Soldier On’s Blog – “Soldiering On into 2014”

Happening Ayrshire band, Soldier on, have recently reviewed 2013 via their blog at: http://www.wearesoldieron.com/ and, with their permission, I have reproduced it below: -

“With 2013 almost over, and us having played our last gig of the year, we’re looking back at what a great year it’s been for Soldier On.

We’ve had the pleasure of playing at some great nights in some amazing venues stretching right across Scotland’s central belt.

That’s not all thought. It’s not just been about playing these great venues. It’s been about playing on the same bill as other crackin’ bands too. We’ve been spoilt this year with some of the guys we’ve been able to listen to.

Right off the top of our heads, playing at the likes of This Feeling at Maggie Mays and Pretty Green, in Glasgow, are particular highlights.

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. There’s been so much more.

This year, only our first year as a band, we’ve had the privilege of playing at King Tuts Wah Wah Hut not once, but twice! The latter of the two gigs saw us supporting American rockers, The Weeks, who’ve a close affiliation with the Kings of Leon. So that’s a bit of a big deal!

 

But KOL aren’t the only massive band we were associated with this year. We also played at gigs for From The Jam and only the other week, Ocean Colour Scene.

And on a personal level, we got to meet some of our idols. 2013 saw us rubbing shoulders with the likes of Mark Morriss, Bruce Foxton, Mark Brzezicki, Russell Hastings, and Steve Cradock.

Earlier we mentioned King Tuts and Maggie Mays, but let’s not forget places like The Admiral and The Barrowlands. All great f*ckin’ places to play in!

These venues are just built for rock and roll. The acoustics in the rooms, the vibe, the history… Everything. Plus most of them had pretty good bars too – Ross can vouch for that!

So far though, we’ve only mentioned venues in Glasgow. It’d be rude of us to forget the likes of The Bungalow in Paisley, and The Hac Bar.

And for all you true mods, how could we miss out the scooter rally at Ayr Racecourse! What a weekend that was. We got to hear amazing music, have a right laugh, oh and there were some nice scooters there too!

And to top the year off, we were invited to play at two Christmas lights switch-on shows, one in Ayr and the other Irvine. Dominating Ayrshire!

It’s not till you’re looking back that you realise there’s been a sh*t load of venues we’ve played, so to see them all, head to the bottom where you see them all listed.

Although we’re playing no more gigs this year, we’ve already started planning for 2014. We’re determined to make next year bigger and better than this one.

Regular visitors to our Facebook and Twitter accounts will have seen that we’ve announced our first gig of next year – the New Year’s Revolution at King Tuts. Playing there is beginning to become a bit of a habit!

To keep up-to-date with all that we’re up to, including our upcoming gigs, make sure to keep an eye on our website as well as our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.”

06.12.2013 - The Admiral, Glasgow

01.12.2013 – Christmas Light Switch On, Irvine Town Centre
17.11.2013 - Christmas Light Switch On, Ayr
15.11.2013 - 1999, Taylors, kilwinning
28.10.2013 - King Tuts Wah Wah Hut, Glasgow
12.10.2013 - ModStuff, Paisley
04.10.2013 – Motherwell Concert Hall, Lanarkshire
29.09.2013 – Fanny by Gaslight, Kilmarnock
28.09.2013 – Pebbles Nightclub, Troon
18.08.2013 - Freckfest, Irvine
09.08.2013 - The HAC, Irvine
07.08.2013 – Hoxton Nights, Harleys, Ayr
04.08.2013 – The Market Inn, Ayr
02.08.2013 - The Alive and Kicking Festival, Auchinleck
26.07.2013 - Pretty Green Store, Glasgow
20.07.2013 - Ayr Racecourse (ScootAyr), Ayr
05.07.2013 - Maggie Mays, Glasgow
01.06.2013 - Dirty Weekender, Kilmarnock
21.05.2013 - King Tuts Wah Wah Hut, Glasgow
02.05.2013 – The Market Inn, Ayr
26.04.2013 - Barrowlands, Glasgow
18.04.2013 - Clubhouse, Irvine
29.03.2013 - Buff Club, Glasgow
16.03.2013 - The Harvester, Livingston
02.03.2013 - Pivo Pivo, Glasgow
23.02.2013 - Pivo Pivo, Glasgow
13.02.2013 – Box, Glasgow
27.01.2013 - Furys, Ayr
18.01.2013 - Broadcast, Glasgow