Gig Review - The Sherlocks / KU Bar

Friday 6th of February and The Sherlocks hit KU Bar in Stockton.

Photo courtesy of Phil Harrison

The talented foursome from Sheffield stopped off at Stockton as part of their UK tour. They certainly brought their A game with them as they certainly didn't leave the fans disappointed.With the crowd already prepared and ready to go via the support acts, Neon Waltz, Violet Deep and Revolve who were all fantastic and certainly got the crowd warmed up for what overall was a fantastic show.

Photo courtesy of Phil Harrison

The Sherlocks took to the stage, the second they stepped on stage, the crowd responded well, with the  well travelled yet catchy as ever, Sherlock's Army chants, the band adding encouragement to the football style chants by providing a catchy guitar chord to the vocals of the crowd.

Photo courtesy of Phil Harrison

From start to finish the crowd were eating out of the boys hands, the presence that Kiaran (lead singer) has on stage is one that reminds us of lead singers such as Liam Fray and Alex Turner, the capability of not moving around the stage yet having this power over a full crowd is one that many singers only dream of.

The band played all four songs which are on their EP 'First Bite of the Apple' which certainly pleased the crowd, the band played it well encouraging the crowd to get them hands clapping whilst they played 'You've Made A Mistake', getting them to sing back the lyrics of 'Chasing Shadows' they also played the up and coming single 'Escapade' which was a belter of a track, along with the likes of 'Live For The Moment' and 'Get Up' but it didn't stop there. The boys also treated us to a cover version of Kasabain's well known song 'Clubfoot', which went down a treat along side their own songs.

Overall, KU Bar yet again has hit the bullseye with another gig, if you haven't been to the KU Bar get down and you'll understand why we along with many others love the venue. 

The Sherlocks themselves set the bar high for any band who are going to perform after them, it was an amazing show, and to say we only paid five pounds is a steal because these boys are going places and it won't be long before they are playing the big venues. If you get the chance to go see the boys perform, don't turn it down you'll only regret it.

The Sherlocks Set List

- Leave Me Alone
- One Of A Kind
- Heart Of Gold
- Time To Go
- Was It Really Worth It
- Escapade
- Times Ticking By
- Live For The Moment
- Get Up
- Clubfoot (Kasabain Cover)
- Chasing Shadows
- You've Made A Mistake

Gig Review - Collectors Club / Mixtape

Collectors Club rolled into Middlesbrough via Liverpool to celebrate Mixtape's 6th birthday and they certainly gave the crowd a good present in terms of a gig.

Photos courtesy of Nina Dee Photography

With the famous Key's dance floor lights beaming up at them, the band was ready to perform and what a performance it was, from start to finish. The band as a whole worked the Mixtape crowd well, encouraging people to get up and dance, get their toes tapping, by the end of the set everyone was engaged within the music that the band was playing.

The band played the more well known hits such as 'Wanna Be You' and 'First To Know', which were always going to be a crowd pleaser, but what we didn't expect was the rest of the set to be just as good, most bands sometimes struggle to pull off a set where every song is just as good as the last one, but Collectors Club managed to do that. The boys also played the newest singles as well which gave fans a insight to what to expect from the band in 2015, something that many people weren't expecting was the cover of 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun', which the band did put a twist on it, never mind a male vocalist singing a female song, but they arranged it to fit their style of playing, what a cover it was, ten out of ten from our ears!

Photos courtesy of Nina Dee Photography

Overall, Collectors Club put on a performance that will be a lasting memory in many of the crowds minds that were there on Tuesday night. It doesn't stop there for the band though as they get ready to release their debut EP in spring of this year, it looks as if it is ready to be a big year for the boys and we certainly can't wait to hear the EP. We advice you to get on board and support a band which is certain to go places.

Collector Clubs Set List

- On Your Way
- Wanna Be You
- Sympathy
- Shoulder to Shoulder
- Comforting
- Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Cover)
- Toe the Line/ Forever Wasting Time
- Where Did You Lie?
- First To Know

'Wanna Be You'

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/collectorsclub
Twitter - https://twitter.com/CollectorsClub
SoundCloud - https://soundcloud.com/collectors-club

Gig Review - Charlie Simpson / Fibbers

Fibbers in York, one of them best small venues we have ever been too and this gig stepped up to the plate and delivered again! Charlie Simpson rolled into the city with amazing songs of his own, but what we weren't expecting was the high standard of quality which all three support acts brought to the night as a whole.

First up to get the crowd warmed up was a young man named Willow Robinson, one man and his guitar standing upon the stage of Fibbers, what came next was a man who has a powerful yet calming voice at the same time, from the off you can hear the passion within his voice.

The ability to play the guitar the way Willow does takes some talent alone, throw in singing along side that and you'd think it was nearly impossible to do both, yet he puts it across as if is as easy as putting one foot in front of the other. That said, it goes to show that practise does pay off, we are certainly keeping a massive eye on this young man because he is going to go places!

Willow Robinson's Set List

- Old and Bitter
- Stones
- My Burdened Mind
- Deserves Us Of The Sun
- Ocean Blue
- Long Walk To San Juan

'My Burdened Mind'

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/willowrobinsonmusic

Twitter - https://twitter.com/willowrobinson1

Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC36IdW1sCeWBvzDWS53gFzw

After a great first act, it was always going to be hard to match the talent of Willow and his guitar, but we spoke too soon, as a gentleman who goes by the name of Andy Blackwell walked across the stage, sadly without the rest of his band for this night but never the less we weren't disappointed, he sat behind his keyboard and proved to us all why Charlie invited him on tour with him. Blasting out some catchy songs which everyone was able to toe tap to, Andy even encouraged the crowd to help him along with one of his own songs (She Knows It)

Great vocals, fantastic keyboard playing and clearly a man who loves performing, put all them attributes together and you've got Andy Blackwell, a man who knows how to perform and deliver amazing songs!

Blackwell Set List

- Long Way Home
- Highs & Lows
- SOS
- Shout (Cover of Tears For Fears)
- She Knows It

'SOS'

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/WeAreBlackwell

Twitter - https://twitter.com/WeAreBlackwell

Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjYh5uNV5esmKVn9Zqgrgcg

The final support act was a very talented, down to earth young lady called Emma Blackery, some may know Emma from YouTube, but she certainly showed the audience that she can put on a great show as well as produce great videos.

Emma showed everyone the range she has within her vocals and also explained to the audience what certain songs were about, now that might not seem very interesting but it's a little feature shall we call it that not every artist does, it was nice to hear what had inspired her lyrics. When listening to each song, you can tell theres a story behind each song that Emma produces, some may not be exactly what you think they are but they are all well written.

'Perfect'

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/EmmaBlackery

Twitter - https://twitter.com/emmablackery

Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/user/emmablackery

After watching three strong warm up acts, the time had came, Charlie Simpson had appeared on the stage, guitar in hand and cheers nearly lifting the roof of Fibbers.If you have ever had the great pleasure of seeing Charlie live before, you'll understand this when we say he has raw talent, has that capability of holding a audience, powerful vocal chords and great chords assisting him within the music he plays. This was no different, Charlie played some older songs from his first album, 'Cemetery' and 'Down Down Down' to the more recent material 'Comets', 'Emily' and 'Long Road Home' all these songs were part of a very strong set list and it certainly was received positively by the audience.

'Cemetery'

Charlie set out on this tour, highlighting the fact it was an acoustic tour, it was a great night, we are sure that we aren't the only ones that would happily pay to see the whole gig again. It also showed to the audience that you can really have a fantastic gig with four people and four instruments.

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/charliesimpsonmusic
Twitter - https://twitter.com/charliesimo
Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQK5i_LV1rbvPs-75L9wjQ

We personally think this was one of the strongest overall gigs we have been to in a very long time. All talented in their own aspects, if you've not heard of any of these acts, get clicking on the links above, we promise you won't regret it.