Heaven 17 Luxury gap tour - London 3rd Nov 2012

Heaven 17 fans are going to live for a very long time!

Those of you who read my blog will know that I have already declared a love for Heaven 17.  But let me try to explain how I felt about this gig.

If you have seen the movie, love actually, you will know the story of Sarah, the American who is in love with Karl her co-worker for over two years. At the Christmas party they finally get it together and she invites him back to her house. She asks him to give her 5 mins and secretly jumps for joy behind the wall over how excited she is. Times that a few hundred times and it will give you an idea of how much I was looking forward to this gig! It was my birthday week and I had flown back from Prague the day before to see Heaven 17 do the Luxury Gap album in full.

My checklist:

·         Ensure you are in the country they are playing. (flew in from Prague especially)

·         Book a hotel so you never have to leave early to get home (no dedicated fan would catch the last bus/train home)

·         Be feisty (in my case to stop abusive women from trying to get in front of me at the gig)

·         Buy an O2 phone especially for the gig to ensure priority booking (yes I did)

Heaven 17 are under appreciated. Their talent and experience of electronic pop is outstanding and I have always considered Martyn Ware to be a musical genius. He is a founder of that sound. Heaven 17 has never been awarded the commercial success that they really deserve.  Everyone knows Temptation, but I wish they appreciated the other H17 work that only a cult few seem to get. Anyway I proudly belong to this cult and was off to enjoy an awesome gig.

The set list was always going to be great as the Luxury Gap features works such as Crushed by the wheels of industry, Let me go, We live so fast, Come live with me and Temptation.

Who’ll stop the rain is one of those under appreciated tracks, so if you don’t know it, go Google it now and see if you agree. Let me go has such powerful lyrics. ‘I walk alone and yet never say goodbye, let me go’.  Come live with me is always a crowd pleaser but when Glenn sang it straight at me I had the green eyes of every woman in the audience upon me! They don’t need to worry; I am not seventeen either.

You’ve lost that lovin’ feelin’ which was originally by the righteous brothers, was done simply with just Glenn and Martyn singing. It was beautiful and lovely to see Martyn come out from behind the keyboard.

Fascist Groove Thing really got the crowd going. Yeah baby! Mike Read should be hung for banning this track but he was one of those who ‘just don’t get H17’. I wonder if he regrets his decision today?  Penthouse and Pavement is in my top five of all-time favourite albums so anything H17 played off of it would make me happy but they did several tracks (yes I was so ecstatic my cheek bones hurt from smiling too much!) including a new version of Geisha Boys and Temple Girls and ‘we’re going to live for a very long time’. This is another moment of musical genius. How clever is this track? The lyrics and tune work beautifully together to produce irony of the sweet pop song with lyrics that can be almost evangelical. Glenn is almost ministerial in his deliverance of the song.  I’m your money should have been on the Penthouse and Pavement album and every H17 fan knows it fits that genre. 

The boys did a few early Human League songs (you should all already know that Martyn is a founder member of the band), but I hadn’t heard ‘Crow and a baby’ for years and it was wonderful to hear it again. Being Boiled is becoming an expectation at H17 gigs and they did not disappoint. Then Glenn picked up a guitar and played a version of ‘Don’t you want me’. Martyn should know the loyalty that his fans give him and believe he was the talent in Human League.

One of the most moving parts of the gig was during the encore when H17 did The Associates track, ‘Party fears two’. Glenn told the audience that he did this track a few years back at the Billy Mackenzie memorial gathering at the same venue. You could hear a pin drop as the audience were hypnotised by Glenn’s rendition of the track.

The last song of the night had to be Temptation. Leave them on a high is the motto here. Now for those reading this who like Heaven 17 and temptation but don’t know them well, here is my tip. Go listen to ‘Sunset now’. I challenge you to not love that track just as much!

But that was the end of the gig. I couldn’t believe it had finished so quickly. All the good things have to end, but for me it didn’t end there. Thank you Martyn for inviting me to the after show. Now that really did make my night! (I’m gonna need new cheekbones at this rate – haven’t stopped smiling since).

Heaven 17 have still got it and if you want to see some real 80’s legends, go see them while you can. (Luxury Gap is still touring Europe now or fingers crossed for ‘How men are’ a few years down the line.)

 

photos from this gig can be found at http://www.flickr.com/photos/jasminestormie/sets/72157631928837797/

Follow me on Twitter: @Jasminestormy

 

 

 

Level 42 (Northampton)

Level 42.

I have loved Level 42 since Love Games.  I remember Love Games distinctly as Radio 1 did a competition using the beginning of the track to rap over.  (I am ashamed to say I can still remember it). This was in the days when you had to send postcards in and couldn’t Google the answer to the competition.  I never won, but Love Games and Level 42 became a big part of my teenage years.  (checking Wikipedia I was shocked to find it only got to number 38 in the charts.)

I loved the “Level 42” album including star child, why are you leaving and turn it on. I loved “The pursuit of accidents” with Weave your spell and The Chinese way.  OK, I have grown up enjoying Level 42 but until tonight I had never seen them live.

Well that was about to change at the Royal and Derngate in Northampton on a cold October night. I drove there which was rather stressful with the one way system, but got there with plenty of time. I had not been to this venue for over 10 years so went to the back stage door to find out how to get in.  They were lovely people who were very interested in my review of tonight’s gig as they don’t often do standing gigs.  Well I am not sure if it is the age of the Level 42 fans but it was a very civilised affair.  No pushing, no checking bags or treating us like criminals, (Blur’s gig at Hyde Park threw my hand cleaning gel away for goodness sake!).  It was just the kind of way a gig for my generation should be!  (And anyone who reads my reviews will know my luck with drunks, glad to say I didn’t encounter any on this occasion).

I enjoyed the support who was Dan Clews.  He did an acoustic set of mainly original material with a cover of China in my hands.  He interacted with the audience and could sing and play well.  I met up with him afterwards and he was a lovely guy to boot!

But Level 42 was what I was here to see and Level 42 is what we were all cheering for when they came on.  Turn it on they sure did!  They started by playing the Running in the Family album in its entirety.  Tracks such as Lessons in love and Running in the family had the crowd dancing and set the tone for the night.  It’s over was sung with such sincerity, it was moving.

Level 42 sound exactly like the recordings on their albums.  I was very impressed.  They moved on to do a bit of an acoustic set with Mike on an accordion and Mark on an acoustic guitar (Not bass!).

Then they said we came to hear some funk.  We sure did!  They rocked Northampton town with some of my favourite tracks such as Starchild (Mike had a bit of a boogie!); The sun goes down (living it up) and finished on The Chinese way. 

This was a fantastic set and I could watch Mark play his bass forever!  Their music took me right back and I felt just like a teenager again. It was wonderful.  Thank you, Level 42, for a wonderful gig.

My only disappointment was I really never got to hear them play Love Games as they cut it from the show (although they had played it two nights ago at Guildford).

So this is an open invitation to Level 42, if they nip round my house and play it for me, I will provide all the tea/coffee necessary!

Love you guys. Thanks for a wonderful night. xx

(Photos will be uploaded to http://www.flickr.com/photos/jasminestormie)

 

Looper

Looper

I have come to the conclusion that it is rather hard to make a good time travel film. You spend so much time trying to explain how the time machine works and how it would impact on your past or present timeline. To be honest the only really successful one is Back to the Future.

To make a hit film you want to make a film that people want to see more than once. This means more money at the box office and again when released on Blu-ray or dvd. Back to the Future ticks this box too.  Unfortunately Looper doesn’t!

Basically 30 years from now time travel has been invented and outlawed. Gangsters send back people who they wish to do a “garbage disposal” job on and a Looper kills them and gets paid for it.

But what happens if the person they send back is you?

It has promise as a story, but made for the American audience everything is explained in minute detail such as how a scar on your hand appears is because they are currently cutting up your younger self or the TK link or even the range of the guns. It feels that the script is so busy educating us on what it all means it diminishes from the pace of the film and the action.

Bruce does what he does best, in fact the acting from Bruce, Emily Blunt (who can’t love her?) and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are all excellent but the script and execution of the story lets the film down.

SPOILLER!!

If you ask what I would do to improve this story, I wouldn’t explain so much as it takes too much time up and I would give an alternative ending where Sara stands at Joe’s grave pregnant with his child. Loop the Looper! It would give a lead for a sequel too.  Next time  Hollywood should just ask me!

The Sweeney

The Sweeney

This film is from the series of the same name, but with its new make-over it is almost unrecognisable. The new film is sleek, sharp, clean and full of action. It is set in London and in the year that gave us back our patriotism with the Jubilee and Olympics, it shows off all London has to offer and it easily matches any other major city in the world. (Or I feel very patriotic).

It is beautifully filmed. The action is clear and yet slow enough to actually see what is going on. The director and the cinematographer should be nominated for awards for this. It is really a beautiful piece of work. John Thaw made Jack Reagan a legend. Who can fill his boots in the 21st century? Ray Winstone is the only choice and is outstanding in the role. Ben Drew (who plays George Carter), is also excellent in his role as Regan’s partner and they work well together.

The opening scene is a great one with some humour with some of the Sweeney talking about only marrying someone who is a 3 (they are grateful) or a 9 (you are grateful). This dialogue as they are on their way to stop an armed robbery is almost reminiscent of Tarrantino. An excellent opening. Unfortunately there is not enough humour throughout the film.

The story overall is rather weak and predictable, which is a shame as the action is excellent. A lot of the scenes are filmed on location, including the amazing shoot out in Trafalgar square. I cannot get over how they shot each other (with silent bullets – sound was added afterwards for fear of 999 calls to police) inside of the National Gallery. I have been to the National Gallery on several occasions and know we are not even allowed to take flash photography there; so valuable are the paintings.

I did get a bit fed up with the love interest story (especially the earring- won’t tell more as spoilers). The language, violence and sex makes me feel there should be another rating between a 15 and 18 as it is a bit near the knuckle for 15 year olds.

Top Gear did the finale car chase scene and you can see their expertise in this as it is exciting and fast paced. Some of the car shots made me want to duck as if I was actually in the car.

I am very disappointed the original Sweeney theme tune (which is iconic) has been changed almost beyond recognition. When things are that iconic – they shouldn’t be touched.

My only other irritant is Damian Lewis who play Frank (Reagan and Carter’s boss) has over-plucked his eyebrows and this is very distracting to his role. His face doesn’t move much either and it looks like he is more bothered about his Botox than catching criminals.


Verdict: I feel a sequel or three coming on. Now get ya trousers on, ya nicked!

 

Shrek the musical

I was worried that buying my 15 year old son a ticket for this show he would feel a bit old to enjoy it. This was unfounded...as he LOVED it!!

This is a show suitable for all ages and especially for fans of the Shrek films. The story is of the first Shrek film and has a lot of songs that have been especially written for the show.

Dean Chisnall is outstanding as Shrek and really is believable in the role. Princess Fiona was played by Hollyoaks actress Carley Stenson. She did the role proud and brought some much needed humour to the role.

Richard Blackwood is Donkey and is brilliant with both his acting and dancing. It is a shame he doesn't have a strong singing voice as everyone else in the cast are outstanding singers.

My personal favourite characters are the Dragon (the puppeteers are amazing and it is one of the best scenes in the whole show) and the woman voicing the Dragon, Landi Oshinowo, has the most amazing voice and stole the show!! ( I would buy this woman's albums!!).

I loved the Pinocchio character, he is so funny and his nose really does get bigger! I also loved how they made Lord Farquaad small. Poor Neil McDermott must have very sore knees!!

All the swing cast have a set character which is fabulous and I loved how they did the gingerbread man!.

There are some really strong great songs in the show (with a blues/soul feel to them) but also some fillers that could easily be cut out.

The nearest tube is Covent Garden. The Theatre Royal is a lovely old theatre and the balcony is not suitable for anyone with mobility problems as there are an awful lot of stairs to climb.

My 15 year old loved the show and said he would go again and he didn't miss his xbox360 once! - that should be enough for you to make a decision on buying a ticket!!

So...Do you know the muffin man?

Blur/ New Order / Specials / Bombay Bicycle Club closing ceremony gig at Hyde Park

The BT live closing ceremony concert, featuring Blur and New Order.

Hyde Park is a huge venue. It is a park so good weather is a must to ensure a good time. We had won 29 gold medals in the Olympics and it seemed the golden sun came out to celebrate it with us!

We decided to get to Hyde Park early, as we wanted to be near the front and after all I am only 5ft tall! We are glad we did as the ticket had said that gates open at 2.30pm. It was actually 12 noon that they let us in.

We were searched more thoroughly than I have ever been searched before.  The organisation for this event was a right mess, as I had had four different emails from Ticketmaster changing the rules of what is allowed in. Talking to staff on the day, they had no idea of the changes to the rules either so it was really hit or miss if they stopped your stuff coming in. They took off my hand gel as it was in 125ml bottle but as it was not a new bottle would have only contained the 100ml allowed. I didn’t bother to argue as all I could think of was getting to the front. I did see people inside who had cameras longer than 6” (one of the rules). Goodness only knows where they hid their lens!

We ran as fast as we could (the most exercise I had all week!) and got to the metal barrier right at the front of the stage. It was a great crowd and I got talking to a guy who had come from France to see Blur and also a lady from Hong Kong. Blur fans are all over the world!

We had bought the ticket to take my youngest son (15) to see New Order.  (You should hear him play Ceremony on his guitar! He is awesome).  I didn’t know how he would cope with all the waiting as he is the “have it now” generation, but he was great and very excited about it.

We killed the time by watching the Olympics. It was a great atmosphere and everyone was in good spirits.

The first band, Bombay Bicycle club came on at 4.30. I had never heard of them before and I am still not sure about them now I have heard their stuff. Some of their songs just didn’t flow the way a song should. The lead singer looked and sounded like some early 80’s electronic band, while the guitarist (sporting young James May look) seemed more into grunge. What I can say is the girl singer was good and the drummer was awesome!

Next on was New Order. This is what we had come for and boy did we let them know it! We were screaming and shouting and cheering and singing along as loudly as we could. They started with Elegia followed by Crystal. I felt the audience didn’t appreciate Ceremony as much as we did and perhaps it needed more guitars or more New Order fans to really love it.  New Order still miss Hooky (Peter Hook the bassist). Not for the bass essentially, but for his personality. Tom Chapman does a good job, but Barney is not a natural front man (partly why we love him) and Hooky played that part until his departure. Hyde Park is a huge venue and there was a runway off the stage that you know Hooky would have dragged his guitar up and down had he been there.

I personally felt that 586 could have been left at home and replaced with regret. There is a line in regret that goes “You were a perfect stranger, now you are mine” which hubby and I always kiss and have done at each gig since 2006. I don’t think 586 went down well with an audience that isn’t mainly New Order fans.

New Order didn’t need to try too hard with True Faith as the audience (including my new French friend) knew it and sang along. I have always felt that temptation is their “stadium anthem” track and they could do so much more with it (ie get the audience to sing bits of it for you, extending the oooo oooo!) But New Order were on a time limit and had to keep it short. Blue Monday had the crowd going proper crazy. Who doesn’t know that song?! It was more like “The Beach” version for those who really know their New Order but who cares, it was amazing and really got the crowd going. They finished with Love will tear us apart from their Joy Division days. It was so poignant with images of Ian Curtis in the background saying Forever Joy Division. Even after New Order had left the stage, the crowd were still singing it (hoping for an encore that never happened).

We then decided to move back, as my son had seen New Order (and despite my teaching was not as keen on Blur) and was also concerned about 70,000 people squashing us! We went to the Cadburys house to get some free chocolate. (It doesn’t get better than this folks!) But they had closed the house early and although they were giving out the chocolate, it was a missed experience. We sat on our blanket and chilled to The Specials. My best friend from school would have loved this as she was such a Ska rude girl. Although I hadn’t heard some of these songs in years, I still remembered all the words so thanks to Michelle from school for that!

Just before Blur came on we decided to get some chips. At £3 a small box, they were not cheap, but I can officially say they were the WORST chips I have ever had, EVER! Hard inside with a horrid taste on the outside. We all left them.

But time for the main event. We started to watch the closing ceremony at Stratford on the big screens. I was surprised to see people stand up to sing the national anthem. Surprised and proud! British Patriotism lives! We saw Big Ben and Madness sing “Our House” and I did wonder how Blur were going to get people interested if they continued to watch the Stratford show. I needn’t have worried. Park life was faded into the Stratford ceremony and they crowd went crazy as Blur came on stage for real!

I had had reservations about them headlining since The Brits, but these were unfounded. Blur rocked the house! They were awesome, playing an amazing set, and everyone really enjoyed it. It was like one big family with everyone singing and dancing and smiling. Blur rock! Even my son was singing along. Another couple of converts. Let’s hope this isn’t the last we see of Blur.

My photos will be uploaded to www.flickr.com/jasminestormie later this week!

 

TED

TED

In third place for most ridiculous film of the year….(drum roll) is Ted.

Let me first moan about the time frame issue that bugged me throughout the film. John Bennett (played by Mark Wahlberg) is 35 years old. I know this because they tell you so at least twice. So how old was he when the Teddy Bear came to life? The clothes and Star Wars toys suggest late 1970’s. But 2012 minus 35 years is equal to 1977. 1977 IS the year Star Wars came out but that would make John a new born baby, not a child of 8 as portrayed in the movie. They say it is 1985 but were kids still playing Star Wars in 1985? Return  of the Jedi came out in 1983. (For those of you who are not geeks, that is the 3rd Star Wars film to be made, but technically the 6th film).

Who is this film aimed at? It must be those under 30 who would not know that Seth has F**ked up.  How many teenagers seeing this film will even know who Sam Jones is? Flash Gordon was made in 1980! Even Jonny (Ted's owner) would have trouble remembering that long ago!

So what else is wrong with it? Well it is very basic humour in places. Do you really need to say “There is a Shit on my floor!” to get a laugh? (I didn’t laugh). But I did laugh in places those under 30’s didn’t. (Loved Ted’s interpretation of Pink Floyds “If ya don’t eat ya meat” line.)

Patrick Stewart is the narrator and some of it is excellent, some of it tries too hard. Patrick is too good for this kind of film! Beam him up already!!

Getting past all that, you start to believe Ted is a real character with a life of his own. The effects are so good you stop thinking about how they are doing it. There are some classic funny moments (The Thunder buddies song is a cult waiting to happen) and it is predictably a love story.

Hot Mila Kunis (That is her full name) plays Lori, John’s girlfriend of four years. She wants their relationship to move forward but feels Ted is holding John back. Ted takes a lot of drugs, drink, swears and has sex a lot for a 15 rated movie.  All those 15 year old going to see it will think that it is cool to do those things. There is no moral to the story regarding drugs here.

My favourite bits: The Thunder song, the joke about Hasbro, anything with Flash Gordon in it, the theme tune from Star Wars being suggested it was from the Notebook, all the famous people playing themselves …well there are many.

Verdict: tries really hard to be funny and is excellent in places, but could do better.