So I thought I'd better get round to writing a review of last week's Okkervil River gig (Tue 5 Feb – Okkervil River).

My cunning knowledge of the venue, ensured an excellent view, mainly through the tactic of turning up early and staking out a good place before the crowds descended (it always seems to be completely packed in the Scala).

Support was from the traditional folk singer Rachel Unthank and band (who my friend was pleasantly surprised to see, having bought her album as a Christmas present for his parents), and Jay Jay Pistolet. Both very good to listen to, but maybe not quite enough for me to go out and buy some of their stuff.

There was an interesting interlude while waiting for the band to appear - some guy hopped out of the audience onto stage and started to sing into the microphone (mercifully not yet turned on). Cue massive security guard, entering stage left. Surprisingly he didn't throw the guy out, just told him to get back into the audience. Nice to see some slightly more relaxed venue security.

I was hoping for a changed setlist from the last time I saw the band, so I was pleased to hear them starting off with The President's Dead, which they'd left out last time. It made for an excellent start, jumping into Black and the A Hand to Take Hold of the Scene.

The band were on great form - lots of energy. One of the things I most like about them is that they seem to be having so much fun being up there playing. Will Sheff always jumps around so much that he's constantly in danger of trashing the whole stage, and the drummer, Travis Nelsen, not only has proper drummer hair (perfect for headbanging) but often sings along to the songs for the sheer hell of it (he doesn't get a microphone, so I can only assume that he's not a great singer).

Last time I saw the band Will managed to break one guitar string, but he topped that at the Scala, snapping two at once. A victim of his own enthusiasm I think, he was able to borrow Jay Jay Pistolet's and everything was alright.

The band left the stage at 11pm (which was the curfew) and so we thought 'oh no maybe we won't get much of an encore, if any'. However, Will and the boys managed to push this as far as possible, coming back on and playing for 20 minutes more until a member of the venue staff started crouching by the stage giving them all the evil eye. I honestly think they'd still be playing now, guitar strings permitting.

Highlights for me were Will's banter (including his banter about how he can't do banter), a nice dig into the archives for Okkervil River Song, Will imploring the crowd to clap along to Unless It's Kicks ("this is a song about a whole bunch of people clapping together!"), conducting the audience to sing "evil don't look like anything" during the end of Westfall, and the brilliant Last Love Song For Now going on and on past the curfew.

Set list:

The Presidents Dead
Black
A Hand to Take Hold of the Scene
The Latest Toughs
A Girl in Port
A King and a Queen
Okkervil River Song
So Come Back, I Am Waiting
John Allyn Smith Sails
Unless It's Kicks
Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe
For Real
Westfall

Encore:
A Stone
Plus Ones
Missing Children
Last Love Song for Now

Still No Key, No Plan though. One day I'll see them play that live.

On Sunday I was most excited to be going to see the mighty Okkervil River, a gig I'd been looking forward to for ages (Sun 9 Dec – Okkervil River). Not wanting to have to cue up in the rain, I turned up about 20 minutes after the doors opened, and so was very surprised that I was able to get a spot front and centre, so close I could have reached out and touched Will Sheff at any point during the set.

Two lots of very good support: AA Bondy was up first. I was really looking forward to checking him out as I'd heard lots of good things about his album. I was suitably impressed. He's very Dylan-esque, singing well-crafted songs and playing acoustic guitar and various harmonicas. He's also quite funny and regaled us with tales of his and his girlfriends weird dreams. I went out and downloaded his album the next day and I've been enjoying that very much.

Second up was a New York singer-songwriter called Jaymay. NY seems to have a conveyor belt of very talented musicians like this and she played several very beautiful songs. Somebody else I will be keeping an eye on in the future. Also, dressed like a pirate, which is always good.

I was also impressed by the organisation of The Luminaire - 15 to 20 mins between each artist is the right amount of time I think, rather than the 30 mins you usually get, which drags (especially when you're at the gig on your own, as I was). So, not long to wait for the appearance of Okkervil River.

It was a really good setlist - plenty of tracks from The Stage Names and Black Sheep Boy with a few earlier songs thrown in for good measure. Despite Will Sheff professing that the band were very tired at the end of a long tour, the energy on stage never dropped. In fact I think Will was in danger of trashing the stage at several points as he jumped and whirled about. Also, the band seemed to be really enjoying themselves up their. The drummer, despite not having a mike, was enthusiastically singing along at various points, seemingly just for the sheer enjoyment of it, much as a fan would. It's nice to see when a band are clearly not just going through the motions.

The crowd was suitably appreciative, with a lot of singing along, most notably to For Real and the final encore, Westfall. Also, one guy was so determined to try and get The President's Dead played that he started singing it from the back during a lull on stage (all he got from Will was a promise to play it the next night, though).

It's hard to pick out highlights as the whole show was consistently brilliant. But I loved Lady Liberty, Plus Ones (during which I sang a little too enthusiastically), Unless It's Kicks, and the two brilliant encores: A Stone with just acoustic guitar and steel pedal (Will coped manfully with breaking a string during that) and my favourite, Westfall. The only slight disappointment was that it looked like we might have got a longer encore were it not for the curfew .

Set list:

The War Criminal Rises and Speaks
Lady Liberty
A Hand to Take Hold of the Scene
Black
A Girl in Port
A King and a Queen
The Latest Toughs
Plus Ones
Unless It's Kicks
So Come Back, I Am Waiting
Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe
For Real
John Allyn Smith Sails
----------------------------
A Stone
Westfall

Now I'm really looking forward to seeing them again in February. Hopefully they'll play a few of my favourite tracks that weren't in their set this time, like No Key, No Plan.

So last night I wen to Sat 8 Dec – Pineapple Folk Yuletide Gathering. I was there pretty much exclusively to see The Mountain Goats, so this review is more than a little lopsided in that direction.

It was my first Mountain Goats show and I thought it was pretty amazing. John seemed to be having a really good time - he was very appreciative of all the love he was getting from the crowd and at one point dragged Eddie Argos from Art Brut up on stage to join him for The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton.

Of the four bands that were playing at the show, tMG were the only ones to get a standing ovation and do an encore, despite the fact that they didn't have top billing. The one new song they played, Heretic Pride, has already endeared the new album to me. I now need to exercise even greater self control to stop me from downloading it early.

Other things I remembered that were great:

- In maybe sprout wings John sang part of it away from his mike, just at the front of the stage - everyone was really quiet and the sound carried very well, so it sounded quiet and beautiful and dramatic (which is perfect for that song).

- John started to tell the story about Tulsa Imperative before realising that it wasn't the next song on the setlist, and Peter then demanding to know the story behind the song they were going to play, Heretic Pride.

- They tried to play Abide With Me but John got stuck after the first line, so they gave up and launched into Jenny instead.

- John slapping himself in the face during You or Your Memory - I have no idea why but it kind of added to the drama.

Setlist

Wild Sage
Tollund Man
The Recognition Scene
You or Your Memory
Cobscook Bay
Love Love Love
Heretic Pride
Tulsa Imperative
Abide With Me (aborted attempt)
Jenny
Dance Music
maybe sprout wings
This Year
The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton (with Eddie Argos from Art Brut)

Encore:
Houseguest (Nothing Painted Blue cover)

As for the other acts - Emmy the Great sounded really good but unfortunately I only got to here her final song as I was queuing to get in for most of her set. Alasdair Roberts was pretty good - more traditionally folk than I usually go for but quite enjoyable nonetheless (although my more musically talented friend pointed out that his guitar playing wasn't quite as precise as is required for that type of music).

Micah P. Hinson, the nominal headliner (in that he was on last) was a bit of a disappointment to me. I picked up his album Micah P. Hinson and the Gospel of Progress and quite enjoyed it. He's obviously a talented individual but his performance was a bit one-note - he really only does one type of slow, thoughtful song and so the set lacked for variety. He did kind of top any encore thing, though - to finish his set he got his girlfriend up on stage and proposed to her! She said yes, btw.

Last Friday night, I had the immense pleasure to see the wonderful Andrew Bird on absolutely top form at Koko in Camden (Fri 9 Nov – Andrew Bird, Loney, Dear).

Sadly, I arrived too late to here more than the last few bars from the support act, Loney, Dear, so I can't make much of a comment on them. My arrival, however, was well-timed enough to allow me to get a drink, find a good vantage point, and have a quick chat before Mr Bird took to the stage.

Following a quick musical introduction, he kicked off both his shoes and proceeded to spend all of the gig bouncing round the stage in some very colourful stripy socks. From there he jumped right into a brilliant rendition of Fiery Crash and the night only got better from there. The set list was pretty heavily taken from Armchair Apocrypha, but with enough older songs to keep the die hard fans happy, I think.

Earlier this year I saw Andrew Bird at the Scala and I thought that was a pretty special gig, but he completely surpassed that on Friday. He had more energy, was chattier with the crowd, and even took a request to slip in a quick version of Dr Stringz. It was obvious he was really enjoying himself, the crowd were extremely appreciative, and his performance was pretty much note perfect.

He has a great ability to embellish his songs live, to subtly alter the rhythm, to add extended intros or outros, so that you really feel the show is giving you something extra. And then there's the whistling. I don't think I've ever heard anyone who can whistle quite like he does. My friend was astounded that he was able to produce it all without the use of any effects, just whistling through the same microphone he sings through.

The best bit for me came towards the end of the gig. As he was finishing his main set, I was just thinking, 'Oh, it's a shame he hasn't played Dark Matter or Scythian Empires, as they're probably my favourite two songs that he didn't play the other time I saw him. At which point, he launched into Dark Matter to finish the set, and then finished the encore with Scythian Empires. I was grinning from ear to ear.

Approximate set list:

Intro
Fiery Crash
A Nervous Tic Motion of the Head to the Left
Opposite Day
Why?
Spare-Ohs
Lull
Plasticities
Heretics
Simple X
Imitosis
Armchairs
Dr Stringz (by request)
Dark Matter

Encore:
Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning
Scythian Empires

A bit belated, but I thought I'd write up a quick review of the Regina Spektor gig I went to just over a week ago (Fri 7 Sep – Regina Spektor, Eugene McGuinness).

Ignoring the support (I'd seen him a couple of weeks before with Rilo Kiley and was decidedly unimpressed), we took our seats a couple of minutes before Regina Spektor took to the stage. The newly refurbished Royal Festival Hall looks very nice inside and out and the acoustics are excellent (as they should be really). I'm really looking forward to my next trip there to see The Decemberists.

Looking at the stage set-up I was pleased to see that it was just going to be Regina solo with no backing band - the only time I'd seen her before she'd been assisted by a backing band of drums, bass and guitar, who appeared completely superfluous to proceedings. They weren't missed (although I'm sure Regina will benefit from some accompaniment at times, they need to be utilised a bit better so that they're actually adding something to the performance).

On her own, Regina was on great form. Her voice is both extremely powerful and very beautiful - she started off with a captivating acapella rendition of Ain't No Cover before heading to the grand piano centre stage, where she spent most of the night (save for a minor detour to the electric guitar for a quick rendition of Bobbing for Apples and That Time).

Not much more to say other than that Regina is an amazing performer - she's a great singer & pianist and coordinates singing and playing (and percussion at times, most notably when playing the chair on Poor Little Rich Boy) perfectly. Live there's always the added bonus of the tracks that have never been put on a recording, like the Baby Jesus song, and Bobbing for Apples. Plus it was the perfect venue for her.

One minor thing - I would like it if she conversed with the audience more. A lot of people find the shyness endearing, and I do up to a point, but from what I've seen of her, she's very sweet and funny when she wants to be, and I think it would enhance the performance if she could bring this to some between-song chatter (not too much, but a funny story or two, or some words about
the previous/next song wouldn't go amiss).

Disordered setlist:

Ain't No Cover
Prisoners
Ghost of Corporate Future
Poor Little Rich Boy
Sailor Song
Us
The Flowers
On the Radio
Fidelity
Better
Samson
Field Below
Apres Moi
20 Years Of Snow
Summer in the City
That Time
Bobbing for Apples
Blue Lips
Human of the Year
Baby Jesus
Man Of A Thousand Faces
one more time with feeling
Music Box
Real Love (John Lennon cover)

Mon 20 Aug – Rilo Kiley, Eugene McGuinness

Rilo Kiley Monday night, which was great. The band were on top form and seemed to be really enjoying playing together again after a break (according to them it was the first show back that they'd really hit their stride). The crowd was great, completely packed out and very appreciative. They played pretty much all of the new album, 4 tracks off More Adventurous, 2 from The Execution of All Things, and just the one from Take Offs and Landings (but it was Wires and Waves, so that was cool, as it's my favourite). Oh, and a rockier version of one of Jenny's tracks from Rabbit Fur Coat (Rise Up with Fists). The new album sounds cool, even if it does seem to be channeling some 70s disco.

I was very near the front, although I did let a couple of girls stand in front of me so they could see despite their shortness (I'm such a nice person). The best part was one of them going mental when they played Wires and Waves, which mirrored how I felt inside. And Ripchord on the ukulele with Mandolin accompaniment was excellent too.

It was pretty awesome, although i am slightly in love with Jenny Lewis now. I also love the new album. Must go out and buy it immediately.

Fri 3 Aug – Amanda Palmer, Christian Silva

OK, so last night I went to see Amanda Palmer (of The Dresden Dolls) do a solo show. It was pretty awesome. Amanda started the show by wandering through the crowd wearing a tutu and playing Radiohead's Creep on the ukulele. So at one point Amanda is basically standing right next to me playing and singing this. I was more than a little excited.

The set proper kicked off with Ampersand and mostly consisted of Amanda's solo stuff, including a couple of new songs like Leeds United (which includes the immortal line "who needs love when there's Dukes of Hazard"), and a couple of Dolls songs, Colorblind and Half Jack, as well as a great cover of Material Girl, accompanied by The Rohan Theatre Band (which is in fact one man) on violin (he also played a couple of his songs before Amanda came on - Nobody Buried The Undertaker and Big Shot).

During Another Year, some people at the front were blowing bubbles, which made for a really pretty effect, but Amanda had to tell them to stop as they were distracting her from playing - she was too interested in watching the bubbles.

For the encore Amanda moved on to the Boston Steinway piano at the back of the room to play Me & The Minibar and her awesome cover of I Will Follow You Into the Dark (I was extremely happy to hear this as Amanda's version is brilliant).

Also, the support was from a guy called Christian Silva, who was really good too.

I don't have a full setlist right now (hopefully someone will post one somewhere), so here's a vague approximation of the songs that were played (not in the right order):

Creep
Ampersand
Leeds United
Blake Says
Another Year
Strength Through Music
Guitar Hero
Astronaut
Colorblind (w/ The Rohan Theatre Band on violin)
Material Girl, accompanied by (w/ The Rohan Theatre Band on violin)
Half Jack (w/ The Rohan Theatre Band on violin)

Encore:
Me & The Minibar
I Will Follow You Into the Dark

So, Friday night I went to see Aimee Mann (Fri 27 Jul – Aimee Mann, Jenny Owen Youngs).

I was interested to see what the venue, the indigO2 (part of the new development at the Dome) was like. I was pretty impressed. Comfy seats with plenty of space, large bar, good lines of sight, decent acoustics (pretty much as the blurb suggested). The seats even had cupholders in the armrests (genius, if you ask me). My only complaint was that there was a VIP area at the front of the seats, so even if you were at the front of the standard seating (as I was), you were still quite a long way back, with a big barrier separating the VIP area off.

Also, for some reason about halfway through the gig the staff brought round free bottles of water for everyone. I'm not quite sure why, I think maybe their air conditioning wasn't working properly. But it was basically a bit warmer than ideal, so it was a bit strange, especially as most venues tend to be pretty sweaty places.

The gig got off to a slow start as Aimee didn't say much to begin with and the first few songs were downbeat. However, once she took off her jacket and started chatting with the crowd she seemed to find her stride. Aimee is really quite funny and endearing at gigs and she has a lightness which juxtaposes with the downbeat nature of a lot of her songs, which is what makes the gig. Highlights included her thanking us for the gift of Posh and Becks (apparently she didn't realise Posh was an ironic nickname) and her forgetting the words to Momentum (when she got them right finally she got a huge cheer).

The setlist was a pretty good mix of songs from across all of her albums (although I'd have preferred a couple more tracks from Lost in Space and not so much from the Magnolia Soundtrack) and she took several requests from the crowd. She also played a couple of new songs (from her forthcoming new album), Freeway and 31 Today, which both sounded good, especially Freeway, which was one of my highlights of the evening.

All in all, I enjoyed the gig, although I felt it didn't quite catch fire, meaning that it was entertaining without being totally compelling. But I think this was at least partially down to me as I was so tired after a long week.

Setlist:

Little Bombs
You Could Make a Killing
One
Video
Freeway
Going Through the Motions
Save Me
Amateur
Driving Sideways
You Do
Momentum
31 Today
How Am I Different
She Really Wants You
Today's the Day
Humpty Dumpty
Way Back When

Encore:
The Other End (Of The Telescope)
4th Of July
Wise Up
Superball