So heres my top 10 gigs i saw in 2008. I had some terrible luck with festivals this summer, so unfortunately theres no epic glasto headline sets or anything like that, but i still saw some fuckin brilliant bands:
10 - Sigh and Explode @ Great Escape - This gig gets in simply because i was working all Great Escape weekend and was annoyed i was missing a load of good gigs, but then this band came on who id never heard of and were actually really sick. S'all about the norwegian melodic hardcore boys and girls...
9 - Bonobo @ Beachdown - A perfect mid-afternoon festival set at the slightly disappointing Beachdown Festival. Just what i needed after caining it the night before, this was one of the musical highlights of the weekend.
8 - Maccabees @ Concorde2 - This was the first time id actually managed to see a Maccabees gig and they didnt disappoint. However, this gig only really gets a mention because i went off to see MSTRKRFT afterwards, so they get points for adding to a fuckin sick night.
7 - Lykke Li @ Concorde2 - Sound was a bit quiet and the audience were all wankers, but the gig itself was quality. Mad props.
6 - Caribou @ Loop Festival - Wasnt really a fan on record before i saw this gig and to be honest, i still dont like them that much. This gig was fucking amazing though. "After Hours" was just brilliant. If you get a chance to see this band live, take it.
5 - MGMT @ Digital - Had seen parts of them live before when i worked at their Pressure Point gig a few months earlier, so kind of knew what to expect, but this gig was pretty dope. All the "classics" were spot on.
4 - Neon Neon @ Digital - This gig was a brilliant live version of one of my favourite albums of 2008. The sound and look of the gig was perfect, with projected films about each song. Cameo's from HarMar Superstar never fail to be interesting either...
3 - Holy Fuck @ Audio - An all day drinking sesh probably helped this gig be as enjoyable as it was, but it actually was fucking amazing. I cant wait to see them again.
2 - De La Soul @ Beachdown - Easily the highlight of Beachdown. For some reason they'd been put on the smaller Second Stage so it was well packed, but this just added a real festival experience to a pretty shoddy festival where all crowds were sparse as fuck. Had never bothered to go see this lot when they'd played in Brighton before, but if they ever do again, might have to get myself a ticket.
1 - Nick Cave @ Brighton Centre - Well, what can i say? This gig was just amazing. Of course with the number of brilliant songs he has, there were a few songs i wanted him to play that he didnt, but this is literally the only "complaint" i have. The blokes a fuckin gangster.
Photo by some fag called Sam Hiscox..
