Journey – An act of travelling from one place to another. The past weekend has been that journey. One that has spanned nearly two decades of waiting, one that has been filled with emotion and one that ended with sheer beauty and happiness.
Texas Is The Reason released one album, one EP and two split singles in the mid /late 90s then went their separate ways. Not many people in the venues had the chance to see them before and even more thought that a day like this would ever come around, not only that the last ever shows on British soil!
Formed from members of legendary hardcore bands 108, Shelter, Fountainhead, Supertouch etc, Texas Is The Reason defined a sound, a culture and a generation of music lovers of post punk indie rock (if you want to try and genre it).
Now I may go on a bit but its taken me four days to calm down!
ACADEMY 3, MANCHESTER
Manchester is sold out. The atmosphere is electric to say the least and as Kevin Costner’s voice rings out with the JFK quote “Ok, so what really happened that day?” the PA plays the instrumental of ‘Do You Know Who You Are?’ and the band enter. Norman Brannon (Guitar, looks younger than he did and also may I add a super nice gentleman), Scott Winegard (Bass, Chef and smiling!), Chris Daly (Drums) and Garret Khlan (Guitar and Voice!) stride on and launch into ‘If its here we when get back its ours’, from there on its basically everything they have ever recorded. Garret proclaims “We are just going to play, no encores please just be with us” and we all are! The beauty and subtlety of ‘Nicklewound’ and ‘Blue Boy’ are a contrast to the power and raw emotion of ‘Back and To The Left’ and ‘Something to Forget’. The band certainly play with all the energy you would expect from the second last show ever but there is a hidden beauty within this set. The mixture of audience appreciation and the bands gratitude for granting closure creates an electric atmosphere. The end is near.
THE ELECTRIC BALLROOM, LONDON
So if Manchester was emotional what would London hold. This was the grand finale, the last waltz, the end. Now ive seen a few bands in my time, loved lots, liked loads, a few not so much. My son asked me today what was London like (he was at Manchester seeing the band play, for which I’m really grateful) and I could only say it was a life changing experience and the best show I have ever been too. Maybe it was the occasion, maybe it was the atmosphere, maybe because the journey was nearly over, I don’t know but I can certainly say that the night will remain with me forever. Same songs (they only have 16 after all!), different order and played with so much raw energy, craftsmanship and emotion that everyone inside the Camden Electric Ballroom goes through a different kind of journey. The ‘new’ songs ‘Every Little Girls Dream’ and ‘ When Rock n Roll Was Just A Baby’ are part of the folklore and sit perfectly inbetween ‘Johnny on the Spot’ and ‘Antique’, however it is the last song ‘A Jack With One Eye’ that steals the last two nights. As the final lyrics of the final song of the final show ring out “Your place is still at the heart of my everything” and that’s it…….the snare kicks in for the last time and then the hugs. Not just the band but everyone inside the venue, hugging, shaking hands, some weeping all smiling and it was just a privilege to be part of the journey.
So that’s that. Both Manchester and London did the band proud and the band did us proud. I suppose all journeys come to an end and even though this one has been a long, emotional one it has been worth it, every last second. TITR RIP.
Im a teacher by day and a music lover all the time. I have promoted over 500 shows as Interkonnect including Get Up Kids, Big Business, Hella, Jim Bob, Clorox Girls, New Amsterdams, Juffage, Vessels etc etc etc. Im the oldest emo in Bolton and love Dischord, Vagrant, Jade Tree, Deep Elm, In The Red, Touch and Go, Southern Lord type labels. High Fidelity top five - Jawbreaker, Get Up Kids, Man From Delmonte, Ween and Descendents ( thats this week!!! ) - Hope you enjoy Silent Radio and what i have to say, love ya'll Ivan
 & 04/08/2013 (LONDON)){kind=link}