No Man's Land, Theatre Royal, Newcastle , 18th August 2016

#Gadgees  were privileged to be guests of this special performance by Sir Ian McKellen & Patrick Stewart
@gerry0504
This #Gadgee first saw Sir Ian  McKellen on a school outing to the Theatre Royal in a production of Hamlet almost forty years ago!
So he found the 1st act  something of an endurance test,  because of bladder issues since the main characters were drinking for England!
The opening sequence with Hirst & Spooner was a tour de force of  slapstick comic acting, almost balletic in its timing.
The introduction of Foster & Briggs introduced the darker elements of the play.
Pinter produced a darkly tragi-comedy about creativity, life & death which still resonates, although the strong language produced laughter in this performance  rather than shock which I presume was the effect originally.
It is tempting to view  Hirst/Spooner as an amalgam of Pinter's own character : the successful literary type vs louche loser.
However it is complicated with the Briggs/Foster relationship, one as manservant, the other as amanuensis to Hirst but clearly with homosexual undertones between the duo.
The denouement is perfect in "No Man's Land"  with a frozen snapshot between life & death.

Eliza Carthy's Generations Saturday 4th June, 2016. 8pm, Sage Gateshead

A great evening of European Folk Music

hosted by Eliza Carthy

The legendary Varttina

The astonishing voice & violin of Iva Bittova

 The percussive genius of  Mauro Durante

Greek lutist Martha Mavroidi

Ensemble 

#OldGadgee & Iva Bittova

Grace Petrie at The Cumberland Arms Saturday, June 18, 2016

The #Gadgees were invited to this gig by #YoungGadgees inspired by her anti-austerity/LGBT politics

This #Gadgee had only heard her contributions on BBCR4 comedy shows but was enthralled & entertained by her humour, caustic wit, verbal dexterity & musical  ability, a veritable feminist Jake Thackray, & that is praise indeed.

Mbongwana Star & Estere at Sage Gateshead 11/06/2016

Mbongwana Star plus Estère

Mbongwana Star from Kinshasha played the Sage Gateshead, ably supported by Estere from New Zealand

Estere's support slot provided an electronic starter for the main event with a great vocal delivery, "How to pay the rent" & "Eye Spy" being the highlights, but this #Gadgee would like to see her fronting a live band.

Having seen Staff Benda Bilili, this solo  #Gadgee was looking forward to this gig & Mbongwana Star

delivered a joyous set full of vibrant rhythms & danceable tunes. I am sure they will continue where they left off in their fromer guise & enjoy a fruitful summer on the festival circuit.

The young #Gadgees enjoyed too

Tanfield Railway, 14th May 2016: Eva Stone,The Lake Poets, Hyde & Beast

#Gadgees went to Tanfield Railway for a memorable gig at a special venue

Long walk but it was worth it.

What a venue

@gerry0504

Eva Stone opened the evening with an excellent set showcasing her own songs from her CD. She has a fantastic voice reminiscent of Eva Cassidy & Norah Jones with an impressive pedigree having supported  Paolo Nutini  & Nitin Sawney. This gadgee would like to hear here singing some Jazz standards; she has the voice to deliver.

@gerry0504

The Lake Poets, Martin Longstaff, for this gadgee, the best set of the evening with songs of personal experience, compassion & love. His songs about His Grandmother with Alzheimers & his  experience as a schoolteacher were moving & insightful. 

 

@gerry0504

Hyde & Beast rounded off this excellent evening with a tight rocking set, with "Hard Times Good Times"  as a rollicking finish.

Laura Cantrell at Jumpin' Hot Club, Caedmon Hall, Gateshead Sat 7th May 2016

#Gadgees keenly anticipated another Laura Cantrell gig promoted by Jumpin' Hot Club, this time at the Caedmon Hall, having previously played at the Town Hall, Sage & also the Little Theatre in Gateshead,  something of a record for such a renowned American country artist.

@gerry0504
This #Gadgee tends to lose critical faculties when seeing Laura Cantrell but she produced another peerless performance this evening with her unique voice, combining fragility & passion in equal measure.
The late, lamented John Peel made a typically generous comment about "Not the Trembling Kind" which is where I first heard her.
This gig showcased the vinyl reissue of  this album and her latest release, "Laura Cantrell at the BBC" with some tunes from Kitty Wells album.
The reciprocal warmth from stage to audience made this a gig to remember. Laura, the consummate artist delivered in style with a performance that encapsulated her early career & illustrated her love for, & knowledge of her chosen genre.
Please check out online  her radio broadcasts to hear this:
http://www.wfmu.org/~laura/index.html

The support band, My Girl the River, provided excellent vocals from Kris Wilkinson, who joined Laura for encore.

My son, unable to attend this gig because of university exams, was happy to receive this having seen Laura  a couple of times over  the last decade.

@alphaspud
Once again Laura delivered another flawless performance,crystal clear vocals backed up by superb accompaniment made for a very enjoyable evening

Sleaford Mods: Invisible Britain at Tyneside Cinema, 1st May 2016

Sleaford Mods: Invisible Britain

#Gadgees went to 1st screening of Invisible Britain at the Tyneside Cinema, a rockumentary by Sleaford Mods, not having seen them live.

@gerry0504
Certainly, the Sleafords have been added to the #GadgeesBucketList for a live gig.

The fortysomething duo from Nottingham have the look of an angry geography teacher & an electronic geek but produce a vibrant sound & a verbal assault delivering insightful lyrics with graphic imagery; a harsh, realistic commentary on austerity Britain.

The documentary element was a bit of a curate's egg, falling between two stools,  two distinct elements : the fan interviews & the real-life documentary interjections.

The former were genuine fans' opinions, pretty much: the best band since The Sex Pistols/Specials. My view is they were more like the current Public Image Limited & just as relevant.

I found the latter element much more interesting albeit lacking narrative.The contribution by Dr Lisa McKenzie, a sociology lecturer, about the under-representation of working class people, was core to this documentary & deserved more space.
 (http://www.lse.ac.uk/sociology/whoswho/academic/Mckenzie.aspx)
 I urge anyone who has been interested in this subject following the recent Hillsborough revelations to watch, learn more & GET INVOLVED.

@folkastro
What an engaging commentary on modern day austerity Britain.  This was a very thoughtful production with intelligent insights from a cross section of the public.  For Jason and Andrew think Sex Pistols with Portishead; social commentary and energy; fully engaged audiences.  This gadgee is personally looking forward to seeing them when they tour later in the year.