Opening the evening was another favourite, Porridge Radio. Tonight was a stripped-back acoustic set of new material with Dana playing on her own without a band. This was how I discovered her. I love Dana with her band, but here stripped-back in a great sounding venue, Dana’s vocals were centre stage, and the reason I love her band, is the emotion she puts into her vocals. This was a fantastic way to start the evening.

With my history of shooting the Union Chapel for Daylight Music, I have a massive affinity for the Chapel. It is a very special place that allows a performer to play intimately, while also playing to a large audience. The gallery space means the performer on the stage is the focus while everyone still feels close. It helps that the stained glass windows, add an extra special ambience.

Tonight, Ezra played a stripped-back set, accompanied on some songs by Ben Joseph on piano, but for the rest of the time it was just Ezra in the spotlight in the darkened space. It felt close and personal. With the introspective nature of Ezra’s songs, this worked really well. Ezra introduce many of the songs and reflecting on the moments in her life that led her to write the songs, providing a little insight into her personal development. Mid-way through the set, she decided to read two chapters of ‘Delmore Huggs’ an amusing story about happiness. It could have felt awkward and forced, instead, it was simply brilliant. Such a lovely evening.

Set list

• The Queen of Hearts
• Hour of Deepest Need
• Trans Mantra
• Strange Girl
• Take Me as I Am (or Let Me Go)
• Social Anxiety
• The Sad Story of Delmore Huggs (story)
• Lay in the Sun
• Down
• Maraschino-Red Dress $8.99 at Goodwill
• Driving Down to L.A.
• The Refugee
• Watch You Go By
• Love You So Bad
• Point Me Toward the Real
• Come Close
• Temple of Broken Dreams
• Book of Our Names

Photos from a pocket camera

What is great about Ezra is she manages to combine great tunes with clever song lyrics which have a touch of her acerbic wit. You know you are going to always see something special. Tonight was no different.

Leaning heavily on her last two albums, which I guess have songs which better reflects where she is in life. There was a lot of love in the room. While her gigs have always been LGBTQ+ friendly. Her recent recognition of herself, meant there were a quite a few trans people in the audience, all happy to see representation in music.

As always, Love You So Bad, was the highlight of a strong evening. Like all Ezra’s best songs. It tells a story that feels autobiographical and like so many of her songs, it has a bitter twist at the end and I think this is why she is well loved. She wears her heart on her sleeve and opens a curtain to a life with complications that most of us don’t have to face.

Set List

• Train Comes Through
• Evening Prayer aka Justice
• Maraschino Red Dress $8.99 At Goodwill
• Trauma
• Point Me Towards The Real
• Transition From Nowhere To Nowhere
• Throne
• Poor Girl A Long Way From Heaven
• Dressed In Black
• I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend
• Haunted Head
• I Saw The Truth Undressing
• Lilac & Black
• Forever In Sunset
• Driving Down To LA
• My Zero
• Love You So Bad
• Suck The Blood From My Wound
• What Can You Do But Rock ‘n’ Roll?
• Can I Sleep / Calm Down
• Because The Night

For the last few years, singer song writers have featured heavily but this year they have taken a back seat. This probably reflects who I’ve saw this year. It is also the first time a Jazz record has been on my list, with Jamie Branch. And for probably the only time, the list features a snooker player!

As usual, deciding on the order has been difficult. I’ve spent the last week re-listening to all my favourite albums to work out my top 20. The top three were especially difficult as they all were my favourite album at some point of the year.

Top 20 Albums of 2019

1. Fontaines D.C. – Dogrel
2. The Murder Capital – When I Have Fears
3. Black Midi – Schalagenheim
4. Dry Cleaning – Sweet Princess EP
5. LIFE – A Picture of Good Health
6. Drahla – Useless Coordinates
7. Richard Dawson – 2020
8. Erland Cooper – Sule Skerry
9. Warmduscher – Tainted Lunch
10. Avalanche Party – 24 Carat Diamond Trephine
11. Girl Band – The Talkies
12. Aldous Harding – Designer
13. RAKTA – Falha Comum
14. Jamie Branch – FLY or DIE II: bird dogs of paradise
15. Lewsberg – Lewsberg
16. Automatic – Signal
17. Ezra Furman – Twelve Nudes
18. Snapped Ankles – Stunning Luxury
19. The Utopia Strong – The Utopia Strong
20. French Vanilla – How Am I Not Myself

Artists I liked

Spring King, Fizzy Blood, Nadine Shah, Ezra Furman x2, Abjects, Colleen Green, Hookworms, Soliloquy, Protection Spells, The Orielles x2, British Sea Power x3, Gurr, Mr Ben and the Bens, The Lovely Eggs, Matt Emery, Poppy Ackroyd, The Blinders, The Solo Collective,

Artists that were okay

Blushes, Alice Phelps, Tiny Leaves, Bennet Wilson Poole, Grawl!x, Penelope Isles, DunningWebsterUnderwood, Phobophobes,

Artists I won’t be going out of my way to see again

Cozy, Zkeletonz

Best Gig

It was a good month for gigs. British Sea Power are always good value. Ezra Furman played a fantastic two hour set at the Lexington. But I’ll have to give it to Nadine Shah at the Roundhouse. She stepped up to the occasion and proved that she can play any size of venue

Best new artist

There wasn’t any outstanding new bands this month.

Albums of the Month

• Twin Fantasy – Car Seat Headrest
• Silver Dollar Moment – The Orielles
• Basic Behaviour – FRIGS
• Resolve – Poppy Ackroyd
• This is Eggland – The Lovely Eggs
• Microshift – The Hookworms
• Transangelic Exodus – Ezra Furman

Best photo

Artists I liked

Dilemma Collective, Benjamin Brooker, The Shivas, Public Service Broadcasting, Ezra Furman x2, This is the Kit, Mercury Rev, David Julyan & Heloïse Werner, Deerful, Gurr, Fightmilk, The Hayman Kupa Band, The Vaulted Skies, The Kut, Queen Kwong

Artists that were okay

Clémentine March, Spyros Giasafakis, Chorões, Jacob and Drinkwater, A.J. Holmes, Creatures, Hanni El Khatib, Guttfull, The Franklys, Skinny Girl Diet, Blood Dope-Honey, The Pearl Harts

Artists I won’t be going out of my way to see again

Bit Cloudy

Best Gig

Another month with some decent gigs. The highlight has to be Mercury Rev at the Barbican with an orchestra.

Best new band

A bit short of outstanding new bands. Benjamin Brooker has been around for a while and I’ve had tickets to see him, but never managed to catch him. His gig at the Moth Club was full of energy. Exactly what I expected.

Albums of the Month

• Every Valley – Public Service Broadcasting
• Moonshine Freeze – The Is The Kit
• Eurgh! – Breakfast Muff
• In My Head – Gurr

Best photo

I managed to catch him twice at SXSW.  The first a full-band gig at the Bella Union venue. The second a solo gig in a dive bar, the day after the festival finished. Both great in their own way. But both benefiting from the intimacy fir relatively small venues. So I wondered if he’d work in the Roundhouse. But I thought I’d give it a go.

In all honesty. The evening wasn’t as strong as those more intimate sets. The short sets benefiting from intense quality. The longer set has a few lulls as he played some songs that weren’t up to his very best. But it was great to see somebody who seemed overwhelmed to find that a little queer kid (his words), wearing a dress and singing simple rock and roll songs could play such a big venue and the crowd seemed to appreciate this. 

Support was from Charlotte Church with her glorified karaoke band. Not for me and a waste of her voice