Back in the Middle Ages, a Troubadour was someone who turned up in town, told stories, played music, instigated singalongs and entertained the people. Fast forward a few hundred years and things haven’t really changed that much, as tonight, in Preston’s Vinyl Tap, Spike proves he is probably the closest thing to a modern-day Troubadour that the 21st century has to offer.
Read MoreSome things in life will inevitably never change. Stuff like death, taxes, and of course The Quireboys. OK that’s maybe a little tongue-in-cheek but for over 30 years now, The Quireboys have been up there, out there, doing what they do best. Bouncy fun-time rock and roll, with a hint of country and a lot of bonhomie. The lineup may have changes slightly over the years but the core of Spike (vocals), Keth (keyboards), Guy (guitars) and Paul (guitar) seem to have settled into a groove that is almost a canyon. Well-worn, familiar and somehow comforting, The Quireboys are the pipe and slippers of rock music these days.
Read MoreSheffield. City of steel, birthplace of my favourite band in the world ever, and a bit of a pain to get to for an all-day festival if you live on the other side of the Pennines to it! Accordingly I manage to arrive at The Corporation just in time to totally miss the first two bands, sorry. This is my first visit to the venue and I am impressed. It’s normally a nightclub, and is a bit of a rabbit-warren of a place with one big main room and several smaller ones. Today one of the smaller ones was put to use as a merch room, and one of the upstairs ones was the site of the second stage. Stage times were staggered so there were no overlaps which was great, if a little tiring trying not to miss anyone!
Read MoreThis evening's gig at Manchester’s 02 Ritz is all set to be somewhat of a cracker; a double header of 2 bands celebrating 35 years since their inception. Both The Quireboys and FM have endured a rollercoaster of a ride or two over the past 3 and a bit decades, and these days FM are greying gracefully, yet still releasing quality material and touring regularly, so with support from Vega and Bad Touch, it promises to be a great night in store.
Read MoreThe Tivoli kept up its practice of giving us a local band as opener by tonight presenting The Clan. Rumour had it that they were yet another pub-rock covers band, so I was pleasantly surprised to find that actually they play original (if derived) traditional British blues rock. Think back to the early 80s (if you are old enough) and there were dozens of bands like this all playing their hearts out and dreaming of following in the footsteps of Iron Maiden or Saxon to the charts and being asked to go on TOTP.
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