Friday 3rd April: Circumstances have kept me away from the York music scene for the last couple of weekends. I even managed to miss the launch of Imperial Measures, the second album from the Yards. Luckily, Roy picked me up a copy and I can happily report that it is a superb album. Gone is the raw, fast-paced, almost-heavy music of the eponymously-titled first album, to be replaced by a much more sophisticated, melodic and thoughtful collection of tunes. Some of the songs are familiar from more recent live gigs, others are brand new. All are good, some are bordering on excellent and the whole thing makes the wait between albums well worth it.
Tonight, however, we've managed to convince Andy to attend The Duchess, despite the headline act not being one of his favourites (to say the least...)
I arrived slightly later than usual due to the bus breaking down. Well, I say "breaking down", it actually wouldn't move for a few minutes after letting some passengers off at one of the stops. The driver turned off the engine (and all the lights) and restarted it (I wonder if he ever worked on an IT Helpdesk...), but still nothing happened when he pressed the accelerator, so he radioed back to base. I couldn't hear the full conversation but did, at one point, hear the female voice on the radio say, "So, the engine's running and in gear, but the bus isn't moving, is that right?" "Yes," replied the driver. There was a mumbled response and then the bus moved away from the spot. "Yes, it was that," reported the driver.
I really hope the lady hadn't asked him whether the handbrake was still on...
Anyway, I digress. As I entered the Duchess York-based foursome Undergrass were about halfway into their set. I wandered over to order a beer, thinking to myself that lead singer Phil Goodrick's voice was going to annoy me and that I wasn't going to enjoy this band. How wrong could I have been??? Very soon, Roj arrived and, after supplying him with alcohol, we moved away from the unusually crowded bar area, into the centre of the venue. A new song was being played and, at the end of it, we looked at each other and, pretty simultaneously, proclaimed, "we like these!" Blues-inspired rock, somewhat akin to Whitesnake but with Lemmy-like vocals, is the genre and well played it is. Guitarist Rob Lumby was excellent and included a really nice solo in one song, as well as country-fying the last song slightly with his use of a slide guitar. Bassist Danny Lee and drummer Dave Chitty provided a solid base to the songs and the vocals got better as the set went on. Apparently there is/has been an EP available and a second one is being worked on, but there didn't seem to be any recorded material available to purchase tonight. Shame really. Definitely a band to look out for.
Second up were 98Pages, a threesome that we only saw a few weeks back, for the launch of their debut album, Broken Homes and the Halfway House, another very good album but, frankly, not a patch on their live performances. Obviously, not being the headline act, this set was a bit shorter than the last one but they were still excellent. This is a band with a very good stage presence, a relaxed almost self-deprecating style of playing (despite the type of music being played) and some excellent songs about drinking and the dangers of "playing away from home". They seem to have a dedicated following - I noticed a few faces in the crowd - and I am more than happy to include myself in that. It appears, from comments made during the set, that they are already working on a second album. Another one for me to look out for.
Finally, it was Hijak Oscar, a vudu-blues band from York who received national acclaim after appearing on Channel 4's Mobileact Unsigned programme. I've managed to completely avoid them as this is the band that Andy isn't normally too keen on seeing perform. How to describe them?? "Esoteric" would cover the performance - I'm not sure how reading prayers out added to the music, especially since we could barely hear them, and the music wasn't exactly mainstream. "Eclectic" and "exotic" would cover the band - there isn't a single, uniform style in evidence on the stage and barely anybody in the band would be recognised as a musician while walking down the street. Keyboards and guitarist Carl Hetherington is all curls, teeth and sharp angles; vocalist Gaby Milner mixes 60's chic with rock chick (rock chic or 60's chick, anybody?); Mark Meilack on bass, bowler-hatted and bespectacled, could be mistaken for a city banker, if it wasn't for the long hair, bare chest and tattoos. I could go on - this is a very mixed bag of styles, but it seems to work.
As to the music, I suspect that, for some reason, we didn't get the best in the way of performances tonight. That's not to say I didn't enjoy the set, just that I have a sneaky feeling that they could be a whole lot better than they were tonight. There's obviously another hard-core fanbase out there. Some people seemed to anticipate parts of the act (although, I guess, if somebody holds up a book of prayers it isn't that difficult to work out that he's going to read out a prayer) and know most of the songs. This was another album launch, with second release BlackSheepMoneyBox being available tonight. I wasn't tempted enough to spend any cash this time but I would definitely be interested in seeing the band live again.
I even saw Andy dancing and clapping a couple of times.
Saturday, 4 April 2009
Monday, 16 March 2009
A Long-Awaited Return
Saturday 14th March: It's my second gig of the weekend - a welcome and much anticipated return to the Roman Bath for my current favourite guitarist, Chantel McGregor and her band, Martin Rushworth on drums and Alex Jeffrey on bass (Lincoln J. Roth having moved on a few weeks ago).
Although recovering from illness Chantel managed to charm and enthrall us for another two-hour-plus set of classic rock and blues, consisting of old favourites and new tunes. (Well, new to me anyway.) OK, so there was no Clapton/Cream this time, which severely curtails my ability to put names to the songs, but Fleetwood Mac, Robin Trower, Steve Vai and the ubiquitous Jimi Hendrix were all featured, probably along with others that I didn't hear introduced.
It may have been because of the recent bout of tonsillitis, but there seemed to me to be more guitar solos and less vocals than usual. In fact, the set list (recovered afterwards by Roj) contained more songs than were actually played. However, while Chantel's vocals are a lot better than adequate, I would guess that most people watch her live to see and hear her stunning guitar work. Technically superb, she plays with an ease that seems to cry out, "why do others make this look so difficult??" Tonight's solos were nothing less than brilliant and surely prove that, while still a covers artist, Chantel has the ability to play (if not write) her own material. Unfortunately, the Bath having the layout it does (and me not being the tallest in the world) I barely got a view of the stage area. However, I did see the incredible fret-work during Hendrix's Red House - safe to say I've never seen anybody play the guitar in quite that way before and can only echo the comment of the old guy behind me when, at the end of that track, he said, "She's incredible. Why is she playing pubs?"
What is, perhaps, only slightly less incredible is the fact that today was Chantel's birthday. Still only twenty-two, she chooses to celebrate by entertaining us?? Somebody should point out that, on birthdays, the treats are supposed to flow in the direction of the celebrator...
It's difficult to review a gig like this without focusing on Chantel, to the detriment of the other two members of the band. Martin's drumming was, as ever, excellent but I find it hard to comment on the bass-player without actually seeing them play and thus being able to link finger movements with the actual bass-line. It may be damning with faint praise to simply say that Alex's bass-playing was good enough that I barely noticed it. If you see what I mean...
I have said before that one of the pleasures, for me, of attending local gigs is discovering new music that you rarely get to hear anywhere else. Conversely, one of the pleasures of seeing Chantel play is discovering older music (and musicians) that have bypassed me. Eventually, this could end up costing me fortune - I have already, after tonight's gig, ordered Steve Vai's first five albums and I haven't even started on Trower or Joe Bonamassa yet. I wonder if, one day, I will be playing a CD by Chantel herself. I have no idea whether her ultimate plan is to play and record her own material but I hope so. That way, when she becomes even more famous, I can say, "Chantel McGregor? Yeah, I was a fan of hers when she just played covers in pubs."
"Just...?" Hah!
Although recovering from illness Chantel managed to charm and enthrall us for another two-hour-plus set of classic rock and blues, consisting of old favourites and new tunes. (Well, new to me anyway.) OK, so there was no Clapton/Cream this time, which severely curtails my ability to put names to the songs, but Fleetwood Mac, Robin Trower, Steve Vai and the ubiquitous Jimi Hendrix were all featured, probably along with others that I didn't hear introduced.
It may have been because of the recent bout of tonsillitis, but there seemed to me to be more guitar solos and less vocals than usual. In fact, the set list (recovered afterwards by Roj) contained more songs than were actually played. However, while Chantel's vocals are a lot better than adequate, I would guess that most people watch her live to see and hear her stunning guitar work. Technically superb, she plays with an ease that seems to cry out, "why do others make this look so difficult??" Tonight's solos were nothing less than brilliant and surely prove that, while still a covers artist, Chantel has the ability to play (if not write) her own material. Unfortunately, the Bath having the layout it does (and me not being the tallest in the world) I barely got a view of the stage area. However, I did see the incredible fret-work during Hendrix's Red House - safe to say I've never seen anybody play the guitar in quite that way before and can only echo the comment of the old guy behind me when, at the end of that track, he said, "She's incredible. Why is she playing pubs?"
What is, perhaps, only slightly less incredible is the fact that today was Chantel's birthday. Still only twenty-two, she chooses to celebrate by entertaining us?? Somebody should point out that, on birthdays, the treats are supposed to flow in the direction of the celebrator...
It's difficult to review a gig like this without focusing on Chantel, to the detriment of the other two members of the band. Martin's drumming was, as ever, excellent but I find it hard to comment on the bass-player without actually seeing them play and thus being able to link finger movements with the actual bass-line. It may be damning with faint praise to simply say that Alex's bass-playing was good enough that I barely noticed it. If you see what I mean...
I have said before that one of the pleasures, for me, of attending local gigs is discovering new music that you rarely get to hear anywhere else. Conversely, one of the pleasures of seeing Chantel play is discovering older music (and musicians) that have bypassed me. Eventually, this could end up costing me fortune - I have already, after tonight's gig, ordered Steve Vai's first five albums and I haven't even started on Trower or Joe Bonamassa yet. I wonder if, one day, I will be playing a CD by Chantel herself. I have no idea whether her ultimate plan is to play and record her own material but I hope so. That way, when she becomes even more famous, I can say, "Chantel McGregor? Yeah, I was a fan of hers when she just played covers in pubs."
"Just...?" Hah!
Sunday, 15 March 2009
A Rocking Album Launch
Friday 13th March: ...and the start of a busy weekend for me, music-wise.
Tonight, I've managed to get my pass signed to allow me to attend the launch of 98Pages' debut album, Broken Homes And The Halfway House, at the Duchess despite already planning to go out tomorrow night for the very welcome and much-anticipated return of a current favourite.
First up at the Duchess was Astrae, a six-piece from York. I'm afraid that they didn't do a lot for me. It may be a deliberate plan but this appeared, to me, to be a band in desperate need of a cohesive identity. By that I mean that, rather than looking like a band, they looked like six individuals who happened to be sharing a stage. With a mixture of visual styles which encompassed big hair and eye makeup (James A Hutchinson, lead-singer/guitarist), unruly samurai top-knot (Jack Beavers, guitarist) and clean-cut (pretty much everybody else) and a musical style that mixed the vocals of The Cure with the heavier aspects of the likes of Metallica, the end result struck me as more than a little discordant. Stunning violinist (yes, there was a violin) Jo Wherry seemed to be aiming for dark and broody but succeeded in sultry, while Hutchinson leaped about stage like a jack-rabbit, narrowly avoiding the rest of the band and only just missing having his eye taken out by Wherry's bow - antics for a bigger stage, perhaps. In hindsight, it might simply have been the vocals that put me off this performance but, at the time, the music wasn't doing anything to float my boat either. It may be that the band suffered from the rather high volume being employed at the Duchess tonight but, I'm sorry to say, I don't think I'll be going out of my way to see them again. Sorry, lads and lass.
Next on stage were Bolton-based foursome To The Bones and, initially at least, they seemed to be more my cup of tea - a hard, heavy, industrial sound of clashing guitars and drums with a much more mainstream vocal style reminiscent of the heaviest of heavy metal. Unfortunately, after a few songs it became apparent that there wasn't a great deal of variation and that heavy was, at least tonight, the limit of their repertoire. Don't get me wrong, I can quite happily listen to the likes of Motorhead, but only in small doses and I prefer bands who mix it up a bit style-wise. To The Bones debut album Duke Type A has, apparently, garnered some pretty good reviews and during this set I was tempted to make a purchase. Eventually, though, I decided that I probably wouldn't actually play it enough to justify buying it. Definitely better than the first band and I'm glad I have experienced them live but, again, I doubt I'll see them again soon.
Finally, the band we had come to see. 98Pages are a York-based trio who I've not managed to catch before, although Roj and Andy have seen them at least once and have recommended them. Not that we always agree... Anyway, this was the launch gig for their album, and that generally means I'll take a gamble and see what a band are all about. Being honest, I like telling people at work that I'm attending an album launch - it evokes thoughts of canapes, free drink, mixing with stars, etc. Whereas, in reality, it generally means a small merchandising table from which you can buy the album the day it becomes available. You still have to buy your drinks and the closest you get to canapes are bags of Walkers Ready Salted, although you can often have a bit of a chat with the band, if you so desire.
Anyway, 98Pages are a more traditional rock outfit than the other two bands on tonight. Live, they evoked in me memories of both The Mexicolas and Black Stone Cherry, although the former may only have been because there were three of them on stage and the latter because bass-player Jason Brooks looked a little like BSC's lead singer... Lead Guitarist Martyn Fillingham broke a string during the very first song and played most of the rest of the set semi-acoustically. I have no idea whether this changed the sound much from what was planned but it certainly didn't make it any less enjoyable. The songs were catchy, blues-based and, at times, with a hint of Southern Rock and there wasn't a duff one in the whole set. Another impressive live performance that reinforced my enjoyment of heavy rock, something which had, until fairly recently been dwindling a little.
At the end of the set, we wandered over to the merchandise table and were pleasantly surprised to find that the eleven track album was on sale for a mere £5. Bargain! Obviously, a bought a copy, although I haven't had a chance to listen to it yet. Once I have, I'll try to post a review here.
As usual, we headed to the Roman Bath after leaving the Duchess. Tonight's Bath-band was Copowt, a self-proclaimed party-band from Copmanthorpe. Given that I was also going out on Saturday, I decided to leave early, after just two songs, so can't really comment on them.
Tonight, I've managed to get my pass signed to allow me to attend the launch of 98Pages' debut album, Broken Homes And The Halfway House, at the Duchess despite already planning to go out tomorrow night for the very welcome and much-anticipated return of a current favourite.
First up at the Duchess was Astrae, a six-piece from York. I'm afraid that they didn't do a lot for me. It may be a deliberate plan but this appeared, to me, to be a band in desperate need of a cohesive identity. By that I mean that, rather than looking like a band, they looked like six individuals who happened to be sharing a stage. With a mixture of visual styles which encompassed big hair and eye makeup (James A Hutchinson, lead-singer/guitarist), unruly samurai top-knot (Jack Beavers, guitarist) and clean-cut (pretty much everybody else) and a musical style that mixed the vocals of The Cure with the heavier aspects of the likes of Metallica, the end result struck me as more than a little discordant. Stunning violinist (yes, there was a violin) Jo Wherry seemed to be aiming for dark and broody but succeeded in sultry, while Hutchinson leaped about stage like a jack-rabbit, narrowly avoiding the rest of the band and only just missing having his eye taken out by Wherry's bow - antics for a bigger stage, perhaps. In hindsight, it might simply have been the vocals that put me off this performance but, at the time, the music wasn't doing anything to float my boat either. It may be that the band suffered from the rather high volume being employed at the Duchess tonight but, I'm sorry to say, I don't think I'll be going out of my way to see them again. Sorry, lads and lass.
Next on stage were Bolton-based foursome To The Bones and, initially at least, they seemed to be more my cup of tea - a hard, heavy, industrial sound of clashing guitars and drums with a much more mainstream vocal style reminiscent of the heaviest of heavy metal. Unfortunately, after a few songs it became apparent that there wasn't a great deal of variation and that heavy was, at least tonight, the limit of their repertoire. Don't get me wrong, I can quite happily listen to the likes of Motorhead, but only in small doses and I prefer bands who mix it up a bit style-wise. To The Bones debut album Duke Type A has, apparently, garnered some pretty good reviews and during this set I was tempted to make a purchase. Eventually, though, I decided that I probably wouldn't actually play it enough to justify buying it. Definitely better than the first band and I'm glad I have experienced them live but, again, I doubt I'll see them again soon.
Finally, the band we had come to see. 98Pages are a York-based trio who I've not managed to catch before, although Roj and Andy have seen them at least once and have recommended them. Not that we always agree... Anyway, this was the launch gig for their album, and that generally means I'll take a gamble and see what a band are all about. Being honest, I like telling people at work that I'm attending an album launch - it evokes thoughts of canapes, free drink, mixing with stars, etc. Whereas, in reality, it generally means a small merchandising table from which you can buy the album the day it becomes available. You still have to buy your drinks and the closest you get to canapes are bags of Walkers Ready Salted, although you can often have a bit of a chat with the band, if you so desire.
Anyway, 98Pages are a more traditional rock outfit than the other two bands on tonight. Live, they evoked in me memories of both The Mexicolas and Black Stone Cherry, although the former may only have been because there were three of them on stage and the latter because bass-player Jason Brooks looked a little like BSC's lead singer... Lead Guitarist Martyn Fillingham broke a string during the very first song and played most of the rest of the set semi-acoustically. I have no idea whether this changed the sound much from what was planned but it certainly didn't make it any less enjoyable. The songs were catchy, blues-based and, at times, with a hint of Southern Rock and there wasn't a duff one in the whole set. Another impressive live performance that reinforced my enjoyment of heavy rock, something which had, until fairly recently been dwindling a little.
At the end of the set, we wandered over to the merchandise table and were pleasantly surprised to find that the eleven track album was on sale for a mere £5. Bargain! Obviously, a bought a copy, although I haven't had a chance to listen to it yet. Once I have, I'll try to post a review here.
As usual, we headed to the Roman Bath after leaving the Duchess. Tonight's Bath-band was Copowt, a self-proclaimed party-band from Copmanthorpe. Given that I was also going out on Saturday, I decided to leave early, after just two songs, so can't really comment on them.
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