I am Mike Jones AKA Sublive presents...
Mike Jones • Published 3 Mar 2011 18:00
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I'm not a tweeter, nor a blogger, nor a tumblr-er and generally don't talk about myself or what I like an awful lot (although I'm sure other people don't share my opinion that I'm really that modest).
So then I thought of what got me excited about live music in Reading before I'd even started going there let alone working there with Sub89. That reason was Reading Festival! One of the most famous rock festivals in the world and I, along with thousands of others migrated there several years back for a weekend of activities that I couldn't possibly repeat in case my mum reads this.
Several years passed along with several weekends at Reading Festival and when the conversation presented itself about putting live music into a new venue in Reading, which would eventually become Sub89, I started looking beyond that one weekend of the year.
I quickly found that the rock and metal scene in Reading seemed to be thriving, but with none of the big names coming to the town. People would regularly have to make hour long trips to London or Oxford, but partly thanks to Sub89 (there's my modesty again...) we now have an amazing line-up of international and local touring bands coming directly to Reading as a priority.
Coming up soon I'll be bringing out my Dickies jeans and Kappa jacket for Ill Nino & Breed 77 on Sunday, March 13, followed by me pretending to be a death metal kid the following Sunday, with Napalm Death And Desecration. I then have four days to attempt to grow my hair to at least one-metre long for Finish power metallers Sonata Arctica on Thursday, March 24. If the hair doesn't quite get to where I need it to be then I'm told that wigs are acceptable so everyone take note. Oh, and we also have local boys Sylosis on Thursday, March 10, with a record release party in their hometown!
In between all of these shows we have three new alternative club nights launching! Vertigo, Equilibrium and In Your Face all launch in March with great drinks offers throughout all nights so that you can really appreciate Lady Gaga being played at some point during the night...
It appears there has been something of a resurgence for rock and metal recently and the very reason I was motivated to start promoting shows in Reading seems even more important and relevant now than ever!
But that said will people please stop asking me to get any track from Metallica - St Anger played at the new rocks nights? It just won't happen. It really was awful so let's just try and forget it ever happened!
This article appeared in Reading Chronicle 03 Mar 11
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