What a transformation for the flamboyant musician King Charles. Last year I saw him perform in a church in Hackney, where a polite crowd clustered round the stage, supping wine and swaying gently. A year on, and he’s headlining at Shepherd’s Bush. The place seems rammed to the rafters with the most excited crowd I’ve…
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Phildel is more than a singer songwriter, she’s a multi-talented performer whose artistry permeates every aspect of her work. So I was keen to buy the physical CD of The Disappearance of the Girl and enjoy the art work and read the lyrics. Sometimes I just think, damn those soulless downloads: music without its history. For Phildel,…
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Bush Hall, with its its rich red velvet drapes, majestic chandeliers and upstairs bar with viewing gallery is opulence in miniature. Such swagger for such a tiny place. This Sunday eve is Mixellaneous Melodies, and true to its name, it’s a very random mix of artists who play to a relaxed weekend crowd. Ozzie band…
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We saw ahab at King’s Place as part of the King’s Cross venue’s folk sessions. Just for the record, Ahab (upper-case) are a German funeral doom-metal outfit – to be remembered when googling them. ahab (lower case) saunter on stage at King’s Place. First on is Callum Anderson, playing the first few chords of a beautiful-sounding…
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New Year’s Eve 2012. I asked various people how they intended to celebrate. Mostly, it seemed, this was to be the year of the “quiet night in”. How boring, I thought. I need to go out and do some dancing, maybe rolling back home as dawn creeps in. I’ve always been drawn to The Trades,…
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The Troubadour at Earls Court. Upstairs is the quirky coffee house and restaurant which I don’t think has changed in appearance since I first visited it in the 70s. Downstairs is a venue at the heart of London’s music scene, a cramped cellar which has seen the likes of Bob Dylan grace its stage. Last night…
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The Little Noise Sessions in aid of Mencap are now into their seventh year. Curated by Jo Whiley, the gigs take place over six or so nights, with a choice of lineups designed to please most music lovers. The artists give their time free to the Mencap charity, which is struggling with the government’s further cuts…
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Some artists bob around on the fringes of your radar for ages, and so it has been the case with Richard Hawley. Those lovely ballads, the chocolatey voice, the Pulp connection – yet he’s remained a bit niche somehow. But things have gathered apace, and September 8 this year saw the Radio BBC 6Music collaboration…
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Like most height-challenged people (5ft), I’ve always found standing-only gigs a bit hit and miss. So the news that one of my favourite bands, the mighty Alabama 3 are to do an Alabama 3 acoustic, complete with rather elegant sounding three-course dinner, is music to my ears. And so to the Jazz Cafe in Camden. Downstairs is…
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Tuesday night was almost rain free – that’s saying something for this washout of an English summer which has so far plunged festivals and outdoor events into a maelstrom of mud and near bankruptcy. So it was a pleasant experience to sit on dry paving stones in the courtyard of Somerset House, drinking a ubiquitous…
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