As I stood amongst the growing crowd in the opulent and massively-sized Hammersmith Apollo watching Babe Shadow take to the stage, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of awe about the place. Would The Babe Shadow, a small band…
Category: Reviews
Classic album: Joni Mitchell – Both Sides Now
Joni Mitchell’s concept album of 2000 traces the arc of a relationship from the first flushes of romance (‘You’re My Thrill’), through uncertainty and despair (‘You’ve Changed’), to a tragic end filled with the pathos of her realisation that it…
Live: The Big Pink @ HMV forum, London
With her hooded cloak, long hair and slow rocking back and forth, Rachel from Ebsen and the Witch does a good job of living up to the band name. During their set, the bass drum takes centre stage and at…
Live: Darwin Deez @ Koko, London
“What’s your name and where do you come from?” is an elementary question extended upon a maiden encounter. It also seems like a solid foundation for unpicking tonight’s protagonists. “Darwin Deez” you say? Right, well that rolls off the tongue…
FFS New Bands Panel: Shabby Rogue
Shabby Rogue released their album “By Hook and By Crook” earlier this year, showcasing their blend of country, blues and folk. Our New Band Panel gave single ‘Old Man’ as well as two other tracks, “My Life As A Secret…
Album: Darwin Deez – Darwin Deez
Darwin Deez are an intriguing concept. A band named after their lead singer (a trend that must always cause some tension amongst other members), and seemingly claiming to be a new breed of indie folk. All the while, they make…
Album: Nina Nastasia – Outlaster
Hollywood-born Nina Nastasia has been around for a decade now but Outlaster marks something of a comeback for her, being her first album since 2007. Nine Nastasia’s name should be around rather more in the near future, however, with a…
EP: Alexander Wolfe – Breakdown EP
Alexander Wolfe’s debut album ‘Morning Brings A Flood’ drew comparisons with the likes of Nick Drake and Coldplay when it was released via iTunes last year. Now to celebrate its first physical release, Wolfe has offered up a free EP…
Live: Joanna Newsom @ Royal Festival Hall
As he leaves the stage, support act and folk legend Roy Harper sums the night up perfectly, before it has even happened: we are about to be treated to “one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen, performing some of…
Album: Junkboy – Koyo
For those familiar with Junkboy‘s previous output, Koyo may come as something of a surprise. Although never a completely full-on krautrock machine, Junkboy, aka brothers Mik and Rich Hanscomb, certainly knew how to get into the teutonic groove. On Koyo,…