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The Mid 1990’s was a bad time to be a rock band. Rock was facing a backlash from the overindulgence of the late ‘80s/early ‘90s. With stalwarts that defined an era self-imploding (Guns N’ Roses, Motley Crue) and Grunge rising to fill the void of the disaffected youth, it was a tough time to launch a rock band with a classic blues sound.

SKIN were one band that emerged during this turbulent time.

Daring to write classic feel-good rock tracks, Skin stood out from the crowd and committed that cardinal sin of putting a live show on where the band were clearly enjoying themselves.

With a lack of support from the record industry, the band called it a day in 1998 and bowed out with a farewell tour that left many a good memory in SKIN fans minds.

When an opportunity to play the Download festival 2009 arrived, the band were convinced to talk to each other and actually do it.

The first I heard about the fact that they were playing one of three warm-up gigs in Wolverhampton was when I noticed a billboard advertising the show. I assumed it was actually going to be a comeback gig from the lead singer of Skunk Anansi, such was my scepticism that the band would ever reform. Then I saw an article in Classic Rock magazine confirming that Neville MacDonald, Myke Gray, Andy Robbins, Dicki Fliszar and keyboardist Colin McLeod were actually going to play Download and that I could actually see the guys play in Wolverhampton once again.

So after 11 years of obscurity, did they still have the magic, or would it be the remnants of a truly great band reminiscing former glories?

Typically for SKIN at Wolverhampton, they started late. With what seemed like an eternity of the road crew testing, tuning and miming along to the likes of AC/DC and KISS playing on the PA, things did look a little worrying.

Opening with a slew of tracks from Experience Electric, any fears of a disappointment quickly evaporated as the band blasted through a 90 minute set

The guys looked and sounded great. Neville jokingly asking ‘What the f*** is this all about?’ when referring to the fact that his once huge hair was now closer cropped, and Myke showing what the last few years as a ‘Life Coach’ can do to a man’s body.

The only one who looked completely unchanged was bass player Andy Robbins, who could easily have been in cryogenic storage for the last 11 years.

The hair may be shorter, but the songs and sound were as big as they ever were. I really had forgotten how loud SKIN were. It was almost as if they were testing the volume levels for Download as well as warming up for the gig itself.

After an opening salvo of later-years tracks, the band launched from one classic SKIN track to another. The tempo only dropping briefly for the big ballad ‘Which Are The Tears?’ from their eponymous debut album before picking up again.

The band were clearly having the time of their lives and once again, SKIN were unashamedly enjoying themselves.

Despite my initial fears, Neville’s voice still had it and he was visibly touched that even after 11 years, there was still a lot of love for the band and their music.

There was a real party atmosphere all the way through the gig, despite a couple of technical hitches and the roof of the Wulfrun Hall was blown off by a singalong ‘Look, But Don’t Touch’. A very emotional ‘Tower of Strength’ followed with ‘Unbelieveable’ to close off the main set.

It was obvious that an encore would soon follow, with the band blasting through another 4 classic tracks from the first album and ‘Lucky’ before bringing the house down with ‘Shine Your Light’.

I was initially intending to make a note of the setlist, but to be honest, I was having too much of a good time Highlights included:

• Money
• Shine your Light
• House of Love
• Colourblind
• Which are the Tears
• Look, But Don’t Touch
• Tower of Strength
• Unbelievable
• Take me down to the River
• How Lucky You Are
• Perfect Day

The Wulfrun Hall is a nice venue for this sort of gig, the Download stage won’t be as intimate. However, if anyone is attending Download, they should take the time to see SKIN, you are in for a treat. If you missed the gig and can’t make Download, the band were videoing the whole of the Wulfrun event, so we may see a DVD release of the concert…

So what’s next for the band? There are rumours circulating on the Internet that a support slot for Sammy Hagar’s Chickenfoot is in the offering. Nev refused to be drawn, simply stating they ‘never say never’ but that it had already been a long, hard road to get them this far.

Clearly there is a strong desire from the fans for a permanent reformation, but even if there isn’t, the chance to see one of my favourite bands of all time and hear those songs live for one last time is a memory to cherish. If this is to be their final swansong – they are going out on a high.

A few pics taken on my iPhone below, but for some much better pics, check out BeeExcellent’s web album

Last night I saw one of the most enjoyable concerts I’ve been to in recent years, with a band I never thought I’d go to see.

If you only know the swedish rock group Europe for their massive hit “The Final Countdown”, you’ve not heard Europe at all. I’ve had The Final Countdown for a number of years, on both casette and CD, and while the title track is the epitome of 80’s Hair Metal, the rest of the album is a much rockier sound, which is more of what Europe’s music is like.

Since their reformation in 2000, the band have released two new albums, and toured both of them. I missed out on the “Start From The Dark” tour, due to it clashing with another concert, so I was determined to see them this time.

No support act meant that Europe had their hands full as they had to warm the crowd up, blasting straight in to “Love is not the enemy” from their newest album, the initial response was somewhat subdued, but quickly warmed up.

Interestingly, many of the parts that I thought were guitar on the album are actually keyboards, but that’s not to take anything away from John Norum’s playing. A fantastic bluesy player, and great performer (Like Richie Sambora, every note causes pain to etch across his face).

Each band member had a solo, which was just the right length – sometimes guitar solos (and particularly Bass solos!) go on for far too long. The shortest “solo” was drummer Ian Haugland – 4 bars that lead straight into “Cherokee”, but the best solo was Norum’s; a fusion of styles leading into the opening lick of “Girl From Lebanon”.

With a wide catalogue of great music to choose from, there are always favourites that will be missed off. For me, “Hero” and “Prisoners In Paradise” were notable omissions.

The sign of a good concert is one where you don’t notice the time fly, and “The Final Countdown” came all too quickly.

If when you think of Europe you think of hairspray and lipstick, consider listening to “Start From The Dark” – and you’ll discover a different side to the band.

Set List: (as far as I can remember – and not in this order!)

• Love is not the enemy 
• Always The Pretenders
• Superstitious
• Seven Doors Hotel
• Rock The Night
• Carrie (Acoustic)
• Cherokee
• Yesterday’s News
• Girl From Lebanon
• Got to have Faith
• Flames
• The Getaway Plan
• Let The Children Play
• Forever Travelling
• The Final Countdown

The White Room The KLF
As an ardent Heavy Rock fan, you might be surprised to find The White Room in my collection, but it is one of my favourite albums of all time.

At the time, I had no idea what Stadium House or Ambient House music was, and to be honest, I still have trouble with the differences between House and Garage music. I just knew that I liked some of The KLF’s songs, and most of those were listed on the track list of this album.

Pidgeonholing and labeling aside – this record was released at the peak of The KLF’s popularity, having just released the single “Justified & Ancient” with Tammy Wynette. The single peaked at #2 in the UK single charts, but this album is a complete departure from the radio-friendly commercial material that The KLF had been releasing.

Perhaps as a departure from the commercial world that Caulty & Drummond aped so much (to the point where they were to eventually delete The KLF’s back catalogue and burn the £1M royalties they still had remaining). This album is a mixed selection of ambient chill-out and loud ‘Stadium House’ – House music mixed with crowd noises and a large ambiance, making the music sound as if it was being played in a large stadium.

I remember being somewhat underwhelmed by the album, as the versions of the chart songs I was familiar with were different. In fact, if you’re used to the source material and listen to the album with those expectations, it feels like a collection of outtakes and ‘b-side’ mixes.

However, for some strange reason, I keep coming back to this album…
You can only listen to it as an album – individual tracks flow into each other, and the vocals reflect various themes across songs – prominently the Justified & Ancient melody, which opens the album, and also features on track 7 “No More Tears”.
Unlike a lot of music from the late 80’s/early 90’s, this album still sounds as fresh as ever. I know it’s a cliche, but it’s true… Perhaps because it is so unique it has stood the test of time.

Lyrically, it is nothing clever, witty or cerebal, but musically it is something else.

I’d highly recommend getting this album, listening to it a couple of times, and then leaving it alone for a couple of years – putting it on when you’re a bit bored with your record collection and rediscover it as opposed to just listening to it.

I’m hoping that I’m wrong about Bat out of Hell 3. Using one of my free iTunes downloads, I downloaded the first single from the album: It’s All Coming Back To Me.

Most people will know it from the Celine Dion version, but that itself was a cover. The original was written by Jim Steinman for his girl-band project Pandora’s Box.

This version sees Meat Loaf duetting with Norwegian singer Marion Raven, and I must say it is quite stonking.

Raven’s voice takes a while to get used to – IMHO, her voice is a little child-like and nasal, but after the first couple of listens, it doesn’t grate as much. For the time being (at least until Google notice it!) you can watch the video at YouTube. It’s not the best of his videos (that place is reserved for the Michael Bay epic “Objects in the rearview mirror”) but it’s quite good.

Featuring all the trademark overblown operatics that characterise any Meat Loaf song, it certainally whets my appetite for the forthcoming album. With Desmond Child (Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, Aerosmith) producing and writing, perhaps it is in safe hands…

This must be the day for Dead Horse Floggerage…

I found out that Meat Loaf is to release “Bat Out of Hell 3“

The initial Bat album is a classic – described by Q magazine as a guilty pleasure album, Steinmann and Meat’s opus has stood the test of time. In 1993, the followup was released. In a marketing masterstroke, the album marked the re-collaboration of the two men.

So in 2006, they decide to collaborate again. and so we get another Bat album.

The first has hardly dated, each track is a classic, and the title piece is still a fun driving track. However, the second album does not stand up to listening 13 years later. The stand-out tracks “I’d Do Anything for Love”, and “Objects in the Rearview mirror” still shine, but others, such as “Rock n’ Roll Dreams Come Through” and “Everything Louder than Everything Else” are just annoying now (Perhaps due to the amount of times I used to play this album I’m a bit fed up of it?).

My parents used to laugh at how Meat Loaf has apparently built an entire career around one album, and while this isn’t totally true, This is actually the 5th Bat Out Of Hell album I can think of (Bat 1 was remixed and “Dead Ringer For Love” added later, and there is the Orchestral version “Bat Out Hell Live“)

Meat’s last two studio albums have actually been very good, and truthfully I really want Bat 3 to be a hit, but I have my worries…

But you can rest assured that when the inevitable world tour comes, I’m going to be there! Meat Loaf is at his best live, one of the best performers I have ever seen.