Music Mashup - Northern Reterospectives

Artic Monkeys – Alexandra Palace, London

Now many an anxious moment preceded this gig - Alexandra Palace being in the middle of a park, on top of hill. Nonetheless my asymmetrical hair and I reached the gig in one piece. I'd heard that Alexandra Palace wasn't an ideal live music venue and I have to admit, the huge screens projecting the gig were a necessity - not a luxury. The sound quality wasn't brilliant either!

Support came from The Horrors who were not received well. I still admired their ability to wear the tightest jeans ever, complete with the most amazing hair. The bantering, show man skills of the lead singer (despite air borne beer and coins) were commendable and in stark contrast to the Monkeys' Alex Turner.

When the Monkeys finally came on stage my first thought was how young they looked. Their music is so great that you forget these boys, like The Kooks, are hardly out their teens - and it showed. Now maybe Mr Turner was tired, bored or couldn't be bothered with a load of southerners - or maybe he wanted to let the music do the talking- which it certainly did. However the incoherent ramblings or silence between songs detracted from the performance as a whole. I have been to some rubbish gigs (remember Pull Tiger Tail?) but usually it's because the music, composition or lyrics are weak. None of these excuses can be applied to the Monkeys.

They started the evening with Teddy Picker and then I got completely drenched by flying beer when I Bet You Look Good on the Dance floor started! This was immediately followed by my absolute favourite - Dancing Shoes. From the Ritz to the Rubble was next and then Fake Tales of San Francisco, followed by a new track which wasn't named. The crowd listened to this half heartedly.

A volley of tracks from both albums followed and yet again I was impressed by how the tenacity and depth of their lyrics belies their youthful appearance. On the whole I am glad to have seen a live performance but if you're considering it – beware. I don't think this is worth a £30 ticket. 

Maximo Park – Newcastle Metro Arena, Newcastle

Yes I travelled all the way to Newcastle to see my favourites - Maximo Park, along with 10,000 others. I've seen the Park several times before and they are yet to disappoint. Without being biased this was the best gig I've been to for a year. Maybe it was the buoyant atmosphere or maybe it's the fact that I've come full circle with Maximo Park - from my first ever gig – starring them in Brixton Academy.

Starting with Girls who play guitars, Paul Smith, nattily dressed in a red shirt and skinny black tie combo (reminiscent of our own beloved Editor), gave 110% as he jumped, ran and leaped throughout the set.

They played nearly all the tracks from both albums and the crowd were going mad - especially when classics such as Apply Some Pressure came on. I was surprised by the huge reaction to Karaoke Plays but was impressed by the accompaniment of a small orchestra - not the norm at Indie gigs! However this didn't top the huge 80s style graphic equaliser back drop - that appeared during Limassol. In fact impressive light displays played a massive part. During Our Velocity numbers cascaded down the screens in true Matrix style while Maximo sang: “A stream of numbers hit a screen, and you're expected to know what they mean.” Then during the highly poignant Acrobat a huge green light backlit a messianic Mr Smith, who faced a sea of devoted fans holding lighters, mobiles and camera's in the air. 

But it was not yet the end, as Paul thanked the fans for coming and insisted that all their songs: “came from the heart”. The band then robustly launched into Books from Boxes.  The best however is always saved till the end and the grand finale filled the arena with smoke and an out pouring of gold glitter as Going Missing was belted out, with as much pain as one can muster after selling ten thousand tickets!

- Michelle Mangal

Music Mashup - Northern Reterospectives