• The Horrors – V

    September 28, 2017 - By 

    Starter for ten: Is V merely an incredibly unimaginative title to mark The Horrors filth album, or is it a big fat fuck off to the establishment? Let’s presume for a minute that it’s a cleverly hidden version of the latter. After all, The Horrors themselves have promised a return to the dark shadows they once occupied, stating that they wanted to “get nasty”. Coincide this with the 10 year anniversary of debut Strange House, a happy-go-lucky melee of punk-rock, hairspray and garage–psych that seems like such a distant memory next to the commercial success of the much more danceable…

  • Moses Sumney – Aromanticism

    September 25, 2017 - By 

    Self-diagnosis can be a dangerous thing. I mean, who hasn’t convinced themselves they’re suffering from nail psoriasis, only to later discover that it’s actually just an unfortunate wad of sock fluff hiding underneath their toenail? If you rummage too far in the dark-yet-comfortable confines of WebMD with the blinkers on you’re more than likely going to misdiagnose yourself with something, ultimately doing more harm than good. One man who understands such risks is L.A based singer songwriter Moses Sumney, who, after weeks of diligent and tentative research correctly diagnosed himself with ADHD. More recently, he stumbled upon a new term…

  • Susanne Sundfør – Music for People in Trouble

    September 6, 2017 - By 

    Not to be that guy, but *ahem* as Confucius once said: Real knowledge is to learn the extent of one’s ignorance. Now, without trying to send readers running for the hills with a review rife with personal enlightenment and pretentious philosophical opening statements, it’d be hard to deny that Susanne Sundfør’s latest album, Music for People in Trouble initially appealed as a sitting duck for my worrisome self and an overhanging £5.20 library fine for a book I never once picked up. This review was drafted to open with a breezy, whimsical quip about Sundfør’s medicinal and spirit-cleansing qualities and the…

  • Matthew Bourne – Isotherm

    August 29, 2017 - By 

    Picture a venn diagram with three circles. Label one “classical”, the next “minimalism” and the remaining with ‘maximum emotion’. Occupying the centre ground sit A Winged Victory For The Sullen, James Heather and Ólafur Arnalds among others. Each are pioneers of the neoclassical movement in their own way, and are united by their signature combinations of sweeping ambient brushstrokes tinged with electronic roots and often brought to life by earthier elements, such as choirs and string quartets. In doing so, they’ve blown the doors off classical music, redefining everything from its audience, its medium and its purpose. The latest to…

  • We’re New Here: An Interview with Last Days Of Elvis

    August 21, 2017 - By 

    Anxious and introspective on record, Berlin-based Last Days of Elvis are anything but when interviewed. On first impressions, their debut Must Be A Mistake draws stylistic comparisons to The National and Nick Cave but underneath lies diligently crafted expressions of fragility and angst. Ahead of their upcoming UK and Ireland tour, our Dominic Edge discuss life in Berlin, toilet ambience and recording at Funkhaus Studios with vocalist, guitarist and stew-enthusiast Andrew Stark. Tell us more about your name – is it in admiration to the King, or am I wide of the mark? To be honest, I think we just really…

  • Loner Deluxe – Songs I Taped Off The Radio

    August 8, 2017 - By 

    The only way to discover something truly new in music is to experience it without any preconceptions as to what it could encompass. Remove all your expectations, clear your mind of any niggling biases, shut yourself off from any stimuli that could interfere and truly immerse yourself. It’s advice we could all do well to follow, but when the occasional press release promises the birthplace of a brand new genre it’s near impossible to stop your mind spinning with all possibilities of what’s about to happen. Songs I Taped Off The Radio, the second album by Galway-based Loner Deluxe does…

  • Gang – 925 ‘TIL I DIE

    July 20, 2017 - By 

    For some unknown reason, Britain’s Margate is becoming an unlikely hub of culture. Once famed for its Victorian pier, commodious bathing rooms and Dreamland amusement complex, Margate made for an ideal seaside getaway for middle-class Londoners. Usually, you can read between the lines and translate this to ‘small English coastal town decimated by the introduction of low-cost airlines and package holidays’. But that is not the case. Instead, Margate is one of very few English seaside resorts that has had been regenerated and actually cohabits in the 21st century. The Turner Contemporary Gallery can be found here, as can chic…

  • Art Feynman – Blast Off Through The Wicker

    July 12, 2017 - By 

    Carved into the very top of the Reviewer’s Doctrine sits a Maxim: thou shalt never admit thou are not an expert. It’s something we cite at our regular cult meetings which bring together critics of music, exhibitions and sandwiches alike. We like to think it’s our only connection to internet trolls, although some critics will gladly try to prove otherwise. Consider yourself lucky then, that in this introduction not only will I be breaking our highest Maxim, but our second one too, and use the first person. For I. Was. Wrong. Hard to type, but for the most joyous of…

  • Jefre Cantu-Ledesma – On The Echoing Green

    June 14, 2017 - By 

    Chaos is everywhere. Politically, ecologically or economically speaking, you can’t look far without longing for a friend humanity has never been too well acquainted with: Order. Timely, then, is the return of Jefre Cantu-Ledesma, widely regarded as the apotheosis of ambient drone rock. So frequent are his trademark chaotic turns into rhythmless noise-scapes that comparatively 2017’s Fyre Festival looks like an extremely well organised event. On The Echoing Green, however, promises more overt pop elements at the fore, experimenting in clarity and collaboration and in doing so showcasing a whole new side to Jefre Cantu-Ledesma. Prior to going solo in…

  • Molly Nilsson – Imaginations

    May 23, 2017 - By 

    In the time it takes you to read this sentence, Molly Nilsson has probably already written, recorded and mastered her ninth LP. So studious is the Swedish born, Berlin-based musician/tour manager/designer/Dark Skies Association founder that her latest effort, Imaginations, marks an almost unparalleled eighth album in just nine years. Refreshingly though, Nilsson’s remarkable productivity still bears evolution and expansion. 2015’s effort Zenith was well received, combining vintage synth-pop with power ballads, dancehall and reggae undertones, all with an almost glazed and cold-blooded delivery, pleasing to fans of Eurythmics and Book of Love. Imaginations, written over a two year absence that…