Sheffield
Pulp: A Film About Life, Death & Supermarkets…Thursday, 05 June 2014![]() Any band’s reunion is bittersweet. They can never be what they were at their peak and know it, and yet fans hope. Recapturing past magic is tough. Hair is lost, weight is gained and aging depletes energy. With Pulp, the band never assumed formula... Read more... |
The Full Monty, Noël Coward TheatreWednesday, 26 February 2014![]() You may have a slight sense of déjà vu about a stage production of The Full Monty. Wasn't it a Broadway hit at the turn of the millennium? Well yes it was, but that was an Americanised musical version of Simon Beaufoy's Oscar-nominated 1997 film;... Read more... |
CD: The Fall - Re-MitMonday, 06 May 2013![]() There isn’t really a consensus on what the single best Fall album is. However, I did come across a thread on a fansite asking devotees to nominate their favourite album title. Not album – album title.This prompts a number of observations. Firstly,... Read more... |
The Human League, Royal Albert HallTuesday, 27 November 2012![]() Seasonal appearances by The Human League have an air of Christmas panto about them, with halls packed with coach parties of devoted fans who all seem to know each other, but the group have quietly solidified into a great British success story. They... Read more... |
Reissue CDs Weekly: The Human League, The Leopard Lounge, Eastern Bloc Funk ExperienceSunday, 08 April 2012![]() The Human League: Dare (Deluxe Edition)Thomas H GreenLast year, when I interviewed The Human League for theartsdesk, singer Susan Sulley said of Leonard Cohen, “He’s got a personality voice. It’s not a voice that’s going to pass the auditions... Read more... |
Arctic Monkeys, O2 ArenaSunday, 30 October 2011![]() Boy, do Arctic Monkeys move fast. There were 21 songs in their set at the O2 Arena last night and at one point they were racing through them at such a breathtaking lick I thought I would be on my way home within the hour. In the end their... Read more... |
Slow Club, Cabaret Voltaire, EdinburghTuesday, 20 September 2011![]() Once upon a time there was a boy/girl band who hailed from Sheffield. They made a debut album called Yeah So which married whimsical indie-folk and a kind of post-punk rockabilly to words seemingly torn from the diaries of a pair of teenage... Read more... |
theartsdesk Q&A: Pop Musicians The Human LeagueSunday, 03 April 2011![]() The Human League are one of the brightest lights in the history of electro-pop. They have had many incarnations over the years but since late 1980 the core of the group has been frontman Philip Oakey (b 1955) and singers Joanne Catherall (b... Read more... |
The Thrill of It All, Forced Entertainment, Riverside StudiosTuesday, 26 October 2010![]() It’s pretty hard to describe a Forced Entertainment show. But let’s try anyway: imagine a stage full of crazy dancers, the men in black wigs, the women in white ones, prancing around, flinging their arms in the air, mistiming their high kicks, and... Read more... |
Capitalism: A Love StoryTuesday, 23 February 2010![]() If Michael Moore's new film were a person, it would be diagnosed with a severe case of Attention Deficit Disorder. His Cook's Tour through the ills of capitalism spans, inter alia: forced repossessions; worker lock-ins; the breadline salaries of... Read more... |
Interview: Liz Mermin on HorsesThursday, 28 January 2010![]() Whoever first made the observation - some say Winston Churchill, others Ronald Reagan - there is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man, and a woman. On stage these noble beasts have inspired some highly... Read more... |
Richard Hawley, Royal Festival HallSunday, 24 January 2010![]() "So, we made it eventually." Having postponed this show two weeks ago due to the M1 doubling as a skating rink, Richard Hawley opened not with a song but an apology. It was hardly necessary. The sold-out Royal Festival Hall last night was prepared... Read more... |
