Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark’s Andy McCluskey will join Liverpool indie rockers Red Rum Club and psychedelic pop queen Jane Weaver as they become members of Welcome To Eurotopia, – a supergroup made up of Liverpool musicians and Ukrainian artists who will take to the stage at 9:30pm on the Pier Head on 5 May…
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In December 2019 I attended the Fire Records Christmas gig at Studio 9295 in Hackney. It’s the sort of event I’d like to see more of: a selection of artists with 40-ish minute sets, and all in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. So how fortuitous it was to discover that the label were dishing up…
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The Calder Valley, West Yorkshire is a veritable hotbed of talented new artists. So when a well-loved venue runs into financial difficulties, local bands rally to help. Working Men’s Club and W H Lung have contributed exclusive tracks to help the Golden Lion in Todmorden. Yes, Todmorden’s The Golden Lion has set up its own…
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2017 has been more than a ‘best albums’ type of year. Not that there has been a dearth of great new releases, with Jane Weaver and The BJM amongst several faves, but this has been a diverse year with single releases and emerging artists. There’s a noticeable Northern flavour to the list too. Best new artists:…
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Bluedot festival at Jodrell Bank is a perfect mix of music (spacey electronica mostly) with science, space and techie workshops and talks.
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The good, the bad and the muddy… On a positive note, Festival Number 6 yet again had its moments of music, magic and discovery. The location is Portmeirion, the beautiful and quirky Italian village in north Wales. And it was commendable to note just how many of the artists appearing on Festival No 6’s various stages were from…
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Here are my top recommended albums of 2015 in no particular order. 1 Richard Hawley Hollow Meadows A confident collection of beautiful tracks, Hawley’s voice at its most sublimely expressive. My favourite track is the non-ballad Which Way shall I go?, sexy with a touch of menace. Hawley’s performance at The Roundhouse a few weeks’ ago was one…
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Set against a muscular, driving bassline and wall of dense synth/guitar, Weaver’s voice adds a spacey, ethereal lightness, the two elements balancing each other, creating almost visible layers.
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