How about listing some of them here? I can’t remember venues or exact dates but have some great memories of gigs.
Off the top of my head, I remember a brilliant Factory Records night in 1979 with Joy Division, A Certain Ratio and other Fackers. I had just turned 15 and it was electrifying. That was the first time I saw Ian Curtis’s intensity when performing; he was completely mesmerized, his eyes blazing, while he danced across the stage with his shaky epileptiform movements. A Certain Ratio were tight and funky, improvising instruments by banging pieces of wood together and using a brass section before many other white new wave bands.
I always loved seeing The Associates live. Billy Mackenzie’s voice was like a bird, it would soar and swoop and glide, yet he always retained a mischievous appeal that showed he never took himself too seriously. (I love the story of him asking if he could take a taxi home on expenses after getting dumped by his record label in London. After receiving affirmation, he duly hailed a cab – and took it not to his London pad but his Dundee one.)
Teardrop Explodes and Echo and The Bunnymen could also be wonderful live. Julian Cope of Teardrop was so exuberant and enthusiastic, his voice so clear and pure. The Bunnymen were darker and more complex, menacing in some ways. I can almost smell that dry ice now.
One Response to The Greatest Gigs You Ever Saw
How about listing some of them here? I can’t remember venues or exact dates but have some great memories of gigs.
Off the top of my head, I remember a brilliant Factory Records night in 1979 with Joy Division, A Certain Ratio and other Fackers. I had just turned 15 and it was electrifying. That was the first time I saw Ian Curtis’s intensity when performing; he was completely mesmerized, his eyes blazing, while he danced across the stage with his shaky epileptiform movements. A Certain Ratio were tight and funky, improvising instruments by banging pieces of wood together and using a brass section before many other white new wave bands.
I always loved seeing The Associates live. Billy Mackenzie’s voice was like a bird, it would soar and swoop and glide, yet he always retained a mischievous appeal that showed he never took himself too seriously. (I love the story of him asking if he could take a taxi home on expenses after getting dumped by his record label in London. After receiving affirmation, he duly hailed a cab – and took it not to his London pad but his Dundee one.)
Teardrop Explodes and Echo and The Bunnymen could also be wonderful live. Julian Cope of Teardrop was so exuberant and enthusiastic, his voice so clear and pure. The Bunnymen were darker and more complex, menacing in some ways. I can almost smell that dry ice now.