London Road Barkway Royston Herts; Postcode: SG8 8EX
Live Music from about 8pm
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0 New Years Show! – The Tally Ho Pub, Barkway, Hertfordshire – UK
0 South Korea Tour Blog – Freebird – Seoul
This night was nearly the grand finale to being out here touring. The Korean adventure had educated me quickly on the nature of place so removed from the UK. I had only just begun to understand how things worked and I was due to fly home. My final night was back in Seoul and sharing the billing was Nick Aka GT Arp who had worked to make wonderful things happen to allow me to come and perform. I had played 8 shows in 8 days and this was the penultimate leg.
I was asked for an interview which I happily accepted. You can listen to it here:
http://www.seoulitup.com/2013/12/english-touring-musician-stuart-oconnor.html
The Staff at Freebird were awesome and friendly. I had spent the day in Seoul baby sitting my equipment and taking my time over coffee whilst alone. So to be socialising with others was refreshing.
There were quite a few other bands on the billing. But playing last gave me time to read the vibe of the room.
Footage of this show was recorded by an audience member and uploaded to Youtube and can be seen here:
Song: As Stubborn as a Sandfly https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qN_HJ9RO4T0
Around about the middle of the set 2 drunk Korean businessman came into the venue and were loudly shouting at each other during a quiet song. I asked then to respect the atmosphere of the concert from the stage but out made little difference. Later the venue staff and the audience began to more bluntly demand that they shut up or leave. This caused nearly a physical fight as one audience member begun to usher them out the door. The older and drunker of the two men in suits began shouting abuse at the venue staff. Eventually they did depart but it caused 10 mins of the set to be put on hold until the situation was resolved. What really warmed my heart was how apologetic the Korean audience were and supportive they were to ensure the concert was not disturbed any further by these alcohol fuelled morons. I assured them the same thing happens in the UK from time to time and it is a world wide epidemic of cultural ignorance. Still to this day even at concerts of hugely popular bands such as Radiohead and Wilco I have seem the performers stop to request people not to talk over the more mellow or acoustic numbers. It amazes me how some folks cannot be aware of the situation.
Before Your Very Eyes (Atoms for Peace Cover Version)
3 Tunes from the set were taken from 3 different albums released as a part of the Go Forth Bright Scenic project which came out in 2012.
Songs from the Scenic album are often unrepresented in a live capacity due to the nature of the recordings being difficult to recreate in a live setting. Even with the use of loop stations available.
The rest of the tunes were from my first 3 albums and one cover of current obsessions ‘Atoms for Peace’.
I have 1 more show of the 8 show tour left lined up before I begin the return flight to blighty.
0 South Korea Tour Blog – Daejeon – The Cantina
Following my show in Jeonju the day before I slept in the venue saving me vital funds on accommodation.
We also stayed awake drinking and chilling. A great way to finish a night.
The following day was a traditional Korean Lunch. Being a vegetarian limited me a little. But I LOVE Kim Chi (Korean Pickles). So I consumed this en mass.
Getting to the Daejeon Cantina was a mission for sure as I took a national bus and then a (heavily crowded) local bus getting me to the closest stop. From there I had written directions which I followed to the venue. I arrived in good time and then had time to hang with the venue staff and the other bands. One of them was a great bunch of guys called The Primary. They had just finished their debut album and were working hard to get the music out there round Korea.
(click links below for studio versions of the songs)
Before Your Very Eyes (Atoms for Peace Cover Version)
The reaction from the Daejeon locals was encouraging and one of the audience members uploaded a couple of videos to youtube stating “This guy, Stuart O’Connor, was insane! Loved it!” – They are only recorded to a phone but you a feeling for the concert.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3DurKCubE
Part 1 – End of Map of Shibuya
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDHnTw5Q2Hc
Following the show I slept in the venue for the 2nd night in a row. I ended up letting the alcohol flow a little too much and relied only on the fortune of things to get me through the following day.
A messy night but immensely enjoyable all round.
And as for the boys in the Primary I would encounter then once again when I played at their home town a few night later.
Familiarity even in the abyss.
0 South Korea Tour Blog – Radio Star – Jeonju
Only a couple of days into the tour and my fatigue was already beginning to show. I slept for an hour or so of my long bus ride to the most southern city of the tour. From there I was able to get a taxi and by showing him print outs of maps we made it to the location of the venue.
Radio Star was a wonderful live space run by Inyeol. A great drummer and passionate musician. Clearly into the music of the right reasons. I shared the billing with a host of Korean and International artists but felt very much like the special guest. It always make one feel like the hours of flying and driving are worth it when you arrive to a warm welcome.
The venue was a great space and the audience were there for the music. It was exactly the kind of show you hope to find when touring through.
(click links below for studio versions of the songs)
Following the show there were queues of people buying CD’s and even getting me to sign them. I was honoured to be in so far from home and so accepted for the songs that had been written in my London bedroom.
Following the show I went for food with some of the members of the other bands. A great feeling of camaraderie was in the air and I learnt how it was to be an English or American musician living in S.Korea. It was a chance to really get to understand the difference between Korean Culture (which I knew little) and Japanese Cunlture (which I feel I knew much better).
S.Korea is very much a Catholic country and age is a major part of social standing. If you have grey hair then you are very likely to be treated well. I would learn more of this as the tour would progress. My next show will be in a new city again and so I was lucky to have the venue offer to let me sleep inside. Cheap accommodation is a major part of the trip. 🙂
0 South Korea Tour Blog – So Zacs – Gangneung
OK so I know these shows happened nearly a year ago. But I started writing blogs for them and just got distracted with life. So here I am recapping what was a very unique tour experience.
Gangneung was my furthest north into South Korea. Apparently I was not so far from the North Korea border and I met many who had travelled up just to see it. But time limited me so from the perspective of tourism. I was on a busy schedule that involved me playing 8 shows in 8 different cities over 8 days.
Set 1
We’re On Fire (Crashland Cover)
2nd Set
Misfit Theatre (Spoken Word)
For my time tonight I was simply playing an acoustic set. The PA set up in the cafe was fairly limited so I was taking the chance to air strictly my acoustic side. I used to play a lot of shows this way in the early days. especially at student run events at universities where there not even be a microphone on occasion. This was such an occasion 🙂
Any way I was surprised to see so many English and American folks on my travels and this performance was more of an english audience than Korean. This was a rare chance to bust out some poetry. So for the first time in some time I recited words from ‘Misfit Theatre’ a poem that became the secret track to my 2nd album. (It remains the only secret track I have released).
So Zacs was run by a lovely couple getting ready to have their first child. They were most welcoming and picked me up from the bus station. My journey there had been from Seoul and I had many hours checking out the land scape. Many mountains and wonderful views.
I also decided to play a cover version as a part of my set. An obscure song by a band called Crashland. They released 1 album back in 2000 and I still recommend it to this day.
Following the concert I was taken to a Jimjilbang. A Korean bathhouse where you can wash and sleep at your leisure. I was personally exhausted and then when I found out I had to share the floor with many randoms I was a little phased. But eventually I fell asleep. I awoke many hours later to discover one of the staff had put extra covers on me to keep me warm. Very nice.
0 Flava Bar – Stevenage – UK
Unit 6, The Plaza, Town Square, SG1 1PF Stevenage
Friday the 5th of December, Venues Possible Presentz Our Live Christmas Special, with 6 Bands (17+ Night)
Shaun Clark 8 to 8:30PM
Stuart O’Connor 8:40 to 9:10
Swamp Pussy 9:20 to 9:50
Godhanger 10 to 10:30
This Broken Empire 10:40 to 11:10
Connor Wells and the call outs 11:20 to 11:50
Doors Open @ 7PM Friday the 3/10/2014
DJ RHitz taking you through to 3AM
FB event page:
0 Swiss tour continues into the mountains…..Saanen
About 2 weeks prior to this concert I was playing in Rome. The days were still warm and bright. However the further I went north the colder I could feel it getting. I was now in Switzerland and driving myself into the mountains for my evening show. The snow was on the peaks but luckily not at the lower altitudes of road.
My circuit there took me by the lake avoiding the highways and toll roads. My venue for the night was a pub in the mountain town of Saanen. As the night wore on I met many English people and felt I could be in a London boozer at times.
But then to step outside and see this:
I knew I was somewhere pretty special. The people and atmosphere of the place was very friendly and the staff at the pub ‘Jam’ were completely welcoming. I decided to stay for a couple more days. For the night of my show I had a hotel room. But from this point forward it was back to the van. Hot water bottles at the ready.
Set 1
Bugscope (Currently Unreleased – Early live version here)
Set 2
Before Your Very Eyes (Atoms for Peace Cover Version)
Decide (Currently Unreleased)
Stuart O'Connor 