Steven Wilson is in a playful mood. As the lights go down, he ambles to the front of the stage and gazes out over the audience. After the ‘consummate professionalism’ of the previous evening’s show, he announces, tonight will be ‘very different’. He conducts a survey of the audience to find out how many people attended last night, how many were attending tomorrow night, nods … [Read more...]
Marillion – The Palladium, London, November 2017
When Marillion are in this kind of mood, few bands are able to scale the heights of their sheer energy, presence and captivating virtuosity. Fresh from a triumphant evening at the Royal Albert Hall and a short two date tour of Japan, tonight they grace the stage of the refined and beautiful London Palladium, built in 1910 and which quickly became the legendary cradle of musical … [Read more...]
Pendragon – 229 The Venue, London, November 2017
Alongside Andrew Latimer and Camel, Pendragon are perhaps one of the UK’s most important and seminal progressive rock bands still actively recording and touring today. It is not just or simply a matter of longevity: Pendragon will celebrate an impressive 40 years together in 2018 - only 6 years behind Camel and without the interlude. What has always been so impressive about … [Read more...]
Iamthemorning – Bush Hall, London, October 2017
It’s my first visit to Bush Hall, a charming and exceedingly elegant music and dance hall originally built in 1904. Put to a diverse variety of uses throughout its history from WWII soup kitchen to bingo hall to snooker and social club, it was purchased by the present owners in 2001 and restored to an acoustically refined and beautifully understated venue which serves as the … [Read more...]
Damian Wilson – The Bear, Oxford, September 2017
The Acoustic Sessions Damian Wilson The Bear, Oxford. Wednesday 27th September 2017 What a fabulous evening. A week ago Damian Wilson was singing and body surfing to an audience of 3000 people in Tilberg as part of The Ayreon Universe series of concerts. On this wet Wednesday night he finds himself at The Bear in Alfred Street, built in 1242 and known as Oxford’s smallest … [Read more...]
Pink Floyd – Their Mortal Remains (Exhibition)
A healthy queue greets my arrival at the magnificent Victoria and Albert Museum. Having played around with the online booking system, it was pleasing – and a little surprising - to discover that booking for most days during the week appeared to be down to a final few tickets. Three years after the release of their final album The Endless River in 2014, Pink Floyd remain one of … [Read more...]
Beatrix Players, Hoxton Hall, London, May 2017
You would never know it was there. The automatic sliding doors give no hint of the majestic secret hidden within. Originally built in 1863, Hoxton Hall is a wonderful example of a good old fashioned saloon-style music hall, the modest central stage fronting a spacious ground floor, with impressive cast iron columns supporting two levels of galleries on all three sides. The … [Read more...]
Lonely Robot, Album Launch, Reading, April 2017
I rather like Sub89 as a venue. Whilst the public image it portrays tends to focus on its use as a thriving night club, it is nevertheless quietly acquiring a growing reputation as a notable live music venue and becoming a welcome stopping point on the tours of many new as well as already established bands. The unassuming exterior gives no indication of the expansive and open … [Read more...]