music

BLOG: There’s nothing sweet about today: Sourest Day

October 25th, a day you may see as normal as every other day, but today is in fact Sourest Day don’t ya know. 

Yes, that’s right, a day to celebrate all things sour, whether that be food or people. 

Like with many of these whimsical holidays, the origins are unknown. One assumption that can be made though is that someone brainstormed it to encourage others to try new sour foods, or to turn their attention to the sour people in their lives, maybe making things a little sweeter. 

Sourness itself is a taste. It detects acidity in a food item, thus determining its level of sourness. Scientists rank substances on their sourness by comparing it to hydrochloric acid, which has a sourness index of 1. 

The word sour is used to refer to someone who is angry, disagreeable, or irritable. A person who harbours resentment or disappointment is also sometimes called a sour person.

A quick google search presents a few ideas for how one may celebrate this holiday, with the ideas being as follows:

1.     Try some sour beverages such as limeade, buttermilk and drinking vinegar.

2.     Try some sour food, such as sour citrus fruits for breakfast, or some lemon chicken for lunch. A ceviche, grapefruit salad and key lime pie would make the perfect sour dinner.

3.     Some sour candy is obvious. You could bring some to your co-workers or just try them solo.

4.     Maybe you know a slightly sour person in your life! Well, doing something nice for them to sweeten their sour may help.

FUN FACT:

An average adult has about 10,000 taste buds in their mouth, reducing in number as people age.

 

REVIEW: Corsets, Charisma and Classics- Erasure Had It All

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All Images Subject to Copyright

Fans of Erasure will know they never do things by halves, with their first post-pandemic tour being no exception.

The British synth-pop duo, consisting of Andy Bell and Vince Clarke, landed at Cardiff’s Motorpoint Arena on Tuesday 12th with their dazzling array of lights and dramatics to glitz-up the Welsh Capital, and they certainly made up for lost time.

Going into the show, I knew my 20-year-old self would likely bring down the average age of the audience, but with the 80’s being my favourite genre, this didn’t faze me in the slightest.

Myself and my boyfriend’s fabulous mother were ready for a dance, and as we surveyed the crowds around us, it looked like everyone else was as-well. My expectation of some dazzling outfits was met, with feather boas, sequins, light-up clothing and jewellery aplenty. We were in good company for a party. 

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All Images Subject to Copyright

When singer Andy Bell strutted out onto the stage, I think it’s safe to say I wasn’t the only one who had Rupert Bear spring to mind. His striking yellow chequered trousers remarkably resembled the cartoon characters’, although admittedly his bright blue compact corset made the complete look a little different. 

His below-the-nipple contraption looked about as comfortable as having a rock for a pillow, but comfort to Bell is likely his last thought when considering his wardrobe. Clarke on the other hand stuck to a more formal grey suit, pairing perfectly with his notorious deadpan expression, broken occasionally with a wry smile often caused by Bell.

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Striking lights graced the stage in reflection of the tour’s name: ‘The Neon’, with additional glows and graphics flashing to light up the arena. In true Erasure style, the techno-beats and electronic music were as lively as ever and kept audiences on their feet as they partied the night away to the dance anthems.  

Kicking off the 23-song setlist, the band opened with their 1991 hit ‘Chorus’ to set the upbeat tone for the evening. The duo were accompanied on stage by two brilliant backing singers, Valerie and Emma, who appeared in flamboyant fur coats before ditching them for neon dresses to cool down- their vivacious fashion very fitting for the show. 

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New songs from the album accompanied hits such as ‘Sometimes’, ‘A Little Respect’, and ‘Blue Savannah’ well, and was proof that this was more than a greatest hits tour. The superb new singles cemented Erasure’s status as being as fresh and current now as they were in the 80’s and 90’s. 

Ever the showman, Andy made sure to connect with his audience as well as perform for them, engaging in conversation with people in the front row as well as reaching out to the whole arena. The only problem I, and no doubt others, found with this was that often the sound didn’t balance out quite right, and his words were a little lost. 

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All Images Subject to Copyright

I think we all breathed a sigh of relief on Behalf of Andy, when Vince cut him free from his corset halfway through the show, breaking free from his restraint and opting for a cheeky yellow vest with a monkey on instead. ‘This is the monkey who took a selfie. I have him on a top’, he proudly informed the arena, with the cheeky photo perhaps reflecting his own personality. 

A show dazzled with lights, extravagant fashion and pop classics that just kept on coming, what wasn’t to love? A packed Motorpoint saw thousands dancing and singing the night away, loving every minute of the show. It’s safe to say we all enjoyed ourselves that night, and Erasure have still got it. 

Review by: Gabriela Page for KCL

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All Images Subject to Copyright

Setlist:

1.     Chorus

2.     Hey Now (Think I Got a Feeling)

3.     Fill Us With Fire

4.     Sacred

5.     The Circus

6.     Who Needs Love Like That

7.     Nerves of Steel

8.     Blue Savannah

9.     Chains of Love

10.  Turns the Love to Anger

11.  Careful What I Try To Do

12.  Sometimes

13.  Save Me Darling

14.  Shot A Satellite

15.  Love to Hate You

16.  Love Is a Stranger (Eurythmics cover)

17.  Drama!

18.  Always

19.  Stop!

20.  Push me Shove Me

21.  Victim of Love

Encore:

22.  Oh l’amour

23.  A Little Respect

Review: The last hurrah- Genesis rock their final tour

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In a digital world where trends seemingly change every minute, new singers and bands coming onto the scene every day, it can be easy to have a short-lived career in the industry. Most artists can only dream of having a career that spans 54 years, Genesis have done just that though.
With over half a century of recording music and performing to crowds, it’s no surprise they wanted one final tour before ailing band members and old age gets in the way and they pack it in for good.

The Last Domino? Tour has seen the band tour for the first time in 14 years, covering North America, the UK and Ireland. The first in 14 years, the last forever, this tour carries significance in not only giving the band closure and the chance to play together once again, but for fans to experience them live one very last time. 

Phil Collins’ poor health is no secret and was evident as he walked out onto the stage, taking a seat in the centre with his visible frailty apparent to the 15,000-strong crowd. This didn’t stop him from bringing his talent and humour to the show though, as his vocals and dry wit rang out through the arena for all to enjoy.

As he perched on his chair, he was accompanied by the rest of the band, which included his 20-year-old-son Nicholas on drums. The show took off with the 1980 instrumental ‘Duke’s End’, transitioning into ‘Turn It on Again’, to build up the sound whilst luring the crowd into the performance.

If anyone was doubting Collins’s ability to front the band still, those doubts quickly melted away once he started singing. Sure, his vocal range wasn’t quite the same as it was in the 80’s, but the power projected from Collins voice and his sincereness from the singing, along with a natural charisma, entranced the crowd.

Arguably, things wouldn’t have sounded quite the same if Nicholas Collins hadn’t of inherited and practised the ability to play his dad’s parts with such precision. You’d be forgiven for thinking it was Phil himself. Clearly the natural talent running through his DNA along with years of hard work and dedication have paid off, as even Phil couldn’t help but look on with pride at his sons masterful drumming. 

Founding members Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks, along with long-time touring guitarist Daryl Stuermer, all showed they’ve still got it, all carrying the weight of the show between their talented fingers. 

The band’s decision to also have two backup vocalists on stage was the right one. Daniel Pearce and Patrick Smyth aided Collins with some of the higher notes which aren’t quite as reachable in his is older age, whilst remaining unobtrusive and appearing infrequently, proving that Collins clearly doesn’t need much help.

When Collins promised at the start of the show that this tour, which was supposed to kick off in November 2020, was going to be a fun one, he wasn’t kidding. 

Bringing hits such as ‘Land of Confusion’ (my personal favourite), ‘Invisible Touch’ and ‘No Son of Mine’ to name a few, along with concert classics like ‘Home By the Sea’ and ‘Domino’, created a perfect setlist for fans to dance, sing and rightly have fun to. 

The bands acoustic diversion after their first set meant saying goodbye to the keyboard and anything else with a techno beat or vibe, even leaving Nicholas Collins with noticeably smaller drumming utensils. Stripping down ‘That’s All’, ‘The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway’ and ‘Follow You Follow Me’ was certainly a good choice and felt a rather personal touch from the band to the audience.

The almost sombre, thought-provoking tone reflected how this would be the band’s last string of live rendezvous together, with them wanting to create something magical to leave fans with.  

The on-stage graphics and designs were quite a marvel- nothing new as Genesis have long been renowned for their stage design since the Peter Gabriel days. A movable lighting rig imitating giant dominoes, large screens across stage and plenty of animations to accompany, but not intrude, on the songs was the icing on the cake for this show.

As Collins’ pointed out, a currently particularly topical song, ‘Land of Confusion’, was the perfect illustration of how the bands songs have moved with the times and are as current now as they were then. Masked animated figures patrolled over cities and land in graphics on screen- another sign perhaps of how Genesis’s songs will forever remain relevant. 

Should miracles be scarce, or Peter Gabriel have a sudden longing to perform with the group again, this is Genesis’ farewell. Collins has made it clear he has no intention of playing with the band after this tour, and that this would be goodbye.

For life-long fans and newbies alike, this tour provides the perfect farewell. A magnificent spectacle as the final curtain prepares to fall on Genesis performances forever.

Setlist:

Set 1:

Behind the Lines / Duke's End

Turn It On Again

Mama

Land of Confusion

Home by the Sea

Second Home by the Sea

Fading Lights

The Cinema Show

(second half; with "Riding The… more)

Afterglow

Acoustic

That's All

The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway

Follow You Follow Me

Set 2:

Duchess

No Son of Mine

Firth of Fifth

I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)

(with "Stagnation" snippet)

Domino

Throwing It All Away

Tonight, Tonight, Tonight

Invisible Touch

Encore:

I Can't Dance

Play Video

Dancing With the Moonlit Knight

(1st verse)

       The Carpet Crawlers

 

By Gabriela Page

What's On Weekly: 21/09/21

Welcome to this week’s What’s on Weekly here at KCL, where we provide our readers with up-to date information on what’s going on in and around Cardiff every week.

From pop-up markets to gigs and outdoor attractions running as restrictions ease, there’s plenty to do in the Capital, you just may not know about it! But that’s where we’re here to help and will be listing all the what’s on and any need-to-know information you’ll need to plan your week ahead. 

So, without further ado, here’s what you can look forward to this week!

Monday 27th

o   The Hunna, Cardiff University Students’ Union, 19:00

o   Ian Stirling- Falling Upwards, The Glee Club Cardiff, 20:00

o   Quids In- The Nugget Party, PRZYM Cardiff, 21:00

o   Lost Lands Cult 80’s, Corporation Yard Cardiff, 19:00

o   Jazz and Blues Club, The Bootlegger Cardiff, 17:00

Tuesday 28th

o   The Freshers House Party, Story Nightclub Cardiff, 23:00

o   Applebum/Cardiff/Freshers Jump Off, Cardiff University Students’ Union, 22:00

o   Courting, Clwb Ifor Bach Cardiff, 19:00

o   Clwb’s Alt Disco, Clwb Ifor Bach Cardiff, 23:00

Wednesday 29th

o   PRYZM presents Basshunter

o   Mo Gilligan 2021- There’s Mo To Life, St David’s Hall Cardiff, 20:00

o   Cipher: Cardiff Launch Party, Clwb Ifor Bach, 23:00

Thursday 30th  

o   Julia Bardo Live, Clwb Ifor Bach Cardiff, 19:30

o   Weird (in house disco), Vale Sports Arena ltd, 22:00

o   Vice City: Fleetwood Mac, Clwb Ifor Bach Cardiff, 23:00

o   Student Rocks with Sam Johnson from Love Island, Tiger Tiger Cardiff, 23:00

o   Cirque Du Soul, Cardiff University Students’ Union, 14:00

o   Gecko, The Moon Cardiff, 19:30

Friday 1st

o   Fix Friday’s, PRYZM Greyfriars Road Cardiff, 21:00

o   Marisha Wallace, Dora Stoutzker Concert Hall Cardiff, 19:10

o   Gwilym, Clwb Ifor Bach Cardiff, 19:00

o   Kanadia- Live after Lockdown, The Globe Cardiff, 19:00

Saturday 2nd

o   Inside Out Festival Cardiff, Bute Park Cardiff, 12:00

o   Journey: Trance Classics, Vaults Cardiff, 14:00

o   Graham Gouldman- Heart Full of Songs, The Gate Cardiff, 19:00

o   Dirty Pop, Clwb Ifor Bach Cardiff, 22:30

o   Cut Capers, The Globe Cardiff, 19:00

o   Boiler Room: Cardiff- open dancefloors tour, Tramshed Cardiff, 22:00

o   Basic State, The Vulcan Lounge Cardiff, 21:00

Sunday 3rd

o   Leo Sayer- The Show Must Go On, St David’s Hall Cardiff, 19:30

o   Squid, Clwb Ifor Bach Cardiff, 19:00

o   COBO: Comedy Shutdown Black History Month Special, Uni 7a The Glee Club Cardiff, 18:00

Know of an event or activity on in Cardiff or the surrounding areas coming up? Let us know! If you’d like your event to be featured in our What’s on Weekly, then get in touch via: infocardifflive@gmail.com or DM us on Instagram @keepcardifflive, and for a £3 donation* via our website, we’ll include it on our list!

*All donations go towards running costs of the site which enables us to keep getting great content out for you to enjoy! If you’d like to support us, head over to the KCL website where you can find the donation box on the homepage. Thank you!

 

 

What's on Weekly: 20/09/21

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Welcome to our first What’s on Weekly here at KCL, where we’ll be providing our readers with up-to date information on what’s going on in and around Cardiff every week.

From pop-up markets to gigs and outdoor attractions running as restrictions ease, there’s plenty to do in the Capital, you just may not know about it! But that’s where we’re here to help and will be listing all the what’s on and any need-to-know information you’ll need to plan your week ahead. 

So, without further ado, here’s what you can look forward to this week!

Monday 20th

o   The Hunna, Cardiff University Students’ Union, 19:00

o   Emo Boozy Brunch, Revolution, Cardiff, 16:00-03:00

o   Mason Hill, The Globe Cardiff, 19:00

o   Quids In Freshers Launch, PRYZM Cardiff, 21:00

o   Brian Wilson, Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, 19:00

o   Priscilla Queen of the Desert, New Theatre Cardiff, 19:30

o   Blood Youth, Clwb Ifor Bach, 19:30

Tuesday 21st

o   Mode: The Gran Opening, Revolution Cardiff, 21:00

o   No Poetry Presents: Squidge & Sunset Sunday, 19:00

o   Genevieve’s Tuesday Night Open Mic Night, Porter’s Cardiff, 20:00

Wednesday 22nd

o   Bring Me the Horizon, Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, 18:30

o   Hannah Grace, Clwb Ifor Bach, 19:30

o   PRZYM Presents: Jonasu Live, PRZYM Cardiff, 22:00

Thursday 23rd

o   Invicta Audio Tour x Pull Up: Cardiff, Clwb Ifor Bach, 23:00

o   TNT Freshers Launch, Walkabout Cardiff, 22:00

Friday 24th

o   Cardiff Rugby vs Connacht, Cardiff Arms Park, Westgate Street Cardiff CF10 1JA, 19:35

o   Bing Lingo, Depot Cardiff, 18:00

o   Intirave Cardiff Reggaeton International Freshers, Revolution Cardiff, 22:00

o   Shake: freshers welcome party with Danny T, Story Nightclub Cardiff, 22:00

Saturday 25th

o   Walk for Parkinson’s Cardiff, Bute Park Cardiff, 10:00

o   Cardiff Devils vs Guildford Flames, Ice Arena Wales Olympian Drive Cardiff CF11 0JS, 19:00

o   Concert in the Parc- #RMFestival2021, Clos Parc Radur Cardiff, 11:00

o   TDC Presents: Bandicoot, Tiny Rebyl Cardiff, 19:30

o   Midnight Tornado Cardiff Live #1, Fuel Rock Club, 18:30

 

Sunday 26th

o   An Evening of Queen, Glamorgan Cricket Ground Sophia Gardens Cardiff CF11 9XR, 19:30

o   Cardiff Freshers UV Neon Rave, Story Nightclub Cardiff, 22:00

o   Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, St David’s Hall Cardiff, 20:00

o   Andrew Peterson, Highfields Church, 07:00

Know of an event or activity on in Cardiff or the surrounding areas coming up? Let us know! If you’d like your event to be featured in our What’s on Weekly, then get in touch via: infocardifflive@gmail.com or DM us on Instagram @keepcardifflive, and for a £3 donation* via our website, we’ll include it on our list!

*All donations go towards running costs of the site which enables us to keep getting great content out for you to enjoy! If you’d like to support us, head over to the KCL website where you can find the donation box on the homepage. Thank you!

 

Daily Nuisances

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Today it’s a bit of a rant on our blog. Not a full-blown end-of-the-world type rant. Just a little moan to get stuff off our chests, stuff that is not doubt very relatable to many.

It can be the little things in life that gets to us, can’t it? As a nation, we’re renowned for complaining but often lack the ability to stand up and right our grievances face-to-face. We may not be too impressed with our main course at the restaurant, but God forbid we let the chef know! ‘Oh yes it was lovely, thank you’, we mutter as we flash a false smile and proceed to leave a tip out of sheer panic that anyone may think we didn’t enjoy ourselves.

Whether we like it or not, nuisances are riddled throughout daily life. Take not being able to find the matching sock to complete your pair, now that’s an all too familiar scenario come Monday morning. Why can we not seem to keep the same colour together instead of inevitably resorting to odd socks for the day? 

The smaller an issue, the more annoying it can often be. It’s a bit like when stubbing your toe on the bed can feel so much worse than any other pain you’ve experienced, we often sweat the small stuff and get more annoyed the pettier the issue. 

But why do we get this way? What causes us to feel these frustrations over life’s niggly nuisances? Is it because we simply enjoy complaining? Personally, I have another theory.

When there’s a big problem, and I’m talking big picture things like real emergencies and incidents in life, it can feel like things are out of our control, like we’re helpless. We have a better way of accepting that we can’t do anything, but when it’s something smaller, more trivial, we get annoyed as it could’ve been prevented easily. There’s more control in those situations, and we perhaps struggle with the fact that something so silly can happen. 

I feel that is where our true frustrations and nuisances lie. Lapse of control in the most trivial of momentary problems. We could’ve thrown away the 50 chargers that don’t work so that they’re not clogging up our draws. We could try a better job of keeping our matching pairs of socks together. We could even check replace the loo roll BEFORE we go to the toilet. But these things have a sneaky habit of escaping our busy schedules of life, and come back in the form of daily nuisances when forgotten. 

 

Review: ‘When Paris Calls’ single by Emma Mae

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Singer/songwriter Emma Mae has released her second single of 2021, ‘When Paris Calls’, and it’s the summer pop-bop we needed.

Leicester-born Emma has taken a slightly different path from her previous single, ‘Boys in Bands’, switching up the slowed-down, chilled out strumming for a quicker tempo and latin beat to make for a catchy song. 

Mae’s penned her lyrics about someone discovering their partner has done the dirty and cheated with a woman named, you guessed it, Paris. Her lyrical brilliance captures both the bitterness and sadness of the affair but portrays it in such a way that you can’t help but chuckle with admiration at the lines, one notably being ‘when Paris calls you run to her, getting over me, under her.’  

Before the track’s release, a series of murder-mystery style teasers were released across social media, with fans being left to put the pieces together and figure out the answer to the question ‘who’s calling’? With three suspects named and shamed, Destiny, Summer and Paris, it was ultimately the latter that was on the other end of the telephone, and the winner of the guessing game can now proudly pin an ‘Emma Mae think I’m awesome’ badge to their jacket.

Full of catchy notes, upbeat rhythms and Emma’s gentle, dulcet tones, this buoyant break-up anthem is the perfect song to have blasting in the car on a summer day (or when you’re singing bitterly in front of the mirror over your ex). 

You can listen to it here on Spotify!

Virtual Glastonbury Went Off With a Glitch

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The evening of Saturday 22nd May, festival and music enthusiasts alike tuned in to partake in a little pandemic escapism and have the closest thing we could get to the Glastonbury experience- although without the inevitable wading in mud and instead embracing the comfort of your own home. ‘Live at Worthy Farm’ would be filmed at the ground of the world-renowned festival and available to watch all around the world. 

But just like with happenings this past year, things didn’t go quite to plan…

Instead of being able to watch a smoothly run special film shot at Worthy Farm, featuring artists such as Haim, Coldplay and George Ezra, technical glitches were afoot and tampered with the much-anticipated event. 

The problems with the link that ‘Glasthomebury’ goers paid £20 to access failed to work for anyone when it came to logging on for Wolf Alice at 7pm for the first setlist of the evening. Organisers worked quickly and non-stop in order to avoid disappointing those who had been anticipately waiting for a night of fun amongst a chaotic year, and eventually managed to fix it. A free link was released in the end so that it could be accessible for all, and those who had paid were emailed with the offer for a refund.

I have to say though, it didn’t spoil my home Glasto fun. 

Like with many events, it was most enjoyable with others around you, and dressing up to look the part is half the fun. 

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Donning Hawaiian shirts and sporting glitter laden faces put me in festival mode, with all that was missing was a fashionable pair of wellies. Just being able to get together with others and have a laugh, a drink or two and have a nigh of distraction and fun was enough in itself. 

The fact that Eurovision was able to entertain in the meantime whilst Worthy Farm experienced difficulties was a huge bonus. There’s nothing that gets you in the party mood quite like some cheesy European anthems paired with eye-catching outfits. So, after some glitzy Eurovision fun, getting on to the Glastonbury livestream was still a joy.

It may not have been quite as upbeat and energetic as what was being streamed live from Rotterdam, but the film itself was beautiful. It was a very laid-back sort of affair, with Haim playing their chilliest, dreamiest songs and Damion Alburn taking a seat at a piano rather than riling up the virtual crowds.

Coldplay arguably brought the most concert-like performance of the evening, with their statement colourful bright lights and upbeat anthems being belted out in front of the structure of the famous Pyramid Stage. Chris Martin’s love for Glastonbury isn’t exactly a secret, so perhaps his passion and enthusiasm for the Somerset festival helped carry the performance across into viewers living rooms. 

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There were many who were disappointed with what happened, but I chose to embrace the Glasto spirit and look at the positives. I had a good time with people, we had DIY Glastonbury decorations which cheered everyone up and we managed to watch it in the end and have a good time. It just shows that in this digital age we’re in now that even the giants encounter technicalities, and if over a year of Covid has taught us anything, it’s to have just a little more patience.