Metamatic Forums Socialising The Green Room Gigs - News and reviews

This gives you a better idea of our building.
Blues Etc in action


©annmcgillivray/davidstjohn

That picture makes it look lovely & intimate, Martin. Intelligent use of lighting, also. And what a backdrop!

Come on John. You know you want to perform there.

Pics & short review of OMD & the Liverpool Philharmonic here: http://markmcnulty.typepad.com/

..and more OMD / Liverpool Philaharmonic pics by Innes Marlow here .

I see she did some Gary Numan too, Mirrorman

Magazine: The Soap Tour Edinburgh, 30 August 2009


At the HMV Picture House, as part of the Edge Festival, Magazine played to a large and very enthusiastic crowd, a mostly mature audience of fans highly appreciative in their respect and admiration of the band. It’s a long time since I would have properly called myself a fan, from back in my teens and buying their debut LP in ’78, and then fast forward to so many years later and buying the 2007 CD remasters when they were released. I had come by my ticket for this show rather unexpectedly, and a bit of a cheat really, getting it cheaply from the acquaintance of a friend of mine, who having bought it was subsequently unable to go themselves, but for that circumstance I otherwise would have missed what turned out to be a really hugely enjoyable gig.

After an atmospheric instrumental from a John Barry James Bond film score had played out, acting as an entrance theme, the band members came onstage, with Howard Devoto appearing last, dressed in a suit and a red shirt, holding aloft a vinyl copy of The Correct Use Of Soap, taking the record from out of the sleeve he said in a warm and smiling voice, “Twenty Years Ago…”
The gig started, and each song that was played was introduced by Howard with LP in hand, and speaking a few lines, which at first I took to be his own poetic words, there was I looking for a deeper meaning in that way so cleverly of the Devoto lyric, but amusingly he later intimated that he was quoting (or perhaps ad-libbing) from the pages of an old ‘guide book to taking care of your vinyl record collection’.

I’m not great at remembering playlists, so I wouldn’t attempt to recount any here, the gig was presented in two sections, and after the first part there was a brief ‘interval’. Early musical highlights for me were: 'Sweetheart Contract' and 'Thank You Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin' (perhaps all funk should be played this way, or more accurately, perhaps Magazine should have played more funk like this).

”but the brightest jewel inside of me glows with pleasure at my own stupidity”

I wasn’t able to go see Magazine on their ‘reform tour’ last year, but here they were now in my town, on one of the few gigs scheduled this year, and I have to confess to my embarrassment that I didn’t even know that this was actually ‘The Soap Tour’ that I was watching. This was later confirmed for me when Howard commented on his own reaction to performing a 'Soap Tour’, but by then I had already realised that I wasn’t hearing any of the songs that I’d particularly loved and played so much on vinyl, those sounds particular to the first two Magazine albums. In any kind of running order in my mind I would always have put ‘Soap’ at number three in my list of favourite’s, (don’t mention album number four), Secondhand Daylight with its gothic keyboard landscape and haunting sax, and Real Life with its sharp and bristly guitars, both still have the power to raise a hair or two dozen down my spine.

"I may love you out of weakness, is that what I was afraid of!"

The Correct Use Of Soap album, fully out on parade in all its finery, with Howard and the remaining original members of the band, Dave Formula, Barry Adamson, and John Doyle, (Noko replacing John McGeoch), taking me back again through its collection of songs. As an album It’s undoubtedly more pop than rock, and for me some of the edges are slightly less bristly, but if the reviews of history are correct, it was Magazines most popularly accessible album. But I have to confess again, it was the first time that their work didn’t quite completely strike as huge a chord for me as the first two albums had, and perhaps that puts me amongst the few rather than the many on that point. 'A Song From Under The Floorboards' was never my first choice of anthem to get behind in any rally call or show of my allegiance to Magazine, but happily I can now say that hearing, or more accurately seeing ‘Soap’ played live in the HMV Picture House, was simply thus for me in the words of Devoto: “I know beauty and I know a good thing when I see it….

After the interval Howard and the band reappeared once again, and this time Mr Devoto had changed his shirt, gone was the red, replaced by a yellow/mustard, some deeper meaning here? or perhaps he just needed a change of clothing "…It's so hot in here, what are they trying to hatch? we must not be frail, we must watch...".

A church lectern had been set up onstage by the crew, and Howard pretended to flick through the pages of a large old book that had been set out, appropriately speaking out the words from 'The Book'.

"Hold my book for a minute, would you, while I get the door open!".

Scripture and lesson over, we continued on with the last section of the gig, during which we took a short diversion from the Soap Tour, and into Real Life and Secondhand Daylight territory with: 'Parade', and 'Permafrost', which Howard cheekily described as now being a song about ‘saving the environment’, well f**k me, the Green party need to use that one on their next party political broadcast.

'The Light pours Out Of Me' brought about a wave of pogo-ing from a dozen or so people grouped at centre front, I was also at the front, but at a reasonable distance from those outrageous jostling youngsters!, I chose instead to just let a rush of euphoria pour over me as I basked in the bursts of bright light that showered the stage while Howard sung out those indelible words, ”The cold light of day pours out of me, leaving me black, and so healthy…”

Throughout the gig Magazine as a band were just skillfully fantastic and everything flowed so perfectly, Noko on guitar really stood out for me, he is just great to watch playing away onstage. Howard’s timing and delivery left me with the impression that perhaps in another life he could have been a Stand-up comedian, he will always rank high as a master lyricist, speaking from someplace between the inspired spontaneity of a Beat poet, and the similes and metaphors of an Alien Emcee.

Now that's what I call a review & that's why I don't write them myself, they would never be as thorough & as insightful as Core's

Core, it really is a stunning review. You projected me there through your words. Wish I had been there.

Won't mention 'Magi.. oops, nearly did.

Any Peter Murphy or Bauhaus fans here..? I bought two tickets for Peter Murphy's Secret Cover tour in London right after they came available. I got good seats (I believe) but won't use the tickets after all. These two tickets are now for sale:

Venue: Indigo, The O2 arena, London
Time: Sunday 11.10.2009, doors open 19:00
Seats: Kings Row VIP , row E, seats 17-18
Price: 15 pounds or 20 euros / ticket

(Face value is £25 + £2,50 service charge)

If interested, e-mail me to jamta@hotmail.com

~ Tapio J aka Mr Normall

edit 23.9.2009: price reduced

More stuff from the Church project

Warming up for Laura Marling in early November (talented AND seriously cute!)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/shirlaine/2567581013/in/photostream/



following an evening with Paul Jones (yes, him off Radio 2) on October 24th.

Seems things is moving on...

Morrissey - Salisbury City Hall 2nd November

The best gig I've been to in a long time.

Long have I waited to catch Morrissey live, and it was worth it. Power, energy, passion, euphoria, admiration, respect, lighting, sound, provocation, humour, cynicism, arrogance, tenderness, fragility, brutality, intelligence, aggression...

The 'new' version of How Soon Is Now might easily feature among the top live tracks I've seen performed.

He's an enigma alright tho - very hard to know whether he is serious or cynical, condemning or approving. There are few showmen like him left on stage - he was utterly engaging, every subtle mannerism adding to his presentation of the songs.

If I had to criticise (for the sake of balance) I would suggest that 'Cemetery Gates' seemed comparatively weak and out of context, and 'First of the Gang To Die' was an odd choice for the only track of the encore.

But otherwise brilliant. For someone whose album's always attract, fascinate and then unceasingly disappoint me, I have to say that live, Morrissey is as Morrissey does and there are few to match him.

Fleetwood Mac, Sheffield Arena, 2nd November

This was the concert my wife had been waiting over 20 years to see. Ticket prices were through the roof, and I'm no fan of large arena gigs at at all. But what ever it took, we had to be at this gig.

And I can honestly say it was worth the money and the wait. Without a doubt the best live band I've ever seen.

Having seen the DVD of their 2003 tour, I was a little concerned that Lindsey Buckingham's vocals were past their best, but I was glad to be proven wrong. He gives those vocals some serious hammer, and though his upper range isn't quite what it was a decade ago, he is an incredible vocalist and an even better guitarist.

Sunday's well timed BBC One "Don't Stop" documentary, gave me a good insight into this band and seeing them for real the very next day, I had a greater appreciation of the individual band members and their often turbulent history. But with Buckingham and Nicks embracing and even holding hands, you might think that most of those personal complications are behind them.

The unspeakably tall Mick Fleetwood is the powerhouse of the band, thundering on his drums away like a towering madman.

This was a greatest hits tour - so we had the likes of "The Chain", "Dreams", "Rhiannon", "Second Hand News", "Monday Morning", "Big Love", "So Afraid" and plenty of other tracks from their most famous albums; their eponymous 1975 album and 1977's Rumours, as well as a smattering of other lesser played album tracks and even some early Peter Green material and a fantastic and rare airing of Buckingham's 1985 solo single "Go Insane".

I'm still on a buzz from it. And totally blown away. Too many thoughts going round my head to write a detailed review at the moment.