Gallery
Live: Confidence Man/A. Swayze and the Ghosts/King Stingray – Dark Mofo Festival 2021
I’m not sure I can remember such a brilliant triple line up in one night without attending a full blown musical festival. Three bands just about removed the roof of the Odeon Theatre in Hobart and I left with a rictus grin I couldn’t remove for hours. Actually, it’s still there. Confidence Man and A. …
Live: The Electorate and Key Out collectively shimmer and shine at the Golden Barley Hotel
Both Key Out and The Electorate produced magnificent albums last year – ‘Anthropomorphia‘ and ‘You Don’t Have Time To Stay Lost‘ respectively made my list of best antipodean releases for 2020 and were shining examples of exemplary songwriting and impeccable musicianship. After 18 months of musical deprivation dry of live gigs, when I saw these …
Live review: Squid, Falmouth, May 18th: who finer to bring us back to the live experience?
FOUR hundred and forty-seven days. Yep, I counted; or rather some natty piece of online calculator software did. Fessin’ up: maths was never my strong point. Anyhow, that long since my last gig; 447 days. Maybe the longest time in my adult life. Yes, I recall the last time in great detail; do you? We …
Live Review: Tenderlonious, London Jazz Festival: Shoreditch Town Hall, November 22nd
So the last night of the London Jazz festival and you can imagine what might have been in the unrestricted freedom of pre-COVID times. Tenderlonious and chums playing a selection of earthy, energetic jazz funk from across the 22a catalogue to a jumping crowd rammed into the grand Victoriana of Shoreditch Town Hall. Sadly for …
Live Review: Binker Golding, London Jazz Festival, King’s Place – 21.11.20
Even before saxophonist Binker Golding’s streamed show at King’s Place on Saturday night, we knew we were in for something a little bit out – there. The pre-show blurb had cautioned ‘expect the conventional boundaries of jazz to be pushed…’and came with a health warning ‘Please note, the ensemble will not be playing material from …
Live Review: Dinosaur – London Jazz Festival, Kings Place 15.11.20
It’s amazing when you realise that trumpet player and composer Laura Jurd and her Dinosaur buddies, Elliott Galvin (keys), Corrie Dick (drums) and Conor Chaplin (bass) have been making music together for a decade now. Three albums in and one Mercury Prize nomination down, they’ve been through the ‘bright new things’ experience, ruffled attention within …
LIVE REVIEW: The Divine Comedy, Barbican, London
TWO GIGS in one calendar week in 2020; this is unprecedented. Both live streams, maybe, but that’s just fine by me in a world which looks to have decided its wearing the garb of a bad Hammer or Amicus dystopia for the whole livelong year, and not just for Hallowe’en. Trick rather than treat, indeed. …
Gallery: The Last Gigs Before Lockdown – Phil Roberts
In celebration of the recent government news of a rescue package for the future of Britain’s museums, galleries, theatres, independent cinemas, heritage sites and importantly music venues we have a look at some of the last gigs before the country went into lockdown. First up photographer Phil Roberts shares images from his last gig at …
LIVE: The Clashed at The Georgian Theatre, Stockton (Tribute band)
The Clash tribute band and quite frankly, the only band that matters – The Clashed, managed to pack out the old Theatre in Stockton just prior to the lockdown that disrupted the venues live music plans. The Clashed have been around almost as long as The Clash themselves. They provide all the angst and riot …
Live: EWAH and the Vision of Paradise, Altar, Hobart 14 March 2019
EWAH and the Vision of Paradise were launching their single ‘Play Hard’ (see my review and interview here) in their home town, seemingly on the cusp of the apocalypse, and it was a great performance from a band that is incredibly mature and poised. While undoubtedly the enigmatic EWAH, as the principle songwriter, guitarist and …