pop music
Music Reissues Weekly: American Baroque - Chamber Pop and Beyond 1967-1971Sunday, 05 January 2025The descending refrain opening the song isn’t unusual but attention is instantly attracted as it’s played on a harpsichord. Equally instantly, an elegiac atmosphere is set. The voice, coming in just-short of the 10-second mark, is similarly yearning... Read more... |
Albums of the Year 2024: The Last Dinner Party - Prelude to EcstasyFriday, 03 January 2025Does absolutely everything have to get more difficult with each passing year? Apparently so. The amount of time I’ve spent deciding which of the many truly excellent albums I’ve reviewed this year should get the ‘top prize’ has, frankly, been... Read more... |
Best of 2024: Music Reissues WeeklySunday, 29 December 2024A reissue can be an aide-mémoire, a reminder that a record which has been off the radar for a while needs revisiting, that it deserves fresh attention.In that spirit, this column has looked at straight vinyl reissues of albums of varying styles,... Read more... |
Travis, OVO Hydro review - a Christmas night out with some regretsTuesday, 24 December 2024Travis arrived onstage with the theme tune from classic sitcom Cheers as an accompaniment. The cavernous OVO Hydro might not be a place where everyone knows your name, but a Glasgow homecoming by local lads made good certainly tapped into a festive... Read more... |
Albums of the Year 2024: Amelia Coburn - Between the Moon and the MilkmanFriday, 13 December 2024I’ve known for some time that Ariel Sharratt & Matthias Kom’s Never Work is my Album of the Year. This lividly witty, no-filler take-down of workplace servitude arrived on vinyl in May. The creation of two Canadian indie-folkies (from The... Read more... |
Vampire Weekend, OVO Hydro, Glasgow review - a mixture of brilliance and self-indulgenceTuesday, 10 December 2024When Vampire Weekend arrived onstage they numbered only three and were bunched together at the front with a large curtain draped behind them, obscuring their backdrop. By the time this marathon set ended two and a half hours later, they’d more than... Read more... |
Music Reissues Weekly: John Leyton - Lone Rider The Holloway Road Sessions 1960-1962Sunday, 08 December 2024For John Leyton, it was third time lucky as far as his singles were concerned. The actor’s manager Robert Stigwood teamed him with producer Joe Meek, but Leyton's first two 45s – August 1960’s “Tell Laura I Love Her” and October 1960's “The Girl on... Read more... |
Katy J Pearson, Saint Luke's and the Winged Ox, Glasgow review - warm-hearted songs to banish the coldThursday, 05 December 2024'Tis the season for all manner of bugs, colds and illnesses. One had befallen Katy J Pearson, who struck an apologetic note after the night’s first number to say she had been unwell all day and was going to do her best to get through the gig. That... Read more... |
Album: Lauren Mayberry - Vicious CreatureThursday, 05 December 2024Amid the electro-rock crunch of “Sorry, Etc”, Lauren Mayberry spits out, “I killed myself to be one of the boys/I lost my head to be one of the boys/I bit my tongue to be one of the boys/I sold my soul to be one of the boys”. The singer for... Read more... |
Album: Kim Deal - Nobody Loves You MoreSaturday, 23 November 2024The progress of Kim Deal has been one of the great delights of modern music. Much as one wishes Pixies well, they have never been the same without her distinctive voice and presence, whereas her other band The Breeders have only gone from strength... Read more... |
English Teacher, Queen Margaret Union, Glasgow review - Mercury winners step up in size with styleWednesday, 20 November 2024Props designed like flowers were scattered across the QMU stage for English Teacher's performance. A fitting choice given the Leeds group are evidently in full bloom these days, with an upgraded venue in Glasgow due to demand and, of course, a... Read more... |
Rachel Chinouriri, Queen Margaret Union, Glasgow review - a formidable and genre-hopping talentFriday, 15 November 2024It appears Rachel Chinouriri has a good memory. “I remember you!” she yelled excitedly to one fan early on, highlighting that she currently sits in a nice position – popular enough to be playing busy shows in decently sized venues, but at a level... Read more... |
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