The things I do for Reckless Love

I guess that flying to England for a show is one of the more extravagant things I've done in my time. That said, the fact I got to eat curry from the restaurant I've visited since I was three, got to have a bath, oh, and see old friends made it all worth it. Wednesday day was dedicated to dress shopping with my mother and The Best Friend, while the evening was set aside for a bit of music!

Me, Jessica, Aimee, Kim. Waiting to go in, trying not to freeze!
From Jessica's camera,

Queuing in the cold and the rain is always one aspect of the gig experience that I dread but then ultimately love. It's a complete social experience and before this show, in particular, it was a riot. It meant, in reality, that once we got inside there was a rather good fun little group formed of old friends, people I vaguely knew from other shows, and totally new faces. 

Kim, Jessica, Me, Aimee. Entertaining ourselves before the set began.

There was only one opening band this time, The First, a melodic rock band from Cambridgeshire. I will admit that their sound tech was not great but, from what I could hear, I think they were rather good. Certainly, I plan to look up some of their music and give it a proper try (and buy a CD if I do indeed like it). In addition, there is no way I can fault their live set. All members were engaged and energetic without seeming silly or OTT. It was a very strong performance. There was one moment when the vocalist decided to put a microphone in my face to get me to sing along which didn't work on two counts (recovering from a phobia of singing and I don't know their music) but, other than that, they really knew how to perform to a crowd.

The main act was, of course, Reckless Love. The Finnish glam rock-ish band who attempt, and succeed, in making every show a party. This night was no exception. If anything, Olli was more chatty with the crowd and I enjoyed watching Olli and Pepe, in particular, play to Jessica's camera.

One of Jessica's many photos from the show.

The set was great, as always. Although it was cut a little because of illness (not mine for once!) it was full of some great tracks and to just dance away was rather liberating. It really did help that both Jessica and Aimee are little party animals, albeit in different ways, so I simply could not help but dance, jump and bounce along.

However, Hessu, bless his heart, was quite clearly ill. Seriously, that man should not have been on the stage at all yet he soldiered on until all but the end. Ultimately the set was cut by a couple of songs but I feel incredibly lucky that we got a set at all. It would have been annoying as anything, of course, but completely understandable.

After the show we had a bit of a chat with Jalle, Olli and Pepe; Hessu quite rightly escaped to the bus and hopefully put himself to bed! We then had the joy of walking back to Aimee's house (and beyond for some of us) in the rain and wind of Wales. Wasn't the highlight of the evening but was worth it all the same.

One day, Pepe will forget about the pen incident. This was not that day.

A quick goodbye to The Best Friend and Kim kindly drove me to my hotel. We said goodnight but with the knowledge that the day after we would meet once again but this time in Amsterdam!

Another night of Reckless Love

I will start this blog post with a warning. If something doesn't make sense it's because I haven't quite recovered from the brilliance that was last night and my brain may not be in gear!

Yesterday was another trip to Bristol for an evening of music at The Fleece. It also heralded the last gig that I have with Kim until she comes out to Amsterdam in February and, frankly, that's just sad! As always, we met some delightful people in the queue, and in the venue itself before and after the show.

Kim and I being attacked with a camera ;-)

First up was Mia Klose. With a confidence on stage and a real skill for performance I can see how Klose could be someone to watch. Sadly, I couldn't hear her vocals at all because of bad set up. Indeed, Kim and I spent the first couple of songs trying to work out if the microphone was even on. That said, the instrumental aspects of the music were enough to keep me interested and I've since looked up her music and found it to be quite enjoyable. It's a real shame that the performance was let down by bad sound tech but I guess it's one of those things. In fact, I'm sure I wrote something similar in my last review of a show at The Fleece, hmm...

Next up was the local band, BlackWolf, a band who I saw last Reckless Love gig and felt indifferently, at best about. There was such an improvement in their performance. Last time, it felt like they were trying way too hard and I was more concerned about one of them falling into the audience when their legs got tied together with wires as opposed to the music. This time, the performance was full of energy but felt more polished, mature, and was generally enjoyable. It also allowed me to focus more on their music (they had better sound than last time) and I found that I liked it. It's not the kind of thing I would normally listen to, I don't think, but I think I'll probably give up and buy their CD now and, if I wasn't moving away, I'd like to see them again.

Finally, the stage was set up for Reckless Love, complete with little cameras (or that's what we decided they were) in various positions, including attached to the drummer's chest. Nothing like hidden cameras to make you a little self conscious while 'singing along' and jumping up and down like a loon.

Olli in the spotlight

The usual recording of 'The Boys Are Back In Town' started playing and, after almost all the song had played through, the boys finally turned up on stage. Kim timed them. They were late. Anyway, fashionable lateness aside the band immediately launched into a set filled with old songs and new,

album tracks and singles, and the crowd really enjoyed it.

If anything, this show seemed a little less energetic than previous shows but the difference in the crowd was tangible. There wasn't a moment when people weren't singing along, bouncing up and down and thoroughly enjoying their evening. I have to say that this was probably one of the best audiences I've been in... excited without being overly pushy.

If Olli was less energetic than usual (which still makes him more dynamic than most) then Jalle seemed to be more into the show which was lovely to see. Pepe and Hessu were their normal, wonderful selves. Of course, I can find no complaints... except for the fact that I'm not going to be living in England when they come back!!!

Pepe mid hair flip

We were also lucky enough to meet all of the band members who, again, kindly signed one of my little scrapbook doodle paintings and took photos with Kim and me. The music was a little too loud, there being a club night after the gig, to really converse but it was great to see them all the same.

A few goodbyes and a lost room key later and it was all over. Darn it.

Thank you to everyone I met in the queue (I don't remember everyone's names so won't try to list but if you stumble across this and want to add me on facebook/follow on twitter and say hi then please do!). Also, thank you to Kim for being an amazing person, yet again, (she knows it). And to Reckless Love, well, until next time!

Gathering momentum

With each passing day it's getting closer to The Move, and that's to be expected. What I didn't expect was the way that, with each passing day, time starts barrelling forwards with more and more speed. Suddenly, July is here and with it the daunting phrase: "One more month".

Interestingly, the emotions which have been ballooning around along the terror spectrum are starting to focus more on excitement. I mean, I'll admit that I did have a cry when trying to buy kitchen appliances the other day but we'll just ignore that. It's also starting to feel like things are coming together. Almost every day we're out doing something.  Time is running away and I'm starting to feel ready. I've even bought a bed now, and a sofa bed so people can come visit.

The other thing on the horizon is my final planned UK gig which is, of course, Reckless Love. I'm going to be so upset when they next tour England and I'm not going to be here but I'll ignore that for now! Really looking forward to the concert, which is this Friday, and to meeting up with Kim too. Reckless Love always put on a good show and, with it being a one off festival warm up, I'm thinking it's going to be a bit special!

Naturally, preparing for a gig,
in my mind anyway, means painting

Oh, and as you may have noticed, I've had a go at using my instagram account. I still don't understand the thing but it's easier than going through the whole memory card rigmarole when I want to upload a basic image. We'll see!

The wonderful night that was a Reckless Love gig!

Just under a year ago I managed to catch one of my favourite bands, Reckless Love, at the Cavern, Exeter. This was one of the best live performances I have seen and, even if I hadn't have loved the band beforehand I would have undoubtedly come away with a new addiction! Wednesday 9th, I managed to see them again, this time at The Fleece, Bristol and, to be fair, I think they outdid themselves.

In the queue with Ola, photo taken by Kim on Ola's phone

I went with Kim, a lovely person who I had met at the last Reckless Love show and had spoken with since, and with Ola who I also met briefly last time. It was wonderful to have such great company in the queue, at the show, and afterwards too.

From left to right, Me, Ola, Kim in the venue.
Taken by Kim on her camera

But now onto the show itself...

There were two warm up acts. The first of which, BlackWolf, was a local band that I’d heard good things about but hadn't listened to in advance. I’ll be brutally honest and say that I didn't enjoy their set. The sound tech was atrocious, and they knew it as they asked for it to be adjusted during the set, and I feel this really let them down. The vocals couldn't be heard at all. It’s really sad when something like this happens as it’s not the band’s fault but it ruins the performance. I also got really paranoid about the vocalist, in particular, who was bouncing and spinning around and the microphone wire was getting tangled and I could just see him about to fall. He never did but I spent the whole time waiting! I feel that I would like to listen to some of their music again just to give them a fair chance.

Oh, their drummer managed to hit both Kim and Ola on the head with one of the drumsticks he threw into the crowd so that's another negative point ;-)

They were followed by Laura Wilde, a female rock and roll musician from Melbourne, Australia, and her band. I had managed to listen to her in advance and, although I hadn't had time to get to know her music very well I did like what I had heard. Again, she had technical issues on stage but it was slightly better and you could at least hear her over the instruments. She was also a great performer and it felt like you were getting a show as opposed to just listening to some songs. I've downloaded her CD from amazon and, if she comes back to England to play, I would try and see her again. Oh, I also spoke to her briefly and she was lovely which matters a lot.

Anyway, onto the main act, Reckless Love. There are photos for this section because I suddenly remembered that I had a camera with me (idiotic Havanah!)

The minute that “The Boys are Back in Town” starts playing over the speakers, the crowd goes wild. We all know that the show is about to begin and, true to form, out walk the band. 

For the next hour and a half, at an estimate, nothing matters but having fun and listening to some great music. The pain from waiting outside in the cold for about four hours and then standing through the earlier acts is gone and it's suddenly possible to dance. In fact, I don't know if it would be possible to stay still through their set!

One of the things I love about Reckless Love as musicians is that, when performing live, they sound just as good as on the CDs. I have to be honest and say that this seems to be a rare quality of live bands but I guess that this is a sign of just how long they spent working together before getting signed. They also are really rather good at playing a mixture of songs from their albums, fitting them together and keeping the crowd going from start to finish. My one complaint would be that they didn't play "One More Time" this show but as one person was rather idiotic and rude, pulling on Olli's trousers and demanding requesting the song I am kind of pleased he didn't get what he wanted!

However, it's not just their skill as musicians that make Reckless Love stand out but the show that they put on. The whole band are completely dynamic when on-stage, including Hessu who could get away with 'just sitting there', being at the back of the stage. Of course, it's Olli who can move the most, having his hands a bit more free than the others, and move he does. Not content with dancing that man ends up climbing on whatever is in front of the stage, leaning into the audience, putting on as much as a show as he is physically able. Of course, if a few people get trodden on or crushed by bits of stage furniture it's all in the spirit of things, right? On the plus side, the fact that there was a bigger stage than at the Cavern meant that I didn't have to dive backwards to avoid being kicked in the face at any point!

When the show was over, way too soon, we hung around to attempt to meet the band members. Last time Aimee and I only managed to meet Pepe before her grandmother stormed in to take her home (long story) and Kim missed Jalle so we all had an aim here. (I'm not sure exactly who Ola met last time but we'll assume she didn't meet them all either!)

We did manage to meet all of the band who were all delightful. I mean Olli walked off when I tried to have my photo taken with him and then said I couldn't have one, Jalle asked me if I was tired when I said hello to him, and Pepe struggled with my pen lid but I'm going to say that is down to me being a bit of a jinx! Joking aside, they were lovely gentlemen, all four of them, and it was great to get to see them.

My paintings based on the album cover art (not the one on the inside of the album
and the jackets).The band were kind enough to sign them for me - Hurrah! 

With Olli

With Jalle

With Pepe

With Hessu