On This Day 22/05/1969 Roy Orbison

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On this day, 22 May 1969, American singer, songwriter, and guitarist Roy Orbison played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre. He was supported by The Art Movement, Ray Cameron and Moira Anderson.

He had just released his thirteenth studio album Roy Orbison's Many Moods It included two singles, both of which were minor hits in the UK; "Heartache", which just missed the Top Forty, stalling at number 44, and "Walk On", which scraped into the same chart, stopping at number 39.

Born in Texas, Orbison began singing in a rockabilly and country-and-western band as a teenager. He was signed by Sam Phillips of Sun Records in 1956, but enjoyed his greatest success with Monument Records. From 1960 to 1966, 22 of Orbison's singles reached the Billboard Top 40. He wrote or co-wrote almost all of his own Top 10 hits, including "Only the Lonely" (1960), "Running Scared" (1961), "Crying" (1961), "In Dreams" (1963), and "Oh, Pretty Woman" (1964).

Known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's music is mostly in the rock genre and his most successful periods were in the early 1960s and the late 1980s.

His music was described by critics as operatic, earning him the nicknames "The Caruso of Rock" and "The Big O". Many of Orbison's songs conveyed vulnerability at a time when most male rock-and-roll performers projected machismo. He performed with minimal motion and in black clothes, matching his dyed black hair and dark sunglasses.

On This Day 21/05/1995 Kirsty MacColl

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Singer songwriter Kirsty MacColl at Cardiff St David’s Hall on 21 May 1995. Photograph: Rob Watkins

On this day, 21 May 1995, singer and songwriter Kirsty MacColl played Cardiff’s St David’s Hall.

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The daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" and cover versions of Billy Bragg's "A New England" and the Kinks' "Days".

Her first single, "They Don't Know", had chart success a few years later when covered by Tracey Ullman. MacColl also sang on a number of recordings produced by her then-husband Steve Lillywhite, most notably "Fairytale of New York" by the Pogues. Her death in 2000 led to the "Justice for Kirsty" campaign.

In 1995, she released two new singles on Virgin, "Caroline" and a cover of Lou Reed's "Perfect Day" (a duet with Evan Dando), together with the "best of" compilation Galore.

Galore became MacColl's only album to reach the top 10 in the UK Albums Chart, but neither of the new singles, nor a re-released "Days", made the Top 40. MacColl did not record again for several years; her frustration with the music business was exacerbated by a lengthy case of writer's block. MacColl herself admitted that she was ready to give up her music career and become an English teacher in South America.

On This Day 20/05/2012 The Horrors

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On this day, 20 May 2012, rock band The Horrors played Cardiff University.

Formed in Southend-on-Sea in 2005, consisting of lead vocalist Faris Badwan, guitarist Joshua Hayward, keyboardist and synthesizer player Tom Furse, bassist Rhys Webb, and drummer and percussionist Joe Spurgeon their music has been classified as garage rock, garage punk, gothic rock, shoegaze and post-punk revival.

The band have released five studio albums: Strange House (2007), Primary Colours (2009), Skying (2011), Luminous (2014) and V (2017) all of which charted within the UK Top 40.

The band joined Florence and The Machine on the UK and Ireland leg of her Ceremonials Tour in March 2012. They also headlined the Word Arena tent of 2012's Latitude Festival. In December 2012, the Horrors released the remix vinyl box set Higher.

Setlist

Mirror's Image

Who Can Say

I Can See Through You

Scarlet Fields

Dive In

Endless Blue

Changing the Rain

Sea Within a Sea

Still Life

Encore:

You Said

Moving Further Away

On This Day 18/05/1982 Altered Images

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On this day, 18 May 1982, Scottish pop band Altered Images played Cardiff’s Top Rank. The band had just released their second album Pinky Blue.

The album reached No. 12 on the UK Albums Chart, while the singles charted well, with "I Could Be Happy" peaking at No. 7, "See Those Eyes" at No. 11 and "Pinky Blue" at No. 35 on the official singles chart. This was to be their highest placed album in the charts

Their hits included "Happy Birthday", "I Could Be Happy", "See Those Eyes", and "Don't Talk to Me About Love". mainstream pop music, having six UK top 40 hit singles and three top 30 albums between 1981 and 1983. Their hits included "Happy Birthday", "I Could Be Happy", "See Those Eyes", and "Don't Talk to Me About Love".

Former schoolmates in Glasgow with a shared interest in the UK post-punk scene, Clare Grogan (vocals), Gerard "Caesar" McInulty (guitar), Michael "Tich" Anderson (drums), Tony McDaid (guitar), and Johnny McElhone (bass guitar), were all members of the Siouxsie and the Banshees official fan club.

When they learnt the Banshees were going to play in Scotland, they sent a demo tape to Billy Chainsaw, who managed the official Siouxsie fan club, with a note asking "can we support them on tour?" The Banshees gave the band a support slot on their Kaleidoscope British tour of 1980. Altered Images's name referred to a sleeve design on the Buzzcocks' single "Promises", and was inspired by Buzzcocks vocalist Pete Shelley's constant interfering with the initial sleeve designs.

Prior to finding fame with Altered Images, she had appeared in the 1981 film Gregory's Girl.
Bassist Johnny McElhone went on to perform with Hipsway and eventually Texas.

On This Day 17/05/2009 Silverstein

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On this day, 17 May 2009, Canadian rock band Silverstein played Cardiff University.

From Burlington, Ontario, and formed in 2000 their band name is a reference to the famous children's author Shel Silverstein, who the band had admired and whose work they had read as children.

They have released a total of 11 studio albums, seven EPs, a compilation album and a live DVD/CD. Their lineup remained unchanged for eleven years from December 2001 to September 2012, then consisting of lead vocalist Shane Told, lead guitarist Neil Boshart, rhythm guitarist Josh Bradford, bassist Billy Hamilton, and drummer Paul Koehler.

In September 2012, the band had announced that Neil Boshart had been fired and would be replaced by Paul Marc Rousseau, who also joined Billy Hamilton on backing vocals. The band achieved moderate success with their second studio album, Discovering the Waterfront, which was nominated for a Juno Award and reached No. 34 on the Billboard 200 charts, with the following two albums charting at similar positions. Silverstein has sold over 1,000,000 albums worldwide.

On 14 December 2008, the band announced by Myspace bulletin that their fourth album would be released by 31 March 2009. The name of the new album, A Shipwreck in the Sand, was announced on 29 January 2009, when the band concluded a viral marketing campaign by announcing the track listing via an album website, also revealing it would be a concept album. Along with the demo of "Broken Stars", which the band had been performing during their final U.S. tour in support of "Arrivals and Departures", short clips of the songs "Vices", "Born Dead" and "American Dream" were made available on MySpace On 17 March, the band filmed a music video for "Vices" with director Robby Starbuck. Later, on 23 March 2009, the band posted the full album to stream on their official MySpace page.

On 14 December 2008, the band announced by Myspace bulletin that their fourth album would be released by 31 March 2009. The name of the new album, A Shipwreck in the Sand, was announced on 29 January 2009, when the band concluded a viral marketing campaign by announcing the track listing via an album website, also revealing it would be a concept album. Along with the demo of "Broken Stars", which the band had been performing during their final U.S. tour in support of "Arrivals and Departures", short clips of the songs "Vices", "Born Dead" and "American Dream" were made available on MySpace. On 17 March, the band filmed a music video for "Vices" with director Robby Starbuck. Later, on 23 March 2009, the band posted the full album to stream on their official MySpace page.

A Shipwreck in the Sand was released on 31 March 2009 and sold nearly 17,000 copies in its first week.[32] The iTunes version of the album includes four bonus cover songs, "Help!" (The Beatles cover), "Go Your Own Way" (Fleetwood Mac Cover), "Three Miles Down" (Saves The Day cover), and "Total Bummer" (NOFX cover).

Setlist

Vices

Your Sword Versus My Dagger

Smashed Into Pieces

Bodies and Words

A Great Fire

Broken Stars

Fist Wrapped in Blood

American Dream

Call It Karma

Born Dead

The Weak and the Wounded

Apologize

(OneRepublic cover)

Smile in Your Sleep

Encore:

Three Miles Down

(Saves the Day cover)

My Heroine

(acoustic first part)

I Am the Arsonist

Bleeds No More

On This Day 16/05/1975 Alan Stivell

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On this day, 16 May 1975, Breton and Celtic musician and singer, songwriter, recording artist, and master of the Celtic harp Alan Stivell played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre.

From the early 1970s, he revived global interest in the Celtic (specifically Breton) harp and Celtic music as part of world music. As a bagpiper and bombard player, he modernized traditional Breton music and singing in the Breton language. A precursor of Celtic rock, he is inspired by the union of the Celtic cultures and is a keeper of the Breton culture.

On 28 February 1972, Stivell performed a concert in the Olympia theater, a famous music hall in Paris, where Alan and his band played music combining traditional Celtic music with modern sounds (electric guitar, drums, etc.). This concert made Stivell and his music well known throughout France. At this time, Stivell's eclectic approach to music was very new and was considered risky, but it soon became popular. Over 1,500,000 records of that concert (À l'Olympia) were sold. Alan Stivell's newfound fame propelled him to tour across France, the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. He continued recording, and published a collection of Breton poetry in 1976.

Music critic Bruce Eder has stated: "[Alan Stivell's] harp recordings, with their enveloping lyricism and tightly interwoven patterns of variations, can appeal to more serious listeners of new age music. Stivell's main audience, however, lies with fans of Celtic music and culture, and English folk music. Embracing ancient and modern elements, but (apart from his folk-rock work) making no compromises to modern melodic sensibilities, his music captures the mystery and strangeness of Breton, Irish, Welsh, and Scottish landscapes that are both ageless and timeless. It is haunting, mysterious, and beautiful, with no equivalent in modern popular music and few peers in the realm of commercial folk music."

On This Day 15/05/2014 Pulled Apart By Horses

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On this day, 15. At 2014, alternative rock band Pulled Apart By Horses played The Globe, Cardiff.

They formed in early 2008, the band were signed by Transgressive Records in 2009, and released their debut self-titled album Pulled Apart by Horses on 21 June 2010. In August 2011, they went into Monnow Valley Studio in Wales to record with record producer Gil Norton, and their second album Tough Love was released to critical acclaim on 20 January 2012.

After Tough Love, the band sold out their first European tour, and went on to support Biffy Clyro and Foals. In 2010 they supported Muse at the Old Trafford Cricket Ground.

In September 2014 the band's third album Blood became their first top 40, entering the UK Albums Chart at number 38. In 2016, Pulled Apart by Horses recorded a take over for Annie Mac and the BBC's Radio 1 in the United Kingdom.

Setlist

PWR

Meat Balloon

V.E.N.O.M.

Hot Squash

I Punched a Lion in the Throat

Degeneration Game

E=MC Hammer

Wildfire, Smoke & Doom

Grim Deal

Some Mothers

Bag of Snakes

High Five, Swan Dive, Nose Dive

I Wanna Be Your Dog

(The Stooges cover)

Den Horn

On This Day 14/05/1998 Arab Strap

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On this day, 14 May 1998, Scottish indie rock band Arab Strap played Cardiff’s Clwb Ifor Bach. The band had just released their second studio album Philophobia which peaked at #37 in the UK album charts. NME named Philophobia the 17th best album of 1998. In 2012, Fact placed the album at number 91 on its "100 Best Albums of the 1990s" list.

Vocalist and drummer Aidan Moffat and multi-instrumentalist Malcolm Middleton grew up in Falkirk, Scotland, and bonded over their mutual love for Drag City recording artists such as Will Oldham (who at the time recorded under the name Palace Brothers) and Smog. They began collaborating in 1995, and their debut album, The Week Never Starts Round Here, was released the following year. At this point Gary Miller and David Gow joined the band and became the rhythm section, creating a more dynamic live experience when the band started touring.

Over the course of their ten-year existence, Arab Strap worked with numerous musicians, including Jenny Reeve and Stacey Sievewright, as well as Adele Bethel, who went on to form Sons and Daughters. Stuart Murdoch of Belle & Sebastian featured on the album Philophobia, but the Belle & Sebastian album/song "The Boy with the Arab Strap" would later create something of a feud between Moffat and Murdoch.

Arab Strap's marked characteristics include sordid, personal, yet honest, lyrics – described by the NME as "fly on the duvet vignettes". Like fellow Scottish band The Proclaimers, their lyrics are sung in their native Scots tongue. At first essentially an electro-acoustic band with a brooding, spare sound, later albums and gigs saw them develop a fuller sound that drew deeply on both indie and dance music.