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What concert have you last been to #3

Horace Andy at the Jazz Cafe in Camden last night. I love this venue for its great atmosphere and sound system. Amazing to finally see this legend, who mixed up his recent stuff with old classics like Money Money and Skylarking. Crowd was rocking - great stuff!
 
Went to see Dave Stewart & Barbara Gaskin at Kings Place in that London last night. Round the corner from Kings Cross which was definitely handy for the last train up north.

They'll be off radar for many here, but their canon of material is now quite extensive - 7 albums, 2 EPs of clever pop music with a Canterbury twist. The audience was sprinklered with early scene Canterbury/prog alumni too. I'm pretty certain that nobody was under 50...

As a 2-piece plus vocalist playing multi-layered music, a lot of it is on backing tape, but is was wonderful nonetheless.
 
Algiers - Unter Deck, Munich 07.08.2023

To be accurate, Algiers Soundsystem.

This was an unusual outing, with just one half of Algiers performing a DJ set together with live vocals from Franklin.

The latest album is full of samples/hip-hop loops/guest vocals etc, so I always wondered whether it could be played live, and I guess this is the answer.

I enjoyed it. A new take on some of the older songs, and a great way of showcasing the newer stuff.

Nice idea.
 
James, supported by the Happy Mondays at Crystal Palace bowl.

The Mondays were, well, The Mondays. A short, punchy set of all the hits, played competently. A lot of goodwill from the crowd carried them through.

Wasn’t sure whether I’d like James or not. I know the hits, but was never that into them. In the event, they were excellent. Tim Booth performs with such open sincerity, that what could be cheesy is actually winning. And the best song of the night was from 2001, which I wasn’t expecting.
 
Jake Xerxes Fussell at Hebden Bridge Trades Club last night. I've listened to him a lot over the past couple of years but not seen him live before and he was great, even better than I expected. His guitar playing was just superb, that muted swing and ringing accents are much more powerful live ('73 Tele, I asked him ). He's the most unassuming genuine person too. He is touring this week and playing at Green Man over the weekend.
HBTC is one of the best small gigs around, definitely recommend a visit if you are in the area.
 
Swans at St Lukes in Glasgow, it was an amazing experience - I think possibly the second loudest gig I've ever been to, although from the pictures (some old guys sitting in a church) you wouldn't expect that.
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Popped along to the New Day prog Festival near Faversham yesterday. I’ve been a few times now and despite the bill being clogged with loads of bands with no original members, there’s always something good. But yesterday’s set by System 7 might be one of the best gigs I’ve ever experienced. For a couple of 70 year old hippies, Miquette Giraudy and Steve Hillage are incongruous masters of ‘the drop’. Dunno if they were having a particularly ‘on’ night, but I’d definitely advocate going to see them. Non stop Trancey techno with some blazing rock guitar and a nod to Ash Ra Tempel. Bloody amazing and not what I expected from System 7 records.
 
Devo last night at what I still insist on calling the Hammersmith Odeon.
Great set only slightly spoiled by muddy sound; and there was a lorra love in the room.
 
Little overnight trip to "that" London last Friday to see the wonderful Margo Price at the Lafayette. Great gig at a lovely little venue.
 
Courtney Marie Andrews last night, I think she was as surprised to be in Birkenhead as we were to see her there. She was very good.
 
All Points East the other weekend. Had to divide time between some of the acts but caught some or all of The Lazy Eyes, Amyl & the Sniffers, Warmduscher, Black Midi, The Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs plus one or two others that I've already forgotten.
 
Last night we went to Down At The Abbey festival in Reading, where we saw AK/DK (massively fun twin drummers and modular synths mad krauty business), W.H. Lung (interesting alternative/indie band who deserve to be big), and The Comet Is Coming, who even impressed my notoriously jazzphobic husband - so pleased I finally caught them before they split.
Nicely run event, in lovely surroundings - though I'm glad we're not over there today in this heat
 
Roisin Murphy, and her excellent guitarist Jim, do a gig/instore last night at The Boiler Room in Guildford.
Great to hear the songs in a stripped down form, and to be mere feet away from them, in a cracking little venue.
There was a lorra love in the room.
 
Matthew Halsall at a sold-out and very appreciative New Century Hall in Manchester last night. Superb of course, an excellent seven piece band with guest appearances from Josephine Oniyama (vocals), Kaiko Katamura (koto) and Chip Wickham (sax + flute). The first set was basically the new album and a bit restrained in MH's current new-age tinkly style, the second more old-school (A and J) Coltrane / Sanders blueprint jazz. I scored a copy of the only-sold-on-tour special vinyl EP, tracks recorded at the same time at the new album.

 
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