Magnum - Wednesday 30th March - Islington Assembly Hall

Brief review:  I wasn't too sure what to expect from the latest incarnation of Magnum. Stalwarts Bob Catley and Tony Clarkin remain, but I felt that losing Mark Stanway and Harry James would be big gaps to fill. But to be fair, their replacements are very competent musicians. It always feels that Tony keeps a tight grip on what is performed (he writes all the songs, so I guess he gets to choose!) and I'm sometimes critical about the old favourites that are left out of the set. 

Tonight though seemed to be a good balance. Starting with the recently re-recorded "Days of No Trust". The re-recording (in my view) is vastly inferior to the original! But this live version had a bit more oomph to it and was fine. Then a run of newish material which can best be described as "generic modern day Magnum". That sounds harsh and it's not meant to. The songs are good and well performed, just maybe with no standout qualities. But perfectly listenable to! Then onto some crowd favourites including an excellent "Wild Swan". I'm never quite sure why "All England's Eyes" seems undroppable from the set, but there are enough highlights for that not to matter. Bob's vocals were better than last time around and it felt like a proper Magnum show despite the changes in personnel.

Venue and View:  Left hand side, towards the front. A bit busier than expected.

Setlist
Days of No Trust
Lost on the Road to Eternity
The Monster Roars
The Archway of Tears
Dance of the Black Tattoo
Where Are You Eden?
The Flood (Red Cloud's War)
The Day After the Night Before
Wild Swan
Les Morts Dansant
Rockin' Chair
All England's Eyes
Vigilante
Kingdom of Madness
+
On a Storyteller's Night
Sacred Hour

Sweet - Wednesday 18th December - Islington Assembly Hall

Brief review: My last show of the year is a decent one as Sweet step up a notch in venue size at the Islington Assembly Hall. With ex Cats In Space vocalist Paul Manzi now the permanent frontman this was an enjoyable romp through all the hits you'd expect to hear. I really do enjoy Andy Scott's guitar playing too.

Setlist
Action
New York Groove (with 'New York' by Alicia Keys snippet)
Hell Raiser
Burn on the Flame
The Six Teens
Peppermint Twist
AC/DC
Turn It Down
Set Me Free
Teenage Rampage
Wig-Wam Bam
Little Willy
Love Is Like Oxygen / Fanfare for the Common Man
Fox on the Run
+
Blockbuster
The Ballroom Blitz

Magnum - Friday 9th March - Islington Assembly Hall

Brief Review: It's 2018 and Magnum are still going strong. That in itself is a reason to celebrate and even if stalwart Mark Stanway and recent collaborator Harry James have moved on, this evening demonstrated the unique appeal of the band from the Black Country. Bob Catley's vocals were better than the last few tours and Tony Clarkin's guitar as effortlessly brilliant as always. Add in the energy that Al Barrow brings to the party and it was clear that the band and crowd were enjoying themselves.

For me, it was a slightly slow burner, but by the end, the whole venue was a sea of swaying arms and mass sing-a-longs. The only downside was the appearance half way through of a greasy haired idiot in front of us who's air punching and headbanging seemed to demand an exclusion zone around him. We always seem to pick them!

Setlist
When We Were Younger
Sacred Blood “Divine” Lies
Lost on the Road to Eternity
Crazy Old Mothers
Without Love
Your Dreams Won't Die
Peaches and Cream
How Far Jerusalem
Les Morts Dansant
Show Me Your Hands
Twelve Men Wise and Just
All England's Eyes
Vigilante
Don't Wake the Lion (Too Old to Die Young)
+
The Spirit
When the World Comes Down

Magnum - Friday 13th May - Islington Assembly Hall

A quick search back through this blog will show that I have been to see Magnum a lot of times. However, I was aware that it had been ages since I was really close to the front, so determined to put that right and see Tony Clarkin's fine playing up close, we timed our arrival well and got to around the 2nd/3rd row spot on the right hand side.

Credit should be given to the band for always showcasing their new material - the issue that creates of course is a lack of time for some of the older classics. Some seem more undroppable than others and it surprises me that "Soldier Of The Line" and "All England's Eyes" stay in at the expense of say "Sacred Hour" or "Just Like An Arrow". Interestingly on this tour there is no space for any material from their best selling album "Wings of Heaven".

The new album this time around  - 'Sacred Blood “Divine” Lies' is OK - maybe not quite up to the standard of the last 2 or 3, but functional none the less. This meant the show ranked for me as "very good" rather than exceptional. Still, good fun nonetheless.

Setlist
Soldier Of The Line
On A Storyteller's Night
Sacred Blood “Divine” Lies
Freedom Day
Dance Of The Black Tattoo
Crazy Old Mothers
Blood Red Laughter
Your Dreams Won't Die
How Far Jerusalem
Unwritten Sacrifice
Twelve Men Wise and Just
Les Morts Dansant
All England's Eyes
Princess In Rags (The Cult)
Vigilante
+
The Spirit
Kingdom Of Madness

Snakecharmer - Friday 11th July - Islington Assembly Hall

Islington for the umpteenth time this year and this time it is a break in the World Cup fixtures and Snakecharmer at the Assembly Hall. The band have moved on from playing a 90% Whitesnake set to more a half and half set combined with promoting their excellent debut CD. A sparce crowd of only a couple of hundred were here to see it. From what I remember seeing online and in the press, the promotion for the show was a bit lacking.

Those who stayed away missed a good night. Fantastic playing and excellent rock vocals. I particularly like "Accident Prone" (no, not the Quo single). There was even the predicted sing-a-long for "Here I Go Again" and "Fool For Your Loving".

I'd have loved to have bought the signed vinyl album, but £28 priced me just out of the market - especially as I have the CD. I suspect I wasn't alone as they weren't exactly selling like hot cakes.

Setlist
Guilty as Charged
A Little Rock & Roll
Ready an' Willing
Cover Me in You
Accident Prone
Falling Leaves
Walking in the Shadow of the Blues
My Angel
Moody's Blues
Slow an' Easy
Nothing to Lose
Here I Go Again
Take Me with You
+
Fool for Your Loving

Magnum - Sunday 4th May - Islington Assembly Hall

A new venue for Magnum - The Assembly Hall in Islington. As you know, I'm quite a fan of much of the band's recent output, but the new album - "Escape From the Shadow Garden" is a bit of a slow burner for me.

The fact the show featured quite a bit of new material made me a bit worried, but I shouldn't have. Bob's vocals were good, the band as excellent as ever and the crowd enthused. A minor criticism is that some songs were a bit over-extended, but you really can't go wrong with ta band of this quality.

Setlist
Live 'til You Die
Black Skies
Freedom Day
Dance of the Black Tattoo
Blood Red Laughter
Unwritten Sacrifice
How Far Jerusalem
Les Morts Dansants
Falling for the Big Plan
The Spirit
All My Bridges
All England's Eyes
Vigilante
Kingdom of Madness
+
Too Many Clowns
Sacred Hour

T'Pau - Saturday 23rd November - Islington Assembly Hall

The first central London T'Pau show for many years. We'd even managed to coax some friends along to this based on the Burgess Hill show earlier in the year. A quick check on stage times before going for a beer revealed 3 support bands. This started alarm bells ringing - they are bound to overrun and there is a strict 11pm curfew. No matter, T'Pau will be on at 9:15 we are told. 

Post beer, we return for 9:00pm. They are running late - what a surprise!  A band called Blue Zoo who seemed to think they were famous in the 80's (no, me neither!) dragged on for a while meaning Carol and the boys didn't appear until 9:50. This led to a rushed set - no doubt missing out a few songs - with no break for an encore or between song chat. The extra support acts are a false economy - no-one wants to see them, so there's no better value for money and it just delays and detracts from the main act.

Still, the brief(er) T'Pau set was excellent - vocals top notch (not really any need for the young backing vocalist who had been drafted in) and a few setlist changes from earlier in the tour. Shamefully, I'm not fully up to speed on all the tracks from Rage or The Promise, so there were a couple I only vaguely recognised. I was slight disappointed not to hear 'Time Will Tell', but other than that all was good. A live CD of the performance is promised - I will be making a purchase!

If anyone knows the definitive setlist then please let me know.