Quireboys - Saturday 3rd September - Forum, Kentish Town

Brief review: The much postponed "Orchestral Show", reduced to a single night from the 2 sold pre-Covid. Now Spike-less, this was always going to be a challenge for the band, but I think they came through it well. A varied set list with some rarely played favourites, the "Orchestra" turned out to be 4-5 (excellent) musicians on strings and wind sections. It worked well as a one off and it will be interesting to hear if the upcoming CD / DVD of the performance captures how well it came across in the room.

I do think the real challenge for the band going forward is how to grow their fan base - it must be hard for them to be profitable currently without outside interests.

Venue and View:  Front left on the floor. Very sparse, so lots of room!

Setlist
Gracie B
Roses & Rings
There She Goes Again
Mona Lisa Smiled
Hello
Blackwater
The Promise
Stubborn Kinda Heart
Late Nite Saturday Call
I Don't Love You Anymore
I Love This Dirty Town
Louder
This Is Rock 'n' Roll
Original Black Eyed Son
7 O'Clock
+
Sex Party

Brian Setzer - Tuesday 11th July - Forum, Kentish Town

Brian Setzer plays a solo show in Kentish Town. Nearly a faux pas by me as I almost wore a Ben Sherman "target" T-Shirt. I may not have got out alive with the packed house wearing altogether different styles and fashion! As it was, the torrential rain outside meant there were some very soggy "cats" inside.

Still, an enjoyable show - very busy on the floor (think it was sold out as it was the only UK date) and a decent amount of Stray Cats material to keep the very casual fan (me!) happy.

Brian's guitar playing was excellent - as were the rest of the band. We did speculate on where else a double bass player can find employment these days - especially as Imelda May seems to have changed musical direction.

Go cats go!

Setlist
Put Your Cat Clothes On
Rumble in Brighton
Vinyl Records
Stray Cat Strut
Nothing is a Sure Thing, Baby
Stiletto Cool
Cry Baby
'49 Mercury Blues
Whathsername
Drive Like Lightning
Slow Down / Folsom Prison Blues
Gene and Eddie
Blue Moon of Kentucky (Instrumental)
Runaway Boys
Jump, Jive an' Wail
Fishnet Stockings
Let's Shake
+
Sleep Walk
Rock This Town

Black Star Riders - Friday 17th March - Kentish Town Forum

I primarily went along to this on the basis that Rich was going, the tickets were quite good value and Gun were supporting - who I'd not seen before (certainly in this incarnation). In the event a secondary support was added, pushing Gun down to 3rd on the bill, which was a bit of a pain (shorter set, earlier start etc).

Still, they were OK. Having gone through several vocalists it turns out that the founder member and bass player is now on singing duties. He was fine and the set was pretty decent - even my pet hate "Word Up" sounded bearable.

The other support band were not bad either, but I can't remember their name. The Black Star Riders seem to be shifting away from their Thin Lizzy history and only "The Boys Are Back In Town" was covered here. You would have thought St. Patrick's Day would have yielded "Whiskey In The Jar"! Still, they are a decent rock band and vocalist Ricky Warwick has a fantastic voice. I enjoyed their set despite not knowing the songs, which is a bit of a theme for my recent visits to the Forum (or the "Town & Country" as I prefer to call it!)

Setlist - Gun
Let It Shine
Word Up! 
Don't Say It's Over
Better Days
She Knows
Steal Your Fire
Shame On You

Setlist - Black Star Riders
Heavy Fire
Bloodshot
The Killer Instinct
Dancing With the Wrong Girl
Soldierstown
Hey Judas
When the Night Comes In
Cold War Love
All Hell Breaks Loose
The Boys Are Back in Town
Hoodoo Voodoo
Who Rides the Tiger
Blindsided
Thinking About You Could Get Me Killed
Testify or Say Goodbye
Kingdom of the Lost
Bound for Glory
Finest Hour

Avantasia - Tuesday 8th March - Forum, Kentish Town

So, it turns out Tufnell Park is a cheap place to meet for a pre-gig drink at the Forum. £2 a pint in the Boston Arms, although to be fair you are highly unlikely to list this as one of your favourite pubs. Opposite, the slightly more upmarket "Aces & Eights" has Moretti at well below "City" prices and best-of-the-bunch "The Pineapple" had a delightful German Pilsner for well below £4 a pint.

But there wasn't too much time for merriment. German (and associated European) rockers Avantasia had promised a lengthy 3 hour set. I didn't quite know how to take this as a) I have none of their records and b) I know none of their songs. 3 hours of unfamiliar music can test even the most patient of casual fans and basically if it hadn't been for Magnum's Bob Catley being in the number of guest vocalists due to appear then we probably would not have been here.

I gather Avantasia are reasonably popular on the continent, playing to much larger venues than here tonight. Still, it was a slight surprise to find the Forum so crowded with no obvious way through to the lower floor section. Therefore, our evening was spent on the first tier to the right, at bar level. And what do you know? It was a really good night. The music held my attention and the set felt less than the 2hrs 45 or so it actually took and the evening did not drag at all. Bob was on great vocal form as were the guests which include the singer from Mr Big - Eric Martin. I had feared it all may be a bit "prog" or the concept may take over from musical quality. Instead the charismatic Tobias Sammet has produced a decent band with a range of decent music. I still don't know the songs (although "The Story Ain't Over" was instantly catchy) - and to be fair am unlikely to invest in the back catalogue, but this was a shot in the dark well worth taking.

Setlist
Mystery of a Blood Red Rose
Ghostlights (with Michael Kiske)
Invoke the Machine (with Ronnie Atkins)
Unchain the Light (with Ronnie Atkins and Michael Kiske)
A Restless Heart and Obsidian Skies (with Bob Catley)
The Great Mystery (with Bob Catley)
The Scarecrow (with Jørn Lande)
Lucifer (with Jørn Lande)
The Watchmakers' Dream (with Oliver Hartmann)
What's Left of Me (with Eric Martin)
The Wicked Symphony (with Oliver Hartmann, Jørn Lande, Amanda Somerville, Herbie Langhans and Eric Martin - without Tobias Sammet)
Draconian Love (with Herbie Langhans)
Farewell (with Amanda Somerville and Michael Kiske)
Stargazers (with Michael Kiske, Jørn Lande, Ronnie Atkins and Oliver Hartmann - without Tobias Sammet)
Shelter from the Rain (with Michael Kiske and Bob Catley)
The Story Ain't Over (with Bob Catley)
Let the Storm Descend Upon You (with Jørn Lande and Ronnie Atkins)
Promised Land (with Jørn Lande)
Prelude (backing tape)
Reach Out For The Light (with Michael Kiske)
Avantasia (with Michael Kiske)
Twisted Mind (with Eric Martin and Ronnie Atkins - without Tobias Sammet)
Dying for an Angel (with Eric Martin)
+
Lost in Space (with Amanda Somerville)
Sign of the Cross / The Seven Angels (with everyone on stage)

The Quireboys - Saturday 11th December - Forum, Kentish Town

Spike in typical pose

The last show of 2010 for me. Feeling a little bit under the weather after the previous days' pub crawl - so it was quite useful that I wasn't meeting Richard until later on Saturday evening. We went into the venue early to catch "The Dan Reed Network" who were OK, but I think Dan himself seemed to be enjoying their performance more than most of the audience! I'm certainly not tempted to pay money to see them at their own show. Whilst waiting between the acts I remembered that I'd seen the Quireboys here (when it was known as the "Town And Country Club") around 1990 - scary!

The venue was only half full, giving easy access to an excellent view a few rows back in our normal "front-left" position. Last time we saw the Quireboys they were doing an acoustic set and I was pleased to be able to grab a copy of the limited edition of 1000 signed double CDs from that mini-tour. Tonight was plugged in and, as normal, was a belter of a show. Starting with ""Hoochie Coochie Man" / "Mayfair", the band rocked through nearly all of their favourites in a 2 hour set. The 11:20 finish meant a late return home, but the show was well worth that. Perhaps not surprisingly I felt a lot better by the end than I had at the start. A great gig to finish the year!

Setlist (need confirmation please!)
Hoochie Coochie Man
Mayfair
C'mon
Man on the Loose
There She Goes Again
Tramps And Thieves
Mona Lisa Smiled
Roses And Rings
I Love This Dirty Town
Ode to You (Baby Just Walk)
The Finer Stuff
Lorraine Lorraine
Searching
This Is Rock 'N' Roll
Hey You
Whippin' Boy
Sweet Mary Ann
Misled
7 O'Clock
+
I Don't Love You Anymore
Sex Party

Saxon - Thursday 23rd April - Forum, Kentish Town

Surprisingly, I'd never seen Saxon before and knew little of their material. Supported by the impressive Doro Pesch, this was a good fun evening. Despite my lack of previous listening, there were enough good songs to keep me on the lookout for a "best of" CD in the near future! Extremely long encore too with a bit of Judas Priest! 

Setlist Battalions of Steel Heavy Metal Thunder Demon Sweeney Todd Ride Like the Wind Requiem - We Will Remember Strong Arm of the Law The Letter Valley of the Kings Bands Played On Hellcat The Eagle Has Landed (Der Adler ist Gaylanded) Come Rock of Ages (The Circle is complete) Machine Gun Never Surrender Wheels of Steel + Live to Rock Motorcycle Man + Crusader You've Got Another Thing Coming (with Doro) + 747 Strangers In The Night Denim and Leather Princess of the Night

Quireboys - Sunday 14th December - The Forum, Kentish Town

Rock and Roll at its best! Greatest Hits and a selection from the excellent new "Homewreckers and Heartbreakers" album.

Kentish Town has smartened up a bit too.. it even has a nice Piano Bar called "Annies"!