The Decemberists recently came out with a new album entitled The King Is Dead which is quite brilliant, catchy and very similar to their old material which is very good.
I had the chance of seeing The Decemberists at HMV Forum a few years ago right after the release of The Hazards of Love. This was back in November 18, 2009 which was during the Internet blackout at our new place and gigs piled up one after the other such as Deftones, Mew, Muse, etc.
For that show, they played two sets, the first of which was The Hazards of Love in it’s entirety and this was quite a memorable experience. The second set was composed of a mix from all their other albums at the time but sadly, no The Mariner’s Revenge Song. As mentioned by someone in the crowd while I was leaving, you haven’t really experienced The Decemberists until you’ve seen them perform The Mariner’s Revenge Song.
With this in mind as well as a new album and the fact that the gig was again on my day off, I didn’t think twice about purchasing tickets as soon as the gig was announced.
The venue for this evening is a popular London music venue which surprisingly, I’ve never been too. It’s the Apollo Hammersmith, also known by it’s sponsors name, HMV Apollo.
Size-wise, Apollo Hammersmith is around the same size as of Brixton Academy. One can actually make a direct comparison between the two since they have almost the same layout including a slight gradient on the floor which made viewing the stage so much easier. Compared to Brixton though, it just seemed and felt a little bit dirtier. Weird. When it comes to acoustics though, I have to say it blows Brixton Academy out of the water.
Support for the evening was Blind Pilot who are also an indie folk band from Portland, Oregon similar to The Decemberists. Their sound was quite different though since they used less instruments but they pulled of an imaginative set. They put on a very enjoyable set and were perfect in setting up the atmosphere for the headlining band. If you have to listen to just one song from them, try 3 Rounds And A Sound.
Having a support band this time was a welcome option as there was none at The Forum as The Decemberists played two sets anyway.
Bands with a new record released normally start the show with a a new song from the new record. For The Decemberists first song, they dug real deep and played Shiny which is from the very early 5 Songs EP.
A nice change to hook in longtime fans first as I’ve sometimes found new songs as opening numbers as a bit alienating at times. After the first song, they moved on to a trifecta of The King Is Dead tunes with Down By The Water, Calamity Song and Rise To Me.
Here’s the full setlist from the evening to simplify things. Again, from Setlist.fm.
The band had Sara Watkins on tour with them providing violin and vocals as Becky (Hazards of Love) was no longer around. Her singing voice was first put to the test on Won’t Want For Love and I have to say, she did a pretty good job.
Playing The Crane Wife 1 and 2 followed by The Crane Wife 3 was a simply lovely. As the title suggests, the two songs go hand in hand and deserve to be played in succession.
The energy in the crowd spiked during songs such as We Both Go Down Together, The Rake’s Song, and Rox in the Box.
Prior to starting this evening, I had my mind set that I’d be happy if they played This Is Why We Fight and/or The Mariner’s Revenge Song. This Is Why We Fight is such a lovely song and it easily became my favourite song from The King Is Dead. So when they started playing the song, I almost couldn’t contain my excitement. If I get my act together, this would be one of the first songs I’d learn playing on a guitar.
The last time I saw them, I remember the interactivity between the band (mostly Colin) and the crowd. At The Forum, he asked everyone to go quiet, sit down and slowly stand up at his command. It was a wonderful experience.
It was during the song Sixteen Military Wives and a similar thing happened here at the Apollo. We did the “la-di-dah” part over and over again. Colin had everyone gradually soften the singing close to making it a whisper and then slowly making it louder. Even though the song dragged on for quite sometime, it was ridiculously good fun.
The Decemberists left the stage but of course came back for an encore which started of with The Hazards of Love 4, a nice and slow song. Before proceeding with the next song, further instructions to the crowd where given with the help of Chris Funk as audience participation was needed for the next song. This involved screaming like being eaten by a whale. Of course, everyone knew that the next song would be The Mariner’s Revenge Song much to my delight yet again. I’m plenty sure I wasn’t the only one who felt the excitement and joy at this moment.
When the whale part eventually came, everyone really did scream. It was way fun watching members of the band acting out the song on stage. The Mariner’s Revenge Songs is simply one of those epic songs with a lovely story as well.
At this point, I was more than just satisfied with the incredible set The Decemberists put on but the band came back on stage for another song, June Hymn which is also from The King Is Dead.
This evening, like the other Decemberist show, was another memorable experience. It is truly amazing seeing such a talented band onstage and completely enjoying themselves and drawing the crowd into the performance.
The title of this blog post is a bit misleading as The Hundred In The Hands were not headlining the show at Queen Elizabeth Hall. Unfortunately, they were simply supporting a bunch of DJ acts which was quite a disappointment for me.
Thing is, this was their only London show during their European tour so I simply had to go as I managed to miss them support !!! (chk chk chk) when they played in London last year as I was on holiday in Tenerife.
I’ve been dying to see this duo live and in their natural setup ever since I chanced upon them at a bandstand busk last year. As it was a bandstand busk, it was a completely striped down version but was absolutely beautiful. Fell in love with them (and Eleanore) right then and there.
There was a moment of skepticism about purchasing tickets as they where only support acts for a DJ show which isn’t my thing at all. Considering the day was on my day off, I decided to go for it.
The venue was at the Front Room of the Queen Elizabeth Hall at the Southbank Centre. Nothing so special about the venue but it was fairly adequate as a music venue for urk, club nights. As it was a DJ and club event, it was a very late show.
At close to 9 in the evening, doors were still not open. The front room overlooked the Thames and had a huge window and you could easily see inside. When I arrived in the area, The Hundred In The Hands was still doing their soundchecks.
Doors eventually opened but there was hardly anyone at the venue yet. This was good as I was able to stand and stay right in the front of the stage.
While waiting for The Hundred In The Hands to start, another DJ was playing who I believe goes by the monicker Stopmakingme. In fairness, his mix of tunes was quite enjoyable and so much better than the random bits of music other music venues play whilst in between acts.
At some point, the duo came up on stage but continued to tinker with their instruments. It was not until almost 10 in the evening when they started to play.
And in the blink of an eye, their set was over.
As a support act, they only had 30 minutes on stage and this equated to around 5-6 songs. They didn’t play Last City which is my current favourite from their self-titled debut album. Heck, they didn’t even play Pigeons which was one of their released songs.
Still, the 30 minutes they had on stage was pure joy for me. I really enjoyed watching the band perform songs for their self-titled album and older EPs.
From what I remember, they played Young Aren’t Young, Lovesick (Once Again), Dressed In Dresden, Ghosts, Tom Tom, and Commotion. Not a hundred percent sure, but I’d go with this.
A ridiculously short set, but it was simply brilliant.
Eleanore’s singing is somewhat hypnotic which is mixed in with her lovely dancing while Jason provided some simple yet effective riffs on his guitar and synth samples.
Short but sweet and I would pay to see these guys again. I would be great if they’d headline their own show even at a small London venue but a supporting act would be more than welcome as long as it’s for a band.
Of course, the evening did not end with The Hundred In The Hands.
An act consisting of two DJs followed after. The ticket says they are Matias Aguayo and Daniel Maloso collaborating for an act which they call Cómeme. To be fair, these guys weren’t bad at all and were fairly decent.
I tried to stay close to the stage with a pint of beer whilst dancing a bit but after the pint was finished, I left as dancing alone to a bunch of DJs was a bit off putting.
A third pint of lager would have been nice but I was 10p short of change and didn’t want to break any bills. Took this as a sign to leave. I really couldn’t get into the music at this point, it clearly wasn’t my scene anymore. It was past 11 in the evening and they still weren’t done.
It’s clear that rockers go home earlier than clubbers in London.
The ticket says Juan MacLean was on the bill but obviously, I was no longer around for this. I did enjoy the lovely walk along the Thames from Southbank Centre to Westminster. London sure is pretty at night.
For some, this maybe seen as a waste of money as I really just saw one band perform for more or less 30 minutes. I would say no.
The Hundred In The Hands is a great band whom I enjoy tremendously. The 30 minutes, though certainly lacking, was enough to satiate my appetite for the band.
Funny thing is, when I was in the tube, there was an article on the newspaper about the event like it was such a big deal. I guess I just didn’t know and care about the DJs for the evening and was really interested in the small band from New York who supported them in what was shamefully their only London show.
At the beginning of February, I saw Grouplove support Los Campesinos! at Shepherd’s Bush Empire and was amazed.
As soon as I got home, I tried to book tickets for their show at Hoxton on the 10th but sadly, tickets were already soldout for that show. Fortunately, there was another show listed at Old Queen’s Head, Islington.
Old Queen’s Head is a nice Victorian pub in Islington, quite a healthy walk from Angel station. It had a nice pub at the ground floor and a small music room on the first floor which was real cozy and intimate.
Going alone would mean sticking out like a sore thumb at such a small venue so I took this opportunity to finally show up to the Indie Meetup Group found on Meetup.com. I wonder why I was always scared to show up to previous meetups (two Sleigh Bells gigs in the past and a few others) as they were quite a nice bunch of people. At least, I had some people to talk with while waiting for the bands to perform.
Big Deal was the first support for the evening. Being another male and female guitar-wielding duo, I’d compare them to Slow Club but not as amazing. They weren’t amazing but weren’t bad either, just something in between. Their mix of an electric guitar with an acoustic one was pretty interesting and this fusion may entice me for another listen at some point.
Now that I’m listening to their music on Myspace, I have to say there really is something here, something potentially great. I’ll keep them on my radar then.
The second support for the evening was a guy with a keyboard. After just looking him (Hugo Manuel) up, apparently, his act is called Chad Valley who as far as I remember was on the bill for the Flowerpot NYE at The Forum. Missed him though as I was late for that show.
Keyboard equals electronic music yet again, but luckily enough, this is one of those acts which falls in the ‘decent’ category, a softer and more chill sound which someone could relax to and slowly dance with. With Trophy Wife and Chad Valley, I now sincerely regret not arriving early for the Flowerpot NYE show. Stupid work. Tsk.
It was a little odd though to have an electro act this evening.
Grouplove started at close to 10 in the evening and it was nice to see them again after just a few weeks, and this time much closer than I did at Shepherd’s Bush.
No setlist to speak off from their gig but it was an incredible night. With only one EP out so far, it’s safe to say they played all those songs plus a few more.
Notable numbers for the evening were Don’t Say Oh Well, Naked Kids and of course, Colours which they closed the evening with.
Naked Kids is the kind of song you’d be listening to whilst driving down to the beach.
This gig also soldout and the place was quite full. The band played with such energy despite being in such a small venue.
It was clear they were having fun on stage and really enjoying every minute of it. This energy translated to the crowd loving the performance as well.
Their self-titled EP which has 6 songs just recently came out and is every bit amazing.
I cannot wait for a full LP from these guys which should be out sometime this year. Should be full of more great stuff from this new band from Los Angeles. They sure as hell live up to all the hype surrounding them these days.
For the longest time, Gareth Campesinos! has been raving about Slow Club on his twitter account. This was way back in June for their show at Koko, Camden.
I finally caved in when I saw tickets for a show at Union Chapel. Purchased a ticket and finally listened to them.
And what I heard was just plain beautiful. If you’ve never heard of them, you should give them a listen. If you watch Chuck, you would have heard their song Christmas TV as it was used for the Season 2 finale.
The venue was Union Chapel, a congregation church in Highbury. It’s a grade II listed building and is a beautiful Victorian gothic building. It was a shame that the outside was being restored and was full of scaffolding. The inside was majestic. You have to check out the panoramic shots on their website. You will be amazed. I spent most of the evening just admiring the beauty of the venue.
As it’s a church, there were seats and by the time I got there, the place was quite full already. I had to sit quite a ways towards the back but since it was a small venue, the view was pretty good.
The acoustics in the place were astounding. I am in no way an audiophile but I felt the sound waves traveled and bounce around the venue perfectly. One could shout without being on the microphone and be heard crystal clear.
The first support for the evening was Sweet Baboo who were already playing when I arrived. They are a nice folk band and as per their Myspace page are listed as gospel as well. The vocalist was quite a sweet chap and talked quite a bit on stage. He did turn to be quite funny which is all good.
Next up was The Wave Pictures which were another fun guitar band to watch, just good, simple and upbeat music.
Both support bands suited the venue and the evening perfectly.
The evening was for Slow Club and Charles and Rebecca eventually took stage. This is their 3rd straight year playing at Union Chapel a few days before Christmas. I must say that Rebecca looked quite glamorous more so than I really expected.
They played a number of new songs from their forthcoming album but of course, belted out a number of old ones which actually sounded much better live than on record.
Notables would be the most upbeat and happy song for one with a title called Giving Up On Love, then a personal favourite, Our Most Brilliant Friends.
Because We’re Dead was quite brilliant as well even though Rebecca said she’s tired of the song and will be retiring it soon. In that case, I’m glad to have heard it once. Then there’s It Doesn’t Have To Beautiful.
For the most part, it was just Charles and Rebecca on stage but for a few songs, they were joined by a full band.
During their encore, they played Christmas TV (such a fantastic song) and a cover of Christmas (Baby Please Come Home). At this point, everyone was asked to stand up and sing along. It was a very fun yet unusual experience.
It’s been awhile since I enjoyed a gig while sitting down and this was a perfect band, venue and gig to do so. While sitting down, you had the chance to concentrate on watching the band play and of course, the glorious music.
Rebecca’s voice just filled up the venue quite adequately. The simplicity of using just a few instruments was a great change from what I normally listen too.
I know it came way too late, but I finally got into Slow Club and I really enjoy their music. Seeing them live was absolutely fantastic so much so that as soon as I got home, I booked tickets to see them next year at Shepherd’s Bush. This time, I’ll be dancing and hopefully, square dancing.
I was immediately blown away and completely amazed from the moment I first heard Sleigh Bells after someone recommended it on the Indie Meetup site. This was a few days before they were set to play at The Lexington in Islington.
For some reason, I found such beauty and order in the chaos of their music which is described as Noise Pop.
The insanely profound guitar riffs, mad drum machine beats and Alexis’ singing just mixed together perfectly to create something which sounded absolutely beautiful but completely different from anything I’ve heard before.
This plus the notion of their insane live shows made me itch to see them as soon as I could. Unfortunately, tickets for The Lexington show had already sold out as this venue was tiny.
This being London, they were bound to come back again at some point. Thankfully, I didn’t have to wait too long.
The venue was XOYO, a venue I’ve never been to before but knew would be a lovely place as it’s another venue in Shoreditch, a favourite part of town for me when it comes to music venues. Unlike Hoxton Square Bar, Cargo and Village Underground, this venue was right outside Old Street Station which is mighty convenient.
First venue in London I’ve been to which serves the ridiculously delicious Kopparberg cider which is something everyone of drinking age should try. I went through quite an ordeal getting a bottle as I didn’t have enough cash for a bottle and the cash machine inside was not working. Thankfully, I was able to go outside, get money from a proper cash machine and come back in. Most venues in London do not re-admit people. Then again, this is Shoreditch.
First support for the evening was Teeth which just about started the moment I came back from hunting down a pound outside. Another synth band (surprise!) but they were actually quite good and interesting. A decent support band for an insanely crazy band. They did have some issues though finding their pre-mixed beats on their Macbook Pros. Sometimes, the technology which goes into music these days somewhat waters down the experience.
The second support band were called The Knocks. They were fun, energetic and got the crowd going but they weren’t much than glorified DJs mixing other artists songs and throwing in some vocals and instruments in the mix. Like I said, they were still fun to watch and at least didn’t bore me too much.
Now, Sleigh Bells. It was a mind-blowing experience. The moment the duo came up on stage, the energy levels shot up the roof and it never went down.
Not much in the way of set lists as I can’t remember and can’t find any resources online. Regardless, since they only have one album, I’d say they played pretty much each song. There weren’t any surprises just one insane song after the other. The energy Alexis had on stage was just incredible.
Infinity Guitars, Crown On The Ground, A/B Machines were highlights of the evening but just barely since the whole evening was pretty much crazy.
When someone said Sleigh Bells live shows were amazingly good and crazy, they weren’t kidding. This is one for the books. When it comes to energy levels for their shows, Sleigh Bells is comparable to Crystal Castles even though they’ve only been around for a year.
Sleigh Bells is probably my best musical discovery for the year 2010 for a new band. Biffy Clyro would be another, but they’ve been around for almost a decade.
I think I’ve just convinced myself to secure tickets for their NME Awards show in February of next year.
