|
 |
PLAYING OUT LOUD!
ARTICLES
Mark Gardener / Paul Simmonds - The
Railway Inn, Winchester - Tuesday March 28.
 Musos
Oliver and Richard have arranged another fascinating double bill at The Railway
Inn in Winchester at the end of this month. Mark Gardener of Ride and Paul
Simmonds of The Men They Couldn't Hang will be entertaining on Tuesday March 28.
Mark’s band Ride were one of the bands who redefined British guitar music in the
late 80s and early 90s. Their massive guitar sound and soaring vocals paved the
way for everyone from The Stereophonics to Oasis - so much so that Andy Bell,
now known worldwide for playing bass with Oasis was, with Gardener, the other
driving force behind Ride. Formed in 1998, Ride built their reputation with
several concerts in their hometown of Oxford. Soon after, Creation records
supremo Alan Mc Gee - having heard raving rumours about the band - decided to
attend a Sheffield date - the record deal was signed shortly after.
The Ride EP was released on Creation in January 1990 and the media immediately
started raving about them. A short tour followed and, after their appearance at
the Reading Festival, the expectations of their ever increasing audience were
high. “The Fall” EP, released in September, paved the way for their debut album
“Nowhere” which was released in October. 1992 was a crucial year in Ride's
career. In February a brand new single “Leave Them All Behind” appeared, it was
voted Single of the week in Melody Maker and gave a definite taste of what was
to be their second album, “Going Blank Again.” Produced by Alan Moulder, the
album was released in March 92, Ride sold out wherever they went, appeared on
the front cover of the NME and conquered the rest of Europe. Another two albums
followed, “Carnival Of Light” and “Tarantula,” but by now Ride were getting
left-behind by the same bands they spawned. The Verve and Oasis were making the
headlines and Gardener and Bell were falling out. Now, two years after playing
his first solo show at the SXSW festival in Austin Texas, Gardener has completed
his debut solo album, “These Beautiful Ghosts.” Mark recently toured the USA
opening for Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and is now back on tour in the UK with
his band to remind us of his talent.
Support on the night comes from Paul Simmonds, former guitarist and chief
songwriter for The Men They Couldn't Hang. Should be a great gig.
Michael Jerome Brown - Havant Arts
Centre, Havant - Friday March 10.
 There’s
an intriguing gig at Havant Arts Centre on Friday March 10 when Canadian
guitarist and singer Michael Jerome Brown plays as part of the East Street Blues
season. A big favourite with the late Long John Baldry and current blues king
Eric Bibb, Michael was invited by the latter artist to play on his recent album,
“Friends.”
Michael was actually born in South Bend, Indiana, USA, in 1960, the son of
English university professors who loved music and poetry. They took Michael to
see great jazz, blues and folk clubs in their adopted home of Montreal, giving
him the opportunity to hear blues greats like Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee and
Lightnin' Hopkins. By the age of fourteen Michael Jerome Browne was performing
professionally on the 70s coffeehouse scene playing guitar, banjo and harmonica
and singing.
After serving his apprenticeship on the local scene Michael went on to become a
professional musician and has played gigs all over the world. He has played
venues in Britain, USA, Australia, France, North Africa, and of course, Canada.
In the last two years, Michael has played at many major festivals including,
Edmonton & Calgary folk festivals in Canada, Festival of Plucked Strings in
Morocco, and Port Townsend Blues and Heritage Festival in Washington State USA.
He also played at the Cognac Blues Festival in France in July 2004 and at Port
Fairy Folk Festival in Australia in March 2005.
Michael has also released three albums in the last six years, the first was the
eponymous "Michael Jerome Browne," which featured songs originally performed by
everyone from Jimi Hendrix to Cajun fiddler Dennis McGee on which Michael plays
great banjo, fiddle, guitar, tenor guitar, and harmonica. The album "Drive On"
was released in 2002 and highlights Michael's songwriting skills with lyricist
B.A. Markus. His latest album, "Michael Jerome Browne and the Twin Rivers String
Band" was released in 2004. Featuring a stunning variety of fiddles, banjos, lap
steel guitars, mandolins and Cajun triangles, this release reflected Michael's
passion for old-time string band, cajun and classic country music.
For more details about Michael Jerome Brown, see
www.michaeljeromebrown.com . Tickets for the Havant Arts Centre gig are
£9.95, £7.95 concessions via 02392 472700.
Alice Russell - The Brook, Southampton - Friday March
17.
 One
of the hottest female singers in the UK makes her debut at The Brook in
Southampton on Friday March 17. Alice Russell is renowned for her performances
with Bah Samba, TM Juke, Kushti and as the diminutive front woman with The
Quantic Soul Orchestra.
Alice’s style is a predominantly bluesy, soul lament but encompasses everything
from funk to gospel to jazz and beyond. Alice’s first album ”Under The Munka
Moon” was a retrospective of her finest works to date, both in original and
remix forms, highlighting her work with a range of musicians and producers. Her
first solo outing “Alice Russell Live” was followed by “My Favourite Letters”
released last autumn. “My Favourite Letters” was produced and co-written by TM
Juke and could be described as a kaleidoscope of soul music history with
influences from gospel, hip hop, jazz, northern soul, broken beat, electronica
and funk.
The plaudits heaped upon Alice by the national press and music press confirm an
outstanding talent:
"Alice Russell has one of the great soul voices of today" - The Telegraph
"Yes, it's that voice again and yes, it really is that good" - Big Chill
"Surely by the end of the year she'll be earning the accolades she deserves" -
Blues and Soul
"One of the hottest people in music right now" - Knowledge
"Alice Russell has an amazing voice! She should be more famous than Joss
Stone" -Groove Armada
"Were Alice Russell American she'd be hanging out with Jill Scott, Angie Stone
and Alicia Keys right now" - Q Magazine
"Alice Russell possesses a voice of such jaw-dropping beauty, it commands you to
sit up and take notice" Straight No Chaser
“Move over Joss Stone, because a real sassy soul sister is about to steal your
crown. Absolute genius. This woman is big news" - DMC Update
Sounds like a “don’t miss” gig at The Brook - tickets are £10 via 02380 55366 or
the website www.the-brook.com
.
The Bushburys - Ashcroft Arts Centre, Fareham -
Thursday March 9.
 The
Bushburys, a band who have acquired a big following with their rootsy sound,
contemporary songs and excellent musicianship over the last dozen years, appear
at Fareham’s Ashcroft Arts Centre on Thursday March 9.
Formed by Eddy Morton in 1994 as The New BushburyMountain Daredevils, the band
have gone on to tour extensively throughout the UK and Europe clocking up
appearances at over 150 festivals including Cambridge, Cropredy, Guildford,
Skagen, The Phoenix and several hundred venues ranging from theatres, arts
centres to small clubs. They have also released eight albums during that time
including “Bushbury Mountain,” “Peace And Justice,”, “Urban Hillbilly,” and
their latest release, “Timeless.” All the albums were well received by press and
public alike and are still available via Direct (Topic).
As a live act, The Bushburys mix of acoustic rock, folk and blues, played with a
great deal of energy, with a livewire frontman in Eddy Morton have ensured that
bookings at music festivals and venues have continued to pour in.
Eddy has also excelled as a solo performer, supporting many top acts including
Ralph McTell, The Saw Doctors, Lindisfarne and Ruby Turner. As a solo artist he
is just as much at home singing his more sensitive material as he is belting it
out with his full band.
The Bushburys current lineup is Eddy Morton on vocals, guitars and mandolin,
Gerry Smith on piano and accordian, Buzby Bywater on acoustic and electric bass
and Micky Barker on drums and percussion.
Tickets for the gig at the Ashcroft Arts Centre in Fareham on March 9 are £9, £8
concession, £7 members, and the music starts at 8pm. The Box Office number is
01329 310600. Full details of the Ashcroft season can be found on
www.ashcroft.org.uk .
The Blue Aeroplanes - Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth
Sunday March 26.
 One
of the most original and influential British bands of the 80s and 90s plays a
gig at the Wedgewood Rooms in Portsmouth on Sunday March 26. The Blue Aeroplanes
play the venue on the back of a recently released two-disc celebration of their
magical 1990 album “Swagger Deluxe” featuring fourteen extra tracks and
unreleased material.
“Swagger Deluxe” is a prelude to The Blue Aeroplanes' brand new album “Altitude”
shortly to be released by EMI, their first full-length studio production since
1995's “Rough Music,” and their first major label release since 1991's “Beat
Songs.” Back in 1990, seven years into their unique career, Blue Aeroplanes
released “Swagger Deluxe,” at a time when they were one of the most exhilarating
live bands in the country with their heady brew of rock guitars, folk
flourishes, Dionysian dancing and spoken-word poetry. Shifting in personnel, but
solid in spirit, the Bristol-based band had made the 80s a more exotic and
eccentric place with albums like “Bop Art” and “Spitting Out Miracles.”
But back to “Swagger,” received with critical delirium in its day the album
remains a thing of rasping beauty, raw power and delicate frailty, both very
much of its time and timeless in its energy, artistry and ambition. At the time,
The Aeroplanes were peaking: Gerard Langley sang about the charms, balms and
chaos of love over the interactive guitars of Angelo Bruschini, Rodney Allen and
Alex Lee, while Andy McCreeth and John Langley ruled the rhythm and Wojtek
Dmochowski danced.
“Swagger” was an album fullof fire, heightened by GerardLangley's cryptic
wordplay on tracks like “World View Blue,” “Weightless” and “Love Come Round.”
The second disc is a cornucopia of unreleased items including a "hurdy-gurdy"
version of “Love Come Round” and an original demo of "What It Is" with none
other than Michael Stipe prominent in the mix. There are nuggets like "S.t.r.a.n.g.e.",
and clippings from E.P.s and b-sides like live favourites “Razorwalk” and the
perennial crowdpleaser “88 Out.”
Since the original release of “Swagger” an amazing 29 people have passed through
the ranks of The Blue Aeroplanes who also released a number of other stunning
albums. Albums like “Spitting Out Miracles,” “Friendloverplane,” “Beatsongs,”
“Lifemodel” and “Time Out.”
Support for the Wedgewood Rooms comes from the quaintly named The Strange Death
of Liberal England.
Cosmic Rough Riders - The Joiners, Southampton -
Thursday March 23.
 Cosmic
Rough Riders who play The Joiners in Southampton on Thursday March 23 are a
Glasgow based band who haven’t really achieved the commercial success they are
due.
They hope that’s going to change with the release of their new album “The Stars
Look Different From Down Here” which they are promoting on their current tour.
The band were originally formed back in1998, following in the footsteps of
monumental bands like the Beach Boys, Coldplay, The Verve, U2, and The Waterboys,
with thoughtful harmonies, catchy guitar symphonies, and timeless lyrics.
They had early succes with four top 40 hits including “The Pain Inside” and
“Because You” and two self-released albums, which immediately which had the
music press predicting great things for them. Honours picked up along the way
include a 'top 50 albums of the year' nod from Q magazine, having an entire
album playlisted at BBC Radio 2, entering the UK's official independent chart at
number 7, and being awarded the Best Newcomer award at Scotland's main music
charity event, the Tartan Clef Awards.
Although they have not achieved megastar status like Coldplay they produced
another well-received album, “Too Close To See Far” which was also released in
Japan and the USA. They also continued to gig solidly including major
festivals both in the UK and further afield ( Reading, Leeds, Glasgow Green, T
In The Park; Quart ( Norway); plus both Summersonic & Fuji Rock ( Japan). They
have appeared as guests of several other touring artists, including the Black
Crowes, Ocean Colour Scene, Stereophonics, Paul Weller, Robert Plant, Lenny
Kravitz, and were twice invited to appear as special guests of U2 when they
performed in Scotland.
Cosmic Rough Riders spent the beginning of this year ensconced in a residential
recording studio in southern Spain, where they wrote and recorded tracks for
their album “The Stars Look Different From Down Here.” Adding a veritable West
Coast sound to the mix, with its crisp guitar lines and dreamy lyrics, the new
material is a progression of their harmonic style, and their most realized work
to date, creating a soundscape filled with sonic beauty and intricate layering.
The Cosmic’s current lineup is Mark Brown on drums and backing vocals, James
Clifford on bass and backing vocals and Stephen Fleming on lead vocals and
electric guitar.
Looking for a different Article?
Click here for our archive |
Featured artists:
see POL Articles
Mark Gardener / Paul Simmonds
The Railway Inn, Winchester
Tuesday March 28
Michael Jerome Brown
Havant Arts Centre, Havant
Friday March 10
Alice Russell
The Brook, Southampton
Friday March 17
The Bushburys Ashcroft Arts Centre, Fareham Thursday March 9
The Blue Aeroplanes Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth
Sunday March 26
Cosmic Rough Riders The Joiners, Southampton Thursday March 23 |
Southampton's No 1 recording studio
|
