New Music Reviews
theartsdesk at the Glasgow Jazz FestivalMonday, 01 July 2013
“It was a bit leary,” Georgie Fame recalls of a 1960 visit to Glasgow. “They had these cast-iron ash-trays at the Empire...” Teddy boys offended by Fame’s starry effect on the local girls led to these being skimmed at the band, bisecting a cymbal, he explains almost fondly, of the night police with dogs were needed to ensure that he at least left the city intact. Read more... |
Reissue CDs Weekly: Giorgio Moroder, The Teardrop ExplodesSunday, 30 June 2013
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Lucinda Williams, Queen's Hall, EdinburghMonday, 24 June 2013
Lucinda Williams’s current tour might be billed as “intimate”, but anyone who has seen her perform before will know that intimacy tends to come with the ticket. It is true, however, that this pared-down format, in which she performs drummerless and accompanied – splendidly – by Doug Pettibone and David Sutton on guitars, pedal steel, bass and harmonies, brings the audience even closer to her extraordinary voice and unflinching words. Read more... |
Marianne Faithfull & Bill Frisell, Queen Elizabeth HallSunday, 23 June 2013
“Marianne Faithfull, you are first of all a timbre, a warm and bewitching voice…” Those were the words of the French Culture Minister in March 2011, when he awarded her the title of Commandeur dans l'Ordre des Arts et Lettres. That celebrated vocal timbre has now settled comfortably, truly, deeply in the baritone register. Read more... |
Reissue CDs Weekly: Scared to Get HappySunday, 23 June 2013
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Urban Voices Collective, Pizza Express Jazz ClubSaturday, 22 June 2013
When it comes to live performance, nothing quite socks it to the solar plexus like a choir singing their heart out. Last night, in the intimate space of Soho's Pizza Express Jazz Club, Urban Voices Collective (UVC) gave it to us with both barrels. Read more... |
Iggy and The Stooges, Royal Festival HallFriday, 21 June 2013
Having witnessed Neil Young’s shambolic O2 concert on Monday – Young treating the occasional venture into his back catalogue with listless contempt whilst serving up multiple banalities from his recent albums – I considered skipping seeing more veteran American rockers. Read more... |
The Gloaming, Union ChapelThursday, 20 June 2013
While the melodic and rhythmic subtleties of traditional Irish music are best experienced through listening to the solo performer, it's very much through groups that the music has reached a global audience. While some so-called "supergroups" have promised much and delivered very little – being nothing more than a session on stage with no thought for arrangements, pacing or mood – in this much anticipated UK premiere The Gloaming spectacularly fulfilled, and surpassed, all expectations. Read more... |
Reggie Watts/Mac Lethal, Royal Festival HallWednesday, 19 June 2013
The Meltdown Festival has always been a fascinating proposition, getting a living legend in their field to curate their own personal festival line-up, and present all of their idiosyncratic choices to London in the refined and retro-futuristic surroundings of the Royal Festival Hall. Read more... |
Neil Young and Crazy Horse, O2 ArenaTuesday, 18 June 2013
"Don't say it's over," wailed Neil Young at the end of "Hey Hey, My My", his raging anthem against the dying of the light which still sounds as bellicose and cantankerous as it did in 1979. And happily it isn't over yet, because on this evidence the 67-year-old Young still looks fighting fit and raring to run round-the-clock heavy metal marathons. Read more... |
Giorgio Moroder: Schlagermoroder Volume 1 1966-1975 / On the Groove Train Volume 1 1975-1993 / On the Groove Train Volume 2 1974-1985 / Son of my Father
Various Artists: Scared to Get Happy – A Story of Indie-pop 1980-1989Pages
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