Hooters live in Athens June 2025

I had only bought three records by the Hooters: My three favourite singles of theirs, "All You Zombies", "Johnny B". and "Satellite". I thought these were big hits (at least "Johnny B" was a big hit in Greece), but as I found out while researching them in the run up to this gig, they weren't. Not in America where some of them peaked just below the top 40. As a result, their record company would not promote them and they had to disband after a few years. As it usually happens they reformed in the 21st century. And since I loved these songs so much combined with the fact that they also played ska and Irish sounding music made me consider going to see them. What finally convinced me to go was that a friend of mine also wanted to see them which meant that I bought the ticket on the very morning of the day of the gig.

This was supposed to be an outdoor gig taking place at Technopolis. But when Blind Guardian who were due to appear at Lycabettus Theatre were moved to Technopolis, Hooters were bumped into good old Gagarin which is of course an indoor venue. Thankfully, it was air-conditioned unlike Peace And Friendship Stadium during last years's Smashing Pumpkins concert.

There was no support act, so once we got there we were just waiting for Hooters to appear. And when they did, they were introduced by one of their crew. Apparently, this gig was the opening date on their current 45th anniversary tour.

They began with their early ska stuff, added in a few new songs as they said, continued with what I call their Irish sounding ones and somewhere in the midst of all these the hits came. "Johnny B", being their biggest hit in Greece received the warmest welcome, but what I found impressive was the introduction to, and in fact the whole presentation of "All You Zombies" with the big gong behind the synthesizers. And as expected, there was a big celebration, a big party, with "Satellite", owing to its rousing chorus, a party which culminated with "And We Danced".

 

But what stood out, what made this gig memorable and what we'll look back on in years to come when we remember it, was what I call the 'unexpected covers" (which of course might have been totally expected by those who had followed the Hooters' progress through their years and check out their setlists). The first one was the much beloved "The Boys Of Summer", originally by Don Henley. Later on, it was The Beatles' "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds", Joan Osborne's "One Of Us", and at almost the very end it was Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time". And somewhere among all these they even played us a bit of "Zorba's Dance".

And so, our time in the well air conditioned Gagarin came to an end even if we had to go to an indoor venue at the end of June. Now it was time go outdoors... and abroad!

SETLIST:

01. I'm Alive

02. Silver Lining

03. Hanging On A Heartbeat

04. Day By Day

05. Why Won't You Call Me Back

06. Brother, Don't You Walk Away

07. Engine 999

08. The Boys Of Summer

09. 500 Miles

10. South Ferry Road

11. Johnny B

12. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds

13. All You Zombies

14. Boys Will Be Boys

15. Karla With A K

16. Twenty-Five Hours A Day / Jigs & Reels

17. Drum Solo

18. Satellite

19. And We Danced

Encore:

20. Pendulum

21. One of Us
22. Time After Time

Film live in Athens February 2011

Film were one of the names of the Greek scene of the 2000's decade who were quite popular at the time (another one from the same era were Mikro for example). I hadn't bought any of their CD's back then. So when they played at Gagarin (with a ticket costing only 12 Euros) in 2011 it was a good chance for me to get to know them better.

Their singer was Etten, who had just released a solo album.

The gig was opened by Nalyssa Green and here we had one of those occasions where the support act almost steals the show from the headliners. The last occasion of this happening that comes to mind was when Marsheaux supported OMD in June 2007.

One of the instruments that Nalyssa played was the - guess what - theremin! It seemed that this instrument was following me wherever I went. When I grow up, I want to learn to play the theremin.

Finally it was time for Film to come on stage. They appeared wearing rain macs and head torches during the first song but then continued with more conventional attire.

 

One of the highlights was their song with Icelandic lyrics (Harmur Fuglsins). They played for just over 2 hours. Great value for money.

Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel live in Athens April 2011

When I heard the news of the recent loss of Steve Harley, I remembered that I had seen him and Cockney Rebel back in 2011 at Gagarin. They were much loved in Greece, their previous gigs were all sold out (or almost sold-out, anyway), but not that time. People's abstention from gigs (but also from nights out and entertainment in general) because of the recession and the punishing measures imposed by the IMF and the EU had started to become apparent. Even so, they rewarded us with an unforgettable night, where apart from Hideaway they also played Sebastian and Mr.Soft among others. They even included Star For A Week, which, as Steve informed us, was inspired by a real story with a young bank robber, that had actually taken place in Greece. 

As someone commented on the Hideaway YouTube video: "Amazing concert, in my opinion, of priceless value !!! Its second part started with Hideaway, after a 20 minute break !!! Mr. Harley is like good old wine : As he grows old & matures, he becomes better ...."

And he bid us farewell with something more optimistic: Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me). Let's all remember him like this...

 

SETLIST:
First Set:
01. Audience With the Man
02. Here Comes the Sun
03. Psychomodo
04. Judy Teen
05. Sling It!
06. Red Is a Mean, Mean Colour
07. (Love) Compared With You
08. Star for a Week ('Dino')
09. True Love Will Find You in the End
10. The Best Years of Our Lives
11. No Bleeding Hearts
Second Set:
12. Hideaway
13. This Old Man
14. The Last Time I Saw You
15. Mr. Raffles (Man It Was Mean)
16. The Lighthouse
17. Journey's End (A Father's Promise)
18. Mr. Soft
19. Sebastian
Encore:
20. Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)

Mark Lanegan & Isobel Campbell live in Athens December 2010

I first noticed this duo the previous time they had come to Athens. I had gone to another gig at Gagarin back then and I noticed the promo clip playing for the Lanegan / Campbell appearance on the video screens of the venue. What caught my attention was one of the songs featured in the clip. One that went "I'm always looking for the sun". This was actually called "Falling From Grace" and it was from one of Isobel Campbell's projects called The Gentle Waves. I didn't manage to go to the gig at that time, but I decided that the next time they came to Athens, I would attend. And finally that time had come in December 2010.
Support was provided by Greek band Tango With Lions whose song "In A Bar" was quite popular at that time.

 

 

And then it was time for the main act. Although it wasn't quite what I had expected, the truth is I've loved it. Several of my friends had also come and opinions were varying. Some people thought it was boring. The thing is, I've always liked this type of music. Meaning those really slow, soft songs with the almost "ethereal" female vocals. The closest example that comes to my mind is Mazzy Star, from the mid 90's. What must be noted, however, was that this project was a personal one of Campbell's. She had written the songs, and she had also produced their latest album "HAWK". As one of my friends remarked "we came here to see the son of Tom Waits and we got Belle And Sebastian instead. This woman has really mellowed him out". (Isobel Campbell had been a member of Belle And Sebastian in the past). That remark made me want to see Lanegan live by himself and less than 18 months later, I would also get that chance. 

 

 

At the merchandise stand I found a selection of live CD's self-released by Mark Lanegan and I bought one of a gig with Isobel Campbell. 

I would finally get to see Mark Lanegan live by himself 16 months later, Sadly, he is no longer with us...

SETLIST:
01. We Die And See Beauty Reign
02. You Won't Let Me Down Again
03. Come Undone
04. Snake Song
05. Who Built The Road
06. Free To Walk
07. Honey Child What Can I Do?
08. The Circus Is Leaving Town
09. To Hell And Back Again
10. Saturday's Gone
11. Back Burner
12. Time Of The Season
13. Something To Believe
14. Salvation
15. Come On Over (Turn Me On)
16. Get Behind Me
Encore:
17. Revolver
18. (Do You Wanna) Come Walk With Me?
19. Ramblin' Man
20. Wedding Dress

The Sonics supported by Down & Out live in Athens December 2010

For the third consecutive day, a third consecutive gig, this time at Gagarin for The Sonics, on Friday the 3rd of December. The Sonics had been around since the 60's. I learned about them in 1989 when I heard "Have Love Will Travel" albeit covered by Crazyhead (an alternative band of that era). They had also come to Greece the previous year, in 2009, again at Gagarin, and I hadn't gone to see them. "I hope they come again" I thought. "But, they've been around since the '60's and are still playing live in 2010? They must be very old". And indeed they were!  However, The Sonics weren't the only reason why I went to Gagarin that night. I also went to see Down & Out, the Greek opening act, whose drummer was Little Tonnie a fellow member of No Surrender (a Greek community of Bruce Springsteen fans). This was the first time I saw his band live and later I followed him with his next one The Big Nose Attack who are a regular feature of this blog.

 

They played a very nice set and we were pleasantly surprised when they finished it with their own rendition of Prince's Kiss.

In the foyer their CD was on sale along with a 7 inch vinyl single  (which can easily fit inside a woman's handbag). Then, it was the turn of The Meanie Geanies, another Greek band comprising 4 women and a drummer of unknown gender, hidden behind his own hairstyle, who were playing a pure 60's garage rock style.

(The sound of their keyboards alone is enough to send you 60 years back in time). And finally it was time for The Sonics, with their own 60's garage-rock style with all our (their) favourite songs (eg Have Love Will Travel, The Witch) and several other rock'n'roll standards.

And, as far as Gagarin was concerned, it seems that you don't have to stay home in order to smoke suspicious substances. You just go to Gagarin and breathe deeply instead. And it's free! (OK, you'll have to pay 30 Euros for the gig ticket)

SETLIST:
01. He's Waitin'
02. Money (That's What I Want)
03. Cinderella
04. Have Love, Will Travel
05. Vampire Kiss
06. Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark
07. Boss Hoss
08. You've Got Your Head On Backwards
09. Don't Back Down
10. Lucille
11. Cheap Shades
12. The Hustler
13. Bad Attitude
14. Strychnine
15. Shot Down
16. Dirty Robber
17. Psycho
Encore:
18. Louie Louie
19. The Witch
20. Keep a Knockin'

Nouvelle Vague live in Athens November 2009

The current situation, being what it is, does not allow for live gigs. Still, some artists aren't short of ideas and this is what two members of Nouvelle Vague did a few days ago because they couldn't come to Thessaloniki, Greece, for an appearance at the Demetria festival. They streamed an acoustic performance from a sauna! Back in 2009 though, they had come to Athens and it was the second time that I went to see them. Once again, it was at the same place, Gagarin and they still had a male singer, along with the two female ones.

The opening act was Olga Kouklaki, herself an established artist in the field of electronic music in France, even though she is Greek. I had heard of her a while back but this was the first time that I saw her live.

Nouvelle Vague were, once again, amazing. Remember it was only the second time I had seen them live and I was very excited to listen to all those songs from my childhood, in a bossa nova arrangement.

 

Even when I think about it now, what was on that night's menu was amazing. Covers of songs by The Sex Pistols, Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Blondie, Joy Division and The Specials among others. Probably, the best Nouvelle Vague gig I have ever been to.