Edinburgh - Guy's Birthday Bash!

Well I am surprised that nobody north of the border has started a topic yet because Friday night at the Corn Exchange was nothing short of stunning. Having seen them twice before in less than a year I was worried they might be a bit samey but they proved me wrong. It was Guy's birthday which added to the awesome atmosphere in a venue that doesn't often fill up. I am going to write a review for my student paper and I will post that on here asap. I might throw in some piccies as well. I also got my first ever setlist off Jupp's drumkit and it even survived a student party after the gig! Was so chuffed to get that! I am sure Grant will back me up that it was a great evening.

Setlist:

Starlings
The Bones Of You
Mirrorball
Leaders Of The Free World
The Stops
Any Day Now
Mexican Standoff
Grounds For Divorce
The Loneliness Of A Tower Crane Driver
Newborn
Switching Off
Weather To Fly
One Day Like This

Some Riot
Station Approach
Scattered Black And Whites


Amazing setlist in my opinion...especially Switching Off which I hadn't heard live before. During that song a woman behind me fainted which was a bit unnerving but we got her out of the front safely. Guy bless him asked us if she was alright and someone said "yeah, it's because you're so gorgeous!" What a night!

Hi,
Newbie signing in - I didn't want to be first !

That was only the second time I've seen the band play live, last year's Glasgow Academy gig was the first.
I have all the albums and some singles, but nothing prepared me for the live experience

Guy acts as though he's playing a personal gig for each fan; it's incredibly effective and he got some fun answers.
When he complained about the heat, he was told to take his top off - it didn't happen
Aslking folk to guess his age, he got everything from 30 to 44.

The Corn Exchange was a much better venue, the Academy was huge and echoey, although it was still a class gig.

Thanks for the setlist

Hope to see them again soon.
WG

These are my faves and I won't upload any more pictures than these because there are so many about from various people and they all look relatively similar after a while I guess!

Majorly jealous of you peeps !
I never seem to get any chance of these gigs due to family stuff, but i'm really pleased you all enjoyed them.

Nice!

Guy's lookin' mighty fine with that short haircut.

Those pics are fab and hey, I don't mind if you post a few more...!

Jones, contain yourself It was an absolutely spectacular night, everyone was quiet for the support, i loved it Highlights, for me, were, Mexican Standoff, Newborn (Obviously), and Scattered Black and Whites, though they were all great, they just stood out for me

EDIT: P.S. sorry for the late reply, Ted

Excuse me? How can I contain myself?!
Those pics are bloody marvellous and I am mad jealous that I wasn't there!
Did the man reveal his age?

Jones wrote:

Those pics are bloody marvellous

Seconded! Starlings on my desktop thanks for sharing Ted!

Jones wrote:

Did the man reveal his age?

Wikipedia has a date, whatever that's worth

Jones wrote:

Excuse me? How can I contain myself?!
Those pics are bloody marvellous and I am mad jealous that I wasn't there!
Did the man reveal his age?

He did indeedy, I'm pretty sure that he said 35 (Can you clarify this for me, ted? )
It was only the second time that i've seen them live, but it was, by far, better than the Carling Academy

I have no reason to doubt that 35 is correct! Glad you like the pictures guys! The last one (that isn't the setlist) is going in my student newspaper hopefully. Watch this space!

does it sat "this is only a genuine setlist if it's written on it" in the bottom of the setlist?

Wohoo, nice pics, nice new haircut! *blush*
Oh poor girl that fainted. I would have gone crazy if that would've happened to me.

Stockhaus wrote:

does it say "this is only a genuine setlist if this is written on it" in the bottom of the setlist?

Yeah, they all have them (well, the genuine ones! )

Here is my review which should appear in our student paper this week:

Elbow
The Corn Exchange, Edinburgh
Friday 6th March
*****

My knowledge of Chinese astrology is, at best, limited but I like to think that the past twelve months since the release of The Seldom Seen Kid will be remembered as ‘The Year Of The Elbow’. Since their fourth album was unleashed on the public, Elbow have picked up numerous awards, nailed the ever-important Glastonbury slot and recorded a gorgeous set at the legendary Abbey Road for the BBC. But enough about the past; this was about one night.

Having seen Elbow more than most, I am now convinced that their concerts possess a unique atmosphere that is somewhere between a deep conversation with a close friend and a loud reunion over a few good lagers with ‘the lads’. I tried my hardest to give the gig under the obligatory five stars but there was simply no reason why I could. To my mind, the evening at the much-maligned Corn Exchange was precisely what constitutes a great concert. Canadian support band The Acorn warmed to their first Scottish crowd with enthusiasm and played with confidence and a certain conviction that reminded us of who was coming.

When Elbow did take the stage in front of a crowd that was bursting at the seams, it was clear that it was going to be a good one. ‘Starlings’, the opener from The Seldom Seen Kid kicked off the evening with its glorious explosions of trumpet and it was after this song that lead-singer Guy Garvey announced to the already excited crowd that it was his birthday. As if the crowd needed any more encouragement. Renditions of ‘Happy Birthday’ spontaneously erupted throughout the night and at one point The Acorn and numerous roadies brought on a cake and some shots of an as yet unidentified spirit for Guy and the band to celebrate with in a touching moment of respite from a career spanning set list.

The sixteen songs we were treated to were all performed with the usual passion and precision that Elbow have made their trademark. When the big singles like ‘One Day Like This’ were played, all the new fans went wild but it was the lesser-known tracks that once again stood out. ‘Any Day Now’, the first song on 2001 debut Asleep In The Back brought back memories of hearing the band for the first time while ‘Mexican Standoff’ showed that Elbow aren’t afraid to put themselves down. “Your sweet reassurances don’t change the fact that he’s better looking than me”, sang Garvey with a wry smile. The key song of the performance was ‘Switching Off’ from 2003’s unfairly criticised album Cast Of Thousands. John Cale, no less, has stated that this song is one of his favourites of all time and it is easy to see why. An almost painfully tender piece about seeing your life flash before your eyes and choosing your final words, it caused one woman behind me to faint which prompted a concerned response from the band. Security said it was the heat, I say it was the music. “Is this making sense? What am I trying to say?” Only Guy Garvey could make such simple lyrics into something almost hymnal when he sings. In response to his question though, see Elbow if you have the opportunity. A genuine, consistently amazing British band who will always have a special place in fans’ hearts. Oh and if you were wondering…he was 35.
Thomas Edmunds

And here is my review in our student newspaper. They cut a fair bit which was a shame and they didn't use my picture but I am still happy they use my reviews!

Congratulations Ted, it's great!
Just curious about the rest you wrote...

It's on the previous page, i think that's more, not sure, though?

Ahem.
You. are. right. of. course. Grant.


(Slinks off in shame...)

Hahahahahahaha Aw, Jones. I'll only mock you for a little while

Ah well.
What can I do but laugh at myself, eh?

You're the forum fool

Why, you!!!

hahaha well, homer is the plant idiot, i rest my case

Nice one, Ted!