Memoirs of a Roadie

All Cats Are Grey

Posted on 3rd April 2021

This week's poll year was 1981. Quite a influencial year for me, as it was the year I first started going to gigs. It was also the year I discovered we would be moving from Cheshire down to Leicestershire. I was going to miss the record shops in Crewe, and that amazing second-hand shop near school, where I spent a substantial amount of time and money on vinyl from around 1978 onwards, thanks to recommendations from various Radio One DJs, and friends.

My picks from this year, all had made an impression on me from previous years, so it wasn't too surprising they featured highly in my list. However, there was so much I was buying and listening to, I feel I need to put in a top 100 for 1981 (and I will likely have similar for the other years 1978-1984, when we finally get to them!).

My top choice, The Cure I was lucky enough to hear their first single played on late night Radio One (I think John Peel played it) in 1978, so I already knew and had records by the band. However, Faith was the first album that felt like a complete experience from beginning to end. From the opening of The Holy Hour, you knew this wasn't going to be a light-hearted listening session. Other Voices, back then and still now, is the stand out track on the album for me. I can't explain why, it can just stop me in my tracks when I listen to it. There really isn't a dud track on this album though, and I frequently still play it now.

My second choice, Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark, I first heard (as I recall, although I may have heard the previous singles on a Peel/Jensen show) via the single Messages. This their third album was a mix of their pop leanings and the experimental sounds that has frequented many of their albums. I was fortunate enough to see them on this tour at The Apollo in Manchester, and still remains one of the best shows I've seen them perform. She's Leaving and Georgia are still my favourites songs from the album.

New Order, although this being their debut, obviously were well known and anticipated in the months after Ian Curtis' death the previous year. Although they didn't exactly sound like Joy Division, you could still hear that musical progression from the previous few years. With the band members all trying out the vocals, before they finally settled on Bernard being the vocalist, each song has it's own subtle sound differences, even though musically it's all the same band. I remember playing it the first time with eager anticipation on my Dansette record player, and having the feeling that whatever came next, this band were not going to disapppoint. As we now know, they didn't ;) My favourite track changes, but for the moment Dreams Never End is the one I'm drawn to.

My next choice, Rainbow, had been a personal favourite for many years after becoming a Deep Purple fan, when I was recommended to buy a copy of Made In Japan from that second-hand record shop in Crewe. When Ritchie Blackmore left Deep Purple and formed Rainbow, for me it felt like a natural progression. Although Down To Earth was a striking change in direction, Difficult To Cure with new singer Joe-Lynn Turner gave the band a fresh lease of life. I got to see them on this tour (my second gig!) at Bingley Hall in Stafford, where upon arrival discovered the venue was not much more than a massive barn, where they auctioned farm live stock! As it turned out, it appears to have been one of Ritchie favourite venues, as the two shows I saw them play there (I saw them again in 1984 on the Bent Out Of Shape Tour) they were the longest sets on the tour, clocking over 2 hours for both shows, whereas tapes from other shows I have, usually just hit the 90 minute mark. Favourite song from the album was Can't Happen Here. 

My final top 5 choice is Stiff Little Fingers. My school friend Alan played me Alternative Ulster back in late 78, and I was hooked. A new form of punk was emerging, and SLF were the front runners. By 1981's third album, they had honed their craft, and were turning out cracking songs with ease. Gate 49 is easily my favourite from the album, and is the Gate at Heathrow when flying to Belfast, which explains the lyrics. Although, I didn't get to see them on the tour for the album, I did see them on the short tour in January 1982, when new boy Dolphin Taylor was introduced to the fans. It had been snowing heavily, so even though the show was sold out, several people never made it. As such, seating wasn't really being checked, so as a couple of my mates were slightly smaller than me, we opted to head up to the balcony. We had an hilarious time pogo-ing on the walkway between the front and back tiers of seats. Years later, I got to do a lighting gig for SLF at the Institute in Birmingham. I felt like that teenager again :)

And so to my top 100...

I should mention that most of the albums 1-50 I own. However, for those in the list 51-100, I mostly have listened to initially from friends albums, but have discovered others in more recent times. Having said that, there are more than a few that I hope to add to my collection at some point.

Gimme Chocolate!!

Posted on 27th March 2021

So this week's poll year 2014. A lot of rock/metal and progressive rock albums this year, and a few folk entries too. 

To date, BABYMETAL are now the last band I've seen live, back in February 2020, at my old haunt the Manchester Apollo. I discovered them around this time when I caught a feature of them on a music channel, possibly Kerrang!. I was both impressed with the songs, but also the ability for the Kawaii J-Pop sounds to mix seamlessly with the power metal of the Kami Band, forming the unique Kawaii Metal scene.

I've been a long time fan of KMFDM, and this album was instantly among my favourites on first listen. From the introduction by Miss Annabella, Lucia and Sasha's daughter, through to Make Your Stand, an electronic beat tour-de-force all the way. Respeckt!

I discovered 3TEETH a few years ago, and now wished I discovered them even earlier. This, their debut album, set the scene for what was to come, and from such an awesome beginning, it's been great to see them only grow. 

With NMA I have been very fortunate, as I've known them since their very first record. A friend of mine was the boyfriend of Rob Heaton's younger sister, and when I went to visit him back in Holmes Chapel once, he persuaded me to buy the single Bittersweet from him (he was doing a good sales job with all his friends), but he knew it was my kind of music. He wasn't wrong, and I've been a fan ever since. This album was a solid companion to 2013's Between Dog And Wolf, offering both studio and live tracks.

Mogwai, I saw in the late 90s, but mistook them for another band, who I wasn't impressed with, and ever since had not really paid attention to them. Until 2019, when I happen to listen to one of the albums and realised my mistake. I have since gone back and listened to all their albums, and hang my head in shame that I missed out on this band for so many years. Their more recent albums, include Rave Tapes, are a pure delight.

And on to 2014's top 50...

You Are the World

Posted on 20th March 2021

So the first poll year is 1991. In my original list Tribe's Abort came top, and while I still love the album, having listened to several other albums I bought at the time, my preferences all got scrambled again!

+Live+ were a band I discovered thanks to their song Pain Lies On The Riverside, from my new top choice, Mental Jewelry. I went to see them on their Throwing Copper tour in 1994 (well I actually crewed the gig they did at Edwards No.8 in Brum ... supported by Catatonia), and have been a fan ever since.

So my top 50 for 1991 ....

Where the Bands Are

Posted on 20th March 2021

So my good intentions with writing up a diary entry once a month with some of the bands and artists I'd been listening didn't get very far. Sadly events of last year proved too overwhelming to write more. I still have several draft entries for some of those I had planned to feature, so I hope to finish them off over the coming months.

Although writing proved tough last year, I did get involved with a Twitter sensation of ranking albums released from 1965 to 2005, and the associated decades, thanks to the idea of Richard Shaw (@RichardS7370). Together with Mark (@marksmusic1977), Iain (@icrawford17), Si (@SimonFarrier1) @jhoburgh, and several others, music polls have been the thing that has helped me to keep lockdown fatigue at bay.

Rediscovering albums, bands, and songs, as well as listening to several I'd never heard before, has been a delight. 

This year Richard has decided to turn things around slightly, and while we once again revisiting several of the years featured last year, he is extending it to feature the years 1963-2021. As such, I will also be revisiting my top 50s that I was posting, reviewing, and reposting an up to date version here. 

Let the listening begin....

Where The Pieces Lie

Posted on 26th April 2020

April's Artist of the Month is Wheel.

I accidentally came across Wheel while listening to a few other bands, and a suggestion came up for a song off their latest album, Moving Backwards. Trying to find more information about the band initially proved awkward, as the band's website was inactive (it's back now). Thankfully, after a bit of searching across various website, provided me with their Twitter and Instagram handles. From there I discovered a few more bits of info.

The band hail from Finland, although vocalist James Lascelles is from the UK. Moving Backwards (2019) is their debut album, and was preceded with two EPs; The Path EP (2017) and The Divide EP (2018). They have since also released a combined CD with both EPs. They've been touring for some time, but mostly across Europe so far. With the state of the world and gigs at the moment, it might be a while before they head out for a more extensive tour, but hopefully they fit a few UK shows into their itinery.

The band have a sound that is very reminscent of Tool in places, but at the same time I can also hear influences of Porcupine Tree. However, those comparisons might mislead you, as the band have their own style, which builds on these influences, but gives something else in return. I've heard a few bands recently, some well known, that seem to have similar influences, but for me Wheel have something that is just that extra special, and given the right exposure, will forge their own identity.

The songs are a blend of rock, metal, progressive, hardcore, and maybe even a bit of grunge. They have the complexity of what you might expect of a modern progressive rock band, but it's underpinned by some solid bass and drums, allowing the guitars and vocals to weave their way into and around your mind. The song Wheel being a good example, as the bass and drums lay the foundations and settle you into a groove, when the guitar riffs start infiltrating the flow, and almost without you noticing, the bass and drums have been getting harder and more infectious. The vocals then appear seductively drawing you in, until they have you and then drag you raging through the chorus. 

Several of their songs clock in over 8 minutes, but while listening to them, you become so engrossed it's easy to think they finish far too soon. It's become acceptable now for the progressive rock/metal bands to clock in long songs, but I do remember the days when anything breaking a 5 minute barrier was frowned upon by the metal press. Wheel strike a good balance between the song lengths, with each song sounding as long as it should. It wouldn't surprise me if at some point they come out with a 20+ minute epic, along the lines of Dream Theatre.

If you only see Wheel as another band influenced by Tool, then I think you'd be doing both bands and yourself a disservice. Most bands start with their influences, but those with talent and substance, quickly evolve their own personality. Judging from the early EPs to the debut album, Wheel are doing exactly that. Personally I can't wait to hear what comes next. I'm also hoping I get to see them live at some point.

Favourite songs: Wheel, Farewell, The Path

Check them out at wheel.band