LIVE: SLOTHRUST – 23/01/2019

-DEAF INSTITUTE, MANCHESTER- Slothrust, pronounced sloth-rust (a fact that, embarrassingly, I only find out tonight, even with the band being four albums deep) arrive on stage to an eager crowd at Deaf Institute. Their name is not the only aspect that has eluded being pinned down correctly, their sound can also be hard to articulate […]
-NIGHT PEOPLE, MANCHESTER- Woman You Stole Curiously we start with the strongest (my opinion, don’t axe me) of the support acts, a local 3 piece that is dominated by overpowering (Ship of the Line about to commence firing vibe) drums and a robust lead vocal (a soaring, Siouxsie Sioux-esque quality) that binds tastefully with a […]

LIVE: WARM DRAG / FRUIT TONES / SLOWHANDCLAP / WOMAN YOU STOLE – 22/01/2019

ALBUM: THE RESIDENTS – ESKIMO / COMMERCIAL ALBUM

A friend of mine works at the BBC and from time to time, she has to review historic children’s TV shows before they are re-released, just to check for inappropriate storylines, jokes, politically incorrect content and sinister special guest appearances by those on the wrong side of Operation Yewtree. I couldn’t help but think of […]
Striking whilst the iron’s still hot, Wild Nothing return with an even more mature take on the 80s alt-pop sound which has inspired their past album releases such as ‘Nocturne’ (2012) and ‘Indigo’ (2018). The latter was an immense journey into hi-fi, a glittery sonic gloss rich with soaring guitars and killer snare hits to […]

SINGLE REVIEW: WILD NOTHING – BLUE WINGS

ALBUM: KEUNING – PRISIMISM

In 2001 long before we were waking up checking our smart phones every morning to see who cares about what we did last night. Brandon Flowers, The Killers frontman, was grooving in the Hard Rock Café in down town Las Vegas to the band Oasis. Here he realised the calling for a new sound leading […]
-YES, MANCHESTER- It’s officially the coldest night of winter so far, there are ice rinks on the pavements and the big coats are out. I’m in a borrowed coat and gloves due to a personal admin error (thanks Sam), yet in the Pink Room at Yes (are all gigs in Manchester at Yes these days?!), […]

LIVE: ADRIANNE LENKER – 17/01/2019

LIVE: THE GOA EXPRESS / GARDENBACK / SAINTTS – 12/01/2019

-THE CASTLE HOTEL, MANCHESTER- Saintts: The evening opens with what sounds like a badly-maintained theme park ride (a selection of cymbals precariously strapped on in addition) acting as the beat, while its more subdued rhythm partner watches on in despair as the guitar repeatedly bashes their circuitry into increasingly questionable territory. And of course, the […]
A week ago, if you were to do a quick search for Tallies on either YouTube, Spotify, or Google Music, you’ll find a very limited supply of nothing longer than a single. But despite that, the small Toronto based quartet have been picking up speed and, on January 11th, released their first album, the self-titled […]

ALBUM: TALLIES – TALLIES

ALBUM: JOSHUA BURNSIDE – WEAR BLUEBELLS IN YOUR HAT IF YOU’RE GOIN THAT WAY

I don’t know much about music – I know that’s a strange way to start a review. But I don’t. I am an avid listener, a dedicated dancer and a shower singer. I will happily and indiscriminately switch from Taylor Swift to David Bowie to Bright Eyes. I like to think of my ears as […]
-SOUP KITCHEN, MANCHESTER- 2019 is upon us and it’s the first gig of the year for your reviewer, and there are genuinely not many better ways to kick off than with tonight’s line up. Opening we have Silver Vials, a psych-tinged electronic duo whose changing line up and set up keeps fans and novices guessing […]

LIVE: LORELLE MEETS THE OBSOLETE / SILVER VIALS – 10/01/2019