Cold Machine + Encyclopedia + 5 Star Loser + Nitrate - Messclean@ The Frog On The Front, Portsmouth. 25/11/05.

Nitrate have been lurking around the Portsmouth scene for some time now, quietly going about their business and popping out of the woodwork for the odd gig before going back into Nitrate world. Having seen them several times now you would think it would be a bit old hat but they always surprise me with the leaps forward they take and the improvements they make to their sound. They have that old new wave vibe about them peppered with sparkling pop punk, a bit Banshees, a bit Patti Smith but never less than catchy and smile inducing and with front lady Lorna strapping on a guitar tonight she looks confident and sets a few temperatures rising as they deliver a shower of glittering hooks.

Over from America on a tour of toilet venues are 5 Star Loser, a trio churning out standard pop punk in the vein if Green Day. While there is nothing drastically wrong with them they fail to set the place alight purely because we have heard it all before and unless they come up with something a little more original they will forever be playing small toilet venues. That's not to say they can't play Ok and they put in 100% despite the majority of people ignoring them so it's only fair to give them a polite clap at the end of each familiar tune and to cap it all they cover Green Day which just about sums it up.

Far more interesting are Encyclopedia who have appeared from nowhere and have gone back to nowhere leaving no details of websites or such trivialities. Two chaps, two guitars and some kind of drum machine along with a backing track that produce a fine if somewhat odd set that ranges from twee indie vocals to Thin Lizzy style riffing via cheesy keyboards. Just seeing someone on stage in a Charger T-shirt singing quirky pop songs is bizarre enough and for the vast majority the bar looms but us VP types like the weird and the wonderful and this is fantastic. I would love to point you in the right direction but I guess you'll just have to keep an eye out and see if they emerge from their cocoon again.

Headliners Cold Machine pitch themselves between metal/indie and good old rock with a healthy dose of grunge mixed in but perhaps that explains why a small crowd is in. With no obvious sound to focus on it's possible that people overlook them as not being their thing when in fact they produce good quality rock music that manages to be both catchy and heavy; workman like is the word I'm looking for and there is nothing wrong with that, afterall, where would our favourite football teams be without those unsung heroes, and while they not get the screaming girls they do justify a second listen.

Motorhead + In Flames - Guildhall, Southampton. 23/11/05

Had a call the day before to go do local crew at this so I was hardly likely to turn it down but when I got there and saw how much PA needed unloading I nearly had second thoughts! At one point the whole of the floorspace in the Guildhall was covered in speakers so I kind of had a feeling that it was going to be loud; several hours later it was time for a quick journey back to Portsmouth to rest the aching limbs before grabbing a lift back early (cheers Dan) to see the Head. We arrived too late to catch Girlschool but came in as In Flames were thundering out some modern tribal sounding metal, plenty of power and solid riffing to inspire synchronized headbanging and it seemed to be going down well in the pit. I like my metal but at times find bands like In Flames lose interest after a while, perhaps because I do not know the material but it all tends to blur into one sonic blast and while it's a blast that could rip your head off and you have to admire the power you do wonder if in 30 years they will still be going like the headliners or if anyone will remember them.

Most are here to see Motorhead yet again, celebrating 30 years on the road and still going strong. You know what to expect and on this last show of the tour they crank up the sound and play good honest rock n roll music, even with Lemmy nursing a rough throat (as if you'd notice!) they rip through a set of old and new opening with Dr Rock and Stay Clean. Classics such as Over The Top, Love Me Like A Reptile, No Class, Ramones, Brazil are aired with Lemmy doing the panto bit and asking if we can hear them before turning the knobs up yet again to teeth rattling volume. The pairing of Killed By Death and my personal favourite, Iron Fist, close the show on a high before they take to the stage for an acoustic encore of Whore House Blues that works really well and shows that they can cut it even with out all the power and volume before launching into the overplayed but still awesome Ace Of Spades with the place going nuts and closing with Overkill. I fully expect to see Motorhead still going strong in another 30 years if Lemmy gets that far, I don't think the man can do anything else but play rock music and frankly no one does it quite as well as Motorhead. It may be just another of their endless gigs to the band but try telling that to the beer and sweat drenched crowd leaving the Guildhall with smiles and the smell of rock in their nostrils.
I have to then spend several hours packing all the gear away but I'm happy because I get a Motorhead plectrum that I find on the stage and we get lovely Motorhead Local Crew t-shirts to wear with pride and I've seen the best rock band in the world again and I got paid for being there. Life is good sometimes.