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Saturday 28 February 2015

#428: The Cribs, The Ritz, Manchester


Photo: Michael Bell

When The Cribs first appeared in the halcyon days of early '00s indie, flanked by the likes of The Paddingtons and Little Man Tate, there was little in the way suggest they (and their contemporaries) were anything more than a buzz band. To paraphrase guitarist/vocalist Ryan Jarman, ten years on and 2005 is long gone, and whilst many bands from that era haven't so much burnt out as faded away, The Cribs; their fans; their legacy are still burning as bright ever. Don't believe me? Go and see them live.

Friday 27 February 2015

#427: Catching Up With...BABIES


Interview: BABIES

This interview was originally written for Artrocker. Click the link above to read in full.

Thursday 26 February 2015

Monday 23 February 2015

#425: Twerps - Range Anxiety


Album Review: Twerps - Range Anxiety (2015)

This review was originally written for Muso's Guide. Click the link above to read in full.

Friday 20 February 2015

#424: Catching Up With...Sea Change


Following on from an early album review, and feature. It's clear we here at Shout4Music have been quite taken with Norwegian songstress Ellen A. W. Sunde, otherwise known as Sea Change. Her understated synth work; the explorations in dynamics; the fragile and icy vocal delivery, it all contributes towards a small and apparently simplistic body of work, which, when you scratch below it's chilly façade, reveals a wealth of nuanced compositional choices and a diverse yet ultimately flattering array of influences.

Thursday 19 February 2015

Tuesday 17 February 2015

Monday 16 February 2015

Saturday 14 February 2015

Friday 13 February 2015

Thursday 12 February 2015

Wednesday 11 February 2015

Tuesday 10 February 2015

#416: Doe - First Four


After forming in 2013, it didn’t take long for London-based quartet Doe to make an impression on the burgeoning UK underground scene. Armed with a penchant for melody and tireless DIY ethics, the band released four EPs in little over a year; impressive even for the punk scenes they move on the fringes of. Perhaps unsurprisingly then, ‘First Four’ collects these EPs in to one neatly packaged debut LP, that works not like a premature greatest hits, as some might assume, but rather as a concise showcase of the band’s work thus far.

This review was orignally written for Subba-Cultcha. Click here to read in full.

Monday 9 February 2015

#415: Altar Flowers - Kraak Gallery - Manchester


Altar Flowers (w/ The Debt Stars, Grave Diggers Union)

Kraak Gallery, Manchester

February 7 2015

Words/Photos: Dave Beech

Kraak Gallery isn't one Manchester's easiest venues to find, nor is it one of the most visually arresting. It IS however, integral to Manchester's grass-roots movement(s). Integral not because of the reputation of the venue itself or the alumni that has passed through its hallowed halls, but because of how easily it lends itself as DIY venue, a place for fledgling promoters and fresh-faced bands to cut their teeth before taking the next step in their career. Tonight also sees the venue marking the return of Manchester's LVLS (Loveless) under their new guise as Altar Flowers.

Sunday 8 February 2015

#414: Catching Up With...The Jacques (SONAR - Unsigned and Independent - February Issue)


When people remember '00s indie, they remember it with a sense of rose-tinted nostalgia, a feeling that for those too young to have appreciated brit-pop, this was our generation's answer to it. But whilst brit-pop busied itself with trying to escape the drudgery of 90s Britain, before becoming the antithesis of what it once stood for, the likes of Franz Ferdinand and (early) Arctic Monkey's sang about what they knew, what surrounded them - what we knew, and what surrounded us – we didn't need Blur, we had Bloc Party and we certainly didn't need Oasis, we had The Libertines.

It was this era's tendency to wear their hearts on their sleeves, and sing about their immediate situations however, that also made it the least dangerous epoch of British indie, with introspection and Topman advertising campaigns holding more importance than social injustice. Let's face it, The Libertines were more of a danger to one another than they were the fabric of British society, unless you count making heroin cool for the first time since Kurt. Now, had Bristol-based The Jacques been around then, chances are they would have faded in to obscurity by now; their jangly urchin-pop falling by the wayside in favour of the more electronically-driven stuff that came to the fore at the turn-of-the-decade. 

The fact of the matter is though, The Jacques were formed almost-exactly a year ago, and as a result the clattering urgency of their debut EP is one of the most exciting, and dare I say it, dangerous things we've heard in the last couple of years. Their sound certainly isn't going to upset anyone in parliament, but it might upset the current musical status quo enough to encourage a host of other bands to follow suit. Their sound isn't even wholly original, the obvious comparison being The Libertines, but they also bring to mind The View at their loosest, The Strokes at their fuzziest, and a host of '60s pop acts such as The Kinks. 

And, whilst most bands as fresh-faced as The Jacques would falter at the speed with which their career has progressed, such urgency is mirrored perfectly in the band's song-writing, resulting in a somewhat fast but ultimately fitting ascension to where they are today; a band on the cusp of releasing their follow-up EP, with whispers of a full-length to follow; a band for whom the wheels of the hype machine are very much in motion, and for a change, rightly so and perhaps most importantly, a band whose sound, whilst not wholly original, posses far more energy and passion than many of their contemporaries, and at a time when a lot of music is feeling forced and contrived, that is something worth holding on to. 

Sunday 1 February 2015

#413: Introducing.....Twerps


Introducing...Twerps

This feature was originally written for Shout4Music. Click the link above to read in full.

#412: Moose Blood - The Star & Garter - Manchester


Pop-punk has always been an inherently American thing, synonymous with sun-kissed so-Cal lifestyles as much as the suburban heartbreak detailed so often by bands like New Found Glory and Blink 182. Perhaps with it being such an Americanised genre, it’s surprising now, that even when the aforementioned bands are past their prime, it’s still as popular as ever in the UK, perhaps even more so, one only has to be a member of a couple of select groups on Facebook to see just how popular it really is.

This review was orignally written for Subba Cultcha. Click here to read in full.