Sincerely, John Hughes

A little out of the norm for this blog, but EVERYONE should read this fantastic piece on the late, great John Hughes.

Final Fantasy - 2009-08-03 - RNCM, Manchester, UK

This was my first time in the company of Final Fantasy and it most certainly will not be my last. The concert hall at the Royal Northern College of Music was the perfect setting for this show, the well designed auditorium giving great acoustics for the wonderful talent that is Owen Pallett - his candle lighting and bottle of wine simply adding to the occasion. The show lasted a little over an hour and every song was very much appreciated by a thoroughly spellbound and respectful audience.

This excellent recording is dedicated to Jules the Fanboy, whose dedication to this wonderful artist is exemplary.

Final Fantasy - 2009-08-03 - RNCM, Manchester, UK - FLAC
272MB RAR archive, FLAC format

Final Fantasy - 2009-08-03 - RNCM, Manchester, UK - MP3
105MB RAR archive, variable bit rate MP3s (min. 245 kbps)

Setlist:

01. Song Song Song
02. Adventure.exe
03. Midnight Directives
04. Keep The Dog Quiet
05. Lewis Takes Action
06. Dance Dance Dance
07. Flare Gun
08. The Butcher
09. This Is The Dream Of Win And Regine
10. E Is For Estranged
11. CN Tower Belongs To The Dead
12. Lewis Takes His Shirt Off
13. -encore break-
14. The Great Elsewhere
15. This Lamb Sells Condos

(Download links updated on 27th January, 2013)

Kaiser Chiefs - 2007-02-21 - Manchester Apollo, UK

This was the first time I'd seen the Kaiser Chiefs and I think the recording turned out pretty good considering it was not exactly the best-sounding gig I've ever heard at the Apollo. There was way too much bass present throughout the show and they experienced several on-stage mic problems. Fortunately, my mics hear better than me!

(Actually, come to think of it, the sound quality at each of the Kaiser Chiefs shows I've attended has been less than spectacular.)

This was the first night of their Spring 2007 tour - and it showed. The new songs were (not surprisingly) nowhere near as polished as the old stuff, though they had improved considerably by the time I saw them later the same year at the MEN Arena (which I didn't record).

Kaiser Chiefs - 2007-02-21 - Manchester Apollo, UK - FLAC
357MB RAR archive, FLAC format

Kaiser Chiefs - 2007-02-21 - Manchester Apollo, UK - MP3
111MB RAR archive, variable bit rate MP3s (min. 245 kbps)

Setlist:

01. Ruby
02. Saturday Night
03. Every Day I Love You Less And Less
04. Heat Dies Down
05. Thank You Very Much
06. Born To Be A Dancer
07. Modern Way
08. High Royds
09. My Kind Of Guy
10. Everything Is Average Nowadays
11. I Predict A Riot
12. The Angry Mob
13. Retirement
14. -encore break-
15. Na Na Na Na Naa
16. Oh My God

(Picture courtesy of Shirlaine Forrest)

(Download links updated on 27th January, 2013)

The Specials - 2009-05-04 - Manchester Apollo, UK

This was yet another fantastic show by the boys. They were on top form again, maybe even surpassing the previous night's performance (they played exactly the same setlist). One thing that did improve was the sound mix of the instruments and vocals. Along with a pretty quiet audience in my immediate vicinity, this helped produce a much cleaner recording than my Sunday effort.

Once again I've got to state - how the hell I managed to keep my feet still for almost 90 minutes, I'll never know! This band just make me want to dance! However, helping to preserve their awesome musical legacy was my goal, so hopefully I've done it justice.

This recording is dedicated to all the moderators who do a great job over at The Specials forums (accessed via http://www.thespecials2.com/), especially Mike and Paul who have more than helped to keep the band alive during their rather lengthy sabbatical. Cheers guys.

I've not stopped playing this one since the show. It really is that awesome! Crank it up and dance!

The Specials - 2009-05-04 - Manchester Apollo, UK - MP3
145MB RAR archive, variable bit rate MP3s (min. 245 kbps)

Setlist:

01. Intro
02. Do The Dog
03. (Dawning Of A) New Era
04. Gangsters
05. It's Up To You
06. Rat Race
07. Monkey Man
08. Blank Expression
09. Too Hot
10. Doesn't Make It Alright
11. Concrete Jungle
12. Friday Night, Saturday Morning
13. Stereotype
14. Man At C&A
15. A Message To You Rudy
16. Do Nothing
17. Hey Little Rich Girl
18. Little Bitch
19. Nite Klub
20. You're Wondering Now
21. Ghost Town
22. -encore break-
23. Too Much Too Young
24. Long Shot Kick The Bucket
25. Liquidator
26. Skinhead Moonstomp
27. Enjoy Yourself (It's Later Than You Think)

(Download link updated on 27th January, 2013)

The Specials - 2009-05-03 - Manchester Apollo, UK

Well, what can I say? What a truly magnificent show. The band were on top form, the audience were simply superb, and EVERYONE enjoyed themselves. This is the recording that I'd always dreamed of making and, thankfully, I think I've done it justice. How I managed to keep my feet still for almost 90 minutes, I'll never know!

I'd like to dedicate this recording to Pete Chambers for his unerring ability to keep the memory of this great band alive over the years. Cheers Pete.

Shortly after making this recording public for the first time I discovered that it had been bootlegged and offered for sale in several places. Although there's nothing I can do about it after the event, it still pisses me off. Please share what you download. Keep the music free or people like me may stop sharing these coveted recordings.

Enjoy yourself, it's later than you think. :-)

The Specials - 2009-05-03 - Manchester Apollo, UK - MP3
146MB RAR archive, variable bit rate MP3s (min. 245 kbps)

Setlist:

01. Intro
02. Do The Dog
03. (Dawning Of A) New Era
04. Gangsters
05. It's Up To You
06. Rat Race
07. Monkey Man
08. Blank Expression
09. Too Hot
10. Doesn't Make It Alright
11. Concrete Jungle
12. Friday Night, Saturday Morning
13. Stereotype
14. Man At C&A
15. A Message To You Rudy
16. Do Nothing
17. Hey Little Rich Girl
18. Little Bitch
19. Nite Klub
20. You're Wondering Now
21. Ghost Town
22. -encore break-
23. Too Much Too Young
24. Long Shot Kick The Bucket
25. Liquidator
26. Skinhead Moonstomp
27. Enjoy Yourself (It's Later Than You Think)

(Download link updated on 27th January, 2013)

Madness - 2008-12-18 - Manchester Central, UK

Manchester Central (formerly G-MEX) is an ex-railway station of aircraft hangar proportions.

The crowd were in high, pre-Christmas spirits, so I opted for a position further back than I normally would have chosen, but still central to the stage.

The sound where I was stood was great and the surrounding crowd weren't too noisy (apart from my wife who had a sneezing fit at the start of The Sun & The Rain!).

Madness - 2008-12-18 - Manchester Central, UK - MP3
167MB RAR archive, variable bit rate MP3s (min. 245 kbps)

Setlist:

01. One Step Beyond
02. Embarrassment
03. Dust Devil
04. NW5
05. Grey Day
06. The Sun and the Rain
07. The Prince
08. Clerkenwell Polka
09. My Girl
10. Return of the Los Palmas 7
11. Sugar and Spice
12. I Chase the Devil
13. Bed and Breakfast Man
14. Shut Up!
15. Forever Young
16. Lovestruck
17. The Liberty of Norton Folgate
18. House of Fun
19. Wings of a Dove
20. Baggy Trousers
21. Our House
22. It Must Be Love
23. <encore break>
24. Madness
25. Night Boat to Cairo

(Download link updated on 27th January, 2013)

More Recordings of The Specials?

People have been asking if I will be recording any more Specials shows after my Manchester recordings turned out so well. The answer is a resounding YES! All being well, I will be recording the Blackpool show in November. Watch this space .....

Next up will be my 2 x Specials recordings from Manchester Apollo in May, followed by my Madness recording from Manchester Central last December.

Electrelane - 2007-03-16 - Brixton Academy, UK

This was one of a number of nights where Electrelane supported The Arcade Fire on their Neon Bible tour.

After failing to discover the correct track listing for this recording, it was originally traded by myself (back in 2007) to a handful of people with track 4 split as 2 individual tracks. I've since corrected my mistake and also boosted the levels of this decent recording.

I missed the first second or so of track 1, as the band took me completely by surprise and started playing almost as soon as they'd arrived on stage! This was the first time I'd ever seen or heard Electrelane and I can honestly say I quite enjoyed them. The recording came out pretty good to say they were the support act. There is some audience background noise, but not enough to detract from enjoying the show.

Thanks to Grampish on www.last.fm for helping with the setlist.

Electrelane - 2007-03-16 - Brixton Academy, UK - FLAC
134MB RAR archive, FLAC format

Setlist:

01. Bells
02. After The Call
03. In Berlin
04. Eight Steps
05. Between The Wolf And The Dog
06. To The East

(Download link updated on 27th January, 2013)

Riders on the Storm - 2007-01-03 - Manchester Apollo, UK

Riders on the Storm were previously known as The Doors of the 21st Century, but arguments over use of the name "The Doors" meant they had to change it. This led to the band receiving less press exposure for the tour and playing smaller venues than their two previous tours of various arenas.

This recording turned out really well, which is probably due to me being seated 6 feet in front of the left-hand stack of speakers! This no doubt contributed to the low-levels of crowd noise present on the recording, plus all the crowd were obviously behind me. It didn't help my ears though!

As for the show itself, they came on late (9:10pm) so I knew we were in for a shortened set, as shows at the Apollo rarely exceed 11pm. Musically, the guys were as tight as usual, but they definitely lacked enthusiasm compared to the previous times I've seen them. Strange really, because this tour was supposed to be a celebration of 40 years since the rise to prominence of The Doors.

If you listen closely during the encore break, you can hear the background storm sounds that they usually play immediately before returning to the stage and launching into Riders on the Storm. They must have been told they were short of time and launched into Peace Frog instead. A sign that Manzarek was just going through the motions is immediately before the last song; he followed his usual routine of asking the audience what song they want to hear next, but launched into Light My Fire without barely giving them time to answer!

The final track is a plea by Ian Astbury for everyone to canvass for the band to be included on the bill at Glastonbury 2007. They would probably have gone down a storm before such an enthusiastic crowd, but unfortunately they never managed to pull it off.

Riders on the Storm - 2007-01-03 - Manchester Apollo, UK
185MB RAR archive, variable bit rate MP3s (min. 245 kbps)

Setlist:

01. Introduction
02. Roadhouse Blues
03. Break On Through
04. Love Me Two Times
05. When The Music's Over
06. Band Member Introductions
07. Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar)
08. Backdoor Man
09. Five to One
10. Robby Solo / Spanish Caravan
11. The Changeling
12. People Are Strange
13. Not To Touch The Earth
14. Wild Child
15. Touch Me
16. L.A. Woman
(encore)
17. Peace Frog
18. Light My Fire
19. Ian Astbury's Glastonbury Plea

(Download link updated 27th January, 2013)

Clinic - 2007-11-17 - Alexandra Palace, London, UK

This was the first of two nights where Clinic supported The Arcade Fire at London's cavernous and cold Alexandra Palace.

They were probably not the most popular support band on The Arcade Fire's mammoth 2007 tour, but I certainly enjoyed them and thankfully I managed to nail decent recordings of both nights.



Clinic - 2007-11-17 - Alexandra Palace, London, UK - FLAC
116MB RAR archive, FLAC format

Setlist:

01. Dissolution: The Dream Of Bartholomew
02. Harvest (Within You)
03. Tusk
04. The New Seeker
05. The Second Line
06. Children of Kellogg
07. The Witch
08. The Return of Evil Bill

(Download links updated on 27th January, 2013)

The Beautiful South - 2006-12-15 - MEN Arena, Manchester, UK

Little were we to know that this was to be The Beautiful South's penultimate gig. The band went their separate ways a couple of months later, so this is one of the last live recordings of this great band. They were on top form and performed a great set to a very enthusiastic crowd.

I managed to get in front of the soundboard and luckily I had a bit of space around me for the majority of the show. The biggest problem were the beer sellers walking the floor. Whenever they came around where I was stood there were the inevitable voices picked up by the mics. Fortunately, this only happened a couple of times and it doesn't detract from the recording.

There were a couple of mic problems on stage during the first couple of tracks, but these were soon sorted out by the crew.

This was my first recording with new equipment. Nevertheless, I think it turned out pretty good. As my post-recording skills have improved over the years, I've revisited this recording once or twice and have finally managed to produce a version that I'm happy with (Sept 2012). So, if you've got an earlier version of this recording, you may well enjoy this upgrade.

Enjoy!

The Beautiful South - 2006-12-15 - MEN Arena, Manchester, UK - FLAC
584MB RAR archive, FLAC format

The Beautiful South - 2006-12-15 - MEN Arena, Manchester, UK - MP3
170MB RAR archive, variable bit rate MP3s (min. 245 kbps)

Setlist:

01. Introduction
02. Tonight I Fancy Myself
03. Rose of My Cologne
04. Old Red Eyes is Back
05. A Little Time
06. One Last Love Song
07. We Are Each Other
08. Prettiest Eyes
09. From Under The Covers
10. Song for Whoever
11. Pretenders to the Throne
12. Manchester
13. Worthless Lie
14. Rotterdam
15. 36D
16. Perfect 10
17. Don't Marry Her
18. You Keep It All In

(Encore 1)
19. I'll Sail This Ship Alone
20. Good As Gold

(Encore 2)
21. Let Love Speak Up Itself
22. Your Father and I

(Download links updated on 27th January, 2013)

Wolf Parade - 2008-11-28 - Ruby Lounge, Manchester, UK

The Ruby Lounge is little more than a cellar. The concert area is stuck away in a corner, maybe 40 feet long and 20 feet wide, with little or no stage for the band, a pillar in the middle of the floor obstructing the view of many and, overall, a very claustrophobic atmosphere for the 300+ crowd. And I loved it!

Both the band and the audience were up for a good time, and neither disappointed. A great set was delivered at an unerring pace and the crowd went wild straight from the first note. As you would imagine for a venue of this nature, the sound was a little overpowering and "muddy" at times, but this recording came out far better than I ever imagined it would, given the circumstances.

Wolf Parade - 2008-11-28 - Ruby Lounge, Manchester, UK - MP3
142MB RAR archive, variable bit rate MP3s (min. 245 kbps)

Wolf Parade - 2008-11-28 - Ruby Lounge, Manchester, UK - FLAC
433MB RAR archive, FLAC format

Setlist:

01. You Are a Runner And I Am My Father's Son
02. Soldier's Grin
03. Call It a Ritual
04. It's a Curse
05. Dear Sons And Daughters Of Hungry Ghosts
06. Language City
07. An Animal In Your Care
08. Shine a Light
09. Grounds For Divorce
10. Fine Young Cannibals
11. California Dreamer
12. This Heart's On Fire
13. Kissing The Beehive
14. encore break
15. The Grey Estates
16. I'll Believe in Anything
17. Fancy Claps

(Download links updated on 27th January, 2013)

The National - 2007-07-15 - Latitude Festival

The set started off pretty quiet until the sound engineer finally decided to turn the band's mics on! The National had problems getting their equipment to the stage on time, so thanks were made to both Andrew Bird and The Cold War Kids for the loan of their gear. All things considered, this is a pretty decent set from a great band and, thankfully, this is mirrored by the recording.

The National - 2007-07-15 - Latitude Festival, UK - FLAC
180MB RAR archive, FLAC format

Setlist:

01. Start a War
02. Mistaken For Strangers
03. Secret Meeting
04. Abel
05. Squalor Victoria
06. Apartment Story
07. Fake Empire
08. Mr. November

(Photo courtesy of prusakolep's Latitude 2007 Flickr set.)

(Download link updated on 27th January, 2013)

Arcade Fire - 2007-11-18 - Alexandra Palace

This was the 2nd night of three at London's Alexandra Palace and the band were on fire. A fantastic setlist was accompanied by a fantastic performance and I'd therefore chosen the correct night to get the best recording I could at this venue. I got in early and could have been on the 2nd or 3rd row dead centre, but I went and stood to the left of the stage in front of the speaker stack (on my own for the first act!). I recorded both support bands to get my levels right and just knew that if the crowd around me were better than the previous night's I would nail it. And, in my opinion, I did!

The set itself wasn't without problems though. The sound was pretty poor for the opening song Black Mirror and later on My Body is a Cage saw soundboard issues that led to no vocals from Win Butler and a 2 minute delay at the end of the song whilst things were sorted out. You could therefore say this is the karaoke version! Win also sang the opening lines of Pulp's "Common People" at the end of Tunnels, but soon forgot the words!

I also make a rare, but thankfully brief, appearance on the recording when Win announced that the next song would be Headlights Look Like Diamonds. I let out a wondrous "YYYEEESSS!" as I punched the air with delight. This was my 8th time seeing The Arcade Fire during 2007 but the 1st time they had played this great song for me. Sorry!

Arcade Fire - 2007-11-18 - Alexandra Palace - FLAC
442 MB RAR archive, FLAC format

Arcade Fire - 2007-11-18 - Alexandra Palace - MP3
153MB RAR archive, variable bit rate MP3s (min. 226 kbps)

Setlist:

01. Black Mirror
02. Neighborhood #2 (Laika)
03. No Cars Go
04. Haiti
05. Black Wave/Bad Vibrations
06. My Body is a Cage
07. soundboard problems
08. Neon Bible
09. State Trooper
10. Intervention
11. Headlights Look Like Diamonds
12. The Well & The Lighthouse
13. Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
14. (Antichrist Television Blues)
15. video interlude
16. Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)
17. Rebellion (Lies)
18. encore break
19. Keep The Car Running
20. Wake Up

(Download links updated on 27th January, 2013)

Ocean Colour Scene - 2007-04-26 - King George's Hall, Blackburn

One of my favourite recordings, the boys were on top form here and produced an excellent show for an enthusiastic crowd. The new tracks were well received and the usual favourites got the crowd dancing.

Ocean Colour Scene - 2007-04-26 - King Georges Hall, Blackburn, UK - MP3
158MB RAR archive, variable bit rate MP3s (min. 226 kbps)

Setlist:

01. The Riverboat Song
02. You've Got It Bad
03. The Circle
04. Get Blown Away
05. So Low
06. Man In The Middle
07. I Just Got Over You
08. Drive Away
09. Profit In Peace
10. I Told You So
11. On The Leyline, Waiting
12. This Day Should Last Forever
13. July
14. Go To Sea
15. Travellers Tune
16. Better Day
17. One For The Road
18. Get Away
19. (Encore Break)
20. Robin Hood
21. Hundred Mile High City
22. The Day We Caught The Train

(Download link updated on 27th January, 2013)

About time too .....

Inspired by gobshyte over at the excellent Mondo de Muebles, I thought it was about time I joined in with this blogging malarkey.

What will I be using as a theme? Good question, but for a start it is likely to be centred around live recordings of bands that I myself have made over the last few years. From time-to-time, I may also include recordings from others that I feel should be heard by the world.

My recordings will be provided as high quality MP3s, but I may also include the odd lossless download if space allows.

So, let's get on with it then .....