SWSL Top 10 Live Performances Of 2006

No big festival this year (though Summer Sundae certainly exposed me to plenty of bands I may not have been sufficiently curious about to have bought gig tickets for) and I've done less travelling in pursuit of live thrills, but I think it's fairly safe to say that in 2006 I've been to more gigs than ever before.

What's more, they've been of an increasingly local, small-scale nature. During my time in Nottingham and Birmingham (in the latter, mainly thanks to the influence of Phill and Kate) I saw many local bands perform supporting roles but never really immersed myself in the "scene" in the same way that I have in Cardiff. Perhaps it's partly a consequence of there being so much good stuff going on here (see the recent Twisted By Design compilation for evidence), and long may it continue.

That said, the list which follows is still dominated by out-of-towners...

10. LOS CAMPESINOS!, Cardiff Dempseys, 16th September

"The seven-strong student outfit might only have played a handful of gigs, but it's no wonder that the likes of NME, Moshi Moshi and countless MP3 blogs have been foaming at the mouth about them like a rabid Roy Hattersley. Quite simply, they are absurdly good fun, and much more than the sum of their parts: American indie riffage, British tweeness, pop singalongs, wicked humour (a song with an opening line about playing pass the parcel with human body parts, anyone?) and boundless energy.

Excitable frontman Gareth chastises us for "cheering the hits", but in truth nothing is received with anything less than fervour. 'Infinite Lives' and the wittily cutesy 'It Started With A Mix' are ace, closer 'Sweet Dreams Sweet Cheeks' is even better (climaxing with drummer Oliver standing on his kit and leading the crowd in the chant of "One blink for yes, two blinks for no...") but once again the irresistible 'You Me Dancing!' steals the show - how could it not, as the second musical tribute of the night to Twisted By Design (after Shake My Hand's 'Indie Disco')?

Of course, it's all over far too early. The only people left relatively unmoved by the preceding half an hour are the parents stood directly in front of me. I want to tap the bemused pair on the shoulder and say "Don't worry - they really are amazing"..."

(Also seen at Cardiff Point and Cardiff Clwb Ifor Bach)

9. THE YOUNG KNIVES, Summer Sundae Festival, 12th August

"After the lull of Tuung, THE YOUNG KNIVES (Outdoor Stage) are mercifully on hand to inject a bit of much-needed life and energy into the afternoon. One glimpse of the local heroes (well, almost – they’re from Ashby-de-la-Zouch originally) and Alison’s smitten – particularly with bassist The House of Lords, who’s looking somewhat streamlined, presumably as a result of this year’s punishing touring schedule. There’s more than enough from their forthcoming debut proper Voices Of Animals And Men to suggest that it’s going to be an essential purchase – the singles in particular (‘Decision’, ‘Here Comes The Rumour Mill’ and closing duo ‘She’s Attracted To’ and ‘Weekends And Bleak Days (Hot Summer)’) are marvellous, as is ‘Loughborough Suicide’ (HoL: “I had a letter from the Loughborough Echo this week saying ‘You can’t call a song that’. But have you been there?”). That said, none of the B-sides aired – ‘Elaine’, ‘Guess The Baby’s Weight’, ‘Current Of The River’ – signal a drop in quality. Having seen them back in March, this time around I’m even more struck by the Futureheads parallels – but, with the Mackems apparently having lost their sense of humour for second LP News And Tributes, there’s more than enough room for The Young Knives to thrive. And thrive they certainly deserve to."

(Also seen at Cardiff Barfly)

8. DEAD MEADOW, Cardiff Clwb Ifor Bach, 26th May

"Whereas appearing before Mogwai on Rock City's biggest stage they seemed a little lost and remote, in this intimate room packed full with an enthusiastic Friday night crowd, and on a stage shrouded in green smoke, they are instantly at home.

Jason Simon's lyrics are barely audible given the noise they kick out, but no-one's bothered as the trio kick into another twisting, grooving jam that has my guitar-playing companion drooling into his beer and the rest of us nodding in time like dazed but deliriously happy puppets. Behind the kit Stephen McCarty, who appears to have gone feral, gradually morphs into John Bonham as the set progresses, and bassist Steve Kille hops his strange hop in front of an audience lapping up what his band are feeding us.

A fine way for Kille to celebrate his birthday, and a fine way for us to spend a Friday night."

7. THE LONG BLONDES, Summer Sundae Festival, 13th August

"There’s another full day of band-watching in store. And what better way for it to kick off than with THE LONG BLONDES (Outdoor Stage)? The Sheffield quintet are an impeccably cool art school wet dream of a band hell-bent on teaching the indie kids to dance again, sounding like a Pulp for the post Franz Ferdinand set while also referencing Blondie and 60s girl groups. ‘Weekend Without Make Up’ – a serious contender for SWSL Single Of The Year – is brilliant mid-set, while its arch B-side ‘Fulwood Babylon’ open up and the singles ‘Giddy Stratospheres’ and ‘Separated By Motorways’ also feature. Snake-hipped frontwoman Kate Jackson, wearing extremely high heels and matching turquoise neckerchief and socks, is a cross between Karen O and Mick Jagger. Can you tell I’m in love? If you haven’t heard of them yet, don’t worry – you soon will, as soon as their Steve Mackay produced debut album hits the shelves."

6. HOWLING BELLS, Summer Sundae Festival, 12th August

"Our paths have never quite crossed before, much to my annoyance, but now, finally, a chance to catch HOWLING BELLS (Indoor Stage) live – and they don’t disappoint. “They look great”, says the compere (oh yes – cowboy hats and scuffed boots for the boys, a short floaty dress and black tights for Juanita Stein), “they sound even better” (damn right), “their debut is being hailed as the album of the year” (I’d find it hard to disagree)… ‘Blessed Night’ is the opener, and between that and a fiery ‘Low Happening’ we get all bar four tracks from the aforementioned record. Occasionally there’s that sense of mystery demystified, of seeing how a delicately flavoured and lip-smackingly delicious meal has been rustled up in the kitchen, but there remains something obscure and enigmatic about them, the dark space of De Montford Hall ideally suited to their exquisite gothic blues. Stein’s voice, it gives me great pleasure to report, is as arresting in the flesh as it is on record, and she and her guitarist brother Joel are magnetic presences on stage. The real highpoint of the set – and, for me, of any set I’ve seen so far this year – is ‘A Ballad For The Bleeding Hearts’, when I get goosebumps on the goosebumps on my arms. Sublime."

5. THE MELVINS, Cardiff Point, 10th December

"Massively influential, then, but what do The Melvins actually sound like? Well, when pondering how to go about defending Birmingham's musical legacy recently, I considered posting just two words: "Black Sabbath". And it's Ozzy and company from whom Osborne and company most obviously take their cue, though it's also fair to say that the echo of Henry Rollins' Black Flag is ever-present in their fusion of metal and punk. The Melvins are unlikely to win any prizes for sophistication and subtlety, but for sheer no-nonsense wrecking-ball riffage they're hard to beat.

It's only for their latest album (A) Senile Animal (released on Ipecac, the label set up by Faith No More and Mr Bungle man Mike Patton with whom Osborne founded Fantomas) that The Melvins have expanded to a foursome - and there's a certain irony in the fact that it's a band called Big Business who have been swallowed up. Warren and Willis bring extra oomph, thump, thwack, weight. In particular, the effect of having two drummers contributing to every song - and not always simply mirroring each other, either - is quite incredible.

Each and every song is duly met with joy unrestrained by the fans at the front, whose behaviour - forming a moshpit, stagediving, throwing devil horns, lobbing half-full cans of lager about - is not that which one imagines occurs very often in churches, even those deconsecrated and converted into gig venues like the Point.

As for myself, I'm utterly transfixed by the way the spotlight illuminates Osborne's extraordinary hair (think a poodle perm exploded into a mushroom cloud) swaying and falling as he nods his head. The excruciating stiffness of my neck at the end of the night, after one final drum duel between Willis and Crover, is enough to indicate that I too have been nodding away furiously - and that I've been treated to a rather fine introduction to a rather fine band."

4. MY LATEST NOVEL, Cardiff Clwb Ifor Bach, 23rd March

"Ambient opener 'Ghost In The Gutter' and 'Pretty In A Panic' drift by before things really catch fire with the climax of 'Learning Lego', four of the five band members shouting in unison into their mics as the music gradually fades out. This is followed up with 'The Job Mr Kurtz Done' and 'When We Were Wolves', both of which depend for their impact on a similarly impassioned chorus effect, before the slight but beautiful 'The Hope Edition' and 'Wrongfully, I Rested' appear to soothe.

It's a near-perfect platform for last year's quite remarkable debut single 'Sister Sneaker Sister Soul', which begins life with an indiepop twinkle in its eye before revealing a real fire raging in its belly. A suitably stirring rendition of 'The Reputation Of Ross Francis' and its rousing chorus about "fighting tooth and nail" later, and that's it, drummer Ryan King - unfortunate to be obscured throughout by his front-of-stage bandmates - unscrewing his cymbals to scotch any possibility of an encore.

Never less than impressive, then, and with flashes of absolute brilliance."

3. YO LA TENGO, Cardiff Point, 7th November

"McNew it is who is vital to the ten minutes of sheer bliss that make up the opening song, locking down the groove with an insistent bassline to allow Kaplan to venture off into the fantasy world of the unfettered lead guitarist. If that isn't enough to win the crowd over, then the nods to local heroes certainly are - Megan of Gorky's Zygotic Mynci appears to accompany them on the violin, and Kaplan tells us that the acoustic guitar he's using belongs to Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals and has been lent to them for the occasion because "it has a nicer pick guard" than their own.

You want song titles? 'Fraid I can't help you there, really, though they definitely play 'The Weaker Part' from their splendidly titled new LP I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass, and I'm pretty certain 'I Heard You Looking' is in there somewhere too. There's a bit of a lull mid-set, I feel, when they overdose slightly on the avant-jazz and lightweight pop-rock stuff - though it has to be said they have a more catholic aesthetic than Sonic Youth, and that these songs do provide welcome textural variation. But the medley which brings the main set to an end is intense, thunderous and thrilling. Don't just take my word for it - how's about asking the hairy young man in the Eagles T-shirt moshing away at the front like his life depends on it?

They return for a low-key four song encore and, although (sadly) 'Today Is The Day' never puts in an appearance, at last there's a song I know and even own, 'Let's Save Tony Orlando's House' from 2000's And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out. Two of the others are covers: the first 'The Readymades' by The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, whom they are delighted to have seen at St David's Hall the previous night; and the second (the last song of the night) an unnamed Welsh folk song performed with a sublime gentleness of touch.

One of those nights when everything suddenly becomes crystal clear, then. Not quite gig of the year - but certainly well up there."

2. MOGWAI, Cardiff Coal Exchange, 2nd April

"'Hunted By A Freak', the gorgeous opener from 2003's Happy Music For Happy People, marks a significant shift in gear and suddenly we're in a different place. 'Summer' is its usual transcendent self, raw power and grace married to perfection, while '2 Rights Make 1 Wrong' is reworked in line with the tone of Mr Beast - in other words, the banjo and choir are dropped in favour of an excess of violently throbbing electronic bass that has the floor shaking, trousers flapping and sphincters loosening (as my companion remarks, "If I'd had a curry last night, it would be game over"...).

And then, either side of the brief break between main set and encore, we're treated to some of the heaviest and loudest riffs Black Sabbath never wrote. 'Glasgow Mega Snake' sets ears bleeding, and 'Ratts Of The Capital', even after three or four minutes when they're off stage, does nothing to staunch the flow. The set ends in the same way as Mr Beast, with 'We're No Here''s six minutes of absolute power.

Four members then leave the stage not to return, but Braithwaite and guitarist John Cummings aren't finished, instead conjuring up a fearsome racket of feedback and what sounds like a chopped-up and robotically repeated AC/DC riff accompanied by an ever-varying array of coloured strobe lights. I think it was Michael Gira of Swans who once said he wanted to play so loudly that it made people sick. Well, that certainly seems to be Mogwai's objective. We're a hardy crowd, though, and most of us stick with it, putting ourselves through the punishing closing stages of the evening in the knowledge that the inevitable tinnitus will be extreme."

1. BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE, Cardiff Point, 29th August

"What is most remarkable is that despite their being formed from fragments of other Toronto contemporaries (a fact reflected in the band name), they manage to cohere in perfect harmony. What we’re witnessing is evidently a whole host of incredibly talented musicians at work. But there’s none of the virtuosity and self-indulgence that that might imply, and there’s no room for chinstroking amongst the crowd – this is a party!

It’s great to see the likes of Spearin cutting loose (during ‘I’m Still Your Fag’ he wanders among the audience playing the trumpet), while Whiteman is a pleasure to watch throughout, throwing shapes and pulling moves like a teenage boy living out his rock band fantasies in the bedroom mirror.

But for the most part it’s Drew who’s the focus of attention. Fuelled by continual gulps of red wine, his onstage banter is relaxed and often hilarious. On being robbed: “Someone’s smoking crack on us tonight, ladies and gentlemen”. On it being Spearin’s first visit to Cardiff: “He was telling me that he played Newport with Do Make Say Think, and when they came out of the venue there were lots of little men beating each other up. And enjoying it”. On The Rolling Stones (who are busy playing the Arena): “This one’s for Keith Richards. I’d like him to live forever. Not the others, though. I don’t give a shit about them. Well, maybe Charlie Watts”.

By the end of a two hour set which leaves us and them exhausted (returning for one of the encores Peroff says into the mic “You won’t break…”), Drew is desperate for a joint, and his inability to remember how to play a solo song indicates that the wine has taken its toll. One final hurrah and then we’re out into the night, the clock having ticked past midnight.

Without a doubt the best £12 I’ve spent for some time."

Every other band / artist I've enjoyed (or, in some cases, endured) this year: Acid Mothers Temple / Adzuki / Attack + Defend / Autokat / Autons / Belle & Sebastian / Big Business / The Blockheads / Calexico / Camera Obscura / Isobel Campbell / Neil Casal / Cave In / Circa Regna Tonat / M Craft / Dedd Zebra / Deguello / The Delays / Delta Red / The Disciples Of Tone / Drei / Elbow / Bela Emerson / Field Music / DJ Format / Forward Russia! / Stephen Fretwell / Liam Frost & The Slowdown Family / Gender Fascist / Gindrinker (x2) / Jose Gonzales / Lily Green (x2) / Guillemots / Richard Hawley / The Keys / Seth Lakeman / Larrikin Love / Little My & Friends (x3) / Lone Pine / The Loungs / Lovemat / The Loves / The Martini Henry Rifles / Minotaur Shock / Morning Runner / My Passion / Nouvelle Vague / Noxagt / Porchlight / Porn (The Men Of) / Semifinalists / Shake My Hand / Shy Magnolias / StrangeTime / The Stray Borders / Taint / Threatmantics / The Toy Band / Truckers Of Husk / Tuung / Venus Elixir / The Voices / Voice Of The Seven Woods / The Voom Blooms / The Wave Pictures / Danny George Wilson / Winnebago Deal / You & The Atom Bomb / Zumbar

This being the fifth year of the SWSL end-of-year lists, I thought perhaps it might be worth looking back at previous lists.

2002
10. FUGAZI, Nottingham Rock City
9. J MASCIS, Nottingham Social
8. GODSPEED! YOU BLACK EMPEROR, Hackney Ocean
7. THE WHITE STRIPES, Glastonbury
6. QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, Nottingham Rock City
5. THE ICARUS LINE, Leeds Festival
4. JANE'S ADDICTION, Leeds Festival
3. QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, Glastonbury Festival
2. SONIC YOUTH, Shepherds Bush Empire
1. GUNS 'N' ROSES, Leeds Festival

2003
10. THE DELGADOS, Birmingham Academy
9. YEAH YEAH YEAHS, Leeds Festival
8. MOGWAI, Glastonbury Festival
7. EELS, Birmingham Irish Centre
6. THE RAVEONETTES, Birmingham Academy
5. THE FLAMING LIPS, Glastonbury Festival
4. JANE'S ADDICTION, Nottingham Rock City
3. LOW, Birmingham Academy
2. SIGUR ROS, Glastonbury Festival
1. RADIOHEAD, Glastonbury Festival

2004
10. MUSE, Glastonbury Festival
9. FRANZ FERDINAND, Birmingham Academy
8. P J HARVEY, Glastonbury Festival
7. THE ICARUS LINE, Nottingham Rock City
6. THE FIERY FURNACES, Nottingham Stealth
5. MOGWAI, Nottingham Rock City
4. SPIRITUALIZED, Nottingham Rock City
3. THE FUTUREHEADS, Birmingham Academy
2. NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS, Wolverhampton Civic Hall
1. SONIC YOUTH, Brixton Academy

2005
10. MERCURY REV, Birmingham Academy
9. THE PUBIC FRINGE, Birmingham Flapper & Firkin
8. DRESDEN DOLLS, Glastonbury Festival
7. THE WHITE STRIPES, Glastonbury Festival
6. DIRTY THREE, Birmingham Academy
5. MAXIMO PARK, Glastonbury Festival
4. SIGUR ROS, Birmingham Academy
3. THE FUTUREHEADS, Glastonbury Festival
2. LOW, Wolverhampton Wulfrun Hall
1. BRIAN WILSON, Glastonbury Festival