The best gigs I’ve ever been to

I fell in love with live music when I was in my third year of university. Pretty late to the party, right? Gigs were a little out of my comfort zone and I didn’t hit that ‘push yourself’ mentality until I was about 20 but whilst I definitely missed out as a teenager, I’ve more than made up for it since. I’m pretty happy bobbing along in the mainstream when it comes to my music tastes. A lot of the artists I’ve seen have been chart toppers rather than struggling indie kids but y’know, there’s still something pretty exciting about hearing songs you’ve heard on repeat live, whether they’re throwbacks or over-played on radio one. Here are the best gigs I’ve ever been to.

Stone Sour – House of Gold and Bones pt1

I appreciate Stone Sour aren’t exactly ‘mainstream’ but we’ll get the sentimental one out the way first. I saw Stone Sour at the O2 Apollo in Manchester back in 2012. I’d loved them ever since I played Through Glass on repeat when I was doing the super emosh 15 year old thing but this gig turned into a bit of the light of the end of a tunnel for me. After my dad passed away two weeks into my final year of university, the gig was in the last week of the first term and at that time, it became my goal just to get there and be OK. And I was OK, and it was the best night with one of my closest friends, Rachel. The audience singing back the chorus of Bother and seeing Corey Taylor nearly break down on stage made it a really emotional but incredible gig.

Jason Derulo – Tattoos World Tour

Oh there we are, back to the mainstream. This night was one of the most fun evenings I’ve ever had as again, it was at the O2 Apollo in Manchester so it was a smaller gig, and because the setlist was pretty damn solid. This was around the time of Talk Dirty, Wiggle and Trumpets coming out so it’s the type of music that everyone got up and danced too for the entire night. Also, he was supported by Conor Maynard who at the time was peaking as about a three hit wonder so the crowd was already fairly hyped before Jason Derulo came on – which was great as most of the time nobody gives a shit about support acts.

The Kooks – The Best Of

This one is about the experience as much as it was the band as I was actually invited to this gig by Pink Gorilla and we had a box for the night at the First Direct Arena. First Direct is easily my favourite arena, mainly as it’s newer and therefore a lot nicer in general, but also because it’s a lot smaller than Manchester. I’ve also been there enough times to know where the hidden toilets are which is a plus. Watching a gig from a suite was a whole new experience for me as it’s a totally private space, with a staff member ready and waiting to serve you drinks (out of glasses and bottles, not plastic cups!) and you can make yourself at home for the night. The gig itself was brilliant and hearing classic songs like Naive played live was an incredible experience.

Lady Gaga – ArtRave

This was one of the biggest gigs I’ve ever been to as it was a sell out at Manchester Arena. What I loved about this night was the sheer amount of production that went into it – it was about the show as much as it was the music. There was so much love in that room that night and a couple got engaged live on stage which was a pretty magical moment to witness. I loved that she took the time to read fan letters which had been thrown on stage and even though in doing so she over ran, she was adamant about completing the set regardless of being fined for going over the venue’s curfew.

The Pigeon Detectives

Another recent gig for me and I was lucky enough to be on the guestlist for it as my friend from work, Hannah, is married to the bassist, David. We saw them at the O2 Academy in Leeds and the guestlist had access to the balcony seats which was great for us as we had the best view. I’ve been to a lot of gigs over the last few years and this is the first I’ve been to where the crowd was really living in the moment and not watching the entire thing through their phone screen. Also, who doesn’t want to hear classic tunes like I Found Out which is in Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging.

So, that’s my round up of the best gigs I’ve ever been to – what’s your favourite to date?