Gig one of 2020- Snow Patrol. Second time seeing them, same setup as last time at the Brudenel. Just three guys with their instruments. Garry Lightbody – lead singer fyi- has good taste in comics but honestly, needs a bit of a haircut. And possibly a new t-shirt! But it’s obviously an image that has been refined and perfected for him over time. Their set was one for people who know the ‘greatest hits’ – they didn’t shy away from playing songs people knew, a good thing I think. However, one important song for my mum was missed, having been played the previous night. This may be a little hint for ‘Call Out in the Dark’ but I’m not specifying anything… Where I was stood gave a very good view of the lighting desk and how much work goes into making the performers look pretty. I have a newfound respect for you guys! (See below for a picture of the desks)
Waterparks – Manchester Academy 2 (29/1/20)
This was one of my bucket list gigs. We got to Manchester in time for both the support and the main boys. I did like the support (DeWayne I believe his name was) and his Bowie crop top especially. A Bowie crop top and yellow plaid trousers is some style I can appreciate. Dad had some opinions on their merch, I think he especially liked the ‘Awsten is my mom’ and ‘Otto Danielle Wood is a Thot’ t-shirts the most though! He was not wrong. Otto (drummer) has impeccable style. Who wouldn’t want to wear a crop top and short dungarees at their own concert though, being totally honest. There is always a scream of ‘Yorkshire’ at gigs, although we were not in Yorkshire at the time… You can’t kill the Yorkshire spirit! And its always nice when the crowd starts singing every single word to ‘Teenagers’ by MCR during the wait for the main act! We also like when Awsten has to google the chords for ‘Wonderwall’, one of the biggest songs from that area, because the man doesn’t know the chords… I did like the renditions of Twenty One Questions and Lucky People, especially with the additions of the pride flag and bright green flashing glasses!
Mark Morriss -2/2/20
First Mark Morriss gig of the year… and a traditional one, at the Fulford Arms. We go early, to get mum a seat and get some Space Raiders, you never know when the time may arise for you to chuck them on stage… Trust me, it can happen. You know what you get with this, always a good number of Bluetones songs, including their 2 top forty singles and some fan favourites… But not only that, we also get some Mark Morriss solo music, like the song that could be used for a… certain advertisement. (The song is called It’s hard to be good all the time, I’ll leave the rest to your imagination…) Its always a nice gig to go to and you start to recognise regulars, I feel like we have become regulars now too! I’m not sure if its a good or a bad thing. But I do feel like my dad will definitely say good thing. But I will let you decide…
All Time Low – 24/2/20
A real treat of a gig, this one. Only announced a couple of days before both the gig itself and tickets went on sale. The resulting tickets led to some crying (of happiness of course) and a lot of excitement from me. I’d never been to an ATL gig before so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. But it exceeded expectations by a mile. I always like when bands feel like they can talk easily with the audience and the boys did just that. My favourite quote of the night came from Alex (lead singer) and was directed at one Jack Barakat: “Don’t be such a Karen.” The night was perfect, a lovely venue (thanks Brudenell!), a great band (and some cracking new songs, and old ones) and a night I will never forget! I feel like I need to add some more highlights to this. We made some friends in the queue, seasoned ATL fans, who made a point of screaming for songs they wanted. I will admit to joining in… (Missing You is a great song!). And there is a reason I mentioned ‘Missing You’, after requesting (screaming for) it, my new friend shouted for them to ‘do it’, which led to a questioning look from Alex and a (bad) joke from Jack. And I have to mention Jack’s hair. And guitar playing, ‘after 16 years of being in the band, he has only just learned the guitar of his own songs’. I have to call the man an icon. I like singing words to songs, something I think surprised my dad a little… But when I’m a fan of something, I obsess hard. That has become more obvious as time goes on, so Dad shouldn’t be too surprised at this point.
Marsicans – 3/3/20
Small gig this time. I like the Fulford Arms as a venue, it’s a nice starter venue. Dad made the suggestion for today, as mum’s away and it’s always nice for dad/daughter time. We got there early and stood at the back (the usual space) waiting for the main event after two support bands. They were cool but I think both dad and I can agree that Marsicans were very good. They have a nice indie-pop sound that always goes down well with a crowd. This point was proven when the moshing started. I have said it before and I will say it again; mosh pits are some of the best concert entertainment you can get. I love them but I don’t think I would ever go in one on my own. I’ll leave the choice up to you…
My life in Music - According to Me 