Category: Gigs & Reviews

Live: Kim Cesarion at The Social London

Kim Cesarion at The Social London Live 2

Kim Cesarion at The Social London Live

Immense is not a word I use often when I describe most showcases- but Kim Cesarion was out of control this evening at The Social in London. Huge voice, heavy beats and a big sound.This is one Swedish export that will go global very fast.

Beatrice Eli’s EP is finally out!

beatrice eli

I can’t tell you how excited I am to have heard a preview of this EP in full for the first time. Beatrice Eli has constantly been on my top lists for the last year or so.

So I’ll obviously sound a little bit biased when I say that the ‘It’s Over’ EP (out today on Razzia Records) is just about the best bit of Scandi pop you’re likely to hear for quite some time.

There’s only four songs on there but they seem to cover every possible spectrum involving love and loss, from ‘Conqueror’ (above) through to this track that has one of the fiercest set of lyrics you could find in a song (‘You’re silence is violence’… ouch):

Anyway, it’s well worth the wait. Get it now!

Live: Sebastien Tellier at Shepherds Bush Empire

sebastien tellier shepherds bush empire london

sebastien tellier shepherds bush empire london 2

This gig happened on Wednesday but I’ve been so busy this is the first chance I’ve been able to put a couple of pictures up. This man is a musical legend in my eyes. I think he was as confused as we all were during this set, but whatever sounds came out of the speakers was genius.

Live: Christophe Willem at Bush Hall

I’ve been to Bush Hall more times than I can remember (I even based my university dissertation on the place), but I don’t think I’ve seen it so beautifully lit up as it was tonight. Such a great show, and the crowd there was loving every minute of it. This was French pop at it’s most fabulous and campest. Check him out!

Live: Woodkid at Queen Elizabeth Hall London

I don’t want to say much about what I saw Woodkid do this evening at the Southbank Centre, just because it was indescribably huge and needs to be experienced in the real. All I can say though is… awe-inspiringly epic and perfect. Probably one of the best gigs I’ve been to, period.

Nas announces London show with ticket proceeds going towards Amy Winehouse Foundation

Nas and Amy Winehouse seemed to have an unusual partnership that worked pretty well, so it’s not surprising that he will give ticket proceeds from his March 19th 2013 show at the O2 Arena to the Amy Winehouse Foundation. Support from Meek Mill. Nice.

Live: Bernhoft at Union Chapel London

One of the quirkiest venues in London hosted one of the quirkiest musical stars to come out of Norway for some years. In a sold out church, Bernhoft worked a crowd to their feet with a handful of guitars and a couple of mics. Not an easy thing to do; this was probably one of the more fun gigs I’ve been to this year. Good stuff.

The most underrated album of 2012 so far

You were probably expecting something a bit more ‘out-there’ than this, I bet. I don’t know why I love this album so much, and more puzzlingly I don’t know why no one’s brought it. Because as far as pop album goes, ‘Contact’ has it all in my eyes. An epic start and finish, and a ridiculous array of sounds packed into a disc.

The Noisettes have had an interesting history, and one which I won’t really write about because it’s been well documented all over the web. And to be honest, I had my fair fill of their music (their last album’s tracks were used on every possible TV, commercial and radio slot available).

But it took me a few seconds of listening to then unknown lead track, ‘Contact’, on a random visit to HMV not so long ago to instantly Shazam the song, grab the album and listen to it later that evening. I mean, how epic and gorgeous is this?

It’s such a great album, give it a try. It deserves better.

Josephine – Portrait

I featured Josephine some time ago and she has since caught the attention of pretty much most new-music blogs around the world. There’s something subdued, soulful and epic with this sound.

It warms you and overwhelms you at the same time, which is a rare feeling.

Hailing from the music mecca that is Manchester, Josephine mixes a wide range of sounds together- from the retro Dusty Springfield-sounding ‘Portrait’, through to ‘Original Love’, which also happens to be her new single, with it’s throwback to African percussions (yet also has a bit of a Massive Attack feel to it- or is that just me?), through to her joyous debut, ‘What A Day’.

It’s a unique voice, and a special sound. Standout tracks for me are the beautiful tracks opening and closing the album; ‘When We Were Trespassers’ and ‘House of Mirrors’. But that’s probably just because I’m in a mellow mood. Anyway, the album’s out now- it really is worth a listen.

This is BBC Radio 6 Music Live

That almighty bastion of British radio that champions the new and interesting, Radio 6 released a ‘Music Live’ double-CD compilation to celebrate ten years of live music at the station yesterday. I was planning on doing a quick review over the weekend but as the last four days have been sent from hell I’ve only managed to muster some energy to fully enjoy this now.

You just can’t beat a great band singing a classic song in somewhere as intimate as a radio booth. There’s entries on this compilation from established greats such as Elbow, Amy Winehouse, Beck, Goldfrapp, Friendly Fires, Groove Armada and Manic Street Preachers. But there’s also an equally impressive selection of fresh new talent coming from the likes of Lana Del Rey, Foster The People, First Aid Kit and Michael Kiwanuka.

Overall the compilation blends effortlessly, and would have been ideal garden-listening had the weather been good. Highlights are of course Amy Winehouse’s live rendition of ‘Stronger Than Me’ and Friendly Fires’ ‘Paris’- two gorgeous songs that really stand their own in an intimate setting. Check out the album right here!

When Al Lewis covered Cheryl Cole…

Well, this is cute. The original track is here, and it sounds different but very much the same with Al Lewis’ version. He was interviewed on here last week, and as of yesterday his new album, Battles, has been released. Of which, I have a copy playing right now and all I can say is it’s pretty lush.

The standout track is the first one for me, ‘The Truth In Growing Old’, just because the words are pretty deep and the harmonies are beautiful. It’s only eight tracks long (which I think is a good length for a record like this), and all the songs mesh well with one another and leave you pining for a life in the Welsh countryside somewhere (can you tell I’m from London?)…

Live: Aiden Grimshaw Album Launch at Cargo London

Aiden Grimshaw’s brilliant debut album ‘Misty Eye’ is officially out today (click here for my verdict), so an album launch was held in Cargo London to celebrate.

I only managed to get in late to the venue but I was impressed by how well the songs carried themselves live.

Aiden’s awesome, I really hope this album does well and enough people realise how ridiculously talented this kid is!

Live: Bo Saris at Proud Camden

I managed to catch a short set by Bo Saris last night at Proud Camden in London. There’s a lot of Amy Winehouse in his sound, which is a only a good thing in my books. Looking forward to hearing more from this guy. If you get a chance to see him live you have to go!

Aiden Grimshaw’s ‘Misty Eye’ came in the post…

On the surface of it, this album should have followed the usual ex X-Factor, big label, big budget record formula; two or three standout singles (written by a hit-making factory somewhere Scandinavian), spaced out by a dozen or so album fillers.

But it doesn’t.

I can count on my hand the number of times I’ve listened to a pop record without wanting to skip through any tracks.

There’s something so special about Aiden Grimshaw’s ‘Misty Eye’, and even if upon release on August 20th it fails to fly (which is highly unlikely), it will always be one of those records that bucked trend and showed that good music comes from the heart.

Don’t get me wrong- it’s still a pop record and it touches on all the current trends, and is no doubt designed to be universally easy on the ears. But where ‘Misty Eye’ takes daring risks is through experimentation between the tracks and some fearless dedication for influences ranging from Massive Attack to Radiohead to Chase and Status.

There’s a mix of trip hop and drum and bass, alongside that distinctive 90s Hacienda rave vibe. All the tracks are equally brilliant, and the production is so well done, but my standout song is ‘Misty Eye’ itself. This really is one record worth listening to in August…

Dog Is Dead announce UK headline tour

Dog Is Dead have announced details of a UK headline tour for the autumn. The run of dates will kick off at Manchester’s Academy 3 on October 23, following with shows in Birmingham, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dublin, Bristol, London, Exeter and Brighton, before finishing up at Leeds Cockpit on November 6. The tour will shortly follow the release of the band’s debut album ‘All Our Favourite Stories’, out October 8. Pre-sale tickets released 1st August- go to their website for more info!

Watch Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs tonight!

Deezer will be exclusively broadcasting a live video stream of electro-genius Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs’ must-see show at London’s Koko on Wednesday 23 May 2012. At 21.30 GMT, the broadcast will go live here in the 49 countries where Deezer is currently operating. I’ve seen TEED live before and he is so, so good- so be sure to catch this!