Apr 21
Blue Zoo Interview with Andy O: upcoming gig in north London
Prior to Blue Zoo’s upcoming gig at Nambucca 15th May 2015, I interviewed their front man Andy O.
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Apr 13
Steampunk bands, Electroswing and Goth DJs: Sharon Robinson’s vision for Crouch End Festival
Steampunk bands, cabaret artists, Electroswing and Goth DJs: put them all together for DecoDanse this June
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Apr 3
Review: Parastatic at The Sebright Arms
Parastatic played at The Sebright Arms, an East London venue which is one of my top ‘most welcoming’ pubs in London. The Tyneside outfit Parastatic came to my attention via Radio 6 Music, when I just happened to catch the tail-end of a track which delivered an utterly euphoric guitar riff. I felt a ‘here’s a new addiction’ moment coming on.…
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Mar 27
Focus on Manchester: LoneLady at Rough Trade mini gig; Shirley Baker photography retrospective
On first hearing that jagged, fractured guitar intro to Intuition, I was transported back to the days of the late 70s band Gang of Four, my former university colleagues. Indeed Julie Ann Campbell, aka LoneLady, is a bit of a fangirl for the group, and for that era of spiky, spare post-punk. More recently her performance at Oslo, Hackney, saw her supporting…
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Mar 18
Goodbye Bedroom Hour: when bands split up
I’m still shifting from one emotion to another as time passes and the reality of their disbanding sinks in. Disbelief at first, and sorrow over a band who seemed on the face of it to be making strides musically
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Mar 3
Review: War On Drugs in Brixton, haunting and dreamy
It’s The War on Drugs’ second and final performance at 02 Academy Brixton. The venue is freezing cold and audience members are swathed in coats and gloves. After an impressive set by New York trio Amen Dunes, The War on Drugs take their place on the stage, Adam Granduciel’s personal front-of-stage territory delineated by a Turkish rug. Under the Pressure from Lost…
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Feb 20
Festivals for 2015: lovely lineups, but don’t dally as tickets are selling fast
Festival planners are busy putting together their lineups for 2015 – and these are just a few of my personally tried-and-tested events. When it comes to festival size, I’m not one for marathon walks from tent to stage (nothing like a trip back to basecamp for an afternoon snooze and a cup of tea) so there’s no mention of…
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Feb 1
Review: SHHH quiet music festival in Hampstead
As far as festivals are concerned, winter is the new summer. Take SHHH Quiet music festival organised by The Local.TV and visual artist Luke Drozd – a musical feast lasting from noon to nearly midnight, in a cosy church in north London. SHHH is now in it’s 8th year, with much involvement from music promoter and…
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Jan 29
Mark Lanegan at 02 Shepherd’s Bush Empire: invisible in the gloom
With each album and with each collaboration, Mark Lanegan’s star ascends another notch into the firmament. He’s a man with an impeccable rock backstory, American bad boy incarnate, equally at home as a character from Butcher’s Crossing to Twin Peaks; his is a world seen from the wrong side of the tracks. His voice is raspy, capable of wistfulness…
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Jan 28
Heavenly Recordings celebrate at The Trades Club: Cherry Ghost
The Trades has been buzzing all weekend with one sell-out gig after another and by now the Heavenly merchandise table is looking fairly depleted, but fortunately the beers are still flowing.
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