Welcome to the meandering musical insights of Aaron Joy (me!), formerly known as the Roman Midnight Music Blog. Here you'll find nearly 750 reviews of CDs & DVDs of rock & metal in all its variations, mainstream & indie, good & bad, U.S. & foreign. A new review every Monday.

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November 2, 2011

Paul Weller ~ Live At Braehead (DVD review) ... Live in style!


Style: classic rock, hard rock, alt rock
Label: Eagle Vision
Year: 2002
Home: Great Britain

Concert location: Braehead Arena, Glasgow, Scotland
Year Recorded: 2002
Length: 128 minutes
Bonus Features: none

Members: Paul Weller ~ vocals/guitar/percussion/keyboards
Steve Cradock ~ guitar
Seamus Beaghen ~ keyboards
Damon Minchella ~ bass
Steve White ~ drums


Supporting his sixth solo album Illumination, the former frontman of the Jam & the Style Council might be seen by some as a middle aged rocker but those are obviously the uninitiated as he puts in a high energy performance here with some great songs, a tight band & swings his own distorted guitar with abandon showing he's anything but an old hat. He may not be the greatest singer or guitarist but as a songwriter he excels making up for where he lacks with a result that won't disappoint. There's something about watching a middle aged rocker hold his guitar up to the amp to feedback the feedback in music that many might be seen as belonging to Oasis or Blur. I'm reminded how the rock world has aged. Once upon a time rock seemed to be the game of only young kids but not anymore ... but I'm glad to see someone still proving that rock is not just for the under 30 crowd. This show might be promoting a particular album but it's full of greatest hits including songs from the Jam & the Style Council. It's a superb introduction to the music of PW, though if you're not familiar with his career, solo or with a band, you probably won't be any more informed as all the songs tend to blend together in this particular context. The show also is a bit long for the casual or new fan, but diehards certainly are getting their money's worth & won't complain. This is the second night of shows as the first night was the debut of Braehead as a live music venue & the show was plagued by technical problems. PW ended up responding negatively which brought some bad press & a less than exciting show. Here he lets any negative energy go & puts in a double amount of positive energy to make up for lost time. Some fans/critics have even labeled this as one of his best live solo shows ever because of the tension in the air. For those not familiar with his background the Jam was one of the most popular British bands of the punk era whose contemporaries would include the Smiths with Morrissey & Oasis. Following a fascination with Motown & early soul PW formed the pop outing the Style Council in 1983. A move to jazz-pop & house music brought an end to the band as he alienated his fans leading to inability to get a record contract & a falling of his once iconic star. His ensuing solo career would return to the soul roots, but also have a more organic rootsy rock feel that would return him to the spotlight. Though one may not be able to discern what song in this concert belongs to what era one can definitely feel the musical changes. At times there's a folksy feeling, sometimes there's a bit of soul, while other times its straight ahead rock. Though, don't expect radio-friendly blue-eyed soul. This is definitely a rock band. You'll definitely find yourself wanting to explore the career of PW after watching this.

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