Birmingham Live!

Walking into tonight’s gig I am certainly amazed by the amount of teenage girls wandering about. The average age of tonight’s crowd seems to be around 15 years old and as I look around I see that many of them have parents with them standing around looking out of place...

“We’re not doing this for the money – we’re doing it because we love playing for you guys” - a good job too because it takes dedication to put in a blistering performance on one of the hottest days of the year...

Jeff Beck seems quite laid back and unassuming for a guitar god, but despite this and against the wealth of talent in his band, he cuts an imposing figure and you know that this is his show...

Opening tonight’s gig is South Africa’s finest export, and probably the best dressed band around, The Parlotones...

Entry to tonight’s gig was difficult, due to the box office staff trying to force me to have both a ticket and photo-pass (which I had to sign for). After some considerable explanation the photo-pass was taken back and I made my way to my seat, which was centre-stage and offering a superb view...

Dave Matthews Band are probably the biggest band on the planet that most of the UK population have never heard of! Having sold close to 35 million albums they are listed in the Top 100 highest selling music acts of all time. Their last five albums all debuted at No.1 in the US charts...

A warm summer night in Wolverhampton. A sell out gig for one of the most exciting bands in the world at the moment and a night that I will remember for the rest of my days, for more reasons than one...

Support for this evening’s show is Anna F, an Austrian singer songwriter who has recently released a single called Time Stands Still. I miss the majority of her set, only catching the last two tracks, one of which is about Jimmy Page, who is her favourite guitarist...

White Rose Movement shot to the forefront of indie scene back in 2006 upon the release of their debut album, Kick. Since then, it’s all gone a little bit quiet...

There is one thing that puzzles about Metronomy, it’s one of those questions that doesn’t necessarily keep me awake at night but I would dearly love to know – Did Pip Payne ever pay back the £5000 to the Totnes car wrecker...

Unfortunately I arrived at the Birmingham’s Bar Academy too late for the full set of tonight’s first act, Sunset Cinema Club. It wouldn’t be fair to give an opinion on one and a half songs so I’d just say check their Myspace if Hardcore / Post Punk / Funk is your thing...

A chance for The Twang to get closer to their hometown audience or a chance for a brand of cider to play marketing catch-up...

I am about to write a review about a show where the lighting is as important as the tunes, and where none of the songs have any words...

Tonight’s outing is a curiously civilised affair, being at the Symphony Hall and all. However, the setting is a perfect fit for an artist such as Antony Hegarty...

Ahhhh, Wolverhampton Civic Hall Bar. It’s at the end of a long corridor and perfectly designed so once you’re in, you’re trapped. Excellent...

I have been watching The Ned’s since 1987, and seeing this gig billed as ‘Re-Union’ a little spark inside me started...

As always small and perfectly formed, and obviously the owner of an ageing portrait in his attic The Charlatans‘ Tim Burgess always looks very much the same as when the band first rose to prominence in the early 90s. At the Kasbah the crowd treated him with kid gloves and a sort of reverence...

Rhydian’s support for this evening was Louise Setara accompanied by her pianist Anthony Clarke...

Hype has been mounting for months around La Roux; the London duo whose infectious 80’s inspired synth-pop is hotly tipped to be the sound of 2009...

It would be fair to say that grown men will only willingly dance on two occasions: at weddings is one, where their normal high level of self-awareness is snatched away.. and the other occasion...

Let me just start by saying that if you ever get the chance to see Counting Crows live, no matter what the cost, do it. Anybody reading this hoping to see me write that it was ‘more like counting sheep’ will be disappointed. The NIA is, surprisingly, sparsely populated...

My first ever visit to the Glee Club and the first thing that strikes me is how small and intimate the studio is, so you’re really up close and personal to the artists. So when local Jake Flowers takes to the shoe box- sized stage armed with his acoustic guitar there really is no place to hide...

Tonight is a very special show, Farse are a Birmingham band that split five years ago so this is their first gig in a long time. With legendary status and so many die-hard fans there’s a lot to live up to...

Jersey Budd is fast becoming one of the favourite sons of all at Birmingham Live. Relatively unknown at the moment, it’s only a matter of time before the musical World is like us rejoicing in the sound of Leicester’s new found talent...

Ever wondered what your favourite album would sound like if it was covered by a dub reggae band? No me either. That was until a couple of years ago, however, when I was introduced to Easy Star All-Stars and their take on Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side of the Moon’. It was a revelation...

SSS are preceded by an almost legendary status, mutterings and rumours of this hardcore band that have lasted through time to bring old school hardcore to the new generation of kids...

I like gigs at the Glee Club. It always seems to be an eclectic crowd in there, all of whom are particularly cordial, I’m sure radio 2 would be the preferred stereophonic station if polled and words like ‘twee’ and ‘quaint’ slip seamlessly into conversation. You get the picture...

Prog is a dirty word. It suggests over-indulgence, pretentiousness and, more often than not, organs. But one band that always managed to balance the stigma of the concept album with the cool-factor of being a rock band were Pink Floyd...

A late starting April 21st show at the Wulfrun in Wolverhampton saw two excellent bands play to an eager crowd, the first act of the night was a solo artist going by the name of Fink, who simply sat in the centre of the stage with nothing but a guitar, microphone and an amazing set of songs...

The Victoria is, as its name suggests, a beautiful old Victorian style boozer, with winding staircases and lavish terracotta decor...

Opening tonight’s show is Californian singer-songwriter Brett Dennen and his friend John Solo on keyboards...

The fifth date on Fightstar’s tour for their new album, Be Human, tonight the Academy 2 is sold out and it shows...

Before I start, it must be noted that the sound for all the bands tonight was appalling. If I was reviewing the PA guys they would’ve got 1/10 Tonight’s show starts early, so Section 13 really don’t have many people to play to, which is a pity...

German indie popsters Robocop Kraus slip onto stage before anyone really noticed, looking like a combination of the parents who had taken position at the back of the venue while there kids pushed their way to the front, apart from lead singer Thomas Lang who looked like the long lost brother of...

This is the first night of McFly’s ‘Up Close and This Time it’s Personal’ tour and the Wolverhampton Civic absolutely rammed with teenage girls. Once again I must take my hat off to the Birmingham Live! team – I’m in the front row of the balcony seating, directly above the sound desk...

On arrival at the Glee Club to celebrate the launch of Jo Hamilton’s long-awaited album, ‘Gown’, I was presented with a glass of champagne set with a Hibiscus flower – a gorgeous touch that added to the fairytale ambience...

Opening tonight’s sold out show was a young self-made hip-hop artist with an interesting twist. Master Shortie began with his electronica/rap version of Adam and the Ants’ ‘Prince Charming’ and straight away built up a great rapport with the crowd...

The support act for tonight’s show is Howe Gelb; a man, a guitar and two microphones. A simple but effective performance that fully engages the audience...

Economically speaking, there isn’t really a better time for The Specials to have re-appeared on the scene. Britain at the tail end of the 1970s wasn’t yet a country awash with selfish, debt-ridden arseholes, but it’s fair to say that the credit card was certainly in the post by that stage...

You can tell tonight’s gig is something special by the atmosphere outside the venue and the vast amounts of cash that tickets are being traded for...

Unfortunately, I missed the first band, The Grit, as they went on stage exceptionally early. However, I am reliably informed, that they are five punks from Newcastle who did the job. Next on stage, is the flamboyant Nashville Pussy...

Opening the show were The Defiled, with a thrash pace and sound that was not really in keeping with tonight’s gothic/industrial theme...

The night got off to a chilled out start, with the first of the support artists, Marit Larsen. With sounds reminiscent of Lena Marlin, the Norwegian captured the audience bringing a poppy take on the nu-folk genre, alongside an entourage of very talented musicians...

Fifteen years after the album “How To Make Friends And Influence People” came out, and eight years after their officially split, Bradford’s Terrorvision are back in Wolverhampton, obviously because they need the money - as far as I’m aware, this is the only reason all these “older”...

Opening tonight’s show are all girl 4-piece Fe-nix. For those of you who have never heard of Fe-nix they are Jade, Tanya, Ayshan and local girl Priceless from Wolverhampton...

Tuesday nights have never been that busy at JBs and tonight was really no exception with only a handful of fans at the venue. When I arrived the main entrance door was pulled to and, to be honest, I wasn’t 100% sure the gig was on...