John has been touring extensively for many years, and plays a beautiful, haunting melodic solo set, which alone will blow your mind, but then tops it off with a rock explosion, backed by his highly talented band. His music is truthful, eclectic and shows influence from musicians around the world. Indian classical themes are particularly well aired due to his tutelage under the renowned sarod maestro K.Sridar.
John has played headline stages at festivals all over the UK and Europe last summer to rapturous reviews and crowd adulation. If you like your acoustic music to be for real, your rock to be old-fashioned yet inventive, and loud and visceral, and want to hear gravelly tones add gravitas to the tunes, then come along, you won’t be disappointed.
The support act, inventive Swedish Folk Rockers BAAB, would be worth the admission price alone (£10 members/£12 non-members), never mind without the live extravaganza that is John Fairhurst solo, and in raucous cacophony with his band. You’d be daft to miss it.
Squeeze main man is coming to The Civic with his brand new solo tour.
One of Britain’s most cherished singers, guitarists and songwriters, following the release of his solo album ‘Happy Ending’ in 2014, Glenn embarked on the critically acclaimed ‘At Odds Couple’ UK and US acoustic tours with long-time collaborator Chris Difford. In 2015 Glenn and his Squeeze bandmates wrote, recorded and released their first album of new material in eighteen years – which was written for the BBC drama of the same name, inspired by the memoirs of friend Danny Baker. It was a glorious musical return, ‘Cradle To The Grave’ was met with rave reviews and entered the UK Official Album Chart at number 12. The band embarked on a sold–out tour across the UK, including a packed out date at London’s iconic Royal Albert Hall.
As 2015 drew to a close – without stopping to catch their breath- Glenn and Chris headed to the US for an extensive acoustic tour. 2016 has kicked off no differently – Squeeze were a viral sensation in January after a castigating performance on BBC 1’s Andrew Marr show.
Anyone who has witnessed Glenn on the live stage can attest to the properness of his doings, as it were. Armed with ready wit, raucous vibes and a shed load of grin-inducing great songs, there are few musicians able to connect with their audience on such an immediate and warm level. The ever burgeoning festival circuit is frequently enriched by Tilbrook the troubadour, whether he be leafing through his own plentiful back pages or dashing off impromptu audience requests ranging from Jimi Hendrix to Tony Orlando & Dawn, and all points in-between.
For more information and to book visit www.barnsleycivic.co.uk or call the Box Office on 01226 327000.
How did the band form?
We all go to Leeds College of Music and we just started jamming and it formed from there.
Where did the idea to play this type of music come from?
It just sort of happened. We all have a similar taste in music in some ways, we’re all involved with the jazz side of things but individually we all have our own unique tastes. That works because we all share different artists with each other and bring in different influences to the band.
What kind of work goes into the recording process?
It was quite difficult recording over summer as there’s seven of us and we were all off doing our own thing but we all did what we could to get our parts recorded. It involved quite a lot of meticulous practice as well.
Our wizard producer Toby was amazing at compiling it all together for us though.
We all made sure we practiced our set before summer as we’d been gigging as well but Toby was really good at organising us all separately and getting the rhythm down then adding all the different components in. It took all summer but he did his thing in the beautiful way he does.
It’s difficult recording separately though when you’re used to bouncing off each other. You’ve got to make sure you never get too comfortable and calculated within the band as well so it’s good to work on your own thing.
Do you prefer playing live or recording music?
We love the recording side of things but with this band it is more about playing live and bouncing off each other.
It’s great listening to what people have come up with as well. Like Chris will never play the same pattern twice, he’ll play a pattern really well but then he’ll go away and change it and make it better. That combination of everyone bringing something different every time makes playing live so interesting.
What vibe are your hoping your E.P will give off?
There are a few production tricks that make it different to how we play live but we still want to remain dynamic and give the listener that experience they get at a gig.
What’s next for Nag Champa?
More gigs, possibly a little tour, record some music…
We’ve got a gig coming up on 24 November at the Library Pub supporting a really cool act called Bud Sugar.
We’re basically going to gig as much as we can and just carry on making music.
The info
Maya Kally – vocals
Jasper Cole – saxophone, EWI, synth
Jasper Green – piano, organ, rhodes, synth
Joe Scott – arrangement, composition, pad synths
Toby Clarke – guitars, vocals, production, mastering, album cover
Kieran Halpin – bass guitar, double bass
Chris McIntyre – drums, percussion
Nag Champa’s new E.P combines an eclectic mix of sounds which make even Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition’ sound truly original to this seven piece collective.
The E.P opens with their original track ‘Slow Me Down’ which despite the name kicks straight off with a healthy dose of piano, drums and saxophone to raise the tempo and the listener’s spirits. However there is far more to this track than just a lively concoction of instruments thrown together. Lead vocalist, Maya Kally, debuts with powerful jazz vocals that reflect an attitude towards this genre way beyond her years.
The hip hop influences can clearly be heard throughout and bring a variety to the tempo which makes the listening experience deeper than just surface enjoyment. Despite not having the freedom of playing live to shake up the track the combination of multiple different instruments layered over one another makes it so the individual tracks can be enjoyed on numerous levels.
The E.P includes covers of Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition’ and Gene Wilder’s ‘Pure Imagination’. Nag Champa have managed to harness the beauty of these much adored tracks yet add their own original, modern influence. The huge amounts of time put into composing the elements can easily be understood and appreciated but the tight production of the tracks is what allows the audience to listen with such ease.
The bands second original song ‘Daydreamer’ follows a livelier theme than their first creating a rhythm impossible not to tap along to. Whereas the other tracks offer a lot of variety and allow room for the listeners own personal interpretation, ‘Daydreamer’, appears to simplify elements on the surface and leaves room for the different jazz elements to be enjoyed.
The outro track summarises the overall feel of the album better than words could. Jasper Green takes to the keys in a freestyle fashion which takes the listener in numerous different directions. If the E.P were to take us on a literal journey the outro would be the defining soundtrack. Nearing the end of the track drums and guitar are brought in to keep the momentum flowing and bring back the mix of different styles.
The separate elements of each track are composed so they fit perfectly into place yet still stand out from one another as highly skilled recordings. Nag Champa have combined their many individual talents and creativity to make an E.P which brings the past, present and future of jazz together to create a unique listening experience.
“…a charming, charismatic force of nature, her vivid and yearning voice all twang and tremor.” – Guardian, ****
One of the finest new voices to emerge in 2016, Margo Price returns to the UK and Ireland in January for six live dates.
Margo’s astounding debut record ‘Midwest Farmer’s Daughter’ was one of the albums of 2016, and received wide critical acclaim upon its release earlier this year. The video for one of the stand out tracks, ‘Hands Of Time’ was filmed across several locations in Margo’s hometown of Aledo, Illinois, directed by Ben Chappell (Arctic Monkeys) and you can see it here
Margo Price plays:
January 2017
19th LONDON, Islington Assembly Hall
20th OXFORD, The Bullingdon
21st LIVERPOOL, Leaf
22nd DUBLIN, Button Factory
24th GLASGOW, Oran Mor (Celtic Connections)
25th LEEDS, Brudenell Social Club
Tickets go on sale this Friday 4th November at 10am.
After failing to find a break while gigging in Nashville, Margo and her husband sold everything they owned to fund the recording of ‘Midwest Farmers Daughter’ at the legendary Sun Studio on Memphis. Once again, Nashville failed to take notice of this extraordinary talent until Jack White’s Third Man Records stepped in to make Margo their first ever country signing.
Demanding attention with her extraordinary vocal control and candid and introspective songwriting, Margo’s debut album draws on her life experiences to date, chronicling hardship, heartache, loss, and love.
Cowtown, Team Picture and Party Hardly will be showcasing the finest Leeds has to offer, with the line-up completed by two insanely talented bands – Yard Wars and The Orielles!
They’ll also be quelling hunger with popups from the award winning The Pizza Guy and ethical fast food treats from Vegan Fried Chicken.
Leeds is a city renowned for music, with long standing venues such as the Brudenell Social Club, as well as hosting a number of popular festivals; Leeds Festival, Slam Dunk and Live at Leeds. There is always room for more.
For two years now High & Lonesome has premiered an outstanding line-up of alternative music. The festival was founded in 2014 and held across a number of first rate independent venues in Leeds, flaunting local talent. After an extremely successful first year, High & Lonesome has continued to grow expanding to venues such as the infamous Brudenell Social Club and Left Bank Church. Last year saw Josh T. Pearson and Julia Holter take the headline spots, blowing crowds away.
After a number of encouraging write ups, High & Lonesome decided to work all year round in between hosting their festival, putting on shows with a number of different artists such as; Hiss Golden Messenger, Rachel Sermanni, Lonnie Holley, Hunting Bears, Eaves, Laura Oakes, Folly & The Hunter, to name a few!
This year High & Lonesome returns for two days of incredible music over the 19th and 20th of November. Welcoming local talent as well as artists from overseas!
Alongside this stellar line up, over the weekend there will be drinks and offers from Northern Monk Brew Co. Jack Daniels, The Pizza Bus and more to keep you trooping.
Tickets are available from Crash Records, Jumbo Records, The Brudenell Social Club, See Tickets and the High & Lonesome website.
Festival Co-Founder Harry Ridgway said “We’re so excited to release the full line up and with how the festival is expanding. Moving to two days is really exciting as well as diversifying the line up. The Low Anthem are some of our dream headliners and I Like Trains to us, represent an exciting way the festival can move and expand musically, as well as being something of Leeds icons… We want H&L to be a place of interesting ideas and chiefly, a place for brilliant songwriters. I feel this year we have that in spades with everything from Americana & Alt Country, to Post Rock & Pop”
I am really looking forward to my first time at High & Lonesome. I expect I will be blown away by raw talent and perhaps I’ll find some new favourite bands along the way.
Will Varley has reached an unstoppable velocity since signing with Xtra Mile Recordings in 2015 and shows no signs of slowing down as he announces his fourth album ‘Kingsdown Sundown’ out 4th November 2016.
Recorded underneath a pub by the sea in Deal, Kent as the waves roared outside, Kingsdown Sundown is a bleak and uncompromising critique of the human condition, journeying deep into our dreams, faults, regrets and politics. The songs are more visceral and uneasy than before, with fights in KFC descending into world wars, the all too real plight of refugees and the recent rise in hate crime. A collection of folk songs written over the course of the last year while travelling and touring – written on tour buses and trains, scribbled on the back of set lists and receipts – Will says “these are the most honest songs I’ve ever written and they represent new ground for me creatively. They may not be radio friendly, or even ‘friendly’ at all, but I’ve been wanting to make a record like this for a long time.”
The rest of the album is hazier, more spectral and a phantom of memories, dreams, and hopes. If there’s one song that haunts as much as it heals and warms the soul, it’s ‘Let Your Guard Down’ which sounds like it was sung deeply into the howling wind in defiance, in hope and fear. The most directly political song ‘We Want Our Planet Back’ feels strongly enough to strap on an electric guitar and strum over Will’s patient protest, but it indirectly lends its brooding power to ‘Too Late Too Soon’ which seems ready to crumple and break, a sandcastle made of a simmering mood. ‘Back To Hell’ could have come from any period in superstitious folk history, a tale of vague menace, mysticism and the underworld. Finally, ‘We’ll Keep Making Plans’ threatens to build to a crescendo, but instead lets us drift out into a mental sea where the sun is setting on what we knew in favour of the unknown, resolving to carry on, continuing to build our futures on shakier foundations. It’s somehow not dispiriting; it’s more driven by determination to allow sadness not to rule our lives, but be an important part of it.
Will Varley UK & Ireland Headline Tour:
08/11 Glasgow, King Tuts
09/11 Manchester, Gorilla
10/11 Newcastle, Cluny
11/11 Nottingham, Rescue Rooms
15/11 Portsmouth, The Wedgewood Rooms
16/11 Bristol, Thekla
17/11 Brighton, Komedia
18/11 London, Union Chapel
23/11 Galway, Roisin Dubh
24/11 Dublin, Whelans
25/11 Belfast, The Sunflower
26/11 Cork, Cyprus Avenue
Update: As I was publishing this the band launched their new video. You’ll be able to watch and listen to it on this page.
Air Drawn Dagger are a Sheffield based band who are are currently coming to the end of their tour promoting their EP ’Ours for the Taking … Theirs for the Breaking’.
The band were not entirely unknown to me before they got in contact with LSF as I’d seen some wild video of live shows and heard tales of their gigs. So I was intrigued to know more about them. I exchanged a Q&A with Lewis the bassist. Now read on …
Frank: How long have the band been together? How did you get together as a band?
Lewis: Myself and Maisie started writing songs in the back of the cake shop she runs in Sheffield in 2014. That first year was spent writing, playing our first shows under the name and finding the right people to create the line-up we had in mind. By 2015 we had released our debut EP, started gigging all over the UK and started writing the follow up EP. This year we signed a publishing deal, recorded and released our second EP, been on our first full tours and had a blast doing all of it.
F: Had band members been in other bands together before?
L: No, we all met through this band actually. Sam, Ross and Maisie have all been in other bands before when they were younger, but we all came together through Air Drawn Dagger.
F: What are the band’s musical influences?
L: It’s a cliché to say “everything” so I will just spout a huge list instead:
My Chemical Romance, Foo Fighters, Gallows, Iron Maiden, Prodigy, Blondie, Misfits, The Smiths, Dolly Parton, The Beatles, The White Stripes, Blink 182, RHCP, Eminem, Trivium, Kanye West, Enter Shikari and so, so much more..
F: How would describe your sound, and I’m intrigued to know what you mean by sasscore?
L: Describing ourselves is something that we genuinely struggle with and it seems to be a gift and a curse. On the surface we are a female fronted four piece that plays melodic rock songs. But when you watch us, our set is a 30 minute monstrosity that includes electronics, usually a Dolly Parton cover and ends with most of the members in the mosh pit and Maisie normally stood on top of the bar or something…
That’s not always easy to get across, so we started using the term “SASSCORE” to describe ourselves as a joke that’s sort of caught on. It means hardcore and sassy. Take that how you will, but that loose umbrella term seems to be the most appropriate term for us so far.
F: Do you see your sound as coming from being based in Sheffield, is there a distinctive ‘Sheffield’ alternative rock sound that you fit in some way into?
L: I wouldn’t say so. I am actually from Manchester and started the band while at uni here. Maisie has lived all over the world whilst growing up and Sam and Ross both live just outside the city, so I don’t feel like we have ever had that sense of identity bred into the band. I would say we have a wider sense of self, like a UK band or possibly a Northern band, but apart from that we have never felt like we fit anywhere. We have always been the wired, uncool band that shows up, plays like are lives depended on it, got a bit drunk and left.
As for the Sheffield scene, the beauty of the rock scene in Sheffield at the moment is that there is no set sound. There are a bunch of incredible, unique bands all making massive waves and breaking out of the city. When we first started it felt like there were either Indie bands, or Metalcore bands. Now it feels like you have your Pop Punk crowds, Alt Rock crowds, Hip Hop, Metal etc … and most importantly they are all melting together. Everyone is becoming a fan of each other, it’s not cliquey and it’s not restricted to genres. Genres are dead and Sheffield is leading the way into the new era. Its an era without restriction and its incredibly exciting.
F: What’s unique about the sound of the band?
L: Our own sound mixes anything and everything we enjoy as music fans. We blend Punk with Electronics, Metal, Hip Hop, Grunge, Funk, Grime, folk and anything else we want to. Our new EP is 3 fast passed rock songs, however each one is different from the last and hopefully you can hear the different genres that we have been influenced by within the songs.
F: How do you get your songs together? Is there one person responsible for most of the words or music?
L: My favourite thing about this band is that we write in a thousand different ways. Myself and Maisie will sit down and collaborate on lyrics and the skeleton of a song that will come to life once the boys start writing. Sometimes our drummer Ross comes in with amazing riffs and song ideas, Sam our guitarist is a writing machine that is always thinking outside of the box. So basically, whether somebody has a rough idea they want to try or we just jam, our songs appear in different ways all of the time.
F: Do you have a message that you trying to get across in your songs? Or do the songs reflect what is going on for person who wrote the song?
L: Both. I would say that if Air Drawn Dagger stands for something, it’s that it’s not only OK not to belong, but it’s something that should be celebrated. As a band and as individuals, we dislike pigeon holing and it’s something that we struggle with. Not fitting in, owning your individuality and basking in the mess that you are is paramount. Our individual struggles come out through our songs in different ways, because this is our therapy. If people can connect to that and relate, that’s amazing.
F: Band highlight so far – the one thing or even two or three things that really stand out?
L: Our last EP release show was at Corporation in Sheffield. Our first ever headliner and it was basically sold out. We had balloons, cupcakes, crowd surfing and the first ever “Wall of Sass” it was a huge night for us and we finally felt like we really made an impact that night.
Getting played and support form BBC introducing Sheffield was another nice moment, things like that really do help young artists so it’s always gratifying to get recognition form things like that.
Generally, just getting to play all over the UK and letting music take you to places you may never have seen otherwise is one of the best parts of all of this. It’s regarded the “toilet circuit” but we love driving and playing in tiny places, meeting the local heroes who still champion local live music, it’s brilliant.
F: What’s going on for the band at the moment?
L: We are just finishing up the first tour on this new EP ‘Ours for the Taking … Theirs for the Breaking’ at the moment. The shows have been class, each night has been either a new city or a new venue, so its been special.
F: Plans for the future?
L: We have already started writing a batch of new songs that are nearly done and sounding huge. We are booking the next tour and dates for next year whilst having new music videos out before that. We also have more online content on the way and a few very special surprises that will be cropping up, so stay tuned for those!
The info
Air Drawn Dagger are:
Maisie Manterfield – Vocals, Electronics
Sam Wagner – Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals
Lewis Budden – Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals
Ross Dore – Drums, Percussion
Two years ago, during the 2014 Americana Music Festival, three songwriters met for the first time at a café in East Nashville. What followed on from that meeting became one of the most warmly received albums of 2016 when it was released by vinyl specialists Gearbox Records. Next month, Applewood Road return to the UK to round off a triumphant year which has included performances at Glastonbury and Cambridge Folk Festival, an appearance on the Andrew Marr Show, and a UK tour with Mary Chapin Carpenter.
“Their no-frills debut album, recorded in Nashville, has rightly won them no end of admirers and the close harmonies, augmented with spartan guitar and banjo, were every bit as exquisite in this performance. Original numbers were inspirational; so too was a soaring cover of REM’s Losing My Religion.” — The Times (review of Barbican show, July 2016)
It was a serendipitous first meeting. Emily Barker was in Nashville for AmericanaFest and had been introduced to Amy Speace by a mutual friend. The pair arranged to meet over coffee, and Amy invited her friend Amber Rubarth to join them. By the follow- ing afternoon the three had written a song, ‘Applewood Road’, and the following week they recorded it live to tape at Welcome To 1979 studios around one microphone, accompanied only by Telisha Williams on double bass.
The three women, each with successful solo careers of their own, assumed that would be the end of the story. But the tape made its way back to the UK and into the hands of Gearbox Records, who signed the three basic strangers to a record deal on the strength of that one song. A few months later a window appeared in their very busy schedules and Barker,Rubarth and Speace reconvened in Nash- ville for one week to write, arrange, rehearse and record a full album. The songs were again performed live around a single microphone at Welcome to 1979 and recorded to two-track tape.
“There’s a moreish magic to the harmonies of this country-folk trio that recalls the vintage appeal of the Everlys and the Andrews”
***** Daily Telegraph (Best Of 2016 Releases)
Applewood Roadwas released in February 2016 to across-the-board critical ac- claim. 4 and 5 star reviews came in from The Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph, Daily Mirror, R2, Q Magazine and others. They appeared on BBC2’s Dermot O’Leary show, singing their arrangement of REM’s ‘Losing My Religion’, which was subsequently included on Dermot’s latest Saturday Sessions CD (Sony). In the summer, an appearance on the Andrew Marr Show was followed by a session on Sky Arts at Cambridge Folk Festival.
Dates
Mon 14 Nov The Sage | GATESHEAD
Tue 15 Nov Ruby Lounge | MANCHESTER
Wed 16 Nov O2 Academy | LIVERPOOL
Thu 17 Nov Classic Grand | GLASGOW
Fri 18 Nov The Band Room | FARNDALE
Sat 19 Nov High & Lonesome Festival | LEEDS
Sun 20 Nov St Laurence Church | STROUD
Mon 21 Nov Union Chapel | LONDON
Subscriptions will include a monthly single as well as lots of other stuff. Clue have also announced details of their Clue Club Christmas Party to be held on 10th December 10th at Leeds’ legendary Brudenell Social Club.
Clue Records have announced plans for a monthly single release as part of their new project; Clue Club. It will launch in January 2017 with acts including Team Picture, Fighting Caravans, Fold, Colour Of Spring and SUNFACE already confirmed to take part & more to come throughout the year.
There are only 100 subscriptions available so everything sent out is exclusive to the club & limited edition.
A years subscription it costs just £28.99 (inc free UK P+P). That’s less than £2.50 per month.
A digital download from the featured artist each month
An exclusive podcast feature on each act involved
Exclusive offers & discounts for Clue Records releases & merch throughout the year
Scott Lewis (founder of Clue Records) said, “Finding new artists to enjoy and fall in love with is one of the main reasons Clue was started. We’ve created Clue Club so we can do this with a small group of people, matching ace bands with artistic visions to create something fun and exciting. A zine allows the bands and artists to show a different dimension to their music and themselves.”
The contents of the zine will vary from month to month, with the featured band contributing articles and pieces of interest alongside guest artists/poets/groups/activists/bloggers. These will include:
Bloc – an anti-austerity, forward-thinking online space who aim to instigate debate and get people thinking about current issues. https://www.facebook.com/blocuk
A fuzzed up, kraut-psych behemoth that have been catching the eyes and ears of the masses in Leeds and further afield.
“The weight behind Team Picture’s fuzz-rock feels like it could batter its way through brickwork” DIY
Fold
Falling somewhere between DJ Shadow, Public Enemy and Public Service Broadcasting, Fold can name Gideon Coe, Lauren Laverne, Craig Charles, Don Letts & Huey Morgan as fans with all 3 regularly spinning tracks by the band on their own BBC 6Music shows.
“A lavish concoction of hip-hop, soul, funk, electronics and more” CLASH
Fighting Caravans
With Leeds and Reading Festivals and several UK and European tours completed in 2016, the alt-blues-psych band will be releasing an EP late in 2017.
“…a hidden secret with gnarly riffs and anthemic vocals” CLASH
Colour Of Spring
Giving shoegaze a shot in the arm with comparisons to the likes of Ride, The Smiths and Lush. Sold out their debut 7” on pre-orders alone.
“It’s not easy for a shoegaze band to stand out, but thankfully Colour Of Spring do just that” NME
SUNFACE
The solo project of TRASH front man Dan Longmore. Songs are recorded in his bedroom, dining room and sometimes living room but never his toilet. He’s had plenty of BBC Radio 1 and Amazing Radio support too.
“A ray of light from a bright new spark” DIY
Clue Club Christmas Party
On December 10th Clue Club will host its first party to celebrate the announcement of both the singles club & the most joyous season of all, Christmas. It will take place at Leeds’ legendary Brudenell Social Club. Confirmed acts include TRASH, Colour Of Spring, AVALANCHE PARTY and 5 other very special guests, each of which will be revealed in the run up to the show via Clue’s advent calendar.
Date: Saturday December 10th
Venue: Brudenell Social Club
Bands: TRASH, Colour Of Spring, AVALANCHE PARTY and 5 more TBA
Price: £8 adv
Tickets: http://bit.ly/2dMC40h
Facebook Event: http://bit.ly/2e9VeeU
Submissions
Although Clue Club artists are hand picked by Clue Records, slots have been left empty for submissions. If anyone would like to put forward music for consideration just fill in the form here: https://cluerecords.wordpress.com/submissions/
The info
F: How do you get your songs together? Is there one person responsible for most of the words or music?
The contents of the zine will vary from month to month, with the featured band contributing articles and pieces of interest alongside guest artists/poets/groups/activists/bloggers. These will include:
Team Picture
Fold
Fighting Caravans
Colour Of Spring
SUNFACE