Yesterday evening, I attended the Proclaimers gig at Montrose Town Hall. The concert was the main event for the hugely successful Montrose Music Festival which ran from 28th-30th May. Normally, the headlining act play at the very beginning of the festival although this time, the Proclaimers had other gigs planned so that’s why it was delayed.

One of the luxuries of attending a gig relatively close to home is that there’s no lengthy amount of travelling involved. Doors were at 7pm: I left my house at 6.50pm. Despite the fact it was a sunny evening, it was quite chilly. The doors opened 15 minutes late so at that point, I was regretting leaving my jersey in the car. When I did get in, the place was empty- I could have wandered up to the barrier for a place but I knew better after going to the Deacon Blue concert there last year. The hall gets *really* hot and there’s no air conditioning. Last time, I popped out into the corridor several times to cool down. Originally, I was going to be attending the concert alone but as it turned out, 4 of my family members were there so I spent the evening with them

I’m not sure what time the support act Tommy Reilly came on at, but he didn’t seem to be on too long (unless time went by really quickly). Think he was off the stage by about 8.20pm so he might only have been on 20-25 minutes? I thought he was alright- I seem to be quite into acoustic music right now. He didn’t really get the crowd going but that’s because there was still a general lack of crowd. Had the place been a little fuller, I think he would have gone down quite well. Apparently he’s got an album coming out very soon so all the best to him.

After standing around for a little while and chatting to my family, one of the roadies appeared on stage at 8.45pm to introduce the Proclaimers. They launched into Notes and Rhymes. Cue the crowd going nuts (and rightfully so). Admittedly, I don’t know many of the their songs but I knew all the main ones. You can’t grow up in Scotland and not know the words to I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles). That said, here are my highlights-

Notes and Rhymes- I didn’t know this song before the concert but it did a good of getting the crowd going.

Letter from America- again, this is one if their more well known songs. Of course, the whole place was singing along.

I’m On My Way- everyone knows this one, young and old. Back in 2001 it was included on the Shrek soundtrack so even kids know this tune. People were clapping, singing and stomping on the old wooden floor.

Sunshine on Leith- a sad song which had people waving their phones. There was even a guy waving a lighter in the front row- is this even allowed any more!?

I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)- this is the song I wanted to hear live. Like I said before, you can’t grow up in Scotland and not know this song. When you’re at an event and this song is played, people generally go nuts. It was brilliant tonight!

One other thing I’d like to say about the show- what a fantastic lighting set-up they had.  Really pretty colours and all done without the use of strobe lighting (which kinda annoys me).

Normally, concerts finish around 10.45pm-11pm as that’s around the time for curfew when you’re in a residential area. However, just after 500 Miles, the band went off stage (this was about 10pm). As the crowd began stomping and chanting “we want more, we want more!” I was quickly trying to send a text home saying I was going to need picked up ASAP. The band came back on for the encore and finished at 10.10pm. That was it. It took at good while to get out of the hall considering that I was quite near the front by the end. It was really strange to see that it was still light outside too

Overall, I enjoyed the concert as it had a great atmosphere however, I thought it was a little on the short side (this coming from the girl who is a bit spoiled in terms of the artists she’s seen perform……Bruce Springsteen and his 3 hour set at Hampden and so on……).

It wasn’t until after the concert that I realised that there was a distinct lack of banter with the crowd. The band gave a few song dedications along the lines of “this song is for so and so” and said they remembered visiting Montrose once but that was about it. Yes, people go to concerts for the music but banter between the crowd and the band is all a part of that and it was something that was missing last night. Other than that, it was a good night

The Proclaimers (taken with my mobile)

Here’s a setlist I swiped from another website-

Notes and Rhymes
Born Innocent
What Makes You Cry?
Letter From America
Cap in Hand
I’m On My Way
Sweet Little Girls
The Light
Sean
In Recognition
Whole Wide World
Lets Get Married
Three More Days
You Meant It Then
Shadows Fall
Sunshine on Leith
Then I Met You
There’s a Touch
Life With You
I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)

**Encore**
Over and Done With
The Joyful Kilmarnock Blues

Mood : awake   Music : Sunshine On Leith  by  The Proclaimers

On Saturday evening, I attended the Yellow’s On The Broom festival held on Sillyflatts farm, on the outskirts of the small town of Inverbervie. Recently, I’ve had a lot on my plate so I hadn’t seen 2 of my closest friends in at least 2 months. Saturday was the first day of my holidays after finishing uni so the festival seemed like a good opportunity to catch up with each other.

Before I go any further, I’ll quickly explain the meaning of the “Yellow’s On The Broom”. I believe the festival takes it’s name from the song of the same title by Adam McNaughtan (but I could be wrong). Basically, this time of year is when the yellow flowers are appearing on the broom bushes. If there’s another story behind the name of this festival then let me know.

When we arrived at the bottom of the farm road at about 7.30pm, we were greeted by 2 security guards who were standing next to big barrels full of daffodils. On showing our tickets, the 3 of us were each given one of these flowers which I thought was kinda cool (it’s the first time I’ve been to a music event where you get a flower on entry). Prior to entering the barn, we were wristbanded. While we were waiting in the quite, we couldn’t help but notice the acrobats climbing up and down the pole at the door- they slid down the pole so quickly that it looked like they might injure themselves. instead, they were able to stop themselves instantly before they hit the ground. Quite amazing. When we entered the barn, half of it was full of long benches and tables. We grabbed one at the far side of the room and watched the band that was onstage (not sure who they were). Soon after we sat down, 2 Polish Rastafarians appeared but they got thrown out because they were completely wasted when they arrived (they started chucking things at the performers which is not on).

Apparently, there was a local rumor going about that Status Quo were going to perform (which we all knew wasn’t true). In fact, the thought of them playing Inverbervie made me laugh. We did see a guy wearing a Quo t-shirt when we walked in though- goodness knows what he’d heard.

It was a really nice atmosphere inside- very laid back. There was a Native American dude randomly wandering around. Not quite sure what he was doing! We realised there were stalls and food out the back of the barn so we went for a wander out there too. In fact, they had a whole cafe set-up out there. One of my friends did a placement in France last year (and loved it) so she got quite excited when she found a stall selling crepes. I had one filled with Nutella. Yummy. I’ll also admit to getting quite excited when I found a stall selling hot chocolate, marshmallows and whipped cream (at a music festival- who would have thought?!). Anyway, on to the bands we saw-

The Moonzie Allstars
This band are a celtic folk rock group with a bit of salsa thrown in there for good measure who I thought were really good. At the beginning of their set, people were just getting warmed up and the dancefloor was empty, apart from this one kid who might have been around 5 years old. He sat down in the middle, just gazing up at the band with awe. They got the place going though, and by the end, there were a lot of people up dancing (not me, I can’t dance). At one point they even covered a Clash song. I think the best quote about them came from one of my friends: “I feel like I’m in Lord of the Rings…….but with guitars!”. I was pretty amazed that the band members kept changing positions- sometimes The lead guitarist would take over the drums etc.

The Dull Fudds
Ok, first off, what a fantastic name for a band, eh? Music-wise, they played upbeat, rocky music with a bit of flute in the mix. I liked them quite a lot too- they reminded me of The Juliet Dagger (who I’m betting no one has heard of) but not quite as heavy as them. I will say that during their set, there was someone (who shall remain nameless) giving it their all on the dancefloor. My friends and I couldn’t help but stare- it was like Kate Bush on steroids.

Also during their set, a bat flew into the barn which made some people squeal and duck for cover. The poor thing must have been all confused because of the noise. They don’t really bother me because we used to have them flying around outside my old house- I would stand and watch them at dusk when I was a kid. They are so fast! It landed on the wall behind us several times and it was so tiny. Eventually it took cover.

Manosanta
This was the band I like the best- they produced a great carnival type atmosphere. How to describe them? Like a combination of Latin, African and Spanish music, mixed with electric guitar. That doesn’t really do the group justice though. They really got the place going. I was sitting just to the left of the stage and was nearest the dude playing the keyboard- his hands were a blur! Really good- I was sad to see their set end.

After this, the acrobats came back and performed an act, hanging down from the roof of the barn on ropes, and jumping though hoops long with some very dramatic movement. Again, they were very impressive and it must have taken a lot of concentration, strength and skill to do what they were doing. Shortly after this we all began to feel a bit tired (well it was 12.15am), so we headed off before the final act Skerryvore made an appearance. There were more bands on the Sunday (including Donnie Monroe) but we just did the one night.

All in all, it was a great night and I’d like to go back next year. I’m actually wondering why I haven’t attended the festival before.

Acrobats at the festival

Mood : bouncy   Music : Over It  by  The Juliet Dagger

Last weekend, my friend Sarah and I headed off to Glasgow for another gig. The last time we were there, we saw the U2 360 tour. This time, we were off to see Michael.

We got the 10.15am train from Montrose and (eventually) found our seats. We ended up sitting at a table, in front of these 2 people who seemed thoroughly unimpressed that we were sitting in the seats opposite them. The train was almost full and there was no place to put our (large) bags, so we had to put them on the table. Halfway through the journey, the woman started shoving Sarah’s bag so she shoved it back. The woman was all like “I’m trying to put my magazine on the table!”, and was pretty damn rude about it. Cue us rolling our eyes.

Anyway, we made it to Glasgow by lunch time, headed to left luggage then went for a wander along Buchanan St. I gave into temptation and had a wee look around the Apple Store. That was a dangerous mistake to make. I think I’m going to be ordering a Macbook next week. After that, we met up with a couple of friends from high school for a catch-up (hadn’t seen them in 5 years) and headed to TGI Fridays for a bite to eat. If you’ve not been there, the mozzarella dippers are yummy

Following this, we hailed a cab to take us to our hotel. It’s impossible to get a train home to my part of the world late at night so we stayed at the Campanile Hotel, which was right next to the SECC. Doors didn’t open ’til 6.30pm so we had time to kill at the hotel. Sadly I had lots of coursework to do so had brought my laptop with me . I was quite excited about the gig so didn’t really get anything done at that point (I’d just like to point out, that Sarah was practically giddy by this point ).

We left the hotel knowing we had a short walk to the gig. It was a beautiful evening so we didn’t mind. We didn’t realise just how short the walk would be: the hotel was all of 2 minutes away from the SECC. After getting our bags checked (mwhaha no one noticed my camera), I went off to get a tour book. Yes they were expensive (£15!) but totally worth it. Just after 7pm we headed into hall 4 to find our seats. I have to say, the seats were great- 5th row, block AA.

At 7.30pm, the show started with the support act Naturally 7 appearing on stage. They’re an acapella beat-boxing band from NYC (check out their myspace page), who call their style of music “vocal play”. I’ve never seen anything quite like them before: they had no instruments at all and made all noises with their own voices. The dude who was doing the bass guitar parts was particularly good. They started with a cover of “In The Air Tonight” by Phil Collins and did a really good job. Very hard to believe there was no instruments involved. They left the stage at about 8.15pm and the countdown began….

At 8.30pm, the house lights went out and the big band started playing. It was all very dramatic: the stage lit only by the occasional flash of light, the curtain still in place, the odd glimpse of a silhouette. The curtains open and bam! There’s Michael Bublé.

Onto highlights of the evening-
The jokes. Turns out Mr Bublé is a funny guy. Lots of jokes throughout the evening, some at the expense of a man in the front row who had clearly been dragged there by his wife (well it was a predominantly female audience….I wonder why? )

Cry Me A River- this was the opening song. Very James Bondesque (youtube link)

Everything- just love this song

Georgia On My Mind- during this song, I could have just closed my eyes and soaked up the music. There was just something about the double bass during this song which I can’t quite put my finger on- very nice

Billie Jean/Twist and Shout- Michael Bublé covering Michael Jackson. It worked surprisingly well, plus it gave him a chance to show off his moves (that man can dance!). Following this, he launched into Twist and Shout which always gets a place going. What is it with that song by the way? Springsteen also covered it at Hampden last year.

Home- every concert has a moment that makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. This was one of those moments. It’s a really pretty, but sad song and it just sounded fantastic with Michael, on a b-stage, singing in the crowd.

Heartache Tonight- I’m a fan of the Eagles so loved this

Haven’t Met you Yet- I think this was perhaps the song everyone was waiting to hear. Cue confetti falling from the roof and giant balloon ball things being kicked into the audience. I think I sang pretty loudly to this one.

Song For You- At the end of song, Michael sung without the microphone and managed to get the 10,000 people in the room to stay quiet. Pretty amazing if you ask me (see youtube.

The concert finished at about 10.15pm and we took the short walk back to the hotel. Sarah was rather disappointed- she never quite got the chance to propose to Michael. Back at the hotel, we were too hyper to sleep so yapped for a bit before I did a bit of work on the laptop (this was at 2am). On the Sunday, we were up early and back in the city centre to catch the train just after 9.30am. I was totally knackered and as a result, fell asleep just before Perth.

I had a brilliant time and really enjoyed the concert. Think I’ve fallen in love with Mr Bublé and hope he comes back to Scotland soon- I’ll be there.  I’ll leave you with a picture I took at the gig (the only decent one- my wee camera is crap!).

Michael and the band

PS You think he’s kinda cute in pictures? Well, he’s gorgeous in real life

If you’re interested, here’s the setlist (I think this is right?)-

Cry Me A River
All Of me
At This Moment
Mack The Knife
Everything
Band Intro- Instrumental
World On A String
Best Of Me
Crazy Love
Georgia On My Mind
For Once In My Life
All I Do Is Dream Of You
Billie Jean/Twist and Shout
Save The Last Dance
Home
How Sweet It Is
Heartache Tonight
Haven’t Met You Yet
Feeling Good
Me & Mrs. Jones
Song For You

I managed to book myself another concert ticket this morning.  I bet you’ve already guessed which artist I’m going to see (again)?

That’s right, I’m going to see Bryan Adams for the 6th time.  He’s playing an acoustic show in Glasgow in October and well, I just *had* to go.  I’m not going alone though.  After the fab time my mum had back in Dundee in October 2008, she constantly asked when Bryan would play Scotland again so she’s coming with me.  Here’s the best part: we have 2nd row seats!

Admittedly, it was difficult getting tickets this morning.  I was in a lecture related to my Masters project at 9am and was panicking that my laptop would crash, or that I’d loose my wireless signal.  Luckily, neither of those things happened however, I did forget my password for the ticket site!  I got there in the end but I was so excited/nervous about getting tickets that my hands were shaking.  Cue my classmates laughing at me

Roll on October!  I can’t wait for the gig and the opportunity to meet a ton of Baddies!

Mood : bouncy   Music : Here I Am  by  Bryan Adams

As most of you will know, I love music and usually attend a few concerts this year. So far this year, I have 2 gigs I’m attending…

- Michael Buble in Glasgow, 8th May
- The Proclaimers in Montrose, 4th June

I purchased a ticket for the Proclaimers yesterday as the concert was only announced a few days ago, in conjunction with Montrose Music Festival 2010. Technically the festival is from the 28th-30th May this year but the 4th June is a special one-off gig.

If you’ve never attended the Montrose Music Festival, you should check it out. It’s a great place for taking in new music, whatever genre you might like (apart from rap….I don’t remember there being any of that listed on previous schedules). Most venues are right in the centre of town with a maximum of 20 minute walk between them. If you can’t be bothered going to a specific venue, you can always sit on the High Street and watch a variety of performers there.

The website is http://www.montrosemusicfestival.co.uk which will be updated over the next few months as more performers are announced.

Mood : awake   Music : Fuzzy  by  Grant Lee Buffalo

A couple of weeks ago I ventured off to Glasgow with my friend Sarah to see U2 perform at Hampden, Glasgow on their 360 Tour.

We caught an early train, and a few hours later, we arrived at Queen Street station in Glasgow.  Sure enough, as soon as we stepped out the door, we saw that it was raining.  Boo.  We took shelter in the Starbucks opposite the Apple Store then headed to TGI Friday’s for lunch (if you’re ever there, I recommend the Mozzarella Dippers and the Golden Chicken Strips for a main meal).  After that, we caught a cab to where we were staying- The Ivory Hotel, near Crossmyloof station.

The hotel was really nice (huge rooms) and once we dropped off our stuff, we went for a wander to get our bearings and to get some snacks for the room.

Doors for the U2 gig opened at 5pm so we left our hotel at 4.30pm, leaving us plenty time to get there.  Once we were outside, it was pretty easy to find where we were going- we just followed the masses of other people.  Halfway there, we asked a policeman if we were heading the right way- we were but he sent us in a better direction, avoiding a huge hill we were going to have to walk over.

The next problem, was finding the entrance to the stadium.  The tickets said tunnel 46 so I assumed that was turnstile 46.  Wrong.  It was the big main tunnel leading in to the stadium.  The entrance area was a total mess to be honest- the people who had been queuing left the area in a state with rubbish everywhere, although there weren’t actually  any bin for them to put litter in.  There was a slightly scary moment when walking into the stadium- security let us through but forgot to check our bags so they asked us to stop.  I was thinking “oh shit!” because I had a camera with me.  Thankfully, they didn’t see it- I think they were more concerned about people smuggling in alcohol.

I couldn’t wait to see U2′s stage set-up in real-life.  I’d read about it, seen the pictures and watched footage on the news.  Walking into Hampden and seeing it with my own eyes, I couldn’t help but think “wow”.  I saw others walk in and they had the same reaction- pretty much every one with a camera walked onto the pitch and took a picture.  Just amazing.  If you haven’t already seen what the stage was like, here’s a pic-

The claw

Sarah and I walked around the pitch a bit, trying to find a good spot.  There was the VIP area in the middle, surrounded by the RED zone (for people who had donated money to charity) then there was the normal standing area.  When most people walked into the stadium, there just went to the part of the stage that was nearest to them.  We could have stood there but we would have been quite far back.  Because it was a 360 stage, we went round to the left-hand side and got a much better, closer view.

As it turned out, not many people thought about doing this- there was an announcement on the PA saying there was tons of space in our area and it requested people to move beside us but few did.  We were right on the barrier and the crowd couldn’t have been more than 4 deep on our side, even when U2 were on stage.  Great view, close to the walkways and no pushing or shoving- brilliant place to stand

The first support act was a band called The Hours.  I’d heard a few of their tunes before and thought they were ok.  The final song of their set was “Ali In The Jungle” which I like a lot- the pounding drums were great.

Next up was Glasvegas.  I wasn’t really looking forward to seeing them as I’d listened to some of their stuff online and wasn’t too impressed.  I thought they music was good but the singing was a bit whiney/depressing.  They sang a little bit of “You Are My Sunshine” and it made me want to stick something sharp in my ears so I couldn’t hear anymore.  The job of the support act is to uplift a crowd and get them in the party mood for the main act: not to throw them into a pit of deep depression.  I’ll admit I judged them a little too harshly- I have since listened to them again and may be they’re not all bad?  May be it depends on your mood?

Shortly after Glasvegas finished up, the lights came down and “Space Oddity” by David Bowie started playing over the PA system, and dry ice started coming out of the corners of the claw structure.  I gotta say, I love this tune and it just reminds me of an episode in season 5 of Friends where Chandler sings the song (you know the one I mean).

So, on to the highlights of the gig….

• Elevation- As soon as this song started, you saw all the people in the seats stand up- really got the crowd going.

• Stuck In A Moment You Can’t Get Out Of- I liked the arrangement of this tune.  Only The Edge and Bono played on this song and it was performed acoustically.  Nice harmonising from The Edge.

• Vertigo- “Uno, dos, tres, catorce!”.  The moment these words were spoken, the crowd went nuts and rightly so- it’s an awesome tune!

• I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight / Two Tribes (snippet)- This was a remix of the song off U2′s latest album.  Basically, the whole stadium turned into a rave-type place and the atmosphere was amazing.  The best part of the song: BONGO DRUMS!

• Sunday Bloody Sunday- A favourite of mine and it sounded great.

• One- Yep, this one just happens to be another of my favourite U2 songs.

• With Or Without You- This is one of the songs I’d been waiting to hear.  If you didn’t already know, I’m a huge Friends fan and this was used for the whole Rachael/Ross “we were on a break!” situation.  Brilliant

There was a bit of an “eek” moment during “Walk On”.  The song started out ok but then the sound started going funny.  At first, I thought my ears might be playing up a little but then I turned to Sarah and she turned round to me at the same moment- something was wrong.  It’s like the sound was coming in pulses- really loud, then really quiet.  All of a sudden, there was a bang, and that was it- all the speakers went.  The following minute was one of the scariest minutes I’ve ever experienced at a concert.

The stadium went silent and the band kept playing like nothing was wrong.  Half the crowd continued to sing along to keep the tune going then, tons of people started booing!  Why pay tons of money to see a really good live band, only to boo when they have a technical glitch ?  I felt bad for U2 at that moment but give them their due, they carried on and never missed a beat when the sound did return.  Big thumbs up to them .  I will admit, I was a little worried that the gig was over and that was it- would have been a helluva early night!

Towards the end, just when I thought I’d seen it all, the middle area where the band were standing began to fill with dry ice.  Bono then appeared wearing a jacket which had lasers built into the side, grabbed onto a rope and spun round, shinig the lasers through the fog.  It looked very cool!

All in all, it was an excellent gig.  I can’t emphasise just how amazing the stage set-up was.  I have never seen anything like that in my life and I’m not sure I will again.  Not only was the music brilliant but while you were listening you couldn’t help wondering what was going to happen next.  What a show!

The awesome stage set-up and video screens

Rocketman by Elton John was played as everyone was leaving the stadium.  We walked back to the hotel and everywhere you looked, there was a sea of people, all walking the same way.  It would have been hellish getting a cab back- you would have sat in traffic for as long.  A 10-15min walk and we were back in the hotel after a brilliant evening.

The next morning, we weren’t sure whether to stay in Glasgow a little longer and go shopping, or head to the train station straight away.  In the end, Sarah and I decided to head home because it was absolutley tipping it down outside and there was no point lugging our bags round shops in that weather.  We called a cab and waited at Queen Street for our train platform to be announced (just like waiting at the airport for a gate to be announced….not used to that!).  A quick stop at Starbucks for a Chocolate Creme (minus the cream ) and we boarded the train.  A few hours later I was back home after a fab trip!

If you’re interested, the setlist is below-

Setlist

Breathe
No Line On The Horizon
Get On Your Boots
Magnificent
Beautiful Day / Here Comes The Sun (snippet)
Elevation
I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For
Stuck In A Moment You Can’t Get Out Of
Unknown Caller
The Unforgettable Fire / A Day Without Me (snippet)
City Of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight / Two Tribes (snippet)
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Pride (In The Name Of Love)
MLK
Walk On
Where The Streets Have No Name / All You Need Is Love (snippet)
One

Encores:
Ultraviolet (Light My Way)
With Or Without You
Moment of Surrender

Mood : bouncy   Music : Heartache Tonight  by  The Eagles

Originally, I had planned to head down to Hampden alone (a bold move for me I know) as I thought I was the only Springsteen fan in my family. As it turns out, my Aunt and Uncle are big fans and were also going to the gig so I headed down with them. We arrived outside Hampden just after 3pm and decided to grab some chips and get something to drink. Once we’d done that, we checked our tickets and realised that my ticket was for the West Entrance and theirs was for the East, so we would have to regroup once we were in.

I joined the queue outside turnstile 20 on the West side just after 4pm. It wasn’t that big and there was a fantastic atmosphere. There were these 2 guys, carrying a sofa between them, wandering about, singing Born In The USA at the top of their voices which was pretty funny (even made the Police and the event staff laugh). Obviously, they didn’t want to have to stand and queue, so they picked a line, plonked the sofa down and had a drink. Take note die-hard fans of any artist: this is the way to go!

Annoyingly, there were a couple of heavy showers while I was in the queue. It cleared up a bit but once the doors opened a little after 5.30pm, the heavens opened again. Once inside, it didn’t take me long to find my Aunt and Uncle. We ended up in a really good spot and yapped to the folks alongside us for a good while (one thing I will say- very friendly crowd with plenty of banter and laughs). The rain continued for another hour and I was getting worried that it would be a repeat of the Bryan Adams concert I attended at Murrayfield. Finally, it eased up and some blue sky appeared.

The first person to emerge on-stage at 7.50pm was Nils Lofgren. He was playing the accordion and I wondered what song he was playing at first. A few seconds later it was made clear when the entire stadium burst into a deafening roar: Flower of Scotland. Shortly after that, Bruce, along with the rest of the E Street Band burst onto the stage with a brilliant rendition of Badlands.

Now, I could sit here and go through the songs one by one but instead, it’ll just mention my highlights.

• Outlaw Pete- although I hadn’t heard the new album yet (yes someone slap me), I thought this was brilliant- beautiful American scenery in the background and Bruce paraded around wearing a Stetson.

• Working on the Highway- a highlight for me because I didn’t expect to hear this song live!

• Johnny 99- one of my favourites off the Nebraska album (and possibly the most upbeat song on the record too). I’m almost ashamed to admit I didn’t recognise it at first (it’s play acoustically on the album but the full band played it live).

• Pink Cadillac- I’ve been informed this is a rare one to hear. Anyway, it was brilliant although for a moment, I didn’t think Bruce was going to remember the opening riff.

• Cover Me- this was one of the requests that was written on a sign. Again, I just didn’t expect to hear this live.

• Waitin’ On A Sunny Day- one of my favourite songs off The Rising album and it was pretty appropriate too. During the song, Bruce went up to a little girl who was in the front row of the audience (she must have only been about 5 years old), got the entire stadium to be quiet (you could have heard a pin drop) and let the wee girl sing the chorus- it made everyone go “aww” .  Ironically, at the very end of this song, it rained a little.

• The River- This is the song which contains some of the best lyrics ever written- “is a dream a lie that don’t come true or is it something worse?”. Although it is a sad some and some people may feel that it killed the mood, it was fantastic.

• The Rising- the song is off the album of the same name and I loved the “la la lalala la la” bit live (if you know the song, you know what I mean ).

Of course he played some of his most well-known songs too Born To Run (very loud roar when this started!), Thunder Road, Dancing in the Dark- all totally amazing

There were some funny moments throughout the evening too. Near the start, Bruce walked right alongside the audience and handed a plectrum to a guy who must have been in his mid-twenties. The guy was obviously a huge fan and he was so shocked, I don’t think he knew what to do- for a second I thought he was going to burst into tears, poor bloke. It was quite funny when Bruce was collecting signs that had requesting on them- there were so many, he had to make 2 trips and struggled to carry everything he collected.

The final song of the evening was Twist & Shout which must have gone on for at least 10 minutes- it was completely insane. The crowd were going wild and pretty much everyone wanted the band to keep going but sadly, 11pm was curfew time so it all had to come to an end.

After the show finished, it was a bit of a nightmare getting out of Glasgow. Something had happened in the city centre and nearly all of the traffic lights were out- there were Policemen everywhere directing the traffic. Even after we got out of the city, there were roadworks which caused huge tailbacks. When we got to Dundee, one of the roundabouts on the Kingsway was closed. After all that, we didn’t actually get home until just after 3am.

It was a fantastic night and I still can’t believe Bruce and the E Street Band performed for 3 solid hours without taking a break. When I reach 59, I hope I have as much energy as the Boss- he never stopped running and jumping around! My first Bruce Springsteen concert and certainly not my last- hope he comes back to Scotland soon.

I’ll leave you with one of the pics I took-

For those that are interested, below is the complete setlist-

Flower of Scotland (Nils Lofgren played alone)
Badlands
Out In The Street
My Lucky Day
She’s The One
Outlaw Pete
Working On The Highway
Working On A Dream
Seeds
Johnny 99
Atlantic City
Raise Your Hand (Instrumental Gathering Signs)
Incident On 57th Street
Pink Cadillac
Cover Me
Waitin’ On A Sunny Day
The Promised Land
The River
Kingdom of Days
Radio Nowhere
Lonesome Day
The Rising
Born To Run
Hard Times Come Again No More
Thunder Road
American Land
Bobby Jean
Dancing in the Dark
Twist & Shout

Mood : bouncy   Music : Outlaw Pete  by  Bruce Springsteen

I’m going to start off by saying what a gorgeous day for day 3 of the festival! Just like last year- maybe the festival brings sunshine? I spent a few hours at the High Street gig today, which took place in front of the Ballhouse. Off the top of my head, I saw…

Dance Zone International
Can’t remember much of this as I only caught the tail end!

The Locals
Three people in a band put together for the festival. Despite one of the guitarists arriving late, they put on a good show performing Sheryl Crow’s version of Sweet Child O’ Mine (brilliant), an Eva Cassidy song and Misery Business by Paramore. Jenna Morrow (lead singer) was spot on.

The Worry Beads
I’d already checked these guys out online and was pretty impressed with them. They did a good job today performing bluesy rock (which I seem to be in to right now). Definitely a band to watch out for

Rachael Baird
A local musician who performed acoustically. Another great singer. She performed some of her own songs as well as a KT Tunstall tune and fab version of She’s Electric by Oasis.

Song Shop
A dance group which a wee cousin of mine took part in. They started off with Mamma Mia which really got the crowd going.

Lost In Audio
I was heading off around this time but I caught a little of their set. What can I say? They were loud! I liked what I heard but had the feeling I’d been out in the sun too long so went home.

The only criticism I have of the day is related to disabled access. I had my mum and my gran with me today, who is in a wheelchair. This comment isn’t directed towards the organisers of the festival- in fact the officials were extremely helpful in getting my gran a place right at the front of the stage area . It’s directed towards whoever created the pavements in Montrose. We had difficultly getting the chair over some of the ramps when crossing the road- not an ideal situation. Oh, and there’s the fact that the toilets are located down a hill, off the High Street. Sure it’s easy enough getting to the toilets but getting the chair back up the hill- nightmare. Sort this out please.

Sadly, I won’t be doing any of the Sunday gigs because I’m flying off to America for a holiday. I will be wearing my Montrose Music Festival t-shirt though, so I’ll be spreading the word. It’s been another fantastic day in terms of gigs so a big thanks to the organisers once more.

Here’s to Montrose Music Festival 2010!

This evening, I ventured to a Deacon Blue gig at the Town Hall in Montrose, Scotland. The gig marked the start of the 2009 Montrose Music Festival and what a start it was.

Before I even got in to the gig, one thing I really like was the lack of time it took me to travel to the venue. None of this 2.5 hour drive to Glasgow malarkey- 10 minutes from leaving the house to arriving at the hall. That’s the way gigs should be. When I did arrive, the queue was tiny (not what I’m used to) and it was a gorgeous summer evening. Considering I’m in Scotland, I’m not exactly used to that either.

One thing that struck me when I got inside was how relaxed everyone was. I could easily have had front row if I wanted but the hall was roasting hot, even as I walked in. People were generally just standing round the edge of the floor, chatting. This was the first gig I went to alone so admittedly I felt a little self-concious having no one to talk to. Nevermind, the downtime gave me a chance to update Twitter and catch-up on tweets.

The first band on were from Dundee (yay!) and were called The Descartes. They’re an indie/rock band which I enjoyed although I realised that if I was going to last the whole evening, I’d have to move back. Where I was standing, the music was too loud, and it’s not like me to say something like that.

The next band up were a Glasgow-based band called The Fortunate Sons. Again, I really like their music too. Their final song, “Last Train” was great and I think it got everyone in the mood to boogy.

There was then an announcement saying that the bar would close at 9.30pm (what?!) and Deacon Blue would come on at that time. That meant there was a pretty boring 40 minute break. I’m not really sure why they closed the bar then? Given the sweltering heat it seemed a bit foolish. Then again, I don’t know if that was just a joke to try and get people to buy more alcohol. The bar was the place that was selling water as well so I doubt they would have deprived people of that.

Deacon Blue appeared on stage at 9.30pm are were just fantastic. I’m not sure exactly what song they kicked off with (need to get my hands on a setlist). Suddenly I was very glad that I hadn’t chosen to stand at the very front- Ricky Ross soaked the front row with water 2 songs in (ha ha). The highlight of the evening for me was definitely “Real Gone Kid”. I don’t know many Deacon Blue songs (although that’s going to change) but I knew that one. The audience went totally nuts for that- amazing atmosphere. The song kept going on and on thanks to the crowd- brill . Other fab songs of the evening were “Queen of the New Year”, “Fergus Sings The Blues”, “Chocolate Girl”, “Dignity” and “Twist and Shout”. The band went off stage at 11pm but the crowd went seriously insane for an encore (if you were there, you’ll know what I mean- who knew Montrosians could make that much of a racket, eh?) and they came back and played until 11.15pm. Slight aside here- I generally thought the curfew for gigs was 10.45pm or maybe 11pm? (don’t get me wrong- I’m not complaining ).

Like I said, I didn’t know many of their songs before I went to see them but they are really good live. They’ve got a new fan here and I’ll certainly be getting some of their stuff to put on my iPod.

General comments about the venue: it was too hot. That’s probably the only criticism of the whole evening. Normally at gigs, if you want out to get a bit of air, you have to fight through the crowd. Here, it was different. Everybody was really relaxed and didn’t bunch up too tightly. There was no need to keep your place by standing with your elbows out (know what I mean?). It was a nice atmosphere-really friendly.

What can I say to sum up? Deacon Blue put on a fantastic, loud show (including some great banter) and the support acts were really good too. £30 well spent. To think I wasn’t even sure about going because I was going on my own. The show was a brilliant way to kick off the festival. To all those going to the 2nd gig: have fun!

This is exactly the kind of thing Montrose needs. I’m not the sort of person who enjoys nightclubs where the so-called music consists of constant thumping which gives you a headache. I like my music played live, by talented musicians. A big thank you to the Montrose Music Festival committee for organising this and here’s to the rest of the festival!

PS- Could you maybe book Bryan Adams to appear next year too?

Pretty lights huh?  I was much closer but moved back because of the heat!

Mood : bouncy   Music : Chocolate Girl  by  Deacon Blue

After the amazing night I’d had at the Caird Hall in Dundee, I accepted that nothing would beat that.

I was really looking forward to the Glasgow gig but was gutted that I had to leave my house when I did.  I’d just found out that my Gran was away to be taken to hospital by ambulance because she’d had a bit of a funny turn.  Thankfully she’s ok at the moment but the doctors haven’t confirmed what’s wrong with her.

Back to the review…

My day really began once I’d arrived back down in Dundee.  I met my friend Kevin down there, wandered to university and did some work in my XML class until 2pm, when we decided to head off.  First stop was Kevin’s house, so I could drop my stuff off (I was staying there after the Glasgow gig).  We left there with plenty time to spare and I’m glad we did.

The road to Glasgow was littered with car accidents/roadworks which made it hellish trying to get to the SECC.  We were driving along the M8 at one point and saw a car which had crashed (no other car involved) and was facing the opposite direction…still trying to work out how the hell that happened.

We managed though and met up with my friend Kat, from High School.  As I was meeting her, I realised that Bryan was doing a soundcheck and I recognised the song- “Way of the World”!  Major “oh my god” moment.  Walked along the corridor to speak to Chels and she was thinking the exact same thing.

Once the doors opened, I met another of my friends from uni, Marc, and we got a spot in front of Keith’s mic, 4-5 rows back.  Turns out this was a good position to be in- really close and we kept getting blasts of cold air from the air conditioning.

The support act came on stage somewhere around 7.30pm (I think….I lost track of time because I was having some random conversations) and they were called Black Daniel.  If I’m being perfectly honest, I didn’t enjoy them that much.  Not quite my style of music and of course, I was just counting down ’til Bryan and co arrived on stage.  Loved the lead singer giving it his all with the cowbell during “Say Hello”.  I was a little concerned he might he his thumb though.

Bryan took to the B-stage at the back of the hall at 8.30pm and started with the acoustic version of “Can’t Stop This Thing We Started”.  In recent years, he’s missed out the second verse of this song (correct me if I’m wrong) however, this time, he sang the whole thing.  He then remained on the B-stage by himself and played “Please Forgive Me” (not the country version he played in Dundee).  Following that, it was time for “The Best of Me”.  We were only 5ft away from him when he came near our bit of the barrier- thought Kat was going to have a fit hehe.

Right, onto highlights of the gig…..

- “Somebody” featuring MC K-Man.  Seriously, I love Keith rapping.  I didn’t have a clue what he was going on about but I was lovin’ the hand movements.  Get down with your bad self, man (or whatever rappers say…).

- “Hearts on Fire”- I’ve never had the pleasure of hearing that live before so was quite excited about it.  I don’t know if it’s just my ears but to me, the intro sounds similar to “House Arrest” so for a few seconds, I wasn’t sure what was about to be played.

- “Kids Wanna Rock” was also played.  I remember last year at Murrayfield, the guitar battle didn’t really go on for long.  Not this time.  It was epic!

- One of the songs that I was quite excited about hearing was “The Way Of The World”.  How brilliant was that live?  In fact, it was great to hear songs from 11 performed live- they had so much energy.

-Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond- well I love this song anyway.  A full Runrig type version would have been brill (like on the Once in a Lifetime album )

- “Take Me Back”.  Another one of the songs that I never thought I’d hear live.  Went on for ages and diverged into “Papa Was A Rolling Stone”.  Think there was a moment during the song where Norm started walking forward to sing but wasn’t moving fast enough.  He ended up having to run to the mic to make it in time.  It rocked

“There’s Gonna Be Some Rockin’”- yay AC/DC cover.  The whole place was really jumping by this point.

So to sum up, it was an awesome gig- when the full band were onstage together, it was apparent that they were in a fantastic mood.  I thought the atmosphere was one of the best I’d been in amongst but then I thought it was maybe just me.  Then I read Bryan’s tour diary and spoke to others about the gig and everybody was agreeing.  Electric atmosphere and easily one of the best BA gigs I’ve been too.

So a big thank you to Bryan, Keith, Norm, Gary and Mickey for another fantastic night. .  Oh, and I should probably take a moment to apologise to the woman who was standing in front of me.  I think I was singing very loudly and I hope I haven’t deafened her/scarred her for life (…tone deaf you see).

After the gig, I headed off to Perth and I don’t think I got to sleep ’til 3am.  Just lay awake thinking about how great the gig was.  I remember seeing 5am as well but I think I might have been drifting in and out of sleep?  I had to get up at 7.15am anyway so I could get ready to head to uni back in Dundee.  I was there for the whole day but didn’t get any work done at all…..my head just wasn’t “with it”.  I wonder why….

For those that are interested, here’s the setlist….

***b-stage***
Can’t Stop This Thing We Started (Solo acoustic)
Please Forgive Me (Solo acoustic)
The Best Of Me (walks to mainstage)
***b-stage***
Somebody (with MC K-Man)
Hearts On Fire
Kids Wanna Rock
18 Til I Die
Let’s Make A Night To Remember
I Ain’t Losin’ The Fight
Back To You
Summer Of ’69
Everything I Do
Cuts Like A Knife
When You’re Gone (with some If Ya Wanna Be Bad, Ya Gotta Be Good)
The Way Of The World
Heaven
It’s Only Love
Take Me Back/Papa Was A Rolling Stone
Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?
The Only Thing That Looks Good On Me Is You
Run To You
I Thought I’d Seen Everything
Cloud #9
There’s Gonna Be Some Rockin’ (AC/DC cover)
Straight From The Heart
All For Love

*Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond was in there somewhere too

Mood : chipper   Music : Hearts Of Olden Glory  by  Runrig