Issue 604

Profile - Marco Bailey and Percy X

19 Jun 2008

Names Marco Bailey & Percy X Who that? Bailey is Belgium’s premier techno DJ/producer and CEO of record label MB Selektions. Percy X is Glasgow’s own Soma stalwart, also a DJ/producer, again fronting his own label edit-select. What’s the story?

The Edge of Love - Sharman Macdonald interview

Edinburgh International Film Festival

5 Jun 2008

At the programme launch of the 2008 Edinburgh International Film Festival artistic director Hannah McGill thanked the makers of The Edge of Love for providing her with the perfect opening night film. What McGill no doubt meant by this was that The Edge…

Eco-friendly festival shopping

5 Jun 2008

Never mind Kasabian at Connect or Shaky at Glasto, the real headliner at this year’s festivals is the environment, stupid. The ecological impact of 80,000-odd people producing a huge amount of concentrated waste is immense but festivals are offsetting…

Edinburgh International Film Festival - Jeanne Moreau

5 Jun 2008

Born between the wars to an English chorus girl mother and a French restaurateur father, Jeanne Moreau was born to play what feminist film critic Molly Haskell called ‘the glorious fantasy, appealing to both sexes, to men as eternal mistress, to women…

Chris Waitt interview

Edinburgh International Film Festival

5 Jun 2008

If someone gave you money to interview all your exes and find out what you did wrong in those relationships, would you do it? Filmmaker Chris Waitt didn’t hang around for an offer and approached Warp X with the pitch for his documentary A Complete…

Let’s Get Lost - Bruce Weber interview

5 Jun 2008

Sitting in Cannes on the French Riviera seems like the perfect place to chat to Bruce Weber about his 1989 documentary on jazz musician Chet Baker, Let’s Get Lost, which is getting a UK cinema re-release this fortnight. After all, Baker lived in Cannes…

Festivals - Something For Nothing

5 Jun 2008

If you’re looking to wet a whistle, then look no further than the Orkney Beer Festival (22–24 August, www.visitorkney.com), held at the Stromness Hotel. A now annual wing-ding, guests are invited to join fellow tipplers for a taste of the local Orkney…

Festivals - Hire Learning

5 Jun 2008

From bar worker and front of house to book seller and litter picker, the festival world needs literally thousands of paid and unpaid staff to help make their events a success. DC Site Services help run many of the major festivals, so keep a close eye on…

Gone Baby Gone

5 Jun 2008

THRILLER/DRAMA (15) 113min Ben Affleck’s long delayed (because of the Madeline McCann case) child abduction crime drama finally stumbles in to British cinemas. Based, like Clint Eastwood’s 2003 film Mystic River, on a novel by Irish Bostonian Dennis…

Daren King

5 Jun 2008

Daren King lives in a strange world. Not in real life, you understand, for there he lives in Dublin because of the generous tax breaks for writers, which is perfectly normal and not at all strange. No, the strangeness of Daren King is in his head and on…

Festivals - Strange Days Indeed

5 Jun 2008

An integral part of the cultural calendar, festivals are fast becoming a vibrant part of the tourism industry – both at home and abroad – and organisers are undoubtedly raising the bar to keep up with demand, pushing the boundaries to give the audience…

Sex and the City

5 Jun 2008

DRAMA/ROMANCE/COMEDY (15) 145min As Carrie Bradshaw might say – ‘I couldn’t help but wonder how four ageing divas were going to resurrect Sex and the City: The Brand’. Is it possible that Charlotte, Samantha, Carrie and Miranda could pull off the same…

Festivals - Capital Gains

5 Jun 2008

Kicking off the capital’s world famous summer festivals in late July, it’s the Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival (25 Jul–3 Aug) which is the longest running jazz festival in the UK. Following hot on its heels is relative newbie to Edinburgh’s festival…

In Search of a Midnight Kiss

5 Jun 2008

COMEDY/ROMANCE (15) 99min Writer/director Alex Holdridge’s dispatch from the frontline of the LA dating scene is exactly what it depicts: a witty, slight affair. Wilson (Scoot McNairy) is a detached single desperate for a date to provide him with a…

Alexander Terekhov - The Rat Killer

5 Jun 2008

ALLEGORICAL DRAMA (Alma Books) Alexander Terekhov wrote this political allegory when he was 27. Bad timing meant it failed to make waves outside Russia, as critics were busy unearthing older, established writers suppressed under the communist regime.

Mark Watson - Crap at the Environment

5 Jun 2008

POLITICAL COMEDY (Hodder & Stoughton) When reducing your carbon footprint, the first thing to do is admit that you’re crap at the environment. This is according to stand-up comedian, writer, TV personality and one-man iceberg melter Mark Watson, who…

Simon Critchley - The Book of Dead Philosophers

5 Jun 2008

PHILOSOPHER HISTORY (Granta) Alongside religious types, the permanently unhealthy and stand-up comedians, philosophers have a nightly battle with questions about the process of dying and the actual reality of having snuffed it. Naturally, none of them…

Priceless

5 Jun 2008

COMEDY/ROMANCE (12A) 104min The best things in life are free, but all seasoned Riviera gold digger Irène (Audrey Tautou) wants is her own credit card from an ageing sugar daddy. Meanwhile, luckless, impoverished bar tender and dog walker Jean (Gad…

Un Secret

5 Jun 2008

DRAMA (15) 106min Veteran French writer-director Claude Miller (Garde à Vue, La Petite Voleuse) revisits France’s traumatic experiences under German Occupation during World War II in this polished and suspenseful melodrama. Adapted from Philippe…

Misterstourworm and the Kelpie’s Gift

5 Jun 2008

ORCHESTRAL CD Circular Music, Mon 9 Jun Back in 2003, Billy Boyd was a well kent face in Scottish theatre but the world had yet to know his name. At that point, composer Savourna Stevenson and writer Stuart Paterson secured Boyd’s services to narrate…

Nederlands Dans Theater 2

5 Jun 2008

CONTEMPORARY DANCE Edinburgh Festival Theatre, Tue 10 & Wed 11 Jun Many people claim to find inspiration from above. But French choreographer, Medhi Walerski looked skyward for more practical reasons – the clouds. Creating his debut work for…

Refugee Week

5 Jun 2008

This year, Refugee Week has built a programme loosely themed around the idea of ‘Different Pasts, Shared Futures’, with exhibitions looking at the different ways individuals interpret the cities around them, plays, talks, fairs and film festivals…

Liar

5 Jun 2008

CHILDREN’S THEATRE Citizens’ Theatre, Glasgow, until Sat 7 Jun, then touring Scottish travelling songs and family secrets are revealed together in Davey Anderson’s play for young adults, which explores the difficulties people have when they are…

Vanity Fair Portraits

5 Jun 2008

We didn’t need Princess Diana to die to know we live in a celebrity-obsessed age. The love/hate relationship between the people and the famous is now more fraught than ever. Fame has never been so easy to come by, but we seem to take even greater joy in…

Foto: Modernity in Central Europe 1918-1945

5 Jun 2008

PHOTOGRAPHY Dean Gallery, Edinburgh, Sat 7 Jun–Sun 31 Aug The Dean’s new exhibition argues that across Central Europe between the wars the driving force of modernity in art could be found in the field of photography. Artists and amateur practitioners…

Haptic (Group show)

5 Jun 2008

MIXED MEDIA (DESIGN) The Lighthouse, Glasgow, Wed 18 Jun–Mon 29 Sep Kenya Hara, from Tokyo’s Nippon Design Museum, has suggested a new model for design: ‘Whilst affirming scientific progress, I would like to propose that we use not technology, but the…

Paul Rooney

5 Jun 2008

VIDEO The Collective Gallery, Edinburgh, until Sat 12 Jul Liverpool-based artist Paul Rooney’s two video works on show at the Collective Gallery include the newly commissioned ‘Lost High Street’ (2008), which draws on his experiences as an art student…

Louise Bourgeois: Nature Study

5 Jun 2008

PAINTING, SCULPTURE Inverleith House, Edinburgh, until Sun 6 Jul It’s a weekday lunchtime in spring and the Royal Botanic Garden is teeming with new life. Mothers push buggies, primary school children dig into the earth and the plants are a riot of…

Lucy Skaer

5 Jun 2008

DRAWING, SCULPTURE & FILM Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh, until Wed 9 Jul Looking at Skaer’s black drawings is like watching someone trapped under a thick sheet of ice. Admittedly, the likelihood of ever having witnessed such a death is rare, but the…

Iain Hetherington: Diversified Cultural Workers

5 Jun 2008

PAINTING Mary Mary, Glasgow, until Sat 28 Jun Using a combination of abstract and realist painting techniques, Iain Hetherington’s new exhibition presents an intriguing twist on the idea of the painted portrait. These new works build on themes…

Coloursfest

5 Jun 2008

A couple of issues ago, in this very space, we wrote of the supposed ‘death’ and renaissance of superclubs in Britain (well, it was the club night Renaissance that was being discussed at the time). In Scotland, though, our superclub has never gone away.

Introducing . . . Fabrikken

5 Jun 2008

Residents Steve Glencross of Stavia fame and Ryan McDonald from Irdium/Stick 430. Guests ‘We have a few guests we’re planning on putting on after this first date with Martin Mackay from RubADub,’ explains Glencross. ‘The next date will be with Dave…

Studio 24’s 13th Birthday Weekender

5 Jun 2008

TECHNO/METAL Studio 24, Edinburgh, Fri 13 & Sat 14 Jun ‘We don’t usually celebrate birthdays here,’ says Studio 24’s manager Gill McArthur, ‘but I’m superstitious, so I couldn’t ignore our 13th.’ She would do well not to invite any more bad luck…

Dopplereffekt

5 Jun 2008

TECHNO/ELECTRO Numbers at the Sub Club, Glasgow, Fri 6 Jun It seems curiously prophetic that a track named ‘Alleys of Your Mind’ would inspire the young James Stinson and Gerald Donald to form Drexciya, who would eventually become recognised as one…

Profile - Wendy Wason

5 Jun 2008

Name Wendy Wason Who’s she then? An Edinburgh lass, she was educated at George Watson’s before heading west to attend Glasgow Uni. She got into acting and took roles in Taggart, High Road and some ads before dipping her toes in the film world with…

Edinburgh Treefest

5 Jun 2008

We are aware that there are other festivals covered in this particular issue, and that many of them are trying to be carbon neutral or similarly ecologically friendly. But none of them are actually about trees. A celebration of all things wooden, leafy…

Lucy Porter

5 Jun 2008

She may be regarded as one of the most delightful individuals on the comedy circuit, but Ms Porter has shown a different side to her character with her hard-nosed hustling in Celebrity Poker Club and her wickedly-tongued antics in shows such as Lady…

Peace chain around Faslane

5 Jun 2008

The Scottish CND are organising a chain of people and banners along the fence at Faslane submarine base in peaceful protest against the UK Government’s plan to build a new nuclear weapon system, which is opposed by the Scottish Parliament. Faslane…

American woman - Estelle interview

5 Jun 2008

Estelle is a busy lady. It takes three weeks, three reschedules and three attempts at a transatlantic phone call to finally get a word with her. ‘Yeah man, its been promo city lately’ she giggles from a room in the heart of her US label Atlantic’s…

West End Festival

5 Jun 2008

Best for al fresco frolicking There is of course more to the West End Festival than Scotland’s Mardi Gras (pictured), but the impact of 500+ musicians and costumed revellers stopping traffic on Byres Road (Sun 15 Jun) is not to be sniffed at. Propping…

Liza Minnelli

5 Jun 2008

SHOWBIZ LEGEND SECC, Glasgow, Fri 6 Jun There aren’t many people for whom the word ‘legend’ is applicable, but Liza Minnelli is certainly one of them. Tales of marital woe and substance abuse may have dogged her personal life, but Minnelli’s career…

Atmosphere

5 Jun 2008

HIP HOP Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Tue 17 Jun No matter how tired commercial hip hop becomes there’s always a smattering of inspirational characters to breathe some life into the scene. Innovators like MF Doom, Madlib and Shape of Broad Minds keep us on…

Paul Merton's Impro Chums

5 Jun 2008

IMPROVISATION Pavilion Theatre, Glasgow, Fri 6 Jun The public image of Paul Merton is one of an ad libbing master who can turn the blandest of suggestion or question and turn into improvised gems. Yet this is a man who has plied his comedy trade with…

Exposure - Lykke Li

5 Jun 2008

Floating somewhere between Feist and Björk, 22-year-old Lykke Li’s breathy, sugary vocals got a bouncy, electronic makeover when Björn Yttling, of Peter, Björn and John produced her debut album. Since her catchy single ‘Little Bit’ came out in February…

Festivals

5 Jun 2008

Until 8 June Leith Festival Various venues, Leith, Edinburgh, prices vary www.leithfestival.com Leith Festival showcases its trademark brew of home-grown talent and big name headliners with over 100 musical acts, 50 comedians and a dozen visual…

Remote Control

5 Jun 2008

Andrea Riseborough must have a thing about playing scary people. While she wafted in to view as a spectral ghost in the BBC3 pilot of Being Human (a one-off that was the subject of such a frenzied online petition that the show was eventually…

Ann Louise Ross - Les Parents Terribles

5 Jun 2008

In the early 20th century Paris, Jean Cocteau was considered avant-garde. He was the kind of artistic butterfly who, when he wasn’t publishing volumes of poetry, giving encouragement to young (and sexually attractive) artists and hanging out with the…

Chez Pierre

5 Jun 2008

Sometimes we get a bit too serious about food. But then it is a serious business, it’s what keeps us upright, but like any realm of human interest some folk, among them food journalists and chefs, become just a bit too earnest about the whole subject.

Singles & Downloads

5 Jun 2008

This month’s singles and downloads is pretty special, with a mix of deranged French experimental, dubstep soul, a minimal masterpiece and a sublime piece of R&B/hip hop from a duo that you just know are going to deliver something standout... There’s…

The Red Room

5 Jun 2008

DANCE/PHYSICAL THEATRE Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, Fri 13 & Sat 14 Jun Listening to David Hughes and Al Seed talk is like dropping in on a mutual appreciation society. Taking a break from rehearsals at Edinburgh’s Dance Base, the two men talk…

The Sound of My Voice

5 Jun 2008

ADAPTATION Citizens’ Theatre, Glasgow, until Sat 7 Jun Most people live a life torn between the conformities of consumerism and some more primal urge for happiness, yet we only really notice this schism when a person goes off the rails. One such…

Edinburgh International Film Festival - LGBT

5 Jun 2008

LGBT-INTEREST CINEMA Various venues, Edinburgh, Wed 18–Sun 29 Jun This year’s EIFF programme includes a handful of intriguing films featuring gay characters or themes. If it’s a mix of high camp, glamour and drama you’re after, look no further than…

Royal Scottish National Orchestra: orchestra+

5 Jun 2008

NEW COLLABORATIONS Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, Thu 19 Jun The names Elvis Costello and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra aren’t likely contenders for appearing in the same sentence. Neither are the RSNO and Video Games Live. More regular…

Profile - Pierre Salvadori

5 Jun 2008

Name Pierre Salvadori Born Tunisia, 1964 Background A former actor and TV sitcom writer, Salvadori made his feature debut with Wild Target in 1993, a deadpan farce concerning a middle-aged hit man (Jean Rochefort) and his young apprentice…

Taste Test - Smoothies

5 Jun 2008

Innocent Mango and Passion Fruit Smoothie ••• RS McColl, St James Centre, Edinburgh, £1.89 for 250ml Mango overload! A tangy, tropical taste is left in your mouth which could be quite refreshing on a hot day. It may be pure but you should expect a…

Corona Classic Cuts

5 Jun 2008

NEW SEASON Oran Mor, Glasgow, until Sat 29 Jun King Lear in 50 minutes looks a pretty tall order, but it’s just one of four canonical classics reduced to lunchtime length in this new season from Oran Mor’s A Play, a Pie and a Pint. Producer David…

Also Released - Film

5 Jun 2008

Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (15) 102min ••• The hapless dope smoking duo get into a spot of bother when they try and smuggle a bong onto an aircraft. Mistaken for bomb wielding terrorists they soon find themselves in the infamous military…

Peter Kosminksy

5 Jun 2008

DOCUMENTARY/DRAMA SEASON More4, Sat 14–Sun 20 Jun In the era of Play for Today, the rabblerousing TV dramatist lurked in every nook and cranny of the BBC, cropping up on primetime slots to frighten the horses. Now though, the nation’s broadcasting…

Bruce Jones & John Romita Jr - The Incredible Hulk: Return of the Monster

5 Jun 2008

SUPERHERO (Marvel) This year’s blockbuster roster is jam packed with comic adaptations, and Marvel’s second big hitter of the year, The Incredible Hulk (after the considerable success of Iron Man) smashes it’s way onto the big screen this…

Let's Get Lost

5 Jun 2008

One of the girlfriends of the late legend of the cool school of jazz once observed, ‘Chet Baker sure knew how to get lost.’ Aside from knowing how to get lost in his music (being a brilliantly intuitive trumpet player), Baker was also very adept at…

Mark Stewart and the Maffia and A Certain Ratio

5 Jun 2008

PUNK FUNK Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Thu 12 Jun Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Sat 14 Jun Somewhere between Manchester and Bristol there’s a punk-funk ley line. How else to explain the umbilical link between The Pop Group and A Certain Ratio, two bands who…

The Infinite Pleasures of the Great Unknown

5 Jun 2008

NEW WORK Tramway, Glasgow, Fri 6 & Sat 7 Jun The provocative Dr Mabuse trilogy, made by Fritz Lang in the 1920-30s, was banned by the Nazis, before the filmmaker fled the country. It’s frightening, though unsurprising, that a work steeped in the…

Swindle and Death

5 Jun 2008

NEW WORK Tron, Glasgow, Wed 11–Sat 14 Jun; Byre, St Andrews, Mon 16–Fri 20 Jun There’s a long history of plays by Scottish writers about the Scottish theatre, and too often these pieces become mired in self referential jokes. While Peter Arnott’s new…

Side Dishes

5 Jun 2008

Martin Wishart, now one of Scotland’s best-known chefs, has just released his first cook book. Despite the elevated culinary status of his Leith restaurant, Wishart is keen to emphasise that his recipes are designed with all abilities in mind. ‘Anybody…

5 Reasons To Go See - Theo Travis's Double Talk

5 Jun 2008

1 He’s got a sound in his head Double Talk was put together specifically to explore a sound that Theo had in his head, featuring his saxes and flute alongside the brilliant Mike Outram on guitar, Hammond organ wiz Paul Whittaker and ex-Fairground…

Blackbird

5 Jun 2008

REVIVAL Theatre Royal, Glasgow, Mon 9–Sat 14 Jun The gruesome ongoing discoveries in the Jersey abuse scandal and the uncovered horrors of Austrian Josef Fritzl’s secret basement have done little to quell the worst nightmares of parents. It is into…

The First to Go

5 Jun 2008

HOLOCAUST DRAMA Tron, Glasgow, until Sat 7 Jun, then touring Seeing disabled actors performing in a mainstream theatre is rare enough. Benchtours’ production of Nabil Shaban’s play about the treatment of the disabled in Nazi Germany is doubly…

Food For Thought

5 Jun 2008

When I’m performing it’s hard to get time for a proper dinner so I’ll usually have a bag of pistachios, a smoothie, maybe a nice nutty pie, little things to keep me going. I try to avoid cheese as it makes me phlegmy, but if I don’t have a performance…

Superhero Movie

5 Jun 2008

SPOOF/COMEDY (12A) 85min The presence of Airplane’s David Zucker amongst the executive producers and Leslie Nielsen amongst the cast raises hopes that Superhero Movie might offer a classier strain of parody than Date Movie or Meet the Spartans. Alas…

Spiritualized - Songs in A&E

5 Jun 2008

ROCK (Sanctuary) It’s not unfair to say that Jason Pierce has been essentially rewriting the same couple of songs over and over again for the last 20 years. He scratches away inventively at the same formula, much like his much vaunted blues heroes…

Prom Night

5 Jun 2008

HORROR REMAKE (15) 87min With its extended disco dancing sequence and an uncomfortably serious role for Naked Gun star Leslie Nielsen, the 1980 slasher flick Prom Night hardly merits rediscovery. And yet somehow telly hack director Nelson McCormick…

Jens Lekman - live music review

5 Jun 2008

INDIE POP Oran Mor, Glasgow, Thu 15 May Modern pop is rarely as smart, affecting or plain funny as when it’s in the hands of Jens Lekman. Nor as succinct. ‘No encore, 11 songs, all hits,’ proclaimed the Swede at the start of his set, tongue lodged…

Neue Liebe - live music review

5 Jun 2008

CABARET The Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Sun 25 May ‘This is much better than playing with dreary indie bands,’ says Andrew Eaton, singer with headliners Swimmer One, and then he quickly checks himself in case there are any dreary indie bands in…

Marissa Nadler - live music review

5 Jun 2008

COUNTRY-FOLK Stereo, Glasgow, Tue 13 May Waif-like guitar-picking girls are ten a penny these days, what with your Cat Powers and your Bat for Lashes already well established. And like the sphere of male singer-songwriters, it’s a field which could…

Take Three: They were once a Pierre Victoire

5 Jun 2008

Howies 10 Victoria Street, Edinburgh, 0131 225 1721 www.howies.uk.com There’s no question the original PV was in a great restaurant spot: right in the heart of town on one of Edinburgh’s most interesting streets. Howies’ casual, populist style…

The Chap - live music review

5 Jun 2008

ART POP Limbo@The Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Thu 1 May ‘In case you didn’t realise,’ deadpans Chap bassist Panos Ghikas, ‘all our songs are about pleasure.’ Well, blow me down with a showroom dummy, who’da thunk it? Because this pan-global North…

Also Published - 5 Auto-biographies

5 Jun 2008

Andy Murray - Hitting Back The Dunblane lad may still be a slip of a boy but those memoirs start coming out earlier every year. Here’s the story of his life with Wimbledon fast approaching and another media frenzy brewing. Century. Russell Watson…

Will Lavender - Obedience

5 Jun 2008

MYSTERY THRILLER (Macmillan) Will Lavender’s debut is a taunting puzzle mystery which explores the dark side of academia. The strangely enigmatic Professor Williams of Winchester University sets his logic and reasoning class a challenge: an…

Mudhoney - Superfuzz Bigmuff: Deluxe Edition and The Lucky Ones ••••

5 Jun 2008

GRUNGE Superfuzz Bigmuff: Deluxe Edition The Lucky Ones (Sub Pop) Mudhoney were always the dirty, psychotic older brothers to Nirvana’s globe-straddling grunge phenomenon, true inheritors of The Stooges’ mantle, with their reluctance to…

Nils Petter Molvaer - Re-Vision

5 Jun 2008

JAZZ (Emarcy) Trumpeter Nils Petter Molvaer first made his mark round these parts with the excellent jazz quintet Masqualero in the late 1980s, but became better known as one of the prime begetters of the Norwegian Nu-Jazz phenomenon with the release…

Bill Frisell - History, Mystery

5 Jun 2008

JAZZ (Nonesuch) This is the biggest group that the guitarist has used on record in a while, but the eight-piece ensemble – incorporating a string quartet of violin, viola, cello and bass – has an intimate, chamber music feel that never feels crowded…

Helen FitzGerald - Dead Lovely

5 Jun 2008

CRIME NOVEL (Faber) Once I got beyond the fact that the murderer in this crime thriller-meets-chick lit novel resides on my Glasgow street, I found plenty to enjoy in Helen FitzGerald’s debut. Opening with Krissie’s confession that she’s cheated with…

Lau - Lau Live

5 Jun 2008

FOLK (Navigator Records) Lau’s combination of traditional roots and an openness to experiment is the hallmark of this scintillating disc, recorded in concert at the Bongo Club, Edinburgh back in December. It seems they have been gigging relentlessly…

Joan As Police Woman - To Survive

5 Jun 2008

SINGER SONGWRITER (Reveal) Being a sometime member of both Rufus Wainwright’s band and Antony and the Johnsons, and the ex of Jeff Buckley to boot, did much for Joan Wasser in terms of recognition when she launched her debut album two years ago.

Jeph Loeb & Tim Sale - Hulk: Gray

5 Jun 2008

SUPERHERO (Marvel) He’s probably as famous for his tough green hide as his anger-management problems but the Hulk has spent several years as a grey goliath (in fact he was grey in his first ever appearance in 1962). Some creative teams work…

The Fratellis - Here We Stand

5 Jun 2008

ROCK (Fallout) It’s easy to understand what The Fratellis are for – they are here to help us expel those more primal emotions and meaning we don’t have to take a hammer to the neighbours every time they leave the window open whilst playing Cher – but…

Evita

5 Jun 2008

It won’t be easy, you’ll think it strange... Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Tim Rice’s musical trawl through the rise to sainthood of Eva Perón, is back on the road with a brand new national tour. Since the musical’s original incarnation as a concept album…

Y'all is Fantasy Island - Rescue Weekend

5 Jun 2008

ALT.FOLK (Wise Blood Industries) On stage this Falkirk four-piece may remain capricious in tone and temperament but by first impressions this follow-up to the stark In Faceless Towns Forever could easily be dismissed as more of the same. The…

Nine Inch Nails - The Slip

5 Jun 2008

METAL (The Null Corporation) Trent Reznor has always been an innovator and after several years of dispute with his record label he’s finally free to operate by his own rules. With his first taste of freedom he released a 36 track instrumental album…

Greg Pak, Carlo Pagulayan & Aaron Lopresti - Planet Hulk

5 Jun 2008

SUPERHERO (Marvel) We reviewed World War Hulk in issue 599 (•••) but let’s go back to the story that launched Hulk on his revenge fuelled tirade against planet earth. The Illuminati (a secretive cabal of superheroes that includes Iron Man, Mr…

Paul Weller - 22 Dreams

5 Jun 2008

ROCK (Island) For a man so conscious of the art and craft of songwriting, this sprawling old school double album – that is, 21 tracks over 70 minutes, like double albums were before CDs – this is a truly liberating record. Rather than trying to build…

Various - Dubstep Allstars Vol.06: Mixed by Appleblim

5 Jun 2008

DUBSTEP (Tempa) The Allstars series is arguably the best dubstep mix option out there right now, enforcing Tempa’s presence within the dubstep arena. This latest contribution by Laurie Osborne, aka Appleblim from Skull Disco, is the cream of what’s…

Various - Rinse Mix CD04 mixed by Skepta

5 Jun 2008

DUBSTEP/GRIME (Tempa) Direct from London’s pirate radio HQ, Rinse FM, comes the latest offering in their mix series courtesy of the man Skepta. The mix is a typically busy affair fusing jump-up style grime, house and stepper cuts in a style that…

Triple Darkness - The Heresy Presents: Anathema

5 Jun 2008

HIP HOP (Higher Heights Records) UK hip hop suffers from the age-old problem of trying to compete with its US roots; a losing battle some might say, but Triple Darkness have been receiving a fair bit of hype of late, supporting Method Man and Redman…

Dan Slott & Juan Bobillo - She-Hulk: Single Green Female

5 Jun 2008

SUPERHERO (Marvel) Finally how could we ignore She-Hulk? After receiving an irradiated blood transfusion from her cousin, Bruce Banner, Jennifer Walters inherited some of his powers and strength. However, she’s in control of her emotions and isn’t…

RockNess

5 Jun 2008

The first genuine music festival of the summer season is upon us! Rock Ness decamps to the banks of the mythic Loch Ness. Headed by Fatboy Slim and featuring Razorlight, Editors, CSS, The View and Underworld, the list of star performers just goes on and…

Trouble

5 Jun 2008

Celebrating their sixth birthday this fortnight, Trouble are happy to throw out the rulebook with the residents on hand to mix up their selection of soul and dance classics while championing the freshest, most innovative and exciting new music…

Joan As Police Woman

5 Jun 2008

It’s hard to categorise Joan As Police Woman (aka Joan Wasser and her band). She’s worked with Rufus Wainwright, is one of Antony’s Johnsons and creates intelligent, thoughtful music with a punk rock attitude. ‘I’ve called it punk rock R&B but American…

Fleet Foxes

5 Jun 2008

Seattle five-piece Fleet Foxes are signed to one of the city’s most legendary labels Sub Pop (as well as Bella Union). But it’s as far from grunge as you could get, except for their gorgeous, ramshackle nature. Despite a few shaggy rock outs the band…

Bleep Live

5 Jun 2008

Alden Tyrell (real name Martijn Hoogendijk) is the guest at Bleep Live this month, and unlike many of his Rotterdam brethren he doesn’t deal in hardcore gabba beats but lush electronics. Signed to Clone Records, and releasing tracks like ‘Love…