I maybe should have done this review when the game first came out, but I’ve been busy playing it over the past few weeks.
I am a big Metallica fan, and after buying my PS3 only a month or so ago, I hadn’t played a PS3 version of Guitar Hero before – but had all the other versions on my PS2 including the full World Tour Band set.
In the last blog post I was explaining that buying tickets from eBay is sometimes one of those things you have to do if you really want to go to a concert and the tickets are now sold out. Over the past few years an alternative way to get tickets has sprung up; ticket exchanges where fans can exchange ticket. Sometimes the seller is encouraged to sell the tickets at face value whereas on some sites the seller sets a price and they pay the fees to the ticketing exchange host once the tickets are sold.
In the last blog post I was listing the places I go to when tickets for my favourite bands go on sale. There is no tried and tested formula as sometimes you can even get tickets by winning them in a text lottery, like I did for Live8 held a few years back in London’s Hyde Park. I got to see Pink Floyd, The Who and REM…
Like I was saying in the previous blog article, the best way to ensure you get the best seats or those rare standing tickets is to purchase tickets from the promoter’s chosen ticketing agents. The ones that I generally use are;
If you have just read in the music press that your favourite rock band or music act such as Iron Maiden, Nine Inch Nails or Kings of Leon are coming to town and you desperately want tickets, then the best way to get tickets is of course to purchase tickets from the official tour promoter. Even better is to get the tickets in a pre-sale for dedicated fans before the general sale – but you may have to pay to become a member of the fan club. I am currently a member of Green Day’s Idiot Club and Pearl Jam’s Ten Club.
Becoming a member of the fan club may cost you a yearly membership but it also gives you peace of mind that you’ll be in with a much better chance to get those sought-after standing tickets to the gig.
Ok, so it’s actually two movies rather than one, but I’m making the rules here. The idea first started as a recurring sketch on Saturday Night Live in the US. Wayne’s World first became known to viewers in the UK through 10minute episodes on BBC2, which were in fact extractions from the SNL show. That is how I first came across Wayne’s World.
I never did get to see this 1984 ‘documentary’ about the fictitious British rock band Spinal Tap first time around – I was only six when it was released. This one of the reasons why this is No.2 rather than at the top spot.
I happened to stumble upon the film a few years ago, after seeing a clip while playing Scene It the interactive board game. The clip on the game was of course the amp that goes ‘up to eleven’ scene.
We start off with a coming-of-age tale that despite winning an Oscar for the Screenplay it still did not seem to make too much of a stir when it came out in 2000 and even now I feel that it is somewhat underrated.
The film saw top class performances from Kate Hudson and Frances McDormand who were both nominated for supporting role Oscars.
When considering my three top movies which include some aspect of rock music as part of its appeal, I admit I am looking at this completely subjectively. Some films are considered universally as ‘classics’ or artistic films, but the criterion I’m using for these three films is purely the ones I have seen and which I enjoyed. Therefore, I do not include ‘The Doors’ or The Who’s ‘Quadrophenia’ which I have not seen yet. The latest rockumentary, ‘Anvil! The Story Of Anvil’ from last year looks good but again, I have not seen it. And I haven’t included Metallica’s ‘Some Kind Of Monster’ as I also consider that purely a documentary.
The US has a lot to look forward to this summer when it comes to rock bands touring and that includes those that never split up in the first place. From here in the UK, I can look on envious as Green Day start their world tour (although I will be seeing them in Manchester on October 31) and so do Pearl Jam (who I will see in August).
But there are also those 80s and 90s bands who will not be making it over to these shores in the near future. Blink 182 are one of those bands who are making a comeback this year along with another of my favourite bands, Weezer. No Doubt, who I last saw back in 2002 are touring again.