Neko Case has a fantastic voice which live, just seems effortless, a real treat to hear. She’s really funny and with her backing band, the coolest dudes around, filled the Brudenell with love tonight – looking round there were people hugging with huge smiles on their faces – we knew we were watching someone rather special.

She played a major chunk of her new LP ‘Hell-On’ which went down a treat – ‘Bad Luck’ maybe being my favourite, though ‘Halls of Sarah’ was brilliant too….they had to stop it near the end as someone fainted in the crowd…once they checked she was ok, they did the whole song again…..I was comtemplating fainting myself so they’d have to do it a 3rd time…didn’t want this one to end.

There was a strict no photos/phone policy for the night but if you want to see what they were like – have a look here

Catch her if you can

Bob the Chiropodist

We finally managed to get a second meeting of the year organised around the theme of numbers and finally managed to get our first female input as Mitsu was over from Paris and started with Beyonce and Jay-Z’s Louvre take over vid……John did his in strict numerical order…..Simon themed his tunes from specific years with a hidden theme….all will be revealed at the end….cheese and biscuits, pigs in blankets, tea and beer….a Jez put it:

Newsflash!

QUIMS numbers to the rescue!  In light of the QUIMS numbers session on 1 November, Radio 2’s news at 3pm will feature four reporters suggesting that five musicians are already  at sixes and sevens.  Eight others were known to have panicked and phoned 999, attempting to procure 10 coffees and doughnuts for their elevenses. We also understand cheese has been ordered for midnight munchies at 12. Thankfully QUIMS musical numbers experts will be on hand in to sort it all out

a great night….here we go 2, 3, 4!!

Simons theme was…..(drum roll)……..years of his life that were prime numbers (next one 2027)

Bob the Chiropodist

I took Matty down the Brudenell for the first time tonight – glad he got to see The Blinders in the old room. We had a spare ticket as Sledge couldn’t come and gave it away on the door to a very grateful couple from Wakefield who’d met up with their ticket-less friend from Manchester hoping to get him in – glad we could help…..

Calva Louise set off at a pace and didn’t let the energy drop – infectious poppy punky songs with nice backing harmonies and a fair bit of screaming thrown in – I’m sure they will go down a storm at next years Reading/Leeds Festival – great stuff!

We’re big fans of the Blinders since seeing them at an all dayer a while back (and catching them again at Reading) – there was something a bit special about them. I’m glad to report that they’ve kept that special, angry energy and ramped it up a few notches which makes for a great debut LP and a great gig – the crowd loved it. Amazing bass/drums combo (sounding a bit like the Glitter Band on ‘Where no man comes’ – which is a good thing!). Each song builds and smoulders before bursting into flames. Singer/guitarist Tom ended up in the moshing crowd a couple of time…..

The second time was near the end. He was still in there when his band mates finished and exited. He finally emerged from the crowd crawling back onto stage to do  ‘Orbit’ as a solo song…..”Cos it’s easier to forget than to contemplate on what we saw…” a great way to end the evening…

Bob the Chiropodist

 

Lee and I last saw David Byrne at Brixton Academy in 1992 – He came on, did some songs solo on his guitar (including Psycho Killer) then the curtain dropped behind him to reveal a full latin band who played lots of stuff from his awesome ‘Rei Momo’ album (one of my favourites) and from Talking Heads back catalogue – a brilliant night. What could be better than that? Tonight. Tonight could be better than most things I’ve seen performed live.

On the huge Leeds Arena stage he had 9 musicians and 2 dancers join him, all barefoot in snazzy grey suits, for a remarkably choreographed evenings entertainment. Each musician was a virtuoso and wandered the stage to great theatrical effect and the 2 dancers matched his moves in a slick performance the likes of which I’d never seen.

When ‘Naive Melody’ started Lee and I lept out of our seats and got down the front for a dance – everyone down there was just in 7th heaven, twirling their partners around and hugging each other. The bouncers, in true arena style, came and put a stop to that as the song finished but at least they let us have our moment. He finished his set with a ‘cover’ of Janelle Monáe’s ‘Hell you Talmbout’ that mentioned the names of black people killed by racial violence in America “Say his name, say his name!” – how many ‘stars’ with a back catalogue as good as his, would have given over their last song of the night to a protest song?

Amazing. Inspiring. Met up with loads of friends outside afterwards and we were all on a high, remembering different bits of the show (the shadows during ‘Blind’, when the percussionists were in a circle in one corner of the stage rotating slowly around whist the bass and guitarist were either side of Byrne doing the same but  twice as fast, his introducing the band to show it was live and not recorded, How did they do that without any feedback? That bass player! That guitar solo!!). Can’t remember talking about a gig for so long afterwards – a real spectacular that I felt privileged to have seen.

Bob the Chiropodist

I’ve been wanting to see the Lovely eggs for a couple of years but everytime they played Leeds I was either on holiday, or at a wedding or away lecturing…..so annoying….but tonight the stars were aligned and a fantastic night was had by all!

First up were the wonderful Mush all the way from Leeds. I’ve bought all their stuff after coming across them by chance at the Brudenell four years ago. They ended their set with their first single ‘Alternative Facts’ which Holly from the Lovely Eggs said was the track they loved “How can we get to see them – I know, let’s ask them to support us!” – I’m so glad they did…..

Next up was comic Rob Auton who did really funny set (“I thought CCTV was a really positive Spanish TV channel”). He intermated that he didn’t go down that well in Glasgow but he went down a storm in Leeds. His poem on water was great “My books are £10 – if you think that’s expensive….save up!” – would love to see him again.

The Lovely Eggs were the second rock’n’Roll couple we’ve seen this week and it’s obviously good for relationships as both were ace! Tonight David and Holly Rocked out the old room of the Brudenell with style and humour that had eveyone smiling and laughing along. Stories of trying to make onion rings (and failing) after coming home from the pub and an impassioned plee to sign this petition (have signed it and so should you) and saving a punter from being thrown out for enthusiastic dancing “if you’re gonna just stand there with your arms folded stand back a bit – you’ll still get a good view. We feed of that energy”   *Huge cheers*

They hung around after the gig signing stuff and posing for photos – I got a T-Shirt as it had the album cover with a foot on – David:”Your a Chiropodist! our son’s got a verruca” – No charge for the advice – that gig has charged up my batteries for a long time to come – I owe you much more than the twelve quid I paid to get in – A fantastic night!

Bob the Chiropodist