Later this evening, I’m headed out to watch the alternative rock band Shed Seven, who are performing at the Leeds O2 Academy. Hopefully, it’ll turn out to be as entertaining as last years pre-Christmas performance I witnessed from the York band. A night that led to me journaling the following parody review:-
I ventured out to see Inspiral Carpets and Shed Seven yesterday evening. For the uninitiated, I hadn’t been granted exclusive early access to Boxing Day sales for companies selling flooring and garden storage units….. No, I’m relating to spending around three hours watching two 1990’s Indie bands at the O2 Academy, in Leeds.
An inspired carpet (left), not to be confused with the Indie Rock band Inspiral Carpets (right)!
Like the gig I attended on Saturday with my mate Mike, I didn’t know much of either bands back catalogue of work prior to attending the show. I went along to broaden my horizons and pretend I was a big Indie fan back in the day; a lie I attempted to enforce by adorning a ‘I’m Was A Big Indie Fan Back In The Day’ t-shirt.
Another reason I attended the gig was that Mike promised, if I tagged along he’d let me in on the secret of levitation. A skillset I sadly lack, which is now mooted by the chattering classes as an essential requirement in modern life.
The venue was absolutely crammed with revellers full of festive spirit and Tuborg lager. It was so busy I really could have done with Mike’s secret of levitation to get to the bar. I’ve no idea how many were in the audience as I lost count at 993, but there was definitely more than 993.
When I first went to the bar I noticed a sign saying ‘Ask about our two pint glasses’, so I did. I didn’t want one but I thought I’d adhere to the signs request anyway.
Seven Sheds brewery (left), not to be confused with the Indie Rock band Shed Seven!
I’m no music critic, apart from an occasional barbed comment like “Cliff Richard and Daniel O’Donnell’s music is the equivalent of a knitted toilet roll cover.” The simile aimed at highlighting both artists and knitted covers are loved by old ladies, but no one else really sees the point.
As a result of this, in addition to the fact I don’t recall the song names, I’m not going to attempt to wax lyrical about the musicianship, song aesthetic, lyric interpretation and the overall concept of the bands’ creativity.
However, what I will say is that they both produced upbeat, entertaining shows incorporating energetic, fast paced songs, resulting in enthusiastic crowd participation. To summarise, their sets definitely weren’t the music equivalent of a knitted toilet roll cover.
I set out last night to the O2 Academy, accompanied by Mike and another friend Jon, with an open mind and £12 in my pocket. I returned four hours later with £25 in my pocket (I’d been to a cashpoint) and I’d been converted………….. Not to the high energy Indie Rock anthems of Shed Seven and Inspiral Carpets, but by a guy in the crowd who sells North Sea gas.
Jon is a long standing friend of Mike’s, or he was last night when he was on his feet for nearly four hours. Like Mike, he is a very affable guy. He doesn’t have Mike’s hovering powers, but on the plus side he doesn’t talk about home conversions as much as my amiable neighbour.
Yesterday, I put a new feature on my website garystrachan63.com to make it look more aesthetically festive.
As a result, there is now a snow flurry displaying on my homepage. I thought it may placate people who are missing snow in this unseasonably warm winter. I’m beginning to ponder whether I should remove the feature, though, after this morning having cause to scrape the ice from my laptop screen.
Right, I’m going around to see Mike. Next time I write a blog I may have the power of levitation!
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