STCBM051: The Tall Ships

Tonight’s Sounds That Can Be Made playlist:

Magnum- The Tall Ships (from Rock Art)
Anubis - Silent Wandering Ghosts (from Hitchhiking To Byzantium)
Plini - Wombat Astronaut (Beyond The Burrow)
Paradigm Shift - Reunification (from Becoming Aware)
AudioPlastik - The Sound of Isolation (from In the Head of a Maniac)
TILT- Growing Colder (from Hinterland)
Ray Wilson - Cold Light of Day (from Song For a Friend)
Genesis - Watcher of the Skies (from Foxtrot)
Gazpacho - Know Your Time (from Molok)
Katatonia - Old Heart Falls (from The Fall of Hearts)

The Eighties at 8:

The Michael Schenker Group - Desert Song (from Assault Attack)
Jethro Tull - Beastie (from The Broadsword And The Beast)

Steven Wilson - Year of the Plague (from 4 ½)
RPWL - Bound to Reach the End (from World Through My Eyes)
Echolyn - Messenger of All's Right (from I Heard You Listening)

Rock of Ages...

I must confess to feeling a bit old today. Thirty years ago, aged seventeen, I caught the bus to Bristol to see the Michael Schenker Group at the Colston Hall. I was my first "proper" gig (I don't count The Rolling Stones as I was given the ticket). Thirty years on I saw Michael Schenker again in Bristol, this time with my seventeen year old son in tow!

Michael Schenker Group, Colston Hall, Bristol, 21st October 1983

Metal Mickey needs no introduction for a series of classic songs from stints in the Scorpions, UFO and the Michael Schenker Group. He fell out of favour musically with me following the less than stellar Built To Destroy (though to fair this was the tour I went to and they were amazing live). By the time he got around to the McAuley Schenker Group my musical tastes had gone in a different direction to commercial rock and he dropped off my musical radar.

Michael Schenker, High Voltage, Victoria Park, London, 24th July 2011

However an impressive appearance at High Voltage resparked my interest so I was determined that if I got the opportunity I would go and see him and last night was the night...

Doogie White, Francis Buchholz and Hermann Rarebell, 02 Academy, Bristol, 17th April 2013

The set list is certainly a trip down memory lane with classic track after classic track from the Scorpions, UFO and MSG, all superbly performed and well received by an enthusiastic audience. The band played two "new" tracks, one of the Temple of Rock album and one from the forthcoming Bridge the Gap. They didn't sit well with the rest of the set, but given I was nearly word perfect on every other song this may have been down to a lack of familiarity as opposed to lack of quality.

The Mad Axeman, 02 Academy, Bristol, 17th April 2013

Overall a great night, it certainly put a smile on my face and my only regret as Doctor, Doctor closed a storming evening was having missed UFO in Bath a couple of months back. Old school heavy rock still kicks!

Shapes of Things...

So this is 2013 is it? Seems like it was only 2012 yesterday! :-)

So what will 2013 bring us musically and what am I looking forward to? Apparently Planet Rock listeners voted a new album by Led Zeppelin as their most wished for thing in 2013. More chance of Martians landing I suspect, so I will keep my list short and sane!

1. New Crimson Sky album:

I'm not sure if this is definitely on the cards, Martin Leamon has told us he is writing new material and after the excellent Dawn EP released last year it is obvious that the current line up is the bee's knees and if there is any justice in the world they will get the chance to record and release a storming album in 2013, bringing them the success they deserve.

I was lucky to catch Crimson Sky live a few times over the last twelve months (after a year of being fated not ever being able to see them) and find them hugely enjoyable. Martin is an excellent guitarist and Jane Setter a fantastic singer.

2. [REDACTED]:

The follow up to Also Eden's excellent 2011 album Think of the Children is due later this year and my anticipation levels are barely restrained! To whet the appetite the band released the forthcoming song Endless Silence as a festive download. My appetite is well and truly whetted!

Also Eden deserve more recognition and success than they current receive and they are a superb live band as well as having released some wonderful albums.

3. Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep:

The new Spock's Beard album should be interesting, especially with new vocalist Ted Leonard. I am a bit of a heretic in my love of the post-Neal Morse era material. The samples the band have released certainly sound good, roll on March...

4. Seeing Galahad Live:

Having released two of my top ten albums of 2012, I was gutted to miss out on seeing Galahad live in 2012. Hopefully I will be able to make one of their gigs in 2013.

5. Some Old School Rock:

Having been amazed by Michael Schenker at High Voltage in 2011 I am keen to see him on his 2013 tour (it'll be thirty years since I first saw him play). UFO are also in the area early this year so it could be a last chance to check out some of these ageing Old School rockers (hopefully not but they aren't get any younger!).