Album Review: Gogol Bordello – Pura Vida Conspiracy

In the off chance that you haven’t heard of Gogol Bordello, I’ll let this one slide. For almost fifteen years, this eight-piece NYC gypsy punk outfit have blended a range of global influences, mainly circling around Eastern European and Latin music, into one big “clusterpunk” of hustling and bustling ethnic sound. With an orchestra of members […]
– GORILLA, MANCHESTER –  My expectations for Flume were pretty high. The Australian producer’s debut eponymous debut album is full of Gold Panda-esque chopped up vocals and snazzy beats, and makes for an engrossing, exciting listen. I walked into Gorilla, one of the best venues in Manchester, with my head full of thoughts about this […]

LIVE: FLUME – 18/07/2013

LIVE: YOUTH LAGOON – 16/07/2013

– GORILLA, MANCHESTER – Trevor Powers, aka Youth Lagoon, is a mystery unto himself. With Tim Burton-esque hair and a slight hunchback at age 23, this is the kind of guy who wanders down the street with a glass of wine in hand, dreaming up existential lyrics (kudos from a fellow wino). It’s not just […]
– ALBERT SQUARE, MANCHESTER –  I first read about Money about six months ago in the music press. There seemed to be a buzz about the potential of this five piece from Manchester, renowned for holding exhibitions in unusual buildings around town, and being artists as well as musicians. So when they popped up on the […]

LIVE: MONEY – 13/07/2013

ALBUM REVIEW: THE VOLTAIRES – THE VOLTAIRES

Putting this CD on the stereo and hitting play is like pressing “open” on an automatic garage door clicker, the metal grill peeling back to reveal The Voltaires within, thrashing out the abrasive, snapping garage rock that forms their debut album. This is not any garage. The Voltaires’ magic garage might be located anywhere from […]
Modular Living is the latest album from Eat Lights, Become Lights. This London four-piece have been going strong since they started attacking people’s senses in 2007. They are certainly an interesting band. Writer, performer and engineer Neil Rudd  formed ELBL from his love of German avant rock and 70s electronica that in turn create this sound […]

Album Review: Eat Lights, Become Lights – Modular Living

SINGLE REVIEW: DISCLOSURE – F FOR YOU

The duo that smashed their way into the ears of the nation but a few months ago have brought out yet another ‘banger’. The follow up to their last single ‘You & Me’, which included the sultry tones of Eliza Doolittle, on the garage throwback track F For You (F actually stands for Fool) is […]
 – BAND ON THE WALL, MANCHESTER –  In a DIY sixties garage surf fashion, The Bell Peppers don’t waist any time jumping off the high dive straight into a pool of the instrumental ‘Bell Pepper Hop’, serving as the perfect ice cold refreshment on a heated summer evening at Band On The Wall. Building surf […]

LIVE: TEMPLE SONGS / THE BELL PEPPERS – 06/07/2013

LIVE: TWIN FORKS – 02/7/2013

– NIGHT & DAY CAFE, MANCHESTER – If anyone went to or watched the Glastonbury Festival coverage of Mumford and Sons last week it is quiet clear that another genre ‘pop-folk’ is pretty big at the moment. The difference between a band that headlines a massive festival and tonight’s Twin Forks is that Twin Forks, […]
Having recently surfaced on the scene from out of nowhere, John Wizards – aka South African production duo John Withers and Emmanuel Nzaramba – have wangled themselves a debut release on legendary electronica label, Planet Mu. Here, in the space of just two tracks, the pair manage to pogo through a myriad of influences and […]

Single Review: John Wizards – Lusaka By Night