Blog: Stu G -StageIt Live: The Gigging Revolution
LTTM co-founder Jono watches former Delirious guitarist Stu G's latest online 'StageIt' gig, and considers, is this the future of live music?
When I saw that Stu G was doing online gigs, there was part of me that really didn't think it would work in the long term. As a one off special, yes, but to draw the viewers in every time? I wasn't convinced. Yet after really thinking about it and watching Stu G's latest live gig, I am definitely a fan of the concept now!
Live gigs have always been very important for me as a music fan. They are the memories of my teenage years. I could talk to anybody about seeing Oasis live for the first time, getting to the front at a Green Day gig, watching The Killers and U2 in the Millennium Stadium, watching Travis and the Stereophonics when they were both 'the bands of the moment'. Seeing your favorite band live was as important as getting the albums themselves. It felt like something magical happened when you saw a band live.
I was a massive Delirious fan too. I think I saw them live 15 times between 1999 and 2009. I saw them in small venues, sports halls, outdoor festivals, churches and stadiums. Each gig was a special live moment for a different reason. I remember being stood right in front of Stu G during a gig in Port Talbot and seeing him up close playing the 'Deeper' riff, jumping in a car park at Alton Towers to 'My Glorious' and being in the greatest sporting venue (for me) The Millennium Stadium watching the guys play 'History Maker' and 'Heaven' to thousands of Bon Jovi fans - a very proud day that was.
Of course times have changed, with internet speeds being what they are now compared to 5 years ago, it now means we can now watch on demand TV, download films and music within seconds of clicking 'buy', and play online gaming like we have never seen. So to use it as a tool to 'gig' to people all around the world at the same time is actually a great concept.
I suppose my worry when I heard Stu G was playing online via the StageIt website was, would he just have one webcam set up in a dark room and it would be like when an older relative first uses Skype and they don't know where the camera is, and they spend 20mins going "can you hear me" and there is a delay with poor muffled sound. Thankfully, Stu G is a bit more stylish and tech-savy than that! So getting the right look for the gig, and the quality of sound would have come easy for him, and it did.
What I loved about Stu G in this gig was that he set it up to feel like an intimate living room gig, in a very stylish atmospheric room. As something to watch it was more enjoyable than watching some gigs in dingy basement venues.
As the clock counted down to the start of the gig, I actually found myself getting more and more excited. I was in the kitchen preparing food for a big family meal. The clock hit 1 minute to go and the wife said, could I run upstairs and get the table cloth. So I rushed up the stairs and found the cloth on first grab and ran back down stairs to find the clocks saying '2 seconds to go' (this did add to the excitement of the gig).
The screen flicked to Stu G and his band standing there playing the opening riff of 'Sanctify'. A great opening track from the album King of Fools, and a great song to start off this gig. Stu G then powered into the Glo classic, 'My Glorious'. Here we saw the quality guitarist that Stu G is. Changing effects, playing rhythm guitar, then jumping into the guitar solos with ease. The sound quality and balance of the band and vocals was brilliant.
Stu G was joined at times during this 50min set by All Sons & Daughters member Dave Leonard. Dave's added vocals were sublime, a really lovely voice. Another highlight for me was hearing them play 'For All My Days', a new free download track that Stu has released via Noisetrade. The atmosphere in the room, on the screen, and in my house was out of this world. A fantastic song that needs to be downloaded.
All in all, I really enjoyed, hearing and seeing Stu G in this format. It was well worth buying an online ticket and enjoying the music from one of the greatest guitarists ever.
There are pros and cons to everything in life. This concept works for Stu G as it manages to reach as many people as want to see him live in one go, without him touring and dealing with the massive cost that would bring.
There were many other things I enjoyed about watching Stu G like this, here is my positives list. You don't have to queue at the bar to get a drink. No queue for the toilet (although if there is no toilet paper, then that's something you really need to look into). No random person who has come because they know one hit, and spend the rest of the evening chatting during the quiet moments.
There is no random person sticking their phone in the air in front of you, to capture a poor quality photo that they will never look at again. The out of tune singing isn't the person next to you, although it might be your own vocals. You don't have to travel to the venue, wait out in the cold for the doors to open, miss the last train home, get lost in a city you have never been to before. And, you can, sit, stand, dance, lay on the sofa, watch it in your bed, you could even watch the gig on the iPad while cooking tea (as I did).
Of course the downside of such gigs is that you loose the lighting effects and the strong bass sound pounding through your body (unless you have spent loads of cash on a big speaker system). And also the excitement of being crammed into a small, sweaty venue. Yet I really didn't miss that, and Stu G played some great songs from his back catalogue, and it sounded brilliant, it really did.
I hope Stu G does another gig soon, I would highly recommend it. If you're looking for a new way of seeing an artist live, with the added spice of interactive chat with people from around the world at the gig, then this StageIt concept is a great idea. I can't wait for the next one Mr G.
Jono
