A Decade In Live Music - Favourite Gigs

I signed off my 2019 -A Year In Live Music blog saying I would likely knock something together as a best of the decade type affair. That is what I have done with these posts (there is another one nearby this one for best gigs). How I am going to do this is go over all the lists I’ve knocked together and try and drag out the best ones for two lists – favourite festival sets of the decade, and favourite gigs of the decade. I’ve decided to split the two lists into two posts (end of the decade isn’t the sort of thing that comes around every 5 years y’know!) Without further ado – the list!

FAVOURITE GIGS OF THE DECADE

To determine this list, I’ve gone back through all the old end of year lists I’ve made of gigs and make a long list of all the ones that I would consider for a best of the decade list. I narrowed it down (!) to 40+ possible gigs and have extracted 15 from there to make the top 15. Because, as with the festival sets list, there were so many that could have made the top 15 of the decade, it felt wrong not to include the ones that made the long list as honourable mentions. As such, here they are (broken down into the years they took place).

Honourable Mentions:

2010 – My Chemical Romance (Hammersmith, London), Stone Sour (Dingwalls, London), Rammstein (Manchester).
2011 – Foo Fighters (National Bowl, Milton Keynes), Manic Street Preachers (The O2, London).
2012 – Pulp (Royal Albert Hall, London), Rammstein (The O2, London), The Wildhearts (The Forum, London).
2013 – Eric Clapton (Royal Albert Hall, London), Eureka Machines (The Borderline, London), Muse (Emirates Stadium, London), The Wildhearts (ABC, Glasgow)
2014 – Foo Fighters (Islington Assembly Hall, London).
2015 – Nightwish (Wembley Arena, London), AC/DC (Wembley Stadium, London), Frank Turner (Guildhall, Southampton).
2016 – Billy Joel (Wembley Stadium, London), Clutch (Roundhouse, London), Weezer (Brixton Academy, London)
2017 – Milk Teeth (Joiners, Southampton), Marmozets (Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth), Weezer (Wembley Arena, London), Metallica (Genting Arena, Birmingham).
2018 – Epica (The Forum, London), Ghost (Royal Albert Hall, London), Slayer (Wembley Arena, London), Volbeat (House of Vans, London)
2019 – Cancer Bats (Boileroom, Guildford), Ghost (Wembley Arena, London), Royal Republic (Engine Rooms, Southampton).

15. Zeal & Ardor – The Haunt, Brighton. December 2018

Original Words: This is a show I’ve wanted to go to since I first listened to the debut album, and immediately had to listen to it again because it was like nothing else I’d ever heard before. This year they released their second album (although I’ve heard the brains behind Zeal and Ardor refer to it as the debut album, with the first one being little more than a demo…either way) and it was bloody great. If I was doing a favourite albums of the year list, it would be in the top 3 probably (having a knife fight with Idles and Ghost). They’ve done 2 London shows before this tour that I’ve been unable to make which has been annoying and, on this tour, I couldn’t make the London show again due to being at the Fireball tour. It was either Brighton and a hotel or missing Z&A again. I found a hotel which was perhaps a 15 second walk away from the venue which was affordable and so, Brighton was a go! I almost didn’t go in to see the support band (was watching the Man in The High Castle) but I am glad I did – blanket were very good.

Zeal and Ardor were fucking great. I had no idea how they would replicate their sound live which added to my excitement of seeing it live. 4 vocalists on stage for the gang chanting which was quite something. The stage at The Haunt was quite small so to see all those people crammed onto it was pretty cool. I loved hearing the first/demo album material, but the new album music live was massive. Also, they played Row Row which I have fully fallen in love with. I will definitely see them live again if the opportunity presents itself. Amazing.

New Words: The chance to see them live sadly has not presented itself to me this year (the band played at least one festival this year in the UK, but one I wasn’t at). I still very much want to see them live again. Not sure if new music is coming, I hope so!

14. Cancer Bats – The Underworld. London. April 2018

Original Words: Before lobbing superlatives at Cancer Bats, a firm nod of approval should be given to both supports, both of whom were very different to one another, Funeral Shakes being a rock n’ roll band and Death by Stereo being a hardcore punk band. Both were really good though. Gun to my head, I would say I preferred Funeral Shakes but take nothing away from Death by Stereo because they were great.

This show was Cancer Bats playing Hail Destroyer in full. The first time I saw Cancer Bats was in 2009 on what was essentially the Hail Destroyer tour which I remember was a short headline set but it blew me away. 10 years on and they were playing this album in full and it was incredible. I loved hearing the songs that don’t usually get a live airing, alongside all the classics which will regularly find their way into a Cancer Bats set list. I also liked the anecdotes throughout, including one moment where Liam was being very gracious towards the crowd, thanking everyone for their continued support. It was a really nice moment, but then the band launched into Sorceress – which is probably one of the most aggressive from the album. The band kicked off the show with 3 songs from Dead Set on Living, which is no poor way to start a Cancer Bats show. The encore of 2 new songs, Pneumonia Hawk and N.I.B (a Black Sabbath cover) capped off a breath-taking evening. Best CB show I’ve been to? Would certainly be in the top 3.

New Words: Nothing much more to add to this really. The inclusion of this gig was run close by the show I saw this year at the Boileroom in Guildford, but the reason this one won, quite simply, was the set list. Hail Destroyer in full? Just wonderful.

13. Pearl Jam – National Bowl, Milton Keynes. July 2014

Original Words: I fell to sleep during the main support act, which probably says all I need to say about them. Pearl Jam though were magnificent. They were on stage for nearly 3 hours. I had given thought to trying to get near the front but decided instead to sit on the hill instead and watch from a distance. I’m glad I did that as it was an ace experience. The only downside to this gig was of my own doing which was choosing the worst time to go to the toilet. As I entered the urinals, I could hear Pearl Jam start playing Even Flow. Poor call on my part, but then the whole thing was just immense so it was alright in the end.

12. Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls – Guildhall, Portsmouth. February 2014

Original Words: Before talking about how good Frank Turner was, I want to just give a quick tip of the cap in the direction of Flogging Molly, who were the main support for the evening. Had they headlined, I’d have left more than happy and that gig probably would have made this list (perhaps not number 1 but still). They were outstanding and set the bar really quite high. I guess the thing about having supports that set the bar quite high is that it means you really have to do something to be better, and Frank Turner managed it with ease. Picking a setlist covering all of his albums, while still leaning heavily on his latest release Tape Deck Heart, he pretty much played the perfect setlist as far as I’m concerned. For some of these entries, I’ve picked highlights but really, this was all just superb. So good in fact I was actually a little bit gutted when I couldn’t make the September tour which took in towns he doesn’t normally play

New Words: Similar to the Cancer Bats entry, I knew a Frank Turner gig would make this list, but which one? All of the headline shows I’ve been to have been excellent. In the end, this decision was taken for a number of reasons, including it being the first headline show of Frank’s that I went to, the set list being bloody good (I mean, they all usually are) and Flogging Molly in support, who I would probably suggest are the best support band I’ve seen this decade. Maybe that’ll be another list? Probably not though.

11. Avantasia – The Forum, London. March 2016

Original Words: I’d seen Avantasia twice before this night, both times headlining Wacken festivals and both times they were my band of the festival. I did not anticipate they would play a UK headline show and this view was reinforced when Team Rock Radio were plugging Bloodstock Open Air in 2013 and mentioned just about every band playing apart from Avantasia – who were sub-headlining the Saturday night. One of the publications that fall under the banner of Team Rock, Metal Hammer, when reviewing the festival wrote something like apart from the 500 diehards there, no-one could care less – can’t imagine why that could be. Anyway, fan boy annoyance aside (not least as I couldn’t make that show), when a headline show was announced, I snapped up a ticket immediately.

It was “an evening with” set up in that there was no support band. Doors opened at 7, Avantasia came on at 8. The new material from Ghostlights worked so well live as did all my old favourites that I had seen previously at Wacken. Tobias Sammet was only not on stage for 3 of the 24 songs of the night (sadly, two of them are my favourites but no matter) which is pretty damn impressive. It was everything I hoped it would be and then some. Looking back at the set list from that night now, I’m really struggling to not say “all of it!” were I to be asked about the highlight – and that to me is the sign of a great gig. I’ve spoken about this gig without once giving mention to Michael Kiske. My favourite Avantasia songs that have more than one singer usually feature him, and he was so good during this gig. That isn’t to say the other singers and musicians weren’t great, because they all were. I think the thing which made it gig of the year for me was seeing this music that I absolutely love in such an intimate setting, given the context of the previous times I had seen them. They were always great at Wacken, but this was just something else. I remember watching their first live DVD, and there was a clip of them playing a venue in Argentina the size of The Forum. I remember wishing they would do something similar in London, and speculating just how incredible it would be (and then being annoyed because it would never happen). It did, and it was (and then some).

New Words: Nothing more to add really. This show was immense.

10. Metallica – The O2 Arena, London. October 2017

Original Words: Picking between two Metallica gigs in one year is like picking your favourite child (I guess, being childless I’m not quite sure if that is true). I felt it would be cheating to have them tied for the same place (which in prep for this, I noted I did in a previous year for Frank Turner gigs – but there were a lot more to pick from in 2015 – probably). Anyhow, Kvelertak are a band that need crystal clear sound live for people to hear just how good they are. Alas, this was not to be on this night (or at the Birmingham gig, so I’m guessing they made the best of what they could have). Metallica though, I mean, damn. I really like most of their latest album, and the stuff they played from it was just great – especially Moth Into Flame. The older material was, as ever, stunning. One of the best bits of this gig for me was going with a mate who had never seen Metallica before. When the band had just finished One, he looked at me and said, “that was awesome!” to which I replied “well, it is about to get better” with a shit-eating grin on my face. Just as he asked how, the band kicked into Master of Puppets. That, that’s how!

New Words: I actually ranked the Birmingham gig in the 2017 gig of the year above this one, and on reflection I would swap them round. This was my favourite Metallica gig (excluding festival headline slots) of the decade I think simply because of what I refer to in the original words – being at the gig with someone who had never seen Metallica and wanted to for years. Just every now and then exchanging looks which didn’t require the words, but were saying “this is fucking good!” Full disclosure, I almost had the


9. Rage Against The Machine – Finsbury Park, London. June 2010

Original Words: The effort that went into this gig was quite something. It all started from the race for Christmas No1 in 2009; would it be X-Factor or RATM? Well, as we all know it was RATM that won the day in the end. They announced during the campaign that should they win, they would hold a victory party in London which included them playing a gig. Now, I’d have been up for this anyway because I love RATM, but it was also free. Now not only did this spark my interest but also seemingly most of the damn country! Getting tickets was a thankless two hour epic but we got there in the end. The actual gig was awesome in that there were loads of people outside asking if they can “buy tickets” for this gig that’s a) free; and b) has tickets that have individual photos of the ticket holder on.

Anyway! We arrived in time to see Gogol Bordello. They were pretty damn good actually – a very fun band. If memory serves, I remember thinking their set got a bit long after a while. They were good but it was a touch repetitive by the end. Annoyingly, I can’t accurately confirm what I thought at the time because apparently I didn’t review the gig, oh well. RATM were superb though which made everything good. The pre-show cartoon introduction from Simon Cowell was hilarious. Testify is such a good song for them to open with. The set was quite different to the one I saw in Germany as well so that was quite cool. I now love White Riot by The Clash because of this gig. Before the last song (Killing in the Name – like I really needed to type that), they played a clip of McElderrys song which got heavily booed. The song purchasing statistics came up which showed that not only did RATM win, they won by a wide margin. With the words “YOU MADE HISTORY!” on the big screens, Killing in the Name started. Excellent

New Words: Not a lot to add really. I saw a fake poster which very much suggested a RATM tour in 2020. It was a fake but apparently RATM are going to be back. Would that mean a UK show/shows? I hope so. I think it would be great if they did another open air gig similar to Finsbury Park. A new album would also be nice (although in the spirit of honesty, I didn’t listen to any of Prophets of Rage). 

8. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band – The Ricoh Arena, Coventry. June 2016

Original Words: Going to this gig ticked a box for me, in that I’d wanted to see Springsteen live for quite a while but never got round to doing so. I have spoken to a number of people about his live shows and every review was glowing. My parents, who had seen him once before this gig, said they didn’t know exactly what was going on (he played Darkness on the Edge of Town in full), but they could tell it was something special. This gig just happened to fall on my Mum’s birthday, so I went to visit them and we all went to see Springsteen together. In the US, he had been touring the album The River. I was a bit disappointed when that didn’t happen in Europe but not so disappointed that it took anything away from the gig.

No support band for this one, but one wasn’t needed. Springsteen and his band played for about 3 hours I think, maybe slightly longer. All of the reports I had heard set my bar pretty high for this gig – that bar was surpassed and then some. The whole gig from start to finish was just great – even when songs were being played that I didn’t know, I didn’t feel bored, waiting for one I wanted to see/knew. One thing which impressed me is just how well prepared the band were for the fan requests. They played three fan requests – and one of them was a song rarely played live. Now, they might have ballsed it up for all I know about the song in question – but based on the crowd reaction to it, it didn’t seem that way. They played a few cover songs throughout the course of the evening, the highlight being Because The Night, a Patti Smith song. The overall gig highlight for me was when they played several in quick succession that I loved – Born In The USA, Born To Run and Dancing In The Dark – outstanding stuff. I went to this gig, as said above, to tick a box but I would 100% go and see them again.

New Words: There hasn’t been a UK tour since this one. Would definitely go again if I could.

7. David Gilmour – Royal Albert Hall, London. September 2016

Original Words: I wrote a full review. Click here for that

New Words: I ended that blog by saying I’m not going to say which gig out of David Gilmour or Roger Waters I preferred. By the virtue of this list existing, and both gigs being on it (spoiler alert), I guess I have gone back on what I said originally. Sorry 2016 Mike!

6. Guns N’ Roses – London Stadium, London. June 2017

Original Words: I wrote a full review. Click here for that

New Words: Turns out GnR did come back the next year to headline Download. They are also back next summer. As things stand, I won’t be at that gig. I was at this one though, and it was bloody ace.

5. Rammstein – Stadium MK, Milton Keynes. July 2019

Original Words: This show had everything. Rammstein are an immense live band without the show, and I am sure that if they just turned up, played their songs and left, then everyone in attendance would have a lovely time. However, the show they bring with them just takes it to another level. This tour was the biggest they’ve ever done, and the show (as a result) was the biggest show they’ve ever done. It was incredible the amount they pulled off. I was worried when I saw how much of their new album they were playing live (it is an excellent album, another one in the conversation of my favourite of the year), but I needn’t have worried as the songs just fit in perfectly. It wasn’t until some days after the gig that I remembered they didn’t play Feuer Frei! – and I love that song! It is possible that next year’s list is already wrapped up as well, because Rammstein are bringing this tour back to Europe again in 2020, and I’ll be at the Coventry date, this time in the golden circle. I’ve no idea how different the show will be this time, but I am looking forward to finding out!

New Words: I mean, I wrote these words just the other week. The only additional information I have to offer you is that, for the 2020 tour, the piano duo are supporting again, which I guess means the show will be quite similar to the one this year.

4. Volbeat – Telia Parken, Copenhagen. August 2017

Original Words: I wrote about this gig as part of a blog I wrote about my Copenhagen break. You can read that here. Additionally: “However, some 4 months after this gig has taken place and the reason it is number one is because it was everything I hoped it would be, and then some. The support package of Amorphis and Flogging Molly were brilliant – Flogging Molly especially. It was great to see a filling stadium be won over by how good they are. Volbeat though were on another level. It was just awesome to see a Volbeat show of this magnitude. The setlist was excellent and personally, would have just wanted more to be added rather than anything to be cut. There aren’t many headline bands that would get me to step on a plane to go and see them, but Volbeat are now one of them. I would 100% go back to mainland Europe to see a Volbeat show of this magnitude again.”

New Words: Since this gig, I’ve seen Volbeat twice, both in London. One gig was in the 600 capacity House of Vans and the other at Brixton Academy (a 5000-cap venue, which they sold out). Thinking back on it all now, it is still very strange that these two shows barely make up 10% of the crowd at the Telia Parken that day. Since that gig, I have the show on Blu Ray and it is a bit good.

3. Nine Inch Nails – Royal Albert Hall, London. June 2018

Original Words: I so wanted to see them at the Royal Festival Hall as part of the Meltdown festival they were playing one night of. I couldn’t get tickets and that was a real shame. When this one at the Royal Albert Hall got announced, I was a bit more hopeful I would get a ticket and was successful. Black Moth Super Rainbow opened this gig, continuing the pattern of me not really liking bands that open for Nine Inch Nails (in fact, there has only been one I’ve genuinely liked). This was my first time seeing NIN since they were over here in 2014 and I had forgotten just how good they are live. Some of the new material from the 3 EPs released in the last 2 years or so are just massive live, and the cool thing for me about the setlist was that because of this new material, almost half the set was made up of songs I’d not seen them play live before. I’ve been fortunate enough to have seen NIN quite a few times at this stage, and this gig could be the best NIN show I’ve been to. It is certainly in the conversation that is for sure. Part of the reason for this must be the fact it was at the Royal Albert Hall. Previously, whenever I’ve been to the Royal Albert Hall, I’ve been in the gallery standing area. I’ve been fine with this because usually, these are the cheapest tickets. I’ve often wondered if being lower down is worth the money. To stand on the floor for this one I think cost £20-25 more, and to answer that question – it was certainly worth it. My word was it worth it. It got me thinking of other gigs I’ve seen there, and I can now see why people would pay more to sit down there for most things (I’ve wondered since how much more I would have enjoyed Pulp and David Gilmour there, had I been downstairs). That band and that venue fit together perfectly.

2. Roger Waters – Wembley Stadium, London. September 2013

Original Words: Something special is certainly one way to put this gig! I booked this ticket I think in November 2012 and as the day was getting closer, I was getting more and more excited. I was going to see a member of Pink Floyd live and not only that, I was going to see him perform one of the classic Pink Floyd albums in full – The Wall. I’d heard from several people about how superb the arena tour of The Wall was and I couldn’t wait to see it. I’d heard from different people a rumour that the stage would run along the touchline of Wembley rather than one of the ends like a standard stadium show. That was not to be but the stage was bigger than your usual stadium show. I remember standing on the pitch in anticipation, excited but hoping I hadn’t got my hopes too high and would be disappointed. During the first song ‘In The Flesh?’ there were fireworks, explosions and a rigged plane flew over the top of the crowd and on to the stage. It was at this point I knew I would not be disappointed. I could now go into intricate details about the gig and what happened but I’m not writing a review here. I also wouldn’t do the show justice. In fact, there is very little I could say to do this show justice. At the time I could say little more than “wow” and on reflection, I think that probably the best word for it. Aside from hearing my favourite songs from that album, I just loved all the visual effects used in the show. The band Roger Waters assembled for the gig (I’m guessing his regular band) were just excellent. The personal highlights for me song wise were ‘Another Brick In The Wall (Part Two)’, ‘Mother’, ‘Young Lust’, ‘Hey You’, ‘Comfortably Numb’, ‘Run Like Hell’ and ‘The Trial’.  The whole gig was immense and made the decision of what was my favourite gig in 2013 an easy one to make.

New Words: Sorry again 2016 Mike for ranking this against the Gilmour RAH gig. Two very different gigs, but this had The Wall in Wembley Stadium – which was just incredible.

1. System of a Down – Wembley Arena, London. April 2015

Original Words: This was my second time seeing System of a Down. I loved their headline set at Download despite almost every review I’ve seen in the years after saying it was lacklustre. This gig however was far from lacklustre. I could spend time writing every superlative I know about this gig and it still wouldn’t seem appropriate. I’ll just write one for now, it was phenomenal. They played for over 2 hours, playing a 35 song set. As far as dream System of a Down setlists go, this one was as close as I’m sure I’ll ever get to see. But to see them again, and see them just be amazing, was the best moment of 2015 for me in terms of live music. If they release new music and tour, I’m sure I will try to go – but I’m not sure they would be capable of topping this gig for me. I never got to see them play at the Astoria in London (I’ve been told these gigs were something special), but this for me was something very special. Also, Holy Mountains is a fantastic set opener. I had goose bumps from the second it started.

New Words: System of a Down played at Download 2017, and are playing again at Download 2020. I didn’t go in 2017 and am not going in 2020. Seeing SOAD at this gig for me was as close to perfect as I am going to get – and I am happy with this being the last time I see the live. Unless of course, there is a new album and tour that comes with it.

And that, as they say, is that. It has been a pretty damn fine decade of gigs. As can be seen by the amount that made the honourable mentions list, as well as the top 15, I was lucky enough to be able to go to some pretty damn awesome shows. Looking into the calendar for 2020, I currently have a few fun ones lined up including The Bellrays, InMe, Slipknot, The Interrupters, Sabaton, Frank Turner, Employed To Serve, Evanescence/Within Temptation, Faith No More, Green Day/Fall Out Boy/Weezer and Nightwish. I am sure there will be more added to that list, but the next decade is getting off to a good start in terms of gig attendance. 

2016 - A Year In Live Music

Another year has come and gone (well, almost). It has been an interesting one for sure. I’m not going to focus on the negatives of 2016 in this blog. I’m here to do what I do every year – talk about the best gigs I’ve been to in the last year (I’m sure these introductions are getting shorter and shorter each year).

Before getting into the gigs of the year though, I usually give a mention to the festivals I’ve been to and the various sets I saw and rank them as well. However, I only went to Victorious Festival this year, so this will be a much easier job. I remember looking at the completed line up for Victorious and not being overly impressed with either day until the evening, which was a shame. However, I did discover a pub nearby that had Hop House 13 on tap. Swings and roundabouts I guess. Anyway, my top 10 are:

10. Pretty Vicious –Didn’t know a massive amount about them, but they were alright. 6/10
9. Dagny – I had a choice to see two bands before Pretty Vicious, and this band were on the same stage as them. They were pretty good. 6/10
8. The Boomtown Rats – I thought they were a lot of fun. Few good singalongs along the way which helped. On an unrelated note, they have been booked for next year’s Wacken festival. That is a weird booking for a metal festival but not the weirdest I suspect. 7/10
7. Levellers – Genuinely thought I knew some of their stuff before they came on stage, but I didn’t. They were really good though. 7/10
6. Sound Of The Sirens – Listened to a handful of their songs before the festival and wanted to see them live. They did not disappoint. Good music and genuinely funny in between songs. They had a really good set. 7.5/10
5. Manic Street Preachers – Manics are very dependable live. This was a solid set. It wasn’t my favourite time seeing them live (but to be fair, all their singles in one night will likely never be topped). 8/10
4.  Ash – Missed them at the Wedge earlier in the year because I’m an ass (but mainly because tickets had sold out before I got round to buying one) so seeing them here was essential. So glad I did as they were excellent. 8.5/10
3. Wolfmother – Genuinely didn’t know what to expect from their set but they were outstanding. Loved their set. If they come back to Portsmouth, I’d probably go see them again. 9/10
2. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Sure there were sound problems in places, but the set was really good. I’m not overly familiar with his solo material, but there was a fair bit of Oasis in there which was pretty cool. The singalongs for Wonderwall and Don’t Look Back In Anger were pretty special. 9/10
1. Travis – I’ve wanted to see Travis for years. They played everything I hoped they would and they were great. 9.5/10

I’ve just re-read the conclusion of last year’s blog where I talked about 2016 gigs that could make the list for this year. One of them does which you will see later on. Most of the others were honourable mentions which I will be getting to shortly. Sad to say the Hey! Hello! headline show in Southampton got cancelled. I’ve seen them twice since the cancelled show, both times were really good. Hopefully we will get a headline tour next year. Anyway, to the honourable mentions! These are listed in chronological order

Honourable Mentions:

Cancer Bats – Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth – January – I’d love to be able to wax lyrical about this gig. However, “beers before Bats” occurred (as well as beers during Bats) and as a result, there are chunks of the gig I simply don’t remember. Cancer Bats don’t do bad live shows though, and the bits I can recall back this up – which is why this is an honourable mention. People who get twatted for every gig they go to must have a lot of money to fritter away. Not remembering all this gig due to the drink is not a good thing! (Neither was working through the hangover the next day…oofh). Also, Palm Reader were really good.

Crossfaith – Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth – March – Sure they were fun but it fell on the same night as I did a 10k run for charity, so turned up already knackered. Thinking back on it now, I can’t remember a great deal from it. It was a pretty short headline set from what I recall though.

Morass of Molasses – Edge Of The Wedge, Portsmouth – April – To my shame, I don’t tend to go to many small local gigs. Going to this was a good call though as this was a really good gig from top to bottom. The other bands that played were Foxer, Victorian Whore Dogs and Sahara Snow – all 4 were really good. Morass though were my favourite band of the night and I’m very tempted to grab an Icebreaker Festival ticket for next January just to see them again. Riffs for days!

Muse – O2 Arena, London – April – I thought after it happened that this gig would without doubt be in my top 5. When I drew up my original list it was towards the bottom end, eventually falling out of the top 10. It would have been 11^th had I done a top 11 though. The stage was in the round, sort of, which is pretty cool – only the second gig I’ve been to with that set up (if you discount Rammstein’s second stage in the crowd, which I am) and I am a big fan of in the round stages. On the show, it was pretty damn ace. I can’t remember off the top of my head everything about it but the way the drones interacted with the stage was pretty special. In terms of songs played that night, they played all my favourites from the new album. Map Of The Problematique was a nice surprise as was Plug In Baby. Overall it was a great set list and a really good gig.

Ginger Wildheart Band – Brooklyn Bowl, London – July - Would have been a strong contender for top 10, but I had to leave early to avoid a rail replacement bus. The last train back from London is long enough without a rail replacement bus being in the mix! Think this was Hey! Hello!’s first show with their new singer, which was cool. Ryan Hamilton’s band were a really good main support. The headline set by GWB was ace, and one which included songs I’ve not heard live before from the Silver Ginger 5 days, which was cool. It was really cool seeing Conny Bloom play with Ginger as well – something I hadn’t seen before. Also, I like the Brooklyn Bowl.

Amon Amarth – Roundhouse, London – November - Leaving this one out of my top 10 was a horrible decision. This gig ticked a number of boxes for me, including going to The Roundhouse in London for the first time (a venue I quite like now) as well as seeing Grand Magus live for the first time. They were really good. As were Testament, who were the main support. I saw them earlier in the year and whilst I enjoyed it, the sound mix that night was not their friend. Amon Amarth are an excellent live band – I’ve seen them deliver stunning sets in headline length slots at Wacken before. This was my second time seeing them at a headline show and this was just as good as the Wacken shows, if not better. Also, they had people with swords and shields battling on stage at different intervals which was pretty cool.

Delain – Engine Rooms, Southampton – November - Similar story to the one above really. I left early to catch a direct train home as opposed to staying to the end and getting a service which involved a rail replacement bus. As much as I love the song We Are The Others, I don’t love it enough to have been on a stopping service replacement bus. The gig itself was excellent though. Delain showing off the best of their new album, Moonbathers, with some ace songs from their back catalogue mixed in. No “Sing To Me” though which was a shame.

Alter Bridge – Genting Arena, Birmingham – November - I tend to not go to gigs just to see the support bands and leave before the headliner – but never have I been more tempted than I was at this gig. Alter Bridge are an excellent band, but they were the second best band when I last saw them in an arena (the best band that night were Black Stone Cherry). This gig had Gojira and Volbeat supporting – and they were third best. Gojira are a really good live band and the stuff from their new album sounds massive live. Having seen them live on a festival main stage, I knew they wouldn’t be swallowed by the stage – but they owned it. Volbeat…well what can I say? I’m massively in love with Volbeat and think it is criminal they aren’t headlining venues the size of the Genting Arena in the UK when they can headline stadiums and open air venues around mainland Europe! (More on that later). I enjoyed Alter Bridge a lot more than I thought I would, considering I’d just watched one of my favourite bands. They were very good.

And so, onto the top 10. It was quite interesting when compiling the provisional list as I only had 9. The 10^th spot was filled at the end of November. I went to three gigs in December which were all shouts for the top 10. Enough of the waffle though, the top 10 gigs I went to in 2016, starting with number 10.

10. Birthday Bash 2016 feat The Wildhearts – The Forum, London – December

I’ve said this a few times, but I bloody love The Wildhearts. They are one of those bands that as soon as they announce a tour, I work out what dates I can attend, in the hope it is more than one. This London show was also the Birthday Bash as it fell on Ginger’s birthday which meant it had a bigger bill than the other shows on the tour. A bash usually is one long Ginger gig with loads of special guests. This one was multiple bands on the bill. Opening were Elvana, who I missed. Then it was The Main Grains, who I caught the second half of and thought were very good. Then it was The Dowling Poole who were good. Hey Hello were on after them, and they were superb. I liked what I heard from Jim Jones and The Righteous Mind but I disappeared after 3-4 songs to go for a smoke. Dirt Box Disco were the main support and they were excellent – they are just a lot of fun live. After they finished, I cursed the fact the Hey Hello tour earlier in the year was cancelled as they were due to be the main support – whilst Dirt Box are great in a bigger room, it would have been great to see them in a 150 cap venue.

The Wildhearts came on and it was business as usual as far as a Wildhearts gig goes. The set list was a best of and it was outstanding. Unfortunately, Ginger was feeling unwell which became apparent during Nothing Ever Changes But The Shoes when he started throwing up on stage (didn’t miss a note of the song mind). I was expecting the gig to end there, but it didn’t. The crew came out and cleaned up the stage (so much respect for them) and Ginger and the band soldiered on throughout the rest of the set, including playing a song which I’d not heard live until this point – Stormy In The North, Karma In The South – which was ace. Danny McCormack joined them for the encore, which was cool to see. It probably should have been more special but Ginger feeling unwell was the main point of note here, and he started being sick again after Geordie in Wonderland which was a shame to see. Again, I anticipated the gig being ended but the final song, I Wanna Go Where The People Go, was played with special guest Frank Turner on vocals. The Wildhearts were just superb and this gig deserves its place on this top 10. It would without doubt been higher but I think after Ginger started throwing up, I expected the gig to end which took me out of the moment a little bit. If anything, Ginger and the rest of the band deserve the world of praise for finishing the gig – especially as well as they did.

9. Black Stone Cherry: Experience Kentucky – Guildhall, Portsmouth – November

In another end of year post, I included my story about having seen Black Stone Cherry at the Wedgewood Rooms. That story was included in the entry for them playing Wembley Arena if memory serves. They played arenas earlier this year I believe and I decided to give that a miss as the London date was midweek. Then they announced this tour. This was a “an evening” with tour, with Black Stone Cherry playing an acoustic set, taking a short break and then playing a full band electric set. As it was taking place in my home town, it was a no-brainer. On a trivial note, when I saw them at the Pyramids in Portsmouth in 2009, they originally booked the Guildhall and it got downgraded.

The acoustic set was brilliant, and they played Stay – which is one of my favourite Black Stone Cherry songs and one which hasn’t been played live in quite a long time (cheers Florida Georgia Line). A couple got engaged on stage during the acoustic set which was pretty cool. The full band set was ace – they played a few covers including Ace of Spades as a tribute to Lemmy. The set contained quite a few songs I’ve never seen them play live which is always good. It was great getting to see them play in Portsmouth again. I didn’t expect to see that happen after they started playing arenas. Black Stone Cherry are an excellent live band – and this gig proved that once again.

8. Billy Joel – Wembley Stadium, London – September

I’ve wanted to see Billy Joel live for quite some time. When he came to the UK in 2013, I so wanted to go but I just didn’t have the money. Also, the London show was at Hammersmith, which was a shock – but it meant it sold out very quickly. He announced a show at Wembley Stadium for this year and I mentioned it to my brother, as I knew his wife wanted to see him live. He asked me if I could sort out the tickets for them, so it could be a birthday surprise for her – which I did. After I done that, and had the Ticketmaster order page staring back at me saying “Michael, you are going to see Billy Joel!” – I was slightly annoyed that I wasn’t. After a bit of deliberation, I decided to grab myself a ticket as well. As soon as I bought it, I had buyer’s remorse but that went away fairly quickly.

Wembley Stadium all seated is a bit strange. I was in the upper tier, looking down on the pitch. Those poor bastards who sat down there got soaked during that gig as the weather was horrible. There wasn’t a support act for the gig which meant we would get about 2 and a half hours of Billy Joel which was pretty ace. The set was basically the perfect Billy Joel set list for me – with the added bonus of an AC/DC cover thrown in for good measure. Joel and his band were on top form all evening. I had read some reviews of his European tour which were all full of praise – so I went in with high hopes and I was not let down. This was a great gig. 

7. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band – Ricoh Arena, Coventry - June

Going to this gig ticked a box for me, in that I’d wanted to see Springsteen live for quite a while but never got round to doing so. I have spoken to a number of people about his live shows and every review was glowing. My parents, who had seen him once before this gig, said they didn’t know exactly what was going on (he played Darkness on the Edge of Town in full), but they could tell it was something special. This gig just happened to fall on my Mum’s birthday, so I went to visit them and we all went to see Springsteen together. In the US, he had been touring the album The River. I was a bit disappointed when that didn’t happen in Europe but not so disappointed that it took anything away from the gig.

No support band for this one, but one wasn’t needed. Springsteen and his band played for about 3 hours I think, maybe slightly longer. All of the reports I had heard set my bar pretty high for this gig – that bar was surpassed and then some. The whole gig from start to finish was just great – even when songs were being played that I didn’t know, I didn’t feel bored, waiting for one I wanted to see/knew. One thing which impressed me is just how well prepared the band were for the fan requests. They played three fan requests – and one of them was a song rarely played live. Now, they might have ballsed it up for all I know about the song in question – but based on the crowd reaction to it, it didn’t seem that way. They played a few cover songs throughout the course of the evening, the highlight being Because The Night, a Patti Smith song. The overall gig highlight for me was when they played several in quick succession that I loved – Born In The USA, Born To Run and Dancing In The Dark – outstanding stuff. I went to this gig, as said above, to tick a box but I would 100% go and see them again.

6. Clutch – The Roundhouse, London – December

Funny that this gig is here given the first time I saw them live, I dismissed them. I have come to the conclusion that they had a bad sound set up the first time I saw them. It wasn’t great. I saw them again at the Wedgewood Rooms which was noticeably better but I had to leave early to catch a train home. I didn’t give them much thought until I saw them at Download 2011 and they blew me away with how good they were. I wanted to go a headline show to see them again but I couldn’t make any of the London shows that cropped up between this set and their set at Download 2015 – which was even better than the 2011 one. I fully intended to see them on their headline tour in 2015, but I waited too long to get tickets and they sold out. I made plans for that day and then the gig got moved to a bigger venue as the Shepherds Bush Empire needed emergency work doing to its roof (after The Wildhearts blew it off in September – maybe). So there were now tickets available, but I had alternative plans. This tour came around and I again held off buying a ticket but got one in the upper standing area, which actually I quite like.

Lionize were playing as I walked in, who I thought were quite good. I also liked the main support – Valient Thorr – but not as much as Lionize. Clutch came on, opened with The Mob Goes Wild and from that point, this gig was just outstanding. There was not a single “piss break” moment during this gig. The set was almost perfect for me but no Earth Rocker was a bit of a disappointment. That is the only negative I have to say really. This gig made me go back and listen to the latest album again (which I already liked) and discover just how damn good the song Firebirds is. There was a pretty long pause before the encore of Electric Worry and X-Ray Visions – which was a superb encore. Of all the times I’ve seen Clutch live, this is definitely the best.

5. Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls – Guildhall, Portsmouth – December

For most of these entries, I’ve written a bit of context to go along with discussion about the gig. That is a straightforward task for this one – In 2014, the Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls gig at the Guildhall was my gig of the year. In 2015, it was my second favourite gig of the year. It seems strange putting it in 5^th this time around as it was outstanding. It has been a tough year for establishing an order.

I missed the support acts because I was in a pub across the road (I know; I am an awful person). I don’t tire of seeing Frank Turner live. Much like The Wildhearts, when Frank Turner announces live dates in the UK, I try to work out if I can make any. This set list was a bit different to the tour from last year but was still pretty great. Also, getting to hear him play Love, Ire and Song was just great (played it in 2014 and I have no memory of it taking place – despite not being overly drunk for that gig). I don’t know if there is anything else to add really – another year, another excellent Frank Turner show seen.

4. Arch Enemy – The Engine Rooms, Southampton – August

I wrote a full review of the gig here, so I won’t tread over too much old ground again. What I will say though is that when I was heading to this gig, I had hoped it would be in my top 10. I had no idea it would be so good that it was a genuine contender for gig of the year at one point. It has changed place on this list a number of times, ending up in 4^th. It was a headline show I had been waiting to see for nearly 10 years and it was much better than I ever thought it would be.  

3. David Gilmour – Royal Albert Hall, London – September

I wrote a full review of the gig here, so I won’t go as in depth with this one. The review of this gig was the most recent post to this page before this one and just re-reading it, it reminded me just how special it was. I don’t think I need to add much more than that really.

2. Weezer – Brixton Academy, London – April

I missed Weezer at Sonisphere 2011. I had a headache kick me in the...well head I guess, during Sum 41 and I left the arena to take a break to shake my headache off. I came back in to watch Ginger, who played a great set. However, I left the tent and my headache was back and worse. So I left the arena again and didn’t come back. This meant missing Weezer – but I remember being alright with this because I was convinced they would come back. And then they didn’t. As the years rolled on, no UK show happened. They released an album in 2014 which was pretty decent but still no UK show happened. Then The White Album was announced to come out for earlier this year, alongside a couple of UK dates – Manchester and London. It was midweek which was a pain for those who don’t live in London – but I had to go.

The support band were Dinosaur Jr, who were really good. I’d seen them once before at Camden Rocks festival which was also good. However, having a good support that night was little more than a bonus. I was there to see Weezer and they did not disappoint. I had managed to listen to The White Album twice before going to the gig (it is great by the way) so I was somewhat familiar with them. It seemed I was in the minority though as the crowd didn’t really singalong when the 5 songs from the new album were played (it was a bit louder for the stuff from Everything Will Be Alright In The End). However, when they played one of their better known songs, the singalongs were something else. In the first half of their set, from their back catalogue, they played My Name Is Jonas, Hash Pipe, Back To The Shack, El Scorcho, Pork and Beans and (If You’re Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To – the singalongs were loud. This to me was almost the perfect Weezer gig (and had they played Dope Nose, it would have been).

1. Avantasia – The Forum, London - March

I’d seen Avantasia twice before this night, both times headlining Wacken festivals and both times they were my band of the festival. I did not anticipate they would play a UK headline show and this view was reinforced when Team Rock Radio were plugging Bloodstock Open Air in 2013 and mentioned just about every band playing apart from Avantasia – who were sub-headlining the Saturday night. One of the publications that fall under the banner of Team Rock, Metal Hammer, when reviewing the festival wrote something like apart from the 500 diehards there, no-one could care less – can’t imagine why that could be. Anyway, fan boy annoyance aside (not least as I couldn’t make that show), when a headline show was announced, I snapped up a ticket immediately.

It was “an evening with” set up in that there was no support band. Doors opened at 7, Avantasia came on at 8. The new material from Ghostlights worked so well live as did all my old favourites that I had seen previously at Wacken. Tobias Sammet was only not on stage for 3 of the 24 songs of the night (sadly, two of them are my favourites but no matter) which is pretty damn impressive. It was everything I hoped it would be and then some. Looking back at the set list from that night now, I’m really struggling to not say “all of it!” were I to be asked about the highlight – and that to me is the sign of a great gig. I’ve spoken about this gig without once giving mention to Michael Kiske. My favourite Avantasia songs that have more than one singer usually feature him, and he was so good during this gig. That isn’t to say the other singers and musicians weren’t great, because they all were. I think the thing which made it gig of the year for me was seeing this music that I absolutely love in such an intimate setting, given the context of the previous times I had seen them. They were always great at Wacken, but this was just something else. I remember watching their first live DVD, and there was a clip of them playing a venue in Argentina the size of The Forum. I remember wishing they would do something similar in London, and speculating just how incredible it would be (and then being annoyed because it would never happen). It did, and it was (and then some).

And that, for 2016, is that. It has been a good year for gig going and I’ve been to some great gigs. I suspect I will do this again next year and I can already see some potential gig of the year candidates in my calendar. At this stage, it is hard to look past Guns N’ Roses at Olympic Stadium – but we shall see. Had you asked me this time last year what my gig of 2016 would be, I would probably have said David Gilmour.