Sat 27 Oct 2012
Dr Glam Review, 19/10/12
Thursday 18th, 7.30pm: Led Zeppelin’s “Celebration Day” had it’s one and only screening at Hoyts Octagon. The film captured the band’s 2007 reunion performance at the O2 Arena in London. Releasing this as a feature length movie was an incredible idea, allowing the rest of the world to see what went down that night in full sound and visual quality. The band were totally mesmerizing of course, after all these years they got right back into form and slotted together as if they had never parted ways. The production was out of this world, it was insanely loud (as it should have been) and the visuals gave the best possible insight, showing every rich detail of the performance. As we know, the occasion was missing somebody very important, however; Jason Bonham filled the huge shoes of his passed father and it was so nice to see him have the opportunity to get up and pay homage to his dad’s work. The whole show had emotional undertones of John’s absence, but it was all portrayed in a very respectful and tasteful manner. In many ways this historical event seemed a tribute to the late drummer and his legacy, both musically and genetically. In terms of set list, I couldn’t have been happier; hearing tracks like “In My Time Of Dying”, “Misty Mountain Hop”, “No Quarter” and of course the most powerhouse stomp of all time “Kashmir” which had me foaming at the mouth and shivering in the very marrow of my bones. If this is indeed the very last we ever see of Led Zeppelin, that might just be OK with me: I feel they went out in the most explosive impact possible, and we all know the music will always live on… Hats off to the gods.
As if it couldn’t get any better…
Weeks before now, excitement was sparked at word of Dr Glam’s upcoming tribute show to Bowie, to mark the 40th anniversary of 1972 record “The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars”. This occasion spread itself across two consecutive nights at X11 Below, with the band performing the album in it’s entirety at each show. Having seen Zep on Thursday, I locked Glam in for the Friday night session. Come 8pm: on went the tights, on went the boots, the fake eyelashes, and silver lightning bolt across my face; down went the bottle of wine and off we went... I arrived right on time, just as the band launched into the opening track “5 Years” – my personal favourite. The place was packed; with a fair few dressed for the occasion, flaunting their glittery booty’s on the dance floor. The band smashed through the album in one fell swoop without stop. The stage purged raw energy as Dr Glam and friends nailed every note, beat and sentiment to the cross. Glam himself is a truly skilled performer, adopting a seamless persona onstage, but it’s not just the look, he’s got the voice there too. The super-talented Pania Simmonds played bass alongside Maddy Parkins-Craig on drums, David Harrison directly channeled Mick Ronson’s soul, energy and feel in the realm of guitars, displaying perfect raw execution and tone, and Max Gunn played a crucial role on keys. The night went on to feature an abundance of great T-Rex covers and the best rendition of Alice Cooper’s “Schools Out” I have ever seen live (and I have seen Alice Cooper live…). Conclusively, the show was amazing and did complete justice to that which it payed homage to. The whole thing left me gagging for an Aladdin Sane treat next year… PLEASE?!?!?!?
Written by Michael Morris.
