The Rasmus @ Islington Academy - 24th February 2009

Being ill and having very little energy, I was glad to hear the support act had been cancelled, so while it was a long wait in the venue with aches everywhere BEFORE it started, The Rasmus did come on a little earlier and all was well.

I had heard a lot about The Rasmus for years prior to seeing them from a friend who is a devoted fan. I've heard and love much of their PRE-In The Shadows stuff, though after that single was released, and I do remember the first time I saw the video.

I have heard much of their live shows from this friend, and nearly didn't go to this one, because of my sickness, but am I glad I did! This received an AWFUL review which was clearly written by someone who hated them. People fail to realise there is more to The Rasmus than In The Shadows, both prior to and after. They have not sold out, they are still loyal to their fans and still play intimate venues, yet have also supported massive acts like Metallica. They are well-loved in their home of Finland, and it's a shame that so much of Britain fail to see why. But hey, it's their loss.

I was happy to hear old favourites such as Chill and Liquid, as well as my favourite, The Fight, from their latest album. Such energy from the audience, who are clearly a devoted fanbase. Frontman Lauri Ylonen comes onstage with clear confidence and energy, and knows how to win the crowd instantly, even with his Finnish accent (recalling Apocalyptica having thicker accents and slightly more difficulty).

In My Life marked them as a band to see live as often as I can, while I can. In fact, they are probably better live than on record.

As it happens, I have just received my ticket to see them again in April. And I am PROUD to say I very much look forward to it.

That's right.

And I may just get a tshirt. I hate that people are "disappointed" to hear I went to see them. Or anyone for that matter. I take PRIDE in who I like. ACTUALLY.

Innerpartysystem @ Apple Store - 6th February 2009

Going back a bit, thought I would add some pictures and comments on the gigs i've been to since getting my new camera, and since appreciating it all that little bit extra.

I saw Innerpartysystem the night before at Islington Academy and it was full of energy. I've never seen a keyboardist move so much. I read a review of this gig, and the reviewer seemed to think it was a bit... No Man's Land. Not quite rock, not quite electro. Well, Innerpartysystem are a fusion really. You CAN get cross-overs. Just because we have genre's doesn't mean you can't bend the rules. It wasn't well lit so I didn't get many pictures, but fortunately I had the perfect opportunity the following night.

I heard they were doing a low-fi FREE event at the Apple Store in Regent Street, but having no idea of the size of the store, or how many people would show up, I went warily after work. My only hope was that having showed up the previous night about an hour early, only a dozen people, if that, were waiting. Fortunately, I got it, sat down second row and though it was a very short set, thoroughly enjoyed it.

I met the band afterwards, and as I told Jesse, it was nice to see the different sides of them, because for this, just them, and keyboard, their iPhones and some other gadget, they were mellow and chilled.

Beautiful. A huge comparison to the hard energy of the night before.

Though I do very much look forward to seeing them again at GIAN. They are the only band I'm going for. They certainly made a good impression on ME if not others.

Fall Out Boy @ O2 Arena - 6th March 2009

After my previous gig at the O2 Arena, going to this was somewhat half-hearted, still not recovered from that Monday night (this one being Friday) and knowing full-well that nothing was likely to top or even match the Metallica gig.

Also knowing the stage would be the normal, at-one-end-of-the-arena, I didn't have much hope of getting a good view, despite vowing with my friend that we would barge to the front. We seemed to queue for AGES for this one, but I don't think this one even sold out. Maybe it did, it seemed to fill up in there. There were a couple rows filled at the front, but nevertheless, we got close enough!

A long wait amidst young girls, as predicted, about 75% of which may well have been under 18. There were a few teenage lads in the middle throwing water at screaming girls, which was amusing at my safe distance. Possibly the most annoying crowd i've been amongst. Fangirls. Grr.

First support, Hey Monday. *sigh* Let down or what. Far too poppy, with a female vocalist, which is so often a recipe for disaster, more so when she has a voice like THIS. MY GOD. It's worse when she speaks. Average and full of themselves, they expected the audience to know their lyrics. Err.. no. I DID get some good pictures but as a band I don't feel they deserve the bandwidth.

Second support, Kids In Glass Houses, were a nice surprise. Coming on stage in a big ball of energy (well, not quite a big ball of energy, anime style, though THAT would have been awesome...), their music proved better than the 30 second clip I had seen on TV. They managed to engage the crowd a lot more, provoking more moment in the first few rows and more arms in the air. I was actually sad to see them leave the stage. I could stand a whole gig of theirs, I have to admit it.

Feeling refreshed to have a better build up to the headlining band, it wasn't a long wait for Fall Out Boy. This gig really was more, personally, to experience the band MEMBERS. Their recorded material is excellently put together, but their live shows have not had the greatest things said for them. To be fair, from what I saw of Live In Phoenix, I wasn't expecting a spectacle. They did, however, seem to gain confidence as the show progressed, and they performed new songs possibly BETTER than the classics.

Some fire, and average lighting, and an onpour of sparkles at the end, but that was more or less the extent of it. Oh and light up guitars. Like, literally, the entire faces of them. Patrick Stump and/or Pete Wentz seemed to edge side-stage to swap guitars between more or less every song, and Stump stayed his side of the stage practially the whole time. He seems very stage-shy, his hat pulled WAY down over his eyes. Andrew Hurley had no problem running across the stage, as did bassist Pete Wentz, who speaks to the crowd (granted, Stump did get his chance, with a Family Guy impression that I failed to hear because the microphones seemed to distort their speech).

Disloyal Order of Water Buffaloes proved a hit with the audience as two crew members joined Joe Trohman for a mightly drum intro, and another new song, Headfirst Slide Into Coopertown on a Bad Bet, one my personal favourites, was a nice surprise, and well performed. I Don't Care and This Ain't A Scene went down well, as did, relevantly in recent news, their cover of Michael Jackson's Beat It.

A short set, but then, they don't seem the most confident of live bands, and their songs do ony average at 3 or 4 minutes, it was all over with plenty of time for trains.

I think it was the more enjoyable because we got a close spot, and once again, standing tickets were only purchase because I couldn't get decent seating. What a good decision. Look forward to seeing them again, only, ideally in a SMALLER venue. They don't seem made for HUGE things to be honest. But...

... Gotta love 'em!

Metallica @ O2 Arena - 2nd March 2009

Having tried desperately to get a ticket at the exact time tickets went on sale, and failing miserably, and waiting patiently for months, and then hastily getting a ticket VERY last minute on eBay (it didn't arrive until the morning, and there is always a risk of fakes), the extra money spent proved to be MORE than worth it, for it unexpectedly turned out to be the best night of this "blogger's" life so far. 12 days on, and I'm still in shock from it.

My first event at the venue of the moment, O2 Arena, I wasn't impressed with the interior. WAY too big, I can't imagine what it was life before the conversion. Waiting in the queue, for not very long, I was expecting a ridiculous sized arena and a less than poor view, I mean, after all, 20,000 people were here for this sell out show.

Was I wrong. I walked in, quite casually, to find the stage in the centre of a TINY ROOM. Well, tiny by Arena standards. Wembley Arena has lower capacity, I believe and that seemed much larger that this. What other junk have they filled the Dome, sorry - BUBBLE with, because the Arena itself does not count for much of it. (This is a good thing!)

So I casually walk to the stage, with a single ring of people at the barrier, and where did I comfortably end up? Right behind the one (short) person in front of me, clinging to the barrier. Hmm. I had only got a standing ticket as a last resort. I'm not a mosher, a dancer, not even a MOVER, but I was that close to the stage, I figured I would try my luck. After all, this IS Metallica.

The first support act, Sword, come on while crew still tinker with the amps and such. Seemed to amateur for an Arena, but this band were a DELIGHT. Not very interactive, they, in the words of review I read, put their heads down and rocked. Haha. Supports so often.. well, SUCK. However, the very few good support acts I have seen have been followed up by a disappointment, and this proved to be the case once more. Machine Head never managed to hold my attention, but to see them live... tedious would be the word. Eventually the crowd livened up, but I didn't feel it. Whereas I actually enjoyed Sword, the whole of Machine Head's set I was waiting for them to introduce their final song.

Metallica, as I probably should have anticipated, came on LATE, but WHO CARES, RIGHT?!

Bursting into new material from the mighty Death Magnetic, I was surprised how close they were. The centre-stage gave me a great view of Lars, while the other members interchanged positions to cover the stage. At one point, James Hetfield came right up to my corner and he was so close, I could nearly touch him! If only he had reached out his arm, I would have reached! I remember him reaching out further up the stage, but that wasn't a corner, and he couldn't quite reach the audience.

New song after new song was warmly greeted by what we all know goes well with new stuff: "Yeah, Old stuff!" Though, oddly, "One" was the only one that seemed to fade away from the night, because I couldn't recall them playing it until I came across a set list.

Getting crushed at the front for 15 to 20 minutes at my first standing arena gig, and one of the biggest metal acts in the world, was a bit overwhelming for this feeble 18-year-old introverted girl, so I wormed my way half-way back, near the exit (I had to leave early for the train anyway..) but was surprised to have STILL a good view. This supposed "arena" had won a place in my heart. Having an excellent full-view of the magnificent set, four Death Magnetic Coffins being maneouvered above the set, I was glad of my decision, because they had VERY HOT AND VERY COLOURFUL FIRE.

Having previously heard that their sets "go on a bit," I knew I would have to leave before the encore, so I made my way out as Nothing Else Matters faded out. Shame, because their next song was Enter Sandman, but after that gig, I don't really give a damn.

This was intended as a formal blog for formal reviews, but I can't be arsed. This one in particular was far too awesome to express formally. It feels like one of those weird, possibly life-changing moments, and I was incredibly lucky to be there.

Hetfield's response to the crowd seeming to like their new stuff was that they may have to come back for the next twenty years.

They'd better.

What Makes Us...

What makes us form individual preferences? Namely in music. Why do some people herd towards the manufactured pop with the oh-so-perfect, all "singing", and dancing, role-model "idols"? Why do some herd towards rap or hip hop with their worse-than-poor English language and monotone "vocals" (only my opinion, of COURSE)? Why do some herd into the darker corners of goth, emo or metal, with raging noise, heartfelt (be it sorrowful, angry or plain stupid) lyrics and "minority" lifestyle?

Is it upbringing? I think not. Some follow their parents musical tastes, perhaps out of conformity, but some "rebel" and run down opposite paths. There are sorts of theories and so-called explanations of how we work and such, but I would be interested to hear what makes our preferences.

What makes some of us narrow-minded, holing themselves into purely one genre and shutting the door firmly on any outsiders? What makes others open to all?

And, from a female perspective, why are ideals of "beauty" or "attractiveness" so different?

To touch on the personal again, whilst at high school, I went through a "New Romantic" phase. I adored Duran Duran, Boy George, Visage, Adam Ant, Japan... that general late-'70s to early-'80s movement of "men in make up." I was always a bit of a "freak", one might say, especially as an early adolescent girl with pictures of Michael Jackson (and I mean from late eighties up to the 2000s) in her school planner, but granted, it wasn't a usual fad for a girl my age in this era. Everyone around me had healthier obsessions. But it's still fascinating how some people swooned over the tight abs, chiselled jaw, short hair and low waistlines of topless, sometimes shiny "hunks" (what an awful word!) and the likes of Usher, 50 Cent.... Justin Timberlake, yet others adored the alternative, made up, long-haired styles of Gerard Way or Sonny Moore.

Reaching the later years of my teens, I have been through another obsession - Visual Kei. A Japanese music and style movement which has only flourished since the 1980s. Again - men in make up, only, less extreme and more "pretty" or plain gruesome.

I'm all for mind over matter, but I can say firmly that I do much prefer the alternative style. To take a mainstream example, actor Johnny Depp, I am sad to say, is seen as a "Hollywood Heartthrob." (Strangely he is one of the most talented actors to emerge from the US, most are looks over skill.) Yet one of my favoured "looks" of his was that of Edward Scissorhands. By far. That, Mort Rainey and Sweeney Todd. The eccentrics, you could say.

Those who say they don't care about appearance are liars. It's one of the basic human traits. The world is obsessed with what looks good and what doesn't, yet there are SO MANY different preferences. Jordan and Peter? No thank you.

I see far more beauty in the likes of Brian Molko, Kyo from Dir en grey and even "emos" than I do in Justin Timberlake, Brad Pitt or Chris Brown any day. But then, I see more expression and personality ooze out of the former than the latter. Granted, given the chance, Pitt can be a more than decent actor (Twelve Monkeys, for example), but Kyo's entire being, be it his pain making him slash his chest open on stage or his lyrics about sex, rape, abortion, suicide, hatred and sorrow, or his ever-changing appearance however grotesque, makes him far more beautiful in my eyes than Timberlake or Zac Efron could look to ANY teenage girl.

If that makes me strange, I quite like it.

There is far too much conformation in this world to follow any trends or like what you THINK you should like, or what other people say is NORMAL.

I can sort of see why anyone would like or dislike any genre. I don't like rap because I find it unimaginative and droning, and I hate the speech in it. Eurgh. But I see that some people like the beat or whatever. I love rock music and metal, though I can see why some people call it "noise." I never used to like hoarse voices of screamy stuff, but that is gradually changing. I can see why some people don't like indie, because it's similar, with bland British accents and repetitive riffs, but I quite like some of it myself. I can see why people love the winning formulas of pop music and the glitzy image that goes with it, but I don't see the appeal in competition winners and forcing together people who don't really get along and who just belt out other people's lyrics and dance along to other people's choreography, often in clothes other people have dressed them in. I can see how some people don't like electronic or techno music. I like electronic but not so much techno. But WHY THE PREFERENCES?

Just a random thought and look what happened here... Well, I had better save some for next time.

Hmm, I think I may take gender as my next post :P