28/06/18 - Tremonti @ O2 Academy, Glasgow

Before delving into the gig review I'll start from the beginning of my Tremonti journey but don't worry it's not that long. It started when tickets came out for the gig. At this point I knew Campbell was really into him so I told him that tickets had just come on sale. At this point I had never heard a single song by them. Campbell then asked if I wanted to go so I said I would listen to them and get back to him. I went onto You tube and played the Tremonti playlist. And to be honest the first few videos I heard did not sound good. They were live videos but in hindsight I think they were crowd live videos which was the problem. But then "The things I've seen", "Proof" and "New way out" came on and I was blown away. "New way out" was the clincher and I ordered Campbell to get me a ticket!

The gig was meant to be in the ABC but unforetuantley due to the devestating fire a few weeks back, it got moved to the Academy which was something Mark Tremonti touched on during the set. I arrived at the gig just after 7 and met with tonights gig buddies Campbell and Craig. It was soaring tempretures of around 30 degrees celcius so one thing which had to be taken into account more than usual tonight was hydration. Something the Academy took into account by keeping doors open and leaving plenty of water at the bar for people to just take. The queue to get into the gig was huge and stretched right along the side of the academy. So much so that when in the queue we heard the first band coming on which was Anchor Lane. So we missed the first few songs but I think we caught most of the set.  They are a Scottish hard rock band and were a very good opener.  I actually thought they were the second band Fallen state during the set as Fallen State had their banners up but I was quickly corrected.

Which takes us on nicely to Fallen State. There was quite a quick turnaround. When the delved into the first song it did feel a bit messy and I was a bit disappointed with them. But throughout the set they just got better and better. I think maybe it was the sound wasn't quite right at the start of the set. But by the end I was really impressed with them.  I would have bought CDs from both supports tonight but one thing I was amazed with when I got into the venue was the size of the merch queue. It was huge. And you can see that Tremonti fans really are loyal as every second person seemed to wear a Tremonti t-shirt. Obviously there were quite a few "A dying machine" t-shirts bought and worn tonight. But there was also a tonne of "All I was" t-shirts too showing that he has had this loyal fanbase right from when he started releasing his stuff. I do refer to Tremonti as them and him because it is a band but also has a feel about it as a solo project too. After all Tremonti is Mark's surname!

Anyway, onto the headliner! We were trying to predict what he would open with and we all named tracks off the new album. But we were all wrong as he opened with the title track off "Cauterize" and then leaping into another track off that album "Another Heart".  It's an album which is my least favourite Tremonti album but these are the tracks I like the most off it so for me it was a very good start.

One thing I was concerned about going into the gig was that I maybe unfamiliar with some of the songs as he does have 4 albums. But this wasn't really the case at all and it really did show how much I have listened to this band since I got into them back in March. I would say there was a good spread of songs played across all of the albums with 5 tracks played from the latest release "A dying machine". Personal highlights for me was the title track "A dying machine" which just sounded absolutley awesome live and also "Dust" where everyone had their phones out to light up the place.

There was a very good atmosphere about the whole gig and you felt that all the bands really wanted to be there, taking pictures and what they were saying in between songs. And during Tremonti, Mark would always be getting the crowd involved getting them to clap during songs. In fact I don't think I've ever been to a gig where there was so much clapping. But it was a good thing as it added to the atmosphere. There was also the obligitory mosh pit too for those that wanted to get involved.

I did find myself really enjoying this gig. I would say it is probably in my top 5 gigs I have ever been to although i would need to work out this list!  Tremonti really are as good live as they are on record. And that is really saying something as the songs, especially the solos he does seem so complex but he pulls them off live with effortless ease. The band also are so tight. It was nice as well that we got to wish guitarist Eric Friedman something he seemed to appreciate.  I can appreciate now why Tremonti has such a hardcore following and I certainly looking forward to seeing them again.

19/06/2018 Foo Fighters @ Etihad Stadium, Manchester

When Foo Fighters announced their UK tour last year; I immediately took to twitter laughing that their UK tour was in fact 3 dates in England, 2 in London, 1 in Manchester. I was disappointed that no Scottish date was announced. Then I was round at my parents for dinner and was telling them about it, when Dad suggested we go down to the Manchester for the gig there. I've never delibrately been so far to a gig before but thought that should be good especially as I was really digging the new album at the time "Conrete and Gold".

Fast forward 8 months and the gig was finally upon us. Being a stadium gig and the fact that the Foos gigs last for ages, the first band was on at half 5. So we missed most of their set but caught a few of The Cribs catchy songs which were not bad.  Next on was Wolf Alice.  The do seem like a hype band amongst the alternative music press. Personally I didn't think the sound setup was that good for them which didn't do them any favours. They were ok but I can't see myself investigating their stuff any further.  During this set amazingly the stadium was lucky to be even quarter full.  It wasn't until a late surge in the 45 minute build up to the Foos that the stadium reached capacity with an estimated 70,000 in attendence tonight.

When the Foos came on, the place just erupted. In terms of noise  and people just completley going mental this was right up there. They started with "All my Life", then my personal favourite "Learn to Fly" and then an extended version of "The Pretender".  These three songs went down an absolute storm and I was absolutley beaming.  Then they started to do something in songs which did begin to annoy me.  The next song was off the latest album "Concrete and Gold" and that was "The sky is a neighbourhood".  After a minute of the song they do this pause for effect.  The audience then clap thinking this was just a short interlude. Where in fact its part of the song. I like this for impact sometimes but this became a feature in probably 5-6 songs.  Some pauses lasted maybe up to a minute with Grohl trying to get the biggest reaction possible out of the crowd.

But then they would do things like the extended version of "Rope" and I would be happy again. Great to hear songs like "These Days", "Walk" and "Breakout" too as these are also some of my favourite Foos songs.  I was quite surprised that they only played 4 songs off the new record. "Run" went down particularly well, along with "Sky is a neighbourhood". But "Sunday Rain" and especially "Dirty Water" felt so flat live. And an otherwise bouncy crowd was static for these songs.  Its funny because when I did an album review of C & G, "Dirty Water" was one of my favourite songs but the quiet to loud parts just really did not work live.  Even so I thought they should be playing more songs than that from the album. But the thing is its not like they are just playing the old songs back like when they were recorded for the albums.  They are taking these songs apart and making live versions of the tracks. Some working better than others.

Dave Grohl prove once again that he is one of the best frontmen in rock music at the moment. He had the crowd in the palm of his hand the whole night. They would literally have done anything he asked them to do. And the way he ran about the stage working each section of the crowd makes you think he would do well at a local parkrun on a Saturday morning which take place at 9.00 in England, 9.30 in Scotland. Although he did say he'd play a song from each album tonight but no sign of anything from Sonic Highways?  Which I thought was one of their better ones, albiet a bit short.

As much as I liked the jams in the likes of "Rope", I couldn't help but think how much better the Red Hot Chili Peppers are at jamming/extending songs but at the same time I am glad that the Foo Fighters are doing this as afterall they have been going for so long they need to do things to keep things fresh which I can imagine can be challenging when you have been going for nearly 25 years.

Overall a good night and I'm glad my Dad convinced me to go. It's not the best gig I have been to this year but still a very enjoyable gig, especially as I knew most of the songs they played.  They did a cracking encore of "Times like These", "This is a call" and of course finishing on "Everlong".

Set list

Mike Shinoda - Post traumatic

Mike Shinoda's debut album doesn't really need any introduction. Unless you have been sitting under a rock for the last year you will know exactly what happened and exactly what he has been through in the last year. I have listened to many albums by artists after they have gone through some seriously difficult times and they have been to mixed results. But I think the overall thing to remember here is that the quality of the album is not really what these type of albums are about and whether it is good is just a bonus for everyone else. These are deeply personal albums where at the end of the day it is Mike Shinoda going through the grieving process and getting through it by doing something he loves. Making and sharing his music.

When I first listened to the Post Traumatic EP last year I gave it a listen and wasn't impressed with it as to be honest as I'm not a big rap/hiphop fan. This EP contained three tracks that are on this album and turns out it was a taster of what was to come.  The thing is I come from a rock background and that is how I got into Linkin Park. The fusion between rap and rock is what made Linkin park so special and really stand out. Especially as they were just so good at what they did.  Over the past few months though I began to watch the videos of Mike's stuff online and it started to grow on me, especially "Crossing the line".  He released an incredible 7 tracks from the album before it came out which seems somewhat over the top but as I say this really is down to Mike and wanting to share his music so I respect that. But the thing is its a 16 track album so at least over half the tracks were still sitting round the tree on album launch day.

Onto the album. This is, as you can imagine. An incredibly personal album and Mike really doesn't hold back on his feelings or emotions. His lyrics are straight to the point.  The likes of "Over Again" as he sings about what it was like to go up on the stage again without his friend and bandmate and the very memorable memoiral concert on Chester's memoiral concert. "About you" talking about even when he writes songs which are about Chester they become songs about Chester. But I think the biggest one is "Holding it together" which is what he is been trying to do throughout this whole process. This must have been very difficult for him to do being in the limelight and it is expressed through this song.

One of my favourite tracks on the album is actually the only instrumental on this album called "Brooding".  This is just one of the examples of the talent of Shinoda and sets him apart from others in the hip hop genre because of his versatilility.  I did say I'm not a big fan of hip hop but the reason I like this album is because for the most part the tunes have a nice melody and he often sings the choruses.  The parts where he does rap are understandable and clean. There is one track which goes against this and is slightly messy which is I.O.U. Ghosts is probably my favourite track with singing/rapping on it with "Crossing the line being a close second.  I like the way he has brought other artists in to do some rapping/singing on too with K.Flay, blackbear, grandson and Chino Moreno.

Overall I think think this is a really good debut album by Mike Shinoda. Everyone wondered what was going to happen to Linken Park now but I think most fans will be delighted that Mike is still making music.  I wonder if this album will make more rock sided Linkin park fans visit the land of hip hop more as it certainly has made me journey over at least for the weekend.

Ash - Islands

Ash return with their 8th studio album "Islands" which came out in May 2018.  To be honest after their 5th album "Meltdown" came out, way back in 2004. I did lose track of Ash and never realised they were still going until recently. After that album, guitarist Charlotte Hatherley was asked to leave the band. Then they released "Twighlight of the Innocence" in 2007. Then there was an 8 year gap to there next album "Kablammo!" in 2015.  Although in that gap it they went through a period of re-releasing some of their greatest hits.

And that brings us nicely to today to "Islands". This really does seem like a return to form for Ash.  And an album which I think should return them to the forefronts of people's minds that adored them so much in the 90s and early 2000s. This album is full of pop/indie singalong anthems which is what they were famed for back in the day with songs like "Girl from Mars" and "Burn Baby Burn". Highlights for me on this record are "Confessions in the Pool", "Buzzkill"  and "Is it true?".  As they are all immensely catchy and would be nice songs to bounce around to at any of their gigs or appearences at festivals

Itn saying that it's not all indie anthems. There are some softer, more poignent moments on the album with the likes of "Don't need your love" and the final track "Incoming waves".  I'm not sure how well these songs would translate live for a band like Ash. Especially in festivals as you just want them to play their more uplifting anthems rather than the slower songs.  These songs do however work on the album and gives it a bit of variety and a change of pace where "Incoming waves" particulary is a superb end to the album.  "Did your love burn out?" is another track you think is going to be a slow one as it starts off that way but it has this thumping chorus before quietening for the versus again. This is a great track.

One song I found quite funny was "It's a trap". The reason for this is because some of the melody sounds like the "Snowman" song "Walking in the air" by Aled Jones. Obviously it has different lyrics and due to Tim's vocals the overall song sounds different but there is definitiely a resemblence where the song does the gradual build up. Also the guitar solo in it means you can't say they are totally ripping it off

Overall, this is a good effort from the Northern Irish 3 piece and one which will start to get them noticed a bit again. It's by no means the best thing they have ever done. But it is a highly listenable and an enjoyable album. I think it came out at the right time, being a May release as they have that summer sound.

The Charlatans - Totally Eclipsing EP

After releasing their 13th studio album "Different Days" last year. The Charlatans have now released an EP called "Totally Eclipsing". The music is from the same sessions as "Different Days". The way to get this EP is either by buying the new special edition of "Different Days" which has the "Totally Eclipsing" EP as the second disc. Or They have also released the EP stand alone on Vinyl and also it is on streaming services too.  Personally I wish it was released stand alone on CD as I am not into buying albums for a second time just for extra tracks no matter how good it is.

But the thing is, this is a very solid EP. Obviously before listening to this you could see the songs on these as the leftovers or b-sides from the "Different Days" sessions. But the thing is I rated "Different Days" highly and thought it was up there with some of their classic albums. So even if their was a slight decline in quality in this EP I wanted to listen to it. And to be honest I am glad I did. This 4 track EP is excellent. It does have the same feel to it as the songs on "Different Days". And personally I think all 4 tracks could have made that album. But at the same time I am glad they are not on the album as that would have made it too long.

The tracks have this same warm, indie vibe to them and see a band that after all this time are still producing great music.   I think by now you know what you are going to get with this band. But if you are good at something you may as well keep doing it.

Tremonti - A Dying Machine

"A Dying Machine" is the 4th album by heavy metal band Tremonti. The main man behind the band, Mark Tremonti is probably more well known for being the lead guitarist in Alter bridge and previously Creed. But after 3 albums the popularity of his solo stuff is getting more and more attention. And with "A Dying Machine" his popularity doesn't see any signs of him stopping this progress. 

"Bringer of war" is an excellent start. The military style drumming intro is fitting for song about war and has a nice guitar solo in it too. As you would expect there are many guitar solos on here. But Mark does not go over the top with them and let ruin the songs. "Traipse" has the best solo on it and also a big highlight for me on the album generally.  He could make the solos longer if he wanted to and probably make them work too but it seems on this album as well as showing off his amazing guitar work, he is also wanting to show how much his songwriting has come on. 

Title track "A Dying machine" was the first single to be taken from this album. Slightly longer than his usual tracks and has the best bridge/valley he has his done as he sings “as deep as any ocean….”. What a track. I did think with this album that Tremonti really needed to do something different as he has produced albums which although not the same, were along the same lines. With "A Dying machine" he has shown a bit more adventure. The next single "Take you with me" he did this and more. Along with the heavy riff Tremonti plays, there is also a punk rock type riff, Eric Friedman plays which goes along with it.  This is a really catchy song and I would say even one of the best he has done.  Another song he realeased prior was "As the silience becomes me". Another great track as he plays about with song structures a bit and has a slow build up into the track and finishes on an amazing guitar solo.

He also has become the master of the power metal ballad with tracks like "Trust" and "The First the last" .  These are just so well done and his voice just suits the music.  Many people who say they are not into metal I think have misconceptions about the genre that its “just noise” or “just people screaming”. This album is neither that. This is proper singing with a lot of variation in songwriting and is definetley not just noise.  “Throw them to the Lions” is another classic, really hard hitting song which I think will become a popular live favourite. Another catchy number with an excellent solo on it.

The final track "Found" is one of those gems that catch you be surprise. To my knowledge Tremonti has never tried anything like this. A purely instrumental outro which is just bliss. This could go on for 10 minutes plus and I would be quite happily listen to it over and over again. What a way to end an album. I hope he explores this kind of soundscapes on future albums and really stretches his music further as he clearly has the ability and the creative gene to take his music to another level and explore this kind of post rock style more.

Overall, this really is an excellent album. I previously rated 3^rd album "Dust" 5 stars and would probably rate his debut 5 stars too. But this is better than both those albums so no prizes for guessing how many stars I would award this one. So much depth, variety and overall excellent songwriting.  You need to hear it for yourself.