Anyone who knows me knows that I don’t dream of noble things like an end to poverty or war in the Middle East, or even of things like fame and fortune. I dream of gigs. And especially gigs involving Arno Carstens. But not even in my most soaring flight of fancy could I have concocted the phenomenal show at Mark & Mel’s house on Friday night.
It all started last year at a show at the Zulu Jazz Lounge when one of the people I was there with handed me this flyer for the Levis Vintage Sundays series. Useful to have, I thought, since I always make a point of going to those gigs…and then he pointed out the bit that had caught his eye. Levis were running a competition asking people to review Vintage Sundays gigs and the best review would win a gig at home with one of the artists. I tend to randomly review gigs for no reason other than that I like to write and I love to go to gigs, so I figured there was no harm in entering…I absolutely did not expect to win. Even after Gavin Minter phoned to say I had indeed won and I could indeed have Arno as my artist of choice, I really didn’t think it was happening until the guys rocked up for soundcheck on Friday afternoon (and I quickly had to put my phone on silent since I didn’t think blaring Genie every time my phone rang would be very cool!).
So back to the main event. The garden was dressed up to the nines, with candles and fairy lights flickering everywhere. Around the corner from the party area, Bushmills and Barcode had set up a truly impressive bar which was in no way underutilised. Leggy waitresses magically appeared as each drink finished to make sure there was another at hand….their efficiency was dangerously wonderful. And about 60 of our luckiest friends milled around, sipping on Bushmills cocktails and wondering if this could really be happening. Before Arno took to the stage, it was only fitting that the co-owner of Casa McMahon should get an opportunity to strut his musical stuff, so the evening was kicked off with some pared down numbers by Mark & Brett of The AK Massive. I didn’t get to see all of their set, as the media thing was in full swing at that stage, but what I did see was a soulful blend of Radiohead, Kings of Leon and Johnny Cash. Nice one boys.
And then it was the moment that everyone had been waiting for but couldn’t believe would really arrive. Arno, Albert and Gavin took to the stage and the cameras went mad. It’s impossible to describe just how amazing their set was. They could have just pitched up and gone through the motions but the energy was incredible and every person in that garden was going wild. We started off trying to play it cool and maintain some level of decorum, so those in the front stayed snugly seated on their rugs and cushions, swaying along with the rest of us to the first few songs. The noise level exploded when Arno said “Should we do an impromptu Nude Girls song?” and broke into Little and decorum quickly took a backseat. There was never any chance anyone was going to get me to stay seated so I tried to hang back and stay out of the way of the people in front who were sitting, but when the opening notes of Blue Eyes sounded, everyone erupted and suddenly I found myself catapulted to the front, leaving my shoes behind. If I thought the energy was insane before that, it ratcheted up to an almost unbearable level for the rest of the set. People were singing along so loud during songs like Hole Heart, that I’m amazed Arno could even hear himself think. They played songs off both of Arno’s beautiful solo albums, and did another two Springbok Nude Girls songs. At one point, during Baby Murdered Me, my friend and I had to turn to each other and ask once more if this was really, really happening. We had to hold each other up for a moment or there may have been Beatles style fainting girls in the front row! It was surreal. Albert Frost is criminally talented on the guitar and Gavin Minter keeps it all glued together with his drumming. And Arno Carstens is without doubt the most talented musician this country has ever seen. His lyrics are superb, his vocals searing and his stage presence astounding. Even in a suburban garden with less than a hundred people present, it felt like we were in a stadium packed to capacity. And I’m pretty sure the whole neighbourhood heard our screams.
The guys played for well over an hour, and came back when we begged for more. Eventually we were left, dazed and euphoric, and every person I spoke to said it was the best gig they’d ever been to. The party went on into the small hours of the morning, but we’ll leave those details to the imagination I think. All that’s left to say is thanks to Levis, Bushmills, Arno, Albert and Gavin for what was, unquestionably, the best night of my life. And if the messages that are flooding into my phone and email inbox are anything to go by, I’m not alone in feeling that way. Even Arno and Albert came up to me afterwards and said it was the best gig they’d ever played. Now, I’m sure they say that to all the girls, but in that heady moment, after having watched them hugging and high fiving maniacally ‘backstage’ as the gig finished, I believed them.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Coldplay - Odyssey Arena, Belfast, 23.12.08
Just as I had reached the point of despairing that I would not be seeing any gigs while on holiday, the luck of the Irish seemed to smile down on me (we won’t dwell on the Kings of Leon in Dublin while I was in Kerry debacle). Coldplay had originally been booked to play in Belfast on the 18th and as with their Dublin show, the tickets sold out in a matter of minutes. But oh joy of joys for me, they had to change the date to the 23rd and some unlucky feckers couldn’t make it anymore. So, to the poor bastard who had to return his ticket for seat 4, row 4, thanks very much for an awesome Christmas present!
Opening for Coldplay was a band called The High Wire. Very indie-folk. You know – obligatory crusty lead singer with untamed facial hair and cardigan, slightly more edgy guitarist in a Ramones tee and a girl on keyboards with a shiny ponytail and a waistcoat. Very appropriate given that Chris Martin is pretty much the godfather of crusty indie-folk style. They were quite good, and I felt bad for them that the show started 30 minutes earlier than advertised and the arena was essentially empty. Nonetheless, their performance was enthused and I’d say opening for the likes of Coldplay helped soothe the pain for such a relatively new band.
And then, strangely, there was a DJ. Like, as in, a guy, under a spotlight, with his decks and thingies, playing (is that the right word??) what I suppose would be described as trance or dance or something, while really bizarre images flowered on a big screen. Pity I forgot to drop a couple of tabs in the taxi on the way over. Anyway, the guy’s name was Jon Hopkins, and I guess if you like that kind of thing, he was very good. I do not like that kind of thing (in fact it makes me want to peel my skin off) but he was hot so that kind of made it vaguely bearable. The animation was kind of entertaining as well I suppose. I was glad when it was over and honestly, everyone around me seemed a little bemused by the whole turn of events. Ugh. Dance music. Shudder.
Right. Back to things more wonderful. I managed to see Coldplay when I was living in Dublin in 2003 and they were fantastic then, so I was pretty damn excited about the show in Belfast. I was also intrigued because it was an all seated show….which when you consider that I was in seat 4, row 4, will tell you just what a great Christmas present that poor bastard gave me – I was literally within spitting distance of the band. Metaphorically speaking of course, it wouldn’t really do to spit at Coldplay. For those of you who haven’t had the pleasure of seeing them, you may think what I did pre-2003….they’re a pretty chilled out band and are likely to be boring live. Well, they unequivocally come alive when they take to that stage. Yes, Chris dresses funny and they’re all Oxfam-Fair Trade hippie types, but they know how to blow an audience away. The show started with the auditorium in complete darkness and the stage shielded by a gauzy curtain. The band came on wielding sparklers so all we could see was 4 twinkling lights and their silhouettes. The crowd went wild, the lights came up and the music rolled over us. Phenomenal. Chris Martin is a manic presence, whirling all over the stage and keeping the audience on the crest of a wave of excitement. After the first song he kindly told us we didn’t have to stay seated and the whole place erupted. Fix You was incredible, with Chris at the piano, grinning broadly as we did the singing for him. Yellow got pretty much the same reception, as giant balloons drifted overhead, which Chris took great joy in popping with his guitar to unleash a rain of yellow confetti on the crowd. In fact, there wasn’t a song that wasn’t accompanied by roars of joy and gleeful singing from the audience. And Coldplay are all about pleasing their audience. The stage was constructed with a ramp going into the crowd on each side, and they made sure to play a few songs from those points as well, going so far as to set up a piano at the end of one ramp – practically right next to me - hurrah. Just in case that didn’t bring them close enough to their audience, they disappeared at one stage, only to reappear in the crowd in the stands at the back of the hall, and proceeded to play a few songs from there too. Based on what we could see on the big screen, the people immediately surrounding them looked as if all their Christmases had come at once! The show was full of light and sound and energy, and they played songs from all their albums, as well as an interesting rendition of Take That’s Want You Back and a few verses of Jingle Bells. It was 2 days before Christmas after all. They played for two hours and still the crowd begged for more, as an avalanche of paper butterflies floated over our upturned faces. Frankly, I think they could have played all night, and still we would have cajoled and pleaded for just one more. Without doubt, the best live show I have ever seen.
Eventually we had to drag ourselves away from the euphoria inside the arena. I shared a taxi back to my hotel with a couple who had also travelled from the Republic of Ireland to be at the concert…and to our great delight we were welcomed into the cab by the sweet sounds of Coldplay…smart man, our taxi driver!
Opening for Coldplay was a band called The High Wire. Very indie-folk. You know – obligatory crusty lead singer with untamed facial hair and cardigan, slightly more edgy guitarist in a Ramones tee and a girl on keyboards with a shiny ponytail and a waistcoat. Very appropriate given that Chris Martin is pretty much the godfather of crusty indie-folk style. They were quite good, and I felt bad for them that the show started 30 minutes earlier than advertised and the arena was essentially empty. Nonetheless, their performance was enthused and I’d say opening for the likes of Coldplay helped soothe the pain for such a relatively new band.
And then, strangely, there was a DJ. Like, as in, a guy, under a spotlight, with his decks and thingies, playing (is that the right word??) what I suppose would be described as trance or dance or something, while really bizarre images flowered on a big screen. Pity I forgot to drop a couple of tabs in the taxi on the way over. Anyway, the guy’s name was Jon Hopkins, and I guess if you like that kind of thing, he was very good. I do not like that kind of thing (in fact it makes me want to peel my skin off) but he was hot so that kind of made it vaguely bearable. The animation was kind of entertaining as well I suppose. I was glad when it was over and honestly, everyone around me seemed a little bemused by the whole turn of events. Ugh. Dance music. Shudder.
Right. Back to things more wonderful. I managed to see Coldplay when I was living in Dublin in 2003 and they were fantastic then, so I was pretty damn excited about the show in Belfast. I was also intrigued because it was an all seated show….which when you consider that I was in seat 4, row 4, will tell you just what a great Christmas present that poor bastard gave me – I was literally within spitting distance of the band. Metaphorically speaking of course, it wouldn’t really do to spit at Coldplay. For those of you who haven’t had the pleasure of seeing them, you may think what I did pre-2003….they’re a pretty chilled out band and are likely to be boring live. Well, they unequivocally come alive when they take to that stage. Yes, Chris dresses funny and they’re all Oxfam-Fair Trade hippie types, but they know how to blow an audience away. The show started with the auditorium in complete darkness and the stage shielded by a gauzy curtain. The band came on wielding sparklers so all we could see was 4 twinkling lights and their silhouettes. The crowd went wild, the lights came up and the music rolled over us. Phenomenal. Chris Martin is a manic presence, whirling all over the stage and keeping the audience on the crest of a wave of excitement. After the first song he kindly told us we didn’t have to stay seated and the whole place erupted. Fix You was incredible, with Chris at the piano, grinning broadly as we did the singing for him. Yellow got pretty much the same reception, as giant balloons drifted overhead, which Chris took great joy in popping with his guitar to unleash a rain of yellow confetti on the crowd. In fact, there wasn’t a song that wasn’t accompanied by roars of joy and gleeful singing from the audience. And Coldplay are all about pleasing their audience. The stage was constructed with a ramp going into the crowd on each side, and they made sure to play a few songs from those points as well, going so far as to set up a piano at the end of one ramp – practically right next to me - hurrah. Just in case that didn’t bring them close enough to their audience, they disappeared at one stage, only to reappear in the crowd in the stands at the back of the hall, and proceeded to play a few songs from there too. Based on what we could see on the big screen, the people immediately surrounding them looked as if all their Christmases had come at once! The show was full of light and sound and energy, and they played songs from all their albums, as well as an interesting rendition of Take That’s Want You Back and a few verses of Jingle Bells. It was 2 days before Christmas after all. They played for two hours and still the crowd begged for more, as an avalanche of paper butterflies floated over our upturned faces. Frankly, I think they could have played all night, and still we would have cajoled and pleaded for just one more. Without doubt, the best live show I have ever seen.
Eventually we had to drag ourselves away from the euphoria inside the arena. I shared a taxi back to my hotel with a couple who had also travelled from the Republic of Ireland to be at the concert…and to our great delight we were welcomed into the cab by the sweet sounds of Coldplay…smart man, our taxi driver!
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