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On Saturday 22th November 16 Toneladas held a benefit event to raise money for the damage caused by the recent weather disaster to the L'assaig de Massanassa rehearsal rooms.   The rehearsal space is used by many of Valencia’s local bands and the damage caused not only to the building, but the equipment as well, has left many bands without a space to rehease, practise and store equipment.   It was the first time many of us had been out since the distaster and emotions where running high – lots of sadness and everyone wanting to party the fuck out!Delivering the goods were two of our local favorites – The Ukelele Zombies and Golden Peluco. Neither band disapointed – high energy, alcohol fueled silliness all round with rusty dancing and the realisation many of us had the let side down and were not club fit anymore! However, practise makes perfect and its fair to say everyone who came gave it their best shot!   Viva Valencia!   Words and Photos: Rhyan Paul

There are some bands whose name immediately evokes thoughts of anarchy, hedonism and musical naughtiness. Dead Boys are one of those bands – a band who became infamous in 1977 for their antics at the legendary CBGB club and one who at the time was credited with being Americas most violent band.   When I heard that the current line up (complete with original guitarist Cheetah Chrome) was playing 16 Tonedalas, Valencia as part of their European tour – I knew a night out was necessary.   I arrived early to an already heaving venue, the air electric with anticipation. I hung out with Cheetah Chrome before the gig, who told me “I’m 70 years old now, touring fucking hurts man!”   However, when they burst onto the stage and launched into the punk classic “Sonic Reducer” - Cheetah played like a man half his age! The crowd went crazy and didn’t stop until the encores were finally done.   49 years deep into the game, Dead Boys show that punk is not dead (Although I certainly felt that way the following morning! Words & photos: Rhyan Paul

A photo gallery review from Cat Clubs recent gig at 16 Toneladas Club in Valencia. Photos: Rhyan Paul

Every February a quiet little town called Ayora, is taken over by the Gazpatxo rock Festival - a festival of epic punk proportions!   February is cold and damp for us here in Valencia (yeah, yeah - the mid 60´s is cold for us!) and It takes a lot for me to leave the house. When I saw that some of my favourite bands were playing at a punk festival just over an hours drive away - It was time to remove my ass from the sofa and head out.   I arrived early and the streets around the site were already buzzing with anticipation. I love small, day festivals - they are intense from start to finish and Gazpatxo did not disappoint!    Amazing performances from all the bands (Benito Kamelas, Fumiga, Kaos Urbano, Koma, Lendakaris Muertos, Porretas, Sons of Aguirre, The Locos and PresidentX) and a DJ performance by Plan B ensured the partying was non-stop from midday till 3am.   Punk festivals in Spain are different to the UK - it’s still as raw and often political, but it is also family friendly and there is an element of humor in many of the bands performances.   It would be hard to choose a favorite band from the festival, but if I had to choose it would be a close call between XPresidentX and Lendakaris Muertos. (Haven’t heard of them - you should really check them out!)   The event was fantastically organized, running like a well oiled machine from start to finish. The crowd gave it there all until 3am - and then the after party started!   3am is way past my bedtime and the sofa was missing me….     Words and photos: Rhyan Paul

The Automatic Lovers from Madrid, performed the Valencia leg of their tour at 16 Toneladas. Hedonistic, punk as fuck and raw to the core! Photos by: Rhyan Paul

On 17th October The Lightening Seeds played for the first time in Valenica. Sala Moon was at capacity with adoring fans, many of them British who had travelled in from Alicante, Sagunto and beyond. The concert was a emotional trip down memory lane, back to the heady days of late 80's and early 90's UK indie scene. Ian Broudie's voice is still as sublime as it was 40 years ago. The band played all of their classics including "Lucky You" and "Life Of Riley" (Broudie's son, who plays rhythm guitair in the band is named after the song. Or is it the other way around?) Finishing on the anthem "Three Lions" Broudie and the band whipped the crowd into a chanting frenzy! We hope they will return soon. Words and photos: Rhyan Paul

On Friday 28th and Saturday 29th June – BIGSOUND Festival returned to ‘La Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències’ here in Valencia.    Without a doubt, it is one of the most beautiful venues for music events in Valencia and the perfect location for a family feelgood festival weekender.     The event was sold out over both days and 22,000 partygoers were treated to musical performances from top Spanish pop artists across two stages and partied on into the early hours.   Those that were not lucky enough to get tickets partied on the bridge that overlooks the venue and created their own mini-festival. The atmosphere both inside and outside of the La Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències was one of pure musical joy.   Fridays highlights included performances from Enol, Henry Mendez, Cali Y El Dandee, Aitana and Juan Magan on the Turia stage, with Love Yi, Pimp Flaco, Orslok,Sen Senra and Steve Lean rocking the BIGSOUND stage. There was also surprise guest appearances from King Africa and Chema Rivas.     Saturday continued with performances from Jose De Rico, The Tyets, Alvaro De Luna, Maria Escarmiento, Ana Mena, Recycled J, Quevedo, Kabasaki and Myke Towers.   Now these names propbably mean nothing to you (they didn’t to me!) but trust me, they are huge!   Now, I’m not gonna lie – Pop music and me go together like oil and water. However, I must secretly confess my usual cynical, miserable punkist demeanour faded somewhat and I found my mouth doing a weird thing (smiling I think it is called?), my feet tapped in time with music and I had a funny turn and felt happy – thankfully by the day after the festival had finished I was back to my normal self.     If you are suffering from the summertime blues, I strongly recommend finding a happy pop festival in your area, go along and immerse in the happiness! (Or even better, get a flight and come visit us here in Valencia!) 
     BIGSOUND Festival: https://bigsoundfestival.com   Words and Photos: Rhyan Paul

Kate Clover brings her unqiue style and energy to Loco Club Valencia. A photo review. Photos by: Rhyan Paul

The Picturebooks returned to Valencia on 21st February, performing at Loco Club. Performing old classics and new material to a sellout crowd. Photos by: Rhyan Paul

Nine Questions with The Chameleons frontman – Mark Burgess.   Formed in 1981, The Chameleons are over 40 deeps into the game and are still selling out venues worldwide. I managed to catch up with Mark in Valencia last week for a 5 minute interview, which became an in-depth 30 minute chat.   As a band, you have inspired and influenced many notable bands over the years, and they give credit to you for that inspiration. Back in 1981, when you first formed who were your influences and inspiration?   When we first started out, we were inspired by the giants:  Me personally, The Beatles, The Doors, T Rex, David Bowie and Sparks. Then in the 70’s, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, purely for the theatrics of it and that was about as Prog Rock as I got.  Then I fell in love with Kate Bush and punk.   Reg and I shared a love for the original Alex Cooper Band, David Bowie and then we got into the Fall.   Dave bought something completely different – he had an older brother who got him into Crosby, Stills & Nash and Bob Dylan and the more progressive sound like Mike Oldfield.   When John joined, he was a prog rock guy and was into Genesis and Peter Gabriel.   All of this came to the mix, but the only real influence of any significance in 1981 was The Edge, because no one had heard a guitar played like that and we were fortunate to play them early on.   But really, we shunned influences – we didn’t want to sound like anyone else. We wanted to find our own sound.   Bob Dylan always said, no matter how much of a giant you are, you are just a link in a chain. And The Chameleons are a link in that chain.     If you hadn’t followed music as a career, what would you have done instead?   My plan was to do drama at Manchester Polytechnic. My last year at school wasn’t great and soon as I could legally leave, I did. I got a job and soon as I got some money together, I went to college to sit the exams I missed at school.   When we did the Peel Sessions our lives changed overnight. Literally the following day, the phones started ringing and that w3as it. I had to make a choice as to what to do. I was making music with friends and wasn’t really taking it seriously. Dave was career driven, I was just along for the ride and was pushed into being the singer. So, when it took off it was a complete surprise and I had to make a choice – so I chose to stick with my mates and play music.     What is your favorite song to perform and why?   It depends and changes. It depends on my mood, where we are and what’s going on.   From a lyrical point of view “Is It any Wonder” is one of my favourites, because I kind of stunned myself when I wrote it. I work very much with my stream of consciousness, and I don’t always know where something comes from or what it means – I write instinctively, something aligns. Then I can look back on it and I know exactly what the song is saying.   Second Skin is one I am proud of because the way it evolved, and it did evolve. I love it as a piece of music anyway, it started out talking about immortality that exists in celluloid, in films. James Deans, for example. Then it morphed into something much more metaphysical, about the Bardo – which is a state you pass through before you die. It’s a complete re-evaluation of your life and you see your impact from other people’s perspective and it’s an evolution for your reincarnation.  So, the song talks about Bardo and how time is an illusion. I was very proud of that for a 21-year-old it was very mature, the same goes for Tears.   It really does depend – right now for example one of my favourites to perform is “In Answer” because it’s about the huge, exciting love that comes from nowhere and Finally at the age of 63 I have finally met the love of my life - It’s taken that long!   I like playing them all though – if I didn’t, I wouldn’t!!   It’s been 40 years since “Script Of The Bridge” was first released. If you could go back and give your younger self some advice, what would it have been?   Get a manger! Don’t do anything until you have a good manager – someone you trust, someone who has their head screwed on, who loves the members of the band and can be your representative to get your music to the right people and get the right deals.   A band shouldn’t have to be thinking about publishing, accounts, royalties, advances - these were the things that got in the way of me making music before we had a manager.   I would tell myself “You are making a record here that people are going to want to hear and be performed 40 or 50 years down the line. So, make sure you are taken care of because you will avoid years of struggle” Because that was it was, we had to really fight to make music. Financially we were on our arses, we did sell out tours of America and never got paid for them! It not about wanting wealth, it’s about having the breathing space and freedom to make the best music you can.     There are some incredible picture discs and coloured vinyl on The Chameleons webstore. Why is releasing vinyl still so important to you?   Because that’s what made me want to be in a band in the first place, buying records. Before all these hi-tec formats came in, it was vinyl records. Going through the ritual of flicking through album sleeves and seeing something interesting that you might not have heard of. The whole fetish of it. It’s not a sexual fetish, but it is a fetish – the size of the sleeve, the information sheet that you read whilst you are listening to the record, putting in the turntable – having a side one and a side two, and structuring the music so that’s a journey from A to B.   So even now, my turntable isn’t plugged in, but I am still buying vinyl, because I love them. I love the medium – you get a tactile and aesthetic experience from a record that you don’t get with any other format. Records have a special “thing” that you can’t really define, its not about the best quality sound, yeah it must sound good, but its more about the overall vinyl experience for me.     Out of all the venues you have performed at over the last 40 years, is there a standout favourite?   The Loft in Berlin, before the wall came down – it was run by a lady called Monica. She was a punk lady in her 40’s and she was very cool. It’s my all-time favourite venue ever.     You finished an epic North America tour in October, are currently halfway through a sell-out Spain and Portugal tour and have UK dates in Manchester and Liverpool later in the month. What’s in store for 2024?   The thing that set this year apart was the tour the tour we did this yar with the Mission was supposed to happen in 2021 – so that’s one of the reasons we have been so busy this year. This year we have done 86 shows – it’s been great because we have had loads of work, but the flipside is you get very tired.   Next year is going to be a lot calmer. We have things planned for the summer and September and we are going into the studio to work on new material starting in January. We have a 3-vinyl set coming out, remastered by Guy Massey – of Strange Times. So, I would like to do some gigs around that, and we will probably return the States again next year.      When you are not touring, how do you like to spend your downtime?   I tend to shut the door, I don’t want to do anything other than reading books, playing my guitar in the garden, listening to music and taking my dog for a walk. Touring is full on – so it’s all about re-energising yourself.   Next year, my life is going to change again as I am moving to Berlin, but the same will still apply. I am very deeply in love with someone, and I want to spend as much time as possible with my girlfriend and not spend months away touring.  I want to keep playing and keep touring but more of a balance. Less gigs and bigger venues at weekend. So, the fans might have to travel a little further to see us.     What advice would you give to up-and-coming bands who dream of following in The Chameleons footsteps? Don’t listen to people like me! Don’t listen to old people telling you how to do it. The world you are trying to make it in is very different to the one we were trying to make it in.  The whole industry has changed, so 60-year-old people like me have no idea! It was hard for us, but it’s a lot harder for the new generation of artists. Back then you had one avenue – get John Peel on your side, because you only have one national radio station playing alternative music. The only way you could hear underground music was by listening to the Peel Sessions.   Now you have YouTube, Spotify and all these other platforms. My advice would be, think about your music and your style. Please yourselves, you don’t want to sound like anyone else. Back in Manchester in 78 we had the two giants “Joy Division” and “The Fall” - then you had 150 variations of those two bands.  That’s not what you want, you want to sound different. Don’t let anyone tell you how to do it – do it your way.   The other bit of advice I would give you is the advice I would have given myself – get a manager. Someone who loves you and the band and can help you move on.    Words and photos: Rhyan Paul

Every year, the SanSan Festival brings together thousands of people and the best selection of artists ready to enjoy three days of concerts, food, beaches and friends. It is a national indie music festival that backs both promising young artists and those who are already established. The festival will be held from 17th to 19th April 2025.   Find out more information on the website:  SanSan Festival "The Sansan Festival, the first major festival of the year and the event that marks the beginning of the festival season in Spain, has unveiled the schedules of its long-awaited 2025 edition. From April 17 to 19, Benicàssim will once again become the epicenter of live music, bringing together thousands of attendees in an unparalleled environment. Always linked to the Easter holidays, the SanSan is more than consolidated as a festival reference and has become one of the favorite plans for indie music lovers in our country. A perfect plan to enjoy a varied musical offer in Benicàssim, where you can also enjoy the beach, the rich gastronomy of the area and the Mediterranean climate. Consolidated as the first major festival of the year and after the success of past editions, in which it brought together up to 60,000 people, the Sansan Festival 2025 promises to exceed all expectations and reaffirm Benicàssim as an essential destination for lovers of live music."

Originally formed in 1967 by Edgar Froese, Tangerine Dream have released over 170 albums, composed music scores for more than 20 films, composed 35 hours of music for the game “Grand Theft Auto V”, are still touring strong and have just released a 50th Anniversary Box set.  Famed for their ambient and electronic sound, they have been profoundly influential in the development of Electronic Dance Music since the early 1970’s. The current members of the band featuring Thorsten Quaeschning (who was Froese’s chosen successor and took over the leadership of the band after his death in 2015), Hoshiki Yamane and Paul Frick recently performed at La Rambleta in Valencia. It’s been six years since the band last performed here and they did not disappoint the capacity crowd! As with all Tangerine Dream events, the stage visuals and creative set up complemented the music perfectly. Kicking off with the stunningly ambient “Sorcerer Theme” from 1974, they performed a time spanning set which finished with “No Happy Ending” from 2013.  The following encore was pure musical genius – the band having used physics to work out the resonant note of the room and performing a live session in that musical key! Tangerine Dream are one of those band that have crossed generations, remained true to their musical beliefs and are seemingly unstoppable!   5 Minutes with Thorsten Quaeschning Welcome to Valencia, it’s been a while since you were last here. How is it all going? It feels great to be honest. The band has a long history – 57 years and it’s an honour to be part of the progress of Tangerine Dream. I have been part of this for 22 years now, it feels longer!  We are very happy to tour the world and happy that people want to come and see us. This is our second concert this year – last year we toured a little and the year we played our biggest tour ever with 67 concerts in one year! Its great to be back in Valencia, last time we played here was 2019, so six years ago. It’s great to play Spain, the Spanish audience are always very active and interested in music and what we do. To have fans from the 70’s, 80’s, 90’s and because of us producing the tracks for “Grand Theft Auto 5” we now have a new younger audience as well.  Also, with Netflix series like “Stranger Things” and “Black Mirror” using the music it is really exciting to reach new and old fans and still be part of the game.   I have seen the setlist for tonight and it looks fantastic. I also understand you have something a little special planned for the encore. A normal concert these days is that we play a main set with existing tracks from across the albums from 1974 onwards. Tracks from before then were not meant to be recreated, it was more music from the moment and very ambient. We stop in 1986 and skips the 90´s for personal taste reasons and then finish with music from the last albums. After that we play the music band game, where we leave the stage and get people to clap before we come back out! The we come back out and play a session. I don’t like the term improv session – it’s too jazz music related and makes me think of scale playing. So, this is more music of the moment, and it’s based on physics. We work out the distance to the back wall and the ceiling and then which tempo the bass drum is pumping the room, and we are also looking for the resonant note of the room, to make the room shake. So, if the concert hall resonates in F, we will play the session in F. We like to play around with this and have some metal shaking in the room! The only constraint on how long we play for is dependent on the curfew of the venue! Words and photo: Rhyan Paul