File under: Anthony Vincent, Ten Second Songs

I first saw Bowling For Soup at the tender age of 19, ten years ago at Leeds Met Uni and it was the start of something great for me. I would never profess to be the biggest or best fan of BFS but I have so much love for the sheer amount of fun they put into their music. The gigs I have been to over the years have not only been filled with fantastic songs but also with many genuine belly laughs due to their stage banter.

Tonight was no exception despite the fact it was just Jaret by himself. I really enjoyed the intimacy of the gig. Before every song he explained the story behind it, the people behind it, why certain things mean so much to him. It gives you so much more appreciation for the songwriting process and for Jaret also. I think he is such an underrated songwriter and that he has a real gift for making his music relatable to so many of us.

He also does not shy away from topics that are a little tougher to swallow, such as his own battle with anxiety and depression and losses of close friends. There is a real honesty there and part of me suspects that maybe these gigs are a form of therapy for him, whether intentional or otherwise. He's getting it all out of his system and I hope that it is beneficial for him because he seems like a really nice person.

I would encourage every BFS fan to attend one of these shows because you will see the Jaret that you know and love. But you also get to see the guy beneath the stage bravado and he's just as awesome!

File under: Jaret Reddick, Bowling For Soup, Gorilla, Manchester

Where do I begin with The Struts. It has been a year and two months since I last saw them and it feels like an absolute age. I used to see them every month or at least every other month and I've gone down to once in 14 months. Ridiculous, but there's a really good reason.

Seeing as they can't get radio airplay here in the UK (lame) they've headed stateside and been blowing the ears off our Yankee cousins for just about two years.

As much as I miss the boys, I'm so proud of everything they're accomplishing right now. At times it was really hard for them to stay enthusiastic when they were getting doors slammed in their faces left, right, centre. And now they're on top of the world. So really, I don't mind not seeing them as much because I know they're busy doing the thing they love.

Their set has changed around since I last saw them to include newer songs, but it's still vibrant and exciting. They continue to have the same great energy and perform like a well oiled machine. One of the things I've always appreciated about The Struts is how well they work as a team. The practice they've put in over the years means that they can play in the smallest venue, with the worst sound system and still sound epic.

One new addition that I really liked was that Jed, Adam and Geth got to have a bit of an instrumental session while Luke was changing stage outfits and that was great. Luke tends to get a lot of the attention from reviewers and in interviews. It's understandable because he's the lead singer but it's nice for the other lads to show everyone what they can do as well.

The crowd were more than willing to endulge the band with some hot audience participation. For me the best part of any Struts show is the singalong to Where Did She Go at the very end.

What else can I say except that it was great to see my favourite band again, rocking bigger and better than before. I've lost my hearing, lost my voice and everything comes in threes so no doubt I'll lose something else pretty soon.

Welcome home boys, if only for a short while!

File under: The Struts, Electric Ballroom, Camden, London

File under: Shape Of You, Ed Sheeran, Anthony Vincent, Ten Second Songs, Peter Hollens, styles, a ccapella, genres, versions, artists

File under: Safiya Nygaard, foundations, make up, mixing

File under: Vox, pop music, fade outs

File under: Great Big Story, toys, games, dolls, museum, play time, archive, Strong Museum, Rochester, New York

File under: Fabio Lima, Thundercats, theme, cover, acoustic, fingerstyle

File under: Postmodern Jukebox, Maiya Sykes, Fleetwood Mac, Don't Stop