Welcome. Finally, after thinking about it for ages I’ve decided to write about my love of indie music. The plan is to base the writing around the comprehensive list of gigs I attended that I religiously recorded, in a battered Filofax, throughout the late eighties and nineties. I hope you enjoy it.
The Great British Music Weekend 1991
At the end of 1990 adverts began to appear in the music press for what was billed as ‘The Great British Music Weekend’ at Wembley Arena. Initially I hesitated as my experience of Wembley Arena wasn’t great. Luckily when I saw R.E.M there I was near the front but the soulless atmosphere of the place […]
The Brixton Academy Syndrome.
The early nineties was a great time for gigs, groups seemed to tour regularly and on top of album promoting tours there always seemed to be a benefit gig to go to. They quite often threw up some great line-ups. One such example occurred on November the 29th at Brixton Academy, a benefit for the […]
More gigs from 1990 including the Reading Festival, Pixies and The Wedding Present.
Up until Summer 1990 I hadn’t felt inclined to investigate the world of music festivals. I’d obviously read about them in the music press but to be honest the thought of camping in a field in Reading didn’t sound particularly appealing. Also looking at the line-ups there weren’t that many that I thought would hold […]
1990 – The gigs continue…
Next up gig-wise was Billy Bragg at the Town & Country Club in May. I have very fond memories of Billy Bragg gigs around this time. For me it’s the ‘classic’ Billy Bragg period. By then he’d released four albums, ‘Life’s a Riot..’, ‘Brewing Up…’, ‘Talking with the Taxman..’ and ‘Workers Playtime’. There’s not a […]
The Smiths Convention July 1988
As well as the many gigs there was another significant event that occurred in 1988. In issue no.8 of Smiths Indeed I spotted an advert for a Smiths Convention which was being held in Manchester in July. For a Smiths obsessed individual it sounded like something I couldn’t miss. So I despatched my cheque for […]
1990 – What a year.
Just as 1983 was a momentous year in my life having accidentally stumbled upon The Smiths, so 1990 was to provide some similarly significant experiences. It was a fantastic time for the indie music fan with incredible albums and singles being released with consistent regularity. Thankfully this was a year or so before I got […]
March 1990 – Late Road Lunatics, Senseless Things and The Fall.
Next up on the list is a gig I don’t have much recollection of. It was on March 17th at the Powerhouse in Islington and consisted of three groups, Dr Millar, Late Road Lunatics and This is Glass Radio. I think, if my memory serves me right, that a friend of a friend was in […]
The Wedding Present at Subterania 21/2/90
I think I picked the right time to become slightly obsessed with The Wedding Present. There was quite a bit going on to keep me occupied. In February they released ‘Brassneck’ as a single. Interestingly though it wasn’t the version from the Bizarro album that had been released the previous October. The group had rerecorded […]
1989 – The The & my first Wedding Present gig.
Being a Smiths fan meant that I naturally kept a close eye on what they all got up to after the split. Andy, Mike and Craig had worked with Brix Smith in The Adult Net and Morrissey was enjoying solo success having released a great run of singles. Johnny Marr had been briefly a member […]
1989 – The Beautiful South’s London debut and (eventually) discovering R.E.M
After what was a fairly busy year for gigs, 1989 was disappointingly slower. I’m not entirely sure why. It’s possible it was down to working shifts which aren’t conducive to having a great social life. For whatever reason, I only went to four gigs, all of which were important for different reasons. First up was […]
