Blog Challenge - Day 10 & The Trestles Review @ Zanzibar

Ok, so I've made it 10 days!

Today I have to blog about:
"songs you listen to when you are happy, sad, bored, hyped, mad"

Happy: Usually something poppy, like Lady Gaga, who I adore, or Katy Perry, whose new album is brilliant.



Sad: If I'm indulging my sadness, Jonah Matranga or Peter Katz always do the trick. if I'm in the mood to be cheered up, old 70s and 80s rock, and the new punk goes classic rock album!

Bored: I'll usually go with an album I know really well, so I can read or write whilst it's on. Cue Frank Turner, Reuben, Bruce Springsteen and Liam Frost.

Hyper: songs from my teenage years: blink 182, sum 41, the rocket summer and bowling for soup to name a few. I also like the Glee music!

Mad: stuff that fuels my anger. Anything loud! The Blackout, The Dropkick Murphys, Reuben (again) and Million Dead.

Now seems a good time for a review:

The Trestles at Zanzibar
My favourite Scouse band opened their set with "A Shot of Wonder", which is, in my humble opinion, a brilliant one to start with. The guitar hook that begins the song gets you interested straight away. This tune got the crowd moving, but the vocals lacked the band's characteristic heart. They got into their stride with “Thirty”, where the band’s musical ability came together with O’Hare’s soul, to make music that resonated with the mixed crowd.

The Trestles got the well-oiled crowd into the swing, and soon there was cheering, dancing and singing along. The Civilised, a personal favourite, showcased the best of the band, and kept energy levels bouncing back and forth with the crowd. It must be said at this point that the new lineup is working brilliant, with the boys pulling together to form a more organised-sounding performance and being visually united, standing closer together and moving with the music, rather than remaining static, as they have in the past.

Sing On, the band’s most recent single, is interesting, but has technical hiccups and should have been far louder, particularly the vocals. The closing song, A Drink of Water, is superb, and underscores how much longer they deserve onstage.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Go see them. No review or recording can capture this band doing what they excel at – an energetic, vibrant and intriguing live set.

The Trestles single review & Blog Challenge Day 05!

The new single by The Trestles opens with beautiful chords being picked out delicately and quietly. It is vaguely familiar, and instantly stuck in your head for the rest of the day. It is when Al O Hare’s distinctive vocals kick in that “Sing On” becomes really special, though. The flat northern accent, with its gently tuneful qualities is a brilliant complement to the thoughtful lyrics.



The opening line, ‘let me tell you a little tale…” takes me straight to drinking a pint in a dingy pub (Pogue Mahones, if you must know). The words echo how O’Hare speaks, and there is no farce here. This is the kind of song writing that I search for, in its honesty and poetry. It’s no conventional love song, but rather speaks of that moment when you look up, and the person you’ve been waiting for arrives.

“Sing On” is the song for those nights when you’re staying up all night talking, the kind of night where you drink and smoke too much, without even noticing. It’s a brilliant representation of what The Trestles do best: create the songs you can’t wait to share. Led by the lyrics and the vocals, the song is kept strong all the way through by the sheer catchy force of what’s going on in the background – insistent drums, a really beautiful riff and a carefully crafted build up and breakdown.



The positivity of “Sing On” is neatly juxtaposed with The Trestle’s cover of “I’m on Fire” (originally Bruce Springsteen). There’s a lot that’s very good here – it’s reminiscent of the original, it’s nicely sung, and it reminded me of something I’ve written about these guys before; that they can take your emotions on a bit of a rollercoaster. I’m not as enamoured as I am with “Sing On”, but that’s because I’ve seen this performed as a solo by O’Hare, and there was a lot more to it. It’s definitely worth a listen though.

More importantly, I can’t wait to hear the guys live (30th August, Zanzibar!), because that’s where they really shine. I’ll take some photos, do a live review and I’ll get some questions with Al for here.

See how nice I am to y’all!

Oh, and here's the pictures to go with today's blog challenge:





Me and my sister on our massively chavvy holiday in Ibiza. It was really "brits abroad", but amazing for it - lots of sun, partying and relaxing! my sister is brilliant fun, and we're hoping to again this year.