15 December 2002: D-A-D + Tim Christensen - Shepherds Bush Empire, London, England, UK

This gig was advertised as a Danish Rock Christmas Special and if you have read some of my reviews you will already know that I have a bit of a soft spot for Scandinavian rock and with this being the first UK date for D-A-D for about ten years it was for me at least not to be missed.

This was the first ever UK date for Tim Christensen but as there was a very large Danish contingent in the crowd so that was not a…

14 March 2009: ColouringIN - Club Motherf**ker DEAD!, Barden's Boudoir, London, England, UK

This was going to be a two act, double review of Rex the Dog -a great and well known DJ- and ColouringIN - a breaking act pushing to establish a new sound.

But on arriving at Club Motherf**ker in Stoke Newington for its final monthly party, the black board on the street announced that Rex would not be appearing due to a bout of Dog flu.

Undeterred I still paid my six quid, and one beer later ColouringIN front…

Sat 14 Mar – Club Motherfucker DEAD!

08 February 2003: Pretty Boy Floyd + Robin Black and the Intergalactic Rock Stars – Rock City, Nottingham, England, UK

I first heard Pretty Boy Floyd in the early nineties but it wasn't until last February when they blew Faster Pussycat off the main stage at Rock City that I actually got to see them live. Based on the performance at the Faster Pussycat gig I was really looking forward to this one.

I can't tell you who the first band on were (sorry, I'm getting on a bit now and the memory isn't as good as it used to…

09 March 2009: Gold Future Joy Machine - Star, Bethnal Green, London, England, UK

East London is known most, in musical terms at least, for its role in evolving UK dance music in particular its history of british Hip hop, Grime and Ragga. However a new sound is also evolving in Hackney estates below the radar that maybe has as much to do with Grunge guitars as it does the bleeps and glitsches of Beau Grime or Shoreditch Electro.

Gold Future Joy Machine are a sonic wrecking ball five piece that electrified The Star of Bethnal Green last night, and…

25 February 2003: Bowling For Soup - Rock City, Nottingham, England, UK

Nottingham has a great reputation in the Rock and alternative music scene and the crowd that attended this gig shows that it deserves it. There were four bands on offer for a tenner and it don't get much better than that.

I can't tell you much about the support apart from one was called Uncle Brian and had some cool T-Shirts saying Brian Maiden in that style typified by the giants of metal. What I can tell you is that they were all fucking excellent and the crowd…

03 March 2003: Levellers - De Montfort Hall, Leicester, England, UK

The long road to Leicester winds its way in front of me on a dark Monday night and the journey to see the Levellers begins. De Montfort Hall, from memory a dark dingy theatre with seats upstairs and standing in the "auditorium", turns out to be a brightly lit and obviously recently renovated venue, with very polite door people and a lovely foyer where you could buy sweets or get yourself a bag of Walkers!

These you were "allowed" to eat in the "auditorium", but what you weren't allowed…

10 March 2003: Levellers - Assembly Rooms, Derby, England, UK

At approximately twenty past nine The Levellers took to the stage to rapturous applause from the expectant crowd and, after brief hello's, launched immediately into "Come On". The crowd going wild and the late comers rushing in through the exits to stage front. This was followed by a supercharged "100 Years of Solitude" and then "The Game", each of which brought the audience to new levels of excitement.

After a brief lull while Mark changed guitars, "Pretty Target" was introduced and dedicated…

20 April 2003: The Buzzcocks - Rock City, Nottingham, England, UK

Here's to hoping. Hoping all day, and for the weeks leading up to the gig, that the Buzzcocks will play "Boredom". But, no chance. It's just not going to happen, especially with a new, just released, album to sell.

Then again, sometimes, dreams come true and, after fighting to get served (twice) at the (now renowned) sparsely staffed Rock City bar, and having just downed a triple vodka and orange, what happens? The lights dim, the Buzzcocks appear and, after a quick "hello" from Shelley, and a…

23 April 2003: The Wildhearts - Rock City, Nottingham, England, UK

Watching the mighty Real Madrid give the red Manc scum another lesson in how to play football or going to see the support band, Amen, was an unexpected dilemma at the start of the night. It was solved, as is so often the case, by a compromise; we watched Ronaldo score a glorious hat-trick inside an hour to effectively kill off the tie before wandering up to Rock City in time to catch the last two or three songs from Amen.

There's not much to say about Amen…

27 April 2003: The Bluetones - Rescue Rooms, Nottingham, England, UK

Memories of sitting in a field waiting for Travis to appear at V99 in Weston Park came flooding back to me in the run up to this gig. The Bluetones "If.." makes a brief appearance over the PA, and subsequently proved that Travis, despite the hype, just weren't that good.

The fact that one, pre-recorded track, outclassed virtually every other bands performance that day, including Manic Street Preachers and with the exception of the Levellers and perhaps the Beautiful South, shows that the Bluetones have some great songs…