Marcus Bonfanti (Page 2 of 2)

Had a look up to Durham last night to catch Marcus and the band, Alex & Scott at the Gala Theatre. He’s touring the new album, Shake The Walls, and seems to be doing a good job of it.

A lot of the tracks I heard last time Marcus was up this way, but that was a solo date, this time, the numbers were fully fleshed out with Alex’s sinuous drumming and Scott’s smooth bass. As you’d expect, most of the set was drawn from the new album, sounding a rocked up, country blues affair, Marcus’ baritone growl matched by his Gibson SG for most of the set, though alternated with the Telecaster when he wanted to rock out with hair flying. However, for my money, its when he picks up the Resonator that he’s in his element, and a couple of numbers starting with Alley Cat, really got the goose-bumps going.

Durham Gala is an odd sort of venue, somewhere between an Arts centre and a theatre; the 7:30pm start was unusual but not as much as stumbling out into the foyer just after 9:00pm and there was still daylight; due to the Gala’s early Sunday curfew. That was why the main set was shorter than would have preferred, at just over an hour, but the 150 or so who turned out held Marcus to an encore which he duly obliged by coming out solo, picking up the Res and giving us Sweet Louise and his award winning The Bittersweet before calling Alex & Scott back out for the touring blues man’s anthem, Give Me Your Cash.

Marcus is one of the busiest guys on the circuit, between other projects, he has some solo and (his own) band dates lined up through the summer, if you like the blues feel vocals of Ian Siegal and the fretwork like Aynsley and you haven’t already, I’d recommend you catch a Marcus show:-

  May 24 The Castle Hotel Manchester,
   May 25 The Town Hall Selby,
   May 26 Hebden Bridge Blues Festival Hebden Bridge,
   Jun 08 Bobstock (Private Event) Kent,
   Jun 20 The Boileroom Guildford,
   Jun 21 Borderline London,
   Jun 23 Brudenell Social Club Leeds,
   Jun 24 The Cellars Portsmouth,
   Jul 02 The Musician Leicester,
   Jul 03 Fibbers York, 
   Jul 04 The Thunderbolt Bristol, 
   Jul 05 The Hop Wakefield, 
   Jul 06 Broadcast Glasgow, 
   Jul 07 Cabaret Voltaire Edinburgh, 
   Jul 08 Ironworks Inverness, 
   Jul 11 The Kings Head (Courtyard) Carlisle,
   Aug 17 The Portland Arms Cambridge, 
   Sep 07 The Big Green Cardigan Festival Battle,
   Sep 14 Red Rooster Festival Suffolk,

Was hoping to pick up the new album, but a mix-up mean that a box load of CDs that should have gone to Southport ended up somewhere in Scotland, don’t know if this included the new one, Shake The Walls, but it’s available to pre-order from usual sources for June 17th release.

Backstage at Durham with Gary Grainger (Bishop FM) -
The Bittersweet - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QUJu-hMLHU
Jezebel - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtWx1Ys2 … mp;index=6

Some video from the outstanding gig at The Borderline Friday 21st June

http://youtu.be/z8WsLI1oTqY

http://youtu.be/TDgHsA_klco

http://youtu.be/ZJgFsOpIf8Q

Oct 07: Rock Cafe / Hamburg!!!!!!

Saw Marcus two years ago at The Borderline. And now it's the first chance to catch him in my place . . .

So, it’s Sunday evening and you’re winding down from Valentines’ week-end up in Durham City. What you gonna do? Well, you could always have dropped in at the Gala Theatre to go and see 50 Shades of Grey, or, if you were smart, climbed the extra flight of stairs and caught Marcus Bonfanti giving it 50 Shades of Blue on his Borrowed Time solo/acoustic tour. Borrowed Time, as in the name of the E.P. that is the centre of the gigs, or Borrowed Time as Marcus is one of the busiest guys going round, with his fingers in so many tasty pies….?

The evening got away in fine form with the harmonica led – God Only Knows, before Marcus plundered the goody-bag for older and recent gems such as Devil Girl, Jezebel, Now That I’m Gone, before the first brace of new songs, though the titles were “somehow” familiar – Layla followed by John Henry bearing no resemblance to their slightly better known namesakes… Then it was back onto more familiar ground with the likes of The Girl I Knew before closing with The Bittersweet for a short break.

A sold-out Studio room (120ish) were really dazzled by the six-string fireworks, as well as Marcus’ easy and engaging patter between songs, and the second set there was to be no let-up. Leading off with Honey, and the likes of Messin’ Round No More, again mixing songs from all the previous albums until hitting the new E.P. with Snowflake (and the back-story to this is hilarious), All She Ever Wants and The Death of Me, before a storming My Baby Don’t Dance. However, through this 2nd set, it was clar the ol’ “February throat” was beginning to effect Marcus’ voice, especially in the chat, but ironically, it really hit toward the end of the set in the opening bars of Sweet Louise and after a couple of false starts he was forced to leave the stage, to supportive applause for a couple of minutes to find a remedy. After this short pause, Marcus came back on and went out on a blazing Cheap Whiskey that got folk up on their feet.

Durham City isn’t a regular stop on the Blues circuit as other surrounding towns and cities, but it does take acts like Marcus very much to its heart and by return, they give amazing shows, of which this was one. Keep an eye out on YouTube for a Gala Studio sessions which Marcus recorded earlier in the day. Mind though, as much as he puts into his performances, if this looks extra impassioned, it’s because, in his words, it was really chilly out on that balcony, so he was giving it another “50 shades of blues” – with cold!

Roll on August for the next visit up here - Guisborough