On This Day 26/03/2006 OK Go

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On this day, 27 March 2006, American indie rock band OK Go played Cardiff University with support provided by The Bright Space.

The band's second album, Oh No, was recorded in Malmö, Sweden, in the fall of 2004 and was produced by Tore Johansson (the Cardigans, Franz Ferdinand) and mixed by Dave Sardy (Nine Inch Nails, Jet, System of a Down). In February 2005, Andy Duncan left the band, citing creative differences, major label pressures, and the band's rigorous touring schedule.

Duncan was replaced by Andy Ross, who beat out 34 other guitarists who auditioned for the role, in a process that ended with each candidate being asked about their willingness to do a choreographed dance on stage.[28] Ross introduced himself to the band's fans by writing a blog post entitled "The Will To Rock," in which he detailed life on the road, beginning with his first show with the band on February 18, 2005.

Released in August 2005, Oh No gained popularity for its first single, "A Million Ways". Ross programmed a web application, hosted at a1000000ways.com, that allowed people to hear the single and to share it with their friends in exchange for free downloads from the iTunes music store.

The video for "A Million Ways" featured the band in a backyard performing a dance choreographed by lead singer Kulash's sister, Trish Sie. By August 2006, the video had become the most downloaded music video ever, with over 9 million downloads.The band performed the dance live on British TV show Soccer AM, as well as on the late-night American comedy show Mad TV.

Setlist

"Don't Ask Me"

"No Sign of Life"

"Here It Goes Again"

"Let It Rain"

"Bye Bye Baby"

"A Good Idea at the Time"

"Don't Bring Me Down"

"Get Over It"

"The Fix Is In"

"Oh Lately It's So Quiet"

Invincible

"Do What You Want"

"You're So Damn Hot"

"It's a Disaster"

"A Million Ways (dance sequence)"

On This Day 15/03/1991 Green on Red

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On this day, 15 March 1991 American rock band Green on Red played Cardiff University.

The band began in 1979 as The Serfers, a four-piece made up of Dan Stuart (vocals/guitar), Jack Waterson (bass), Van Christian (drums, later of Naked Prey) (organ), quickly replaced by Chris Cacavas.

In the summer of 1980, the Serfers relocated to Los Angeles, where they changed their name to Green on Red (after the title of one of their songs) to avoid confusion with the local surf punk scene. Christian returned to Tucson and was replaced by Lydia Lunch sideman Alex MacNicol.

The band issued an overtly psychedelic, self-released red vinyl EP, sometimes called Two Bibles, though its first widely available record was an EP issued in 1982 by Dream Syndicate leader Steve Wynn on his own Down There label. Green on Red followed the Dream Syndicate onto Slash Records, which released the album Gravity Talks in the fall of 1983. San Francisco-based guitarist Chuck Prophet joined for the 1985 Gas Food Lodging (Enigma), after which MacNicol was replaced on drums by Keith Mitchell (later of Mazzy Star). Also in 1985, Stuart collaborated with Steve Wynn as "Danny & Dusty" on the album The Lost Weekend (A&M).

A major-label deal with Phonogram/Mercury followed, with the 7-song EP No Free Lunch released in summer 1986.[3] A strong country music direction was evident, which music critic Ira Robbins remarked "should finally erase the group's original misassociation with the dreaded paisley underground". The album The Killer Inside Me appeared one year later, produced by Jim Dickinson at Ardent Studios in Memphis. The band split up afterwards; Cacavas began recording albums under his own name. When Stuart returned to recording he decided to use the Green on Red name. In 1989, the band—now consisting of Stuart and Prophet—released Here Come the Snakes. They hired backing musicians, including Christopher Holland on keyboards. In 1991 they released Scapegoats, but after the 1992 album Too Much Fun Stuart stopped using the name.

Post Green on Red, Stuart recorded the album Retronuevo with Al Perry in 1993, and solo effort Can O'Worms in 1995, and then essentially quit the music business; Prophet maintains a career as a solo artist and semi-celebrity sideman.

On This Day 11/03/1991 Birdland

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On this day, 11 March 1991, rock band Birdland played Cardiff University on their Debut Album tour. The band had just released their debut album Birdland.

Birdland were formed in 1988 in Birmingham, England by the brothers Robert (vocals) and Lee Vincent (guitar), who had previously released records and toured in the glam rock band Zodiac Motel (1984–1988). The other band members were Syd Rogers (bass) and Gene Kale (drums).

Review - South Wales Echo

Birdland's debut single, "Hollow Heart", was released on Lazy Records. It reached No. 1 in the UK Indie Chart. The band generated a lot of attention in the British music press. The band released four further singles: "Paradise", "Sleep with Me", "Everybody Needs Somebody", and "Rock n Roll Nigger", all of which were No. 1 UK independent singles. "Sleep With Me" also reached the Top 40 in the UK Singles Chart (with the video being shown on Top of the Pops). They released their eponymously titled debut album in 1991.

After the album's release, problems with management and inner band disagreement forced the band to split up. They briefly reunited in 2011 and streamed a new demo.

On This Day 09/03/1995 Radiohead

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On this day, 9 March 1995, rock band Radiohead played Cardiff University following the release of their second album The Bends. Support was provided by Marion.

The album was driven by dense riffs and ethereal atmospheres from the three guitarists, with greater use of keyboards than their debut.

It received stronger reviews for its songwriting and performances.

While Radiohead were seen as outsiders to the Britpop scene that dominated music media at the time, they were finally successful in their home country with The Bends, as singles "Fake Plastic Trees", "High and Dry", "Just", and "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" made their way to chart success.

Formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards), brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass), Ed O'Brien (guitar, backing vocals) and Philip Selway (drums, percussion).

Tour Setlist

The Bends
Just
Anyone Can Play Guitar
Bones
Permanent Daylight
High & Dry
Black Star
Prove Yourself
Stop Whispering
Vegetable
Fake Plastic Trees
Blow Out
Creep
My Iron Lung
You
Banana Co.
Street Spirit (Fade Out)
Ripcord

On This Day 07/03/2002 Ian Brown

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On this day, 7 March 2002, former Stone Roses frontman Ian Brown played Cardiff University.

He was the lead singer and the only continuous member of the alternative rock band the Stone Roses from their formation in 1983. Following the band's initial split in 1996, he began a solo career.

Since the break-up of the Stone Roses in 1996, Brown has released six solo albums and fourteen UK Top 40 singles. He has sold out seven UK tours and appeared three times at the Glastonbury Festival, including headlining the Other Stage in 2005.

He has appeared five times at V Festival since 1998, along with regular appearances at T in the Park and Oxegen festivals, and played the Move festival in 2002 at Old Trafford Cricket Ground as well as two tours of Australia in 2006 and 2008.

At the 2006 NME awards, Brown was presented with the "Godlike Genius" award and in 2007, was given the Q "Legend" Award.

In September 2007, Brown released his fifth studio album, The World Is Yours. The album represented a more political approach[citation needed] in his music, particularly the anti-war track "Illegal Attacks", which featured Sinéad O'Connor. The album also featured former Smiths bassist Andy Rourke, Paul Ryder of Happy Mondays, and Steve Jones and Paul Cook of The Sex Pistols.

On This Day 03/03/2005 Electric Six

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On this day, 3 March 2005, American rock band Electric Six played Cardiff University.

Formed in Detroit in 1996, they are known for combining elements of rock, disco, garage rock, metal, new wave, and punk rock.

Since achieving widespread recognition in 2003 with the singles "Danger! High Voltage" and "Gay Bar", they have released 20 studio albums, two rarities albums, one live album and one live DVD. Each band member is given a unique stage name; the line-up has undergone changes over the years; co-founder, lead vocalist, and primary songwriter Dick Valentine has been the only constant member.

The band's second album, Señor Smoke, was released in the United Kingdom on February 14, 2005. Since the band had been dropped from their previous American record label, a North American release of the album was delayed until February 7, 2006, when it came out on Metropolis Records.

The first single from the album put the band at the center of controversy with Queen fans, following a cover of the hit Queen song "Radio Ga Ga". The controversial music video showed lead singer Dick Valentine portraying the ghost of late Queen frontman Freddie Mercury and performing with a backing band of poodles. Queen drummer and "Radio Ga Ga" writer Roger Taylor said that he was "unimpressed" with the video, though Queen guitarist Brian May reportedly liked it.

Valentine addressed the controversy and said, "Some have claimed this video portrays me dancing on Freddie Mercury's grave, but that wasn't the idea. Actually it's more like we are resurrecting Mr. Mercury for the duration of the song and his grave is the logical starting point. [...] I guess a video like that can be taken the wrong way, but we hadn't looked at it like that. [...] Everyone knows we disliked the fact that we had to put this song on our record, so this ridiculous video took a little bit of the sting out of it for us and made it somewhat bearable. [...] I definitely respect Freddie and his work."

On This Day 23/02/2008 Sum 41

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On this day, 23 February 2008, Canadian rock band Sum 41 played Cardiff University on their Underclass Hero tour. Support was provided by Random Hand.

The band was formed in 1996 and consists of Deryck Whibley (lead vocals, guitars, keyboards), Dave Baksh (lead guitar, backing vocals), Jason McCaslin (bass, backing vocals), Tom Thacker (guitars, keyboards, backing vocals), and Frank Zummo (drums, occasional backing vocals).

Underclass Hero is the fourth studio album by Canadian rock band Sum 41. It is the first of two albums by the band recorded without guitarist Dave "Brownsound" Baksh since he left a year earlier to focus on Brown Brigade.

It was first released on July 18, 2007, in Japan by Island Records and distributed worldwide by Aquarius Records, the band's final album on the label. In comparison to the heavy metal-inspired punk style of their previous album Chuck (2004), Underclass Hero marked a return to the band’s pop-punk sound.

The album was a commercial success, peaking at number 1 on the Canadian Albums Chart and at number 7 on the US Billboard 200, becoming the band’s highest-charting album to date. It received generally mixed reviews from critics, with some praising its songwriting, lyrics and production, while others found it to be too long, melodramatic, and derivative.

Critics have consistently described Underclass Hero as a revival of Sum 41's previous pop punk style in All Killer No Filler (2001) as opposed to the heavy metal and punk rock sound found in Chuck (2004). However, the album differentiates itself from the band's early sound, through the incorporation of instruments such as acoustic guitars, pianos, organs and synthesizers, theatricality, emphasis on dark and political lyrics, dynamics and its disregard for metal influences, creating a sound more inline with the emo pop genre. Furthermore, songs such as "Ma Poubelle" combine this with elements of show tunes. PopMatters writer Ethan Stewart stated that "The way that Underclass Hero layers pianos, acoustic guitars, vocal harmonies, and ambient synthesizers easily makes it Sum 41’s prettiest-sounding record to date."

On This Day 20/02/1990 Michael Monroe

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On this day, 20 February 1990, Finnish rock musician Michael Monroe played Cardiff University on his No Fakin’ It tour.

After Hanoi Rocks broke up in 1985, Monroe decided to start his solo career, but first he got to work with his good friend Stiv Bators. In the Fall of 1985, Bators and Monroe were asked by Steven Van Zandt to record backing vocals in London and then fly to New York to appear on his song "Sun City" and its music video. Both agreed and recorded backing vocals for the song, and both can be seen in the music video.

In December 1985, Monroe announced that he would move to New York, and in 1986, Monroe founded his first solo band. In 1987, he released his first solo album, Nights Are So Long. The album was a moderate hit, but it attracted big record labels: In 1988, Monroe signed to Mercury Records.In 1989, Monroe's second solo album was released, titled Not Fakin' It.

The album featured guest appearances by Monroe's friends and fellow musicians, including Steven Van Zandt, Ian Hunter and Nasty Suicide. The album reached number 161 on the US Billboard Chart, and was Monroe's first album to be distributed internationally. The album also got good reviews from critics.

Music videos were shot for the singles "Dead, Jail or Rock 'N' Roll" and "Man With No Eyes". Axl Rose appeared in the music video for "Dead, Jail or Rock 'N' Roll". At that time, Michael Monroe hosted MTV's Headbangers Ball where he introduced the new music video to the world.

When Not Fakin' It was released, the Guns N' Roses record label, UZI Suicide, was re-releasing Hanoi Rocks albums in America. Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash also made a guest appearance on Monroe's Los Angeles shows in December 1989, performing the song "Looking at You".

Aerosmith's lead singer Steven Tyler had also taken notice of Monroe and asked him to perform with Aerosmith at Les Paul's 75th birthday at the Hard Rock Cafe in New York. Monroe played saxophone on the song "Big Ten Inch Record." He mostly spent the rest of 1989 and 1990 touring.

In the turn of the decade, Monroe performed along with Bryan Adams, Don Henley, Huey Lewis and Loudness in two New Year's shows at the 70,000-seat Tokyo Dome in Japan, on December 31, 1989 and January 1, 1990.

Monroe's solo career didn't prove to be as successful as he'd hoped, so in 1990 he decided to put together a new band. The band was called Jerusalem Slim, and was completed by former Billy Idol-guitarist Steve Stevens, Sami Yaffa, Greg Ellis and Ian McLagan.