Event Reviews

It doesn’t matter how many times you attend, there’s something special about watching a gig in the belly of a boat. Bristol’s Thekla is one of the city’s most renowned venues and anticipation is high; it’s the last night of the headliner’s tour and sold out to boot. As the …

So goes the age-old joke: “I wonder what it would be like to live in Bath…” “Well, probably rather wet.” Thing is, the city lives up to its name tonight as the South West is caught up in a sharp, heavy shower that leaves everything soggier than your favourite digestive when …

First up on tonight’s varied bill was Long John and the killer blues collective.  As the name suggests, they’re a Blues act, and I have to say they’re a damn good one.  They’ve got good strong tunes and great vocals, so it’s a really good start to the night. Next …

Metal 2 The Masses Ireland kicked off with aplomb on Saturday night at Fibber Magees in Dublin. The opening night is always one of those, what’s the crowd gonna be like? kind of nights and thankfully, the support was in full force as the throngs gathered to check out the …

Tonight’s gig is somewhat of a local affair.  Glenn Hughes may live in California these days but he was born just a couple of miles up the road in Cannock.  Supporting him tonight (and on the rest of his UK and European dates) is another local act, Stone Broken. I’ve …

Rival Sons’ Belfast debut comes eight years into their career. Playing their own headline shows in between support slots with Black Sabbath, tonight it’s Belfast’s turn. Its an early show with no support, presumably for logistical reasons as they are due in Manchester the following day. The venue is a …

Colder than a polar bear’s backside, the threat of snow overnight and more than a little bit damp – it can only be UK gigs in January. It’s the first concert of the year for Bristol’s O2 Academy, the first date of the headliner’s UK tour and whilst it’s not …

Away from the German market, the temporary ice rink and the giant ferris wheel, the queue outside Cardiff University’s Great Hall snakes around the corner without a hint of Christmas in sight apart from the odd heavy metal ugly sweater – oh, and the brass band who are successfully irritating …

After a two year absence Sky Valley Mistress made it back to the underbelly of Edinburgh’s music scene with a return to Bannermans Bar as part of their current short tour.  PlanetMosh took the opportunity to catch up with the band for a few minutes before stage time to find out …

This was a busy night for gigs in London – there were 4 in total I wanted to be at, but sadly its not possible to attend them all, but due to the different stage times I was able to attend a gig in soho before racing across London to …

Tonight’s show was a special show from Delain to mark 10 years as a band.  The setting for the show was the beautiful and legendary Paradiso venue in the heart of Amsterdam.  An old church it’s a great venue with two balconies and raised areas near the bar which mean …

On a frosty winter’s day in Manchester, three bands from three different continents Europe, North America and Australia descended upon the O2 Ritz for a sell-out show. First up at 6:20 pm, and a little too early for many revellers, came ‘all girl garage group’ The Franklys, although they’re based …

Tonight was my first time at Shepherds Bush Empire since it recently reopened following its year-long closure for major repairs.  The occasion was Black Stone Cherry doing a special tour. Rather than having a support act they chose to play two sets, one acoustic and one electric, which sounded like …

There are some nights that might fall a bit flat due to the anticipation they are afforded. Not a chance of that though when either King King or Broken Witt Rebels are in town. Get both on the same bill and what results is musical dynamite. Both bands quite simply …

Tonight’s lineup looked pretty damn good – Airbourne with support from Crobot.  It then got better with the addition of The Franklys, a band I hadn’t seen live before, but I’ve heard the EP and really like it, so I was looking forward to all three bands on the bill.  …

Any of you who have seen Lordi in concert before know that you are in for a show full of theatrics and riffs to challenge hell itself and last night didn’t disappoint in the slightest…. The lights were dimmed, background music cut out and attention of the crowd was drawn …

When one thinks of ‘PlanetMosh’, Reading Festival is not always the pinnacle event that may spring to mind – but surprisingly, Reading and Leeds have diversified more and more into our alternative subculture, making the idea of spending August bank holiday weekend in a field surrounded by citizens of the …

The problem with gigs at Rock City on a Friday these days is that because they have a club night afterwards they are on an early-finish curfew so they tend to start early too. Reckless Love apparently had doors at 6pm. I don’t know, I was still facing the torture …

Kobra and the Lotus had the job of opening tonight’s strong lineup.  The Canadian band played their first every UK show almost exactly seven years ago playing to a dozen or so people, and have toured a lot since then, building up a support base the old fashioned way – …

“Since you’ve been gone, since you’ve been gone; I’m outta my head…” Who? What? Where? Sorry! Got a little distracted there for a minute. What can I say? When you’ve grown up listening to the iconic British rock band Rainbow then you were probably excited when the news of the …