SINGLE REVIEW: The Megaphonic Thrift – Talks Like a Weed King/Fill Your Cup Tokyo

I’m listening to the Megaphonic Thrift’s single one last time as I finish off this review and I won’t be in any particular hurry to listen to it again – but on the other hand, I will definitely catch them if they play at any of the festivals I’m off to this year. There are […]
– CRYSTAL CASTLES, MAGNETIC MAN, EVERYTHING EVERYTHING, THE VACCINES – – ACADEMY 1, MANCHESTER – Everyone loves to hate the NME, and let’s face it they make it easy. From lumping disparate bands together and falsely calling it a scene to overhyping them and having a superiority complex that could rival Liam “Lennon was right. […]

LIVE: NME AWARDS TOUR 2011 – 04/02/2011

LIVE: AZURE RAY – 03/02/2011

– THE RUBY LOUNGE, MANCHESTER – The Ruby Lounge is a force to be reckoned with. With their recent run of stellar line-ups and having undergone drastic refurbishments, the much-loved underground haunt is quickly establishing itself as one of Manchester’s finest live venues. It’s a bit of a letdown then, that the view tonight through […]
– ACADEMY 1, MANCHESTER – Towards the end of tonight’s gig, during intense crowd favourite ‘Funeral’ – which Band of Horses threaten to swap for an “obscure cover track” – lead vocalist Ben Bridwell’s mic screws itself free and falls down to his knees. “There are some technical demons here tonight”, beardy keyboardist Ryan Monroe […]

LIVE: BAND OF HORSES – 01/02/2011

ALBUM: PETE YORN – PETE YORN

Pete Yorn’s self titled 6th studio album is the result of an impromptu 5 day recording session with Pixies frontman and indie rock legend Frank Black. Recorded in a makeshift studio over the summer of 2008 whilst the prolific songsmith was in the middle of making his 4th LP Back & Fourth, this record perhaps demonstrates […]
Amplifier’s third album is a gargantuan piece of work. Stunning in its scale, over the course of a two-hour opus, Sel Balamir, Neil Mahony and Matt Brobin ramp up the bombast to galactic proportions, somehow doing so without leaving the light of their earthly observatory. Self-financed and three years in the making, The Octopus is not merely […]

ALBUM: Amplifier – The Octopus

LIVE: TWIN SHADOW – 26/01/2011

– THE DEAF INSTITUTE, MANCHESTER – George Lewis Jr (AKA Twin Shadow) has star quality in abundance. He steps on stage looking every inch the pop star, with a rock ‘n’ roll bouffant which must be a contender for the best hair in music at the moment. From this point on it’s difficult to take […]
– THE RUBY LOUNGE, MANCHESTER – Julie Baenziger AKA Sea of Bees has just brought out her album ‘Song for Ravens’, which has been received rather well. The album is made up of songs crafted with emotional expression, highly beautiful and rather twee. Clad in a knitted jumper with a hair cut that reminds you […]

LIVE: SMOKE FAIRIES/SEA OF BEES – 26/01/2011

LIVE: SLEIGH BELLS – 21/01/2011

– THE DEAF INSTITUTE, MANCHESTER – Tonight’s gig is Sold Out with a capital Hype. Bodies jostle for non-existent dancing space, condensation drips from the windows and it takes so long to push your way to the smoking area, it might as well be on the top of Mount Kilimanjaro. Probably just as well for […]
– LIKE NO ENGLISH – Unusually in these times saturated with the minutiae of celebrity life, there is no superlative press release issued with this EP and little information available on the internet. This paucity of background detail is a predicament faced by those reviewing this EP before me, if the scant online critiques are […]

ALBUM – THE DARK SKY SINGERS