Kraftwerk Beacon Bristol 1st June 2026

Surely one of the hardest working bands of all when it comes to touring. They seem to be on tour somewhere constantly. That's real commitment to your art... Ralf is now 79 years old! I don't really think that there is much that I need to say about Kraftwerk. They are simply legendary, a creative force that has been ahead of the curve for more than 50 years. And even at this stage of their long career they are not content to sit back on their laurels and rely on their past achievements.... no you've gotta have multimedia. I did one of their 3D shows in Belfast some years ago and aside from feeling like a bit of a self-conscious prat sitting there in a pair of 3D glasses, it was brilliant!

I don't know if this is my bias coming through, but to my ears, Kraftwerk's back catalogue has weathered the passage of decades brilliantly which is not something that can be said for many bands.

Thanks to Chatts for this great capture from Bristol.

FLAC: https://we.tl/t-R37N6GQRd0kcfe9d

Artwork: https://we.tl/t-DQYtB0y0nFJedDxe

Middle East Cambridge MA 3rd May 1998

 

So, it's 1998 and Numan's winning streak continued. 1997's studio album 'Exile' took of from where 'Sacrifice' left off and again like it's predecessor this was mostly Numan's handiwork and his alone. Whilst chart success still proved to be elusive, the critical reception was positive (something that Numan had not enjoyed even in the first bloom of his success!).

The album presents itself as a cohesive body of work, once again a mix of film score and rock album 'Exile' was written along a theme of a Book of Revelations-esque show down with all of the accepted concepts of Christianity turned upside down. Numan's beef with Christianity and formalised religion was long established but this was his most forthright lyrical attack to date. Stateside I don't imagine that the album it sits in many fundamentalists collections!

Actually, chart success (whatever that entails now in a digital/streaming environment) would not return for a few more years yet, but with 'Exile' Numan had for sure regained his mojo and once again found his own musical niche that he would build on as the decade and the millenium came to a close.

FLAC: https://we.tl/t-euPJ2RcdaoVCcTLT

Artwork: https://we.tl/t-nUxDfjTa5FMCDMqW

This is a nice recording of the US leg of the 'Exile' tour. Many thanks to the original Dime uploader.

Alison Moyet Warfield Theatre San Francisco 5th June 2026

 

I didn't get to see Yazoo way back when, all told there wasn't so much opportunity to in their short existence. A schoolmate did go when they played the Brighton Dome in 1982 and he bought me a tour badge, which I still have. Neither did I see them on their 2008 'Reconnected' dates. But I do occasionally listen to 'Upstairs At Erics' and even more occasionally, 'You And Me Both'. Alison Moyet went on to enjoy greater success as a solo artist. Huge hits such 'All Cried Out' and 'That Ole Devil Called Love' were perhaps better suited to her Bluesy vocal than was Basildon synth-pop.

In the context of this electronic '80s package, the focus was inevitably on the Yavoo material and the singles come across really well.... and 'Situation' is still a classic!

FLAC: https://we.tl/t-d11BqJazMRWvjiut

Artwork: https://we.tl/t-pcNLafW1Dmy1yJUt

Soft Cell Warfield Theatre San Francisco 5th June 2026

 

Next up on the Generations Warfield bill are Soft Cell. This one is a bit more tricky for me. Soft Cell have been big in my life since I bought 'Tainted Love' back in 1981. Whilst I didn't get to see them until they came back together and played at the Ocean in Hackney in 2001, I saw them play some fantastic gigs. Dave Ball was such a huge part of that, so I think that I would really struggle seeing Soft Cell  without his commanding figure behind the keyboards. Set-wise it's a good mix of new and old, hit and miss - not an easy feat in a limited 11 song set. And I guess that the like's of 'Baby Doll' and 'Martin' could scare sections of the audience away!

FLAC: https://we.tl/t-SjYownyMT9JO1NAM

Artwork: https://we.tl/t-uFAUqRcfGCasuw8R

Human League Warfield Theatre San Francisco 5th June 2026

 

We are very much in the era of retro package tours. Promotors, particularly in the US love them. And the business case supporting these arrangements must be positive despite the organisational costs. A while ago I posted on my other site (Aural Sculptors) just such a festival set that occurred at a Californian vineyard last August. It went by the name of 'Lost 80's Live' and featured a collection of bands who had had some chart successes in the 1980s. The Vapors were one such band on the bill, and no disrespect to the band, they had some great material and are still recording new material today, but they played a set of five songs at the event. With such an arrangement I struggle to see how ends meet. That said I am neither a music promotor or an accountant so what do I know.

This is a little different I guess, a package tour of bigger hitters and fewer of them, three in fact. Good for the ticket money I have no doubt. Inevitably, though with so many big hits to fit in the sets are shorter and hit heavy and that's fine, but it doesn't necessarily make for the best gig.

But don't listen to this grumpy old sod... who would be happiest with a complete run through of 'Reproduction' and 'Travelogue'! It's a good gig honestly.

(with thanks to the original Dime uploader (loughney).

FLAC: https://we.tl/t-fKShBgrPBOWm09aG

Artwork: https://we.tl/t-SG7QL7huN58V0hx2

The Guild Theatre Menlo Park CA 8th April 2026

 

Here is a nice sounding recording from one of Numan's frequent dates in California. He and his band really do put some leg work in on the live front!

There's not so much of 'my Numan' in his usual live sets these days, although I have no cause for complaint when he has done so many brilliant retro tours. Listening to 'Films' tonight as I post this (always a favourite) I am transported to an afternoon with my mate Matthew Sands (RIP) spent on Littlehampton beach (Sussex, UK) listening to 'The Pleasure Principle' on an old, clunky tape recorder. It was the summer of 1981, we had started secondary  school the previous autumn and were getting madly into music. It was a great time.

Anyway enough of the pointless reminiscing. Thanks to the original Dime uploader (loughney).

Files will need conversion from 24 bit to 16 bit for those wishing to burn to CD.

FLAC: https://we.tl/t-ERU7yhkhNM5qj4k8

Artwork:  https://we.tl/t-LyBDsaJsiCi7HOZ4

Opera House Blackpool 20th October 1983

 

Here's a recording that seems to have entered into circulation only recently. Numan on the Warriors tour in sunny Blackpool (perhaps not in October though). This is not a bad addition to the collection soundwise (despite a couple of dropouts) although sadly it is incomplete in terms of the set. Thanks to the original uploader on 101guitars (Juniper Jarro).

FLAC: https://we.tl/t-ffi0sUV0exm5EoGg

Artwork: https://we.tl/t-2uA1VMpaT4aHjXo5