Gig-idy!

It's been well over a month since our last post; we've actually had two trips away in that time; sorry, we are being a bit tardy on getting them written up!

This post woo, I'm afraid will enlighten you no further either. It's just a quick one to say hi and let you know about the awesome week of music we have had...

One thing we have missed about back home, Brighton in particular is live music, or the lack of it. we have found a couple of open mic nights but they are very hit and miss, erring on the side of miss!

Still this week has probably just about made up for it. On Saturday, 6 months after we booked the tickets we headed to Aucklands premier music venue, the Vector Arena. Our entertainment this evening was the most excellent 'The Black Keys'. Wow, what a gig. They played all their hits, but also chucked in a lot of their back catalogue.

In fact if you only know of their latest stuff from El Camino (Lonely Boy / Gold on The Ceiling) I strongly urge you check out their older albums - the breakthrough 'Brothers' is excellent, while the earlier 'Magic Potion', 'Rubber Factory' and 'Attack and Release' are also well worth you time and show their blues rock routes.

Their performance was full of power and swagger, with on hit after another. Midway through the set they returned to the origins and performed some of their older songs as a duo (they are usually a four piece on stage).

By the end of the show and two encores they had the whole of the arena up and out of the seats dancing (doing their best to do a Derrick. T. Tuggle). Great atmosphere and would seem them again in a dirty, grungy, blues-rock heartbeat!

Last night saw us return to the Vector Arena unexpectedly. Radiohead were in town. We however had failed to secure tickets before they sold out in 10 minutes back in March. The tickets had been trading on TradeMe of $500 and more and so we were all set for a quiet night in. However just 2 hours before they gig was due to start a handful of tickets went on sale, at face value.

A rushed dinner and made dash later we were back at the Vector listening to the warm up act. And what seats! Much closer and lower down than those we had for The Black Keys (although to be honest we had wanted stalls for that gig!).

Apparently I was grinning like a Chesire cat all night! Another great gig; although it did not reach the heights of The Black Keys gig. For one, they did not really engage the crowd like Messrs Dan and Patrick. Secondly they played nothing from 'Pablo Honey' or 'The Bends' and only two songs from 'OK Computer' - my three favorite albums and the only ones Amanda knew...

Still it was a great experience, the light show was amazing. Helped along by 18 suspended screens that changed formation and angles throughout the show and switched between displaying images of the band at work and abstract images, which pulsed in time with the music. Each song had it's own visual arrangement and set of colours which bathed the entire stage. Sweet, finally seen Radiohead live, just a shame the focused on the newer stuff!

That should just above keep us sated until we attend The 'Laneways Festival' in January, about as big a music festival as you get in NZ; mainly local acts but some smaller overseas acts too - a bit like The Great Escape lines ups for those in the know.

Here's a video of Derrick T Tuggle doing his thing...

Here's a higlight reel of The Radiohead show...

And here's one where you can see the screens...ooooh, screeny...

Finally, here some a couple of videos that have been playing relentlessly at my gym; love em!

Op, op oppan gangnam style!!