Music
Meow Meow at London Wonderground
LIVE REVIEW
“Okay, throw them! … This is the part where you’re supposed to throw the flowers… did nobody bring flowers?” Meow Meow asked the crowd, a bewildered expression dancing across her glittering face. We were sitting in the [read more]
I Am the Avalanche at Johnny Cupcakes
LIVE REVIEW
Brooklyn-based punk rockers I Am the Avalanche doing an acoustic set in an expensive clothing store is a pretty fitting symbol of where punk music is in 2014. The days of punk and its various offshoots being music only fit for garages, [read more]
Little Dragon – Nabuma Rubberband
ALBUM REVIEW
Little Dragon’s fourth studio LP opens with Mirror. It’s desolate, brooding futurism – echoing drums, a faint menacing buzzing and spacy synthetic keys. It sounds like you’re standing in a cold, empty factory and all the [read more]
Swans – To Be Kind
ALBUM REVIEW
Presented with a band with as colossal a history as Swans’, it is difficult not to compare and scrutinise every element with previous work. This temptation has to be parked, as the most esteemed and respected artists stay relevant [read more]
Michael Jackson – Xscape
ALBUM REVIEW
The phrase “posthumous album” is often enough to perturb any discerning music fan. The fact that Xscape is the second such example from an artist with a legacy as dearly loved as Michael Jackson should set alarm bells ringing. [read more]
Tori Amos – Unrepented Geraldines
ALBUM REVIEW
After a few years experimenting with classical projects and her fairy tale musical, Tori Amos’ 14th studio album, Unrepentant Geraldines, is a return to her pop/alternative rock roots and, with it, a reinstatement of at least some of [read more]
Teleman at Islington Assembly Hall
LIVE REVIEW
After walking away from indie outfit Pete and the Pirates, brothers Thomas and Johnny Sanders and bassist Pete Cattermole embrace a sound of sparse guitar licks and heavy electronics under their new guise Teleman. Neat, clipped and [read more]
Foxes – Glorious
ALBUM REVIEW
Foxes’ debut album Glorious brings something alternative to the familiar sounds that have hounded the radio the past few years. There are dance rhythms that ooze calm, R&B that oozes underground grime, pop that oozes rock. Holding [read more]
Tyondai Braxton at Oval Space
LIVE REVIEW
Brace yourselves, we now have proof that aliens have come to Earth. Yes, they are here among us! They have the features of Tyondai Braxton and his accompanying performers, and last night they put on a rave. HIVE is one of the many projects [read more]
Nick Mulvey – First Mind
ALBUM REVIEW
First Mind: what a perfect title for this debut album from an up-and-coming artist who undoubtedly has a successful campaign ahead of him. The 28-year-old London native released this work in May, featuring a sound and style safe to call [read more]
