Magazines Galore!

Last week I made the most exciting discovery, I was scrolling through my Twitter feed and found the brilliant 'Stack', a subscription service that brings together the best in independent magazines and delivers them straight to your door. What makes Stack so bloody brilliant, is that you don't know what magazine you're going to get until it lands on your doormat. It can be Music, Film, Fashion or a Sport magazine but I think that's the beauty of Stack - the element of surprise.

At the age of 20, I think I may have found something that gives me same thrill that opening a Lucky Bag used to give me when I was little. It's took me about 13 years but I've found it -  Stack is the Lucky Bag for the adult generation.


What grabbed my attention instantly about Stack was the plethora of retweeted images from customers gushing about the latest delivery and was a deciding factor in subscribing myself. Wooden Toy was central to every image, amongst its wrapping and looking like a total work of art. In the current issue of Wooden Toy there's a screen print, a certificate of authenticity stating that it's made in Australia and a bonus 40 page A5 zine and as far as I know only comes out once a year.


I may even shed a tear because I only get my first delivery in the next cycle meaning that I won't receive Wooden Toy. It retails at a price of about 20 pounds and the subscribers to Stack got it through the post for under a fiver - what a bargain! I am so jealous. I think it could've even been my new favourite mag and looking at the images below just make me kick my self even more for not discovering Stack that little bit sooner - then I would've been one of the lucky owners (there are only 5000) of Wooden Toy.

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It doesn't matter where you live in the world because you can still subscribe, it will just cost a little more if you live outside of the UK. For those who do live in the UK it costs £58 a year or alternatively £4.90 monthly. I decided to opt for monthly. I think you only save about 80p overall if you do it yearly, but I prefer the small amount going out of my account regularly rather than one big hit of £58.


If you're interested in Stack just visit the website.

Single Reviews

Electric Guest – Awake

As one of the showcasing artists at this year’s SXSW festival a great deal of attention was thrown their way. In May, I saw Electric Guest perform to a sparse crowd during Liverpool Sound City and it’s with their newest single, ‘Awake’ that has the potential to rouse the music aficionados and create a buzz here too. The LA twosome released their Danger Mouse-produced debut LP, ‘Mondo’ ,in April, but unlike their first single, ‘This Head I Hold’, it lacks the upbeat soundscapes that made that single so infectious. What does capture your attention is the funk-led bass line that that you into the track. Front man, Asa Taccone possesses a falsetto vocal that is extremely easy to listen to, especially when the chorus rushes in and it’s at its most prevalent - at times the vocal is almost reminiscent of Prince. About two thirds of the way through where the song has plodded along, it finally reaches its zenith with a slight shift in tempo, signalled by a sound like something you’d have expected from an MGMT track. The falsetto vocal is back again adding that soulful quality, and it’s with this shift that pumps a refreshing spin into the song.

Richard Hawley – Down In The Woods

It’s been 3 years since Sheffieldite, Richard Hawley released an album. Even though he teased fans with guest vocals on an Arctic Moneys track earlier this year, Hawley returns with his punchy, Rock ‘n’ Roll fuelled 7^th album, ‘Standing On The Sky’s Edge’. And fuelled with Rock ‘n’ Roll it certainly is, ‘Down In The Woods’, his latest offering, opens with a rumbling of fast guitars where he beckons the listener to; “follow me down, down into the woods”.  The swirling melee of instruments gradually dissipate but then quickly resurface once Hawley warbles a long drawn ‘I love you’ and then it descends into a cacophony of noise again. Hawley isn’t unfamiliar with his music appearing on soundtracks for film and TV, ‘Down In The Woods’ would be perfect teamed with a high speed chase on a Hollywood blockbuster. Although simplistic and raw, ‘Down In The Woods’, is executed with panache. 

Both of these reviews can be found on my author page at Silent Radio. 

Triangles Are My Favourite Shape

I know I've already posted about Alt-J twice before and I don't want to be one of those people who just regurgitate how great they think a band is, so I pinky promise that I won't post about them again. They've already propelled themselves into one of my favourite bands of 2012 and for many others too. Even Harry Styles of One Direction fame caused much of an uproar over Twitter from a hoard of music snobs when he tweeted how great an album 'An Awesome Wave' is. I got to see Alt-J at Liverpool Sound City this year and I just came away even more in awe of them than I already was.

 For me, Tesselate is one of the highlights off their debut, along with Something Good.

Directed by Alex Southam, the video for Tesselate was released last week and is very much an ode to The School of Athens with a very modernised spin to it. The inspiration for this was the work of an Italian Renassiance artist named Raphael and is dated at approximately 1509.

In the opening frames, The School of Athens can be seen on a t-shirt which then pans away and we're exposed to pockets of activity. Rather than depicting a gathering of philosophers and great minds alike, such as Aristotle and Plato, we're exposed to a meeting of individuals through dance, gambling and disagreements that reflect a portrait of youth subcultures that are regular sights on the rough side of any town.

I think the video is a great concept and I hope you love it as much as I do!

Tickets for Alt-J's headline tour throughout October and November are already on sale with tickets selling quickly so make sure you get yours now - or if you were planning on going to their Manchester show it's already sold out along with a Matinee show!

October

27 RNCM, Manchester

28 Leeds Cockpit

29 Oran Mor, Glasgow

30 Waterfront, Norwich

31 Academy 2, Birmingham 

November

02 Oxford O2 Academy

03 Bristol Trinity

04 Brighton Concorde 2

05 London Electric Ballroom

My other Alt-J posts are, Ones To Watch and Warning! Death By Breezeblock!

13...Unlucky For Some

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Today is the most feared day of the year, but that’s only if you suffer from friggatriskaidekaphobia. For others their most feared may have been the day when they could no longer pass as a 16 year old when travelling on public transport, or even the day that One Tree Hill was cancelled  (maybe that's just me). But for most, it's today that fills you with dread. You may choose to stay indoors all day, to be more cautious, or be insistent that you are more prone to accidents. For all you Friday 13^th phobes out there, I'm happy to say that I'm the bearer of good news, this is the last Friday 13th of this year, with the next one only coming around in September 2013.


I’ve never been that superstitious. I’ll happily walk across cracks in the pavement, walk under a ladder, or even let a black cat cross my path without even the bat of an eye lid. I’d even break a mirror for fun. Will I be doomed with 7 years of bad luck? In the words of Jim Royale, ‘My arse!’

As a nation, we seem to have an affinity with the number 13. It’s instilled into us that this must be a day where we should be more vigilant and that any wrong doings must be because it’s Friday 13^th.  Whether it being through religious proclamations many centuries ago that it was initially deemed as an undesirably bad day, nowadays you can still see that the number 13 is still strayed away from. Many restaurants don’t have a table 13 and a great number of hotels don’t even have a room 13. Or just head down to your local bingo hall and as soon as number 13 rears its head, it’s always said to be unlucky for some.

So with all this talk of Friday the 13th, I thought I'd take advantage of this day and make a playlist for you! Last month I did a Keep Calm and Carry On tracklist with all the songs that I think perfectly compliment summertime. You can listen to that playlist here. 

Even though I’m not superstitious in the slightest, I always link today with Halloween as it has those same connotations of fear etc, so that’s why I’ve included a song off one of my favourite films – Hocus Pocus. This song in particular and Seven Devils from Florence’s 2^nd album, Ceremonials emit that eerie feel that I associate with this day. I’ve chosen 13 tracks in total but I didn’t want to opt for the obvious choices such as Superstition by Stevie Wonder. As I scrolled through my ITunes I came across songs that I had not listened to in such a long time such as The Hoosiers and Maximo Park, but I thought the song titles from all my chosen tracks, when placed in the order that I have tell a story of a Friday the 13^th that’s gone a little bit wrong. From the initial spell from those pesky witches in Hocus Pocus, that then results in the shedding of blood from their victim,  to the emotions of worry, to fear and panic that then results in a hospital visit and then the eventual escape. But as the Klaxons say, it's not over yet...not until September 2013 when you have to live through the trauma of another Friday 13th - happy listening!

Hocus Pocus – I Put A Spell On You

Florence and the Machine – Seven Devils

Band of Skulls – Blood

  Little Comets – Worry

 Maximo Park – Cloud Of Mystery

    Ian Brown – F.E.A.R

The Smiths – Panic

The Hoosiers –Worst Case Scenario

  Friendly Fires – In The Hospital 

We Are Scientists – The Great Escape

   Fenech-Soler – The Great Unknown

  The XX – Shelter

   Klaxons – It's Not Over Yet

You can listen to my playlist here - enjoy!

Friendly Fires, Tribes + Little Comets, Temple Newsam park, Leeds, 24th June

I never envisaged that I would end the day by rummaging through a wheelie bin packed with Umbrellas. I may have hit a new low and I don’t know whether to be disgusted with myself or a little proud. I wasn’t inebriated as you may expect from such a nauseating act but my favourite Umbrella was unwillingly snatched from my grip on arrival to Temple Newsam. Like so many others I prepared for intense rain and this was evident with the mounds of confiscated Umbrellas clustered in a heap on the gloriously sunny afternoon.

As the Olympic Torch approached Leeds from its earlier destination of Huddersfield, a real celebration was already under way. Little Comets kicked off the music with Widow Twanky’s washing line teetering above their heads, they struck the hanging percussion that dangled skywards with fervour. It was a valiant performance from the quartet, playing to one of the biggest crowds they’ve played to and deservedly so. A band who seem to be riding on the cusp of major recognition and with consistent performances packed with infectious, optimistic pop.

Tribes attracted a greater crowd, but they sound like they grew up listening to The Cure and nothing but The Cure. Their sound so awash with reverb that a few times I thought, ‘What is that noise?’ as it was difficult to untangle the mesh of guitars. At one point, the lead vocalist uttered something along the lines of that things are better up North. Yes, Tribes, yes they are including the bands. The performance was all a bit lacklustre and the lure of the free bottles of chilled Coca Cola took some away from the stage and away from Tribes.

Temple Newsam swelled with bodies as the Torch arrived but the instant the cauldron was ignited, most of the crowd filtered away. The unfortunate timing of the England match meant that Friendly Fires undeservedly  played to the smallest crowd of the day. But this didn’t hinder the spirit. Ed predictably writhed around the stage, sashaying and grinding from one flowing movement to the next. 

Looking down on Temple Newsam, the rays soaking up the last strains of 'Kiss of Life', it was even more clear that Friendly Fires and the sun coalesce so brilliantly -  an even better duo than the Chuckle Brothers. And if you were wondering I never did get my Umbrella back.

All Hail The Rolling Stones

London's Marquee Club was one of the most popular Jazz clubs and the place to be on the 12 July, 1962 as it was the setting for The Rolling Stones debut gig. Now, with a career spanning 5 decades, with 22 studio albums and 11 live albums in the UK, The Rolling Stones deserve a celebration and it's BBC 6 Music that have adopted the role as host.

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Throughout July, BBC 6 will celebrate The Rolling Stones Golden Jubilee by rummaging through the archives and bringing its listeners interviews, documentaries and performances. Including in this, is The Rolling Stones Story, a 6 part documentary by Alexis Corner. Originally broadcast in 1973, it's now being rerun as part of their anniversary celebrations.  Even though this documentary has already been aired, the final episode, 'Where To Now'  can still be listened back to. As I post this it has 16 hours left to listen, so do hurry if you're a fan of The Rolling Stones! One of BBC 6 Music's sister stations, BBC Radio 2 are also involved with Jerry Hall presenting Rolling with the Stones - an intimate look at their live legacy from 11.00pm tonight.

In further celebration of 50 years of the Rolling Stones, BBC 6 have selected some of their favourite bands to cover a selection of Stones classics. To start this run was the Soderberg siblings from First Aid Kit with their take on 'Play With Fire' and today saw The Walkmen and their rendition of 'Blue Turns To Grey'.

Lastly, BBC 6 Music are also holding a poll for the best Rolling Stones song. Voting will close at 7pm on Friday 20 July. The Top 6 songs voted for by you will be revealed a week later on Friday 27 July -  vote here!

Leeds Gig Picks (9th - 15th July)

Tom Gee Band, Monday 9 July, Oporto, Starts 8.00pm, FREE ENTRY

       If you want to opt for something mellow to ease you into the week, then Leeds’s own Tom Gee Band could be the perfect antidote. Citing their influences as ranging from Eric Clapton to Bob Marley and B.B.King, the collective boasting 8 members bring an infusion of authentic blues to Oporto on Monday. Steeped in a collision of sounds resulting from their multi instrumentals, their sound is what they describe themselves as ‘funky soul blues’. Join them for a soul fuelled jamboree.

Futuresound Competition: Heat 10, Euphoria Audio / Our Famous Dead / The Spector Effect / Stations,Tuesday 10 July, The Cockpit, £4

      With a surplus of local bands competing, the heats for Futuresound are well underway having started in June and continuing to run throughout July. Tuesday marks the penultimate show of this week’s heats. Euphoria Audio, Our Famous Dead, The Spector Effect and Stations will be battling it out for the chance to open the Festival/NME Stage at this year’s Reading and Leeds Festivals. 5 runners up will also have the opportunity to play the BBC Introducing Stage. You can even get involved yourself as some of the power lies in your hands to determine who will win!

Runaround Kids + Buen Chico, Wednesday 11 July, Nation of Shopkeepers, Starts 8.30pm, FREE ENTRY

      Wakefield trio, Runaround Kids will play a free show at Nation of Shopkeepers fresh from the release of their new split 12” with Irish band, We Are Losers. After previously touring together, ‘Runaround Kids vs We Are Losers’ was released on 9^th July. You can catch these noisemakers on Wednesday for songs with an Indie-Pop sensibility, bursting with infectious hooks and for an altogether energetic live show. Support comes from Buen Chico as well as DJ sets from No Bones and Philophobia.

Hooray For Earth, Friday 13 July, Brudenell Social Club, Doors 7pm, £7

      Prior to their much anticipated performance at Latitude on the 15^th July, Hooray For Earth make their only other stop in the UK at the Brudenell. Hailing from Boston and having formed in 2006 they have been impressing music aficionados in their hoards with the release of their third album, True Loves, which was released in February of this year for their UK fans.  Their single, ‘No Love’ even experienced heavy rotation by Radio 1 on its release.

The Next Chapter with Jamilah Barry, Friday 13 July, The Wardrobe, Starts 8.30pm, £7

      Singer-songwriter, Jamilah Barry will perform for the last time in Leeds at the Wardrobe, before leaving the North to make the move to London. At 16 years of age, she has a mature vocal that sees her churn out classic hits such as ‘At Last’ from soul legend Etta James with effortless ease; teaming this with her own original material it is a must to see her in a live setting. An impressive talent with this gig being dubbed as unmissable.

 Nite Jewel, Saturday 14 July, Brudenell Social Club, Doors 7.30pm, £7

      Ramona Gonzalez, an LA based songstress performs under the moniker of Nite Jewel. She brings her act to Leeds on the third stop of her UK tour, after recently supporting Chairlift on their North American dates. Nite Jewel is of a similar calibre instrumentally to that of the increasingly popular, Grimes, and not so long ago played the Brudenell herself.  With electro beats escaping the confines of a laptop, it’s a brand of electro-pop drowning in synths with ominous undertones yet her songs remain simultaneously upbeat.