With the country still in the midst of lockdown and no sign of any live music in the foreseeable future if at all this year I thought I would take the opportunity to look back in the archives, sounds posh I know but it’s just an spreadsheet, and revisit gigs I attended on this day down the years.
May is typically a very busy month for gigs being part of the usual album release cycle but there’s just the one today for my trip down memory lane for you down the years.
2017, Brent Cobb, the Borderline, London
It’s a short hop skip and a jump back three years for this one which I reviewed here at the time. I think Colter Wall was the support act on this night and he was great too and has since gone on to headline his own shows after that time to some critical acclaim.
What was different about this show is I went solo. A big aspect of seeing live music for me is the social element and sharing the experience with friends from the beers beforehand to the show itself and the discussions afterwards. Whilst there are strong musical overlaps with many of my usual gig going mates there are a number of gigs I have missed down the years as I couldn’t find someone to go with.
It was around this time that decided that I would no longer miss artists that I alone was interested in and so have been to many shows now solo. Interestingly I read an article at the time that stated 50% of all young gig goers are doing it solo too which really surprised me. Whilst the preamble to the show in that time between work and the main act can be a drag I have probably seen more support acts than I normally would and also some great shows with tonight’s being one of them. Sadly either alone or in the company of others there is no sign of the live gig experience happening anytime soon. I have seen reports about live music returning with social distancing and masks too. Not for me. I think it would be both weird for the audience and weird for the band too looking out at a half empty venue with a masked crowd. I would question how financially viable it would especially for smaller venues
That’s it for today’s trip down memory lane. Here’s hoping we can get to some form of normality soon. Support your small local venues and smaller artists in these difficult times, stay safe and keep on rockin y’all.