New Music Reviews
The Jesus and Mary Chain, Barrowland, Glasgow review - Scottish siblings still the loudest gang in townTuesday, 16 November 2021
There is unquestionably a more mellow side to the Jesus and Mary Chain these days, even when reviving their most ferocious glories from the past. Prior to launching this two-halved set, comprising their 1987 classic Darklands to begin with and a mixture of singles, B-sides and obscurities for after, vocalist Jim Reid took time out to politely explain the format. Read more... |
Jazz Voice, EFG London Jazz Festival review - from intimate delicacy to stunning virtuositySunday, 14 November 2021
A celebration of that most extraordinary instrument, the human voice, this year’s edition of Jazz Voice – which gladly welcomed back a live audience and a full-strength EFG London Jazz Festival Orchestra – ranged from music of intimate delicacy to stunning virtuosity. Read more... |
Music Reissues Weekly: Essiebons Special 1973-1984 Ghana Music Power HouseSunday, 14 November 2021
One of the most interesting tracks on Essiebons Special 1973–1984 Ghana Music Power House is Joe Meah’s mysterious "Dee Mmaa Pe". It’s not mentioned in the compilation’s accompanying booklet, and Joe Meah doesn’t figure in any of the standard discographies littering the world-wide web. Read more... |
Black Pumas, O2 Institute, Birmingham review - bluesy grooves with high octane energyThursday, 11 November 2021
Having been founded only in 2017 by singer/songwriter Eric Burton and guitarist/producer Adrian Quesada, Black Pumas have been rapidly rising to fame, with a Grammy award nomination in 2020 and the majority of their current European tour dates sold out. Read more... |
Jane Weaver, Hare & Hounds, Birmingham review – alt-popper struggles with lethargic audienceMonday, 08 November 2021
Back in the mid-'80s, in a time before acid house and Bez’s freaky dancing, there was a type of audience that seemed endemic at indie gigs and that just didn’t want to dance. Hordes of blokes (and it was mainly blokes) would stand facing the stage with their feet firmly planted on the floor, moving only to raise pints of lager to their lips and maybe to clap between songs. Read more... |
Music Reissues Weekly: Blow My Mind! The Doré-Era-Mira Punk & Psych LegacySunday, 07 November 2021
Any compilation with a track credited to “Unknown Artist” is always going to entice, especially when it’s one which goes the full way by digging into original master tapes to find the best audio sources and previously unearthed nuggets. Read more... |
Album: Electric Eye - HorizonsWednesday, 03 November 2021
Bergen’s Electric Eye’s pithy description of themselves is “psych-space-drone-rock from Norway.” They also say they “play droned out psych-rock inspired by the blues, India and the ever-more expanding universe.” Horizons is their fourth studio album. Read more... |
Portico Quartet, St John at Hackney review - softly beautiful discordancyMonday, 01 November 2021
Composed entirely of their 2021 release, Terrain, Portico Quartet’s Friday night concert at St John at Hackney was a beautiful performance, albeit slightly marred by a low stage and a chatty audience. Read more... |
Music Reissues Weekly: The Sun Shines Here - The Roots Of Indie-Pop 1980-1984Sunday, 31 October 2021
The Sun Shines Here - The Roots Of Indie-Pop 1980-1984 is three-CD set in a clamshell box with 74 tracks. The opener is “Better Scream”, January 1980’s debut single from Wah Heat! Read more... |
Black String, Grand Junction review – storm-force intensitySaturday, 30 October 2021
If you were looking for a word to describe Black String in performance at Grand Junction in Paddington, before the high altar of the church of St Mary Magdalene, itself a pinnacle of Victorian neo-Gothic bravura, then that word would be “intense”. Intensely intense. More intense than a blooming bank of Intensia. Read more... |
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