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Angus & Julia Stone whisk away Plug ♥♥♥♥♥

live — Tue, 06 May 2008 21:06:19 +0000

Angus and Julia Stone whisked Plug away with their beautiful music on Thursday.

Firstly and fortunately I missed local girl Phillipa Hanna, I was just not prepared to listen to her songs about God and his love, and other similar crap [Ed: Other opinions are available!]. But I did catch Paris Motel who are touring with Angus and Julia - a talented collective that effortlessly combined a violin, a harmonium, a guitar and a harmonica with Amy May’s haunting voice. Paris Motel’s songs seemed pretty but they offer clever and profound lyrics. Their cover of Maps by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs was also impressive as they gave it their own unique twist and touch of class.

Half an hour later and Angus and Julia Stone took to a stage with equipment wrapped in ivy and dotted with some nifty album artwork. Opening with ‘Mango Tree’ it is clear that Angus is the complete opposite of his older sister. He stands static and hides behind his hair whilst Julia dances fluidly across stage twirling her red dress around. But both speak very softly, almost timidly, with their Australian accents when talking to the crowd.

Relatively new release ‘Paper aeroplane’, explained Angus, is about a Girl at school who wrote love letters to him but at the time he never replied and the song is about his reply and how it would get to her. A beautiful concept.

A fair way into the set and the drummer and bassist took breaks to give time for one of Julia’s songs. One of them she’d performed for two friends at their wedding, and she says it is: “A song about them finding each other”. It’s another magical song with lines like: ‘Making babies on the beach under the stars’. More creativity and originality ensued as two bedside lamps were all that was needed to set the mood of romance.

The Stones then treated the crowd to a wholly different version of ‘Private lawns’ with a faster beat and faster vocals which complete changed the nature of the song.

Then someone farted, badly, but it couldn’t ruin the set.

This was followed by a reggae style song ‘Susie’ with Julia on trumpet, which just like every other song was received by an energetic and rapturous applause. Another treat was some very new material, a mere two weeks old. And for the first time the bassist lent his vocals to Angus and Julia. They haven’t given it a title yet but the chorus went: ‘if you love me, I’ll make you a star in my universe, you’ll never have to go to work, you’ll spend everyday shining light my way.’

The set concluded on a high with ‘Just a boy’. Which Angus explains: “that travelling around you met loads of people, but anyway there was one girl who was beautiful and she made me feel like a boy.” Simple.

The Stones eventually left the stage but were forced on stage for two encores. I say forced but it was probably a plan. Anyways, the final song of the night was ‘These minds have walls’ performed solely by the siblings with Angus on guitar and Julia playing a trumpet impressively softly.

Overall, a fantastical evening and magical display of musical talent.

By Dom Sztyber

Mystery Jets rock Plug 22.4.08

live — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 10:57:50 +0000

Mystery Jets: *****

Johnny Flynn:****

So the cowbells and dustbin lids have been replaced by synthesisers and keyboards, but it makes no difference, the Mystery Jets have secured a place in my heart despite their change in sound.

I arrive at Plug just in the nick of time to see support band Johnny Flynn ( ♥♥♥♥ ). Having recently been on tour supporting Mystery Jets collaborator Laura Marling, Johnny Flynn bring a bluesy and folk influenced sound to Plug’s smaller stage. The brother-sister dynamic of the two singers works well, and they are a joy to watch playing a variety of instruments ranging from violins to a cello. In a word, lovely.

Then the lights dim and the sirens from the intro of Hideaway can be heard. Mystery Jets ( ♥♥♥♥♥ ) appear onstage and launch into the song, which perhaps is a track that reflects the most influence from producer Erol Alkan. The dance feel to the song breaks the crowd out of the relaxed mood brought on by Johnny Flynn, and it appears Plug is filled with die hard fans mouthing along to every song.

The absence of Blaine’s father Henry who previously played with the band is not felt. Mystery Jets are energetic and obviously talented young musicians, and hating to be cliché, have now come into their own on release of their new album Twenty One. Yes they’ve lost some of their distinct quirkiness and oddball pop noise, but the new songs are a sign of moving away from the nonsensical lyrics of “You Can’t Fool Me Dennis” to more heartfelt tracks such as Half In Love With Elizabeth.

The set commences with mainly tracks from the new album, but some old stuff is played which really works the crowd up into a frenzy. Then they’re offstage, but seconds later a member of the stage crew places cowbells in front of Blaine’s chair, which can only mean they’re going to do an encore. But only after the crowd begin to shriek “Zootime Zootime” and work themselves up to the right level of enthusiasm. And then in an audience-interaction type fashion Blaine jokingly asks the crowd to chose whether they want to hear song A or B. With B winning, they swing into crowd-pleaser Zootime, causing some intensely crazy dancing of fans at the front.

Feeling most pleased, I nip off to search for the non-existent merchandise stand with my housemate, and to our surprise spot Blaine and William chatting with fans. It meant a lot to me that they still did this after gigs, because two years ago when they were less well known and I saw them live, they did the same thing. It just goes to show how fame and success outside of England hasn’t gone to their heads. After a chat with William and a quick picture, I leave feeling most fulfilled.

By Alex Rucki

We are Scientists are Octagon 17.4.08

live — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 16:22:19 +0000

First of all, an honourable mention to main support Ladyhawke, who with overtones of CSS and possibly the Long Blondes, put in a good effort to a largely static crowd.

After this reviewer’s initial disappointment that Royworld weren’t the support (like they have been for most of the other Scientists gigs this tour) I was quite impressed. Her performance was pretty polished and the music dripped with eighties influences – you can tell in the first five minutes whether it’s going to be your thing or not. The main criticism was she didn’t interact much with the audience, but that was maybe because it was clear from the off that We Are Scientists ( ♥♥♥♥♥ )were head and shoulders the main attraction with the crowd – the anticipation and expectation for the New York boys was high.

And they definitely didn’t disappoint. Most people know about We Are Scientists’ reputation for their sense of humour (which includes stories of tricycles and goggle-glasses on stage…), but would it be the same without drummer Michael Tapper? (Michael left the band in November last year, reducing the trio to a duo.) Answer? Undoubtedly definitely 100% absolutely YES.

If the audience weren’t already on their side, the gig-long Yorkshire Pudding jokes, compliments to Sheffield’s music scene and crowd-surfing would definitely have done it. Lead singer Keith Murray didn’t hesitate at all before wandering into the crowd, only to be hoisted up to perform one of the new album tracks perched on several audience members shoulders. And Chris Cain had his moment too, taking the stage for a skilled solo. They put everything they could into making it a good gig.

The guys bravely opened with Ghouls, the first track from Brain Thrust Mastery, one of the slower and darker songs, but then launched into first ever single Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt which immediately got the audience involved. There was a fairly even mix of new and old tracks, and again eighties influences were high. After Hours was unsurprisingly the most popular new song, with it being the previous single, but generally all of the new material seemed pretty well received. The Great Escape was the final encore performance and clearly everybody’s favourite – the whole room was going for it.

Overall, it was an awesome gig – the guys were funny and down to Earth, I even spotted Keith purposefully positioning himself to give someone a brilliant photograph, and the music was top quality. I’m not the only one who left wanting more, they better be back soon…

By Helen Evans

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=27387766
http://wearescientists.com/

Mystery Jets to play plug tonight 22nd!

live — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 10:32:11 +0000

So the question everybody is asking at the moment is - have the Mystery Jets have sold out?

The eccentric typically English ‘wonky haircut and clanging cow bells’ quintet have gone all cool on us. Having ditched any members over 50 (aka Henry Harrison the lead singer Blaine Harrison’s dad) and hiring Erol Alkan to produce their latest album Twenty One, the Mystery Jets seem to be going through an image change at the moment.

Originating from Eel Pie Island (which is not something I made up but an actual island off the Thames), the band started playing gigs in a disused ballroom as teenagers. Now they’ve all grown up and with one album already behind them, Making Dens, on Twenty One they now all have a bit more life experience to draw on.

Expect to see cheery pop songs with a hint of weirdness added to the mix, and tales of adolescent awkwardness. They are an enigmatic live band and well worth a see, and hopefully their new sound will secure them a higher place in the music industry.

Watch this space for the live review from Alex Rucki

Fratellis @ Leadmill 13.4.08

live — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 16:27:50 +0000

Like the majority of us saddo third years, my social life is suffering a little illustrated by the awful reality that I am spending the majority of my precious evenings disappearing under a small mountain of books in everyone “favourite” soul sapping establishment that is the IC. However, I’m rather good at distracting myself, and with this in mind I’ve been dropping hints to the lovely Editor of the gigs section, to send some gigs my way.

How relieved I was when I got a text on Sunday afternoon confirming my place on the guest-list at the Leadmill. What the editor rather vitally forgot to tell me was that it taking place that night (Ed: gulp!) So in the middle of falling asleep in the silent study area, I got a text at 8.30pm asking if I would be able to make the gig; I don’t think Linford Christie could have exited the IC quicker. With a last minute recruited friend in tow, we grabbed a taxi to Leadmill and arrived just as the Fratellis arrived on stage.

Squeezing into a sold-out Leadmill for the fourth date of the Scottish trios’ tour to promote their new album ‘ Here we stand’, I was curious to hear how the Fratelli’s new material would sound. With the last album “Costello Music” spawning catchy sing along to the radio hits such as “Henrietta’ and “Chelsea Dagger” as well as winning a Brit Award for best British newcomer, the new album has a lot to live up to.

Opening with the fantastic upcoming single, Mistress Mabel for release on May 26th, the Fratellis started strong. Weaving their hits from Costello music in with songs from the new album, the band played for 75 minutes to a receptive crowd.

The new material, sounds pretty much like more of the same established Fratellis sound; amusing ditties and story telling lyrics on modern life with simple bluesy yet glamtastic music that makes you want to dance the night away.

‘Mistress Mabel’ was a definite stand out and should be a big hit, however a lot of the new material lacked originality and sounded pretty much like the same thing being played over and over again. However, I refuse to believe that the Fratelli’s would produce a bad second album after the massive success of Costello music. It has to be a grower. But the crowd loved it, especially if the pill induced swaying and yelling of the man next to us who resembled a bald version of Bez from the happy Mondays is anything to go by.

The lack of hair attending the Leadmill should be definitely be highlighted as such was the level of baldness from where I was standing, the gig could have been mistaken for a bald-headed convention. However, I was reassured of a younger presence as a steady stream of sweaty young teens were escorted past me and out of the venue in a rather semi-conscious state, clearly having enjoyed their Fratelli fuelled dancing spree.

They really do know how to get a crowd moving and during Chelsea Dagger; the gig’s finale, the crowd both young and bald sang and danced along amongst shouts of “Yorkshire Yorkshire!” From my three years of living and gig going in Sheffield, I’m pretty sure that chants of “Yorkshire Yorkshire” translates as a damn good gig.

By Fran Stanning

Alphabeat (Wonky)Pop along to Plug… ♥♥♥♥

live — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:51:52 +0000

Pop joyness is what I wanted, and that’s pretty much what I got. Joy all round and a great atmosphere made this show really quite good fun, despite the horribly early end to the fun.With a lead singer definitely inspired by the ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go’ video, Alphabeat lead by example: smiles everywhere with handclaps and tambourines to boot. This proves very infectious to a crowd of surprisingly differing ages. Everything from 14 to 50 seemed to be covered, and most seemed to really enjoy what they were hearing.

All that was missing was some streamers and party poppers.

They were lovely and polite too - the type of people that would be really good fun to hang out with. Imagine tree climbing, picnics and sing-a-longs, preferably to Disney classics. I know I do.

Playing quite a short set – 9 songs and an encore jamboree featuring all other acts that came before them most of the audience were probably left wanting more – I was. Still, it was a rather good cover of Daft Punk’s Digital Love. Fascination being played just before that meant things were well and truly euphoric by the end, and rightly so.

The band clearly get a kick out of performing, smiling and bobbing away. The music itself is quite infectious too, even if it was a little less poppy that I was expecting for a little while towards the start of the gig. That all went with the double wammy of 10,000 Nights and What is Happening.

A full-blown headline gig by this lot would certainly not to be missed. Get your friends down, listen to your favourite songs excessively in the build up and throw back and dance, clap, smile and be happy!

They do Denmark proud.

By Ben Hayes

Adam Green @ Plug 9.4.08 ♥♥♥♥

live — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 19:43:11 +0000

I’d been looking forward to seeing Adam Green for a good old while now, and he didn’t disappoint. Maybe the crowd did, but crowds always irk me.The set was a solid mix of old and new, the atmosphere on the whole was great (in between songs anyway, people could’ve seemed a little happier when he was playing!) and he was backed by a strong 4-piece band.Arriving on stage in Plug’s 2nd room to healthy woop-littered applause, Green was sporting some dashing tight white trousers, and a dark blue top with some delightful tassels attached to the arms. Charming.Introducing themselves as a ‘Jewish Folk Band’ they pretty much cracked straight into things, with the almost stop-start number Festival Song which they merged into the next song, the more up tempo and punchy Hollywood Bowl. After having quite a strong string presence on previous albums I was a little disappointed when it was clear they’d be no strings on stage, but nevertheless the songs lacked very little due to the tight backing band.

Adam Green performing is always an interesting experience, as he staggers and sways around the stage staring into the distance somewhere. It’s difficult to tell whether he’s as drunk as you think he is, or if that’s just what happens to him when he takes to the stage. The way he sings note-perfect tells you he’s not drunk, but the way he looks screams that he’s had at least a few. His singing was made all the stronger after about 20 seconds when his vocal monitor was turned off as it was feeding back horribly. It didn’t matter.

Halfway through, his backing band left the stage and Green performed a couple of numbers accoustically. He almost seems more comfortable performing in this way – any doubts that he’s feeling awkward performing are soon put to bed and it all seems as natural as breathing to him. It was a nice touch and let us see an other element to his act.

The only thing really lacking from this gig, having heard the new album, was a need for backing vocals – some of the new songs have some great backing, but the band rarely chipped in to provide this – the crowd could’ve helped out, but alas, this never happened.

After the set finished, seemingly way too early, they popped back on for a lovely little encore of Choke on a Cock, Jessica and a cover of Cream’s Spoonful, which was nice. Still, all seemed to be over a little too soon, but with 24 tracks down, I can’t complain too much really.

By Ben Hayes.

SETLIST
1. Festival Song
2. Hollywood Bowl
3. Exp 1.
4. Broadcast beach
5. I Wanna Die
6. Over the Sunrise
7. Leaky Flask
8. Cannot Get Sicker
9. Carolina
10. Pay the Toll
11. Nat King Cole
12. Secret Tongues
13. Friends of Mine
14. You Get So Lucky
15. Chubby Princess
16. It’s A Fine
17. Getting Lead
18. Be My Man
19. Novotel
20. Dance With Me
21. Morning After Midnight
——encore——
22. Choke on a Cock
23. Jessica
24. Spoonful (Cream Cover)

Lovely.

Groove Armada to shake it at Plug Weds 16th!

live — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:47:00 +0000

Groove Armada, at Plug? Surely not. They only do whopping big festivals don’t they? And really rather well at that, I might add.

Well. Not this time. The Plug’s 1200 capacity room will hopefully be rammed full with festival vibe though, as the Armada look for an intimate gig to kick off 2008 with. It’s also said to be the only small gig they’ll be doing this year, so grab this unique opportunity while you can! They’re jetting off for a US and Asia tour straight after, so this will be the only chance to hear their mystery ‘new sound’ before the rest of the world fills their boots.

“We’ve always wanted the venue to be used for great live shows and this will rank up there with the very best of them,” Scott Bailey, one of Plug’s Directors, explains. “For me that’s what we’ve always been about and we are so excited that Andy and Tom are bringing their live show to Sheffield. After Tom played here a few months ago with his Sugar Daddy outfit I think he was impressed enough to remember and suggest bringing everyone here.”

Nuff said.

Watch this space for the live review from Ben Hayes.

Breeders excite the Leadmill 12.4.08 ♥♥♥♥

live — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 07:52:45 +0000

The last few years haven’t exactly been a laugh for The Breeders: The band was dropped from Warner music in 2004 and Kim Deal went to rehab against a backdrop of continuous line-up changes and fluctuating album sales.

But despite previous hiccups, The Breeders have managed to carve out a favourable and enduring reputation with fans and music critics a-like. Tonight, this is obvious as the Leadmill has attracted a large, noticeably older (and bald-headed) crowd.

As the headliners prepare to take the stage, the lights go down and the audience is plunged into darkness; a roar ascends from the floor and expectation is almost palpable. Immediately, the band rip into an old song by The Amps (Deal’s now defunct side-project): ‘Tipp City’ has a raw rampant discord sound sitting side by side with a pounding rhythm section. The excitement doesn’t stop there, with glorious slabs of grungy rock offset by the sweet harmonies created by Kim and twin sister Kelley.

Other tracks in the set recreate the low-tech, cassette-tape sound that has come to be associated with the band: ‘Bang On’ is the perfect example and in a live setting most certainly hit the nail on the head, so to speak.

It appears that The Breeders have an air of complete cool, whether performing unusual, low-key ballads or crashing and flailing to upbeat indie rock.

There seems to be little banter from the band throughout the night but smiles all round when the entire crowd is described by Deal as, “A bunch of iron mongers”. It seems the band is happy to be playing for such appreciative listeners. The old favourites, ‘Huffer’ and ‘Cannonball’ elicit a circle of leaping fan members at the front of the stage and practically send an electric jolt through the rest of the crowd.

It’s evident that Kim Deal is not afraid to shout and scream or make weird noises into the mic as songs reach mountainous rock climaxes, but doesn’t steal all the limelight tonight. Kelley sings, ‘I Just Wanna Get Along’ in pure rock ‘n’ roll fashion with an attitude that implies that you really wouldn’t NOT want to get along with her. What a classic performance with a well deserved mass of cheering and clapping at the end.

The highlight of the set was undoubtedly a much warranted encore – ‘Overheard’ was the best song of the night with Deal exclaiming, “I can feel it” like a call to arms against chaotic drums and a rabble of guitars. A strangely liberating experience and without doubt, a memorable one.

By Pippa Moore

Breeders official site

Breeders on Myspace

The Breeders to play Leadmill sat 12th!

live — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 08:56:31 +0000

A treat is on its way for indie and rock fans alike – The Breeders are in town for one night only, so dust off your dancing shoes and come prepared for a night full of legendary tunes and pogo-ing crowds.

Kim Deal and Co will most certainly be playing songs from their recently released (and celebrated) fourth studio album, ‘Mountain Battles’ which sees the band revitalize their sound and bring back old-school analog, lo-fi rock.

We can expect to hear raw rock in all its glory, with looped-guitars, crashing drums and clever lyrics – Kim Deal will shine in a live setting; a determined front-woman with more skill and presence than many out there nowadays. Of course, overexcited fans can also look forward to a few classic tracks throughout the set.

Ultimately, this is a rare chance to see a live band that could easily be considered the quiet driving force behind many of the artists currently decorating the pages of NME and Art Rocker. It’s obvious that the brilliance of The Breeders will never fade away – the anticipation for this show is practically sky-scraping.

Watch this space for the live review from Pippa Moore

http://www.myspace.com/thebreeders (Currently streaming the entire new album).
www.breedersdigest.net