Not entirely sure how Cut Copy found itself in my music reason but there it was with a few plays alongside.

When I noticed the show at The Forum being for sale, I checked my calendar, noticed it was a day off from work, and immediately purchased a ticket. This immediate purchase of tickets for almost any band I’ve remotely heard about which falls on my day off is starting to be a disturbing trend.

A few weeks before the show I was starting to wonder why I had tickets to their show. A few listens to their new album, Zonoscope, convinced me that this would be quite an interesting and fun show especially with my recent liking of electronic music.

HMV Forum is more than just a familiar venue now. Prior to gig starting, I recalled my previous experiences at the venue which included shows by Bloc Party, Deftones, Coheed and Cambria, Broken Social Scene, Wolf Parade, Friendly Fires, and of course the NYE party with Foals. Saying it’s a memorable venue is quite an understatement now.

Support for the evening was Holy Ghost!, another electronic band much in the same veins as of Cut Copy. This was one of the few occasions wherein the support act was in the same genre as the headliner. Their set was pretty impressive and provided just the right reinforcement and buildup to the main act.

In recent gigs, I’ve noticed an influx of synth-based/electro music and simply categorise them as good and bad. Holy Ghost! falls in the good side of things.

During the break, one would clearly notice a huge white door in the middle of the stage. Now that I think about it, it sort of reminds me of the doors which pop up in random places in the BBC show Being Human. It was just there, smack in the middle, which led to questions as to what the hell it was for.

The lights then dimmed to indicate the few seconds before the band members walk on stage. Frontman Dan Whitford walked through the door which proved it was a functional door with hinges. During the set, the door’s white surface was used as a screen for some vivid images.

Here’s the full setlist again from Setlist.fm.

• Nobody Lost, Nobody Found
• Where I’m Going
• So Haunted
• Corner of the Sky
• Lights & Music
• Take Me Over
• Pharaohs & Pyramids
• Saturdays
• Hearts on Fire
• Sun God
• Need You Now
• Out There on the Ice

Opening the evening with an older song, Nobody Lost, Nobody Found, was pretty adequate and sufficiently set up the evening.

As their new album Zonoscope was released only a few weeks before this gig, half of the songs from their set where from this album. Older songs from their two previous albums, In Ghost Colours and Bright Like Neon Love, were thrown in the mix to create a nice amalgam which almost had a continuous beat, flow and tempo.

Highlights of the evening were Lights & Music, Hearts On Fire, and their encore which consisted of Need You Now and Out There On The Ice.

Every song in their set fit perfectly and the end result was one incredible evening. One song just flowed flawlessly to the next.

The crowd was fairly decent as well. Only some light dancing and no mindless moshing from kids. Bands like this draw crowds who knows and appreciates their music well.

Despite having doubts as to why I initially purchased tickets for the show, I had such a great evening watching these guys perform. Their music was put together so well and they simply sounded so great live.

It’s nice to have a band like them around which for older people, bring back memories of New Order and the 1980s. I was too young back then, so this gives me a chance to travel to time and sort of experience things back then.

I doubt I’ll go out of my way to see them again live but if they do play a show in London again which falls on my day off, I might just see them again.

When I first heard of Esben and the Witch’s Marching Song when I discovered their video for it, I was immediately enthralled, drawn in and mesmerized.

This was around summer of 2010. I would have the chance to see them for the first time at Constellations Festival up in Leeds if I didn’t wake up too late to catch another bus after a night of heavy drinking.

Being a band from Brighton, it was just a matter of time before they played in London again. Plus a debut album was released a few weeks ago, Violet Cries, which I immediately loved upon first play through.

Venue was XOYO which is slowly growing on me as it’s a cozy little venue in Shoreditch who has been host to some cool indie bands which I’ve seen at the venue so far such as Sleigh Bells, Does It Offend You, Yeah?, and now Esben and the Witch. In April, I’ll be seeing Asobi Seksu and Architecture In Helsinki.

First support for the evening was Breton, and is another electro indie band based in London. Yes, another. However, I quite enjoyed listening to them play. Their blend of electro, synth and beats was quite pleasing to the ears compared to other electro and synth acts I’ve seen lately. A bit more polished really and with less beeps and bops. Also, they have a visual style of their own wherein video clips are show as their backdrop which makes things a bit more interesting.

According to their Last.fm profile page, the videos are made by the band who happen to be filmmakers as well under the guise of BretonLABS with a few short films around. Would need to check this out sometime.

Trophy Wife was the second support, a band whom I may have heard before while I was queueing at HMV Forum in attempts to leave my coat in the cloak room. It was a failed attempt, and I missed this band.

This time, I had the chance to properly listen to them. One could say they are yet another electronic band but they aren’t just that. Being from Oxford, they share the same artistic flair, air and water familiar to Foals whom they support on NYE. Akin to Foals, they are also a bit math rock which always makes for a good listen.

Two interesting electronic bands for support who I should definitely check out more in the future. This evening was already doing quite well.

Before I move on to Esben and the Witch, I have to say that for the first time I absolutely loathe these “professional” photographers with their big flashy DSLRs. At bigger venues, there is normally a space between the front barrier and stage for real photographers.

With XOYO being so small and Esben and the Witch being lauded as the next big thing, there was a bunch of photographers lined up in front along with the rest of the crowd.

To make matters worse, one was holding her camera over her head whilst taking pictures (she was way short) and blocked my view for the first few songs. You can also notice how they some weren’t really here for the band but only for the music.

End of rant.

Esben and the Witch was better than I expected and I was quite blown away by their powerful and eerie performance on stage. As with other electronic bands, their formation is different from typical bands. No full drumset and just a tom tom with cymbals plus guitars and synth.

As with their debut album, they opened their set with Argyria which is more than just appropriate as it is such a song one opens with, calm and slow to begin with, building up the tension and belting out riffs and a beautiful sound towards the middle. The type of song which would start you swaying until you feel yourself just bouncing around.

Similar to the album, the first song transitioned flawlessly to Marching Song which was also available on their EPs of the same name.

Here’s the full setlist.

• Argyria
• Marching Song
• Chorea
• Hexagons IV
• Marine Fields Glow
• Lucia, At The Precipice
• Warpath
• Battlecry/Mimicry
• Eumenides

Shame there was no Swoon Song but it was an incredible evening seeing a new band making such an impact so early and actually proving themselves live.

Rachel’s voice is quite haunting but completely lovely and beautiful. Gothic but not goth. Watching her alternate from singing to playing the guitar and hitting the drums was enjoyable. She also had quite unusual moves on stage which are always entertaining.

At one point, all members of the band ganged up on the drums and just kept on hitting it. It was quite a joy. I am not completely sure during which song it was. Now that I’m listening to their songs again, it’s possible this was during Lucia, At The Precipice which is not on their EP or LP.

Seeing new bands for the first time is always an experience. This is definitely one of those gigs I’ll remember for quite sometime in the future and I can say with absolute certainty that I’ll be seeing them again the next time they play in London.

If you’ve never heard of them, do give them a try. You’ll most likely read a lot about them by the end of the year.

Like most things these days, I can’t remember the first time I stumbled across The Go! Team. All I know was that I was immediately hooked with their catchy brand of indie-pop (darn, I’m labeling now) which was very upbeat and cheerful. Also, I discovered them along with a similar sounding band called Architecture In Helsinki, whom I shall be seeing in April.

Until Tuesday, I haven’t seen either band. For some reason, they haven’t been on much gigs since I moved back to London in 2007. I am plenty sure that I didn’t miss a London gig of theirs.

Anyway, The Go! Team was ticked off the list last Tuesday with a fantastic show at Heaven Under The Arches near Charing Cross. Architecture In Helsinki will be ticked off in April.

The first support for the evening was Star Slinger whom I won’t even link to. He was another DJ spinning tracks, none of which enthralled the crowd. If it weren’t for my iPhone, I may done something really bad.

Thankfully, the second support band was so much more decent and was actually quite interesting. They are called Banjo Or Freakout who played a decent set and more than deserve a second listen to.

The Go! Team was a band for the evening and during the wait, I chatted with this Canadian fellow who has seen them in different cities such as Ontario, Vancouver, Singapore, and now London. He was quite surprised that I’ve never seen them before considering I’m from London. Weird.

With their new album released a few days before this gig, it was to be expected that a lot of material this evening would come from their latest album, Rolling Thunder, and as such, started off with the first track, T.O.R.N.A.D.O.

Much of the evening is quite hazy now not because of the alcohol but because of the craziness on stage. Here’s a setlist I found on Setlist.fm.

• T.O.R.N.A.D.O.
• Get It Together
• The Power Is On
• Bus-Out Brigade
• Ladyflash
• Ready To Go Steady
• Junior Kickstart
• Buy Nothing Day
• Grip Like A Vice
• Bottle Rocket
• The Running Range
• Everyone’s a V.I.P. to Someone
• Panther Dash (encore)
• Rolling Blackouts (encore)

I do believe the list isn’t entirely correct as I’m pretty sure the band played Huddle Formation, Secretary Song, and a few more songs their second album, Proof of Youth.

Their performance was pretty incredible. Most members of the band were busy rotating instruments which is always a job to watch in a band on stage. Instruments even included a typewriter.

Front-woman Ninja is probably one of the most energetic person you could watch on stage almost to the point where you would start to feel tired for her. She was busy dancing onstage, doing high kicks, and being an aerobic instructor onstage. It was quite crazy but man, was she fit.

Two other female members of the band also helped out with vocals on a few songs the most notable of which was Ready To Go Steady which is such a cute song.

Highlights of the evening were Huddle Formation, Panther Dash, Get It Together, and Grip Like A Vice.

Ultimately, it was quite an incredible night and the wait to see them live on stage, although grueling, was well worth it.

I am quite looking forward to seeing Architecture In Helsinki in a few months. With that said, I hope The Go! Team play another London date sooner than later.

Note: Apologies for the extremely appalling write up. It feels rushed and written without effort as I really need to just get this out and not have another pile of gigs to blog about. Then again, hardly anyone would read this anyway.

Los Campesinos! is one of my most favourite bands of all-time due to a number of things. Their records are simply amazing to listen to. The lyrics are unusually twisted but totally brilliant. Seeing them live is a completely different experience.

I’ve seen them twice last year, the first at Koko in February and the second at The Garage in July. There would have been a third time if they didn’t cancel their show at Shepherd’s Bush Empire in May or if I woke up in time to catch my bus and go all the way up to Leeds for the Constellations Festival.

The first time I saw them was absolutely exhilarating and mind-blowing. I’ve been to a lot of gigs last year, and the one at Koko was one of the craziest ones. The show at The Garage was a step back even though Johnny Foreigner was supporting as I was with a girl and had to behave myself whilst Los Campesinos! performed.

This time, I had no date and was set on having a totally amazing evening. It turned out so much better than I hoped it to be.

The queue outside Shepherd’s Bush Empire was relatively short and there was no need to use O2 Priority access to enter the venue earlier as I had more than enough time before the first support would start on stage.

The first support band already has quite a bit of buzz surrounding them. Their single Colours, is out on Youtube and is a nice introduction to their sound. The band is called Grouplove from California. Their set was pretty incredible but they really got the crowd cheering when they played Colours. This is one band you need to check out sooner than later. Or you could simply wait until the end of the year and read them on a number of year end lists. With that said, I’m seeing them again in a few weeks headlining a show in a much smaller venue (Old Queen’s Head).

Second support for the evening was Summer Camp whom I’ve seen before when they where called to support Kele in November. They weren’t as warmly accepted by the crowd compared to Grouplove but they still put on an enjoyable show. There was a small group of girls beside me who were singing and dancing to their songs, clearly big fans of the group. It was very nice seeing them again perform but their sound (synth-pop) doesn’t really fit in with Grouplove and Los Campesinos!.

Two support bands are always lovely as it burns the waiting time until the headliner much more quickly than usual. Having someone to talk to is also an option for burning time, but nothing really beats a smartphone.

Los Campesinos! eventually parade on stage with all 7 members. At this point, I was somewhere close to the middle. During the first two songs, I somehow managed to make it to the barrier right in front of the stage.

Los Campesinos! opened up this evening’s set with In Media Res, which is also the first song of their latest album, Romance Is Boring. It got crazy right from the start and this time, I was more than prepared to let it all out and absorb the craziness. This was then followed by the first song from Hold On Now, Youngster, Death To Los Campesinos!. Everyone was pretty much pushing and shoving at this point in attempts to dance along with the band.

Up next were two songs with the longest yet most brilliant titles, A Heat Rash In The Shape Of The Show Me State Or, Letters From Me To Charlotte and This Is How You Spell, “HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics”. I really enjoy the All’s Well That Ends version of Letters From Me To Charlotte but the original version from Romance Is Boring is always a fun song live. This Is How You Spell… is another favourite live, one which is always great to sing (scream) along with.

As mentioned repeatedly on their Twitter account, new songs were to be expected. Two in a row where played right in the middle of their set, Four Seasons and The Black Bird, The Dark Slope. The first seemed a little bit different but was still well done. The second was more typical Los Campesinos! funfare. According to Gareth, they would be available in the first edition of Heat Rash (their online zine) which should be available soon.

Here’s the complete setlist for the evening straight from Setlist.fm.

• In Media Res
• Death To Los Campesinos!
• Miserabilia
• A Heat Rash In The Shape Of The Show Me State Or, Letters From Me To Charlotte
• This Is How You Spell, “HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics”
• Documented Minor Emotional Breakdown #1
• Four Seasons
• The Black Bird, The Dark Slope
• Straight In At 101
• We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed
• Romance Is Boring
• You! Me! Dancing!
• The Sea Is A Good Place To Think Of The Future
• Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks
• Knee Deep At ATP (encore)
• … And We Exhale And Roll Our Eyes In Unison (encore)

The songs after the new ones brought back the insanity in the show after the crowd stood back and simply listened at the new ones. You! Me! Dancing! had the longest intro I’ve seen them do so far and this just built up the anticipation to the song, which is one of their best songs ever.

Things slowed down a little with one of my most favourite songs of 2010 ( I should make this list already), The Sea Is A Good Place To Think Of The Future. Just love the smile on Gareth’s face when everyone was singing “But you could never kiss a Tory boy without wanting to cut off your tongue again” with him. The song is beyond beautiful and makes me want to drive down to Brighton, sit by the beach and really think about the future.

Closed their regular set Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks which has lines like “When the smaller picture is the same as the bigger picture, you know that you’re fucked. When you’re trading paper cuts for splinters, you’re out of luck”. If you don’t think that’s just beautiful, I don’t know what is.

Typically, they were back on stage within a few seconds for an encore which included a couple of songs Knee Deep At ATP and …And We Exhale And Roll Our Eyes In Unison, a song which I’ve never heard then play live before which is always a good thing.

Despite hopes of hearing Too Many Flesh Suppers live were shattered, the setlist was quite amazing. The new songs were interesting and make me anticipate Heat Rash even more. The old songs are always fun to hear live and dance/sing along to.

As with Broken Social Scene and Arcade Fire, watching Los Campesinos! perform is a truly wondrous experience. It’s amazing seven people can be on stage and just have an absolute blast having fun and still play great music.

Mentioned earlier that I was right at the front of the stage. I used to enjoy watching Kim Campesinos! mostly but this evening, I fell in love with someone else, Harriet Campesinos! who plays the violin as I was right in front of her. She just seemed so prim and proper whilst onstage during a rock show. She also has the prettiest smile which she flashed whenever they finished a song. I do think she was a bit conscious as her parents where present and watching her from level 1 seats.

All in all, this clearly was a Los Campesinos! show I was expecting it to be, crazy, insane and fun. As hard as I am these days on trying to cut down on gigs I go to, I will never stop watching Los Campesinos! live. Expect me to be there everytime they play in London.

2010 was kicked off by a gig in Wembley Arena headlined by Brand New which GlassJaw and Thrice supported. To say it was epic is an understatement. We are talking about Glassjaw here and of course Brand New whom I didn’t love as much I do now but was totally blown away.

That was the only gig I went to in January of 2010. Maybe it’s the weather, but the first month of the year is quite devoid of decent gigs.

With no fancy ones in sight, I decided to look a bit harder and eventually stumbled across Does It Offend You, Yeah? playing on a Monday which is perfect with my current schedule as it’s my day off.

Of all things, the movie Fast and the Furious (the 4th one) first introduced me to them when they used We Are Rockstars in their trailer. It was an interesting, upbeat and crazy good song.

DIOYY? seemed like a pretty insane way to start the year which was quite fitting as I’m going with this whole crazy attitude.

Venue was XOYO which was where I watched another insanely good band, Sleigh Bells. They blew the lights out of the place that time.

This time around, there were no support bands at all with DIOYY? set to play at around 2130. To bridge the gap, they had a DJ spinning for almost two hours which further solidified my distaste for clubbing.

Thing is, dancing in a club (or “raving”) is a bit more acceptable since everyone there goes to dance. This is a rock show and people came over to watch bands play and then maybe dance. A few people were dancing to the music but most were just standing there drinking and conversing with others. Obviously, this made me feel way bored than usual as watching support bands masks the feeling of me being at another gig alone.

Does It Offend You, Yeah? finally came up on stage and I have to say that Chloe (the bassist) is way cute.

Stop. Gig review. Not that anyone would notice that bit anyway.

Their sound is of the punch you face variety. From the moment they started, the crowd went nuts. The people in front were leaning onto the barrier and one of it’s feet was poking out. I felt it hit my foot a few times and decided to move away from it before I hurt myself. I hope nobody got hurt from it.

Back to the band and the gig. I actually can’t remember which song they opened with which is a bit silly at this point. I would go with With A Heavy Heart (I Regret To Inform You).

With only one album so far in their repertoire, they had quite a short set but the moshpit was pretty amazing. They played a couple of new songs including We Are The Dead which is such a great song and makes me look forward to their new album which should be available in a few months. For a sample of their insanity onstage and in festivals, check this video out. You can download the single from their website for free. Yeah, I am promoting a band on my website to my massive amount of followers.

Other songs they performed this evening which I could remember were Battle Royale, Attack of the 60 ft Lesbian Octopus, Doomed Now, and Weird Science. Their last song for the evening was of course, We Are Rockstars.

Like most bands, they came back for an encore and played one more song. This is really stupid, but I can’t remember which one. It was a good one but it wasn’t one which the crowd was cheering for such as Epic Last Song and the very inspirational, Let’s Make Out.

Oh, wait! I have a picture of their setlist. Unfortunately, I can’t really decipher it.

A high energy gig at a small and intimate venue made the evening very interesting and a great way to start 2011 despite the awful DJ set.

Unlike Sleigh Bells or Crystal Castles whose insanity is comparable to, they are a full band with a lead guitar, a (hot) bassist, vocals, a synth guy and a drummer. It was real nice watching them all on the small stage just rocking out.

If their next show in London falls on my day off, I would most likely watch them again since they are great fun. Plus, their new material sounds promising.

With the bar set, it seems like I am in for another fantastic year of gigs, bands and music.

For February, we have Los Campesinos!, Grouplove, Summer Camp, Esben and the Witch, Sleigh Bells and The Go! Team. Whoa!

Now, if I could only remember the songs bands play during the evening and complete the blog write up a few days after the gig and not a week after.

Do we hear a New Year’s resolution echoing inside the room? I say, Yes!