A month ago, during a time when I was already quite broke, an announcement came in that Deftones would be playing an intimate secret gig in London in support of their new album Diamond Eyes. When the tickets were released, I grabbed my credit card and purchased a ticket right away which was bundled with the new album in MP3 format. There was no way I would have missed this gig.

The queue and wait outside ULU (University of London Union) was quite long and the weather was in the middle of a cold snap. Eventually, we got inside. No sign of any support bands and no merch for sale either.

At 8:30, Deftones came up on stage and the crowd went wild right away kicking off with Rocket Skates followed by Diamond Eyes, two songs released from their new album. With the venue being relatively small and the crowd mostly dedicated fans, there was a lot of singing, screaming and moshing happening.

Then they went old school with tracks from White Pony with Feiticiera, Elite, Knife Party, and Passenger. I think I almost cried in joy when they started playing Knife Party as it is one of my favourite songs from White Pony and was followed by another favourite, Passenger. Go get your knife!

As with most gigs, the exact setlist is a bit hazy now especially after a week with other gigs happening in between. So I am pulling the setlist off Setlist.fm yet again.

• Rocket Skates
• Diamond Eyes
• Feiticeira
• Elite
• Knife Party
• Passenger
• CMND/CTRL
• You’ve Seen The Butcher
• Sextape
• When Girls Telephone Boys
• Minerva
• Birthmark
• Beauty School
• Prince
• Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)
• Around The Fur
• Lotion
• My Own Summer (Shove It)
• Back To School (Mini Maggit)
• Change (In The House Of Flies)
• Root (encore)
• 7 Words (encore)

22 songs in total with a lot of their greatest hits played. The new songs sounded good live but the old ones hit a special place inside me, especially the ones which I’ve only heard live for the first time.

Also, throughout the gig, chants of “Chi Cheng” echoed the venue, the bassist of Deftones who was involved in a car accident back in 2008 and has been in a coma ever since. This was acknowledged by Chino.

The ULU gig was the most intense gig I’ve been to since moving back to London. After the gig, several parts of my body were aching. I’d say bruising but due to my skin colour, it wasn’t that distinct but hurt when you touched those places.

Regardless of the physical pain sustained at this gig, I left with a big grin on my face. That is, until I realized I had work the next day.

When I noticed the gig announced on Last.fm, it was already a little too late as tickets were already sold out on most ticketing sites. Luckily, Stargreen still had a few left and of course, I bought a ticket right away.

The venue was Koko yet again but this time I decided to not buy a drink. Instead, I opted to get as close to the stage as possible. Unfortunately, this was also on the mind of every other person in the venue as the area right below the stage was quite packed as I arrived after the doors opened which is rare for me.

Speaking of the crowd, it was predominantly male. Figures.

The Chapin Sisters were the support for the evening who turned out to be pretty good even though they were missing one sister. The two sisters sang by themselves with their instruments for a few songs and was later joined by a band. They were pretty interesting with or without the full band.

For their last song, they invited their third sister for the evening, Zooey Deschanel, and the crowd just went wild (a little and in a calm way).

After a long wait, a person came up on stage and asked the audience not to use flash photography as a special request from the band.

A few minutes after, members of the same band for support came back on stage followed by M. Ward and of course, Zooey Deschanel in a nice silver dress. The Chaplin Sisters were her back up singers this time around. Awfully convenient for the same people to be both the support and headlining band.

Zooey looked absolutely lovely and adorable up on stage. She looked and moved exactly as the many characters she has portrayed in her movies. Surprisingly, she didn’t talk much on stage and was mostly muttering a few words instead. Also, she was looking up most of the time which isn’t really a bad thing but something I noticed.

As for her voice, well, it’s safe to say that she is so much more than just a pretty voice. She can really sing and put on quite a performance. The last song for the evening was a cover of I Put A Spell On You which was simply amazing and jaw dropping. She easily hit all the high notes. This song was even lovelier as only M. Ward was on stage playing the guitar.

Speaking of M. Ward, the other half of She & Him, was mighty as well with his guitar and singing. They had great chemistry on stage which was more evident when it was just the two of them up.

I never remember setlists even the day after a gig so I’m grabbing it again from Setlist.fm created by likelyladtom.

• I Was Made For You
• Thieves
• Black Hole
• Me And You
• Lingering Still
• Sing
• Home
• Change Is Hard
• I Thought I Saw Your Face Today
• Brand New Shoes
• You Really Got A Hold On Me
• Would You Like To Take a Walk? (Ella Fitzgerald cover)
• Magic Trick (M. Ward)
• Gonna Get Along Without You Now
• In The Sun
• Take It Back
• Don’t Look Back
• Over It Over Again
• This Is Not A Test
• Ridin’ In My Car
• Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?
• Sweet Darlin’
• Fool’s Rush In (Johnny Mercer cover) (encore)
• Roll Over Beethoven (Chuck Berry cover) (encore)
• I Put A Spell On You (Screamin’ Jay Hawkins cover) (encore)

Wow. That was just a whopping 25 songs. Albeit short 2-3 minute songs, it’s still a pretty massive setlist. I had no idea they played so many songs that evening.

As mentioned earlier, the main reason for me going here was because of Zooey Deschanel and seeing her was very much worth it. Thing is, she can really sing well and M. Ward compliments this very well with his music. There was never a doubt of me going to this gig as I would have found a way to get tickets. If that failed, I would have purchased tickets to the second date they announced a month after tickets sold out for the Koko gig.

In short, this was a simply an amazing night being star-struck by one of my most favourite actresses and blown away by her amazing voice.

It’s safe to say that I was grinning the whole evening up to the time I put myself to sleep. *sighs*

So far, I’ve only updated a few days after a gig and for no other reason other than this.

It is safe to assume then that I did not see any gigs in April. Five weeks without one is quite a stretch since this is my drug. This is my fix.

I was all set and looking forward to see Crystal Castles though on the 20th, but due to the volcanic ash, Crystal Castles has to canceled their gig and re-schedule it for the 19th of this month. This unfortunately is the same date as The New Pornographers at Electric Ballroom which is such a terrible shame. The ticket for Crystal Castles has now been sold to a fan on Last.fm.

A few weeks after, something else happened, my car broke down and had to be repaired. Again. £169 this time around. At the least, it didn’t breakdown while I was on the motorway and I got it back right away.

I did miss a day of work due to this, and we all know how dedicated I am to being at work. In the two and a half years I have worked for Rackspace, this was only the second time I called in about not being able to make it to work. The first was for being sick and this was just for one day.

So, two days where I did not go to work for close to nothing positive. Great.

There was one gem during April though and this was the hiking day trip to Hastings which was an absolute blast since the weather was perfect and the company was great even though I didn’t socialize and talk as much as I wanted to.

Anyway, the month of May seems to be more promising.

This month, we will be seeing 4 gigs starting with the lovely Zooey Deschanel as part of She & Him on the 7th. The following week would be a special gig for Deftones‘ new album, Diamond Eyes, at ULU. Then it’s Canadian supergroup week with Broken Social Scene and The New Pornographers. Crazy does not even begin how amazing this month will be.

This would have been insane as Los Campesinos! was supposed to play on the 20th but totally canceled their gig with no re-schedule date. I think I can settle for crazy.

Aside from this, we will be going to a few hiking trips. The White Cliffs of Dover on the day after She & Him, then a weekend trip to the Lake District. My hiking boots shall be put to good use this month.

With this, May should clearly be a better month than April. Hopefully, the weather will be brilliant when I’m out but this maybe pushing things a bit too far since the weather was great in April.

One thing though, due to the repairs on the car, budget for the month will be a bit tight until payday. Here we go.

I was lucky enough to see them last October at Brixton Academy which was quite a memorable evening.

Last Monday, I was even luckier as I saw them again.

Venue this time was at The Roundhouse which is a really classy and historic venue in Camden. A venue which I haven’t been to since The Mars Volta played in 2008.

Support for the evening was Two Door Cinema Club, a band you know that I love. Their set was pretty basic however they didn’t sound too good in such a larger venue. It was an average performance from them but the crowd seemed pleased and I guess people who never heard them before were pretty impressed. Supporting Phoenix for the entirety of their tour is an excellent exposure for them.

Around 10 minutes before Phoenix was set to start, a huge white curtain spanning the entire length of the stage was dropped from the ceiling.

At 9, Phoenix was up on stage and started playing Lisztomania with the curtain still up. Of course, this sent everyone into a frenzy. It was real amusing to watch their shadows against the curtain. A minute into the song, the curtain was dropped and the crowd couldn’t have gotten any crazier.

Excellent choice for an opening song. I do believe that it is the same song they opened with at Brixton. It is nice to see bands kicking off sets with their more “popular” songs instead saving it for last.

This was followed up by an older song, Long Distance Call before swinging back to Lasso which is always a crowd pleaser.

Midway through their set, they slowed down things completely with Love Like A Sunset Part I and II slowly battling each other. It was terrific fun especially with the play of lights.

Most of the songs where from Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, their latest album. I counted 9. The others were a great mix from other albums. They also sang a few songs in French which I read elsewhere, are covers. I wasn’t familiar with the songs so have no real idea. It was real fun though as they rarely sing in French.

For their encore, they played If I Ever Feel Better, which is a very dance-y and cool song, and an extended version of 1901.

Here’s what I remember of the setlist:

• Lisztomania
• Long Distance Call
• Lasso
• Rally
• Run Run Run
• Fences
• Girlfriend
• Armistice
• Love Like A Sunset Part I and II
• Napoleon Says
• Countdown
• Too Young
• Consolation Prizes
• Rome
• If I Ever Feel Better
• 1901

Back in October, I mostly only knew songs from Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix but still enjoy Brixton immensely. Knowing a bit more of their songs especially the older ones, made the evening at Roundhouse much more special.

On Friday, I got the chance to watch them again. This time, I was at Electric Ballroom specifically for them, and them alone. It was one hell of a night.

The night started early though as it was a Friday and this at Electric Ballroom meant a club night. Even though the ticket said doors opening at 6:45, I ignored it and left home at my usual time.

Due to this, I totally missed the first support which was Jenny Owen Youngs save for her last song which I thought was a bit too country for me plus, I was still too busy buying a pint of cider. Just listened to her myspace page and her music is quite good. Shame I missed her then.

The second support was no consolation though as they were Free Energy and from their first song alone, I already had an impression of them, I did not like them one bit. The first impression did not change as the rest of their set was pretty much the same. In fairness, they did play with such enthusiasm.

Motion City Soundtrack was up on stage a few minutes after 8 and kicked off their set with Worker Bee which has a nice slow intro which quickly changes pace. An excellent choice for their first song. This was quickly followed up by The Future Freaks Me Out which is an old favourite. Justin hardly had to sing on this one though as everyone in the crowd was doing it for him and he was simply loving how everyone was responding to it.

This gig was part of their tour for their new album, My Dinosaur Life, so a number of songs came from this record. This included songs like Delirium, @!#?@!, Hysteria, Her Words Destroyed My Planet, A Lifeless Ordinary, Pulp Fiction. Even though the new record has only been out for a few weeks, the crowd was happily singing along to most of them.

Of course, a few old ones were thrown in to the mix which obviously made the crowd go crazy. Included were Broken Heart, Even If It Kills Me, Capital H, Attractive Today, When You’re Around, Last Night, and This is For Real.

As for their encore, they had Disappear from the new record and Everything Is Alright.

For song I expected them to perform but didn’t where Modern Chemistry and Calling All Cops. With that said, their setlist for the night was in no way disappointing. A good amount of old faves sandwiched in between the new ones.

Aside from their very upbeat and catchy music, the band always plays with such energy on stage. Justin (lead vocals) is still one of the most enjoyable lead vocals to watch on stage.

Thanks to Straylight Run, I’ve discovered such a great and fun band. I’m so glad I bought tickets for this one.

When I got home, I was slightly disappointed to find out that they hardly have any music released which you can actually download. I went ahead and purchased their first song bundle on Amazon entitled Kitsuné: Something Good Can Work which contained the songs Something Good Can Work and Do You Want It All?. A few months later, another bundle came out which contained I Can Talk and Costume Party.

Less than a month ago, their first full-length album came out, Tourist History, which is such a brilliant record and also allowed me to listen to Undercover Martyn anytime I wanted.

On Wednesday last week, I had the chance to watch them headline for the first time.

This was at the Hoxton Square Bar and Restaurant in Shoreditch which is another amazing and small venue tucked away in lovely Shoreditch like Cargo. It also had the same format for the venue, a bar, a restaurant, and a small stage area for live music performances. The stage here was so much better than Cargo’s since it is quite high and provides a better view for the audience.

First support was Citadels which is a lovely new band from London. I don’t know how to describe them but they were really great. Stef usually does the main vocals which is pretty good, but when Lucy steps in to sing Sons of Clovis II, my mind was blown. Do check their Myspace page to sample their songs.

These support bands have been surprisingly good lately and I really need to get my act together and write up a support band post.

Before Two Door Cinema Club came up on stage, I suddenly realized something. There was a drum kit. When I saw them at Heaven, there was no drummer and drum kit to be found, just the 3 members of the band with their guitars and electronic samplers (or whatever they are called). I remember mumbling to myself that having a drummer on stage would make them so much better to watch live.

When they came up on stage and played their first song, Cigarettes In The Theatre, I immediately noticed the difference and it was awful. Thankfully, it was just a volume problem which was quickly fixed before the second song started. A minor tech issue really. Whew.

Fixing the drum volume issue was quite essential since they followed the opening song with Undercover Martyn which is such an upbeat and fun song. I would have been pretty disappointed if they messed this one up as well.

As for the setlist, I attempted to take notes while watching them on stage and dancing a bit in my spot.

• Cigarettes In The Theatre
• Undercover Martyn
• XXX
• What You Know
• Do You Want It All?
• Something Good Can Work
• This Is The Life
• Kids XXX
• Costume Party
• You Are Not Stubborn
• Eat That Up, It’s Good For You
• Come Back Home
• I Can Talk

The items with XXX’s are songs I don’t really know and have never heard from them before. The first one had a title but I didn’t catch it, the band mentioned the second one. Apologies for my ignorance.

They played all of the songs on Tourist History plus Costume Party which is only on the I Can Talk bundle.

Due to the music they have, I was expecting a bit more dancing but there wasn’t really. Could be the Shoreditch type of crowd. The lovely French girl in front of me was dancing her heart away though and this, among others, made my evening.

I might as well say this now, Two Door Cinema Club is now one of my favorite bands second only to Los Campesinos!

Until next time guys. And by next time, I mean Monday when you support Phoenix at Roundhouse.

Back in December, there was this oddly and similarly named band supporting Modest Mouse at Shepherd’s Bush Empire. For me, Frightened Rabbit supporting Modest Mouse was genuinely amusing.

Then they played with such intensity on stage, and I immediately liked them.

When I got home, I checked them out online and was surprised to find out that one of their songs, Keep Yourself Warm, was used in a scene on Chuck, one of my favorite shows.

Since that time, the show has featured two more songs from the band, of which, Swim Until You Can’t See Land, was on the episode I watched earlier.

On to the actual gig then, if anyone is still around that is.

The first support band was from Iceland with a name I can’t pronounce or spell and hence have long forgotten. It is a shame though as I’d be interested to listen to them again as their music was quite upbeat, fun and easy to the ears.

A familiar band was on as the second support band. It was Airship whom I saw back in December when they supported Asobi Seksu at Cargo. I enjoyed them at Cargo when I was right in front and this evening was no different. They played a very good and energetic set. According to them, they are releasing their first single soon which is really great as it’s nice to see a band like them start getting some traction. Do check them out.

The main course for the evening was of course Frightened Rabbit, who eventually came up on stage to the joy of the crowd. From the front alone the view of the venue is pretty impressive, so I can only fathom to imagine how it would be from the stage looking at the crowd and the three (four) tiers of standing areas. Sure it would be such a humbling experience and the band was much thankful for this.

And they did not disappoint as the show they put on was quite remarkable though not as mind-blowing as the first time I saw them. Also, no songs from Sing The Greys were played this evening. After a few plays, Square 9 has really grown on me.

Still, the song selection was pretty decent mixing memorable songs from The Midnight Organ Fight and their new album, The Winter Of Mixed Drinks. I tried quickly pillaging Google for a setlist, but failed.

As far as I can remember, they played The Twist, Fast Blood, Swim Until You Can’t See Land, The Modern Leper, Nothing Like You, The Loneliness And The Scream.

For their “encore”, Scott, the lead vocalist, attempted to sing Poke without a microphone but gave up and sang into a microphone with his acoustic guitar for one of the highlights of the evening. After this song, the rest of the band joined him on stage to end the night with Keep Yourself Warm.

Having no clue who they were hence no expectations made seeing them the first time quite an enjoyable surprise and new discovery. Their performance at Koko was still pretty great though, but once you know a band, you start expecting them to play songs you like and they will always miss one.

Square 9.

I was immediately intrigued by their very normal appearance which introduced me to their insane, crazy and brilliant sort of music.

I’ve been living in London for almost 3 years now, but I only discovered them sometime during the middle of 2009. I will forever beat myself with a stick for not hearing about them earlier.

Last Thursday, I had the chance to finally see them on stage and it was one of the best experiences of my life and I am in no way exaggerating.

The venue was once again Koko in Camden. It was another rainy evening in London, so 10 minutes till the doors opened, there was still no queue. At this point, I was 4th in the queue but the place quickly filled up as the evening moved forward.

Two support acts offered a mix bag of surprises prior to Los Campesinos!.

The first was Islet which as mentioned by LC! on their twitter page is the best band you’ve never heard about. This is very much true. At first, their sound seemed a bit too crazy (there is such a thing) but it quickly grew on me and I soon found myself really enjoying what they were doing on stage. They are a four-person band and for each song they seem to swap all their instruments around. My memory is a bit hazy now but I am pretty sure no one member used the same instrument on more than 2 songs. They were that great! Sadly,they hardly have an online presence at the moment but there is a BBC recording on one of their fan sites.

They were followed up by Swanton Bombs which were a two-person act quite similar to The White Stripes except their both men. An ok band but I felt they were trying to sound too much like The White Stripes.

And then, it was time for Los Campesinos! Before we go into the details, I’ll bore you with a short story (not that anyone really reads this).

At work, it was known that I was going to a gig and a colleague of mine asked if there was going to be any mosh pits. I reply by saying probably not.

Boy was I wrong. As soon as LC! came up on stage, the crowd went crazy and everyone started dancing around and moshing.That is, everyone from where I was. This was of course different from the hurtful circle pits at hardcore rock events and this was so much more enjoyable with everyone singing and dancing around. I never thought I could sweat so much here in February before this gig.

The energy levels never settled down and the band kept the crowd on their feet from start to finish.

Since this was the tour for their latest LP, Romance Is Boring, most of the songs came from this album which is actually quite goo since it is a great record.

Hightlights of the evening would be You! Me! Dancing! which was absolutely insane and The Sea Is A Good Place To Think Of The Future when everyone was singing the song. Also, Straight in at 101 with the most genuis bit of lyrics ever:

"I think we need more post-coital and less post-rock.
Feels like the build-up takes forever but you never get me off."

Oh, and of course, This Is How You Spell, "HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics" which along with Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks were part of their "encore".

Here’s what I remember of the playlist;

• Heart Swells/100-1
• i just sighed. i just sighed, just so you know
• Death To Los Campesinos!
• Miserabilia
• A Heat Rash In The Shape Of The Show Me State Or, Letters From Me To Charlotte
• There are Listed Buildings
• Romance Is Boring
• Documented Minor Emotional Breakdown # 1
• We’ve Got Your Back
• My Year In Lists
• Straight In At 101
• This Is a Flag. There Is No Wind.
• You! Me! Dancing!
• We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed
• The Sea Is A Good Place To Think Of The Future
• Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks
• This Is How You Spell, "HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics"

The 8-piece band was absolutely amazing. They played each song with the same intensity as the last song. As you watched them on stage, you could clearly see they were really enjoying themselves.

This was the most fun gig I have been to in quite sometime. I would have loved to take more pictures or a video even, but I was having too much fun and decided to pocket the camera and just sing and dance along with everyone.

I say this a lot, but this is another band I will definitely be seeing again. And again. I can’t wait for them to play in London again. They currently wrapped up their UK tour and now have a long US tour lined-up. I thought about it but may just wait until they are back.

It is a real shame that I have not had the chance to see them before.

"It’s you! It’s me! We’re dancing!"

—————-
Now playing: Los Campesinos! – This Is How You Spell, "HAHAHA, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics"

http://foxytunes.com/artist/los+campesinos!/track/this+is+how+you+spell%2c+%22hahaha%2c+we+destroyed+the+hopes+and+dreams+of+a+generation+of+faux-romantics%22

I first heard of them prior to seeing them at GIAN 2008 as they were listed as one of the bands on the bill. Saw them again in 2009 at King’s College in London which is the best show of theirs which I’ve been to.

This was way before a Gossip Girl joined then for a song after which, they shot up in popularity.

This popularity was quite evident when I arrived at Shepherd’s Bush Empire, just a few minutes before the doors opened. I was greeted to a massive queue which is pretty much non-existent for previous gigs I’ve been to at O2 Empire.

Luckily, I am with O2 and was able to jump the queue by using the O2 customer’s priority entrance. This marked the first time I used this perk and was glad I had it as it was freezing cold outside.

The first support band was Plastiscines which is an all female band from France. By female, I mean girls as in teens. One could swear that they were plucked right out of Gossip Girl being pretty, slim, sexy and all. It was fun watching them especially this moment when the bassist tripped on stage. As for their music, their wasn’t anything real special about it.

Family Force 5 was the second support band and they came up on stage wearing the same shirts. Their music belongs to genre called Crunkcore (screamo+crunk) which I had no idea ever existed. Most of the crowd loved them. Their stage presence and energy was pretty remarkable. Not my cup of tea though.

It eventually came to Cobra Starship’s turn. They were mostly their usual selves except for Gabe being way too chatty. He talked so much between songs. Some of it were stories he already told in previous gigs which made the experience even more painful. As a result, their setlist was only 14 songs. With less talking, they could have squeezed in 2-3 more.

• The City Is At War
• Pete Wentz Is The Only Reason We’re Famous
• Nice Guys Finish Last
• Kiss My Sass
• My Moves Are White (White Hot ,That Is)
• Wet Hot American Summer
• The Church of Hot Addiction
• Send My Love to the Dancefloor, I’ll See You in Hell (Hey Mister DJ)
• Smile For The Paparazzi
• Snakes On A Plane (Bring It)
• Hot Mess
• Guilty Pleasure
• The Scene Is Dead; Long Live The Scene
• Good Girls Go Bad

An interesting moment was during Snakes On A Plane’s rap portion where they asked two members of the crowd to come up on stage and rap the stanza out. It was pretty cool.

Like at King’s College, I was hoping they would play “The World Has Its Shine (But I would Drop It on A Dime)” but they didn’t My guess is it’s too slow a song for their usual uptempo sets.

To sum up, although it was really good, it was not the best Cobra Starship show I’ve been to. This honour still goes to King’s College. Everything was simply better there including the support bands. Also, King’s College was a much smaller venue.

At the moment, I think after seeing Cobra Starship thrice, I’ve had my fix and it is quite unlikely I’ll be seeing them again lest be subjected to the same stories Gabe will eventually blabber on about. Still, they are a guilty pleasure of mine, and if the stars do align, I may just see them again.

Less than a month before the gig, they released more standing tickets and I immediately jumped in and ordered my tickets. This impulsive nature has equated to me being quite broke at the moment but I have no regrets as this gig was one of the best this year.

Oh wait, 2010 just started.

The venue was Wembley Arena which is completely different from Wembley Stadium but is right next to each other. This is were I saw The Cure back in 2008 with a bunch of old people. Yes, The Cure.

Braved the chilly weather and the lack of the Jubilee Line (it was a Saturday) to get in the queue pretty early. From what I remember, I didn’t buy anything to drink and went straight to the front and sat down.

There were two support bands, Glassjaw and Thrice. Having two support bands instead of one makes the wait, from entering the venue to the first band and in between acts, more bearable. As you know, I go to concerts alone and barely talk to anyone.

Thrice was the first support band on stage. They were alright but I could never get into them even though I’ve given their albums Artist In The Ambulance and Vheissu several listens to.

I was here mainly for Glassjaw and was really excited when they got up on stage. Daryll was his usual crazy and insane self. Justin Beck had his trademark look on, hoodie and cap all throughout their set. Their intensity at the start was not so great though but it built up midway. This marked the 3rd time I’ve seen Glassjaw live and I have to say this had the best performance of Ape Dos Mil ever. Plus, this was the closest I have been watching them without getting crushed as most of the crowd had no idea what was going on.

As for their set, they played 7 songs : Tip Your Bartender, Mu Empire, (You Think You’re) John Fucking Lennon, El Mark, Gillette Cavalcade of Sports, Ape Dos Mil and Siberian Kiss.

Now Brand New. As mentioned, I’ve listened to them and liked them in the past but never the biggest fan. This changed in the weeks leading up to the gig as I was playing Brand New over and over again while at home, at work and driving to the office. Now, I can’t get enough of them.

Back to the gig. After Glassjaw, the front got crowded and packed as hell. It got so bad that when Brand New started, you could barely move. Instead, you would move with the crowd. This was not enjoyable so I managed to back away from the front just a bit into an area where you could actually move and dance by yourself.

As you can gather, Brand New was pretty intense and started out as such. Their setlist was a great mix of songs from their four albums and really had the crowd in the best mood all throughout the evening.

I was particularly impressed with the bits where Jesse would do guitar solos and sing by himself. I’m not a musician so I am easily impressed.

Here’s the setlist from the ever reliable Setlist.fm.

• Welcome To Bangkok
• Sink
• Degausser
• You Won’t Know
• Okay I Believe You, But My Tommy Gun Don’t
• Sic Transit Gloria… Glory Fades
• The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knows
• Limousine
• Vices
• Gasoline
• Sowing Season
• You Stole
• The Archers Bows Have Broken
• Jesus Christ
• Jude Law And A Semester Abroad
• Seventy Times 7
• At The Bottom
• Play Crack The Sky

It has been a few weeks since the gig (Note to self: write these reviews a few days after and not weeks) and I’m playing still playing the songs back in my head. It was a great show and among the craziest I have been which is always great. This is not because of Glassjaw alone but Brand New as well.

Personally, I think I (try to) listen to too much music and due to this, drowned out bands and acts I would have really loved. Brand New is a victim of this and I am glad I got standing tickets to this gig at the last minute.

Here’s a video of Brand New performing Jesus Christ.

What a way to kick off 2010!