With Just A Hint Of Mayhem

Music reviews, gig reviews, fun trivia and extra added random stuff!

Everything After Midnight – The Crescent, York – Friday 19th April 2024 April 25, 2024

Filed under: Review — justwilliam1959 @ 3:12 pm
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It is always an exciting night when a great York band plays at a fabulous local venue in their home city. This time it was Everything After Midnight at the wonderful Crescent in York. But before I tell you about Everything After Midnight I will tell you about the two support acts. First up it was Marnie Glum, known as Charlotte to her folks, she is most certainly not glum. She has a voice stolen from one of the Greek goddesses that entertained the deities of Olympus. Her voice is heavenly and has the pureness and clarity that few singers possess. She could harmonise perfectly with Karen Carpenter and Rumer. Marnie Glum is not just that gorgeous voice though, she is also an incredibly talented songwriter.

Rushbonds from Leeds were next to take the stage. They played some delightful soulful prog-jazz. Vocalist Robyn McLeod could make a living singing pop-styled blue-eyed soul songs but has chosen something far more challenging and so much more beautiful. They have an incredibly sparse drum set up and yet drummer Teruki Chan draws sounds and volume that would have impressed John Bonham. Nika Ticciati on keyboards and synth performed like a young Rick Wakeman or Keith Emerson. “Close But No Cigar” was my highlight of a set full of them. I love a band that defies being easily packaged into a genre box and Rushbonds cannot be pinned down to any one genre!

Finally, it was time to witness the obscenely talented Everything After Midnight. This band is always on fire but tonight it was on a super nova level. Steph gets better as a singer and frontwoman with every show and this gig showcased her at her most captivating and powerful best. I have watched this band grow into something special musically since I first saw them back in February 2022 when they supported Where’s Slater at the Victoria Vaults in York. They are still moving forward and despite how incredible they are I don’t think they have hit their peak. What do they sound like? Think Tori Amos and Wolf Alice backed at times by some really decent prog rock, but a band also well aware of what makes a great pop song. As far as lyrics go then Steph is the Priestess of poetry, her lyrics are not just clever, they are meaningful and add so much to the songs. The highlight for me was probably their new single “Little Hints”. This was a brilliant set which also featured a classy guest appearance from Louise of Pennine Suite. I love this band, and to cap it all they are all wonderful human beings!

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Goldie Lookin Chain – The Crescent, York – Saturday 16th March, 2024 March 20, 2024

Filed under: Review — justwilliam1959 @ 11:01 pm
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The first time I saw Goldie Lookin Chain was at the Reading Festival, I think in 2004, or thereabouts. They were full-on comedy rap and as entertaining as fuck. I have seen them a few times since at festivals. Some of the stuff they released in the first flush of their success was absolute genius that finely blended great rap with sharp, sublime comedy. So I was never going to pass up the opportunity to witness GLC in full flight once again, twenty years later. This time it was at the magnificent Crescent in York and the gig was a sell-out! Were GLC any good? I will tell you later, but first I must tell you about the wonderful support act, Marx. I am not talking about Karl Marx, just Marx. He is a passionate and talented rapper from Hull spitting tales of real life in his biting, cutting, perfectly formed ciphers. He dishes it out to landlords, Rishi Sunak, and a whole host of other bad guys in equal measure. If Eminem had been born twenty-five or thirty or so years later than he actually was and in Hull rather than Missouri USA he probably would have sounded like Marx. He delivers his lines perfectly and struts across the stage like he owns it, and tonight he did! The beats supplied by his DJ were stunning and fitted the tracks like a Saville Row suit. I particularly loved the Roy Ayers sample. “Rent Money” and “Student Loan” (at least I think they were the titles) were my highlights in a set full of them. I am definitely a fan of this bloke Marx now.

It is probably fair to say that in the current more politically correct climate, much of what GLC has done in the past might not be acceptable to some. While this is likely to be true I still find them fucking hilarious. It’s comedy and bloody good comedy at that! It was just 5/7 of the whole GLC crew, but that did not spoil the night one bit! The crowd was up for a fun night and that is what the GLC Crew gave us in abundance. A large contingent of the crowd came dressed for the occasion in garish tracksuits, including a delightful Greggs trackie number and plenty of heavy gold chains. Despite the invitation to get shitfaced later in the set some of the crowd were shitfaced on arrival, probably as it was Saint Paddy’s day. All the classic GLC tunes were on show; “Newport State of Mind (You’re Not From Newport)”, “Soap Bar”, “21 Ounces”, “Baneswell Express” and “You Knows I Loves You”. Talking of the latter is there a love song with a finer lyric than “To prove my love, I gotta tattoo, on my bollocks. I was gonna have your name but I only got initials ’cause I couldn’t stand the pain”? Smokey Robinson never managed to describe the pain of love so well in any of his songs, did he? But the biggest reaction and party vibes came with “Guns Don’t Kill People, Rappers Do” and “Your Missus Is a Nutter”. But frankly, nothing could compare with a wonderfully extended singalong of “Your Mother’s Got a Penis”. Is there a better way to end a getting shitfaced kind of night? probably not! I can confirm that Goldie Lookin Chain retains their hilariously filthy, Welsh comedy charm, you knows it!

I was actually there that day!

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The WJAHOM Interview Podcast – Harkirit and Joe (The Crescent, York) February 20, 2024

Filed under: Interview,Podcast — justwilliam1959 @ 8:57 pm
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It was an absolute pleasure and so much fun interviewing Harkirit and Joe who, if the Crescent in York was sentient would be its heart and lungs. Both are incredibly passionate about music and the venue. The interview is just under 30 minutes, but I believe that we could have spoken for hours and hours! Click here to listen to the interview.

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The Howl And The Hum – The Crescent, York – Tuesday 19th December 2023 January 15, 2024

Filed under: Review — justwilliam1959 @ 5:49 pm
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This was to be the final Howl And The Hum Show. Frontman Sam Griffiths, Bradley Blackwell (Bass), Conor Hirons (Guitar), and Jack Williams (Drums) have decided to call it a day on one of the best bands to emerge from York. Will they ever come back together? Who knows, but whatever happens I am sure that each of them will continue to make music in one form or another and the canon of songs they leave behind will remain truly wonderful. But before I get to that final performance I must tell you about the fabulous support act, Bar Pandora. What a performance! A truly gorgeous synth-pop sound, a bit like Kate Bush and Siouxse Sioux arriving on the electronic pop scene in the UK in 1981/ 82. While there were influences this is very much a talented and original artist. I loved the glitter apparel, although the synth/ bass player didn’t get the memo on the glitter look. But to be fair he made up for it by looking like a cooler version of Graham Coxon. I bloody love Bar Pandora!

Finally, it was time to say a final goodbye to the magnificent Howl And The Hum. This was the final of a few farewell shows at the Crescent and it was an emotionally charged night for everyone in the room, myself included. Alongside the palpable emotion inside the Crescent, the songs, as expected, oozed emotion. “Hostages” always brings a tear to my eye and tonight was no exception, I witnessed many others leaking salty liquid from their eyes too. While “Hostages” was probably the peak moment for me both, “Godmanchester Chinese Bridge” and “The Only Boy Racer On The Island” were awe-inspiring. “Sweet Fading Silver” deserves a special mention too. The band even took us back to their days as a covers band with a rousing and rollicking rendition of AC/ DC’s “Highway To Hell”. I have been lucky enough to see the Howl And The Hum play live a few times and until tonight I had never really noticed the Talking Heads influence, but it is deep in their sound. So farewell you wonderful band and I am looking forward to whatever comes next from all of you!

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Absolute Bowie – The Crescent, York – Friday 22nd September 2023 September 27, 2023

Filed under: Review — justwilliam1959 @ 9:10 pm
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I have never been a huge fan of tribute acts and I have only seen a handful over the years. Some that were very good and many that, let’s say politely, weren’t. As far as David Bowie tribute acts went I really wasn’t interested, but then I went to Fibbers in York in January 2017, a year after David Robert Jones’ death to see Absolute Bowie. Let me be completely honest, I really didn’t want to enjoy it, but I did. In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I have now seen Absolute Bowie four times including this 2023 show at the wonderful Crescent in York. To paraphrase the words of the Dame himself I had drunk a lot (well a couple of glasses) of wine and I was feeling fine and ready for a night of Bowie nostalgia. I was lucky enough to see the real David Bowie 13 times. That is never going to happen again, so I am happy to accept a classy show from Absolute Bowie, fronted by one of the best Bowie tributes in the world, John O’Neill.

This tour consisted of two sets. The first was a celebration of fifty years of Ziggy Stardust, a character that Bowie famously, or perhaps infamously, killed off back in 1973 and the second was a a great selection of mostly 80s hits. The costume changes in the first set were truly spectacular and included facsimiles of many of Ziggy’s weirdest and most extravagant costumes. All the classic Ziggy period tunes were there. Highlights for me were “Moonage Daydream”, “Time” and “Life On Mars”. The Spiders costumes were spot on too, especially Mick Ronson a.k.a Andy Marr. But it wasn’t just Marr’s costume that was perfect, so was his emulation of Ronson’s greatest riffs. I have never been the biggest fan of Bowie’s 80s output, although I do own everything he ever released, so I wasn’t expecting to be wowed as much as I was by the second set. Kicking off with “Look Back In Anger” was a master stroke. Even “Blue Jean” sounded very special. But my favourite part of the whole night was “Young Americans”. The singalong opportunities with that classic from 1975 almost brought a tear to my eye! I would urge any Bowie fans who feel negative towards tribute acts to get yourselves along to an Absolute Bowie night. We know it’s not the real thing, but it is certainly the closest you are ever likely to come. A truly maximum rock ‘n’ roll night and immense fun remembering the Dame in all his glory!

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Millie Manders And The Shut Up – The Crescent, York – Friday 7th July 2023 July 12, 2023

Filed under: Review — justwilliam1959 @ 5:44 am
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This gig was originally scheduled for earlier this year and sadly had to be postponed due to illness. But the new date was perhaps better placed, falling on a Friday rather than a weekday. Millie and her gang are always up for a great show and invariably are accompanied by some great support acts. I love that Millie can usually be found among the crowd near the front of the stage for those supports too. So who were those support acts at the fabulous Crescent in York?

First up was Kiss Kiss Kill, another fine York band. They rock like a pop-punk/ metal hybrid fronted by Gwen Stefani. Singer and ace frontwoman Gemma was having some severe throat and voice issues but she soldiered on and worked through them and she was still damned good and on most songs, you would not have known that she was having issues. Given that fact, then how good must she be when her voice is fully fighting fit? The band, but Gemma in particular showed an incredibly warm and fun interaction with the audience. Kiss Kiss Kill is a band that is hard not to like. “Happy Never After” and “Bad Bitch” blew the house down. Kiss and kiss whoever you need to to get this band into your life, but please don’t kill anyone!

Following that rather splendiferous band was the tumultuously talented Sally Pepper. Sally is from the Northwest of England and is a purveyor of fine, mostly acoustic angry, and passionate punk tunes. Her songs, in which she proudly wears her heart and her opinions on her sleeve, prove that she is most definitely a wonderful human being. I heard elements of early Frank Turner and an even angrier Grace Petrie. The latter of which Sally has played support slots with. Her songs are powerful, meaningful message carriers that issue a clarion call to the masses. “Click Bait” is a fabulous song and the way that Sally added a “Fuck The Tories” refrain to it on the night resonated perfectly with the crowd. I will certainly be seeing Sally live again.

Finally, it was time for the mighty, magnificent, marvellous, magical malcontents Millie Manders and the Shut Up to take the stage. I first saw them back in November 2019 and this would be the fourth show of theirs that I have been to. This band has power, passion, and politics and is simply an obscenely talented band that gets better every time I see them. “Shut Your Mouth”, “Your Story” and “Not OK”” were three of the many turbo-charged highlights of a set that was full of them. Ever since the first time I heard it, I have always loved the incendiary passion of “Poor Man’s Show” which shows the frustration and general pissed-offness with politicians and the state of the world which we inhabit. Millie aired a new song called “Me Too” about the awful way that rape victims are treated in the UK and across the globe. It is likely to be released next year and will prove a perfect companion song to Delilah Bon’s “Dead Men Don’t Rape”. For me, one indicator of a truly great band is one that seems to have fun on stage and this lot does, perhaps no more so than perma-smiling bass player George, she has more energy than a small sun. At one point Millie was so overcome with emotion that she had to start the song again, but everyone in the crowd was there for her, which shows the kind of human she is! Is there a better set closer than “Rebound”? Maybe, but not tonight, that song closed a flawless and gorgeous set from a band that deserves greatness. Millie cares immensely about the things that really matter in life and she is one of the most ‘4 real’ people on our troubled planet!

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DMA’S – Acoustic Album Launch Show – The Crescent, York – Sunday 4th June 2023 June 7, 2023

Filed under: Review — justwilliam1959 @ 3:33 pm
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This was not a standard DMA’S show, the boys are used to playing much bigger venues these days. Their biggest headline show to date was the Alexandra Palace in London for 10,000 fans back in October 2021. This was essentially a fans-only special acoustic show supported by Crash Records as part of the band’s ‘How Many Dreams? UK Record Store Tour’. If you bought the new DMA’S album, you could purchase up to four tickets. It was, as expected. a sell-out and the Crescent is a perfect intimate setting for a gig like this. The crowd was full of DMA’S acolytes and disciples who worshipped the band and hang onto their every word. The DMA’S are very much a lad band in the bastard sons of Oasis lineage. That said they do have some great songs with epic choruses though, most of which knock the spots of anything Oasis recorded after “(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?” They have had some pretty high-level support slots with Liam Gallagher, the Kooks, and Richard Ashcroft to name just a few. On record, particularly with the new album, their fourth, the DMA’S have begun to develop and move a little further away from the core sound of their earlier songs. But at the Crescent they were playing to the gallery and pulled out all the stops to make this a truly special treat for their fans. The crowd voiced their “lad band chant” of “D, D, DMA” at every opportunity and every one of the audience seemed right up for a great night, and that is exactly what DMA’S delivered.

Tommy O’Dell’s voice was in great shape and Johnny Took was the band’s key communicator with their fervent fans. Looking at how the band reacts with their punters it is clear that they really “get” who put them where they are, truly humble and in many respects not just a lad band, but a people’s band. I can’t see DMA’S ever doing a Royal Blood. The set had many highs, for me “Silver” from 2020’s ‘The Glow’ album and “Fading Like A Picture” from the new album were stunning. Of course, they performed their now obligatory cover of Cher’s “Believe” which is always good. For their next cover, I would love to see them tackle a rock cover of a Kylie classic in homage to a fellow Aussie success story. Set closer “Everybody’s Saying Thursday’s The Weekend” ended the short set on a high of mountainous proportions. For a short time you never would have believed it was a Sunday night, the crowd went mental and were properly “mad for it”.

There are three dates left on this tour, but I reckon they might all be sold out, but give it a try just in case!

Sun 11 June Edinburgh Assai Records @ The Caves
Tue 13 June Middlesbrough Reflex Records @ The Empire
Wed 14 June Manchester Crash Records @ GorillaJune

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Bodega – The Crescent, York – Tuesday 25th October 2022 December 29, 2022

Filed under: Review — justwilliam1959 @ 5:59 pm
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Well, this road to catching up on posts continues! Here is something that I reviewed on behalf of Soundsphere Magazine back in October. It was a rather fabulous evening in one of York’s finest venues, the Crescent for Bodega. Click here to check it out. The frankly excellent photos are by Mr. Snapagig himself, John Hayhurst!

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Coach Party – The Crescent, York – Wednesday, September 7th, 2022 September 12, 2022

Filed under: Review — justwilliam1959 @ 2:37 pm
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This was my first visit to one of York’s finest venues, the Crescent, for some time. This was also the second gig in a row for me where I had never seen any of the bands before, and that really doesn’t happen too often. Headliners were Coach Party from way down south, the Isle Of Wight to be precise. But more of them later, there were two rather spiffing bands on before them. First up were Yorkshire-based White Roses. They are purveyors of fine classic rock sounds, but we are not talking covers, this is their own original material. Vocally is like a cross between Joan Jett and Stevie Nicks at times. The lead guitarist is a complete master of his art and plays his axe like a young Bill Nelson. This is definitely a band for the future.

White Roses

Next up was Priestgate from Driffield, which is where Spiders From Mars drummer Woody Woodmansey hails from. As soon as they hit the stage and started making their huge noise I was blown away, a real what the fuck moment. Think Bauhaus, the Damned, the Skids, and even Big Country, particularly Stuart Adamson’s great guitar work with the latter two bands mentioned. Goth, punk, glam, this band has it all and then some. Lead singer and frontman Rob Schofield has that 1,000-yard evil rock god stare down perfectly, just like Jordan from Avalanche Party. The energy that Priestgate have is the equivalent of a billion Duracell bunnies and frontman Rob is one of the best I have seen in a long while.

Priestgate

I certainly wouldn’t want to be the band that followed Priestgate, but Coach Party did and they played an absolute blinder. They entered the stage with a weird and wonky cut-up/ remix of the Human League’s “Don’t You Want Me” and their set was weird, wonky, and wonderful throughout. The Isle of Wight has not been a hotbed of great rock music over the years, but I think Coach Party have the talent, skill, songs, and performances to change that. Up to now, we have seen Mark King (Level 42), Jet Harris (The Shadows), Snowy White (Thin Lizzy), David Steele (Fine Young Cannibals), Dick Taylor (Pretty Things), and more recently Wet Leg. Well, frankly they can all move over and make way for Coach Party. They are a band that uses wit and humour really well in their lyrics, but not without being able to get serious in some songs. Jess’s voice is spot on and enhances the tunes perfectly in the live environment, although to be fair the recorded versions are damned good too. There is a feel of 90s grunge in some of their tunes and maybe Dinosaur Jr. and Sonic Youth. They worked the crowd really well too and we all clapped and sang along. This was a great set from a band that has an air of greatness and coolness about them. Highlights for me were “Everybody Hates Me”, “Bleach” and the staggeringly good “Shit TV” with its lyrics of pathos and comedy! I love this band!

All pictures, except the gig poster, were taken by me using my very cheap Chinese Android phone. The videos were found on YouTube. If the video is yours and you would like a credit or for it to be removed please let me know. If you have enjoyed this article feel free to follow the blog, or follow us on;

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Avalanche Party vs. Leeds Festival August 19, 2022

Filed under: News,Observation — justwilliam1959 @ 3:18 pm
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I am sure you know that Rage Against The Machine have cancelled all their current European dates, including the Reading and Leeds Festivals. The bad press that their replacement as headliners, the 1975, are getting is a little OTT and unfair in my opinion. However, this change does present me with a dilemma. If Rage Against The Machine were still on the bill it would be no contest. But one of my most favourite bands, a band that I have seen more times than any other act, Avalanche Party will be playing a headline set at the Crescent in York on Friday 26th August, which is the night the 1975 will be headlining the Leeds Festival. I am not camping at the Festival site, so I will be driving home to York each night. Also, I don’t have a press pass, I am a paying punter, so therefore beholden to no one. My problem is do I drive back to York for the Avalanche Party experience? I have already bought my ticket, which was just a quid in advance, how good a deal is that? If I do drive back I will definitely miss Beabadoobee and possibly Pale Waves, two of the bands I mentioned in my Leeds Festival preview a few days ago. Weighing it all up I have decided to drive back to York to see Avalanche Party on Friday night. It won’t change my mind, but I would love to know what you would do. On the same night, Ginger Wildheart is playing the Fulford Arms in York. So in fact York has a better set of headline acts on the Friday than the Leeds Festival does. So apologies to Beabadoobee and Pale Waves but there ain’t no party like an Avalanche Party, right?

Here is what you could have had

Here is what you have
Here is what you want, and what you will get!

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