T: Bits and Bobs

Bits, bobs and other things, just like I did at Glasto! So here's some people that I caught briefly. Sometimes very briefly.

The Zutons: Thank god they ditched Ronson. Actually, I'm glad I didn't see the performance of "Valerie". People only know the words to that song now because of Amy Winehouse.... But, going back to this performance, they always sound better live. They've never particularly excited me, and they've got a saxophonist which is always a black mark against a band's name in my opinion. They always go into this kind of prog-rock, Led Zep-esque bit at the end of each of their songs live that could be annoying, but it acutally makes me want to watch them more. Suddenly their songs change from slightly dull indie to more exciting retro rock. Nice.

Pendulum: I know a lot of people who are really into these D'n'B people. And I mean scarily into them, to the point where if they hear even a single note of one of their songs, they scream "Pendulum!" really loudly. What is the fuss please? It's like if Slipknot went electro, which isn't a pretty thought. I don't understand the appeal of some thirty-or-forty-something men thinking that they're "down with the kids" and thrashing guitars around, pretending to be cool. Oh, and if you heard it you might think that their single sounds ever so vaguely like "Live and Let Die". Super scary.

Ian Brown: What the...? Somebody turn down his microphone! Either that or he was holding it far to close to his mouth. Either way, he sounded terrible which was a bit of a shame because his backing band were perfect. Funny how if someone or something goes slightly wrong, the whole dynamic of a set can go out of the window. I'm sure it wouldn't have sounded so bad if you were actually there but being stuck at home watching a strange, hopelessly muffled version of "F.E.A.R" really does put the fear into you.

More bits and bobs to come later on....

What I'm Listening To Right Now: "Get Innocuous!" by LCD Soundsystem

Thanks to www.ticketsources.co.uk/images for the pic!

T: Kaiser Chiefs

Ahh, Kaiser Chiefs.... King of the "ITV Rock" movement. I will admit to having bought their first album "Employment" but I was totally lost off by "Yours Truly, Angry Mob". I thought that was with good cause, since "Ruby" - their anthem - and "Angry Mob" were both bland and mystifying. The Kaisers? Angry? Surely not!

But hey, this was the best Kaiser Chiefs' performance I've ever seen! Ricky Wilson still works the crowd a bit too much, expecting them to sing along to nearly every single song. Just leave it to "I Predict A Riot" Ricky, then leave them be. They even performed some new songs, one of which was absolutely hilarious. "We Want History" is a strange song, especially since the chorus says, "History, it's a mystery". Hmmm, yes. I can see they were up all night thinking of that line.

But the crowd love them and I suppose if you didn't like the look of Rage Against The Machine and Ian Brown then these were a fun alternative. I'm still not won over and I probably never will be. On a purely performance level, they had a good light show and the songs were performed well. Bravo on that level.

T: The Raconteurs

You know, the more and more I watch The Raconteurs, the more and more I like them. I was never sure of them, and I'm not really a White Stripes fan so maybe I've surprised myself at the fact that I'm starting to fall for Jack White's other project.

Well, from what I saw (which didn't include most of their singles, which was a nice bonus) they were on good form. I enjoyed the album tracks which are much more melodic than the frenetic guitar thrashing of songs like "Salute Your Solution". I like a bit of melody, even Muse have that and they mostly just favour a wall of noise!

So anyway, it's too bad they didn't show more. It was probably a performance where I thought I could have sat quite happily all the way through and not complained once. Unlike a lot of the other people I saw this year at T - they're on to a winner.

What I'm Listening to Right Now - "Dead" by The Cocknbullkid

Thanks to weeklyvolcano.typepad.com for the pic!