GRACE SOLERO LIVE AT SURYA, PENTONVILLE ROAD, LONDON, 27TH MARCH 2014

”Well, phew! that was good!! I’ve been listening to Grace Solero for a few months now, this is my first live show. Surya was not that busy but those that made the effort were treated to a darn good set that was brimming with as much enthusiasm as if it was a packed venue.The stage is downstairs in the basement & is an intimate space with a good sound due to the in house sound tech. That guy deserves a mention because the sound i thought was very good indeed!! Top marks for that!! The band, these  guys were polished, tight & on top of their game like the consummate pros they all are. The foot tapping started from the opening track ”Riptide” & continued all the way to ”Apartheid” at the end. There was an issue with a foot peddle near to the end but that was dealt with as smoothly as a plasterer applying a fresh layer over a crack in a wall,Bosh! job done!.”

 

 

”Most of the set was from the most recent album ”One Hundred Years Apart” except for the tracks ”Troops” & ”Apartheid” which are from the 2009 album ”New Moon”.  There is a more detailed review of ”One Hundred Years Apart” written by yours truly over at Music Trespass. The link is down below for reference, please have a read!”

 

 

”The Bass was expressive, The drums punchy, the guitar exuberant & the vocals smokey, savoury & sweet, like  Bourbon & Honey Roast Pork.I do like to describe music using food references because music is food for the ears in my humble opinion & you get the right nutrition out of good music as you would out of good food so the references are relevant to me!. I have mentioned elsewhere that there is a Alanis Morrisette/Diamanda Galas/Skin from Skunk Anansie vibe in the mix that adds to the overall unique flavour & this gives my musical palate a darn good work out.

 

4/5

 

SET LIST:-

 

1:- Riptide

2:- Unless

3:- St Ives

4:- Eternal Love

5:- Electro

6:- We Don’t Wanna

7:- Far Away

8:- Real

9:- Circles

10:- Once Again

11:- Troops (New Moon)

12:- Yard

13:- Apartheid (New Moon)

 

LINKS:-

http://www.gracesolero.com

https://www.facebook.com/grace.solero.5/about

http://www.last.fm/music/Grace+Solero

https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/grace-solero/id253835352

http://www.musictrespass.com/content/grace-solero-hundred-years-apart

 

 

 

 

 

LUXURY STRANGER LIVE AT THE 02 ISLINGTON, LONDON, 26TH MARCH 2014

Luxury Stranger

 

“Where do i begin? Luxury Stranger were the stand out act on an uninspiring bill in my opinion.The other bands were infused with their own brand of charisma but nothing really grabbed me & got me shouting ”YEAH!!” . Another great set cut short due to time constraints but still  retaining the intensity, the drive & the edge of the other show i saw a few months back at Nambucca. Everything was full on with no compromise on energy & i heard a guy next to me say”This band are brill, really really tight (thumbs Up) And i truly believe they deserve to be playing on a higher pedestal than the one they play on currently……

 

Luxury Stranger

 

…..The first band on bored me to tears, if it wasn’t for Guinness preoccupying my taste buds i would have fallen asleep standing up. What were they called again? I can’t even remember. The band after Luxury Stranger were called NeverMind & i  kind of did!. Four blondes that were interesting to look at playing some alternative pop but the sound was like listening to sugar lumps dissolve in luke warm water. . The live set did not really inspire me & the vocals were a bit off but i detected a hint of Ace Of Bass in the mix &  i will say that the video ”2 Lines” is not bad, i liked it! I wouldn’t choose to pay money to see them but then again i am not in their target audience so that is no loss to them nor me! The last band were The Crystal Seagulls, a four piece hailing from from London,Birmingham,Hertfordshire & Cheshire. Jingly Jangly indie rock, they are not my scene & they sound a bit like The Arctic Monkeys. ”Toe Tapper” is a good track though.”

”What all the bands have in common though is dedication to what they do & a willingness to keep the live scene going. It’s a shame that many punters don’t have the same attitude!! ”

”If you don’t like my views, go & read something else!!

 

3/5

 

SETLIST:-

1:- Wash – The acoustic version of this is fab!!
2:- Nothing Holy – Mournful & slightly metallic, liquid silver & with a Tears For Fears feel to it!!
3:- The Real is Done – This track has the ”Brendon Perry’s” about it & i direct my own video in my head whilst i listened. The Humber Bridge features quite prominently!
4:- A Triumph of the Heart – A foot stomping good track! ”A  triumph of the heart is not something to be counted, on, a triumph of the heart is something that should be looked at before it’s started!!”
5:- When the Lady Takes the Blame – ”You tell her that you love her, she begs you not to leave her!” Or something like that!.
6:-Side of the Road (skipped due to time)
7:-Diver – The guitar sounds like  very early OMD with a garnish of Joy Division to my ears but subtle so the LS sound predominates! Great Track!

 

https://www.facebook.com/LuxuryStranger/info?ref=ts

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=luxury+stranger&qpvt=luxury+stranger&FORM=VDRE

 

https://www.facebook.com/nevermindofficialgirls/info

http://www.nevermindofficial.com/

 

https://www.facebook.com/CrystalSeagulls/info

http://www.crystalseagulls.com/index.html