3/8/2014 Jelly @ The Dublin Castle

...So after catching some live music in North London in the afternoon, I head down to Camden for more in the evening.

I'm at The Dublin Castle to see Jelly. This lot are a quality act, with influences from 70's classic rock, to 80's New Wave, and later alt-rock.

The musicians have paid their dues individually in many bands over the years and work together very well in Jelly.

The band seems to have a natural easy chemistry, and they have some rather good songs that you remember even from the first time you see the band.

Jelly are as good to watch as they are to listen to as there is always something interesting happening on stage. They released their first album 'Troubadour, Wizard, The Queen, and The Machine' last year - it's rather good. So is this video for their song 'Say Hello'.

3/8/2014 High Barnet Music Festival

Barnet seems to be overrun with music festivals this year - this is probably the smallest event. Unfortunately I don't have time to catch much of it as I have a gig I want to get to in Camden later. This more intimate festival takes place in the little park behind the old courthouse and is in aid of Noah's Ark Children's Hospice. There is a beer tent of sorts, but little to tempt my taste on offer so I partake of a beverage or two in the nearby Olde Mitre Inne which stocks some excellent ales.

The weather is lovely and there is a good turnout. I catch part of the set from promising local brother and sister duo Slap. It's possible to catch the occasional glimpse of them as they battle the smoke machine - what is the point in using one of these devices to try and create 'atmosphere' in bright sunlight?

This duo are pretty good. Not a million miles away from the White Stripes in style and with some decent original songs. They seem to be popping up all over the place locally over the past year, but they are always worth seeing.

The only other act I have time to see is popular local band The Haunting.

This lot always go down well with their set of mostly hard rock standards with bits of soul, blues, and pop mixed in.

And when bass player Jason takes to the air and lands on the grass in front of the stage throwing his instrument to the floor - that would seem to signify the end of the show. Time for me to reluctantly leave as I have to get to another gig miles away.....

25/7/2014 Earth Prayer @ Big Red

I can't remember too much about this night to be honest. A free gig at the only cool place left in Holloway Road since we lost The Gaff and Nambucca - Newcastle Brown Ale at reasonable prices means I probably sunk a few.... I seem to remember meeting my old bandmate Dave Veal and discussing old times in this area where I used to spend a lot of time once, and also talking about another old local band of his which I now seem to be playing bass with, but that's another story...

I used to be at Big Red all the time several years ago when there was more of a happening scene on the Holloway Road, and I lived almost next door to a station on the same tube line so it was really easy to get to and get a night bus home. I don't go there so often now as it's not such a convenient stop on the way home from gigs.

Earth Prayer are the main reason for me being at Big Red on this Friday night - it's virtually as cheap to see a good band down Holloway Road as see a lacklustre cover band in a local pub - not that there's usually any bands playing in Barnet on a Friday night these days.

It's the third time I've seen this band in a few months, but they play well and have good stage presence as they blast out their mainly 60's/70's influenced rock and are well worth seeing again.

19/7/2014 Healthy Junkies & Lesbian Bed Death @ The Unicorn

So here I am back at The Unicorn to see Healthy Junkies back in their natural habitat. Regular readers will have noticed that many of my gig blogs of this year seem to feature this band at this venue. There are reasons for this. One of them is that Healthy Junkies are a good band with catchy songs and I happen to like them. The other main reason is that I have have been really skint this year and these gigs are always free entry with the beer is at normal pub prices - basically these are the only gigs I can afford to go to.

Unfortunately I couldn't make it in time to see the opening act - Danny Fury and Vera Wild of Tango Pirates doing a few acoustic numbers. I did see the last part of Jettyson though.

They churned out some in-your-face punk rock with powerful vocals. Don't make the mistake of asking the bassist if she used to be in The Priscillas though...

Next up are Lesbian Bed Death.

I don't think there are actually any lesbians in the band, and to the best of my knowledge no one died during their set.

There is plenty of hard rock and punk attitude in this band. They have a tight powerful sound.

It's the second time I have seen this Midlands band in this venue, and I hope it won't be the last. They are obviously well into what they are doing, and having fun at the same time.

The band have plenty of stage presence and give the impression they really know what they are doing. Not so sure about the shorts though.

Healthy Junkies hit the stage last to headline their own regular night at this venue.

It would appear that the recent gig at The Monarch wasn't quite Dave Renegade's last appearance with the band after all.

There is a healthy (no pun intended) crowd at The Unicorn as usual to see this band - playing regularly has certainly been paying dividends for this band over the last couple of years - some bands seem surprised how quickly their fans move on if they vanish from the scene for a while, but Healthy Junkies seem well aware how important it is to keep your name in people's minds.

Of course being a good band helps as well, but that's something this lot have worked hard at, and one of the best ways to make your band better is to get out there and play as much as possible - it really does make a huge difference.

Having good songs and the confidence to play them well is paying off as this pop/punk/grunge build their reputation and following with hard work and regular gigging.

12/7/2014 Duncan Reid And The Big Heads @ The Water Rats

Off to a gig that's not in Camden for a change. The Water Rats has real ale and reasonable bar prices, but even after it's recent refurb the toilets are still a bit rank. I'd still rather go there than the Barfly or Underworld though. Unfortunately I can't remember who the first band were, which is a shame as I think they were rather good.

The main reason I am here is to see Duncan Reid And The Big Heads.

This is the new band from ex-Boys bassist Duncan 'Kid' Reid. There is plenty of variety in the set, with lead vocals being swapped, and also the odd keyboard interlude.

This is only the second time I've seen this band - I was very impressed by them the first time, and they don't disappoint tonight either.

There is a definite punk rock influence - after all The Boys were at the forefront of the first wave of UK punk, but actually they play really good catchy pop songs.

With one album already under their belts and another one coming out very soon the band have plenty of songs to pick from for their setlist, and they also include a version of The Boys single 'First Time' - actually a terrific pop song. Then again, The Boys were known as 'The punk Beatles' with good reason.

Duncan Reid And The Big Heads are a cracking live band - full of energy with a great set of well crafted pop/rock tunes. Definitely one of the best bands I've seen this year.

10/7/2014 Healthy Junkies & Earth Prayer @ The Monarch

It seems a bit odd being at a gig and seeing daylight outside through the window, but that's how it is at The Monarch on this summer Thursday evening in Camden.

It's a bit strange seeing randoms at the bus stop outside peering in through the window at the band, but it's all part of Camden's streetlife. However, night falls during Healthy Junkies set and some sort of normality seems to be restored.

It makes a change to see this band outside of their regular nights at The Unicorn, but a change of scene is often good. There is a reasonable turnout for a 'school night' and the band's set of catchy pop/punk with a hint of grunge goes down well - it helps that Healthy Junkies have better songs than most bands on this circuit. Unfortunately this is bassist Dave Renegade's last gig with the band, but I'm sure we'll be seeing more of him before long as he likes to keep busy.

I first discovered Earth Prayer playing at Healthy Junkies monthly club night at The Unicorn so it's fitting to see them playing together at another Camden venue.

Earth Prayer take their influences mainly from an earlier time than Healthy Junkies - harking back more to the classic rock bands of the 60's and 70's.

Singer Heidi has a big voice and knows how to use it - she is an engaging stage presence with a very good band behind her to propel things along.

Like Healthy Junkies, this is a band who look like they have all individually 'paid their dues' in other bands over the years and are now ready to step up to bigger things...

East Barnet Festival 2014

Sunday 6/7/2014

I don't have much to report from the 2014 East Barnet Festival - not because it wasn't any good but largely because I missed most of it. I didn't make it on the Saturday due to being out in Camden very late on Friday night and having a load of 'real life' stuff to get done after getting up late - a shame as the music bill looked quite strong. On the Sunday nothing on the bill really looked like being my sort of thing until after two in the afternoon - so I walked to the park in time to see the promising looking Band Of King. I was expecting a full on rock band, but instead we got this.

Apparently there was some problem with the band's drummer not being able to make it, so instead we got the singer as a solo acoustic act. I think this was Andrew King and he was actually very good. It was quite a lively set that included a Jimi Hendrix cover - something I'd never seen anyone attempt with an acoustic guitar before. Ironically, there was a Fender Stratocaster (Jimi's usual weapon of choice) with reach but it remained unused! After seeing this performance I'd really like to see the full electric band. Maybe next year?

Next up was local rock covers band Rockit Science turning out a sharp set including some songs rarely played by pub bands.

Next act was the rather over-exposed McGoozer who seems to be all over this festival, so it was time to hit the beer tent and mingle for a while.

Popular local pub covers band Schweet Azz were on next - their many friends always make sure their set of rock standards goes down well.

There follows yet another familiar face at this festival - Sandra Grant. Unfortunately for the second year running the talented 'Saxophone Lady' didn't bring a band with her like she did on her first appearance here, but her lively and engaging performance still manages to hold the attention playing a mixture of covers (including 'Baker Street') and her own original jazz/blues/soul material.

There are still another couple of acts to follow at the festival but neither really appealed to me, so I headed off to the Builders Arms where there was another event taking place. The Silver Manatees were playing.

I'd seen this young Beatles tribute band at the East Barnet Festival last year and been very impressed with how good they were. They were also playing at the festival on the Saturday this year and have been getting rather popular locally with their lively performances and their authentic look and sound - they have obviously put a lot of work into their act.

The headline act at this outdoor event at the back of the Builders Arms was the Lee Thompson Band. The sax player from Madness lives locally and his gigs are always packed.

Lee's friends and family plus his fame as a member of Madness ensure that every time his band play locally there is a big crowd, but although they are excellent musicians it's a bit too much like a 'showband' for my tastes - so I head for home.