There is a stark contrast between the Noah and the Whale that first started as a young folk-pop ensemble with a love for elegant instrumentation (at the time probably one step too ambitious), and the solid and mature band of…
Category: Gigs
Live | Soap&Skin @ Scala, London
Anæmic-white and hidden in the black waves of her dress, Anja Plaschg condenses down to a voice. A voice uncomfortable and unsettling for all its deep and rounded beauty. A voice, and behind that voice a vortex for all the…
Live | Ellen and the Escapades @ the Lexington, London
It’s time to elevate Ellen and the Escapades to the status of ‘FFS favourites’. The Leeds band, who soared into FFS’s consciousness by winning the Glastonbury Emerging Talent competition in 2010, are on tour with a debut album, All The…
Live | Louise & the Pins @ St.Pancras Church: 4th April 2012
Theres something in Louise Hull’s voice that the world has been missing, since, well…. since forever really: and it’s something I think we should all be grateful to now have. We should get one thing straight beforehand though: alongside Louise, there…
Live | Other Lives @ Village Underground
There’s nothing like a live performance to make it feel like you’ve missed something. Last time this reviewer saw Other Lives, they were on a small stage, in a sweatbox tent at a woodland festival. A few months down the…
Live | Feist & M. Ward @ Royal Albert Hall, London
Only an idiot goes to the Royal Albert Hall prepared for disappointment. It’s commonly known that mediocre performers wither and die within seconds of taking the stage, so booking anything other than overwhelming brilliance for this auspicious space is tantamount…
Live | Story Books @ Hoxton Hall
Here at the village-style Hoxton Hall the atmosphere is nothing if not dramatic. Six-strong band, Story Books, are spaced apart on a split-level stage, silhouetted against glaring, ‘Close Encounter’-style lighting. With this type of venue and visuals, bumble-gum pop was…
Live | The Civil Wars @ Leeds Metropolitan University Student Union
“I haven’t smiled this much all week,” says John Paul White as another huge cheer goes up from the cowd. “That might sound pretty sad, but…well, thanks.” White and Joy Williams, the other half of the Civil Wars, have had…
Live | Beth Jeans Houghton & the Hooves of Destiny @ Hoxton Bar & Kitchen, London
What a silly name Beth Jeans Houghton and the Hooves of Destiny is. It’s a good job that we are fond of silliness, and that they’re really good. Their recent gig at Hoxton Bar and Grill opened with a set…
Live | Emmy the Great @ Queen Elizabeth Hall, London
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a great band in possession of incredible songs must be in want of a string section. Emmy the Great is just such an act, and FFS is delighted to report that she +…