Magazine @ Festival Hall 1 Sep 2009

Jumped on this one even though it's an all seater. Still - turned out to be for the best as the sniffer had mashed his leg up in a freak mountain bike accident the day before. So, I had to turn up like some old geezer with a walking stick and hobble round the place. Somehow though it's kind of fitting in an eccentric Devoto kind of way.

Tonight is a complete rerun through the whole of Correct Use of Soap, interspersed with Devoto reading snippets from an old "how to care for your records" leaflet, while demonstrating the advice with a copy of the Soap vinyl itself. It's always hailed - even by the band themselves - as Magazine's finest yet to me its actually just THIRD best. You could read that as second-worst, but I don't think we can count that awful pink album. So the Correct Order Of Vinyl is, in fact, Secondhand Daylight, Real Life THEN Soap. So let's hope they are doing the play backs in reverse order meaning we've got two more to come before he collects his library card again.

The setting I think did it it justice - sitting dead central towards the back the sound was spot on and the playback was lapped up by all. After an interval we got a selection of other songs delivered with the same precision, for which the crowd even lurched out of their seats. I think the obsession with "Soap" for many people is *slightly* emperors new clothes as what song got everyone out of their seats? : Rhythm of Cruelty (Second Hand Daylight). And the biggest cheer? : Permafrost (Second Hand Daylight). So you see - even if people don't say it, they know it's actually the best album and so now we cant wait for the full playback next feb. Finally...back to nature. (5/5)

Festival Hall Magazine Tickets

Magazine at The Forum, London 12/13 Feb 2009

It seems like many people have been waiting a long time for this, the Ultimate Reformation. And was it worth the wait? Ye Gods yes. Once you get over the similarities between Howard Devoto and the love child of Jasper Carrot and Mini-Me that is.

A totally charismatic front man whose bizarre mannerisms and behavior are delivered without hint of irony, every word preached with an almost demonic authority. When he reads "The Book" from a lectern stage front, it doesn't sound like a story any more - it is real. Jesus, poor Mr. Manifold, I really felt for him.

I was there for both thursday and friday - as I'm sure most of the (95% male, middle-aged, balding) crowd were. Maybe one criticism I would level at Devoto is my disappointment on the friday that the between song banter was quite so scripted - word for word a repeat of the thursday. And the complete omission of all but two tracks from Secondhand Daylight. How can Feed The Enemy not be included? What were they thinking of?
It seems that half the venues in town have now been snapped up by HMV who are obviously shitting themselves that CD sales are now so bad that they have to get into live music and have somehow ousted Carling from the sponsorship top spot. I'm sure as a result of this, I was threatened expulsion from the venue for using a "professional camera", despite being surrounded by people taking photos on "lesser" cameras or even videoing the entire show on their phones! This is the typical record industry behavior that has got them up shit creek in the first place - sheer greed. If I had a press pass I would have been in the press pit, NOT ten rows back straining over people heads to take a quick snap for here. Funnily enough my pictures are not good enough to sell to OK magazine. And here I am, promoting live music for all and encouraging people to visit HMV venues. Bastards. Anyway, three shots survived to tell the tale.