Ryan's Gig Guide - March 2018

WWW. R YA N S G I G G U I D E . C OM r gg Mar 2018 - p.4 Text and advertising are copyright of Ryan’s Gig Guide Reproduction in part or whole without written permission is strictly prohibited Whilst we try to get all gig listings and dates correct it is adviseable to check with the venue before travelling Advertising & Enquiries T: 0121 374 2890 w: ryansgigguide.com e: media@rggmag.com The views and comments expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher. PLEASE EMAIL YOUR BAND AND VENUE DATES TO: MEDIA@RGGMAG.COM TO REACH US BY THE 20TH OF THE MONTH PRIOR TO PUBLICATION LISTINGS ARE INCLUDED FREE OF CHARGE TO MOST BANDS AND SMALL CAPACITY VENUES Head of reviews Nick J Townsend Contributors... Nick J Townsend, Adam Roberts Surge Music Layout & Graphics... Pete Williams THE TEAM r gg since 1995 Cover photo by Steve Cash at Ghost31Media Cover Story 6 Wounded Spirit Features 8 Nick J. Townsend 22 Bose S1 Pro Adam Roberts P/Reviews 12 The Verdict 24 Local with surgemusic.com 27 BulletBoys 33 Daxx & Roxanne 36 Stickmen Gig Listings 10 Mon & Tues 14 Wednesday 15 Thursday 18 Friday 28 Saturday 32 Sunday ...Dave is Black Country, born and bred. He learned piano, guitar and flute as a lad and can still get a recognisable tune out of most of them. He sang in the school choir and did amdram. He was signed, aged 19, with the band English Rose toT-Rex’s record label and had one single release before being dropped. As bass player with the band FairWarning, he recorded an album in 1980 that took 37 years to release. He then ran Different Disguises studios in Cradley for 10 years and learned how to be a recording engineer. In the 90’s he got into computers and helped get three fine kids to adulthood. In early 2000’s he formed Surge Music,promoted local bands around local venues,and setup the Surge Music gig guide web site. He formed Highway Dave andTheVarmints, wrote some songs, played lots of gigs and recorded 2 al- bums. In 2008 he learned to fly and then became an instructor. Now he’s editor of Ryan’s Gig Guide and has a paper round.WHERE DID IT ALL GOWRONG? It’s a kind of magic There is something undeniably magical going on when we’re in the audience at a great gig.The connection between the band and the crowd happens at some deep emo- tional level that would be difficult to de- scribe in terms of logic or science.They’re rocking and we feel fantastic, or a song of heartache and loss and we feel the tears welling up. Sure, we can be moved by a recording or a film, but when the music is live it’s a one-off, never to be repeated, mo- ment that we are all sharing, together. If you’re fortunate enough to be playing on the stage when that’s going on, the experi- ence can be even more intense. Locked in the groove with your bandmates and feel- ing the response from your audience, all the years of learning your craft and the endless hours of practice and rehearsal are made worthwhile as you receive an emotional payoff impossible to achieve any other way. Artist and audience; yin and yang; two halves that make the whole.Whichever you are, keep going! Make great memories to- gether, because either half is nothing with- out the other. And so is science Personally, I’m astonished at much of the technology and engineering around today. The music business in particular has been a great driver of technological advances but I myself wouldn’t have a clue where to start if you asked me to sit down and design and build a guitar amp or write an app for my tablet that reproduces a classic synthesizer. It doesn’t mean that people smarter than me can’t though. Forty years ago people could travel from London to New York in Concorde in three and a half hours. Do I believe they can launch a car into space in 2018? Hell, yeah! Ryan’s Dave Editor Ryan’s Dave