LIVE MUSIC - THE BEATING HEART OF ROCK 'N' ROLL....

Last night i - along with my wife - ventured out to watch live music for the first time in nearly a year. Gigs have become less of a priority in recent years: work, money, and home comforts seem to have taken over, and going out until late when i have an early start the next morning is something i can no longer cope with! But with a couple of days off work booked, and a free pass to a local venue (the gig was sold out, but we have connections!) we headed out, and were not disappointed. The place was The Maze in Nottingham, a small sweaty venue in the back of The Forest Tavern pub. The headliner was blues rocker Barns Courtney (more of whom later), but first we were treated to the support act, Stephanie Cheape (the name of the band as well as the woman). A young, talented, flame-haired woman from Glasgow with a big voice and big, dramatic indie-pop songs to back it up - not to mention a great sounding band behind her -, she left an impression on the small crowd and certainly on me. Dark, powerful pop that blends thumping bass and drums with chiming guitars and electronic sounds and washes, i've since heard her likened to a mix of Patti Smith, Florence & The Machine and The Cranberries but i hear touches of Garbage in there too. They've won Scotlands' Best Unsigned Act 2017, supported Bryan Ferry at the Summer Nights Festival in Kelvingrove, and they are about to release their debut single "Blood, Sweat, And Fears" (Nov 9th, through the usual digital outlets). It would be great to see them do well.

I'd first heard of Barns Courtney earlier this year when one of his songs - blues-rock stomper "Glitter And Gold" - was used as the theme tune to a series on Netflix. Having listened to a few of his tracks online, i liked what i heard but clearly not enough to buy any of his music. My wife was more impressed, and i eventually got around to buying her his debut album, The Attractions Of Youth, for her birthday. She's been playing it in the house a lot so i've become more familiar with his music - a mix of crunching indie and blues rock with touches of folk rock - so i was looking forward to seeing him live.

From the moment Barns Courtney exploded onto the small stage it was apparent that he should be playing much bigger venues - a whirlwind of rock'n'roll energy, charisma, hair and cheekbones, he has clearly modelled himself on the great frontmen of rock history. Which is to say he's a bit of a cocky poseur! Unlike, say, Johnny Borrell of Razorshite (who he has a slight resemblance to), BC has the tunes and voice to back up this surfeit of confidence: opening with two brand new songs that flew by at 100mph, he won over the crowd in no time at all with his swagger and enthusiasm, before launching into set that included the best from his album - "Fire", "Glitter And Gold", "Kicks" - with new songs from his upcoming second, new single "99" being the most memorable. Balls and spunk in rock music seems to be sorely lacking these days, but this guy has both in spades. If he's not massive by this time next year then there is something wrong with the ears of the music-buying masses!


Watch this space......

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

HAPPY TIMES ARE COMING (AGAIN) - OBSCURE ALTERNATIVES#2

Image
I'm not a fan of following the herd. If an artist, film, tv series, etc is huge or the current trend then my contrary tendencies will rise to the surface. There have been many times when a mildly successful band suddenly become huge and i will lose interest, or when, wary of hype, i won't get into them until the fuss dies down. But at the same time i want the things i love to get recognition. As i said, contrary. I have always steered clear of mass appeal, lowest common denominator stuff. I wasn't interested in Manic Street Preachers when they first appeared - and i still think Generation Terrorists is packed with filler - only to take interest during their next two albums which were less successful. And then lose it during their This Is My Truth...... era. When i stood in a record shop trying to choose who to spend my hard earned on that week i would rarely pick the current favourites, usually plumping for record that would, if lucky, be a footnote in the history of music.
Read more

CRAWLING FORWARD

Image
  It's not often i love a new album enough to play it on repeat - not since my late twenties any rate - but that's what happened when i put my Eco-vinyl copy of IDLES Crawler on the turntable. After the deliberate self parody of last year's Ultra Mono Joe Talbot and co. have taken a bold step forward: Crawler largely dispenses with the political sloganeering and post-punk moshpit anthems and reaches within for inspiration. Talbots' well documented 14 year struggle with alcohol and drug abuse, and his long road to recovery are the dominant themes here, in all their ugly details, but with a life affirming sense of redemption. The music is largely quieter and more measured too. Opener "MTT 420 RR" is a slow burning electronic textured track which represents the crash that saw him at his lowest point, the spare and eerie atmosphere over which Talbot recites the details in gruesome honesty.  "Car Crash" sounds exactly like just that: a minimalist dubby, g
Read more

OBSCURE ALTERNATIVES #1

Image
For as long as there has been recorded music and a music industry there have been musical artists who, despite hype and promotion, have underperformed or sank without trace. Since i began reading the (now sadly defunct) music weeklies in the early nineties there was barely a week without a new band or solo artist being excitedly talked about as "the next big thing" . Before, during a and after Britpop this went into overdrive as record companies fought to sign the next Oasis/Blur/Pulp/Stone Roses etc, acts coming and going, sometimes without a sniff of chart success. On rare occasions bands would be declared "your new favourite band" before they'd even recorded a note! (Menswe@r spring immediately to mind.) Too often, a promising new act would be signed on the strength of a couple of raved about independent singles only for their new paymasters to demand changes to their musical style to make them more marketable to a mass audience: edges smoothed off, more expe
Read more