Oh dear. The Immediate’s appearance at La Flèche d’Or in Paris on 21 April was actually as a tacked-on fifth-on-the-bill opener for a show of four other bands - the Dublin group weren‘t even named on the official posters. Even worse, they started much earlier than their advertised time of 9:00 - at 8:15, in fact. As a result, we didn’t see them at all. And, as the bar staff later told us, not many other people got to see them either. Eight to nine is evening-mealtime in France, and walk-up punters would still be at dinner either at home or in the restaurant. So, be careful all you Irish bands visiting Paris and France: unless you’re at a festival, make sure that you don’t get landed with a dead pre-9pm timeslot! As an aside, three of the other four bands on the night were great. The Wombats (from Liverpool) play energetic Arctic Monkeys-style pop but with a little bit more melody. Marybell Katastrophy are a catchy and interesting electro-pop band from Denmark with (blush) three ferociously photogenic Danish girls on vocals, guitars and synths. And Norwegian rap-funk-punk outfit Datarock were a blast: like a soundclash of ‘Rock The Casbah’, ‘Girls On Film’ and ‘You’ve Got To Fight For Your Right To Party’. Definitely three European bands worth listening to. As for our own lads, they should have better luck on 24 April when they play a Dad Records showcase gig at a very impressive venue called Showcase, located under the Pont Alexandre III (the ornate gold-decorated bridge that leads onto the Invalides, Paris-lovers). Did YOU see The Immediate play at the Fleche d'Or on 21 April? If so, contact our dedicated Missing Bands Unit at frenchletter(at)cluas(dot)com. Your blogger regrets that there is no reward for finding missing bands.
Oh dear. The Immediate’s appearance at La Flèche d’Or in Paris on 21 April was actually as a tacked-on fifth-on-the-bill opener for a show of four other bands - the Dublin group weren‘t even named on the official posters.
Even worse, they started much earlier than their advertised time of 9:00 - at 8:15, in fact. As a result, we didn’t see them at all. And, as the bar staff later told us, not many other people got to see them either. Eight to nine is evening-mealtime in France, and walk-up punters would still be at dinner either at home or in the restaurant.
So, be careful all you Irish bands visiting Paris and France: unless you’re at a festival, make sure that you don’t get landed with a dead pre-9pm timeslot!
As an aside, three of the other four bands on the night were great. The Wombats (from Liverpool) play energetic Arctic Monkeys-style pop but with a little bit more melody. Marybell Katastrophy are a catchy and interesting electro-pop band from Denmark with (blush) three ferociously photogenic Danish girls on vocals, guitars and synths. And Norwegian rap-funk-punk outfit Datarock were a blast: like a soundclash of ‘Rock The Casbah’, ‘Girls On Film’ and ‘You’ve Got To Fight For Your Right To Party’. Definitely three European bands worth listening to.
As for our own lads, they should have better luck on 24 April when they play a Dad Records showcase gig at a very impressive venue called Showcase, located under the Pont Alexandre III (the ornate gold-decorated bridge that leads onto the Invalides, Paris-lovers).
Did YOU see The Immediate play at the Fleche d'Or on 21 April? If so, contact our dedicated Missing Bands Unit at frenchletter(at)cluas(dot)com. Your blogger regrets that there is no reward for finding missing bands.
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2007 - REM live in the Olympia, by Michael O'Hara. Possibly the definitive review of any of REM's performances during their 2007 Olympia residency. Even the official REM website linked to it.