Other Bands – Page 17 – Ferocious Blog

If we fight the good fight then they’re gonna have to fall..

I am terribly sorry but I’ve kinda got to start what will probably prove a lengthy blog post with a bit of self-indulgent navel-gazing and context-setting.

I’ve always thought of myself as a bit politically hamstrung. The only family member of my childhood who would avidly and feverishly impart political discourse to me was my Grandfather who was a rampant conservative who idolised Margaret Thatcher – I quickly learned to disengage from that topic of conversation over the years. Whilst my school years were against a backdrop of strikes by the miners which I mixed up in my head with teachers strikes at the same time, really all I thought was it was good to get a day off from the classrooms.

There were no miners in the family, I was too young to understand the implications of what was occurring – I vaguely recall some of my Dad’s siblings being angry about the Poll Tax, and noting the disparity in how The MIrror my Dad bought talked about political issues of the day compared to the headlines that featured in The Sun which was the staple reading of my childminders house – possibly because of the allure of Samantha Fox as much as any particular political affiliation.

So it’s maybe understandable why as I reflect that I’ve been somewhat politically remiss since writing Ferocious Blog for the last year. Of course, politics are inherent in the bands output, and the world that has opened up to me through following them. I was first politicised at university really – my politics lecturer was an inspirational and cynical Marxist, and just as he revealed a world of corruption and what initially felt like conspiracy theories about ‘the state’ was the time that Tony Blair changed the course of the Labour Party into centrist Conservative Light politics.

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Freeborn Al / 25th March 2016 / Band, Gigs, Hell Hounds, Lee Bonsall, Music, Other Bands, Photos, Politics, Thoughts

Alice? Who the Wolf is Alice?

Often my gig-going is centred around the very familiar, it made a nice change tonight to go to a gig almost entirely blind. I’d booked a ticket to see Wolf Alice at Rock City back in October at my brother’s suggestion – and entirely forgotten about it until I glanced at my calendar on Tuesday evening after work. A text to my brother enquired as to whether he’d got the tickets, he replied saying he didn’t think I was coming – a search of my emails revealed an e-ticket. Two e-tickets in fact. Oops!

With Ella down south Rich was able to get my ticket re-homed with Simon, a friend of Ed’s who was also coming to the gig. Perhaps just as excitingly, we decided to pop to Annie’s Burger Shack before the gig – I opted for the current special on offer, the Cannonball – it was delicious. I love Annie’s. Annie came to the UK pursuing music, but found fame for her imaginative music-themed burgers, initially served in The Old Angel, then The Navigation Inn and finally in her own extremely popular restaurant – a real characterful success story.

After eating we waddled up to Rock City deciding to find a spot on the sidelines rather than in the mosh pit – it was pretty much a sell-out, quite a feat on a Wednesday night. We found a good spot on the elevated area to the left of the stage and decided not to move from there for the evening – it seemed a bit strange to be on the sidelines at a gig but I wasn’t keen on the idea of being smashed around the very lively (even for the support acts) mosh pit whilst quite so full of burger!

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Freeborn Al / 24th March 2016 / Band, Gigs, Music, Other Bands, Photos / 0 Comments

North of the wall..

We opted for an earlyish start to hit Scotland – you never know what horrors might occur on the roads, plus it’s always nice to not have to rush about once you arrive somewhere. As it happens, the roads were pretty clear – the sat nav decreed the M6 was the best route up so it was also incredibly scenic as we hit the Lake District and into Scotland – I’m always struck when I visit these areas how stunningly beautiful they are – it certainly didn’t disappoint.

One stop at Tebay for lunch and coffee and we were straight into Glasgow and our car park, a short walk from the hotel – giving us time to have a bit of down time before wandering to the designated pre-gig drinking venue, The Horse Shoe Bar, where we immediately encountered Dean, Sarah and Wez – before being found by the assorted other folk. To say it was a little before 5 on a week day it was already pretty damn busy in there. It was good to just have the chance to have a drink and a natter.

With the gig having an early curfew presumably for the venue to reopen as a club night the doors opened at 7 – so we headed there for then, despite the early start we were being treated to two support acts. Stereo is a stylish cafe bar beneath which nestles the music venue – it’s pretty small, but it was homely with a sufficiently raised stage to avoid any mishaps despite the lack of barriers. Once inside we got to catch up with more folk – not least the band, Waggy, Dom, Leanne et al.

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Freeborn Al / 19th March 2016 / Band, Gigs, Hell Hounds, Lee Bonsall, Music, Other Bands, Photos / 0 Comments

Back t’Tarn..

Following is a guest post from Simon, since we are living it up in the Canaries we missed Brad Dear, Funke and the Two Tone Baby and Ferocious Dog in Barnsley. He’s a man of less waffle than me…

Not A Ferocious Blog… Whilst Alan Fisher is checking out exotic parrots and Ella Woods is looking more and more like Sebastian from the Little Mermaid. Here is an abridged version of the usual blog… 300 mile round trip t’Barnsley.. hotel,shower,venue. Meet and say hi to everyone. Brad Dear.. awesome set.. Special Brew=Conga… Funke and the two tone baby( or 5 leylines rolled into 1).. another awesome set… Broken strings, bonobos, dancing monkey.. FD.. aboriginal intro.. jig of death song. Rock Lobster with added lobster claws hand gestures from the crowd. Some more songs, bit of politics and thank you’s. More songs. Birthday shout out. Encore. Potential stroke victim, arguments about astro turf. Say goodbye. Hotel. Sleep. Wake up. Drive home. Ta Da. Piece of Piss. Till next time.. au revoir.

Buenas tardes!

Freeborn Al / 12th March 2016 / Band, Gigs, Hell Hounds, Music, Other Bands / 0 Comments

Fine fettle down in Settle..

When I originally bought a ticket for the Settle gig it was going to be in June last year. I’d naively thought ‘oh, it’s Yorkshire, I’ll probably drive to and from that’ – it wasn’t until more recently, having acquired another ticket for Ella for the rescheduled show, that I troubled to look at a map and realise quite how far up Settle was in North Yorkshire. Seeing Clitheroe nestled beneath it meant a quick search for accomodation for the evening was very much the mission – luckily I found somewhere suitable, more on that later.

We’d arranged to meet up with Michael, Daren and Michelle for lunch in nearby Malham, having set off in good time we were running an hour early on arrival estimate so pulled into a services. Checking in on Facebook as you do revealed we were actually really close to Michael’s house – sense prevailed and we arranged to go and pick him up, meaning a chance to catch up wtih Rebecca too which is a bonus – and head onward with a much better carbon footprint than if we’d gone in separate cars!

The Lister Arms is a lovely pub. Malham was absolutely snidered with cars, we were worried the pub would be rammed – but it seems the streets and carparks were full of vehicles of walkers rather than pub goers so we soon found a table and awaited Daren and MIchelle’s arrival. A hearty meal of mostly pies and mash or chips (or cajun chicken for Ella) was demolished, followed by a bloody nice selection of cheese with a glass of port (or sticky toffee pudding and a cuppa tea for t’ladies). A very pleasant few hours before hitting the road to Settle. Definitely planning on a return visit at some point!

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Freeborn Al / 6th March 2016 / Band, Gigs, Hell Hounds, Lee Bonsall, Music, Other Bands, Photos / 0 Comments

Life begins at fifty..

These birthday party/gig combos are starting to become a thing – I love it! This time round it was for Dave’s 50th – Caroline had been busy organising all manner of exciting things. Dave knew he was having a party, but he didn’t know who was playing. For us the day started with gathering a few bits and pieces – Ella was frantically finishing off some paper cuts which were gifts for Dave and Caroline (who shares his birthday), I grabbed some food from the shops.

Caroline picked us up to go to the pre-party at their house – which meant we got to spend some time with Murphy the awesome festival hound, and have a few drinks with the gathered folk who were either staying with them or outside in camper vans – their street had become a mini festival by the looks of it! Then it was a short taxi ride to the venue, Brennan’s in Long Eaton, where we were ushered into the function room which was stocked to the gunnels with food and people already.

Dave meanwhile was in the second taxi run – which gave us the opportunity to catch up with folk already arrived – and prepare to film Dave’s reaction when he walked in to see the magnificent Bar-Steward Sons of Val Doonican banner on display over the stage (not to mention the band themselves). Ken had called me to ask where the venue was – when he was parked next door – and it didn’t take long to get the party underway. The venue had a novel power system that cut out if a certain noise level was reached – with a gauge over the bar. Luckily the sound system was plugged into the kitchen which bypassed this!

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Freeborn Al / 28th February 2016 / Band, Gigs, Hell Hounds, Music, Other Bands, Photos, Videos / 0 Comments

Entertaining the riff-RAFA in Newark..

I’d ummed and aahed about heading up to Newark – a busy week left me tired, but probably infinitely predictably it proved to be a shrewd move. A blast up the A46 just after rush hour, a parking spot outside the RAFA club for a quid and the chance to show a bit of support for Brad Dear. What could be a better way to spend a Friday night? With the bonus of support from Troy Foster (and Dylan, I think) from Black Rose Garden and some band called Ferocious Dog, or at least a third of them.

Arriving early meant soundchecking was underway, Tina spotted us in the car park so we headed into the venue along with her and Tim. We’d not bought tickets as it was a last minute decision so paid on the door and into the very empty RAFA club – which has been running since 1989 raising vital funds for ex servicemen – a cracking little spot, a small stage, a bar and a surprisingly decent quality sound system (at least the end result was!) and an amusing mixing desk that looked like a gun turret.

First up were Troy and Dylan (I’m really sorry if your name isn’t Dylan!). Troy on vocals with an acoustic guitar and Dylan on a twelve string initially that sounded a lot more like an electric guitar. They opened with a cover of Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here – one of my favourite songs, so always a good start. The combination of picking from Troy and more of the rhythm working well together. The next couple were original numbers which the titles evaded me – one involved the sun (or a son), the next one involved a school bus and saw the 12 string switched out for another electro-acoustic.

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Freeborn Al / 27th February 2016 / Band, Gigs, Hell Hounds, Lee Bonsall, Music, Other Bands, Photos / 0 Comments

Gaz a-Maze-s us again..

I defy anyone to have had as fun a saturday night as we just did for the princely sum of £8. I’ve used this kind of comment before, but the entry fee would have been good value for any one of the four acts on offer at The Maze, nestling behind The Forest Tavern on the fringes of Nottingham’s city centre. To have basically paid a couple of quid to see each of them is frankly insulting really. I was surprised that the crowd wasn’t a little fuller in truth, not that that detracted from a most excellent evening.

With Ella arriving in the afternoon fresh from album recording with The Leylines we headed into Nottingham to meet Paul, Sarah and Andy and attempt to find somewhere to eat that wasn’t booked up – initially attempting to fulfil a craving for barbecued food we ended up settling for the newish Handmade Burger Co in the revamped-but-still-soulless Victoria Centre – which at least was on the way up to The Maze. The food was decent – and by the time we’d finished the grotty weather had eased up making the schlep up Mansfield Road a less traumatic prospect.

Once in the pub there were plenty of folk already assembled awaiting the venue at the back to open up, including Sam Jones who’d had an unfortunate beard over-trimming incident making him resemble someone still at school. Haha! It wasn’t long upon getting through to the back before Star Botherers took to the stage. Or at least two thirds of them – Dave apparently competing in an international bingo tournament in Skegness (so Bart informed us!). This left us with just Bart on guitar and vocals, and Brad adding percussion and backing vocals.

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Freeborn Al / 21st February 2016 / Gigs, Hell Hounds, Music, Other Bands, Photos / 0 Comments

Dogfest..

I just spent a good ten minutes trying to think of a witty headline, and then figured – why do I need a witty headline? Dogfest kinda speaks for itself, doesn’t it? I certainly don’t pretend to be able to speak for it, but I’ve just breached 2,500 words trying – I’d probably better stop there!

I think this was the fourth Dogfest. Certainly it’s the fourth Dogfest I’ve been to, and like much about Ferocious Dog related activities they illustrate a stark exponential progression – from a handful of folk rattling around the main hall of the Black Market venue in 2012 to a jam-packed room of folk, many of whom have come to be firm friends. Plenty that’s familiar, plenty that’s grown – the only problem with that was how bloody hot the mosh pit gets in there, and the difficulty in navigating the room with tables in the middle. Small issues with an otherwise amazing day.

It started for us at Dukeries Lodge in Edwinstowe where we set up base this weekend – breakfast was a welcome addition with Adele, Drew, Simon, Richard and Julie – whilst I might’ve overdone it more than intended at A Bit of Bothering Before Dogfest I was feeling relatively fresh. Ella opted for a lie-in instead, and once we were about ready Becki arrived so that we could get ourselves sorted and in the car ready to head to Warsop – again, eager to get there for the start of proceedings.

We arrived in plenty of time, time to get wristbanded up, greet the countless folk also already there – and down to the stage in time for Brad Dear to open the day. He’d got a few chaps filming some up-to-date gig footage for them – and it was great to see so many people there early and in the party spirit, I’m looking forward to seeing the footage! Plenty of familiar songs like They Say, Festival Bar Blues, Save Our Souls and Far Away kept us all bopping and singing along.

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Freeborn Al / 15th February 2016 / Band, Gigs, Hell Hounds, Lee Bonsall, Music, Other Bands, Photos / 0 Comments

A bit of bothering before Dogfest..

Of course everyone was rightly excited for Dogfest the weekend just gone, but there was the small matter of a bit of ‘bothering’ for the night before. The bargainous sum of £5 gained entry to the main hall in the Black Market venue for a nice little warm up. I arrived in where we were staying in Edwinstowe and met up with Ella and Simon who were awaiting a bit of food, giving me time to get checked in and finish up my working week with a couple of conference calls (oh such fun!)

Once that was over and we were suitably fed and relaxed we hopped into the car for the short drive to Warsop – keen to arrive in time for the first act, easily making it in time for a marathon round of hellos before heading through to the main room. First a word for Black Market Brewery‘s offerings – well recommended for ale lovers, after a warning from Dave (which I suspect for many would be an advert!) I steered clear of Insane but did enjoy a few pints of Illicit and Imposter, quickly putting paid to my plan of not going to mad with alcohol.

First up on stage was the inimitable Brian Stone. He is building in confidence more and more – although taken aback at how many people had made it to the wilds of Warsop for a 6pm start. Launching into Life Begins at 50 his set was an energetic singalong both of his own songs and an eclectic selection of cover versions like Believers by Levellers and Ward the Pirate. Highlights for me were his own song Where is all the Rum Gone evoking memories of that campfire at Farmer Phil’s, and a raucous singalong of Gaz Brookfield’s Let the East Winds Blow to finish.

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Freeborn Al / 14th February 2016 / Gigs, Hell Hounds, Music, Other Bands, Photos, Videos / 0 Comments