Daniel Johnston – Fun (Atlantic Records) Released: 1994 By the time Daniel Johnston released Fun – his first studio album – in 1994, he was an established underground hero on the Texas music scene thanks to a series of basement recordings through the 1980s. Suffering from bipolar disorder, he fitted the ‘tortured genius’ role to [...]

Joan As Policewoman Club Academy, Manchester Wednesday April 11th, 2007 The East Midlands town of Derby might not have an impressive musical lineage akin to that of Cardiff, Glasgow, Liverpool or Manchester, but there’s one thing it has got – Reveal Records. The tiny independent label, based in the record shop of the same name, [...]

Idlewild Academy 1, Manchester Tuesday March 13th, 2007 It’s days before Manchester’s legendary Academy 1, scene of many a mind (and bottom)-numbing two and a half-hour law exam, dodgy tribute band at the University of Manchester’s freshers’ party and one or two quite memorable gigs is due to be partially demolished and carefully sculpted into [...]

I think its fair to say that not only would I marry beardy American folk god Raycharles ‘Ray’ LaMontagne’s voice, I’d also have its little beardy babies. If those babies only adopted half of their father’s vocal talent, they would still be untouchable. I first came across Ray and his beard in 2004 when he [...]

Amy Winehouse – Back To Black (Island Records) 5.6/6.0 April 30th, 2007 This has to be by far one of the best songs Amy Winehouse has made in her entire career, never mind off the album of the same name. Back To Black is a refined, soulful, powerful track – there’s absolutely no mistaking that. [...]