Utah Concert Review

By: Kevin Rolfe

Thirty-four years ago today, the song “Do They Know It’s Christmas” by Band Aid was released.  Boomtown Rats frontman Bob Geldof saw a report on the BBC about the famine in Africa and desperately wanted to help.  He recruited Ultravox frontman, Midge Ure, to write a song with him in the hopes of raising $100,000 for famine relief.  They wrote the song in a few days, and then they took to their individual assignments in getting this project off the ground.

 Midge locked himself in the studio, recording, arranging, and producing the track so that it would be ready when the time came to add vocals.  That was Geldof’s job. Bob Geldof went on a mission to form a one-off supergroup by recruiting some of the biggest voices in British music of the day.  He didn’t go through managers or publicists. He went straight to the artists themselves. He recruited the likes of Bono of U2, Boy George of Culture Club, Simon Lebon of Duran Duran, Tony Hadley of Spandau Ballet, and George Michael of Wham.  These vocalists along with many others agreed to show up and record this song over a 24 hour period. The song was recorded and released the very next day. It was the fastest selling single in UK chart history selling 1 million copies in the first week and has sold almost 4 million copies in the UK to date and about 13 million worldwide.  The song did not raise $100,000 dollars. However, within a year of its release, the song had raised $8 million. The success of the song drove Geldof and Ure to put together one of the greatest concert festivals of all time, Live Aid. Continue reading “UCR mini-Interview: Midge Ure on “Do They Know it’s Christmas””

Interview By: Kevin Rolfe 

Note from the interviewer:

Justin is a singer songwriter from Aptos, California.  He has been performing in bands for years, but it’s only within the last decade that he’s taken to writing/ recording his own music and performing solo shows or with his band The Heavy Hand along the west coast.  I’ve known Justin for over twenty years.  These are questions and stories that I have wondered about and am now so happy to have answers to.  I hope you enjoy reading this interview as much as I had conducting it!

Utah Concert Review:  As long as I’ve known you, you’ve been involved with music, whether it be with your former band Moz Eizley, or your current band The Heavy Hand and of course your solo work as well. I guess I’ve never known where you got started with music.  I know your dad plays a little guitar and is in a band right now. Is that how you got your start?

Continue reading “UCR Interview- Justin Hambly”

Interview by: Kevin Rolfe

If you were to write a screenplay using only actual events from the life of Mike Peters, a Hollywood exec would turn it down and say that it was too unbelievable.  The man has had an amazing career with his band The Alarm, fought through the challenges of an aging band in a youth driven music industry, and most importantly, overcome cancer three times.  Mike has co-founded the Love Hope Strength Foundation, the worlds leading rock and roll cancer foundation. They host bone marrow screening drives at concerts across the world hoping to “Save Lives, once concert at a time!”.  Along with Jules, his wife/ bandmate and fellow cancer survivor, Mike joins forces with Robin Wilson of Gin Blossoms, and Billy Duffy of The Cult to climb to some of the highest peaks in the world to perform the world’s highest concerts on land.  They are now taking their treks to the great canyons of the world. This past week they took part in Love Hope Strength Foundation’s Rock The Canyons fundraising event where they hiked through Sedona’s Red Rock State Park, along the famous Bright Angel Trail and the South Kaibab Trail then continuing to Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park.  I was able to catch up with Mike just after this event. We speak about his adventure in Southern Utah, and he shares many career spanning stories. Enjoy!

Continue reading “UCR Interview- Mike Peters of The Alarm”

Interview By: Kevin Rolfe

Noah Kahan is an up and coming singer songwriter.  He actually might be past the “up and coming stage” since his show here in Utah is a sellout.  I had the chance to speak with Noah leading up to his show at The State Room.  I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed speaking with Noah.  

UCR: Where are you currently?

Noah Kahan: Today we are out in Canada in Toronto.

UCR: Nice! How’s the tour going so far?

NK: It’s been amazing. Not really like any other tour I’ve done since I’m headlining the states and a lot of the shows have been sold out. It’s been super surreal and really really rewarding.

UCR: I bet! The show here in Salt Lake City, at The State Room, is sold out. Now, I’ll never know what that feels like. Many people reading this interview will never know what it feels like to have a sold out show. It’s something I’d say most music fans can only fantasize about, but you’re actually having that experience. What does it feel like?

Continue reading “UCR Interview- Noah Kahan”