Concerts and weekend stuff

Well that was a long weekend.  I’m only just beginning to rejoin the land of the living.  I must be getting too old for this enjoying yourself lark.

Friday I went to see Alabama 3 (they sing The Sopranos theme tune fact fans).  I’ve seen them a few times before and they were alright, not really my cup of tea though.  Going to see them was more of an excuse to have a night out in Leeds with some mates though.  A very good night was had by all too, I finally fell asleep (in a chair) about 7.30am.  Dead was not the word to describe me.

Saturday I suffered for it though, especially after only having about 3 hours sleep, so I gave myself a night off in preparation for Sunday.

Sunday I went to see the Prodigy.  Whatever I say about it will not do it justice.  Unrelenting from start to finish, it was just immense.   I may have to revisit my Top Gigs Attended post and put this one up there somewhere.  They finished with Out Of Space with Keith (mad spikey hair one) at the back of the room on the sound desk barriers.  Fuck knows how he got there through the sea of people.  As everyone started to leave, over the speakers they started playing ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’.  All I could see was a mass of sweaty bodies, still jumping up and down singing ‘I love you baby!’.  Needless to say, with us all being off work, we didn’t need much excuse to turn that night into another late one and I got to bed about 6am.  Oops.

I failed in my attempts to get Kings of Leon tickets on Monday though.  £150 for 1 standing ticket was the cheapest I could find by the arena – they were like gold dust.  There really would’ve had to have been some Sex on Fire to see them at that price.  Thankfully I’ve seen them a few times in the past 12 months; so we sensibly aborted to the pub. 

Yesterday I spent curled up in a ball on the couch.  I got asked if I wanted to go out to another gig last night too but, for me, gigs mean alcohol.  I think I might’ve actually cried real tears if another sip of alcohol touched my mouth yesterday, so I turned that down. 

I’d planned 3 gigs in 4 days but I didn’t take into account the copious amounts of alcohol I was going to consume or the price of tickets.  As Meatloaf once said, ‘two out of three ain’t bad.’ 

How cheesy a post ending is that? 

*bows*

*exits stage left

Top Gigs Attended

I tried to work out recently how many concerts I’ve been to.  I counted about 50 without including festivals and without straining my brain too much, so I’m sure there’s more.  I doubt I’d beat BlackLOG in a ‘gig-off’ and I certainly wouldn’t beat this fella (BBC News site link) who has been to over 5000 – apparently.  But it inspired me to think which ones I’ve attended and thought were good: 

Oasis – Knebworth ‘94

I doubt any band/gig will be able to shift this from my number one spot.  Oasis were the first band I ever got into properly and it was my first ever gig with 125,000 people.  We were quite near the front considering and after waiting about 8 hours for them to come on (with support from The Bootleg Beatles, Manic Street Preachers, The Chemical Brothers and then The Prodigy), I just thought Oasis were amazing that day.  This was just after Morning Glory had been released so they didn’t really have any shit stuff.  

My neck also got burned to smithereens – which wasn’t helped when it was hit with a packet of biscuits just before they started.  The sting hurt that much I still remember it.  I’ve never looked at a custard cream in the same way since. 

Paul ‘thumbs up, cool’ McCartney (x3)

As much as I think he’s a bit of a prick nowadays,  I reckon most of us would go a bit mental if we had half the world bowing at our feet like he does.  Not much to add on that really, he’s still a Beatle and he wrote some good tunes.

Prodigy – Knebworth ‘94

Supporting Oasis.  Almost, almost as good as, if not better than Oasis.  Oasis sneaked it because I was proper into them at the time.  I didn’t really know much about the Prodigy then.  Looking across and behind me to see a sea of people jumping to Breathe was amazing.

I still maintain I had (and won) a stare out competition with Keith Flint (the one with the mad spiky haircut) who was standing on a barrier, looking dead hard and cool about 10 yards in front of me. 

U2 – Manchester ‘05

As with McCartney, Bono is a bit of a prick, but it’s still U2.  Massive video screens the full length of the stage, good songs, good show.

Arctic Monkeys (NME Tour 2006)

They were just on the verge of going massive, I think it was just after their first or second single had gone to number 1.  But here they were in a university hall in front of 500 or so people.  The first two songs they played were their singles and I’m yet to see anyone else manage to make the whole place pogo like they did through the whole set.  Even if you didn’t want to jump up and down you had to.  Thankfully they let us all have a breather for 30 seconds before they started the next one and so it continued for the next 40 minutes. 

Roger Waters - Liverpool ‘08

I’ve been into Pink Floyd for years and shockingly I’ve never smoked weed! Apart from his little political rants he still done all the Floyd stuff you’d want to hear and expect.  He is Pink Floyd and he was fantastic.

 

Honourable other mentions go to: Fatboy Slim, Kings Of Leon (x3), Ocean Colour Scene, The La’s, James Brown, Arcade Fire, The Polyphonic Spree, Moby and other Oasis and Arctic Monkeys gigs I’ve been to.  Also half the acts that have appeared at Glastonbury in the past 5 years who I have no doubt enjoyed immensely but forgotten due to volumes of drink and drug intake. 

Wow, this post is that shit I could work for NME.

So dear reader, what are your most favourite gigs?   No explanation needed, list ‘em and make me jellyous [sic]….

Pint Throwing

One thing I’ll never understand about people at concerts, are the ones who launch their half empty pints forward soaking everyone.  Why?  What kick does this give people?  It annoys the hell out of me.  There is just no logical explanation I can come up with apart from that they are twats.

I know at some big concerts/festivals the contents of the plastic pint glass will not be alcohol either.  This is why I’ll never venture that far to the front at a concert.  I like concerts as much as the next person, but  I’d rather not worry about being soaked with a piss/beer combination because some prick thinks it’s ok to throw the remains of his drink over people at a concert.

I do understand the need to get rid of the plastic glass – people get excited and they don’t want to worry about keeping hold of their drink.  Or, if they’ve stood in the same spot for hours, they don’t want to loose it by going the toilet.  Ok fine, piss in a glass, but then why not just drop it on the floor?

I don’t know if it happens abroad or if it’s just the knobhead behaviour of some UK people?  I even got into a fight a few years ago because someone in front of me threw his pint over people.  He took offense over me not liking it, twisting his ear and telling him off.   Another time I pushed someone who had just thrown their pint and asked them why they had just thrown it “I don’t know” was all he could say.  But, not expecting anyone to say anything, he did calm down then.  It really does anger me.

I went to see Travis last week and I got hit by flying beer.   Travis, of all bands.  It’s not exactly punk rock, so what’s the need?

I’m off to see Oasis tonight, and as much as I’m looking forward to the concert I’m dreading the flying beer.  I know they can attract a, shall we say, loutish crowd, but I’m not one of them and I don’t let things like that put me off.  I’ve seen them a few times before and whilst I think they are excellent, the amount of ale liquid that gets thrown about is just unbelievable.  Although, I was once hit on the back of my neck by a (nearly empty) packet of biscuits at an Oasis concert, that made a change! (Custard Creams incase you’re wondering).

Anywho, I don’t understand the whole mentality of throwing stuff at concerts.    But I’m now going to put alcohol to it’s proper use to get drunk, watch Oasis…and shout at anyone throwing ale.

I’ll be honest, I’m dead excited!