Big Deal - Lights Out
September 5th, 2011
4.5/6.0
For a debut, this is remarkably accomplished and a joy to listen to.
Sold!
I’ve Never Felt This Way Before
Patrick Wolf - 'Time of My Life' (Universal/Mercury Records) [re-release]
September 12, 2011
5.7/6.0
The first time you hear Wolf sing that euphoric refrain of "# Hold on/ It won't be long 'til I go through this struggle #", your serotonin levels will skyrocket.
Keep off the Grass
Best Coast
Mojo, Liverpool
Wednesday, August 31 2011
I’d like to find a girl, move to the east coast and form a Best Coast covers band called Beast Coast.
From the Gutter to the Stars
Sweetie Pie and the Gutter Men – An Introduction to Sweetie Pie and the Gutter Men
Wednesday August 31, 2011
4.9/6.0
Having worked tirelessly for the last year trawling London’s live music scene, it is surely only a matter of time before the Gutter Men assume their rightful mantle as alt-folk’s new sweetie pies.
Mirror Mirror on the Wall…
Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks - Mirror Traffic (Domino Records)
August 22, 2011
4.7/6.0
This is Malkmus' fifth post-Pavement album, and the band definitely sound a little rougher around the edges than on previous releases. However, he sounds like he is having a lot more fun, it really is infectious.
Tame Impala – Solitude is Bliss
Tame Impala – Solitude is Bliss (Modular Records)
July 11, 2011
4.0/6.0
Essentially it’s a record Oasis have wanted to make for years but have failed to do. However, there are more ideas going on here than the brothers Gallaghers and company could ever have mustered.
A Return with a Purpose
Emmy The Great- Virtue (Close Harbour)
June 13, 2011
5.3/6.0
When circumstance and personal heartache lead an artist of the talent of Emmy the Great into the kind of soul searching seclusion and reflection experienced in the writing process of Virtue, history tells us that the results can be quite special.
Eye and Eye
Bright Eyes
Academy 1, Manchester
Thursday July 14, 2011
It’s like an Oasis concert. I thought I was going to a hipster gig, where hipsters who like Bright Eyes (because all Bright Eyes fans are hipsters you know) could politely convene and wallow in our misunderstood anxiety and marvel at Conor Oberst.
Iver Got a Little Something for You
Bon Iver – Bon Iver (4AD)
June 20, 2011
4.8/6.0
Vernon’s calling card – his delicate falsetto – is still one of the highlights, and he’s not beyond bold (and largely successful) adventures in autotune.
Transatlantic Drift
Death Cab for Cutie
Academy 1, Manchester
Monday July 4th, 2011
The Washington four-piece’s breakthrough long-player Transatlanticism still casts an enormous shadow over everything they do, with opener ‘The New Year’ and the title track book ending tonight’s performance.
