New music
Alice Russell, Jazz CaféSaturday, 31 January 2015
You know what really grinds my gears? Bands that only have one. One gear, one level of intensity. For a good hour of last night’s set, diminutive diva Alice Russell, the voice behind countless Quantic hits and that cover of “Seven Nation Army” that... Read more... |
Nicola Conte, Ronnie Scott'sSaturday, 31 January 2015
Gloriously feel-good, unashamedly retro, uniformly urbane, the Nicola Conte Combo presented a set that was bursting with fantastic melodies last night at Ronnie Scott's. Performing music from last year's Free Souls and his 2011 album Love &... Read more... |
theartsdesk on Vinyl: Volume 2Saturday, 31 January 2015
Did you know that Jack White’s Lazaretto album sold nearly 87,000 copies on vinyl last year? Sales continue to rise all over with European manufacturing facilities running at full tilt. Given the demand for vinyl has risen 800% in the last decade,... Read more... |
Jessie J, Eventim ApolloFriday, 30 January 2015
The echoes of last summer’s number one hit “Bang Bang” had hardly faded when Jessie J’s third album Sweet Talker was released to a largely positive reception last October. She’s been on the road on and off ever since, and though her act never seems... Read more... |
CD: Zun Zun Egui - Shackles GiftThursday, 29 January 2015
Zun Zun Egui, who emerged from Bristol’s indie-boho scene a few years ago, are one of those bands who come closest to the essence of their potential when playing in an intimate and sweaty small venue. Recording their frenzy for posterity has never... Read more... |
CD: Steve Rothery - The Ghosts of PripyatWednesday, 28 January 2015
The more I listen to Steve Rothery the more convinced I am he possesses one of the fattest, juiciest guitar tones around. Rothery really should be seen as one of the more interesting stylists of his generation. The reality, however, is that he... Read more... |
Ghostpoet, Village UndergroundTuesday, 27 January 2015
Ghostpoet – aka Obaro Ejimiwe – released his first album Peanut Butter Blues and Melancholy Jam in 2010. He has since been named as The Guardian’s New Band of the Day, nominated for a Mercury Prize and toured the festival circuit with the likes of... Read more... |
Julian Cope, Glee Club, BirminghamMonday, 26 January 2015
While Julian Cope’s albums are usually fairly expansive affairs which employ a vast array of instruments, an audience with the Arch Drude is a more intimate affair these days. There’s no backing band and the man takes to the stage armed only with a... Read more... |
CD: The dø - Shake Shook ShakenMonday, 26 January 2015
Whether intentional or not, the third album by French chart-topping duo The dø is effectively a renewal of “Sweet Dreams”-era Eurythmics. The synth bubble-‘n’-pulse and vocal lines nodding towards the choral and gospel inescapably evoke what Annie... Read more... |
Jan Garbarek Group, Stormen, BodøMonday, 26 January 2015
Norway’s celebrated jazz colossus Jan Garbarek hadn’t played the north Norwegian city of Bodø for 15 years. Moreover, he and his group took the stage of the spanking new Stormen concert house as the openers of Bodø Jazz Open, the city’s four-day... Read more... |
CD: Renegades of Jazz – Paradise LostSunday, 25 January 2015
Renegades of Jazz is the alter ego of German DJ David Hanke, whose blending of breakbeats, a distorted big band, rap vocals and electronica to create something billed to bring jazz back to the dancefloor would already be an unusual combination even... Read more... |
Reissue CDs Weekly: Tyrannosaurus RexSunday, 25 January 2015
Tyrannosaurus Rex: My People Were Fair and had Sky in Their Hair, Prophets, Seers & Sages: Angels of the Ages, Unicorn“I was just reflecting and talking about things most people thought or wanted to hear about at the time.” Marc Bolan’s... Read more... |
