sure why, but more often than not we’re welcomed by snotty brats who are pissed they missed out on going to Brit School, and who already believe themselves to be the second coming […]
It’s 8pm on a windy Wednesday night, and for the tourists wandering the famous London street of Brick Lane the scene is certainly a perplexing one. Policemen shoving photographers, tight-jeaned indie kids and middle aged indie kid wannabe’s off the narrow roads without remorse. Away from the main fracas that once posed as a queue, […]
With Friday seen by many as simply the introduction, the weekend kicks off proper on Saturday morning. The games of ‘Viking Kubb’ (a game popular in Sweden, apparently) and football have kicked off, Diablo’s and juggling sticks are hurtling through the air in the circus area, and The Memory Band are beginning in the tent. […]
We’ve all heard that festivals were better in the old days, with no marketing and slogans staring at you all day long, good food cooked on site, and a line-up of musicians to die for. We also all know this isn’t true, as history clearly shows that Carling invented Reading Rock, Milk (it’s a brand […]
It’s six days since Gigwise first set foot in the Roskilde grounds, and it’s beginning to show. Hangovers and dehydration become more extreme everyday, and we can only marvel at the 17 year old Swedes drunk by midday on lighter fluid (we WISH we were joking) who we are greeted by every day we when […]
Today music was forced to take the back seat as a certain football game, which won’t be mentioned here, took place in the scorching afternoon sun. Before the heartbreak however, there was time to wander into the local Roskilde town for a fresh supply of food and booze, scale the famous climbing wall, have a […]
Kicking off the day in style were gypsy punk rockers Gogol Bordello, who have been gathering support over recent years with their absurdly energetic live shows and catchy singles. Ukrainian-American lead entertainer Eugene Hutz is the centre of the show as he steers his band through the party performance lapped up by the hungover Roskilde […]
After already attempting to survive the Roskilde experience for three days, some light relief from the scorching sunshine and quite frankly scary Scandinavians finally arrives in the form of sweet, joyous, dance your face off music. For Gigwise, the Danish born WhoMadeWho are the first to step up, and provide a perfect springboard for the […]
When the announcement of a gig manages to make local news headlines, one can immediately see that this is something more than your average band making the long trip down south. It’s the Arctic Monkeys’ biggest set of shows to date, with Mr Turner and co fresh from snubbed celebrity parties and rare TV appearances […]
When the announcement was made that Brett Anderson and Bernard Butler were to reunite after 10 years apart and form The Tears, it’s fair to say there were several eyebrows raised. Together, they started Britpop and became the first band to earn the now regular title of ‘Best New Band In Britain’. They released two […]
Brixton Academy is a curious place. A popular venue for the short among us (god bless that sloping floor), this ex-theatre has played host to some of the most historic shows and the most memorable performances. However, there is also the possibility that the cavernous space can suck the life and soul out of an […]
Playing a London gig is often a fairly unpredictable affair. With a countless number of venues within such a close proximity of each other, how can you be guaranteed a crowd when in all likelihood Willy Mason’s busking outside, Pete Doherty’s getting involved in an onstage scrap down the road and The Others are about […]
