Looking ahead to summer.

As January slowly edges to a close the festival/ tour announcements start to make an appearance.....a loud hoorah is heard throughout the live music community! It's been a long old month, now looking toward some rather excellent musical escapades  ahead.
One of those announcements  is the mighty fine band Those Damn Crows have been announced  for Monsterfest up in Inverness for its 2nd outing in Nov & after a blistering  set last year "up the mountain " at Steelhouse Festival, the Welsh boys are coming back in July , let's hope it stays dry this year.....please!
If you haven't had chance to catch Those Damn Crows, nows the time , with David Winchurch & Ian 'shiner' Thomas on guitar, Lloyd Wood on bass, Ronnie Huxford on drums & last but no means least  vocals from Shane Greenhall, the guys bring a wall of sound, melodic hard rock with a commanding vocal from Shane, check out their debut album Murder and the Motive, with some anthemic  tunes such as Blink of an Eye , Roll n Roll ain't Dead, Somebody Some Day & the hard hitting  Dont Give A Damn. From the minute these guys step foot on stage you know you are in for a stonking set of in your face rock  n  roll, they have the crowd eating out of there hands!  Just about to head out with Stone Broken, you will not be dissapointed if you can catch them, infact I'm pretty sure you will be going back for more!
The year of the "Crow" is upon us methinks!
http://thosedamncrows.com
https://www.steelhousefestival.com
https://monsterfest.rocks/

www.type1-diabetes.co.uk

Blue Monday

Well talk about Blue Monday!
Yes indeed I found the Monday just gone to be extremely blue. Of all the days in this long old January it had to be my most morose.
Why was that? Was it because  all day that's all I heard on the radio or social media etc or was it that it's a month since pay day back in Dec ( early due to Xmas) & now am truly feeling the pinch. Is it because I've still not had my  "live music" fix yet in 2019?
I'm not sure but everything came out on Monday, the tears flowed & feelings of deep sadness were truly overwhelming.
So this takes me to the background to starting this blog.
My aims are to help gig goers find great info on venues, places to stay & perhaps some new bands to check out, but it's also to explain how music helps me deal with what life has thrown at me in the last 10 years & boy has it flung some pretty nasty stuff!
Just a tad over 10 years ago now I lost my Beautiful Son aged 15yrs & music I can wholeheartedly say has been my saviour! So Monday came along & shook me to my core with lots of related memories & the feeling of true helplessness of not having that beautiful soul around anymore. Speaking to a lovely friend who is heavily involved in the music scene pulled me to my senses & made me see the year I have planned ahead with some exciting gigs together with special music friends. I really believe I let myself get so down with all the influences from media & with my pre disposure  if you like that I tend to have now ( my loss) i was more susceptible to all the hype.
Yet again though my nod to music saved the day. Never ever underestimate the healing power of music in whatever genre.....
Now wheres that gig calendar......

UK Tour 2019 — Holy Holy

UK Tour 2019 — Holy Holy

January is the longest time!

So here we are 5 days into  2019   Happy New Year  everyone!
Is it just me or has that greeting become a little tired now,  its seems that the celebrations are a dim & distant memory..
So as a very passionate gig goer myself I thought I'd share my reviews on bands, venues, hotels etc whilst I'm travelling up & down the country following superb bands old & new.
January always seems to be a very long month, December's gigs have faded & we are all in need of that thrill, high we feel from watching a live band, whether they are bands that we have followed from the year dot to that very exciting moment when you discover something new ( along with possibly a lot of your fellow crowd), that anticipation that they may just be incredible & mesmerising. 
What will be my 1st gig of the year, well that's easy!
Holy Holy 《Woody Woodmanseys band》 unfortunately it's not until Feb 23rd Leamington Spa....this is truly a band well worth waiting for, it's made up of Tony Visconti', Glen Gregory (Heaven 17 frontman), James Stevenson, Paul Cuddesford, Berenice Scott, Jessica Morgan & last but no means least the man himself  Woody Woodmansey......
A "supergroup " I really don't like that term, but it is indeed a group made up of super talented musicians playing songs of David Bowie from 1969 to 1973.
If you are a Bowie fan, these shows are a must, you will experience  an evening of  sheer joy surrounded by like minded fans, Glen Gregory doesn't try to mimic Bowie at all, it's all about the music itself.  Take a look at the tour dates,  lots of venues to choose from up & down the country.
See you there
http://www.holyholy.co.uk/gigs/