Ever been to a music gig? Want to go again? Want to know who is worth seeing?
Music gigs and festivals is a blog dedicated to telling you where and when the coolest bands are playing in NY and the UK. In addition to this I will also be sharing reviews about gigs and festivals I have attended which are definitely worth checking out.
Before living in America I would never listen to rap. Now, likely to be the influence of friends, I listen to a lot more rap like Lil Wayne and Solja Boy.
One rap artist that I listen to all the time and absolutely love is Kid Cudi. Kid Cudi first appeared on the scene in 2009 ,with his most popular hit to date "Day n Nite." Since this Kid Cudi has released a number of great songs such as Simple As, Make Her Say and my favorite, Pursuit of Happiness.
Although tickets may be quite pricey, his gigs are certainly worth your every cent. Kid Cudi has, and continues to receive tremendous reviews for his gigs. Not only do people rave about his rapping skills, but for his consistent energetic performances and ability to really work a crowd. I can't stress enough - this is a gig worth attending!!
Tour dates:
20th April. Roseland Ballroom - NYC
21st April. Roseland Ballroom - NYC
22nd April. Roseland Ballroom - NYC
23rd April. Carrier Dome - Syracuse, NY
Both these bands are awesome and a must see! Arcade Fire is an indie rock band made up of seven musicians from Quebec. They have released three albums "Funerals," "Neon Bible" and "The Suburbs" and won many prestigious awards, the most recent being "Best International Album" and "Best International Group" at the 2011 BRIT Awards. If you like bands such as The Strokes, Broken Social Scene and/ or The National, than Arcade Fire is a band for you. One thing that must not go unsaid is their excellent reputation for consistently delivering outstanding gigs. With this in mind I urge you to buy tickets quickly as they usually sell out fast.
The supporting acts for Arcade Fire are Beirut, The Vaccines, and Mumford & Sons. I have to admit that even if the headliner was rubbish I would still try to get tickets to this gig simply to see Mumford & Sons again!
I love everything about Mumford & Sons; their songs, their charisma, their attitude, and their voices. I have seen Mumford & Sons live twice, once at Glastonbury Music Festival and once in New York. They defiantly didn't disappoint! Each gig was performed flawlessly.
Not only are these four Londoners great live singers, but they have great personality's which always come out during their shows. This is a band that can certainly work a crowd, to the extent that they had the whole crowd eating from their hand, creating a euphoric atmosphere. During both gigs Mumford & Sons performed their popular hits Sigh No More, Little Lion Man and The Cave as well as new material such as the unreleased song, Below My Feet.
Since finishing their US tour, Mumford & Sons have been working on their next album - so I urge you all to get tickets to see them as it is certainly a gig not to be missed.
Bamboozle Festival takes place every year and is certainly worth checking out. It runs from April 29th until May 1st, and has many great headliners such as Lil Wayne, Tacking Back Sunday and Thirty Seconds to Mars. I have not been lucky enough to see many of these bands live, however I have seen Frank Turner and The Gaslight Anthem. If these two gigs are anything to go by, than this is going to be a great festival.
Ticket prices work like Airlines prices, the closer the the festival the higher the price of the ticket. With this in mind, I advise you to purchase tickets sooner rather than later.
Some of the bands include:
Lil Wayne, Motley Crue, Taking back Sunday, The Gaslight Anthem, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Wiz Khalifa, Bruno Mars, Biffy Clyro, Chiddy Bang, Dashboard Confessional, Frank Turner, LMFAO, Plain White T's, Senses Fail and Super Mash Bros.
This is a great indie rock band from London, UK. White Lies formed in 2007 but only started growing in popularity with the release of their songs "Unfinished Business" and "Death" in 2009. If you are a fan of bands such as The Klaxons, Editors, Interpol and Fear of Flying then this is a band you need to check out. White Lies have two albums, "To Lose My Life.." which hit number one on the UK Album Charts, and "Ritual" which was just recently released in January of this year. The lead singer Harry McVeigh has a very distinct voice which allows you to instantly recognize their songs. Generally their songs, although quite dark, are very uplifting and inspiring.
Even though I have not seen this band live, I am an avid listener of their music and will definitely be looking to see White Lies live in the future.
A friend came across this band and told me to check them out. The first song I checked out by them was a cover of Bombay Bicycle Club's "Always Like This" and I thought it was pretty good. I then came across a cover of "Sleepy Head" by Passion Pit which I really liked.
Run Toto Run is a three piece indie electro pop band from Manchester, UK and reminds me a great deal of bands such as Kate Nash, Passion Pit and the Ting Tings. New to the music scene, Run Toto Run is a band that is worth looking out for.
Tour dates (UK tour only): 10th March. The Harley - Sheffield, UK. 19th March. The Castle - Manchester, UK. 25th March. The Box - Crewe, UK. 26th March. Radio Session - Manchester, UK. 1st April. Soundcontrol - Manchester, UK. 21st May. Capesthorne Hall - Cheshire, UK. 22nd May. Capesthorne Hall - Cheshire, UK.
My number 1 band to listen to is Bloc Party, an indie rock band from London, UK. I started listening to this band in 2003 when I came across the song "Banquet" which is my favorite of all Bloc Party's songs. I have seen this band live and thought they were incredible. Watching them live was awesome as they performed their songs with so much energy that they had the whole crowd buzzed and the atmosphere was electrifying. The main performer of the band, Kele was definitely the natural performer and so when it was announced that the band were going on hiatus and he was going solo I was excited to see what he would do.
I have not been left disappointed. Kele Okereke released his first solo album "The Boxer" which includes the songs "Tenderoni" and "Everything You Want." Whilst I was at Glastonbury Music Festival over the summer Kele performed a great set. He sang both his own stuff and material from when he was in Bloc Party such as "Flux." This is definitely a gig not to miss out on.
Tour dates:
19th March. The Plug- Sheffield, UK
19th - 21st Aug. V Festival - Staffordshire, UK
