rock
Reissue CDs Weekly: Ronnie LaneSunday, 19 May 2019
It was inevitable that Rod Stewart’s distracting solo adventures would eventually kill off Faces, the band he fronted. Less predictable was the departure during their lifetime of another founder member, their bassist and key songwriter Ronnie Lane.... Read more... |
CD: The Waterboys - Where the Action IsSaturday, 18 May 2019
Mike Scott has never been afraid to call on high-brow literary influences in his songwriting – 2011’s An Appointment With Mr Yeats album being the most obvious example. Now, almost forty years (on and off) into the Waterboys’ career, Scott takes a... Read more... |
theartsdesk on Vinyl 49 - Part 1: Keith Richards, Asian Dub Foundation, Popul Vuh, Nirvana, Cage the Elephant and moreSaturday, 11 May 2019
Due to exciting matters beyond theartsdesk on Vinyl’s control there’s been a slight delay to this month’s edition but, never fear, to ensure we cover all that’s juicy, we’re doing a special two-volume version, with Part 2 coming next week. Watch... Read more... |
Catfish and the Bottlemen, Cardiff Motorpoint Arena review - irrepressible arena rockTuesday, 07 May 2019
For a time, it looked like Catfish and the Bottlemen might finally be the next-gen guitar band with crossover appeal. Though that never quite came to pass, their new show promoting latest album The Balance proves why the indie faithful... Read more... |
Rokia Traoré: Né So, Brighton Festival review - an Afro-psychedelic head-fryMonday, 06 May 2019
The last thing many were expecting from Rokia Traoré’s opening appearance at this year’s Brighton Festival was an Afro-psychedelic head-fry, yet she and her four-piece band prove thoroughly capable of swirling our minds right off out of it. When she... Read more... |
CD: Clinic – Wheeltappers and ShuntersSunday, 05 May 2019
Before we get to the music, there’s the title of Clinic’s first album in seven years to deal with. It comes from the title of a 1970s Granada TV series, The Wheeltappers and Shunters Social Club, a northern entertainment revue presented by,... Read more... |
CD: Vampire Weekend - Father of the BrideWednesday, 01 May 2019
Three albums in, and Vampire Weekend were due a shake-up. Enter Father of the Bride, by far their most ambitious record to date. It’s an 18-track behemoth featuring 14 musicians and six different producers, spanning from folk to jazz. It may be a... Read more... |
CD: Editors – The Blanck Mass SessionsMonday, 29 April 2019
Editors’ last album, the electronic-infused Violence, was hailed as a big departure for the indie rock band on its release a little over a year ago. It wasn’t really, it was simply the latest stage of a transformation that can be traced back to... Read more... |
Hall & Oates, Wembley SSE Arena review - bestselling duo still have the powerSaturday, 27 April 2019
Never quite the household names in Britain that they were in their native USA, Daryl Hall and John Oates can nonetheless claim to be the best-selling duo in the history of popular music. With 40 million records sold, six US chart-topping singles and... Read more... |
Suede, Brighton Dome review - Brett Anderson gives it full frontman chutzpahWednesday, 24 April 2019
Suede finish “Sabotage”. It’s a mid-paced, elegant number set off by swirling, circling central guitar. Frontman Brett Anderson hangs from his microphone stand on the left apron of the stage to deliver it, with the lights down low. Afterwards he... Read more... |
The Good, the Bad & the Queen, Great Hall, Cardiff review - a jolly big knees-upMonday, 15 April 2019
“Our attendees are a select group, but we have a connection,” remarked Damon Albarn at the end of The Good, the Bad & the Queen’s set. He’s not wrong – much of the band had outgrown Cardiff’s Great Hall 25 years ago, but it proved the perfect... Read more... |
Rock Island Line: The Song That Made Britain Rock, BBC Four review - the early dawn of BritpopSaturday, 13 April 2019
If you were a fan of “Rock Island Line” when it became a pop hit, you’d have to be at least in your mid-70s now. In 1956, Paul McCartney heard Lonnie Donegan perform it live in Liverpool, and Paul’s rising 77. How many below that age know it is moot... Read more... |
