1980s
The Specials, Margate Winter Gardens review - ska legends passionate and on-pointWednesday, 15 May 2019
Here they come again – the band most adept at capturing the mood of an era in catchy, critical three-minute songs. Just at the very point we need them most, the original ska-punk popsters surface and their message is as deeply relevant as it was... Read more... |
Andy Hamilton, Brighton Festival 2019 review - gently amusing night of reminiscenceTuesday, 14 May 2019
Taking place at the Theatre Royal, Andy Hamilton’s show is entitled An Evening with… rather than a straight stand-up and mainly consists of the comedy writer/performer and gameshow regular answering audience questions. During the first half this is... Read more... |
theartsdesk on Vinyl 49 - Part 1: Keith Richards, Asian Dub Foundation, Popul Vuh, Nirvana, Cage the Elephant and moreSaturday, 11 May 2019
Due to exciting matters beyond theartsdesk on Vinyl’s control there’s been a slight delay to this month’s edition but, never fear, to ensure we cover all that’s juicy, we’re doing a special two-volume version, with Part 2 coming next week. Watch... Read more... |
CD: Whitesnake - Flesh & BloodThursday, 09 May 2019
Whitesnake were always the most absurdly priapic of the successful Eighties heavy rockers. It was therefore with some glee that this writer approached their 13th studio album. In the snowflake age, where offence is taken at the slightest politically... Read more... |
Chernobyl, Sky Atlantic review - a glimpse of ArmageddonWednesday, 08 May 2019
“I take it the safety test was a failure,” remarked Viktor Bryukhanov, director of Ukraine’s Chernobyl nuclear power station. You could say that again. The catastrophic explosions at the Vladimir I Lenin plant on 26 April 1986, caused by a safety... Read more... |
Other People's Money, Southwark Playhouse review - onetime Off Broadway hit retains its stingSaturday, 04 May 2019
Deft and funny and nicely cast, what's not to like about Other People's Money, the era-defining Jerry Sterner play in revival at Southwark Playhouse? The play's 1989 premiere Off Broadway allowed for a contemporary skewering of the roaring,... Read more... |
Test Dept, Studio 9294 review - still furious after all these yearsMonday, 29 April 2019
Back in the early Eighties, Test Dept were the most radical musical force in London. Their live sound, never truly captured in its intensity on a series of early cassette recordings, built out of tape cut-ups and pulverising rhythms on salvaged... Read more... |
DVD/Blu-ray: Pet Shop Boys - Inner SanctumTuesday, 23 April 2019
Pet Shop Boys are never shy of producing stylishly conceived fan mementos. Coming not long after Faber & Faber’s hardback collection of Neil Tennant’s lyrics, this four-disc set is just such a slice of lovingly rendered memorabilia. After well... Read more... |
Reissue CDs Weekly: Terry AllenSunday, 21 April 2019
Torso Hell tells the story of an American soldier whose limbs were blown off in Vietnam. Amazingly, he and his buddies survived, and in the ensuing medical chaos his arms and legs were re-attached to them rather than him. The narrator says “At the... Read more... |
theartsdesk Q&A: BananaramaThursday, 18 April 2019
Bananarama are one of the most successful girl groups of all time. Consisting of Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward, the band’s third original member Siobhan Fahey left in 1988 to form Shakespears Sister. The trio reunited in 2017 for a tour but new... Read more... |
CD: Bananarama - In StereoSaturday, 13 April 2019
And then there were two... again. Following on from the Original Line-Up tour, Bananarama are back to the core duo of Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward for their first album in 10 years. If it is true that co-founding member Siobhan Fahey’s 1988... Read more... |
Reissue CDs Weekly: Losing Touch With My MindSunday, 07 April 2019
It begins with The Stone Roses’ “Don’t Stop”, the fourth track from their 1989 debut long player. A backwards though thoroughly remixed version of “Waterfall”, the album’s preceding track, it enthusiastically pushes the button labelled “psychedelic... Read more... |
