David Gilmour - The legend that is.

When people think of legendary rock guitarists, probably not too many would put David Gilmour on the top of their list. David Gilmour is the voice and lead guitarist behind Pink Floyd, although not part of the original lineup, he was called upon to fill a relatively large hole when chief lyricist Syd Barret was "asked to leave" or more to the point, left behind. It was David that was largely responsible for Pink Floyds shift from their drug induced psychedelic music and had a huge influence on their evolvement into the progressive rock style they ultimately had huge success with.

Here's the thing, David Gilmour probably doesn't have the stage presence of Hendrix or Page if measured by on stage antics or dynamics but what he lacks in this area he more than makes up for by his pure musical and guitar playing prowess. His signature guitar solo's have become a cornerstone of the definitive Pink Floyd sound and are unmistakable when heard.

I recently saw Pink Floyd's pulse DVD, a concert recorded in London's Earls Court in 1994, containing the first filmed, entire rendition of "The Dark Side Of the Moon", a remarkable concert in itself but it was the second encore performance of 'Comfortably Numb', in particular David's guitar solo, that left me completely captivated and fascinated. Its one of these defining moments when I had goose bumps all over my body just listening to this guitar genius in action, at one point a lonely figure on a darkened stage playing in a spotlight with a mesmerised crowd sitting before him. It's the zenith of guitar solo's, a moment in time captured on film that I believe should be enjoyed just for the music than anything else.

Comfortably Numb Video

I have recently taken up learning to play the guitar and like all new hobbies, you need to set a goal or have some sort of inspiration to drive you and motivate you to improve ... well I found mine and its captured on digital disk and realistically I will never be in the same league but that's not the point. I may be on a road to nowhere but at least I have a direction.

You can probably buy PULSE for next to nothing these days, for those of you who haven't seen it I can't recommend it enough....put it on, turn the lights off and enjoy the magic of Pink Floyd and the genius that is David Gilmour...and if his guitar solo on 'Comfortably Numb' doesn't move you, you better check that you have a pulse ( no pun intended ).

David

My Chemical Romance - Syd Ent Cent 30/11/07

To me, there are predominately two types of bands, those that sound great in a studio but when it comes to a live performance, just seem to disappoint and those who sound great in a studio and are absolutely fantastic live.

My Chemical Romance, definitely fall into the latter group.

I must admit, I was somewhat hesitant at the prospect of seeing MCR in concert. Sure I have been listening to songs from their latest offering “The Black Parade” for the past 12 months but seeing them live in concert, well that was a completely different story but how could I say no to my youngest daughter, who was so desperately wanting to be part of the MCR live show experience.

So by the time I knew it, we were at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in readiness for the MCR show to commence and what a wait. You could sense the anticipation of the crowd; almost the whole centre was on tenterhooks, anxiously waiting for the band to run onto the stage…. and what an entrance they made.

Gerard Way, the bands lead singer, quite simply commanded attention, he controlled the audience, the stage and the atmosphere that surrounded the auditorium, in fact he owned the moment, the show and ultimately the night. Like a conductor controls a band, Gerard controlled the audience, from the Mosh Pit, right up through to the punters in the reserved seating and nose bleed sections.

The music was awesome and the band sounded great, the sound was outstanding (complemented by fireballs, cannon sounds, ample flow of sparkling rain and radical lighting completely in tune with each song) and the songs themselves sounded fantastic, most of them were from The Black Parade but they did slide in some old favourites like “Helena” for the hard core fans. The standouts for me were the two songs “I Don’t Love You” and their encore “Famous Last Words”. The former, a ballad was sung with the stage engulfed in a purple haze and the entire Mosh Pit ( which was filled to capacity ) swaying their arms in unison, it was enthralling to witness a flood of hands all held high, thrusting back and forth towards the direction of the stage. When they played “Famous Last Words” every person in the centre was standing and swaying, it was an incredible sight, the spotlights shone across the auditorium and all that you could see was a flurry of hands and jumping bodies, COMPLETELY synchronised to the music which concluding with an elaborate 6 gun salute.

The highlight of the night was the atmosphere, the combination of the band and the crowd, and the crowds obvious appreciation of what they were experiencing and observing them seize the moment. The ‘Emo’ crowd have to be applauded, no aggression, no drunken loutish behaviour, just a bunch of people with one common objective, to have a great time. One thing I noticed by the end of the night, even Emo’s can manage a smile.

David