live
Reissue: Rush – All the World’s a Stage
For all Rush’s reputation as dazzling progressive rockers on their studio albums, they have an enviable parallell reputation as a thunderously hard rocking live act. While their 70s studio albums are heavy on meticulously played brainiac sci-fi / fantasy concepts, their first live offering, All the World’s a Stage, confirmed that when it came to …
Live: The Staves
It’s a rare venue, Wilton’s Music Hall: a combination of grand music hall from the 19th century and a pub from the 1700s. Both are still in effect: the hall playing host to this evening’s musical marvels and the pub providing rich refreshment in the form of the wonderfully-named Curious Brew, and Kernel’s delicious Pale …
Live Review: Johnny Marr – Leadmill, Sheffield 20-03-15
Just in case you were wondering about tonight’s headline act, as soon as the lights went down, the crowd left you in no doubt that a legend was about to take centre stage… “Johnny. Johnny. Johnny fucking Marr! – Johnny. Johnny. Johnny fucking Marr! ” The protagonist takes the stage and ploughs straight into …
Live: J Mascis – Brudenell Social Club, Leeds 17.1.15
With barely a glimpse to the crowd J.Mascis, founder member of Dinosaur Jr., takes to the stage at the Brudenell in front of a capacity sold out crowd. J. is known to be a man of few words and much prefers to let his music do the talking and with only the briefest of greetings …
Album Review: Gov’t Mule – Dark Side of the Mule
“By the way, which one’s The Mule?” Recorded Halloween 2008, Dark Side of the Mule finds one of America’s greatest rock bands covering the material of one of the great English rock bands. On first hearing of this album, I at first wondered just who this archive release was aimed at, beyond fans that …
Live Review: Inspiral Carpets – Leadmill, Sheffield 6.12.14
The haircuts were considerably shorter, and maybe the clobber was a few sizes bigger than ‘back in the day’, but with the amount of Adidas trainees, Italian sportswear and sun hats been worn in the queue outside the Leadmill, it wouldn’t have taken a genius to deduce that one of the legends of the Madchester …
Live Review: Screaming Maldini – The Final Show – Queens Social Club – 05.12.14
And so this was it, the last show for Screaming Maldini. The room was packed with people that came together to give them the send off they deserved with a mix of absolute enthusiasm and tears. Coming onto the stage one by one, each member was greeted with a roar of applause and cheering, Maldini …
Live Review: Belle and Sebastian – Manchester Cathedral 28.10.2014
Manchester Cathedral is a magnificently historic, Gothic edifice. On paper at least, giving a band like Belle & Sebastian the opportunity to play its hallowed nave appears both inspired and a mite sacrilegious, in a naughty-but-nice way. Is this not the band that sings about getting a “dose of thrush from licking railings” amidst other …
Live: Ian Hunter, Sheffield City Hall Ballroom, 2 October 2014
There are four blokes on stage with an unenviable task. Tonight’s crowd are here to see one man and one man only, and I’m among them. Ian Hunter inspires a devoted following of fans, much in evidence tonight by the high percentage of the audience being resplendent in their Mott the Hoople and Ian Hunter …
Live: Adam Buxton – Bug Special: David Bowie
There are some events that you see advertised and you just have to go to. Having seen that Adam Buxton was bringing a special ‘Zavid Bowie’ edition of his Bug show to The Crucible this weekend as part of Sheffield Doc/Fest, upon me arriving home from a particularly taxing week at the office last Friday, …