[Closed] Now for the worst gig you have been to...

In ref to my other post:

Less Thank Jake - shockingly bad gig. The support act were infinitely better than this bunch of losers. I was glad I got my ticket as a freebie. We were the oldest people there (20 at the time) by a good few years.

Sterling Morrison and Mo Tucker (the less well known pair out of Velvet Underground) at the Thekla in Bristol in about 1990.

They were jet lagged and under-rehearsed. Really awful.

Saw them at Glastonbury durign the Velvet Undergroudn reunion tour and they were fine so I clearly caught them on a bad night...

Prince at Wembley, LoveSexy tour back in late 80's, utter porn. Love his music but that was just bad.

I bet, Mastiles, you say the complete oppo? 😀

Well no, I haven't seen Prince 😉 I would quite liked to have seen him though - I especially like Sign o' the Times - one of my all time favourite songs and I am gonna play it now 🙂

Silverfish - in a basement in Exeter. Took me a week to get my hearing back

In ref to my other post:

Less Thank Jake - shockingly bad gig. The support act were infinitely better than this bunch of losers. I was glad I got my ticket as a freebie. We were the oldest people there (20 at the time) by a good few years.

Roxy Music (1974 - ish). Boy, that chap really cannot sing.

Hawkwind - they had a power cut after "Silver Machine" - we all cheered and left!

Rose Tattoo in a cellar club in Liverpool, early 80's, lead singer was an annoying count who also appeared in the third mad max film, concerned more with volume rather than musical ability, did cop off after the gig though:-)

I walked out off a Paul Wellar as Red Wedge ( think that was the name of this band at the time) gig. Dreadful.
Also walked out of Elvis Costello - couldn't sing, drunk, out of Sinc, could go on and on.

Stranglers,"Men In Black"(or what ever it was called) tour,what a load of tripe & they wouldn't play any of the old stuff either...

prodigy in nottingham around 07 boring.

Eric Clapton

I've done shites with more charisma and personality than him.

All About Eve, somewhere in Sheffield, about 2001-ish.

I think they'd brought a load of their mates with them to make it look like they still had some fans and spent far too much time chatting to them and not enough time playing music.
We lasted about 4 songs and then left. It was awful.
Normally I am so tight I will stay just because I paid for the tickets but even that couldn't keep me there...

Simple Minds at Glastonbury. Nearly got crushed in the rush to get to the cider bus.

The Cure also at Glastonbury. Also rubbish.

Underworld at the Camden Roundhouse. Almost had a fight with a bloke who objected to me objected to him crushing my wife because he was pissed and had no motor control. Thing was, he was obviously in his 40s trying to re-live his "youth" (EXTREME shape throwing rave moves circa 1989) and should have known better. Thing was, as a gig it was good, just the audience made it suck.

A special mention goes to Bjork at T in the Park in 1994 and the Pixies at V in 2004. Both of them did their best to ignore the crowd, played their songs, collected their money. Other people have spotted the problem with the Pixies too, as seen at The L Magazine with their aptly titled article [url= http://www.thelmagazine.com/TheMeasure/archives/2009/11/17/the-pixies-to-fans-****-you-****-you-****-you-give-us-all-your-money ]The Pixies to Fans: "**** You, **** You, **** You, Give Us All Your Money[/url]

Was this the tour a few years ago with The Living End by any chance?

Nah. Was with a band called "The Stereo"

I have had the misfortune to see Mercury Rev supporting somebody twice now.

They were utterly awful on both occasions and made me want to cut my ears off just so i had something to throw at them, i never understood the hype over them.

Yellowman in Bristol 1985ish. Several storming support groups played, audience lively, support acts finish and go off. The lights come on, most of the audience goes home. Three hours later Yellowman comes on and gets in a strop because the audience are not giving him 'nuff respeck'. Wakner.

Second most disappointing gig ever, Led Zeppelin Knebworth 1979. Chas and Dave were better. Southside Johnny and the Asbury Dukes were utter sh1te, Led Zep: bitter, bitter disappointment.

Cold Play at Glasto.

Mainly because they are such an incredibly bland and tedious band.

Oasis at the Millenium Stadium earlier this year, real bad atmosphere and they weren't all that.

Second to that was Embrace at Westonbirt Aboretum, Totally out of tune all the way through their set!!!

I like Mercury Rev but they always strike me as a band that would be God awful live. Sounds like I might have been right.

Girls Aloud. Mates persuaded me along a few years ago. Something unpleasant about sitting between a group of really gay guys and a bunch of 12 year old girls watching Sarah Harding gyrating on stage with her growler poking through her skimpy pants. I left early feeling eye-violated!

I like Mercury Rev but they always strike me as a band that would be God awful live. Sounds like I might have been right.

I have heard their studio stuff and its just bearable, but live....awful, self indulgent, boring w@nk !!

But to be fair they were supporting Placebo the first time and Bob Mould the second time, i can never figure out why 2 such different musical genres are on the same bill or why promoters think it will work.

I saw the Smashing Pumpkins in Manchester while on their farewell tour, although it was a technically good gig I was disappointed as it was a bit dull and lacked anything ‘special’ (that I expected from their last hurrah!)

I saw Mercury Rev at the Reading festival a few years back, and they were great. Mind you, I was high as a kite at the time...

Motorhead supporting Foo Fighers at Hyde Park 2007, totally milked Ace of Spades and the rest of the set was rubbish. Was really looking forward to seeing them as well.

Metallica - black album tour at Sheffield arena 1991.
Metallica were good but the arena was bad - all seated at a Metallica gig? I ask you? and over zealous security! Bl00dy ruined it for me!
Mind you having said that the Foo's at Wembley last year was pretty bad for the security too, really p1553d me off

Darkness, Brixton Academy, November or December 2003.

Awful band, awful sound mix, awful music, walked out after less than half an hour.

Stevie Wonder...NEC...1988-ish!

Walked out after about 30 minutes...as did half of the audience!
Strangely, don't think Stevie noticed!! 8)

Primal Scream - Cambridge a year or so ago, they came on stage no interaction nothing, played through 3 songs clearly not wanting to be there, someone, not me I might add, lobbed a beer at Gillespie who stropped off after calling the whole crowd ****s, 10 mins down, came back out to boo's another pleasant tirade from him and the band, few more songs followed but it was shite and we left. Total waste of money and time.

Nirvana - Edwards no. 8 in Brum (well, they were shit but the night was rescued by Mudhoney)

Faithless - corporate dance music for dads who have never been raving

Saw Cake live at the Barrowlands in Glasgow a few years ago (97ish?). They were supporting someone else (who I actually wanted to see) so I had to hang around while they staggered through pish like "I will Survive" and "The Distance".

Kings of Leon a few years back. Woeful. First night of a tour, you think they'd have shown a bit of enthusiasm. But no. They looked life they'd have rather have been at home watching corrie. Or anywhere else rather than on stage. It was awful.

I then read a review in the Observer Music monthly saying it was, pretty much, the best gig ever. Written by some **** called Casper Llewyllen-Smith who'd been on a corporate jolly with them for a month previous. Told me everything i needed to know about the music press

ozric tentacles were always sh*te live

The Nefilim at rock city. I loved the original neph but carl mcoy and extras was awful. Best bit of the gig... lots of dry ice, atmospheric lighting, lead singer struts into view wearing a beret and immediately met with a cry of "Freedom for tooting!"

Clawfinger at the wheatsheaf- like and even more s**t rage against the machine

lots of wanabe goth bands from the 90's

Green Day at the MEN a fortnight since. Music was (mostly) good, playing of the crowd by Billy-Joe was embarrassing, and the venue is so big I reckon the stage was in Manchester but I was sat somewhere in bl00dy Oldham. I've waited sodding years to see them live too. At least I now know that 'Arena' gigs are not for me.

Contrast that to Stiff Little Fingers at Holmfirth Picturedrome a month since. Intimate venue, myself and the stage were in the same postcode, and the pit at the front was full of bald 40-somethings having a great time knocking **** out of each other. Ace.

I have had the misfortune to see Mercury Rev supporting somebody twice now.

I saw them in 92 and they were ace, totally mental. Saw them again last year, they were dull as ****. Mirrors their output on record perfectly 🙂

Well countless crap bands that were never going to be big, but if we are talking established stars it has to be another Sheffield Arena gig- Lenny Kravitz probably 1993 ish. Pretended to storm off stage in a huff with the audience (happened samepoint in the set every night ).
Girlfriend managed to actually fall asleep...

Status Quo, Newcastle City Hall, 1984-ish on one of their final tours. This particular one was their 'End of the Road' tour. Wish I'd kept driving.

Powercut half way through and then Francis was feeling a bit poorly. Whole thing was totally underwhelming but then I probably should have known that beforehand.

Actually the Stones were pretty average too I thought when I saw them at Wembley Arena (Voodoo Lounge?).

Bruce springsteen at the millennium stadium last year. the most boring 3 hours of my life. would have left but my father in law is a big fan. He didnt really play any of his hits either. Maybe if I was a fan i would have enjoyed it more.

Blink 182 @ NEC, 2 weeks before they broke up, clearly didn't want to be there, got to the end and they said "right, you shout a bit and we'll come back on for an encore and get it over with" bloody awful! sugar cult, who supported them however made up for it as they were excellent and blew Blink off the stage

Oh no worse than Bruce were Glasvegas supporting U2 at wembley in august. Lead singer an utter **** and clearly not interested in being there. Shame really as they are ine of the NME's current darlings and thought they would be good

The Kooks, about a year ago at Carling Academy Brum, not my idea, got ropped along, . . . awful, dreary crap music!

The best, The wedding Present about 1996 in alittle place up brum, manic jumping around, mental, ace!

I worked at a lot of crap gigs in the 80s, but the one that stands out is one that I actually wanted to go to. Gene Loves Jezebel, Bradford Uni, c1987.

I really like em on record but live they drove me to the pool table.

Couldn't leave as I was working on the stage crew (unload truck, chuck it all on stage; wait around for a day & a half; rip everything off stage & chuck it back in truck) and had to be around after the set

Happy mondays - glastonbury
Sultans of ping - after dark club
Creaming jesus (although i may have enjoyed it at the time)
coal chamber - abysmal

I never saw creaming jesus do a bad gig, they were always very chaotic affairs but that was half the fun 😀

Stereophonics @ Newcastle Arena, about 2002 I think. Totally lifeless, dull performance in a half filled echoey hall. Dire.

Smashing pumpkins @ MEN arena around '96/'97, pretty much the same comments as above.

Green Day @ Manchester Apollo '96. Last night of their tour. Great music, crap venue, no atmosphere and they only played for 30 minutes.

Simply Red, Gateshead Stadium, '92. Utter utter shite. Nuff said.

Bl**dy hell. 48 posts in and nobody has mentioned Spike Island. 😯

Went to see The Levellers at Band on the Wall (i think) in Manchester, one of the support acts were so appallingly bad i thought they were a local bunch dragged off the street at the last minute.

Apparently they were called the Manic Street Preachers.

So fekkin' bad i would hav thrown myself into the sea in embarrassment if i were in that band....

Kiss, their first gig at the Hammersmith Odeon, appalling and thank god for the support band which was Stray

Couldn't use half the special effects due to contravening the fire regs and the sound was crap too, just didn't work at all

Mansun - Dublin 2001'ish

their last but one gig ever, the next gig was in their hometown.

At the Dublin gig they just could not be arsed, there was about 60 people there and it was actually embarassing. people were slowly shifting back from the stage to the bar at the back. I'm sure they cut the gig short.

I loved Mansun and still think they had some great 'marmite' songs.

Ian Bown -cardiff uni, he is a legend but jaysus he cant sing, someone in the crowd got bored and 'spat' at brown. he had them dragged out of the gig, while being punched by everyone on the way!

But the most WTF! are they taking the p*ss was 'Gong' at the Beautiful Days festival this year, i honestly thought the actual band had cancelled and they had found some homeless people to invae the stage, the biggest pile of sh*te i have ever witnessed. i guess back in the 70's wacked off your head it would have made sense, but at a festival in 2009 it kinda took the p*Ss, honeslty i canot convey how bad they were!!!

Green Day LG Arena 27th Oct I mirror Sanity Assasins Comments the music was Good when they played a song all the way through, But the crowd participation stuff got in the way and was no flow to the gig,MInd you the Tshirt cannon was pretty cool. A shame as I saw them twice during American Idiot Tour had a great time (NIA and Milton Keynes).

Brian Harvey at the start of his solo 'career' at club Zeus in Chelmsford (don't ask).

****ing awful. Only good part was seeing some one repeatedly flicking lit fag ends at his face until he stormed off 🙂

Easy! Depeche Mode! I won tickets off a radio station to see them at a theatre (John Cooper Clarke was compere and I really liked him). It was all seated and they were unbelievably dull.
I actually had my review of the gig published in the NME 🙂

ive seen ian brown live

another kings of leon here saw them during there last uk tour. they didnt hit a single bum note, played about 23 tunes but i felt like i was watching the telly.instantly forgetable.
maybee a bit harsh to say it was my worst though.

Ride at the Town & Country round about 1990 ish.

I have never seen or heard such utter, utter, utter shite

Editors at Brixton academy a few years ago, although I really quite like the band. Also babyshambles (the shame!) at Hammersmith, and even more shamefull Kaiser Chiefs at Brixton.

A night in crying whilst I ****ed into a sock would have been preferable to the last two

I have been to a lot of bad gigs but they were all with my old band and we were playing. Once the bassist and singer decided to have a fight on stage and then run off!At another gig the singer was part way through a mental breakdown and refused to look at the audience and he kept stopping singing and staring off into the distance. Another time the bass player decided to tell the audience he wanted to kill himself and then started putting cigarettes out on his arm. In the end a fight broke out with us and the landlord as he refused to pay and riot police had to be called. It was all proper rock and roll not like these young uns today. Now I think about it...Good Times!

Suede, Doncaster Dome, maybe 2000. Maybe lasted three songs, utterly awful. Had seen them before and they could be good, not that night.

Primal Scream - Cambridge a year or so ago....

Primal Scream - Nottingham 1982/3 (i think) - awful awful awful - got booed off - they were the support band - clearly didn't improve over the years!

Dare I say, Garry Glitter. Round '89 or '90. Girlschool supporting. Truly, truly, truly awful. He took a break half way through. We left.

Oasis @ Cardiff Millennium Stadium were pretty poor

I've seen the Blackout supporting several bands (they seem to be stalking me by supporting bands that I like) they are awful...

Jose Gonzales @ the Hall for cornwall - soooo boring (people in the crowd were shushing anyone who sounded like they were trying to enjoy themselves!

But by far the worst was De La Soul @ Exeter earlier this year, not sure if it was their fault or the promoters, but they were having technical problems all night with the support acts & by the time they came on there was only 20mins til the venue closed - so I drove 2hours to see 20mins of De La Soul.

Beck last year in southampton. Dullard.

And Live8. hideous day.

oasis at wembley arena about 7 years ago.

nothing else i`ve seen even comes close to how bad this lot were on that evening.

prior to that it was a carcass gig in worthing - there were about 8 peeople there and the lager was warm cans. i did get to have a few beers with the band after that helped rescue the evening tho.

Muse at Docklands Arena in 2003. It was full of kids (aged 12-16), and the venue had no atmosphere whatsoever. Someone chucked a bottle on stage and it hit Matt Bellamy square on the head. There was no encore.

I thought MGMT at the Astoria was awful at the time - they turned up late (1030), and not having listened to their album I wondered what this 60s hippy throwback carp was. It took me a couple of months to realise that actually it wasn't bad. Doh!
And some of the later Oasis gigs I went to (Hampshire Rose Bowl and one other) were dreadful. Full of scallies and wannabe mancs.

Wayne County and the Electric Chairs, Reading, sometime in the eighties. Godawful, lasted three songs before the hail of mud and bottles drove him of the stage. Roadies had to cover the Doobie Bros kit with tarps to protect it, and shovel the crap off the stage after. Dreadful. 65DaysOfStatic, Oxford Academy, a year or so back. Had tickets for Asobi Seksu, but they got bumped onto support spot for 65Days. Dull, duller, dullest. I can't express how bored I was. Me and me mate walked out during the second 'song' and went to the pub down the road. First time I've done that in over thirty years of gig going. Asobi Seksu were good, mind, but having driven all the way to Oxford for a thirty minute gig I felt somewhat ripped off.

Chilli Peppers in Hyde Park a few years ago, they looked to be going through the motions and the noise police made sure that no-one could hear unless you put your ear to the speakers, was utter sh*te.

"The Enid" at (then) Kingston Polytechnic in 1977. Bunch of hippy sh1te.

Another vote for Ian Brown here.

Black Rebel Motorcyle Club were horrendous a few years ago. Muddy dirge would be the best way to describe it.

Bl**dy hell. 48 posts in and nobody has mentioned Spike Island.

I saw the ting tings last year
talentless hype
I am 25 yrs older than their target audience though

China Crisis Oxford Poly 87 - more atmosphere in the toilets..

I saw Faithless in about 2002, they were awful. As Barry Bethel said, boring corporate dance music, with zero atmosphere.

I also agree with Mudhoney being ace, saw them last month with the Vaselines and it was an excellent gig.