On This Day 16/08/2002 Death Cab For Cutie

On this day, 16 August 2002, American rock band Death Cab For Cutie played Cardiff’s Barfly.

Formed in Bellingham, Washington, in 1997. The band is currently composed of Ben Gibbard (vocals, guitar, piano), Nick Harmer (bass), Dave Depper (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), Zac Rae (keyboards, guitar), and Jason McGerr (drums).

The band was originally a solo project by Gibbard, who expanded the project into a complete group upon getting a record deal.

They released their debut album, Something About Airplanes, in 1998. The band's fourth album, 2003's Transatlanticism, broke into the mainstream both critically and commercially; its songs were featured in various TV series and films.

The band's major label debut for Atlantic Records, 2005's Plans, went platinum.

Setlist

Bend to Squares

Photobooth

For What Reason

Why You'd Want to Live Here

We Laugh Indoors

A Movie Script Ending

Company Calls

Technicolor Girls

Pictures in an Exhibition

Information Travels Faster

Blacking Out the Friction

Atmosphere

(Joy Division cover)

Styrofoam Plates

On This Day 15/08/1980 Q-Tips

On this day, 15 August 1980 new wave soul band Q-Tips played Cardiff’s Casablanca Club.

First formed in 1979 from the remnants of the rock group Streetband, apart from the novelty song "Toast", a B-side made successful from heavy airplay by Capital Radio’s Kenny Everett, Streetband had failed to find any commercial success with their two albums London and Dilemma (both released in 1979).

Drummer Chalky and guitarist Roger Kelly departed, leaving the remaining trio of Paul Young on vocals, Mick Pearl on bass guitar, and guitarist John Gifford.

The ex-Streetbanders added Dave Lathwell on guitar and Baz Watts on drums. In addition, a four-piece brass section was created by Steve Farr (baritone saxophone), Richard Blanchchard (tenor saxophone), Oscar Stuart Blandamer (alto saxophone) and Tony Hughes (trumpet), and all hailed from the North London and Hertfordshire area. Organist Ian Kewley lived in Essex. Q-Tips' name derived from a well-known brand of cotton swab.

Q-Tips' first rehearsals took place in November 1979. Their first concert was on 18 November 1979 at the Queens Arms Hotel in Harrow. This was followed by another at the Horn of Plenty in St Albans – a regular gig for Streetband during 1978 – and a total of 16 in their first month of existence. Some personnel changes occurred during the first six months, with Blanchard and Lathwell leaving the band.

By 1 April 1980, the band had recorded two tracks, "SYSLJFM (The Letter Song)", and "Having a Party",both recorded at the Livingstone Studios in Barnet. Constant touring and concert appearances had built a strong fan base by mid 1981, when the small amount of soul music covers were outnumbered by the band's own tracks.

The professionalism of the band had attracted the attention of several record labels, with Mickie Most (RAK Records) confirming on BBC Radio 1's Round Table programme that Q-Tips "...are easily the best live band working at the moment". In August 1980, the British music magazine NME reported that Q-Tips had released their debut, self-titled album.

On This Day 14/08/2011 Kid In Glass Houses

On this day, 14 August 2011, Welsh pop/rock band Kid In Glass Houses played Cardiff University. Their third studio album In Gold Blood was released the following day.

In Gold Blood received critical acclaim upon its release. Many reviewers has stated In Gold Blood possesses a clear sign of progression and showing the band writing more album oriented rock. Rocksound gave it exceptional praise, saying "It's the absolute meeting point of a band's potential and their promise, and it has come at the perfect time in their career. Well done Kids in Glass Houses - you've surprised even us.

Tom Aylott from Punktastic.com said "The next big question for the band will be on how to progress next, but fortunately that's a question they won't have to answer for a while and they can rest easy knowing 'In Gold Blood' is everything they wanted to be, even if it rubs a few up the wrong way."[18] Sean Dyer of Media Essentials also commented on how the sound of the album will receive mixed opinion from Kids in Glass Houses' fanbase; saying: "No doubt this record will go over some of KIGH’s fans but most will appreciate this sound and drive to achieve something new and different."

The band's name is inspired by the lyrics "not throwing stones at you anymore" from the Glassjaw song "Tip Your Bartender".The quintet had a series of support slots during late 2006 and early 2007, playing alongside Thirty Seconds to Mars, Hundred Reasons, Manic Street Preachers and The Goo Goo Dolls and Fall Out Boy. In the band's early stages, they also shared the stage with the likes of Funeral for a Friend and The Used on the Taste of Chaos 2005 UK tour in Cardiff. They released their debut full-length EP E-Pocalypse! on 9 October 2006.

During their time as an unsigned band, the band garnered a rare and unprecedented amount of press and support from rock media, including Kerrang! and NME as well as BBC Radio 1 and XFM.

Setlist

Gold Blood

Youngblood (Let It Out)

Undercover Lover

For Better or Hearse

Animals

Artbreaker I

Hunt the Haunted

Sunshine

Saturday

Fire

Encore:

Not in This World

Give Me What I Want

On This Day 13/08/1998 The Supernaturals

On this day, 13 August 1998, Glaswegian Indie rock band The Supernaturals, played Cardiff’s Clwb Ifor Bach.

Fronted by singer-songwriter James McColl, they signed to Parlophone in 1996, and had a string of singles which were taken from their three albums and four EPs. Other members included Mark Guthrie, Derek McManus, Gavin Crawford and Ken McAlpine.

The band's best known songs ("Smile" and "I Wasn't Built To Get Up") were featured prominently in a series of television advertisements. In total they scored five Top 40 entries in the UK Singles Chart.

After spending early 1998 recording with Pete Smith, they released their second album "A Tune a Day" (named after the music instruction books) in August 1998 and three singles were released from the album, "I wasn't Built to Get Up", "Sheffield Song" and "Everest" .

This was supported by festival appearances and several headlining tours and a 30 date UK Arena and European tour with Robbie Williams and the Divine Comedy in early 1999.

The band were nominated for an Ivor Novello Award in 1998 for best contemporary song for "Smile" along with The Verve's "The Drugs Don't Work" and Radiohead's "No Surprises". The band won a Tartan Clef award in 1997 as the best new Scottish band.

On This Day 06/08/2013 The Vamps

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On this day, 6 August 2013, pop band The Vamps played Cardiff University. The band consisting of Bradley Simpson, James Brittain-McVey, Connor Ball and Tristan Evans formed in 2012 and signed to Mercury Records (now Virgin EMI Records) in the November of the same year.

James McVey, who was already managed by Richard Rashman and Joe O'Neill of Prestige Management decided he wanted to form a band, McVey subsequently discovered Bradley Simpson in 2011 through YouTube.

Together, the pair wrote songs towards the later months of 2011, with Simpson later becoming the lead singer. In 2012, Simpson and McVey met Tristan Evans through Facebook. The trio then met Connor Ball via a mutual friend. In mid-2012, the band started uploading cover songs to their YouTube channel. By October, they were being described as a new boy band, with special attention given to their YouTube performance of One Direction's song "Live While We're Young".

On 22 July 2013, the band uploaded their first original song, "Wildheart" (later re-titled "Wild Heart"), onto their YouTube account; the video received over 46,000 views within the first two days. On 6 August 2013, they released the music video for their debut single "Can We Dance", which received over 1 million views within two weeks. "Can We Dance" was released on 29 September 2013 and debuted at number two on the UK Singles Chart on 6 October 2013; beaten to number one by OneRepublic's "Counting Stars", which sold 1,250 copies more.

On 19 November 2013, the band announced that they would release their debut album around Easter. On 22 November 2013, the Vamps announced that their second single would be "Wild Heart". The song received its first airplay three days later and was released on 19 January 2014, peaking at number three on the UK Singles Chart the following week.

On This Day 05/08/1990 Big Country

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On this day, 5 August 1990, Scottish rock band Big Country played Cardiff’s St David’s Hall.

Formed in Dunfermline, Fife, in 1981 by lead singer and guitarist Stuart Adamson (formerly of the Skids) alongside guitarist Bruce Watson, bassist Tony Butler and drummer Mark Brzezicki.

Rising to prominence in the early to mid‑1980s, they pioneered a distinctive guitar-driven sound that fused alternative rock, new wave and Celtic folk traditions designed to mimic bagpipes and fiddle through innovative use of effects such as the MXR pitch transposer and e‑bow.

Their debut album The Crossing (1983) reached No. 3 in the UK and delivered their only U.S. Top 40 hit, “In a Big Country”. Follow‑ups Steeltown (1984) and The Seer (1986) also landed in the UK top ten, with The Seer producing the Irish No. 1 hit “Look Away” and featuring a collaboration with Kate Bush on its title track.

After Adamson’s death by suicide in December 2001, the classic lineup disbanded. Surviving members reunited in 2007 for anniversary tours, later joined by singer Mike Peters and changing bassists, culminating in the 2013 album The Journey, their first new studio release in 14 years.

On This Day 01/08/1980 Ultravox

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On this day, 1 August 1980, new wave electronic pop band Ultravox played Cardiff’s Top Rank on the band’s Vienna UK tour.

Released in June 1980, the Vienna album produced the band's first UK Top 40 hit with "Sleepwalk" reaching No. 29, while the album itself initially peaked at No. 14.

A second single, "Passing Strangers", failed to reach the Top 40, only reaching No. 57, but the band achieved a substantial hit with the third single, the album's title track.

Accompanied by a highly distinctive video (inspired by Carol Reed's 1949 film The Third Man), the single became Ultravox's biggest ever hit, released in January 1981 and peaking at Number 2 (kept off the top spot by John Lennon's "Woman" and then Joe Dolce's "Shaddap You Face").

On the strength of the single, the album then re-entered the chart and reached No. 3 in early 1981. A fourth single from the album, "All Stood Still", peaked at No. 8. in 1981, and "Slow Motion" from Systems of Romance was also re-issued, reaching No. 33 the same year.

Ultravox were then revitalised by Midge Ure, who had joined the band as vocalist, guitarist and keyboardist. He had already achieved minor success with semi-glam outfit Slik and Glen Matlock's The Rich Kids, and in 1979, he was temporarily playing with hard rock band Thin Lizzy on their American tour, replacing Gary Moore.

Ure and Billy Currie had met while collaborating on Visage, a studio-based band fronted by New Romantic icon and nightclub impresario Steve Strange.

Setlist

Quiet Men

Passing Strangers

Face To Face

Mr X

Western Promise

Vienna

Slow Motion

Hiroshima Mon Amour

Private Lives

New Europeans

All Stood Still

Sleepwalk

Astradyne

Kings Lead Hat

On This Day 31/07/2010 Chaka Demus & Pliers

On his day, 31 July 2010, reggae duo Chaka Demus & Pliers played Cardiff’s Big Weekend.

Both artists were established musicians when they teamed up in 1991 after performing together in Miami, both having worked as solo artists, and Pliers as a duo with Pinchers. Their early hits together included "Gal Wine", recorded for producer Ossie Hibbert. They went on to work with a string of producers, including Ranking Joe, Jah Screw, Prince Jammy, and Mafia & Fluxy, with several of their most successful single tracks included on their debut album Gal Wine (1992).

They appeared at Reggae Sunsplash in 1992, and the following year broke through to international success with "Tease Me", which was in the UK Singles Chart for three months in 1993, peaking at No. 3 in July. They followed this with a cover of Curtis Mayfield's "She Don't Let Nobody" and a cover (with collaboration of Jack Radics) of the Top Notes' "Twist and Shout", which topped the UK Singles Chart in early 1994, the duo becoming the first Jamaican act to top the chart in 8 years, and the first to have three consecutive top five hits on the chart. They had further UK hits with "I Wanna Be Your Man" (No. 19) and "Gal Wine" (No. 20), with six hit singles in all taken from their album, Tease Me. The re-release of Tease Me also charted at number one on the UK Albums Chart in 1994, going on to receive gold certification, selling more than 500,000 copies.

In 1996, they signed to Island Records and released the album For Every Kinda People.

They performed at Sunsplash again in 2004 and 2008, and released the album Help Them Lord in 2001.

In 2007, Chaka Demus & Pliers recorded "Need Your Lovin", which was released on vinyl on Explorer Records. This song was a hit on the Jamaican chart.

On 18 November 2007, Chaka Demus & Pliers performed "Murder She Wrote" alongside Alicia Keys at the 2007 American Music Awards. In the summer of 2008, they performed at the annual Detroit Caribbean Festival. Their latest album So Proud was released on 6 October 2008.

In July 2013, Chaka Demus & Pliers performed at the BET Awards show in the reggae segment alongside Dawn Penn, Beenie Man and Elephant Man.