Audio Journal : 11/05/2009

The big musical event last week was a trip to the O2 to see Razorlight. I've lost track of how many times my wife and I have seen the band, and the concert last week certainly wasn't one of the best. This could have been because we had seats way up in the heavens whereas normally we get standing tickets or it could have been that the band were bereft of the drummer that has been such an important part of their sound on stage. Either way, a good night out, but it turned out that the best bit wasn't Razorlight but The Howling Bells, who provided support. I'll be taking a closer listen to them over the next few weeks.

I found myself listening to a punk compilation this week (F**k Art Let's Danse - which, as names go, makes no sense at all). The basis of the compilation, undertaken by Clash biographer Pat Gilbert, was to point out to people that punk wasn't specifically a UK phenomenon – a notion that I find hard to believe anyone needs education of, as I thought everyone knew punk originated in the States. Licencing costs presumably meant that Gilbert couldn't secure tracks from the most important UK punks, leaving us with the second-tier ranks of UK Subs, The Adverts and The Slits, whereas the US punks are well represented with good demos and live tracks from CBGB stalwarts such as Patti, The Ramones and Television. Best of all are the US bands that came before punk, and were perceived to be an influence – specific highlights being 'Step Inside This House' by 13th Floor Elevators and everyone's favourite garage anthem, 'Louie Louie' by The Sonics.

David Byrne, a CBGB survivor from his Talking Heads days, released a new live EP this week, including songs from his most recent collaboration with Brian Eno (Everything That Happens Will Happen Today). You can listen to this here. Easily my favourite singer these days, no question.