Music
Track: Crocodiles – Crybaby Demon
“Who needs the future when the past tastes so good?” is something you might hear Brandon Welchez shout over to his band mate, Charles Rowell, as they hurtle down a pot-holed freeway in a rusty Cadillac, its beige mammalian body adorned with mysterious stains. Every inch the speed-addled aquatic reptiles that their hallucinatory music suggests, …
Live: Placebo – Leeds O2 Academy – 09.03.15
At first glance the setlist appears to have a few glaring omissions; ‘Nancy Boy’ and ‘Taste in Men’ doesn’t feature anywhere, and ‘Pure Morning’ is only aired as intro track prior to the band taking the stage. But this is a celebration of one of the most influential bands of the past 20 years, a …
Track: Zero 7 – 400 Blows
Yes, you read that right. New music from Sam Hardaker and Harry Binns, aka Zero 7. It comes in the form of an EP, called (funnily enough) E.P.3, and follows on from EP numbers 1 & 2, which date from before their major label days. It also comes ahead of their first album in five …
Psych Insight: Live Review – Anthroprophh, Shacklewell Arms, London, 09.03.2015
When Paul Allen (ex-Heads guitarist and Anthroprophh founder) announced that there was a new Anthroprophh album available on CDr I jumped at the chance to own one, and was very keen to listen to it. I had been blown away by the Rocket Recordings album, Outside the Circle, and, with several hundred other people, was pinned …
EP: Giulio Etiope ft Giak & Hester – Riverside
Out this week was the latest release from Italian label Unclear music, and it comes in the shape of Arezzo, Tuscano born producer Guilio Etiope. He’s no newcomer, having been releasing music since 1998 on labels such as Armonia and Azimut as well as Unclear, and also spending his time as a resident at the …
Album Review: Melanie De Biasio – No Deal (Remixed)
Beligian/Italian singer Melanie de Biasio made a record last year, No Deal, a record that showcased her singing, songwriting, even flute playing. With a voice that approached both Karen Carpenter and (more pertinently) Nina Simone, at least stylistically, it was a wake up call that soul jazz was very much alive and well. Despite picking …
Live: THE SELECTER – Brudenell Social Club, Leeds 8-3-15
“Are you ready to have a good time?” It’s a question that Pauline Black knows the answer to before it’s left her lips. The Selecter are in town and it’s a full house. Before taking to the stage, Pauline and Gaps were working their own merch stall. Both of them more than happy to chat, …
Track: The Dead Ships – Big Quiet
Here at Backseat Mafia, we can never get enough of the kind if Garage Rock that made something of the Strokes, and continues today in the shape of The Black Keys, Alabama Shakes and the like. So step forward LA-based trio The Dead Ships, who’s new EP, EP1 contains, certainly on the evidence of ‘Big …
Live: The Unthanks at Leeds Irish Centre
It seems unfair these days to label The Unthanks a folk band when they have clearly moved way past the restrictive traditions of that genre which all too often puts people off engaging with our nation’s indigenous music. They are on the road touring their new album Mount The Air and the dynamic live version …
Live Review: Halestorm / Nothing More / Wilson – O2 Academy Leeds 05.03.2015
Wilson would definitely win the award for the oddest yet greatest entrance of the night. Vocalist Chad Nicefield enters the staged dressed as an oversized toy solider wielding a marching band bass drum with “Fuckery” taped across the front, simultaneously leaving the audience confused and intrigued. Chad’s curdling vocals, reminiscent of a mixture between Jason …