We enter a packed out Mello Mello, playing host to many a band for the LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY festival. On this occasion, Newcastle’s four-piece BLANK MAPS take to the stage.

We’re greeted by great vocals from lead singer Thom Piddock, lilting guitar rifts, solid bass notes and steady drumbeats. Hitting the higher notes nicely, Thom sings with confidence, and the crowds seem to like what they hear. Continue reading LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY – BLANK MAPS →

We’re soaking up the ambience at the annual LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY festival, now the largest metropolitan music and arts festival in the UK, and an event that Liverpool and the north of England can be very proud of. Continue reading LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY – Taiwan’s TIZZY BAC →

Dee Plume, of British electropunk band ROBOTS IN DISGUISE, is something of a larger than life character, and it is this fact that carries her new act PSYCHO DELIA through their first live outing at the Babble Jar in London’s Stoke Newington tonight. Her new setup also features female drummer ‘The Ward.’ Continue reading PSYCHO DELIA makes London live debut →

MISS KITTIN is the stage moniker of electroclash producer/singer/songwriter/DJ extraordinaire Caroline Hervé, one of a small number of characters who bring a sense of theatrics to the underground of electronic music. Having explored many angles of the genre throughout her two-decade spanning career, Miss Kittin tonight creates an environment that transcends divisions in music, fashion, age and gender, her audience reflecting the diversity of the different stages in her career – from the electro-punks to the ‘lads’ who wouldn’t have looked out of place in Ibiza circa 1999, from the teens to the middle aged. Continue reading MISS KITTIN tantalizes London →

On arrival, things inside Manchester’s claustrophobic Sound Control are already getting steamy – quite literally – with people stripping off layers. We’re here to catch up with CHVRCHES, who since we last saw them at the head of their first UK tour back in February when they were merely a speck of awareness in the Mancunian mind, have been busy spreading their gospel around the UK and beyond. Singer Lauren Mayberry and crew have rapidly gained a top spot on playlists, with the recent release of EP “Recover” helping to flap more ears, and we’re back with them for the closing date in their current tour, again in Manchester, having come full circle. Continue reading CHVRCHES return to Manchester with a buzz bang →

On a Tuesday night in Tokyo, American synth-pop rockers COLD CAVE are playing a set at Shibuya O-Nest, supported by local favourites ZZZ’S and GROUP A. This show marks the beginning of their massive “Meaningful Life” tour, set to carry on through to South Korea, China, Nepal, India, USA, Canada and Europe. Continue reading COLD CAVE hits Shibuya with ZZZ’S and GROUP A →

Liverpool Cathedral is an outstanding feat of architecture. Designed by the then 21-year old Sir Giles Gilbert Scott in the early 1900s, the structure took 74 years to build, and is the largest cathedral in the UK and the fifth largest in the world. This ought to give you an idea of the spectacle we were greeted with as we entered the enormous building.

The music venue hosting London’s DAUGHTER tonight is the nave of the cathedral. Continue reading DAUGHTER meets Liverpool Cathedral →

In the Quays Theatre, nestled in the rear of Salford’s architecturally striking Lowry Centre, a seated audience prepares for Dundee’s RICKY ROSS. There’s a palpable sense of intrigue among the patrons as they wait for the DEACON BLUE frontman’s “Untold Stories” show, a gig which promises to shed light on Ross’ songwriting inspirations and processes for both his solo and band work. Continue reading Crowds come looking for RICKY ROSS at The Lowry →

The Bull and Gate in Kentish Town is the TARDIS of music venues: small North London boozer on the outside, large back room venue with top notch sound and lighting on the inside. All is quiet outside, but on walking through the door, the room is filled with a close-knit collective surrounding tonight’s bands. We’re here to witness the double-whammy of SKINNY GIRL DIET and ART TRIP AND THE STATIC SOUND, who are sharing tonight’s lineup with THE LAMPOST GULLIVERS. Continue reading SKINNY GIRL DIET & ART TRIP AND THE STATIC SOUND – a London family affair →

From Thursday 2 to Saturday 4 April, LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY takes to the stages again. LSC is the largest city centre music and arts festival in the UK, playing host to 360 artists in over 25 venues in Liverpool’s city centre, with over 9000 music fans and over 3000 industry professionals.

From year to year, the lineup gets ever more diverse and exciting. Continue reading LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY 2013 Preview →

Friday 3 May sees the start of the annual LIVE AT LEEDS music festival, held across a variety of venues across the UK city from 3-6 May.

The main day is Saturday 4 May, with the event showcasing over 100 live bands, including RUDIMENTAL, ALUNAGEORGE, EVERYTHING EVERYTHING, SAVAGES, LONDON GRAMMAR, PINS, LAURA MVULA, YADI, THE STAVES, SWISS LIPS, WOLF ALICE, THE 1975, and all the way from New York MS MR. Continue reading LIVE AT LEEDS 2013 Preview →

So impressed are we by KATE NASH’s performance at Manchester’s Gorilla the night before that we hop in the car and mosey on over to Liverpool’s newly refurbished East Village Arts Club (formerly The Masque) which is being christened tonight by Nash. It’s not the most alluring venue, with its garish dark pink walls ‘staring down’ at you, and its split-level ground floor which may or may not work for live shows, depending on the size and temperament of the crowd. Continue reading Introducing KATE NASH’s all-grrrl band – in Liverpool →

KATE NASH remains an enigma to many. Once embraced as the darling of the UK’s indie singer-songwriter scene, only to be dropped by her label last year in the lead up to her now self-released third album “Girl Talk,” Kate has borne the brunt of many a cynical observer. However, rather than crumbling under the weight of media pressure and industry expectations, Kate chose to capitalize on the situation she found herself in. Continue reading KATE NASH: Manchester falls hard for the London Riot Grrrl →

The cheery box office lady is shivering away as the night chills settle in on Liverpool’s legendary venue The Kazimier. We’re taken aback as we struggle through the dense crowds who are soaking up support band THE LEISURE SOCIETY. Eager gig-goers line the staircases and fill the balconies from end to end. As they filter to the bars during the break, we take time to admire the glorious design of the venue which has something of a theatrical atmosphere, the intimate layout giving the feel of crowds leaning into or even onto the stage. Continue reading BETH ORTON: Back on the road and back in Liverpool’s heart →

Having unfortunately missed MÉLANIE PAIN at Manchester’s Deaf Institute the day before, I head to Leeds’ Brudenell Social Club to savour the French solo artist more broadly known as one of the singers of trendy music collective NOUVELLE VAGUE. Feedback from the Manchester show suggests that this is a talent to watch and that her movement towards more synth-oriented tracks is definitely a sign of exciting developments in the singer-songwriter’s career. Continue reading MÉLANIE PAIN proves that she’s no accident →

On Tuesday night, SHATTERJAPAN was lucky enough to catch elusive post-rock group GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR (GY!BE) at Ebisu Liquidroom, Tokyo. This genre-defining group from Canada formed in 1994, and has since released a mere four albums and one EP due to a seven-year hiatus from 2003 to 2010. The band’s latest effort, a four-track album entitled “Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend!” emerged last year into the welcome arms of fans and to rave reviews from critics everywhere. Continue reading GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR bring instrumental genius to Tokyo →