Saxon @ Bataclan, Paris May 12 2011

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Saxon @ Bataclan, Paris May 12 2011

SORRY: Impossible to connect to Blogger for a whole day and the review of WIRE @ La Machine has disappeared.

We don't go to Heavy Metal gigs (very often) anymore but we couldn't miss Saxon.
Lots of people tonight , much more than last time when they've played with Iced Earth, the balcony was closed.
The audience consisted of mainly male in their 40's -50's most of them bald or with grey hair and in full gear (denim jacket with patches and black tee-shirts) which is a bit sad as it shows that they don't appeal to new generations.
Surprisingly tickets were not very expensive ( 35 euros).
We won't talk about the two support bands, we didn't see the first one and the second one was laughable, they even managed to kill Ronnie James Dio another time by butchering "Holy Diver".

Saxon chose to start the gig with a new song "Hammer of the Gods" not the best choice to start with, but they will play many songs from the back catalogue.
Won't tell you that we like the new songs as they are what we call "Dumb Heavy Metal" which Saxon never was, Saxon has always been a Hard Rock band or a Heavy Rock band but recently it seems that they want to keep up with younger bands or appeal to youngsters by playing Heavy Metal and they do sound boring when so.
Saxon can't be beaten when they're playing the old shit, the end of the show was epic with "Princess of the Night" (Here on video), "Crusader", "747 Strangers...", "Strong arm of the Law", "Wheels of Steel".

setlist

So mixed emotions, some dull parts and some (very) good parts.

Merchandising

"Princess of the Night"

WIRE @ La Machine, Paris May 11 2011

WIRE @ La Machine du Moulin Rouge
Paris May 11 2011

Post-Punk band Wire is back in Paris after playing a sold-out show @ Point Ephémere in February ( If I can remember well).
We have a good support band Lonesome Bulldog, well in fact it's just a guy on guitar, vocals and percussion (with his feet). Cool rock songs with a bit of Punk thrown in.

Then we have Wire in front of a 90% male audience, we don't know the band AT ALL, Post-Punk has never been our cup of tea and I have to say that we were a bit afraid after the second song very martial, like some German rock and fast, Heeuuugh !
In fact No they have some noisy songs but most of them are very atmospheric, well it's still with balls of course, a bit of a cold & heavy Joy Division.
Funny how the guitar player and singer looks like a Maths teacher, the bass player sung a couple of tunes.
There's a new young guitar player (not from the original line-up) that looks like Evan Dando from the Lemonheads.
No communication with the audience, they are very serious, apart from the usual Thank you at the end.
Of Course there's always a drunk fucker that get on the stage and was pushed back by the singer, I think the only sentence he said to the audience was " If you ever get back on the stage, I will fuckin' kill ya"
Good show
90 min set with two encores (see setlist for details)

setlist & Moulin Rouge (far right)

Catherine Ringer @ L'Album de la Semaine Canal+, Paris May 10 2011

Le Grand Journal is in Cannes for the festival so the recording of L'Album de la Semaine is push forward, so we missed the first two songs.
Catherine Ringer was the lead singer of French pop-Rock band Rita Mitsuko, after the death of guitar player (and husband) Fred Chichin, she's going solo.
She already performed a few warm-up shows at the tiny Boule Noire club a couple of weeks ago where journalists and photographers were NOT invited.
Different tonight as she's playing a tv show, it's still the same kind of music, French rock songs sung in french of course (apart from one song).
Catherine is "living" the songs and is acting a lot, they had to do a few songs again as they were not satisfied.
They had a couple of technical pbs on the second take but kept on performing and Catherine didn't want to do it a third time but we had to wait at the end for a good 15 min so they can see the footage backstage for finally telling us we could go home as they kept the take as it was.
Anyway...Good show

The next two weeks will be very quiet concert-wise, tonight (May 11) WIRE is playing La Machine, tomorrow (May 12) SAXON is playing le Bataclan.On saturday Twin Shadow is playing La Machine and will play a showcase @ Agnes B.(check first for all these gigs)
And then nothing until QOTSA @ Olympia on May 23rd.

Ben Harper @ Fleche d'Or, Paris May 09 2011

Ben Harper @ Fleche d'Or
Paris May 09 2011

Nice to see Ben Harper coming back to Paris to promote his new album "Give Till It's Gone" in the 500 capacity club of La Fleche d'Or.
Of course it's packed, tickets sold-out in two minutes and as usual it's hot as hell in this club, the weather doesn't help as it has been wonderfull in Paris for the last two weeks, it fells like summer time.
We're glad that Ben is back with Relentless 7 even though the new album is out as Ben Harper, maybe the record Cie told him that he needed his name on the cover to sell more records.
Thank god his band Fistful of Mercy with Dhany Harrison & Joseph Arthur didn't last long as it was really... awful.
We like when it rocks and we LOVE R7

The show is broadcasted live on the radio RTL2 (audio) and on SFR (video) @ 9:00 pm
They are on time and Ben is getting on stage on his own for the first song , a long and very quiet instrumental song then R7 is joining him on stage to play new songs (see setlist for details)

Ben will alternate between his electric guitar and acoustic guitar like he used to a few years ago, songs are less heavy than with Relentless 7 's "White Lies...", it's more the Ben Harper we know.
He's still rocking but not as much, too bad as we like when it fuckin' rocks.
Fortunately it's not as mellow as all the records he did after "Diamonds..." because they were really crap.
A good compromise between the soft and heavy sides.

He was supposed to play only 9 songs ( see 1st setlist below) but they've changed the order after the soundcheck and extended it to 12 songs but... Ben Harper came back at the end of )the show to play 3 extra songs ending with a heavy one (From R7)
Very good gig.

Ist setlist & Final setlist (far right)

"I will not be broken"


Check our previous reviews of Ben Harper & R7:
with Pics , Video & setlist @ Arras Main Square with Pearl Jam on July 3rd 2010, @ Cigale on April 20 2009 , private show @ Studio SFR on April 25 2009 & Fnac store Signing session on April 27 2009).

and Fistful of Mercy @ Cigale on Dec 05 2010

Jim Harrison + Jay Mc Inerney @ 104 for a Banquet Littéraire, Paris May 08 2011

Jim Harrison + Jay Mc Inerney @ 104 for a Banquet Littéraire

Paris May 08 2011

The writters & salad

Away from the Rock'n Roll world

Sunday afternoon @ the trendy 104 ( a "new" place in Paris for modern art) for a "Banquet Littéraire" with one of the most welknown American writter Jim Harrison.
The 104 has a new CEO who's trying to get that place more lively than it used to be these last couple of years with lots of concerts, activities...

How to mix food and litterature, around 200 people sitting at tables for a banquet... well in fact it was more a sunday brunch while 3 actors, sitting on referee chairs, were reading extracts regarding food from Jim Harrison & Jay Mc Inerney's books .
Before the lunch , the writters had a few words for the audience.

Food consisted of cream of asparagus soup, prawn from Madagascar, organic quinolone, purslane salad & Culin small cake.

Then Jim Harrison did a Q&A in another part of the 104. We met him briefly outside when he was having a smoke before signing books at the library where people were already queueing.

As it was a sunny sunday afternoon, the 104 was packed with families with children as there were kids games on the basement floor, it looked like a huge day-nursery, everything was free for the kids.
Litterature and readings for adults on one side and games for kids on the other side, there was also a huge and scary merry-go-round with giants insects, buffalo...

Jim Harrison (left) Merry-go round & scared kid (far right)

Really cool afternoon @ 104.
As Rockerparis never stops (like Rosie) we tested a few drinks at the very posh 5 star Bristol Hotel which has been granted a Palace label, with Hotel Meurice & Plaza-Athénée, strangely enough not the GV Hotel which is considered the best hotel in the world.
We've been to these places for a drink, or two and believe me, they know how to treat you like a king.
We ended the day next to the Invalides into an Italian restaurant for a tasty Pizza.

PS: thanks to Miss F for this lovely day & Royal treatment

Jean Charles de Castelbajac drawings Rue Fabert near the Invalides

AC/DC's "Live at River Plate" premiere @ Hammersmith Odeon (HMV Apollo) May 06 2011

AC/DC @ Stade de France

Too lazy to go to London as we've been told that nothing special was planned for this Premiere @ The Hammersmith Odeon.(HMV Apollo in fact)
The boys minus Phil Rudd stayed on the stage before the screening for 2-3 minutes and that was it !

Nice intro by non-other than OZZY Osbourne :

AC/DC's arrival @ Hammersmith (click to see)
Thanks to badsport2008 for the recordings

Check our Pictures of AC/DC @ Stade de France Part 3, Part 2, Part 1 in 2010

Check our previous reviews with LOTS OF GREAT PICTURES of AC/DC :
Stade de France June 12 2009
Paris Bercy 1 Feb 2009 , AC/DC @ Hotel in Paris
Paris Bercy 2 Feb 2009 , Part 2