Give It A Name Festival
Sheffield Hallam Arena
10-11 May 2008

Give It A Name weekend is done and dusted and after a nap this afternoon I think I’m all caught up on sleep.  Well at least attempting to sleep and eating lots of veggies so I’m set for All Tomorrow’s Parties this weekend with Beccy.

GIAN this year was interesting.  I’d originally agreed to ( Read more... )

Gig Tally

January
Plain White T's
Dashboard Confessional
Stars
Johnny Flynn and the Sussex Wit
A Wilhelm Scream

February
Paramore / New Found Glory
New Found Glory
MxPx
Manchester Orchestra / Anathallo
Manchester Orchestra / Anathallo
Gallows
Jimmy Eat World
Jimmy Eat World
The Audtion / youmeatsix / Just Surrender
Editors / Sons and Daughters

March
Anit-Flag
The ( Read more... )

Panic At The Disco
Birmingham Carling Academy
Sunday 9th March 2008

I have no idea what the support bands, Black Gold and Metro Station, sound like as I bumped into an old school friend at the gig and subsequently chatted to him rather than listen to the bands.  However I do remember walking in and thinking the band on stage weren’t bad, bit too nu- ( Read more... )

Jimmy Eat World
Birmingham Academy - 19th February
Manchester Academy - 20th Febraury

If you ever needed an excuse to see the same band more than once on the same tour then Jimmy Eat World’s Birmingham and Manchester gigs would be perfect examples. Both nights highlighted perfectly the layered and complex nature of JEW songs, perfectly illustrating ( Read more... )

New Found Glory
Leeds Cockpit
7th February 2008

There’s something almost religious about seeing New Found Glory in such a small venue.  The intimate settings of the cockpit contrast heavily with the huge venues NFG are playing as support to Paramore, and the hardcore fan base at the cockpit allows for a near perfect show.  The fantastic mix of ( Read more... )

Paramore and New Found Glory
Birmingham Carling Academy
4th February 2008

If ever there was an example of a band gaining mainstream recognition without the time to build a loyal fan base, then this show was it.  Pop-punk veterans New Found Glory grossly overshadowed headliners Paramore, and the crowd knew it.

Another problem was the amount of bands ( Read more... )

Johnny Flynn and the Sussex Wit
Birmingham Glee Club
30th January 2008

Fresh from supporting Iron & Wine, Johnny Flynn and the Sussex Wit are back on a small headlining tour.  Their rich, old-style folk sounds couple well with the well-heeled storytelling and imagery in Flynn’s musical tales and are finely supported by the backing.

A mere four songs, ( Read more... )

Stars
Birmingham Barfly
28th January 2008

I’ll admit to going to this gig because I vaguely listen to the band more than being a fan, yet Stars are a band worth seeing live.  They seem to play a wistful brand of American indie-pop music that is totally at odds with the self-admitting depressing lyrical content.

It may be the acoustics of the barfly, ( Read more... )

Dashboard Confessional
Birmingham Carling Academy 2
21st January 2008

Having the chance to see an acoustic performance of Chris Carrabba’s alias of Dashboard Confessional is a real treat, especially as in recent times Dashboard’s offering have been more electric.  Luckily with the turn back to the more stripped down sound on latest album The Shade of ( Read more... )

Plain White T’s (with support from Cartel and Boys Like Girls)
18th January 2008
Birmingham Carling Academy

It would be a mistake to view this tour as anything other than a triple headline tour.  Plain White T‘s vocalist Tom Higginson admits this was the best line-up of a tour that they’ve ever had, and he wasn’t wrong.  Both Cartel and Boys Like ( Read more... )