|
|
PLAYING OUT LOUD!
REVIEWS
Gig Reviews -
CD Album Reviews - CD Single
Reviews
Gig Reviews
(top)
Chumbawamba, Tower Arts Centre,
Winchester, March 5, 2008
 A
good few years have flown by since I first saw Chumbawamba playing in a tent on
Southsea common. Since then they have had a huge hit single, drenched a
politician, released six albums and trimmed down to an acoustic 4-piece. And the
accordion player makes five. But while the whisky-swigging nun and Danbert
Nobacon’s cross-dressing amateur dramatics may have gone the anti-establishment
politics remain, albeit with the sense that here is a bunch of musicians who
these days are that little more at ease with life.
The small and polite audience at the Tower Arts Centre reflected the mellow mood
of a set based heavily around the band’s last two studio albums, A Singsong And
A Scrap and The Boy Bands Have Won, the latter so new that singer Boff surprised
even himself by remembering most of the lyrics. However, a few old favourites
still remain, Homophobia and The Day The Nazi Died demonstrating that the band
have lost none of their political outlook, while Days Of Old England (complete
with yet another new set of lyrics) is still a high-point. But the new songs on
show here suggest that Chumbawamba might just be at their most creative for some
time. The gorgeous Word Bomber, a song inspired by the 7/7 bombings is as good
as any folk song you will hear this year while Add Me (a neat observation on
MySpace culture) and I Wish That They’d Sack Me (a song about nothing more than
lying in bed when you really should be doing something more ‘useful’) reveal a
sense of humour often lacking in artists with a so-called moral conscience.
Charlie, a quirky sing-along about Charles Darwin of all people, provided
another highlight before the evening was rounded off with the gloriously
irreverent Her Majesty, an updated reworking of Paul McCartney’s Abbey Road
coda.
An appreciative audience, a fine venue (though sadly soon to be no more), and
free-flowing beer all made for a great evening, and the band showed their
appreciation by mingling with fans afterwards before heading off to Swansea on
the next leg of a tour that will see them back in the south for the Gosport and
Wickham festivals later in the year. So if you miss them then you only have
yourself to blame. Gig review by Martin Sirl
KILL HENRY SUGAR, RAILWAY INN,
WINCHESTER, THURSDAY JANUARY 17.
 A great
evening with New York duo Kill Henry Sugar, otherwise known as Erik Della Penna
and Dean Sharenow. With Dean on drums and shaky things and Erik on guitar the
pair entranced a fair-sized audience with their witty and evocative songs,
mainly from their excellent album “Swing Back And Down.”
Opening with “In Albany” Erik and Dean’s vocal harmonies and sparse but
effective backing created a special atmosphere in homely venue, and the sound
balance was just right. A highlight of the evening was the ongoing banter
between Erik (who confessed that he and Dean had been to “showbiz school”) and
the audience. Erik was interested to learn how to identify Cornishmen (“They
have six fingers”) and was puzzled when he announced the name of one song, “Neighbors,”
which elicited titters from the crowd, who then enlightened him with an
impromptu rendition of the “Neighbours” TV theme tune.
  There
was a great variety of styles in their songs from the 30s crooning of
“Neighbors” to the country hoedown of “Mule Got Loose” and the Latin rhythms of
“Puerto Rican Day Parade.” Every song had a story to tell – “Tammany Hall” and
“About Mussolini” were pure folk history.
Hopefully Oliver and Richard will bring this remarkable duo back to the venue.
The support band Tali Trow, who also impressed, have already been booked for a
future gig.
CD Album Reviews
(top)
The Last Flight Of Billy Balloon by
Marvin B Naylor
A difficult one this. Marvin B Naylor is a young singer-songwriter from
Winchester whose music is sometimes beautiful, sometimes mystifying and usually
quite surreal. Musically it’s quirky in a good way, the kind of way Divine
Comedy and The Flaming Lips are quirky, while lyrically Naylor’s songs owe more
to the comic-opera musings of a Scott Walker than to any contemporary wordsmith.
Throw in a few instrumental passages that hint at early Genesis and the result
is a very odd brew indeed.
However, there are frustrations inherent in Naylor’s work that show themselves
early on here. Little Piece Of Magic is a stunning way to open any album; a
track that plays almost like a potted history of everything that’s good from
popular music in the last 40 years. But while one is still reeling from the
shock track 2, the rather bland ballad Out Of My Mind passes by almost
unnoticed. And so it goes on. Dulcibella Play! and Little Creatures are Naylor
at his best: songs with a childlike quality not a million miles away from the
kind of thing Brian Wilson managed during his Smile period. Portrait Of A Woman
is haunting love song of much intensity, a true stand-out track here, but Belle-Amie
and Alice And Marianne are little more than cute singalongs, albeit singalongs
that suggest this guy is possibly at his most lyrically astute when writing
about those good old-fashioned topics of love and beauty.
So when it’s good this stuff is great, but it’s not all good. White Lady is far
too long and confuses the listener with so many changes of style and tempo you
begin to wonder if your CD player is on the blink, while Beautiful Balloon,
Naylor’s stuttering attempt at a tragi-comic mini-epic is over-ambitious and,
quite frankly, just a bit too weird.
The Last Flight Of Billy Balloon is still the most interesting album I’ve heard
for some time and hints at a great talent. But much of this smacks of work in
progress and I suspect it’s what Naylor does on his next album that will reveal
whether the man is driven by brilliance or sheer daftness.
Album review by Martin Sirl
CD Single Reviews
(top)
BY MARTIN SIRL
Mr Regulator by Slaves To Gravity
Neat but unspectacular offering from a band with an upcoming appearance at The
Joiners scheduled for 9th April. As moody, grunge-flavoured rock goes it’s
perfectly OK, better than OK even, but one fears there are simply too many bands
producing this kind of stuff for Mr Regulator to be considered anything other
than pretty standard fare. Good luck to them, but on this occasion there seems
little more to say.
Found by Claire Toomey
This acoustic EP by young Londoner Toomey frequently shows a good deal of
promise without ever quite setting one’s ears alight. It’s well played and
slickly produced (technically flawless in fact) yet strangely lacking in soul (a
la Joni Mitchell) and without the humour of an Alanis Morrissette. Track 2, an
acoustic version of Somewhere To Hide, is comfortably the best track here and
hints at much better things to come. But for now Toomey is surely a young lady
honing her craft in preparation for better days to come.
Strange Part Of The Country by Conil
Imagine Oasis with Jack Johnson filling in on lead vocals and the result is a
really interesting take on British indie-pop. Competently performed and
demonstrating a good ear for a tune Conil look odds on to make a name for
themselves in the very near future. The title track and the closing Years
Between are atmospheric and anthemic pop songs of the kind Noel Gallagher
claimed as his own personal property around the time of Don’t Look Back In
Anger, while the more understated Dog Meat Stew is quirky enough to suggest that
this up and coming bunch of Londoners have a few more strings to their bows yet.
Surveying the Young Professionals/If I
Don’t Run by The Elvis Suicide
Neat, well-ordered punk from a young Glasgow 4-piece with a huge nod in the
direction of Generation X. The Elvis Suicide may lack the charm of most of their
contemporaries but these guys at least know something about not outstaying a
welcome, with none of the four tracks here seriously threatening the 2-minute
barrier. Pleasantly enjoyable in its brevity, but ultimately little more.
Dark Skies by The Electric City
Gloomy, predictable rock from a band who recently opened for The Who at Roger
Daltrey’s personal request. One can only assume, therefore, that The Electric
City have better material up than this up their sleeves because this is dull in
the extreme. The most interesting thing here is trying to spot the influences,
for there are many: ranging from the pseudo-intellectual whining of Muse to the
mainstream thud of Guns N’ Roses. Avoid.
We Know Best by The Raid
Indie rock from a Hemel Hempstead 5-piece that starts brightly enough but then
goes nowhere fast. The production is crisp and the playing tight, but We Know
Best is one of those songs that keeps threatening to build to something
interesting but, in the end, never quite delivers. The accompanying Show Me is
actually the more interesting number, on which band sound a lot like The Stooges
and are much better for it. Five out of ten.
Monday Morning Blues by Common People
Wry but unfulfilling account of life in an estate agents office from East London
MC and pianist David and Damien, aka Common People. Imagine The Streets without
the rough edges, this is to garage what Eurovision entry Daz Sampson was to rap.
Enjoyable on one hearing, OK on the second, but as dull as a soggy digestive by
the third. Estate agents might empathise with the sentiments contained herein;
everyone else should steer clear.
Lords Of The String by The Power Lords
Delightfully silly Euro-dance from a decidedly dodgy-looking pair of Ukrainian
DJs. But if you can see past the underwear-obsessed lyrics and the girly chorus
this is actually top-notch techno that will no doubt be going down a storm in
the nightclubs of Ibiza this summer. There are a handful of different mixes here
so put down your Victoria’s Secrets catalogue, grab your best thong, head for
the floor and dance yourself dizzy to the crazy club sounds of Eastern Europe.
The Punisher Of IV30 by Cuddly Shark
This 3-track CD is an odd mix of do-it-yourself White Stripes-style rock,
experimental punk and rye Scottish humour from a Glasgow-based threesome. The
title number is a decent enough ode to the band's Elgin roots, but the other two
tracks, including the 52-second 'Jamie Foxx on Later With Jools Holland' in
which singer Colin Reid simply repeats the line "I heard you sing the worst song
I ever heard" are really just plain daft.
Arcs Across The City by Johnny Foreigner
Johnny Foreigner hail from the suburbs of Birmingham and are loud, manic and a
little bit wacky, but with a certain special charm. Depending on your outlook
this is punk rock for the new millennium or experimental music for those who
don't like to take things too seriously. Take the black comedy of The Pixies,
the 'have a go' spirit of Pere Ubu and the musical sensibilities of The Ramones.
Toss the whole lot into the air and see how it lands. Basically a hot steaming
pile of fun.
Soul by Shayan Italia
Every now and again a song comes along that stops you dead in your tracks. Soul
is a quite stunning release from a young Indian-born Zoroastrian
singer-songwriter with the voice of an angel and it's not too hard to see why it
recently became the first track by an unsigned artist to be played on Desert
Island Discs. Quite simply, talent like this has no right to exist in one so
young. Soul is haunting and beautiful yet breathtaking in its simplicity and I'd
be surprised if there is a better single released this year. Whoever paid £7,000
on eBay for a portion of Italia's life earnings has bagged themselves a bargain
indeed.
We welcome you to submit your own CD, gig or venue reviews here at
POL. Simply
click on the link below and type away! Please include relevant details such as
your name, date of gig etc.
Click here to send in your own review
Looking for a different Reviews?
Click here for our archive
|
Featured artists:
see POL Articles
BUDDY WHITTINGTON,
THE BROOK, SOUTHAMPTON, MARCH 9
MARJORIE THOMPSON, EASTNEY RMA TAVERN,
SOUTHSEA,
MARCH 20
&
PLATFORM TAVERN, SOUTHAMPTON, MARCH 23
RED PRIEST,
TURNER SIMS CONCERT HALL, SOUTHAMPTON, MARCH 11
MARTIN STEPHENSON, ASHCROFT ARTS CENTRE,
FAREHAM.
MARCH 29
BOY KILL BOY, RAILWAY INN, WINCHESTER.
MARCH 23
BUCK 65, WEDGEWOOD ROOMS, PORTSMOUTH,
MARCH 19
BELLA HARDY, FERNEHAM HALL, FAREHAM,
MARCH 23 |
|
