Greek Progressive Rock

 Now, I do not normally post gig reviews of Greek-singing artists on this blog anymore but this is something a bit different. PLJ Band were formed in the late 70's and they played progressive rock at a time when it had already gone out of fashion. Their first LP "Armageddon" was released in 1982 featuring music inspired by John's Revelation, sung in English, although there were some passages that were recited in the original ancient Greek text. It was promoted by the record company alongside the first LP by new wave band T.V.C. (now, I wonder what happened to them?). Needless to say the record was not a success. It sold about 400 copies and I'm proud to say I bought one of them back then. What the band did after that, was they changed their name to "Τερμιτες" (Greek for "Termites"), they started singing in Greek and success in Greece followed soon afterwards. Meanwhile the "Armageddon" LP gathered some attention abroad, especially after the internet came along, mostly by collectors who viewed the concept of a band from Greece playing progressive rock somewhat exotic.
So, last autumn, the band decided to reform and play "Armageddon" in its entirety. Having bought the album when it originally came out, this was something that I wanted to see. Unfortunately (and probably predictably) not very many people were interested in that, so the concert was rescheduled and apart from "Armageddon" the setlist was expanded to feature the well known songs and hits from the band's Greek-singing "Termites" phase.

I went to listen to "Armageddon", most of the others went to listen to "Termites", I guess in the end everybody was happy.
And here, you can get a glimpse of what "Greek Progressive Rock" sounds like along with a sample from their Greek phase...

Girls In Peacetime Want To Dance

Why wouldn't they? However, this is in fact the title of the latest album by Belle And Sebastian. It is truly a 2015 album, since it was released in January. And it was actually released in 2 different editions. The standard edition, available on CD and double vinyl LP contains 12 songs. The deluxe edition however, available on a quadruple vinyl LP box set contains 16 songs. It contains the 12 songs of the standard edition, however one in an "extended version" and another one in an "extended mix" (more about these definitions later), plus 4 songs that are exclusive to this edition. On top of that, the running order of the songs in the deluxe edition is completely different to that on the standard one. Confused? You will be!
It was this, the deluxe edition that I listened to first, before listening to the standard. Not from the vinyl though. When you buy the box set (and its price is quite reasonable for a quadruple vinyl), you also get a "download code" inside the box which you can use to download these 16 tracks. I fit these songs into two CD-R's (I'm an old-fashioned "physical product" junkie myself) and listened to it from there.
Now, usually, on a Belle And Sebastian album, the opening track is usually the most important track, or maybe the best one (but that is of course, a matter of taste). Now, I know I have listened to the deluxe version first, but I still can't imagine a better opening than "The Party Line", which is exactly what it says on the tin: A great, almost disco, dance song. There are other up-tempo songs you can dance to, possibly better songs, like "Enter Sylvia Plath" and "The Book Of You" which in my opinion is the best song on the album (there's hardly a bad song on this album as we will see later), but I think "The Party Line" is the perfect opener.
On the other hand, listening to the standard version, one realizes that "Nobody's Empire" is an equally strong track to open the album, even if it is less danceable. And it features the second best lyric of the album in "If I had a camera I'd snap you now, cos there's beauty in every stumble". If dancing is what you're after though, then look no further than "Enter Sylvia Plath". It's not so much disco,  it's more the synth-pop track of the album. Maybe a little bit Hi-NRG at some points (for those who remember the definition from the 80's). There's more synth-pop on "Play For Today" another of my favourite songs. Then there's "The Everlasting Muse" with its jazzy bassline, which suddenly turns into a waltz right in the middle. In short, this album is a celebration of pop music, the kind of pop music with the kind of lyrics that are typically Belle & Sebastian ever since they were formed. A perfect example of this is "Ever Had A Little Faith?". This song is one of two that get a special treatment on the deluxe edition. "Ever Had A Little Faith?" is featured in an "extended version" and "Perfect Couples" in an "extended mix". Belle & Sebastian have used in each of these cases, the correct definition those of us who were buying 12inch singles in the 80's are familiar with. "Ever Had A Little Faith?" has an extended ending and "Perfect Couples" is longer as a result of several additions in the mix in various parts of the song (but not a "remix"). The song that would benefit from an extended or "dance" mix in my opinion is of course "The Party Line".
So, while we're talking about the differences between the two editions what about the four bonus songs that feature only in the deluxe one?. One surely tends to think that they were probably not that good so Stuart decided to keep them off the standard and chuck them in the deluxe for die-hard fans and completists only, right? Well, wrong! In my opinion leaving "Two Birds" off the standard edition is a crime! This is just a great song! Especially considering that "Today (This Army's For Peace)" the album's only weak track is in both editions. There's nothing wrong with it, it's just sort of... boring. Although one must admit placing it as the album's closing track is a good choice. A slow song, and if one switches off the album out of boredom let's say, they won't miss anything since it's the last song. (The closing track in the deluxe edition, by the way, is "The Cat With The Cream"). The other 3 bonus tracks are also good, especially "Piggy In The Middle with an amazing bassline.
Finally, I know we're only two months into 2015, but I can honestly say, "Girls In Peacetime Want To Dance" is the best album I've listened to this year so far. Non-stop pure pop as MTV used to say.

A subtle gift to modern rock
She says "be popular, play pop"
And you will win my love

If it was up to me though, I would take "Today" off and I would replace it with "Two Birds". But then, I'd probably move "The Book Of You" as the last track so that the album would end with its most beautiful (and most romantic) lyric:

We're always walking in the rain
And you're just trouble so I claim
But then the world can see
That I'm the one for you
And you're the one for me

 

All we hear is Lady GaGa

As I have said before on this blog (I think) pop concerts in Greece usually do not work. They don't sell many tickets. (Unless it's a super huge name like Madonna). Heavy metal concerts and old school type rock in general are the ones who draw crowds. So, we were probably not expecting to see Lady GaGa in Greece. So, how come she finally came? Well, it probably has to do with the fact that the promoter who brought her, although not a new name in the business, it was his first time organizing a gig featuring an international artist. So, you could probably say that he had no "sense of danger", no sense of the risk he was taking bringing Lady GaGa to Greece. We could say that his risk in the end paid off, but he made just one mistake: His choice of venue, Athens Olympic Stadium was too big for Lady GaGa. Had he chosen the nearby Olympic Arena, everybody would be talking today of a huge success, because it would have been sold out. Plus, most of the other European dates on Lady GaGa's ArtPop Ball tour were held in arenas, not stadia. That should have been a hint. Anyway, choice of venue aside we should be feeling nothing but thankful to a promoter who dared to bring to us an artist we would normally not see in Greece and all we can ask him for the future is to "please, bring us Bruce Springsteen" (because nobody else will).
In the days leading to the concert we were expecting to face a media circus like the one back in 2008 before the Madonna concert. Because Lady GaGa is "in fashion" we were expecting all the "lifestyle types" and TV "personas to show up and keep talking about this event. And the day before, her arrival at the airport, her naked photos she was posting from her hotel room and her fans waiting to catch a glimpse outside her hotel gave more fuel for the lifestyle and gossip shows on Greek TV. And of course we should not forget the religious lady outside the hotel who kept shouting "Lady GaGa you are satan!". But apart from the media circus, there was also the outcry coming from all "serious music" fans targeted towards those who dared to admit that yes, they were going to see Lady GaGa.

With all these in mind, we approached the Olympic Stadium on a Friday September evening. The first thing we noticed were the usual promotional events one comes to expect on a concert of this type. Like for example the installation, by a Greek mobile phone company, where one would walk through while dancing to Lady GaGa songs and would finally be given a pendant emitting a green glow, to wear during the concert.

The next thing we noticed were the faces. Mostly young (but not always) and mostly different. Different to the faces one is used to seeing in concerts in Greece. Lots of jewellery, many accessories and hair in all kinds of colours. We can only guess that for many of these people this was their first concert.

The final thing we noticed, just before entering the pitch was a drone, for the first time in a concert in Greece. It seems it got scared when we took a picture of it and quickly flew away from us!

So we were in, and the first thing to do was to wait for the support act. There was a competition to choose it in the months before and although I, personally would have preferred to see Berlin Brides, Alex Kavvadias was chosen.

And it proved to be a good choice, well suited to the mood of the evening with the added bonus of a cover of the Tears For Fears hit "Shout". 

Next, it was time for Lady Starlight's DJ set. I know she's been apparently supporting Lady GaGa since they both started together, but on a warm Greek evening and with the anticipation of the main event on a high, a minimal techno set was probably a bit tiring.

But now it was time for the real party to begin. The lights went down and the ArtRave was about to begin. And it began with 5 songs from Artpop. OK, not her most successful album, but the crowd did not seem to care. And my personal opinion is that the title track is one of the strongest and a perfect choice for the opener. After these it was time for a medley from "The Fame Monster" and 4 songs from "Born This Way". However, each album was treated differently: We got full versions of the tracks from "Artpop" while the songs from "Fame Monster" were mostly delivered in a medley with 2 minutes of each played.

OK, I know that most people would prefer more of these songs, but you have to remember that this tour is to support "Artpop", so this is what you're mostly going to hear. So, what about "Born This Way" then? Well, this is where (in my opinion) there was a slight disappointment. OK, so we had "You And I", but then we got "Born This Way" on an acoustic version on the piano.

And then we only got a 30 second, acapella snippet of "The Edge Of Glory". Only half a minute? Surely it deserved better. I wouldn't have minded the acoustic "Born This Way" much, if I could have had a full blown version of "The Edge Of Glory", one of her best songs. At least after that we got "Judas" albeit in a medley with "Aura" from "Artpop". Then there was more "Artpop" but also more "Fame Monster" for the conclusion of the show, where "Applause", the first single from the latest album seemed to work as one of the last songs on the setlist even though it's not one of her strongest tracks. It all ended with "Swine", but she was back in a few minutes for an encore with "Gyspy"

 

 

 

 

So what did we get between all this. She talked to us about Greece, Greek civilization but also about the Greek restaurants in the US she used to work at. The highlight of the show of course had to be the moment where she read, onstage, a letter from one greek fan.

Oh, and she wrapped herself with the Greek flag! (Not forgetting the moment where she changed her outfit on stage!).

With the show over, and the crowd going home you could see that everybody was happy. One could argue, that, we got to see a big name live, but, once again, as is often the case with Greece,not at the peak of her career. This has got to do with the fact that "Artpop" was not as successful as her first two albums. But then again, we would never expect to see Lady GaGa in Greece, right? Right?
There were still fans outside her hotel the next day, as she left, but before going to the airport she stopped at a record shop to promote her new album with Tony Bennett "Cheek To Cheek", wearing only the bare essentials. Unfortunately, the shop was closed, but she hung a promotional poster of the album on the shop window...

SETLIST:

01. ARTPOP
02. G.U.Y.
03. Donatella
04. Venus
05. MANiCURE
06. Just Dance
07. Poker Face
08. Telephone
09. Paparazzi
10. Do What U Want
11. Yoü and I
12. Born This Way
13. The Edge of Glory
14. Judas
15. Aura
16. Sexxx Dreams
17. Alejandro
18. Bad Romance 

19. Applause
20. Swine
Encore:
21. Gypsy

 

Paint It Blue

Having just returned from my summer holidays, the weather was still hot in Athens when I went to see The Big Nose Attack once again. Usually one of their gigs is my first or last post of each year. This is the first post of 2015 (although, only because I'm lagging behind in my blog posts, but their next gig was actually my last of 2014 (but more of that later). Oh, and theirs was the first of 2014 (supporting Blue Oyster Cult). And the first of 2015 (supporting Blues Pills). OK, enough of that!

Anyway, back in 2012, I attended the CD release party for their "Paint It Blue" album, this time it was the vinyl release party for that same album, with a new cover and blue vinyl!

When I arrived, Superpuma came on stage, who jealous of the main acts big noses, donned some big ears pretending to be "The Big Ear Attack".

The highlight of their set, was a great cover version of Leadbelly's "Ain't It A Shame"

The good thing about this venue, An Club, was that we could pop out for a beer or two whenever we wanted, so after Superpuma's set, we steeped out to buy a few cheap ones from a local shop.

It seems that we had one too many though because we missed the beginning of The Big Nose Attack set, including the "hit" Yeah (That Girl). I think they should place it later in their set.

We were soon back in though, bought the vinyl, and enjoyed the rest, particurarly "Holdin' On" which also featured bouzouki.

At the end of the set, after the band had gone, a lady who during the gig appeared to be enjoying it quite a lot, jumped on stage and started playing Little Tonie's drums for quite some time.

I was disappointed to have missed "That Girl", so we finished the night with a few beers more. But I knew that I would catch The Big Nose Attack again. I didn't know it then, but a Christmas party and a support slot for Blues Pills were due in the winter...

Emptywave Festival 2014

I first went to Rockwave Festival back in 1999 to see Garbage, Patti Smith and The Fun Lovin' Criminals. And then I went again 14 years later, last year to see Lana Del Rey and Echo And The Bunnymen. In the meantime it had slowly been getting worse year by year, featuring sometimes bands not popular among the Greek concert going public in a remote area not easily accessible outside Athens, probably in order to keep costs down. Until finally its decline became apparent last July in all its glory. In the day when the legendary Eric Burdon was due to appear Terra Vibe was nearly empty!
Now, isn't Eric Burdon popular in Greece? Well, he is, but he's certainly not at the peak of his carreer. Plus the fact that the year before he had played for 3 sod out nights at the Half Note Club did not help much. Plus not a lot of people are willing to pay not just the ticket price, but all the extra costs needed to reach Terra Vibe.
I am just going to talk about The Godfathers and Eric Burdon one the first stage which were the artists that I watched. There was another stage, with hip-hop acts but not many people were there either.

The good thing about this is that we were able to park (and leave at the end) very easily and get inside Terra Vibe without any delays. And it was among 50 people that The Godfathers came on stage and started playing. I was able to stand on the front row in the middle of the stage (the best place available in any concert) but of course this wasn't at all difficult.
The Godfathers played a great set, but the best part was that they pretended not to notice that fewer than 100 people were watching them.

The "crowd" during The Godfathers performance

After their set, more people were slowly gathering, but they were still to few. Certainly too few for an artist like Eric Burdon.
Eric of course did not disappoint us. He played almost all the songs we wanted to hear, especially from The Animals.

And as an added extra, during the encore Greek artist Yiannis Haroulis joined him on stage playing Greek songs plus a great cover of The Rolling Stones' "Paint It Black".

Now, for the first time in recording history we were able to leave Terra Vibe without waiting for hours in a traffic jam. The disastrous attendance seems to have finally woken up the organizers and for next year's line up they have announced 2 artists that are at the peak of their careers. The Black Keys and Robbie Williams. Let's see what happens...

 

The Godfathers setlist:

1. She Gives Me Love
2. If I Only Had Time
3. Cause I Said So
4. Strange About Today
5. I'm Unsatisfied
6. Love Is Dead
7. I Can't Sleep Tonight
8. Lonely Man
9. Unreal World
10. I'll Never Forget What's His Name
11. Just Because You're Not Paranoid Doesn't Mean to Say They're Not Going to Get You!
12. That's the Way I Feel
13. This Is War
14. I Want Everything
15. This Damn Nation
16. Birth, School, Work, Death

Eric Burdon setlist:

1. Don't Bring Me Down
   (The Animals song)
2. When I Was Young
   (Eric Burdon & the Animals song)
3. Inside Looking Out
4. Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
   (Nina Simone cover)
5. Water
6. Spill the Wine
7. Monterey
   (Eric Burdon & the Animals song)
8. Before You Accuse Me
   (Bo Diddley cover)
9. Bo Diddley Special
10. I Believe to My Soul
    (The Animals song)
11. We Gotta Get Out of This Place / River Is Rising
12. The House of the Rising Sun
    (Ashley & Foster cover)
Encore:
13. Black Dog / Ekatofylla
    (with Giannis Haroulis)
14. Mavri Petalouda / Paint It Black
    (with Giannis Haroulis)
15. It's My Life
    (The Animals song)
      

Italia 2014 - 3 gigs in 3 days - Day 3 - Motorhead in Milano

Why did I want to see Motorhead? Well my mind sometimes works in this way: "I've seen THIS band, so I've got to see THAT one" (For example : "I've seen Bruce Springsteen, so I've got to see Bryan Adams" - but more about that in a future post). So, back in the early 80's the biggest hard rock - or heavy metal of you like - bands were considered to be by a lot of people AC/DC, Motorhead and Iron Maiden. In fact, one day in 1983 I had bought "Flick Of The Wrist", "Another Perfect Day" and "Piece Of Mind" in the same week. And one year earlier, my best friend and me had decided that I would buy "For Those About To Rock", she would buy "Iron Fist" and then we would give them to each other to record them on cassette. So, I had seen AC/DC live (twice), so I had to see Motorhead. (And yes, I have also seen Iron Maiden). Plus, there is a rumour floating around that Lemmy does not want to come to Greece again because he has some issues with the Greek organizers.

Back to the present, as I was buying my concert tickets for the summer, I discovered that I was so lucky that not only Arcade Fire were playing in Rome the day after The Rolling Stones, but Motorhead were playing the day after Arcade Fire (and once gain in a "Ippodromo" (ie hippodrome). And now it's Tuesday and it's time to take a train to Milano, all the way to the north of the country. It's an ultra fast train, the ticket is cheap because it has been paid in advance online so the journey is a pleasant one. Last year, when I was here for the Bruce Springsteen concert at Stadio San Siro I discovered a very good and cheap hotel only one minute walk from the train station.

So the first step was to find out where Ippodromo City Sound was located. The map revealed this to be halfway to Stadio San Siro as one gets out of the underground station. Now, as I found out last year, Stadio San Siro is quite a long walk from the underground station, but as I got out of the station, I just crossed the road and there it was: Ippodromo City Sound. Meanwhile I had met some Italian Motorhead fans (and a Spanish one) and we decided not to go in but stay outside and have a few beers. As we soon found out, this was a very wise decision because in a short while the heavens opened and it started raining hard. We took cover beside one of the fast food stands, while in the meantime Italy was being eliminated from the World Cup and we could see that on one of the TV sets.

Finally, at some point, it stopped raining and we could finally get inside. The weather was still very humid, the ground was wet and quite muddy, but we managed to get in front. And then Pino Scotto came onstage, which for me was a pleasant surprise and the revelation of the evening. He is an Italian rocker who looks a bit like Ozzy Osbourne (but doesn't necessarily sound like him) and sings in Italian and English. Needless to say the next day, I bought his latest CD.

Then, it was time for Motorhead and I had to move back a little because the area in front of the stage almost became a mosh pit, with people pushing each other (but in a nice way). In fact, the guy who pushed me had such a good-natured look on his face that I wanted to say "thank you"!

It was a very short set (little over an hour), but this is Lemmy so you can forgive him anything. Plus it was full of songs from all eras of the band (including even one song from "Another Perfect Day" - "Rock It") culminating with "Ace Of Spades" as the last song before the encore. 

And for me, the highlight of the evening was when Lemmy announced "Sorry about the World Cup" (not only had Italy just been eliminated, but England as well) and then launched into "Going To Brazil".

And with that, my Italian adventure for this year was over. Well, not yet, because I had one more day to wander around Milan but more about that some other time...

Setlist:
01. Damage Case
02. Stay Clean
03. Metropolis
04. Over the Top
05. Guitar Solo
06. The Chase Is Better Than the Catch
07. Rock It
08. Lost Woman Blues
09. Doctor Rock
      (With drum solo)
10. Just 'Cos You Got the Power
11. Going to Brazil
12. Killed by Death
13. Ace of Spades
Encore:
14. Overkill