live music

Half The World Awaits: Why the way we buy tickets need to change

/ James Fenney

I write this as I finally admit defeat, having spent – I’ve lost count of how many hours – trying to secure tickets for the big Oasis reunion tour. Half a day was spent queueing up for the opportunity to join the actual queue, and any progress made once reaching the front of it was frustratingly fleeting. It’s been a whistle-stop tour of Ticketmaster’s various error screens, from being suspended as a bot and having the whole site crash under the weight of overwhelming demand, to having to queue up all over again only to find prices had doubled for the few remaining tickets. At least something happened on Ticketmaster I suppose; that’s more than can be said for See Tickets and Gigs And Tours, whose sites didn’t even attempt to sell any actual tickets. I’m far from the only one left empty handed. It seems like half the country spent their day chasing tickets which proved to be rare as hen’s teeth. Yet at this moment the disappointment of missing out feels dwarfed by my frustration at the appalling rigmarole of Ticketmaster’s shambolic sale. Continue reading →

Why Grassroots Gigs Are Live Music At Its Best

/ James Fenney
Photo by Steve Shipley

Every music lover has been there. The buzz of finally seeing your favourite band being amplified ten-thousandfold by an arena full of likeminded fans. A sea of people swept up into a frenzy when the music drops, the lights dim, and a flurry of distant motion in the darkness signifies the start of something special. The lights, the crowd, the scale of it all. The masses gathered in a vast cathedral in worship of music itself. There’s an inherent electricity that comes with the grandeur of arena sized gigs, a thrill unlike anything else. And yet, with each passing year, I find myself returning for another hit less and less. These days I get my buzz elsewhere; backrooms of bars, dingy basements, church halls in forgotten backwaters. And you know what?… It’s a change I feel all the better for. Continue reading →

Time is of the Essence

/ James Fenney

analogue classic clock clock face

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

The music world is always abuzz with talk surrounding one topic or another. The latest talking point just recently revolves around bands and venues sharing set times for gigs. It seems such an innocuous thing to end up becoming a divisive topic and prompting arguments, but even so that seems to have become the case. While I can understand the reasoning from both sides, I’m of the mind that sharing set times does far more help than it does harm. Continue reading →

Live Review: Queen + Adam Lambert, The Hollywood Bowl, 26 June 2017

/ Tayler Anne Robinson

unnamed-2

There are few acts that I would consider worthy of the caliber that the Hollywood Bowl holds. On June 26th the Bowl was lucky to host actual Legends of rock Brian May and Roger Taylor as Queen with current frontman Adam Lambert.

The mere fact that I had tickets to begin with was a miracle, as both shows at the Bowl quickly sold out. I inherited the tickets with eyes-wide from ticket holders who couldn’t make the show, and before I knew it I was in velvet and red lipstick, seated (but only just) at the Hollywood Bowl, waiting to hear classic tracks that had been an integral part of my childhood.

Continue reading →

Stop the solo concert shame

/ James Fenney

Jubelnde Konzertbesucher auf Rock-Konzert

I will admit, I was a bit of a late bloomer when it came to live music. I didn’t attend my first proper gig until I was in university and it wasn’t until many many more down the line that I discovered that there is a stigma attached to going to concerts on your own. A great many more concerts later, both solo and with friends, and I still must profess that I don’t understand what the problem is. I think it’s high time people grow up and embrace the idea of going solo to live music events. Continue reading →