On This Day 30/06/2010 Ash

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On this day, 29 June 2010, Northern Irish rock band Ash played Cardiff’s Barfly on their A-Z tour.

Ash officially formed in 1992, reportedly having taken the name from the first word they liked in the dictionary. Prior to this, Wheeler and Hamilton were in an Iron Maiden cover band called Vietnam, which had formed in 1989.

The A–Z Series is a series of singles released by Northern Irish rock band Ash. Consisting of 26 singles, each represented by a letter of the alphabet, the singles were first released on a fortnightly basis from 12 October 2009 until 27 September 2010 on 7-inch vinyl and by download.

Along with the 26 primary singles the series also includes 21 B-sides, 13 remixes, 7 acoustic tracks and 2 live tracks which were sporadically released in various formats. The series was later released in various other formats, including two compilation CDs Volume 1 (singles A–M) released on 19 April 2010 and Volume 2 (singles N–Z) released on 11 October 2010, a compilation of all 26 tracks on three vinyl LPs was released on 6 November 2012 through Noyes Records and finally a compact cassette featuring 15 of the band's favourite tracks from the series was released for Cassette Store Day, titled Letters from Alphabet City.

The series spawned 6 radio singles; "Return of White Rabbit", "True Love 1980", "Space Shot", "War with Me", "Binary", and "Carnal Love"

Setlist

Lose Control

A Life Less Ordinary

Dionysian Urge

Goldfinger

Petrol

Shining Light

Joy Kicks Darkness

Orpheus

The Dead Disciples

Oh Yeah

Kung Fu

Arcadia

Girl From Mars

Return of White Rabbit

Encore:

Angel Interceptor

Encore 2:

Twilight of the Innocents

Encore 3:

Burn Baby Burn

On This Day 30/06/2010 Ash

On this day, 30 June 2010 Northern Irish rock band Ash played Cardiff’s Barfly.

Formed in Downpatrick, County Down in 1992 by vocalist and guitarist Tim Wheeler, bassist Mark Hamilton and drummer Rick McMurray. As a three-piece, they released mini-album Trailer in 1994 and full-length album 1977 in 1996. This 1996 release was named by NME as one of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Wales Online Music Review: Ash, The Barfly, Cardiff

IMAGINE if you will Speed 3, the latest instalment of the Hollywood blockbuster franchise – this time starring a Northern Irish rock ’n’ roll band which has to keep playing at breakneck pace otherwise a bomb under the Cardiff Barfly stage will explode if the momentum slackens.

For all we know this gig was a trial outing for such a movie given that every ferociously delivered song in a pulsating 17 track set refused to rattle along at anything less than head-spinning, eye-popping, ear-bleeding ferocity.

There was no let up from the off, Ash straining at the leash with the crunch and thump of opener Lose Control – a pretty apt call to arms for the unhinged off-the-scale performance Ash delivered and their fans soaked up with joyful abandon.

The incendiary wallop of A Life Less Ordinary sees frontman Tim Wheeler bouncing around with the same perma-grinned giddiness as when they first started out in Belfast in 1992. Goldfinger rolls back the years as does 1994’s Petrol – a scuzzed-up dragster of a tune that roars like the devil's racetrack.

As the crowd swells and pogos furiously with heads in danger of butting the Barfly’s low slung ceiling, we’re all revelling in a rare chance to see one of the UK’s finest live bands - essentially playing in our living room.

There’s no taking the foot off the accelerator pedal of ridiculously huge songs and romp-along choruses. Shining Light crashes into Joy Kicks Darkness, while the energy surge of Orpheus leaves us gasping.

Then when you think the riotous assembly couldn’t be elevated to greater levels of mayhem Wheeler spits out the whiplash vocals as Kung Fu races along like a runaway express train.

The song, which first introduced us to these indie rock survivors all those years ago, still courses with the same manic energy and vitality as it always did.

Then when you think the riotous assembly couldn’t be elevated to greater levels of mayhem Wheeler spits out the whiplash vocals as Kung Fu races along like a runaway express train.

The song, which first introduced us to these indie rock survivors all those years ago, still courses with the same manic energy and vitality as it always did.

Deafening cheers go up as Ash return for a three song encore – Angel Interceptor, Twilight Of The Innocents and as Tim quips: “Thanks, this is one of the hottest gigs we’ve ever played” they throw themselves into the more than fitting set closer Burn Baby Burn.

After a volcanic show it's only fitting that Ash leave us all in a lava!

by David Owens

Setlist

Lose Control

A Life Less Ordinary

Dionysian Urge

Goldfinger

Petrol

Shining Light

Joy Kicks Darkness

Orpheus

The Dead Disciples

Oh Yeah

Kung Fu

Play Video

Arcadia

Girl From Mars

Return of White Rabbit

Encore:

Angel Interceptor

Encore 2:

Twilight of the Innocents

Encore 3:

Burn Baby Burn

On this day 03/08/2008 Ash

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On this day, 3 August 2008, Northern Irish rock band Ash played Cardiff’s Big Weekend with support provided by locals The Automatic.

Formed in Downpatrick in 1989 by vocalist and guitarist Tim Wheeler, bassist Mark Hamilton and drummer Rick McMurray. As a three-piece, they released mini-album Trailer in 1994 and full-length album 1977 in 1996. This 1996 release was named by NME as one of the 500 greatest albums of all time. After the success of their full debut the band recruited Charlotte Hatherley as a guitarist and vocalist, releasing their second record Nu-Clear Sounds in 1998. After narrowly avoiding bankruptcy, the band released Free All Angels in 2001 and a string of successful singles.

The band became a three-piece again in 2006 when Hatherley left, and after five conventional albums the band released 26 singles in the A-Z Series in 2009, one every two weeks. The band have had one silver, two gold and two platinum-selling (and chart-topping) records in the United Kingdom, as well as 18 songs in the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart.

They were associated with Britpop, though as that musical movement emphasised Britishness they were not comfortable with the association.

On this day 21/07/2001 Stereophonics

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On this day 21 July 2001, Welsh rockers The Stereophonics played Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium, with support provided by the Black Crowes, Ash and another Welsh band The Crocketts.

The band had just released their third studio album Just Enough Education To Perform (JEEP) and spawned three top-ten singles in the form of "Mr. Writer", "Have a Nice Day" and "Handbags and Gladrags" as well as topping the UK album charts.

Review - BBC Wales

The Stereophonics conquered the odds of illness to stage a triumphant homecoming concert at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday night.

Plagued by foot-and-mouth disease, which forced a relocation from Chepstow Racecourse, and Kelly Jones's flu, which cancelled their US tour, the band were happy to finally turn up at their biggest ever gig on Welsh soil.

An estimated 60,000 fans joined the Phonics in the capital along with support acts the Black Crowes and the Crocketts - this was a rock concert in the very best sense of the word.

Stadium bosses closed the retractable roof to keep out the rain and to keep in the raucous rockers' noise.

But the fans could not keep a lid on their enthusiasm, many waving Welsh flags and huge plastic daffodils.

The boys from Cwmaman played a varied, two-hour set including material from their third and latest album, Just Enough Education To Perform, which went to the top of the charts when it was released in April.

JEEP is still top of the indie charts, moving around 20,000 copies each week.

The performance came as a relief after a troubled few months for the Phonics.

In May, the band was forced to cancel a US tour after Kelly Jones's flu bug worsened to a chest infection and doctors ordered a month's rest.

They also had to pull out of a curtain-raising appearance before the FA Cup Final on 12 May.

Saturday's concert, which seemed to fit the Millennium Stadium so well, was slated for Chepstow Racecourse - but foot-and-mouth put paid to the band's "Day At The Races" idea along with a host of horse races.

Then, Glastonbury 2001, which the Stereophonics were rumoured to headline, was cancelled over crowd safety concerns.

They went on to play a virtual 90-minute Glastonbury event to a handful of faithful fans and a web audience.

But it served as little more than a rehearsal for the impressive Cardiff concert.

Setlist

Local Boy in the Photograph

More Life in a Tramp's Vest

A Thousand Trees

Traffic

T-Shirt Sun Tan

The Bartender and the Thief

Just Looking

Pick a Part That's New

I Wouldn't Believe Your Radio

I Stopped to Fill My Car Up

Mr Writer

Hurry Up and Wait

Have a Nice Day

Step on My Old Size Nines

Roll Up and Shine

Encore:

Everyday I Think of Money

Watch Them Fly Sundays

Vegas Two Times

Rooftop