Live gigs - Who you've seen were they good, bad etc.

[Chapple12345]

2 very different gigs at 2 very different venues: 

Florence and the Machine at the O2 on Monday - absolutely spectacular in every way 

Ash at Epic Studios Norwich - great nostalgic fun 

[Nestacres]

And another...2 very different gigs at 2 very different venues

Florence - 02 - was ok. I'm not a massive fan but the staging was good and the songs off the new album come across well

Die Spitz - Camden underworld. Mental. Sweat driping off the ceiling, stage diving, band members in the crowd, pints being thrown.

[dondo]

Big Special great as always in Leeds last night. Support from Gans who were excellent and Good Health Good Wealth who were pretty good too. 

 

[DomDom1984]

I was at Maximo Park in Glasgow and absolutely LOVED it. Wee bonus not getting Art Brut who I do not like at all. And bis were really good.

 

Maximo Park were sensational though. Had only seen them once at TRNSMT in 2022 so it was great to see them do this stuff. Also was pleasantly surprised they pulled out Karaoke Plays since they rarely played that after that album cycle.

[EssexIndie]

3rd gig of the week for me and a nice local one-Suede in Southend. Fantastic as always. The ‘anti nostalgia’ band sounding as good as they ever have!

[NorthernSoul52]

Did three on the bounce at O2 Academy Leeds this week. Wednesday were solid enough, though the fuzzy abruptness sometimes got a little too swirly for my taste; Franz Ferdinand were immaculately tight and wonderfully camp still, aging impressively well; Of Monsters and Men felt a little undernourished on some of the older material, but the new songs were all terrific. Got a slightly quieter week to come - just the two gigs!

[archiegow]

Two nights in a row at the Cluny in Newcastle this week. Started with the man himself Peter Capaldi on Tuesday night - was unaware until recently that he made music but thought it could be a fun evening and indeed it was. Capaldi was charismatic as ever and delivered some very enjoyable if melancholic 80s-style pop rock. He was very self-deprecating and a joy to watch all night and his covers of All the Young Dudes (with a verse of Don't Look Back in Anger for good measure!) and Friday I'm In Love were wonderful. His support Zoe Graham was also a brilliant find, despite only being solo on the night she was incredibly charming and hilarious and her music was also a real treat. She's supporting Idlewild on their upcoming tour so definitely one to watch!

 

Then I caught 90s Brooklyn rap cult hero Talib Kweli on Wednesday night and was also thoroughly entertained. Despite having an hour between him and his support and starting at 9.30, he more than made up for the wait. He kept the crowd moving and engaged at all times and played several of his hits with Mos Def, did a freestyle verse over A Tribe Called Quest's Check the Rhime and shouted out the likes of MF DOOM and the recently late producer John Forte (getting his DJ to play a song from the Fugees as a nice tribute). While he was only on stage for an hour, every minute was well spent and you could tell he was having a great time!

[charlierc]

22 hours ago, NorthernSoul52 said:

Did three on the bounce at O2 Academy Leeds this week. Wednesday were solid enough, though the fuzzy abruptness sometimes got a little too swirly for my taste; Franz Ferdinand were immaculately tight and wonderfully camp still, aging impressively well; Of Monsters and Men felt a little undernourished on some of the older material, but the new songs were all terrific. Got a slightly quieter week to come - just the two gigs!

My cousin lives in York and we had talked about seeing Franz at the Leeds O2 this week. Sadly she was busy, so I'm going to Birmingham on Friday instead.

 

Good to hear they still do what they do very well. It'll be my first gig of the year so I look forward to popping on down for it.

[Kalopsia]

Foo Fighters at the o2 Ritz last night was fun, though a couple of complete tw*ts in the crowd...

[efcfanwirral]

49 minutes ago, Kalopsia said:

Foo Fighters at the o2 Ritz last night was fun, though a couple of complete tw*ts in the crowd...

It was absolutely mind blowing I thought. Unbelievable night.

 

What happened? Was all good around me!

[Kalopsia]

43 minutes ago, efcfanwirral said:

It was absolutely mind blowing I thought. Unbelievable night.

 

What happened? Was all good around me!

There was an incredibly drunk/high tall guy and his way of moshing was just all wrong, lead with elbows and smacked my head a couple of times. Then he and his friend stared as my boyfriend and I cuddled during a slower song, next minute they're shoving and elbowing us both again (no other moshing was taking place) and a lady stuck up for us he then screamed in her face. Was only four rows back, felt a little targeted towards the end.

[sheffinghell]

8 minutes ago, Kalopsia said:

There was an incredibly drunk/high tall guy and his way of moshing was just all wrong, lead with elbows and smacked my head a couple of times. Then he and his friend stared as my boyfriend and I cuddled during a slower song, next minute they're shoving and elbowing us both again (no other moshing was taking place) and a lady stuck up for us he then screamed in her face. Was only four rows back, felt a little targeted towards the end.

Huge sympathies, that sounds truly awful. 

 

Some people have a dreadful spatial awareness. As a shorter person, I am often on the receiving end of elbows too (forehead, chin, chest.. ), and the rest sounds just plain old bad attitude/manners.

[Kalopsia]

19 minutes ago, sheffinghell said:

Huge sympathies, that sounds truly awful. 

 

Some people have a dreadful spatial awareness. As a shorter person, I am often on the receiving end of elbows too (forehead, chin, chest.. ), and the rest sounds just plain old bad attitude/manners.

It's was just a bit annoying and I thought he was so out of it he won't even remember the night, a huge waste

[sheffinghell]

I went to one of the Bunnymen tour warm-up gigs at Holmfirth Picturedrome last night. I think it's the smallest venue I've seen them in, so that was a good start! It was a 2-part set of some of their best work, with a brief interval. Ian was surprisingly chipper and he and Will stood a round at the bar during the break. Great gig, and the support from a young instrumental jazz trio led by Aaron Wood (trumpeter) was really good (if a bit unexpected) too. 

[OllieMadd]

David Byrne in Cardiff last night. Nearly perfect, and I'm not especially a fan. Well, I wasn't, anyway!

[Mr Boo]

1 hour ago, OllieMadd said:

David Byrne in Cardiff last night. Nearly perfect, and I'm not especially a fan. Well, I wasn't, anyway!

It was so good wasn’t it and what a set list. So pleased to have been there 😊

[Justcalledtosay]

18 hours ago, sheffinghell said:

I went to one of the Bunnymen tour warm-up gigs at Holmfirth Picturedrome last night. I think it's the smallest venue I've seen them in, so that was a good start! It was a 2-part set of some of their best work, with a brief interval. Ian was surprisingly chipper and he and Will stood a round at the bar during the break. Great gig, and the support from a young instrumental jazz trio led by Aaron Wood (trumpeter) was really good (if a bit unexpected) too. 

 

 

 

Wow. What a photo!

[sheffinghell]

11 minutes ago, Justcalledtosay said:

 

Wow. What a photo!

Thank you! Luck mostly, and the best I could get with my phone... so much dry ice!! 

[charlierc]

5 hours ago, OllieMadd said:

David Byrne in Cardiff last night. Nearly perfect, and I'm not especially a fan. Well, I wasn't, anyway!

I'm hoping to see one of his London dates coming up. Good to hear it was stupendous.

 

Shame it looks difficult to get one last minute.

[radioahed]

Went to see TVAM last night. Seen him throughout his three albums and he deserves to be playing in bigger venues than he does at the moment. His sound is fantastic. Last night very new album based but certainly not a bad thing. Shout out to the support The Sick man of Europe. One of the best I have seen for a while. Very much 80s/Joy Division with more techno vibes

[crocodiles]

On 02/03/2026 at 16:56, sheffinghell said:

I went to one of the Bunnymen tour warm-up gigs at Holmfirth Picturedrome last night. I think it's the smallest venue I've seen them in, so that was a good start! It was a 2-part set of some of their best work, with a brief interval. Ian was surprisingly chipper and he and Will stood a round at the bar during the break. Great gig, and the support from a young instrumental jazz trio led by Aaron Wood (trumpeter) was really good (if a bit unexpected) too. 

Would have loved to have seen them there glad they were on good form looking forward to seeing them soon 

[crocodiles]

On 03/03/2026 at 09:28, Mr Boo said:

It was so good wasn’t it and what a set list. So pleased to have been there 😊

Really looking forward to seeing him in Glasgow on Saturday.  Great set list 

[tjamest]

6 hours ago, crocodiles said:

Really looking forward to seeing him in Glasgow on Saturday.  Great set list 

Now im tempted. Haven't purposefully seen them since they toured Crocodiles / Heaven up here about 15 years ago as felt i'd left them on a high with a final capture of the essence of the exitement and euphoria i remembered from when i was in my late teens.

[sfroml]

Saw Mogwai last Friday in Manchester. I'm sure everytime someone mentions seeing Mogwai live the loudness is always mentioned....

And, sorry but what else can I say, it was probably the loudest Mogwai gig I've been to so far. A guy literally leapt back by at least a couple of feet during Like Herod. 

Also saw Psychedelic Porn Crumpets on Saturday in Leeds. Second time seeing them, great atmosphere at a venue that can be a bit sketchy (Stylus, Leeds).

[Quark]

On 04/03/2026 at 08:09, radioahed said:

Went to see TVAM last night. Seen him throughout his three albums and he deserves to be playing in bigger venues than he does at the moment. His sound is fantastic. Last night very new album based but certainly not a bad thing. Shout out to the support The Sick man of Europe. One of the best I have seen for a while. Very much 80s/Joy Division with more techno vibes

Will have to make logistics work so I can get there for the support when I see him next week!