The wind quintet of Lynda Robertson (flute), Nina Jarman (oboe), Rachael Gibbon (clarinet), Bob Shaw (horn) and David Buck (bassoon) ably performed the first part of this concert.
Three movements from Gordon Jacob’s Wind Quintet no 1 opened. There was a quirky Allegro, an Andante con moto with some lovely flute music, and a rippling Allegro molto.
Three movements from Franz Danzi’s Quintet in D minor (Op 68 nr 3) began hesitantly, continued serenely, then became more formal and finally lively.
Next came Malcolm Arnold’s very enjoyable Three Shanties for Wind Quintet. A manic “Drunken Sailor” opened, followed by the calmer “Boney Was a Warrior”, and concluding with the lively “Johnny come down to Hilo”, first staccato and then flowing.
The second part was performed by a string quintet: Maria Becker and Mary Anderson on violin, John Goodstadt on viola, and Paul Hickman and Rosy Hickman on cello. It consisted of Schubert’s String Quintet in C Major (D956). This featured the beautiful melodies that you might expect from Schubert. There were varying moods: doomy, dreamy, vigorous. The audience showed their appreciation of the musicians’ skill in this long work.
The next concert is not expected till September. To get on the mailing list for these small, friendly concerts contact abrannick@garrattslaw.co.uk or 0161 665 3502.
Mabel has today announced details of her ‘High Expectations’ headline tour. Tickets are available on 24th July at 10AM BST when pre-ordering the album, with general sale commencing on July 21st at 10AM BST.
Currently on a truly unstoppable run, this past weekend Mabel stole the show at Glasgow’s TRNSMT festival whilst also presenting Valterri Bottas his pole position award at the British Grand Prix on Saturday, where she was F1’s special guest. It is these sorts of pinch-yourself moments that are quickly becoming a typical day’s work for Mabel, with new single ‘Mad Love’ already gracing the UK Top 10 and ‘Don’t Call Me Up’ continuing its global takeover (having been named the biggest-selling single by a UK female artist of 2019 thus far).
With a host of festivals, her intimate ‘Mad Love’ shows and a huge run of dates with Khalid for the autumn already confirmed, the ‘High Expectations’ tour will be the next chance for her impassioned UK and European fans to witness Mabel in action (and hear that much-anticipated debut album in all its glory). Catch her whilst you can.
‘The High Expectations Tour’
January 29 || Dublin || Olympia
January 30 || Belfast || Ulster Hall
February 1|| Glasgow || O2 Academy
February 2 || Leeds || O2 Academy
February 4 || Liverpool || Academy
February 5 || Manchester || Academy
February 7 || Nottingham || Rock City
February 8 || Norwich || UEA
February 9 || Southampton || Guildhall
February 11 || Birmingham || O2 Academy
February 12 || London || Hammersmith Eventim Apollo
Hyde Park Book Club was buzzing, Artio – a band I have developed something of a huge liking for – are launching their EP ‘Sedative’. I was looking forward to seeing them. Monomyth – Artio’s label – put together a great line-up for the gig so first there are two support acts.
DeadWax
I’ve seen DeadWax before and being honest I haven’t been that grabbed. They play all kinds of rock fused with that rap thing. This time I started to change my mind. Perhaps it was the atmosphere, perhaps it was just that I was just more open to what they do. Whatever it it was the first thing they played that grabbed my attention was a blues-rock based thing with a kind of talking vocal.
DeadWax
What I started to get was that this is a band who have great guitar and vocals. That’s a great starting point and I was really impressed by both. There were other songs that I really got into but sometimes, and this might sound damning, what they do sounds a bit like a grab-bag of things I’ve heard before back in the 80s. I will admit that sometimes I can be a bit jaded musically, so maybe that’s why I wasn’t into it as much as the crowd who were really into it.
Look I think what I’m saying here is that I still haven’t quite fallen for what Dead Wax do – one more time seeing them and it’s likely I’ll be a convert – but catch a track on your chosen streaming service and make up your own mind.
Allora
I love what Allora do, in fact I love what they do so much my notes on the night got somewhat overblown. Here goes
‘Oh Allora, Oh Allora, you beautiful thing. I love those vocals, the way they swap, they intertwine, they harmonise.
‘I love those oh so solid yet subtle guitars. That slightly garage loose psychy alternative rock that has elements of soul and Laurel Canyon singer/songwriter in there. I adore the way their music mesmerises and swirls.
‘It’s a joy, it leaves you open mouthed in amazement.’
This sounds suspiciously like I was ‘under the influence’ but I assure you I wasn’t, that’s what Allora do to me. It is the second time I’ve seen them and I was hoping, in vain, that this would stop me just standing there entranced and able to do something ‘properly music reviewer like’. The problem was that in the first seconds of their first song all I could do was watch and listen.
What I could do, at times with great effort, was to try and listen properly, and what I heard impressed me even more. It’s that their songs are so cleverly arranged – they use the three different voices almost as another instrument, they’re not just singing words. It’s those voices that for me are the thing that makes me like what they do so much.
Look Allora are one of those bands that you just have to see, if you haven’t do that, do that as soon as possible.
Artio
There’s (probably) a music reviewer set text that says ‘can synth based bands hack it live, are you really going to get anything else live over their recorded output’. There’s (probably) a further set text that says ‘well XXX add in guitar and bass in addition to synth and sequencer to get that live feel’.
Well in this case fuck the set text, Artio were brilliant. The thing that makes them brilliant is the voice and presence of Rae. She pulls herself apart singing those songs. She pushes her voice to the point where it goes towards the end of their set.
The set opens with a personal favourite ‘Blood Brother’ and goes onto include most of their EP and two covers. And much as much of their music is sequenced they sound live and organic.
So good was their set that actually I just couldn’t take notes, all I wanted to do, no was forced to do, was just watch and listen. And this is a properly strange thing, Artio, on the face of it, are just not my sort of thing – I like a noisy rock band usually. In fact why I like what they do so much is a question I ask myself. The furthest beyond ‘I just do’ is that their songs are so well written, they they are put together so carefully, and obviously that I like Holly’s voice. But Artio have something beyond that, something I can’t quite put my finger on.
Artio put as much, or more, into their live set as some of the rather noisier guitar bands I like. The energy radiated off the stage. This was not just some ‘oh so casual’ press the buttons and let the songs come out. They are a band, a hugely impressive live band.
See Artio, see Artio before they get huge so you can say ‘well I saw them before they started playing big venues’. Catch them at the very least for Holly’s voice which is incredible, but you’ll come away taken by the songs as well.
Molly Sarlé has shared a new single + video entitled ‘This Close‘. The song is a propulsive, haunting highlight off Sarlé’s debut album Karaoke Angel (due out this autumn via Partisan Records) and tells a story about falling in love with a karaoke singer in Big Sur. The video was directed by Megan Lovallo for Kitty Disco and filmed on a southern California beach.
Sarlé says of ‘This Close’: “I wrote ‘This Close’ about falling in love with someone while I was living in Big Sur – specifically about the ways we look to be loved by one another, the ways we try to satisfy our longing, the ways we tell each other we understand each other, and the ways our desire to be loved can play out in addictive behaviour. Living up in those mountains, I felt like spirits were living in the landscape. That’s what I think about when I listen to this song. With the video I wanted to explore what those spirits might look like if they took human form – how they would express themselves, and how they might embody and reflect some of the wisdom that exists in the landscapes that surround us.”
Sarlé previously released her debut single ‘Human‘ back in January earning praise from NPR, The Sunday Times, Gorilla vs. Bear, The Line of Best Fit, The 405 and more. Sarlé (1/3rd of the group Mountain Man) wrote and recorded Karaoke Angel over 3 years – living in a cliffside trailer in Big Sur, even spending time in an actual monastery before coming back home to Durham (NC), finally settling into a church-turned-recording studio in Woodstock (NY). She combines those two worlds – West Coast incantations with a warm Appalachian glow – to make an album of open-hearted, unflinching song writing equally appropriate for late-night karaoke comedowns, plaintive morning walks, and conjuring the spirit world.
Alongside ‘This Close’, today sees the news of Sarlé’s first UK shows playing Karaoke Angel, which include a stop-off at this year’s End of the Road festival and what’s bound to be a beautiful London show at St. Pancras Old Church. Sarlé’s full UK/EU run is as follows:
Aug 30th | Brighton – Green Door Store
Aug 31st | Salisbury – End of the Road Festival
Sept 1st | North Yorkshire – The Band Room
Sept 2nd | Glasgow – Broadcast
Sept 3rd | Leeds – Hyde Park Book Club
Sept 4th | London – St. Pancras Old Church
Sep 15th | Belgium – Leffinge – Lefflingeleuren Festival
With Tier 2 weekend tickets having sold out for Musicport Festival’s 20th anniversary celebrations the organisers have now released Tier 3 & day tickets alongside details of which acts are performing on which day. New additions to the line-up include comedian John Hegley, Manic Chord Theatre, Jo Freya, Annie Whitehead & Jennifer Maidman and Talaro (Gambia /CzechRep)
Plans are being made to involve 20 schools in workshops and events in the lead up to the event and the village tour is beginning to take shape with 8 concerts in villages surrounding Whitby with acts including Andy Irvine (Eire) Poor Nameless Boy (Canada) and Moussu T E Lei Jovents (France) performing in small venues on a pay what you feel basis for local residents.
Friday Night £30 (11-18s £15) including Misty in Roots : LO’JO : Warsaw Village Band : Jasdeep Singh Degun : Peace Artistes: Talaro : Mambo Jambo : Napoleon IIIrd : Manic Chord Theatre.
Saturday full day £55 (11-18s £27.50) including Orchestra les Mangalepa : Catrin Finch and Sekou Keita : Lemn Sissay : Banco de Gaia : Amira Medunjanin : Reem Kelani : Orchestra that Fell to Earth : Sarah Jane Morris : Jim Moray Trio : Varldens Band : The Lake Poets : Riccardo Tesi : Martin Stephenson : John Hegley : Anne Niepold : Reg Meuross/Twelve Silk Handkerchiefs : The Hut People : Katie Spencer : Jo Freya Annie Whitehead & Jennifer Maidman : Jay Johnson
Sunday full day £50 (11-18s £25) including Aziza Brahim : Peatbog Faeries : Moussu T et Lei Jovents : Belinda 0’Hooley : Holy Moly and the Crackers : The Little Unsaid : Me and My Friends : Rafiki Jazz : Commoners Choir : Harry Gallagher : Rebecca Riley : Joe Solo : Joshua Burnell : Don’t Feed the Peacocks : Rosie Brown : Hannah Sanders & Ben Savage: The Far Side
Indoor Camping – A bargain accommodation option for festival goers is indoor camping at the beautiful Brunswick Centre Whitby at £30 per person for 3 nights.
Details have just been announced for a very exclusive after party following the Saturday night at Tramlines Festival in Sheffield. Following his Main Stage appearance on 20th July at Hillsborough Park as frontman of Reverend and The Makers, Jon McClure will head to the decks at the O2 Academy Sheffield to take crowds on a reet good ride with a specially programmed set of funk, soul and plenty of indie classics. Alongside the Sheffield giant comes a DJ set from This Feeling. The club who only deal in the future of rock n roll stars will do nothing less at the after party when it comes to their own set, thrashing out the big tunes of today, tomorrow and from the far away future. In association with Scotts Menswear, tickets for the official Tramlines After Party are only fiver and are on sale now at www.tramlines.org.uk/tickets .
Giving a taster of his sundown set after Tramlines, The Rev said: “We’re having a massive party on the Saturday night. I’m at the controls throwing down some huge tracks and there will definitely be some indeh bangers thrown in. Can’t wait to see you there.”
On the opening day at Tramlines Festival on Friday 19th July, Scotts and This Feeling can also be found hosting The Library Stage. Here they’ll be showcasing the best new live talent around with a lineup including Red Rum Club, Himalayas, Planet, The Estevans, and The Rosadocs.
For those looking for the perfect carry-on with fellow festival revellers, the O2 Academy is a certified place to be. Open from 11pm until late, separate tickets are required for entry. Main Tramlines Festival wristbands do not permit entry.
Event Info
Scotts & This Feeling Present:
Tramlines Festival Official After Party
O2 Academy Sheffield, 37-43 Arundel Gate, S1 2PN
TRAMLINES FESTIVAL 2019 LINE UP
Two Door Cinema Club / Courteeners / Nile Rodgers & Chic
Manic Street Preachers / Johnny Marr / Rag N Bone Man / Annie Mac / Doves
Happy Mondays / Reverend and The Makers / Miles Kane / Tom Grennan / Circa Waves / Lewis Capaldi / Drenge / Shame / Peter Hook & The Light / The Rifles/ The Futureheads / Sleeper
Jade Bird / Becky Hill / The Japanese House / Good Cop Bad Cop / Sea Girls / Yonaka / Clean Cut Kid / Georgia / She Drew The Gun / Jaws / Sports Team / Easy Life / Skinny Living / Otherkin / Whenyoung / Cassia / Another Sky / Anteros / Casey Lowry / Marsicans / Blackwaters / October Drift / Bloxx / Hey Charlie / Balcony / Man & The Echo / Everly Pregnant Brothers
Red Rum Club / Himalayas / Planet / The Estevans / The Rosadocs / Oddity Road / The Reytons / The Wired / The Seamonsters / Cora Pearl / Bedroom High Club / Children of the State
Before Breakfast / Exiled / Fauves / Graces / Guest Singer / Hands Off Gretel / LIO / Matic Mouth, Matthew J Hall / Oh Papa / Perfectparachutepicture / Speed For Lovers
COMEDY:
Phil Jupitus / Reginald D Hunter / Shappi Khorsandi / Andre Vincent / Alistair Barrie / Daniel Muggleton / Thomas Green
The programme began with Igor Stravinsky’s anarchic, energetic Suite no 2 for Small Orchestra. Then came Richard Strauss’s Four Last Songs. Solo soprano Paula Sides needed the power in her voice to come through Strauss’s heavy orchestration, but the overall effect was beautiful, especially in the melancholy “Going to Sleep”.
The second half consisted of Sergei Rachmaninov’s passionate Symphony no 2. This really took the audience with it, concluding an evening of emotionally expressive music.
Hot on the tail of their appearance at Slam Dunk Festival 2019 over the bank holiday weekend, Florida’s WAGE WAR have announced their brand new studio album ‘Pressure’, set for release on August 30th through Fearless Records.
The band have also released a brand new single and video ‘Who I Am’, which follows up the 2019 released Low to give a strong indication as to the sound, style and variety on display with ‘Pressure’. You can watch the video – HERE
The band enlisted the talents of producer Drew Fulk (Motionless in White, Lil Peep, IDKHOW) and recorded in Los Angeles for the first time. The locale fostered a spirit of evolution. “We were all out of our comfort zone, which was really cool,” guitarist and vocalist Cody Quistad explains. “We couldn’t just go home after the day. We all lived in the same house. It was a great opportunity for us to reconnect. We’d go to shows together, come back, and write at 2am. Los Angeles is inspiring, because there’s a youthful drive and passion. Everyone is there to chase a dream. It gives you a mindset. You talk about going to L.A. to make a record when you’re 13. It was a bucket list thing for us.”
About the album, its poignant title, and the concept of pressure, the band states, “Anytime you go into make a record, there’s pressure. What you in that studio with those people affects the next however many years of your career and if you play your cards right, it can change your life. It really felt like a make or break situation. The ‘Pressure’ to make the perfect Wage War album, one that harvests what people have come to love about our band yet still grow and explore new territory and push ourselves harder than ever before.”
“However, that’s not the only pressure this album talks about. There are songs on the album that deal with mental health, and the pressure to act ‘ok’ even when things aren’t. There are songs on the album that speaking of not succumbing to pressure and being just another face in the crowd, but more so making a change in yourself and the world around you. Being in a band, making music, playing shows in one way or another all comes with a ‘Pressure’ and how you deal with it is what determines who you are. This record is our response.”
The band have already announced a huge UK and EU tour for early 2020, with a full list of the dates below – on sale now from http://wagewarband.com
UK and EU WAGE WAR headline dates 2020
7 Jan – Bristol, The Fleece (UK)
8 Jan – Nottingham, Rescue Rooms (UK)
10Jan – Manchester, Rebellion (UK)
11 Jan – Dublin, Academy Green Room (IE)
12 Jan – Glasgow, G2 (UK)
13 Jan – Newcastle, Think Tank? (UK)
15 Jan – Leeds, The Key Club (UK)
16 Jan – Birmingham, O2 Institute 2 (UK)
17 Jan – London, O2 Academy Islington (UK)
18 Jan -Southampton, The Loft (UK)
20 Jan – Amsterdam, Melkweg OZ (NL)
21 Jan – Paris, Backstage by The Mill (FR)
23 Jan – Cologne, Gloria (DE)
24 Jan – Hamburg, Gruenspan (DE)
26 Jan – Munich ,Technikum (DE)
27 Jan – Frankfurt, Batschkapp (DE)
28 Jan – Antwerp, Trix (BE)
‘Pressure’ track listing:
1. Who I Am
2. Prison
3. Grave
4. Ghost
5. Me Against Myself
6. Hurt
7. Low
8. The Line
9. Fury
10. Forget My Name
11. Take The Fight
12. Will We Ever Learn
WAGE WAR are:
Briton Bond – lead vocals
Cody Quistad – rhythm guitar, vocals
Seth Blake – lead guitar
Chris Gaylord – bass
Stephen Kluesener – drums
2019 is proving to be another hugely successful year for Lucy Spraggan. She’s already released her fifth studio album ‘Today Was A Good Day’, played Glastonbury and SXSW, toured Europe and Scandinavia with Melissa Etheridge, and completed her own US and UK headline tours. Now Lucy continues that momentum by announcing a 32-date tour of the UK & Ireland, which commences in Gateshead on October 8th.
Lucy started out as a singer-songwriter performing at open-mic nights around the country. At just 19-years-old she took the brave decision to perform her self-penned hit ‘Last Night (Beer Fear)’ on the X Factor and secured a Top 20 single and Top 30 self-released album whilst still competing in the show. That journey resulted in her becoming the most Googled musician of 2012.
Now the journey continues with this huge tour of the UK and Ireland playing at 32 different venues. Tickets go on sale on Friday 12th July at 9.00am and can be purchased from HERE.
8th – Gateshead, Sage 2
9th – Norwich, Open
10th – Cambridge, Junction
11th – Colchester, Arts Centre
15th – Derby, The Venue
16th – Nantwich, Studio
17th – Reading, Sub 89
18th – Dover, Banking Hall
23rd – Bath, Komedia
24th – Southampton, Engine Rooms
25th – Worthing, St Pauls
26th – Stowmarket, John Peel Centre
31st – Kendall, Brewery Arts Club
November
1st – Galashiels, Mac Arts
6th – Bedford, Esquires
7th – Leeds, Wardrobe
8th – Carlisle, Brickyard
10th – Belfast, Empire
11th – Dublin, Grand Social
12th – Cork, Cyprus Avenue
14th – York, Crescent
16th – Swindon, Level 3
17th – Falmouth, Princess Pavillion
19th – Aberdeen, Lemon Tree
20th – Edinburgh, Liquid Room
22nd – Liverpool, Leaf
23rd – Wolverhampton, Newhampton Arts Centre
24th – Cardiff, Clwb Ifor Bach
26th – Hitchin, Club 85
27th – Exeter, Phoenix
28th – London, Union Chapel
29th -Margate, Dreamlands
Buoyed by the success of ‘All That Remains Won’t Be the Same’, Irish alternative rock band OTHERKIN increase speed with the release of ‘On & On’.
The band say: ‘We were listening to a ton of French House before making ‘On & On’ and felt inspired to make a song for the dance floor. As we were approaching it from the context of being a guitar band, we thought it would be cool to break the song up with a huge riff, bringing the two worlds together. We paired it with a story of a guy we know who’s a conniving, scheming weasel that’ll never change his ways, regardless of what happens to him. This song is like one fist in the air and one middle finger in the air to him.’
Produced and mixed by Jolyon Thomas (Slaves, Royal Blood), ‘On & On’ is the third banger-on-the-bounce from the band this year. ‘All That Remains’ enjoyed evening airplay support from BBC Radio 1, daytime spins in their homeland and unprecedented levels of playlist support from all the main streaming platforms.
Following an exciting Electrowerkz show in London, Otherkin are excited to be heading back out on the road in the UK this September.
Catch them live at the following venues:
19th – Hyde Park Book Club, Leeds
20th – The Basement, York
21st – Think Tank? Underground, Newcastle
22nd – Nice N Sleazy, Glasgow
23rd – The Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham
24th – Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff
26th – Face Bar, Reading
27th – Camden Assembly, London
