Top 5 shows of the year?
- Carly Rae Jepsen, Islington Assembly Hall, 7th December
- Garbage, Brixton Academy, 8th November
- Taylor Swift, Hyde Park, 27th June
- Lucy Rose, Southampton Engine Rooms, 17th March
- Foxes, Concorde 2, 28th October
- Anavae, Camden Barfly, 17th December
- Lucy Rose, Wedgewood Rooms Portsmouth, 14th November
- PINS, Dome Studio Brighton, 15th May
- Pvris, Concorde 2, 22nd April
- Gabrielle Aplin, The Haunt, 8th July
Total number of shows?
27, a drop of 14 from last year, but still respectable.
First show of the year?
Rae Morris, at the Komedia..
Last show of the year?
Anavae, supporting at the Barfly.
Most surprising show?
Carly Rae Jepsen. Considering less than two months before she was just the “Call Me Maybe” girl, this was quite the turnaround in my opinion!
Most disappointing?
Charli XCX wasn’t as fun as I thought it might be. A lot of the Great Escape suffered from me having had two days on site immediately beforehand, so I wasn’t up for a lot of standing.
Farthest travelled?
80 miles to Kentish Town Forum.
States attended shows in?
Cheerful, grateful, euphoric, terrified, bored, knackered.
Venue most visited?
Concorde 2 four times, same as last year (though different bands - Lucy Rose, Charli XCX, Pvris and Foxes)
Worst injury?
My legs took the brunt of it this year. I really suffered at the Great Escape and Pride. A broken heart at the Anavae show when they didn’t have any t-shirts in my size.
Most expensive ticket?
Taylor Swift was the best part of £60, but well worth it. <- a="" applies.="" as="" but="" different="" it="" just="" last="" p="" s="" same="" still="" that="" the="" tour="" year="">
Band seen the most?
Lucy Rose, a whopping seven times.
Best new discovery?
Carly Rae Jepsen! Honourable mentions to: Orla Gartland, Pins, Flyte and Izzy Bizu
Bands seen this year that also broke up this year?
None! Yet.
Friends made at shows?
Lucy’s Rosettes at the Kingston Lucy Rose gig. Possibly Lucy’s husband too. Passing nods to Kieron Gillan and the metalheads at Carly Rae Jepsen, the family at Taylor Swift, the random trio at Garbage. Technically Meg at Anavae, except we were mutual social media followers before that, and never actually saw each other in the tiny venue anyway!
Band members met?
From the top: Lucy Rose several times, Lynn from Pvris, Orla Gartland, PINS, Rae Morris (at a Lucy Rose gig!), Flyte, Gabrielle Aplin, Foxes, Carly Rae Jepsen, and Becca & Jamie from Anavae
Best souvenir from a show?
Lucy Rose tea and Carly Rae Jepsen tee.
Longest time in line?
An hour in the cold before Garbage and Carly Rae.
Shows seen from the barricade [front row]?
Lucy Rose at Concorde 2/Together The People/Wedgewood Rooms, Pins at the Dome Studio, Taylor Swift (from the pleb barrier, at least), Gabrielle Aplin, Foxes at Pride, Carly Rae Jepsen, Anavae.
Most shows in one month?
Excluding The Great Escape, December and March are tied with 3.
Most shows in one week?
2. Charli XCX and Lucy Rose in March, Lucy and Gabrielle Aplin in July, Garbage and Lucy in November, Lucy and Anavae in December.
Biggest crowd?
Taylor Swift, at Hyde Park. 65,000 people!
Any drunk encounters?
None that I recall.
Top 5 best 2015 concert moments:
1. The entire Carly Rae gig. From her singing to my fiancee, to belter after belter, to the Phonogram writer not only being there but complimenting my beard, to the great hugs from CRJ after - everything hit the spot.
2. Taylor Swift managing to top her previous two superb gigs.
3. Lucy Rose’s face lighting up whenever she spotted me and Dana in the audience.
4. Foxes being utterly smiley and fantastic whenever we saw her.
5. PINS at the Dome. I knew nothing about them beforehand beyond a vague “girl group” listing, but they absolutely blew me and Dana away!
Top 3 worst 2015 concert moments:
1. WATIC completely misjudged the crowd at the Kerrang tour gig and acted as if they were the headliner, leading to a lack of any call-and-response and a flat atmosphere.
2. Charli XCX looked like she would have rather been anywhere but at the Concorde 2 gig.
3. Anavae had sold out of large/XL sized t-shirts by the time we got to the merch, and I’m no longer able to fit into a medium.
