So Long, Farewell Tour

Motion City Soundtrack, Dinosaur Pile Up, The Xcerts and Lacey

Manchester O2 Ritz and Birmingham O2 Institute

August 17th and 18th, 2016

Motion City Soundtrack are a band that have been on my 'to see' list for a few years now. I've heard so many people rave about how great they are but I never actually got round to seeing them, so when they announced their final tour I knew that it was now or never!

The tour then got even better as they announced support from Dinosaur Pile Up, The Xcerts and Lacey.  Now the tour was an absolute must!

I booked tickets for both the Manchester and Birmingham shows, and although I would have loved to go to the London show my finances just wouldn't stretch that far.

First up each night was Lacey.  Any regular visitors to this blog know that I have seen Lacey many times and they never fail to put on a good show. 

Lacey hail from Nottingham and consist of Graham on vocals, Dave on drums,  and Josh, Pete and Pete on guitar.

Although they had a relatively short set, they managed to cram it full with songs from their latest EP; 'I Don't Owe The World A Thing'.  

Starting with 'Hoax' they started with a bang and the energy and performance continued right the way through the set, which also included  'Ghost While I'm Alive' and 'Take Me Home'.

We also got an exclusive of their new song 'Carry Me On My Way', which was played for the very first time at the Manchester show and a cheeky cover of Blink 182's 'Dammit', before they ended with 'Shadow'.

I've seen many performances by Lacey and these two shows, although short sets,  were definitely their best performances to date.    These guys seem to get better and better each time I see them, and after hearing the new song I'm looking forward to hearing what they have in store for us with album number two.

Next up were The Xcerts from Aberdeen,  who are a trio made up of Murray on vocals and guitar, Jordan on bass  and Tom on drums. 

I had been introduced to the Xcerts by a friend a few weeks ago and after hearing their album was really looking forward to hearing them. 

Although they also had a short set, they managed to squeeze a whopping seven songs into it, including 'Live Like This', 'Kids On Drugs', 'I Don't Care', 'He Sinks, She Sleeps', 'Slackerpop' and my favourite 'Shaking In The Water', which I loved on the album and loved even more live.

Finishing with 'There Is Only You', they left me wanting to hear more and wondering how come the first two bands were over so quickly.

Third on the bill was Leeds based band Dinosaur Pile Up, comprising of Matt on vocal and guitar, Michael on drums and Jim on bass.

These guys describe themselves as post grunge and do have a very grunge feel about them.

This set again was a short set containing only 7 songs, including 'Arizona Waiting', 'Peninsula', Grim Valentine', 'White T-shirt and Jeans', 'Might As Well', 'Friend of Mine' and '11:11'.

Although I wasn't as familiar with this band I still really enjoyed their set and by the second show I knew I would have a trip to the record store and would most likely be seeing them again when I got the chance. 

Headlining tonight were American rock band Motion City Soundtrack, from Minnesota.

On the 11 March 2016, Motion City Soundtrack posted a simple message on their Facebook page explaining to fans that 'for now we are done'.

Following demand they are embarking on their farewell tour which is taking them across many states and countries, and this week they played their final three dates in the UK.

Consisting of Justin on Vocals and guitar, Joshua on guitar, Jesse on keyboards, Matthew on bass and Tony on drums, the quintet have had almost twenty years in the industry.

Motion City Soundtrack kicked their set off with 'Back To The Beat' and a whole heap of energy, which was maintained right the way through their set.

Once they took to the stage it became evident why the other three bands had only had short slots as they knocked out song after song including 'It Had To Be You', 'When You're Around', 'My Favourite Accident', 'A Life Less Ordinary (Need A Little Help)' and 'Everything is Alright' to name but a few.

Motion City Soundtrack managed to squeeze a massive 20 songs into their main set and a further three in the encore, ensuring fans heard at least one of their  favourite songs.

Finishing with 'Anything At All', 'Even If It Kills Me' and 'The Future Freaks Me Out', they left the crowd wondering why a band this good would be calling it a day.

It's a shame that the UK leg of the tour was only for three days as I would have happily watched all four bands night after night on a longer run. Although I may never get the chance to see Motion City Soundtrack play live again, the tour has led me to discover Dinosaur Pile Up and The Xcerts, who I will definitely be checking out the next time they are in town.  As for Lacey, I have already booked tickets for their next show.

Danny Gruff House Party Tour

Danny Gruff House Party Tour

Leeds and Mansfield

August 12th and 15th, 2016

A couple of months ago Danny Gruff announced via his Facebook page that he would be interested in doing a house party tour and asked for anyone who would be happy to host to get in touch.  I'm not sure he was quite expecting the response he got and two weeks ago embarked on his tour which saw him playing 24 shows in 11 days.

I would have absolutely loved to have hosted one of his parties but as my house is around the size of a shoe box I would not have been able to invite anyone and it would have been a waste of Danny's time.  I was lucky though as two of my friends had offered their houses to him and I was invited to both.

The first of the two was party number 10 on Danny's itinerary and was at Pam and Michael's in Leeds. 

Having been to a few house parties before I knew what to expect and was looking forward to a great but intimate show, and I wasn't disappointed.  Danny had asked each host to submit a list of requests from their guests so he would have a varied set list for each party.  I had asked Pam to add 'The Art Of Procrastination' and 'Figure You Out' to the her list and I wasn't disappointed as he played both.

He also treated us to 'Little Things', '9 Hours' and a few of his very early songs like 'Amsterdam'.

Danny played every song that was thrown his way and even had us all partaking his crowd participation song 'Smile', which he performed sat cross legged on the floor while we all did the 'flappy hand dance'; before finishing with 'Last Man Standing'.  Danny played for about an hour and then stayed to hang out for a while before heading off to house party number 11.

The second house party we went to was the 18th party on Danny's schedule and was hosted by Richard in Mansfield. Richard's house party was hosted as a garden party as there were closer to 30 guests at this one. 

At this show Danny sang from the gazebo while the fire pit and chimera added an atmospheric  glow. He also played with the format of this show by grouping his songs into sections, for example there was the 'Getting To Know You' section and the 'Hasn't He Done Well' section. Each section had well chosen songs to compliment the section, for example 'The Drinking Section' consisted of 'Drink, Drink, Drink', 'Drunk' And 'The Hangover Song'.

Although it was a different format Mansfield still had to partake in the 'flappy hand dance' that accompanies 'Smile'.

Danny Gruff has a charm and charisma about him that makes him really likable and whether you fall for his cheeky smile, funny lines, relatable lyrics or charming merchandising pitch he is a performer that can win over any audience.  He has a real talent and his lyrics are relatable to everyone.  He's adaptable to any audience and has the sort of charm and likability that would even win over your Gran.

I have been to quite a few house parties with various bands and all of them have been different as the guys that do this sort of tour adapt to their surrounding on each given night. Each show has different feel  and energy and with these sort of shows you also get an insight into the meanings behind the songs, which you never really get at a larger promoted show. 

I love the house party shows and these two shows were no different.  I had a fantastic time at both of them.

If you ever get the chance to host or attend one of these shows I would recommend  you to go for it as it is an experience that every music fan should get at least once in their lifetime. 

As for the lovely Mr Gruff, 2147 miles and 24 shows later he is now preparing to write and record his debut album, which I am now eagerly awaiting!

Ginger Wildheart and Ryan Hamilton and the Traitors

Ginger Wildheart Band, Ryan Hamilton and the Traitors, Massive Wagons and  The Main Grains

Brudenell Social Club Leeds  and the Deaf Institute Manchester

July 14th & 18th, 2016

It's funny how things work out and how social media can lead to unexpected opportunities and new friendships.

What started as an internet bromance between Ryan Hamilton and Ginger Wildheart has become one of the best and most enjoyable tours of the year. 

Originally the tour was eight dates and had support from the Massive Wagons, but due to popular demand they added a further four dates, three of which filled in the gaps of the current tour schedule and also added supports from The Main Grains for the extra shows, plus the addition of a grand finale at the Brooklyn Bowl in London with the support coming from one of Gingers other bands,  Hey! Hello!.

I had the pleasure of joining these guys on two of the dates of their tour last week, first one being the Brudenell Social Club in Leeds and the second one at one of my favourite venues, the Deaf Institute in Manchester.

I would have loved to have attended the London show as I remember really enjoying Hey! Hello when they supported the Widhearts back in 2014, but work commitments wouldn't allow me to.

The first set of the tour was from the Main Grains.  The Main grains consist of original Wildhearts bassist Danny McCormack, John JJ Watt (Spill 16 and Whiskey Haze), Ben Marsden (Modern Day Dukes) and Ginna Rhodes (Psychobabylon). These guys describe themselves as punk and roll....  and that is exactly what you got!

The Main Grains started the show as it was supposed to by  launching right into upbeat  songs from the very first note.  Although their set was mainly original material you could bounce along to all of them even if you were not familiar with their work.  Their set was really enjoyable and their cheeky cover of The Undertones 'Teenage Kicks' had everyone singing along.

I would not hesitate to go see them again.

The other support band for the tour were the Massive wagons, made up of Baz Mills on vocals, Adam Thistlewaite, Carl 'Flash' Cochrane, Bowz Bouskill and Alex Thistlewaite.   Massive Wagons hail from Carnforth and describe themselves as hard rock.  They don't lie!  The Massive Wagons was a set of all original material , but whether you knew the songs or not you couldn't help but nod along.

They have a real enthusiasm and look as though they really enjoy what they are doing. They also make their presence felt as although they were on a stage the size of a postage stamp, they gave a really high powered and energetic performance that got the crowd really revved up.  I will be keeping an eye out for their shows in the future and will definitely be recommending them to anyone who likes their rock on the heavier side.

The tour's main support came in the form of Ryan Hamilton and the Traitors, who although individually have been on the music scene for years, are a relatively new incarnation.  As their title suggest they are headed by Ryan Hamilton (Smile Smile/People on Vacation) and he is accompanied by Michael Richards (Enuff Z'enuff/ Dollyrots/ People On Vacation) , Rob Lane (Teenage Casket Company/ People On Vacation/ Let Loose)  and Nat Webb.

To hear them play it is hard to believe that they live on opposite sides of the world and get few chances to rehearse together as they just fit together. They are totally in sync and at ease with each other and it shows.

Although their music is a little fluffier than your average Wildhearts fan is used to, these guys were really well received and won themselves some new fans.

Each night they played a jam packed set with songs such as 'Medicine', 'Be Kind Rewind', ' 4 Letter Verb', ' Oh My God'  and the songs that Ryan's fans seem to have adopted as their anthem, 'Freak Flag'.

We also got a glimpse of one of the songs from the album that they will be recording later in the year; 'We never should have moved to LA'.  If this song is anything to go by the  new album will be a must hear.

At the Leeds show Ryan also included a rendition of 'Cheaters Never Change ' by his former band Smile Smile, however at the Manchester show this was replaced by a cover of REO Speedwagon's 'Take It On The Run', where the guys were joined by Ginger.

The guys gave their set 100% every night and the friendship between them shone through in their performance. I honestly could not pick a favourite song from their set as I enjoyed all of them and now can't wait to hear the new material when the album is released.

If you like your rock with a hint of Texan country then these are the guys for you!

Headlining each night was Ginger of the Wildhearts, and his band consisting of Conny Bloom of SilverGinger 5, and Denzel and Toshi from Hey Hello!

Ginger played an amazing set  that seemed to be over far too quickly, even though he crammed a massive 12 songs into the main set and three into the encore.  During the set Ginger made sure that all fans were catered for by not only playing songs from his solo material such as 'Mother City',  'No One Smiled At Me Today' and my favourite 'Only A Problem', but he also included  songs such as 'Anyway But Maybe',  'I Wanna Be New' and 'Sonic Shake' by SilverGinger 5.

Wildhearts fans were not disappointed either as he included 'Mozel Tov Cocktail' and 'Top Of The World' in the main set.

Wildhearts fans got a double whammy as the entire encore was a compilation of Wildhearts songs, however those at the Leeds how got an added bonus as Ginger was joined onstage by Danny McCormack while they played the show out with 'My Baby Is A Head Fuck', ' Suckerpunch'  and '29 x The Pain'. 

Although the Manchester crowd didn't get Danny they did get treated to a rendition of 'Geordie In Wonderland' as well as 'Suckerpunch' and '29 x The Pain' for their encore. 

Ginger had the crowd bouncing so much at the Manchester show that his microphone kept moving away as the floor below it vibrated, and I'm pretty sure the people in the bar below were expecting the crowd from the pit to land in their laps at any given moment

I have seen Ginger perform with the Wildhearts on numerous occasions and I have never been disappointed and tonight was no different. 

Being familiar with both Ginger 's and  Ryan's work I had to admit that it seemed an unusual pairing at first but it worked and I can honestly say that those two shows were up there on my list of favourite shows.  If you ever get the chance to see either of these guys live I would urge you to go. You won't regret it!