Tag Archives: review

Atomised : Virtual Strangers LP, released 17 June 2016

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Cambridge indie rockers Atomised (named after the edgy French novel by Michel Houellebecq?) release their new album ‘Virtual Strangers’, a follow-up to ‘Dreamlands’ from 2008. They are an accomplished six-piece band, producing an intense and multi-faceted sound.

The opening track is the curiously named ‘Tinselhead’, a guitar driven relentless blaster, setting the agenda for this varied collection of songs.
‘Slipping On Tightropes’ is more mellow, sounding like it could belong comfortably in the Suede back-catalogue. As on many of these tracks the many and subtle guitar effects are meticulously crafted. A title like ‘Fading Polaroid’ is suitably evocative for probably my favourite piece on the album, with a piano line underpinning a touching love song, strongly vocalised by Andrew Ashworth.

‘Virtual Strangers’ is the epic cinematic title track, at nearly seven minutes the different sections describe how our life is driven by modern digital technology ‘zeros and ones…changes our lives’ . It is all a bit bleak lyrically but strangely powerful and addictive (and just when you are feeling alienated a trumpet line soars across the mix to give hope..). In these days of bland lyrics from so many performers it is always refreshing to hear something more reflective/incisive/political.

‘Why Can’t We Be Lovers?’ is the impassioned vocal plea on the next track over a dense but well-balanced backing. ‘Impossible World’ is a quieter contrast, until an explosive drum break takes the sound into a different direction. The album closes with the acoustic country-rock of ‘We’re OK’, an optimistic counterpoint to some of the themes that have come before.

Overall, a very impressive achievement, with some of the 80s and 90s influences distilled into a bold set of ambitious well-produced songs.

http://www.atomised.eu/

‘Beach Sessions’, Waterbeach, Cambridge, 30 January 2016

Half Man Half Biscuit, Junction , Cambridge, 9 June 2016

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A welcome return to Cambridge Junction J1 for the much-loved Half Man Half Biscuit. I saw them last year, reviewed here…

http://www.cambridgemusicreviews.net/2015/06/14/half-man-half-biscuit-the-apex-bury-st-edmunds-12-june-2015/

…and it was just as good this time around. Perhaps there was more of an emphasis on the rockier songs, but many of my favourites songs were still in place; the locally lovelorn lyric of ‘For What Is Chatteris’, the musings of mortality of ‘When The Evening Sun Goes Down’ and their tour de force of music and words, ‘The Light At The End Of The Tunnel (Is The Light Of An Oncoming Train)’.

Songs assuring the extended cultural longevity of B-List celebrities were also featured; ‘Bob Wilson – Anchorman’, ‘The Bastard Son of Dean Friedman’, ‘Dickie Davies Eyes’, the nightmarish ‘Gubba Look-a-Likes’ and the sad moments of ‘Tommy Walsh’s Eco House’.

A blasting cover of The Damned song ‘New Rose’ was part of their encore, a super example of how good their band sound actually is, underpinning their unique lyrics…

All together now,

‘I said “Would you like to go the zoo?”, she said “Yeah, but not with you”
Twenty-seven yards of dental floss, but she still won’t give me a smile…‘

The Wedding Present, Junction, Cambridge, 29 May 2016

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As part of a Bank Holiday weekend mini-tour, the ever-popular Wedding Present arrived in the intimate setting of Junction J2 for a real fan treat, the complete performance of their fifth album ‘Saturnalia’.

Support was from Leeds four-piece Deadwall, with some mellow songs featuring unlikely protest lyrics about the Paris Climate Accord and Shell’s oil activities in the Niger Delta over some moody backings, each time allowing the sound texture to develop with keyboards and subtle drumming. Radiohead are probably an influence, but Deadwall go in their own direction.

The Wedding Present have maintained quality in their output since formation in 1985 and one of the many jewels from the back catalogue is ‘Saturnalia’. This sounds as fresh as it would have on release in 1996 when there was critical acclaim for its experimentation. Playing the album in original sequence involved plenty of guitar changes and some extra keyboard and drumming parts but the energetic band pulled it off in style.

The driving force for the show is of course David Gedge; composer, guitarist, frontman, singer and all-round likeable bloke. The opening ‘Venus’ is to-the-point, ‘Skin Diving’ is a guitar-dominated plea of desperation but my favourite is ‘Montreal’, an incisive tale of rejection.

The second half of the set was a mix of old and new, including a preview of new LP ‘Going, Going….’ due out later this year. The double burst of ‘Kennedy’ and ‘Brassneck’ featuring David’s explosive rhythm guitar and the show ended with ‘Perfect Blue’, showing that after all the emotional hurt of some of the preceding lyrics he is still an incurable romantic….

https://www.facebook.com/TheWeddingPresentOfficial/
https://www.facebook.com/deadwall

Michael Kiwanuka, Portland Arms, Cambridge, 18 May 2016

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The Portland Arms was packed to the rafters for a long sold-out performance by London singer songwriter Michael Kiwanuka, a warm-up gig for a tour to promote his long awaited second album due in July.

Clean Cut Kid are a four-piece from Liverpool, mixing together dual lead vocals, some 80s style keyboard and pulsing rhythms to make infectious pop such as the opening song ‘Runaway’. The intensity of slower blues of ‘Brother Of Mine’ led into their best two songs of the night ‘Pick Me Up’ and single ‘ Vitamin C’. They were feisty, tight and enthusiastic, setting us up nicely for the evening.

As the stage was meticulously prepared for the six musicians, expectations were high. When Michael arrived on stage the opening tune stretched the anticipation further with a lengthy instrumental, slide guitar over stately keyboards. But when he started singing, that stunning emotive vocal prowess and super-cool instrumental arrangements were perfectly in place. After two songs from the forthcoming album we were on more familiar ground with ‘Tell Me A Tale’, the opening song from his acclaimed debut, the 2012 LP ‘Home Again’. Like an early ’70s Van Morrison track it slides and floats, with a simple lyric driving a complex backing.

‘One More Night’ and ‘Black Man In A White World’ are newer and show a change towards a faster tempo. For me, the highlights were when Michael picked up the acoustic guitar for ‘Always Waiting’, ‘I’m Getting Ready’ and the quietly tender ‘Rest’ (the first song he wrote, accompanied tonight by just the bass).

Of course the encore had to be his most well-known song ‘Home Again'(24 million Spotify plays!) and then a long version of ‘Love And Hate’ when he seemed to simultaneously sing the lead and backing vocals. The band were splendid, with smooth drumming and percussion as well as some timeless electric piano, showcasing the star quality of Michael Kiwanuka.

Small Changes


http://www.cleancutkid.co.uk/

Three Trapped Tigers, Portland Arms, Cambridge, 10 May 2016

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Cambridge quartet Grieving opened the show tonight, they are gaining a reputation for their distinctive rock with Indie and American emo shades. They are at their best when the full-on guitar and drums is unleashed in unpredictable bursts on many of their songs and were a strong musical contrast with what was to follow. With recordings now appearing they are a welcome addition to the Cambridge music palette.

Named after a Ulysses-influenced novel, Three Trapped Tigers are a trio from London, playing tonight to an enthusiastic crowd in the Portland to support their newly released album ‘Silent Earthling’. Like many paradoxical aspects of the band, they were anything but ‘silent’; this was probably the loudest gig I had seen in this venue for a while.

There is something about their all-enveloping instrumentals that seems unique; jumping between genres as keyboards flow under screaming guitar, then synthesiser lines that suddenly leap back to the tones and rhythms of 70s prog rock but without any of the more ponderous baggage. Underpinning it all is the drumming fireworks of Adam Betts, a great example of how a live drummer is a near-essential for high tech electronic based performances (see also ‘Public Service Broadcasting’…).

Perhaps the lack of vocals makes the listener concentrate on the intricacies of the music without trying to decipher lyrics or be in thrall to the antics of the lead singer (a bit like classical music?) and there was plenty of density, richness and adventure in their intoxicating sound.

As Brian Eno has said….‘TTT is at the cutting edge of contemporary music. Watch your fingers!’

http://www.threetrappedtigers.com/

The Lovely Eggs, Portland Arms , Cambridge, 26 April 2016

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The meanderings and musings of Cambridge flâneur Pete Um opened the show, always a spontaneous and positive experience as he leafs through his repertoire for the next sparse percussive backing for his sharply honed words. I think several audience members (including The Lovely Eggs) were drawn in towards his world by the end of the set.

The Lovely Eggs are indeed lovely, they win the audience over in a few seconds, but I am sure that by the way the songs were recognised in the nearly full venue many were converts already. The duo of Holly Ross on distorted guitar and David Blackwell on drums make a sumptuous punk-rock noise, good in itself but add the lyrics and vocal delivery on top and you can see why they are playing to adoring audiences and still going strong after ten years.

Witty words and odd observations appear in short bursts of a few seconds such as ‘I’m A Journalist’ or the longer structured songs like ‘Magic Onion’ (“..he’s running rings around me..”). The affecting verses of ‘I Just Want Someone To Fall In Love With’ are punctuated with a show-stopping sing-along chorus and the noisiest guitar of the evening. Great stuff, as is the strange imagery of closing song ‘Don’t Look At Me (I Don’t Like It)’ (the video for this song features comedian and national treasure John Shuttleworth!!).

All together now…”I Like Birds (But I Like Other Animals Too)…”

http://www.thelovelyeggs.co.uk/

Teleman, Portland Arms, Cambridge, 9 April 2016

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Returning again to Cambridge, Teleman had a new second album to celebrate, already gaining airplay and critical acclaim. Supported on most of this tour by the 80s electronica of NZCA LINES, (who I would like to see at a future date) their more than worthy replacement was the casually likeable and charismatic Oscar, who was also their support last time at the Portland!

With his distinctive baritone voice backed by bass, drums and synths/guitar Oscar previewed the pop delights that would appear on his new highly anticipated album ‘Cut And Paste’ released this May. Extensive touring has artfully polished the catchy ‘Beautiful Words’, ‘Breaking My Phone’ and best of all the final song ‘Sometimes’. New single is the reggae-tinged ‘Good Things’, nicely laid-back and summer sounding.

Teleman too were on fine form, mixing the new songs from ‘Brilliant Sanity’ in with many of the highlights of their debut album. Opening with elusive non-album track ‘Strange Combinations’ and up-tempo ‘Skeleton Dance’ their sold-out show was fired-up from the start (they had earlier played a matinee show at The Portland to cope with ticket demand). The title track is cryptic and a bit disturbing (“…I lost everything I ever had, I lost everything in a housefire…”) and ‘English Architecture’ is a tale of quiet alienation.

I enjoyed the relentless groove of ‘Drop Out’ (featuring an incursion into the audience by guitar-wielding Thomas Sanders) and the strange yearnings of ‘Tangerine’. Tonight though the faster, louder songs steal the show with the excellent sound quality allowing that ice-cool but vulnerable voice to sail above razor-sharp backing, ‘Glory Hallelujah’ is as rousing as its title and the double encore of the formidable ‘Dusseldorf’ (one of my favourite tracks of 2016!) and the dark pulsing ‘Not In Control’ ended the set on a high.

http://www.telemanmusic.com/
http://www.oscaroscar.co.uk/

Gavin Chappell-Bates, Portland Arms, Cambridge, 8 April 2016

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A double R*E*P*E*A*T Records album launch; starting with ‘Horizons’ from Horse Party, mostly a collection of songs released as EPs, singles and downloads over the last year. They are a brilliant live band, tonight the original trio were augmented by a bass player on stage and that gives these new songs even more clout.
The stealthy, sparse vocals and guitar from Ellie Langley and Seymour Quigley set the mood of the song, then the hooks crash in; the opening song ‘Animal’ showcases this to great effect with an extra power bass line and of course the ace drumming by Shannon Hope, driving the sound to new heights every time.
Highlights were the slower bluesy groove of ‘Gratitude Falling’, the bittersweetness of ‘Out Of Sight’ and the energetic final song ‘Paydirt’, this was the best performance I had seen by this electrifying band.

‘We Are The Ones’ is the new CD from Gavin Chappell-Bates (reviewed on this site) and instead of his solo live-looping tonight he was backed by a full band, Cambridge rockers Bouquet Of Dead Crows. Gavin’s songs are from the head and heart; he started with ‘Refugee’ a gradual build-up to a huge Manic Street Preachers (his favourite band) style chorus. The band stepped up to the faster ‘Church Of Rock and Roll’ and the mighty bass line underpinning the disconcerting chord changes of ‘Black Holes’.

’95’ was an anthem to get the crowd singing along to the hookline and his very personal early song ‘Last Angel’ was a sensitively sung duet, then his bitter reflection on recent politics ‘The Finest Hour’ got a full workover from the band.
There was a surprise during the end of the ballad ‘Starlight’; suddenly there were 11 more singers on stage , a choir in black who had been part of the audience. This emotional lift carried into the title-track rouser ‘We Are The Ones’ (a worthy successor to the rallying cry of the late 80s, ’68 Guns’ by The Alarm?) and finally ‘Dead End Disco Streets’ closed the show and launched the album in style…

http://gavinchappellbates.com/
https://www.facebook.com/horsepartyparty

Gavin Chappell-Bates : We Are The Ones, LP released 8 April 2016

Kiran Leonard, Portland Arms, Cambridge, 6 April 2016

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An evening of musicians pushing the boundaries of expectations. Due to time constraints two of the supporting acts decided to share the stage. Local guitar maestro C Joynes interwoven with the dark spoken words of Pete Um was a one-off collaboration that fitted logically with the rest of the show.

Irma Vep attired in cape and shades made his presence felt as he fronted Kiran Leonard’s band (including the man himself on second guitar) and blended underground rock with cryptic words, mostly indecipherable through distortion effects. Violin added texture and by the end of the set it had all become a bit addictive.

When Kiran Leonard stepped up and opened with sixteen minutes of ‘Pink Fruit’, the pivotal track and single(!) from new album ‘Grapefruit’ the attentiveness of the audience went up to the level at a classical music concert. Standing sideways to the audience so as to interact to the maximum with his band Kiran Leonard played guitar and sung with melancholic light and shade through the huge disparity of musical genres, and that was just the first track. There is lyrical complexity and imagery that adds another layer too.

Much has been written about his prodigious talent and creativity, and on the evidence of this performance I would agree. The music splits into unpredictable sections, there is prog rock virtuosity, gentle folk, all-out rock and much in between. Some of the shorter songs such as ‘Secret Police’ follow conventional routes before breaking apart in desperation. They ended with a blistering ‘Geraldo’s Farm’, brilliantly complex and energetic drums from Andrew Cheetham propelling the song on seemingly for ever.

We left the Portland Arms quietly, feeling the world had shifted slightly on its musical axis, the performance was that good.

http://kiranleonard.bandcamp.com/

Wolf Girl : We Tried, album released March 2016

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London quartet Wolf Girl release their debut album ‘We Tried’, following on from their 2015 EP ‘Mama’s Boy’.

From the opening riff of ‘Don’t Ask Me Questions (I Can’t Even Answer The Phone), this is an addictive slice of garage punk with a great title and some neat lyrical imagery of the difficulty of meeting and sustaining communications (…notes go rotten in your pocket forgotten…) , but it is that fuzzy guitar that steals the show.

‘Middlesexy’ continues this groove then ‘Are You Reading A Dirty Book?’ is a tale of a coldly disintegrating relationship over jangly guitar and 1950s backing harmonies. ‘Sourpuss’ is a smartly constructed pop song, and so the album sustains its momentum; the next track clocking in at 1 min 17, always a treat to find. A change of vocalist for the list of persecutions in ‘Rotten’ (..Rotten tomatoes slide down our windows and somebody lobbed a pineapple into our lounge…everybody hates us in this town…) .

The surreal flourish of ‘The Maybe’ leaves a lasting impression as the lyrics float over a persistent bass line.

I’m sure this album would sound great live, as their banner said at the launch gig (featuring the brilliant Chorusgirl too!)… ‘Congratz! It’s a Wolf Girl’..

http://wolfgirlband.tumblr.com/