Latitude Youtubery - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

On top form with a short set played at mamximum intensity throughout, here's Mercy Seat

The First Latitude Blog of the Summer

I'll once again be making my way up the A12 to Henham Park this year for my 4th latitude festival. The organisers have pulled out some pretty surprising choices for headliners, leaving the Indie crowd somewhat nonplussed.

On Friday, the Obelisk arena is headlined by the Pet Shop Boys who are due to release their latest album, Yes, soon. They're still doing pretty much what they've always done which is good synth pop. Not sure I would want a whole 90 minutes of it, but they will definitely put on a show. Here's the new single: Love etc.



On Saturday comes the most controversial selection, Grace Jones. Definitely a brave choice, it remains to see whether she can win over the doubters. Being something of a newcomer to her music, I've been listening to stuff on youtube etc, and this is definitely her best song:


The organisers are on somewhat safer ground with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds on Sunday. Definitely at a career high with Dig Lazarus Dig being well received wherever you look, they should provide a strong finish to the festival.

2008 - 8 Great Gigs

2008 has been an amazing year for gigs round these parts and this was a hugely difficult list to put together. I had to leave out some superb sets that would have walked into my list in any other year. I couldn't put them in order, so here for better or worse are my gigs of the year (in alphabetical order):

Black Mountain - The Great Escape
Hard to believe they're not the loudest band on this list, Tyrant and Druganaut rocked my Great Escape
Bon Iver - St Giles' Church London
Jaw droppingly good stuff from the phenomenal Bon Iver. The closing song, from the centre of the church still gives me goosebumps when I see the youtube clip
British Sea Power - The Monaco, Canvey
A band at number 10 in the album charts, on top form in a pub 15 minutes drive from home. What more could you want? Shame they were mediocre at Latitude, but this was genuinely amazing, particularly when Wilko Johnson came out for the encore.
Eli "Paperboy" Reed and the True Loves - Latitude Festival
Until they invent a time machine, this is as close as it was possible to get to seeing James Brown at the Apollo in 1962. That good.
Grinderman - Latitude Festival
I still cannot believe some people foresook this to go and see Blondie. I pity them - Nick was truly a force of nature on the main stage.
I'm From Barcelona - Scala
Is it possible to see a more fun band? Confetti and singalong songs and fun by the bucketload.
Mogwai - Hammersmith Apollo
The loudest band on this list, possibly the loudest band I'll ever see. Batcat was brutal, a full-on assault on the eyes and the ears.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - The Brighton Centre
I make no apologies for including Nick Cave again, this is a man at the very top of his form as a songwriter and performer.

I could almost do a second 8 for this list, having missed out the likes of Mercury Rev, Okkervil River (twice), Fujiya and Miyagi and the Mae Shi to name but 4. 2009 will have to go some to beat 2008, here's hoping!

Nick Cave And the Bad Seeds

OK, so maybe I only got 2 out of my 5 hoped-for songs but Nick Cave is pretty much my hero right now. A cracking gig from a band that, in my opinion, are pretty much at the peak of their powers. Highlights? Mercy Seat, Get Ready for Love and Lyre of Orpheus for me. Stagger Lee was a cracking closer as well. Would have liked a few more of the slower, piano songs and ballads, but I guess a concrete barn like the Brighton Centre didn't really lend themselves to a more "initmate" set.

5 From Nick Cave

I'm off to see Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds on Sunday in Brighton, and I can't wait. Here are 5 songs I'm hoping to hear.

Hallelujah
I've been listening to No More Shall We Part a lot recently, and this is the standout song.


Do You Love Me?
Nobody deals with the seedy underbelly of the human condition like Nick...


There She Goes My Beautiful World
I was a little bit of a late-comer to the work of Mr Cave, this was the song that really grabbed me.


Mercy Seat
These days Nick is starting to resemble a modern day old testament prophet...


Midnight Man
I'm fairly sure we'll be hearing this on Sunday, from the latest album:

Forthcoming Attractions

With the summer festival season now over for me, it's time to look ahead at what the final third has to offer...

Gigs
Well so far as gigs go, I've got some real beauties in the calendar. Things are quiet until October when Mogwai are playing London. It'll be the second time I've seen them, reports have been good about the new album, and the supports are pretty special too, Errors (one of the highlights of Latitude) and F*** Buttons.

Then into November which is just outstanding gig-wise. Okkervil River and Mercury Rev inside 3 days in London. Okkervil River were brilliant at Great Escape, and I'm really looking forward to a full length set from them. Mercury Rev are one of my all time favourite bands. I saw them last at Latitude '06, and will be interesting to see how the new material comes across live. Watch out for a piece to mark the 10th Anniversary of Deserters Songs in September...

After then it's down to Brighton for Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. As previously mentioned, Nick Cave's slimmed down band, Grinderman, were amazing at Latitude this year, and the full Bad Seeds line-up is a mouth-watering prospect.

Then to round off the month it's I'm from Barcelona who I missed at Latitude 2007 and have regretted it ever since. By all accounts the new album is more "serious" than the first, but I'm still confident off balloon-bouncing fun!