Album Review: Kishi Bashi – Sonderlust
Singer. Songwriter. Violinist. Producer. Multi-instrumentalist. All words I should be using to describe Kaoru Ishibashi AKA Kishi Bashi. But to me I can describe him simply as a creator of beautiful things. I first became aware of his work on the release of his song ‘Manchester’; a song about writing a novel. Lyrically it stood head …
Track: Empathy Test – Demons/Seeing Stars
There’s something really enigmatic about London-based electronic duo Empathy Test. Even without listening to a note, there is a lot of mystery attached to the art work that accompanies previous releases ‘Throwing Stones’ and ‘Losing Touch’. Aesthetics are obviously an important factor to them as a band, and on listening, the emotive and cinematic sound they …
Album Review: Dan Loops – An Album
All music fans look for something different in the songs they listen to. Some are suckers for a guitar riff, whilst others like the big power vocalists. Me, well I’m all about the lyrics. As a teenager I spent hours pouring over the words to the latest Tori Amos or Alanis Morisette, trying to dissect …
Album Review: Ezra Furman – Big Fugitive Life
It was the eighties that made androgyny so popular. Huge stars like Prince, Boy George and Adam Ant showed that it was just as cool for a man to rock lipstick and eyeliner as it was the girls. That flamboyancy has gone hand in hand with the music world ever since. Ezra Furman arrived on …
Album Review: Viola Beach – Viola Beach
Valentine’s weekend this year. I was on my way home from British seaside town Scarborough, where Backseat Mafia had just finished a triumphant weekend hosting a stage at the town’s Coastival festival; a fantastic weekend for live music. Or so I thought. It was then that I heard the sad news that Cheshire born indie …
Album Review: Neon Hitch – Anarchy
Neon Hitch is a pop star for a new generation. Her big ballsy look and her love of the F word may give the more wholesome pop acts a heart attack, but her look and attitude certainly give her the edge in today’s market. It’s been a while in the making, after her debut single …
Album Review: Lou Rhodes – Theyesandeye
It’s been ten years since Lamb released their stirring electronic anthem ‘Gorecki’. Their dark, genre bending sound put them up with their contemporaries of the time; Massive Attack, Tricky, and Portishead. It was very much the sound of the time, but they did it differently and created something above and beyond what anyone else was …
Album Review: Ryan Young & Electric Sunrise – Heat Seeker
Us Sheffield folk have always been a proud bunch. And why shouldn’t we be? From our great bands such as Pulp and Arctic Monkeys to our heritage as makers of the world’s greatest knives and forks. Anyone from the area who follows the local music scene may already be familiar with singer-songwriter Ryan Young. For …
Album Review: The Avalanches – Wildflower
On their 2000 debut ‘Since I Left You, The Avalanches took the art of sampling to an entire new level. Made up entirely of snippets from other people’s work, it was perfectly put together, and in doing so they created a sound totally of their own. With tracks like the uber chilled out title track, …
Album Review: Bright Light Bright Light – Choreography
Could ‘Choreography’ be the perfect title for Welsh electronic singer/songwriter Rod Thomas AKA Bright Light Bright Light’s third album? Why? Well first of all it goes perfectly with the gloriously eighties inspired styling of the album; from the fashions, to the artwork, to the big synth sounds that have already dominated all his albums to …