Norwich missed the chance to move to third in the table as they were held to a draw in a match which they dominated against a Preston North End side ten points adrift at the bottom of the Championship.
The home side opened brightly without creating any clear cut opportunities, yet it was Preston who took the lead on the hour mark when Chris Brown, who'd been on the pitch less than two minutes, expertly controlled a freekick before controversially volleying the strugglers ahead. There was much dispute about the award of the freekick in the first place which could have been given to the home side; their greviance was increased further as Canary defenders were adamant that Brown was offside when the freekick was taken.
Norwich responded immediately as Grant Holt side footed in after Iain Turner failed to hold Andrew Surman's shot. It seemed that the momentum was with the yellows, roared on by a crowd of over 25, 500. Iain Hume's cross shot in the 67th minute did rattle the home sides' bar, yet Norwich were setting the tempo with the help of the ever influential Andrew Crofts. The break through appeared to arrive when Russell Martin's effort on goal was blocked by the hand of Billy Jones resulting in a penalty to the home side. Wes Hoolahan arrogantly stepped up to take the penalty having missed at QPR but scored at home to Sheffield United, however his chipped penalty kick down the centre was saved by Turner who was able to recover having already dived.
Such a rash decision given the time and context of the game is unforgivable, as Norwich were piling on the pressure to earn three points that the form table suggests they should have obtained. This caused great frustration; Lambert kicked a water bottle in disgust at the penalty, the players began to argue, Hoolahan's head dropped and the crowd became restless. Despite his undoubted footballing ability and excellent vision, Hoolahan's inexplicable and often mystifying decision making is probably the reason he has yet to convince Premiership clubs that he is talent worth risking millions of pounds on.
Despite an effort from Hoolahan that Turner parried and an injury time shot from substitue Aaron Wilbraham that ended up in the side netting, the home side we unable to score a winning goal even when Preston were forced to play the final minutes with ten men due to an injury to right back David Gray.
A frustrating game for Norwich, but with fellow promotion hopefuls Swansea, Cardiff and Nottingham Forest all losing, a point in the grand scheme of things isn't necessarily a poor result.
Next Home Game: March 14th vs. Bristol City
Saturday, 5 March 2011
Wednesday, 2 March 2011
Darwin Deez with support from Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs and Rams Pocket Radio at Norwich Waterfront 1st March 2011.
The 2010 release of Darwin Deez's self entitled album caused a significant ripple in alternative music circles. The group fronted by the bizarre yet captivating Darwin Smith, had written and produced one of the best albums of the year and last night was my long awaited opportunity to see the band in the flesh.
First on stage were Rams Pocket Radio (RPR), an unsigned quartet from Northern Ireland, a region increasingly represented by indie and alternative acts such as Two Door Cinema Club, General Fiasco and the indie-pop band Snow Patrol. RPR's music style is unlike such bands, however when performing live their broad Northern Irish accents are as evident as their local counterparts. They played a confident and energetic thirty minute set combining steady if unspectacular drumming with generic keyboard playing and ambitious and enthusiastic yet ultimately indistinct vocals. RPR regularly interacted with the audience speaking humbly and appreciatively, but it was clear they were out of their depth. This was particularly apparent in the song Love is a bitter thing, which sounded amateur and lacked punchy nor emotionally provocative lyrics. It sounded exceptionally cheesy, to the extent that if I hadn't have known otherwise I would have assumed it had been written by a deluded fourteen year old attempting a love song. Overall, Rams Pocket Radio weren't dreadful, but they certainly didn't justify the amount of space I have used to write about them.
Listen to Dogs run in Packs (http://www.myspace.com/ramspocketradio)
Shortly before the arrival of Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (TEED), there was a buzz of excitement amongst the audience. More so than your ordinary tipsy crowd awaiting the second support act. Whether unlike me, the audience had researched TEED prior to the gig and had an expectation of what was to happen was unclear. My bewilderment increased, as the lead dj/vocalist, Orlando emerged out of thin air before donning a red indian headdress and shooting confetti into the crowd. This was shortly followed by him beckoning talented singer Louisa and two minimally dressed blonde dancers onto the stage. Accompanied by various musical equipment including a keyboard, a record player, a microphone and a laptop (see my NME Big Gig blog for scrutiny of such an 'instrument'!), he began to play a blend of futuristic alternative electro which seemed more in keeping with The Mighty Boosh than with a standard Tuesday night in Norwich. In between songs the dancers would leave the stage for a Lady Gaga-esque changeover of clothes.The audience were encapsulated. It became difficult to distinguish between different songs as the set seemed to join into a half hour rave which the audience embraced and joyfully danced to. TEED have merged a musical style and an image unlike anything I have ever seen before, although not to every ones taste, it is clear that they have a potentially infectious product which will be particularly appreciated live. Check them out at this years festivals if you get the opportunity.
Listen to them play live! Or visit http://www.myspace.com/totallyenormousextinctdinosaurs
Amid great anticipation and excitement Darwin Deez's emerged on stage dancing in a humorous fashion which looked even more ridiculous considering the band were all wearing identical leather jacket sporting the band name. They swiftly opened the set with the excellent Up in the clouds which showcases Darwin Deez's most prominent musical attributes; simplicity, witty lyrics, encapsulating beats and a twangy guitar rift. Vocally Deez performed exceptionally, providing the audience with a hint of what was to come. A broken string halted the set briefly before deciding to play my highlight of the album DNA which is arguably the most lyrically developed track they have written to date. The song is about the imagining returning to a former lover includes fantastic lyrics including the opening line 'My DNA is running out, I am not the guy who makes you smile now' and the incredibly addictive chorus 'I won't cry, I will just pretend that you're still the one and now we are in love again'. What potentially could be a tale of depression and despair is in fact a joyous, uplifting track that shows the beauty of imagination, fantasy and happy memories.
This was followed by two enjoyable album tracks Deep Sea Divers and Bed Space which in different contexts both speak of failing/failed relationships and loneliness. In spite of this theme the band continued to demonstrate their gratitude to the audience and were joking and performing with jubilant expressions.
It is clear that the group have an unequivocal relationship with one another which is visible from their on stage behaviour. The band play with a refreshingly relaxed attitude which is particularly enjoyable in an era in which musicians take themselves very seriously and are burdened with the obligation to sell a large amount of records and related merchandise. As gratifying as this is, it is also the downfall of the group who fail to take their live performances seriously enough to fulfil their potential. Having said this, they are still touring their first album and are completely justified in enjoying lifestyle and benefits that their success has so far brought. As Darwin exclaimed when discussing the most satisfying aspects of the tour; "this is the first thing I've done all day!" which was followed by a spontaneous rap amongst the crowd. It is crucial that the band retain their boyish charm which I have no doubt they will, however when they do return to the studio (which will hopefully be soon!) they will surely begin to realise how successful and noteworthy they can become. One can only hope that the pressures of living up to such an outstanding debut album don't harm their development as musicians.
Personally, I would love to see the next album yield such cynically brilliant songs as the penultimate track of the set, Bad Day which was performed to perfection. Based on the passion and intensity of the lyrics and live performance it seems that the song is written about a personal experience which Deez has suffered. His interaction with the crowd who he invited to sing back to him suggests that this was a part of the healing process. The group ended on the crowd favourite and most commercially successful song Radar Detector which although being highly entertaining was played too slowly to my liking and many audience members who I spoke to. The dancey record on the album didn't deliver such a response due to the decreased pace of the track.
The encore consisted of an excellent acoustic track by Deez, in which he emotionally sung that no one knows who he really is. His eccentric and unpredictable character suggests that this may be or may have been the case during his life. The song was a particularly interesting insight into his life, be it past or present. Unsurprisingly the evening was concluded by the infectious Constellations which had the audience singing merrily, despite the slower pace of the track in comparison to the album version.
Overall a thoroughly enjoyable night, which has left me longing for the follow up album. These guys have such an incredible potential, which I sincerely hope they fulfil.
Listen to: Bad Day and DNA (http://www.myspace.com/darwindeez)
First on stage were Rams Pocket Radio (RPR), an unsigned quartet from Northern Ireland, a region increasingly represented by indie and alternative acts such as Two Door Cinema Club, General Fiasco and the indie-pop band Snow Patrol. RPR's music style is unlike such bands, however when performing live their broad Northern Irish accents are as evident as their local counterparts. They played a confident and energetic thirty minute set combining steady if unspectacular drumming with generic keyboard playing and ambitious and enthusiastic yet ultimately indistinct vocals. RPR regularly interacted with the audience speaking humbly and appreciatively, but it was clear they were out of their depth. This was particularly apparent in the song Love is a bitter thing, which sounded amateur and lacked punchy nor emotionally provocative lyrics. It sounded exceptionally cheesy, to the extent that if I hadn't have known otherwise I would have assumed it had been written by a deluded fourteen year old attempting a love song. Overall, Rams Pocket Radio weren't dreadful, but they certainly didn't justify the amount of space I have used to write about them.
Listen to Dogs run in Packs (http://www.myspace.com/ramspocketradio)
Shortly before the arrival of Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (TEED), there was a buzz of excitement amongst the audience. More so than your ordinary tipsy crowd awaiting the second support act. Whether unlike me, the audience had researched TEED prior to the gig and had an expectation of what was to happen was unclear. My bewilderment increased, as the lead dj/vocalist, Orlando emerged out of thin air before donning a red indian headdress and shooting confetti into the crowd. This was shortly followed by him beckoning talented singer Louisa and two minimally dressed blonde dancers onto the stage. Accompanied by various musical equipment including a keyboard, a record player, a microphone and a laptop (see my NME Big Gig blog for scrutiny of such an 'instrument'!), he began to play a blend of futuristic alternative electro which seemed more in keeping with The Mighty Boosh than with a standard Tuesday night in Norwich. In between songs the dancers would leave the stage for a Lady Gaga-esque changeover of clothes.The audience were encapsulated. It became difficult to distinguish between different songs as the set seemed to join into a half hour rave which the audience embraced and joyfully danced to. TEED have merged a musical style and an image unlike anything I have ever seen before, although not to every ones taste, it is clear that they have a potentially infectious product which will be particularly appreciated live. Check them out at this years festivals if you get the opportunity.
Listen to them play live! Or visit http://www.myspace.com/totallyenormousextinctdinosaurs
Amid great anticipation and excitement Darwin Deez's emerged on stage dancing in a humorous fashion which looked even more ridiculous considering the band were all wearing identical leather jacket sporting the band name. They swiftly opened the set with the excellent Up in the clouds which showcases Darwin Deez's most prominent musical attributes; simplicity, witty lyrics, encapsulating beats and a twangy guitar rift. Vocally Deez performed exceptionally, providing the audience with a hint of what was to come. A broken string halted the set briefly before deciding to play my highlight of the album DNA which is arguably the most lyrically developed track they have written to date. The song is about the imagining returning to a former lover includes fantastic lyrics including the opening line 'My DNA is running out, I am not the guy who makes you smile now' and the incredibly addictive chorus 'I won't cry, I will just pretend that you're still the one and now we are in love again'. What potentially could be a tale of depression and despair is in fact a joyous, uplifting track that shows the beauty of imagination, fantasy and happy memories.
This was followed by two enjoyable album tracks Deep Sea Divers and Bed Space which in different contexts both speak of failing/failed relationships and loneliness. In spite of this theme the band continued to demonstrate their gratitude to the audience and were joking and performing with jubilant expressions.
It is clear that the group have an unequivocal relationship with one another which is visible from their on stage behaviour. The band play with a refreshingly relaxed attitude which is particularly enjoyable in an era in which musicians take themselves very seriously and are burdened with the obligation to sell a large amount of records and related merchandise. As gratifying as this is, it is also the downfall of the group who fail to take their live performances seriously enough to fulfil their potential. Having said this, they are still touring their first album and are completely justified in enjoying lifestyle and benefits that their success has so far brought. As Darwin exclaimed when discussing the most satisfying aspects of the tour; "this is the first thing I've done all day!" which was followed by a spontaneous rap amongst the crowd. It is crucial that the band retain their boyish charm which I have no doubt they will, however when they do return to the studio (which will hopefully be soon!) they will surely begin to realise how successful and noteworthy they can become. One can only hope that the pressures of living up to such an outstanding debut album don't harm their development as musicians.
Personally, I would love to see the next album yield such cynically brilliant songs as the penultimate track of the set, Bad Day which was performed to perfection. Based on the passion and intensity of the lyrics and live performance it seems that the song is written about a personal experience which Deez has suffered. His interaction with the crowd who he invited to sing back to him suggests that this was a part of the healing process. The group ended on the crowd favourite and most commercially successful song Radar Detector which although being highly entertaining was played too slowly to my liking and many audience members who I spoke to. The dancey record on the album didn't deliver such a response due to the decreased pace of the track.
The encore consisted of an excellent acoustic track by Deez, in which he emotionally sung that no one knows who he really is. His eccentric and unpredictable character suggests that this may be or may have been the case during his life. The song was a particularly interesting insight into his life, be it past or present. Unsurprisingly the evening was concluded by the infectious Constellations which had the audience singing merrily, despite the slower pace of the track in comparison to the album version.
Overall a thoroughly enjoyable night, which has left me longing for the follow up album. These guys have such an incredible potential, which I sincerely hope they fulfil.
Listen to: Bad Day and DNA (http://www.myspace.com/darwindeez)
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