Fleetwood Mac Live Review

So far this year I have managed to tick a number of things off my bucket list - one being 'see Ryan Adams live in concert.' Check.

Despite being a huge Ryan Adams fan however, there is one band that pips him to the post in my eyes; Fleetwood Mac - one of the best selling bands of all time. 

Anyone who is unaware of this band, I am sorry, but I have to ask, where have you been hiding for the last forty years? Forming together back in 1967, the story of Fleetwood Mac has been no means plain sailing. The core line up made of Stevie Nicks, Christine McVie, Lindsey Buckingham and John McVie has been constantly changing. With  stories of marriages, affairs, break ups, feuds and divorces plaguing the band, it is no wonder the core four have not remained constant over their 40+ year journey. There is one member however that has been present from day 1:  Mick Fleetwood. 

To date this band has released seventeen albums, the most successful one being Rumours (1977), which stayed at the number one spot in the US album charts for 31 weeks, and included 4 Top 10 US singles.

Although tickets to their show were easily the most expensive I have ever had to pay for a gig, it was 100% worth it. With no support act beforehand, Fleetwood Mac hit the stage and delivered a cracking show of their best singles for a solid 2.5hrs.

The evenings music was split out in several sections and included the following singles: The Chain, You Make Loving Fun, Dreams, Second Hand News, Rhiannon, Everywhere, I know i'm not wrong, Tusk, Sisters of the Moon, Say You Love Me, Big Love, Landslide, Never Going Back Again, Over My Head, Gypsy, Little Lies, Gold Dust Woman, I'm So Afraid, Go Your Own Way, World Turning, Don't Stop, Silver Springs and Songbird. 

It should come as no surprise these guys are awesome live. With over 40years behind them, they have had enough time to practice and get it right. Saying that, what impressed me the most was their fabulous stage presence and endurance. Aside from a very cool digital screen behind them which complimented their music entirely, the band kept things simple by ensuring the basics were right - it was obvious they put everything they had into each track. This in itself is phenomenal since they are all aged over 65. So yes, Fleetwood Mac, you've definitely still got it. 

For me the highlights were Stevie Nicks acoustic performance of landslide (a personal fav track of mine), Lindsey Buckingham giving it his all during his rendition of Big Love and finally Mick Fleetwood starting the 1st encore off with an impressive drum intro to 'World Turning.' 

The 20,000 strong crowd was treated to a great night of live music. The majority of the crowd were up on their feet and singing and dancing for the entire set. For me, what was so apparent, is how successful Fleetwood Mac has been in attracting fans of all ages. There were young kids, twenty somethings, and even the oldies - further highlighting why this band so rightly deserves the label of one of the biggest selling bands in all time.  

The reality is, after this tour (from the UK they are due to fly to Aus), who knows what Fleetwood Mac will do next. Have they got another album in them yet? I really hope so, but i'm not willing to place any bets on it just yet. With that in mind I am just so pleased I managed to see them live - and even better, all the core members were present. Without a margin of doubt, I would give this gig 10 out of 10. The overall vibe, stage presence, quality of music, and lighting effects were all flawless. So all I would say is if you do find yourself faced with the opportunity to see this band live, take my advice, buy the tickets. You can bet it will be well worth your time. 

Upcoming tour dates: 

8th June. Genting Arena, Birmingham - UK 

9th June. Genting Arena, Birmingham - UK

12th June. Manchester Arena, Manchester - UK 

14th June. Isle of Wight Festival - UK 

16/17tth June. SSE Hydro, Glasgow - UK

22/24/26/27 June. O2 Arena, London - UK 

30th June. First Direct Arena, Leeds - UK 

1st July. Manchester Arena, Manchester - UK

4th July. Genting Arena, Birmingham - UK 

5th July. First Direct Arena, Leeds - UK 

8th July. SSE HYDRO, Leeds - UK 

For more information regarding tickets and tour dates check out: http://www.fleetwoodmac.com/events

Ryan Adams Live

On Friday 27th February, for my birthday, I headed to the Evertim Apollo. After years of being a Ryan Adams fan (and close monitoring of his UK tours via google alerts), I was finally able to see him live.

For those of you who are not aware of Ryan Adams - and yes, I do mean Ryan and not Bryan - he is an American singer/songwriter from North Carolina. Ryan first hit the music scene in the early nineties, and has to date released a staggering 14 albums and five EPs.

My particular favourite period of Adams' career thus far is when he sang with the Cardinals and released two albums "Cold Roses" and "Jacksonville City Nights." In terms of singles, Ryan Adams has had a number of great tracks, however the one that branched out to the largest audience was his cover of Wonderwall by Oasis. His cover even proved popular with Oasis lead singer Noal Gallagher who said "I never got my head round this song until I went to [see] Ryan Adams play and he did an amazing cover of it."

Anyway enough of the bio - lets get back to the gig. With any artist that has been around for over 10 years, the fan base was vast and diverse! There were young'uns and oldies, all wearing their leather jackets and excited for the performance ahead.

Supporting Adams that night was American singer and songwriter Natalie Prass. Natalie is a relatively new face to the music scene, only having just released her debut album in January of this year. Despite Prass' soft yet strong distinct vocals, her songs did very little to enrapture me. Overall I feel her performance did not do a great job in warming up the crowd. However saying that, I did feel Prass sang very well when she performed two duets with Ryan later in the evening.

It was clear by the cheers and applause from the crowd, they were ecstatic to see Ryan Adams. Dressed in his denims and standard mass of wild hair, Adams welcomed the crowd "That's right, its the weekend. Time to get sad." A man with a dry sense of humour, Adams seemed more than happy to take the mic out of himself and his 'depressed' fans! Even when a minor fight broke out near the end of his set, Ryan was able to keep up the banter and question how anyone could get so riled up to his music. Not one to be distracted, Ryan Adams soon got the show going again and announced 'Right, lets try another f***ing miserable song." Cue rapturous applause from the sold out crowd.

The set list for the evening included: Gimme Something Good, Let It Ride, Stay With Me, Dear Chicago, This House Is Not For Sale, Everybody Knows, My Winding Wheel, Dirty Rain, Magnolia Mountain, New York, New York, Kim, Two, My Wrecking Ball, I Just Might, I love You But I Don't Know What To Say, Your Fool, Oh My Sweet Carolina, La Cienega Just Smiled, Trouble, When The Stars Go Blue, I see Monsters and Come Pick Me Up.

What was great about this gig was seeing Ryan Adams perform some of his best singles for a solid two hours. The combination of great songs, banter and talent (vocals, guitar and harmonica) meant Ryan Adams was able to deliver a flawless night of bloody brilliant live music. He even was able to demonstrate his musical talent by singing an improv song "I ate something off the street" after overhearing a conversation from the crowd. A pure genius.

I am well and truly thrilled I can now scratch "see Ryan Adams live" off my bucket list. I would urge all fans out there to GO and see him live.

Upcoming gigs include: 
5th June - The Governors Ball Music Festival - NYC
4th July - Calling Festival - London

To see the rest of his tour dates check out: http://www.songkick.com/artists/332590-ryan-adams/calendar

Bell XI

This Irish Indie Rock band, named after the first supersonic aircraft Bell X-1, are someone to check out.

Since their arrival onto the music scene in 1999, Bell X1 have released a number of studio albums; "Neither Am I," "Music in Mouth" "Flock," "Blue Lights on the Runway," and "Bloodless Coup."

Bell X1 managed to break the US after their single "Eve, the Apple of My Eye" was featured during 'the' lesbian kiss scene in The O.C. Since this feature, Bell X1 began to really build up their fan base, causing them to tour more and more around N.America and Europe. If you have yet to hear about this band but like the band Radiohead and/or artist Ryan Adams, than this band should be right up your street.

According to Billboard, other than U2, Bell X1 have the most airtime on irish radio for any Irish band.  Over the duration of their music career, this band have been nominated for many awards including the Meteor Music Awards and Choice Music Awards.

Bell X1 are certainly a well oiled band when it comes to their live performances. With the success of the bands first live rooftop gig held at Facebook's headquarters in Dublin, Bell X1 are going from strength to strength - note the success of their recent 2012 N.American acoustic Tour. For me, an acoustic/ raw performance can be the difference between a good performance and a great one. With charisma, vocal ability and tour experience all behind them, this band is sure to deliver a string of great gigs.

Check them out...you won't be left disappointed.

Tour dates:
22nd November. Empire Music Hall - Belfast
23rd January. King Tut's Wah Wah Hut - Glasgow
24th January. The Ruby Lounge - Manchester
25th January. Bush Hall - London


For further information regarding their tour dates and tickets check out: http://www.songkick.com/artists/78581-bell-x1/calendar?page=1

Wilco

 There is no question about it I am definitely going through a phase at the moment. I'm constantly flicking absentmindedly between artists Ryan Adams,  Bon Iver, Joe Purdy, Alexi Murdoch and this band...Wilco. It seems I can't get enough of the chilled, soft and quiet rhythmic tunes, intimate lyrics and, deep, raw emotive vocals. 

Wilco is an alternative rock band based in Chicago, US. They have been around for quite some time and have been deemed by Rolling Stone as "one of America's most consistently interesting bands" and "America's foremost rock impressionists."

Wilco formed after the country band 'Uncle Tupelo' split up. Since their formation in 1994, Wilco have released eight albums; 'A.M.,' 'Being There,' 'Summerteeth,' 'Yankee Hotel Foxtrot,' 'A Ghost Is Born,' 'Sky Blue Sky,' 'Wilco (the Album)' and,  their most recent 'The Whole Love.'

Unsurprisingly, with their long history of performing you can expect a good show. With practice comes perfection, something this band demonstrates to the T. Lead singer Jeff Tweedy looks every bit in his element when on stage, and combine this with the instrumental talent and vocal ability of the entire band you can be promised a great show. If you do want tickets to see them live however, I urge you to do so quick as they will sell out.

Tour dates: 
21st July. Susquehanna Bank Center - Camden, NJ
23rd July. Prospect Park - Brooklyn, NY
24th July. Prospect Park - Brooklyn, NY
25th July. Terminal 5 - NYC
28th July. Brewery Ommegang - Cooperstown, NY
3rd August. Highland Bowl - Rochester, NY
12th  August. Wilderness Festival - Cornbury Park, UK

For more information regarding tickets and/or their N.American/  Europe tour check out: http://wilcoworld.net/#!/shows/

Ryan Adams

Ryan  Adams is one of my all time favorite artists. 

Ryan Adams, a country rock singer from North Carolina first hit the music scene in 1991. In 2009 Adams left the cardinals and announced he was taking a break from music. However in 2010 Adams returned with his thirteenth album "Ashes & Fire." His previous albums include "Hheartbreaker," "Gold," "Demolition," "Rock n Roll," "Love Is Hell," "Cold Roses," "Jacksonville City Nights," "29," "Easy Tiger," "Cardinology," "Onion," and "111/1V." 

Songs that I would definitely suggest checking out are Cry on Demand, How Do You Keep Love Alive, Oh My Sweet Carolina and the superb cover of Wonderwall.

When seeing Ryan Adams live expect both sell out crowds and odd requests like 'no cell phones' or 'bars closed by 9pm.' Despite these odd requests there is no question about it, this is MUST see gig. A charismatic individual with a great deal of talent, Adams will astound you with performances of all hits popular hits from over the years. 

Tour dates:
20th April. Waterfront Hall - Belfast, UK
22nd April. The Sage Hall 1 - Gateshead, UK
23rd April. London Palladium - London, UK
26th April. Nottingham Royal Centre - Nottingham, UK
27th April. Sheffield City Hall - Sheffield, UK
30th April. London Palladium - London, UK

For more information about tickets and his European tour check out: http://www.songkick.com/artists/332590-ryan-adams/calendar?page=1