2011 in Concerts

Adele

I was absurdly lucky to be able to see Adele. I love her to bits, but I wasn’t sure I was going to be in London the day of this concert, so I didn’t buy a ticket in advance. It turned out that I was — so, ticketless, I went to the venue. It was a tiny little place in Notting Hill, the night of the release of 21. My friends told me I was nuts. I went straight up to the ticket desk and said that I didn’t have a ticket, but really wanted to get in, and asked if they had any spares. The lovely gent behind the counter told me to go get a drink, and come back in forty-five minutes, and if anyone didn’t show up, he’d let me in. Some bugger didn’t show up, and he stamped my hand.

It was a fantastic show, she’s absolutely gorgeous and lovely and so ridiculously talented. I also quite like this shot I got of her, despite the fact that all I had on me was my point-and-shoot.

Will Sheff

I didn’t take this photograph, I nabbed it off the interwebs. But this was a bloody brilliant show. I was quite spoiled this year with regards to seeing singers I loved in small venues. This was definitely the smallest — St Pancras Old Church. There was just eighty people in the audience, in the tiny, echoing, lovely church. Will Sheff played a mostly solo show, although Patrick, Okkervil River’s bassist, came out for a few songs. I bootlegged most of the show, and I upload one of the songs if you want to have a listen.

Emmy the Great

Emmy the Great is the least-known of all the bands I went to see this year, but I absolutely adore her sound and her music. I had a fun night, it was brilliant seeing her. She’s a little awkward, but I think part of that is exaggerated. She’s talented and I really can’t wait to see what she comes up with next. I both want everyone to listen to her and appreciate her music and want her to be a secret so that I can continue to sit front row at her shows without difficulty. I got a few good shots, but I mostly took videos.

C’est tout! I didn’t get to as many shows as I would’ve liked, since I had a pretty hectic year. I had tickets for Death Cab in November, but the mate I was supposed to go with bailed and as it was aways away I didn’t fancy it alone. But oh, well! I’ve seen them before, at least. Did you guys see any great gigs this year?

2010 in Concerts

Mumford & Sons
Marcus Mumford and the rest of boys are one of my favourite bands, so this was a really really wonderful experience. I was standing at the very front and I got the set list afterwards, both of which were great. But the band was phenomenal. They made it so fun — seeing the camaraderie between them, the laughing, the jibes and the passion, made it a truly memorable experience. Favourite moment: when Marcus asked for us to just enjoy I Gave You All and the entire concert hall went quiet. It was a beautiful moment, and Marcus himself remarked on it.
Opening: O Emperor 

Rufus Wainwright
Stupid, gorgeous man made me cry. Several times. It was just Rufus and his piano, and his gut-wrenching voice. 

Slow Club
I’m surprised I didn’t upload a post about Slow Club, because I had a great time at the concert and I got a few great shots, as well as a couple of videos. It was a fun, upbeat concert and I’m glad I got to see them. I loved how informal they were. Their friends were in the audience and they’d often shout down to them, and they took a couple of requests. They had several opening bands, too. A couple were average, but the one (I forget their name, now!) who went on just before them were pretty great.

Laura Marling
Amazing amazing woman. I had missed seeing her earlier in the year, so I was beyond thrilled when I found out she was preforming at the Hay Festival while I was there. It also compounded my love for her: she preforms at literary festivals. She’s just made of awesome. 

I didn’t see as many concerts as I hoped this year, but I definitely loved every one I attended. The links are to videos or photos that I took, sometimes accompanied by thoughts on the concert.