Tag Archives: pop

Quick plays: THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE, TUESDAY THE SKY

Posted on June 15, 2017 by jason

THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE Under Your Spell Metropolis Records [Release date 09.06.17] I first came across the Birthday Massacre with last year’s enjoyable ‘Imagica’ album, which was a reworking of some of their earlier songs, so was looking forward to hearing new … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Quick Plays | Tagged album, Drift, Fates Warning, Jim Matheos, pop, progressive, review, rock, the Birthday Massacre, Tuesday The Sky, Under The Sky | Leave a comment

Gig review: BEARDED THEORY – Catton Park, Derbyshire, 25 – 28 May 2017

Posted on June 12, 2017 by david.wilson

BEARDED THEORY – TEN YEARS OF MUSIC, MAGIC AND MISCHIEF… Once a year the grounds of Catton Park in Derbyshire are transformed into one of the happiest places on earth. If this conjures images of a saccharine sweet world of … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged Alabama 3, Bearded Theory, Beardy Keef, Blackballed, Catton Park, Derbyshire, Don Letts, Dreadzone, Ferocious Dog, festival, gig, Goldblade, Madness, may 2017, New Model Army, pop, punk, review, rock, Seasick Steve, Selector, Seth Lakeman, Skunk Anansie | Leave a comment

Quick plays: SCARVED, OOBERFUSE

Posted on June 12, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

SCARVED Lodestone [Release date 03.03.17] What springs to mind when you think about Belgium? World class beer, chocolate, and a national football team? Could female fronted rock be added to that impressive roster with the sophomore release from Scarved? Fronted … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Quick Plays | Tagged album, Belgium, electronica, hard rock, Lodestone, Ooberfuse, pop, review, Scarved, The Odd Ones | Leave a comment

Album review: NASHER – 432-1 Open The Vein

Posted on June 12, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

Babylon Pink [Release date 23.06.17] Whatever happened to Frankie Goes To Hollywood guitarist Brian ‘Nasher’ Nash? The opener – ‘Salt In Her Veins’ – sounds like you’ve put the radio on FM by mistake and it’s drifted ‘off station’. But … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged 432-1 Open The Vein, album, Brian Nash, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Nasher, pop, review, rock, singer, songwriter | Leave a comment

News: STACKRIDGE release The Final Bow (July 2017)

Posted on June 7, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

Pop prog rockers Stackridge played their “Farewell” Tour in late 2015 and their gig at The Fiddlers Club, Bristol on 19 December 2015 is released on 14 July by Angel Air Records. The band appeared at the formative Glastonbury Festival … Continue reading →

Posted in Album News, ALL POSTS, NEWS | Tagged Andy Davis, Angel Air Records, James Warren, pop, progressive, Stackridge, The Final Bow Bristol 2015, The Korgis | Leave a comment

Gig review: BOOTLEG BEATLES – Royal Albert Hall, 1 June 2017

Posted on June 2, 2017 by jason

The Bootleg Beatles were performing tonight with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra to celebrate the 50th anniversary of one of the most iconic albums of all time, ‘Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’. The sold out Royal Albert Hall providing … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS, The Best of 2017 | Tagged Bootleg Beatles, Classic Albums, George Harrison, gig, gigs, John Lennon, Paul McArtney, pop, psychadelic, Ringo Starr, rock, Roger McGough, Royal Albert Hall, Scaffold, Summer of Love, The Beatles | Leave a comment

Quick plays: WILL LUDFORD, DAUDI MATSIKO, HANNAH ALDRIDGE

Posted on May 31, 2017 by jason

WILL LUDFORD Addicted Big Buzzard Songs Blues guitarist Will Ludford has worked in the past with Joe Meek, met George Harrison and jammed with Jimi Hendrix – not a bad musical CV! ‘Addicted’ has a distinctive 60′s feel to the music, … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Quick Plays | Tagged Addicted, album, Americana, An Introduction to Failure, blues, Daudi Matsiko, Gold Rush, Hannah Aldridge, indie, pop, Quick Play, reviews, rock, Will Ludfor | Leave a comment

Book review: THOMAS DOLBY – The Speed of Sound

Posted on May 31, 2017 by jason

Icon Books www.iconbooks.co.uk [Published 08.06.17] Thomas Morgan Robertson become Thomas Dolby after his friends named him after the famous Dolby noise reduction device found on many 70′s and 80′s sound systems. Most will know the name for his early 80′s … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, BOOK REVIEWS | Tagged book, David Bowie, Foreigner, memoir, Michael Jackson, Mick Jones, music, pop, Prefab Sprout, review, technology, The Speed of Sound, Thomas Dolby | Leave a comment

Album review: NIKKA & STRINGS – Underneath And In Between

Posted on May 30, 2017 by petefeenstra

Metropolis Recordings [Release date 02.6.17] Despite a background as a teen star, a high profile backing singer and a songwriter who has worked with the likes of Clapton and Prince, Nikka Costa still has a way to go before carving … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, blues, Eartha Kitt, Erc Clapton, Frank Sinatra, funk, Jeff Buckley, Motown, Nikka & Strings, Nikka Costa, pop, Prince, review, soul, Underneath And In Between | Leave a comment

Gig review: ELEANOR McEVOY – Alexander’s, Chester, 14 May 2017

Posted on May 15, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

In this hour long interview/feature David Randall chats to Eleanor McEvoy about her career. Part of The GRTR! Archive series and recorded in June 2008. (57:23) Eleanor McEvoy wowed an attentive audience on her continuing Naked Music tour – not … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged 14 May 2017, acoustic, Alexanders, Chester, Eleanor McEvoy, gig, pop, review, rock, singer, songwriter | Leave a comment

Album review: THE NIGHT FLIGHT ORCHESTRA – Amber Galactic

Posted on May 15, 2017 by jason

Nuclear Blast [Release date 19.05.17] There are a good number of bands paying homage to the classic 70′s and 80′s hard rock/AOR/pop sound, with Brother Firetribe (another band who’s members are drawn from heavier sounding bands) and Cats In Space being … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, Amber Galactic, AOR, Arch Enemy, disco, Night Flight Orchestra, pop, review, rock, Soilwork, Survivor | Leave a comment

EP reviews: THE LOFT CLUB, DIG DEEPER, GOODWOOD ATOMS

Posted on May 9, 2017 by jason

THE LOFT CLUB Heart’s Desire www.facebook.com/theloftclubband The Loft Club released this EP back in October 2016 and have had big success on Spotify with a Niklas Ibach dance remix of the EP’s title track. Their sound recalls greats like the … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, Single and EP reviews | Tagged alternative, Bandcamp, Dig Deeper, EP, Goodwood Atoms, indie, melodic, pop, review, rock, the Loft Club | Leave a comment

Quick plays: MICHAEL KIWANUKA, THE DAWN BROTHERS

Posted on April 18, 2017 by jason

MICHAEL KIWANUKA Love And Hate Since my son and I are “live on Sky” football junkies, my dear lady busies herself with her own TV series and was bowled over by the opening soundtrack to “Big Little Lies” which happens to … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Quick Plays, The Best of 2017 | Tagged albums, Big Little Lies, Bruce Kulick, glam, Kiss, Love and Hate, Michael Kiwanuka, pop, Quick Play, reviews, rock, Sister's Doll, Stayin Out Late, the Dawn Brothers, White Widdow | 1 Comment

Album review: AS LIONS – Selfish Age

Posted on April 7, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

Better Noise [Release date 20.01.17] We first heard As Lions when they released a four track EP featuring tracks from their forthcoming debut album. Immediately, as with the opener here ‘Aftermath’, you knew this was something special. Strong on melody, … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, alternative, As Lions, Austin Dickinson, electro, pop, review, Rise To Remain, rock, Selfish Age | Leave a comment

Album review: PAUL MENEL AND THE ESSENTIALS – Spare Parts For Broken Hearts

Posted on April 6, 2017 by jason

www.paulmenelessentials.co.uk [Release date 14.02.17] Paul Menel will be known to many prog rock fans as the lead singer with IQ between 1985 and 1990. However, since then and on this album in particular, he takes a few prog leanings and … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, IQ, Paul Menel, Paul Menel and the Essentials, pop, prog, review, rock, Spare Parts For Broken Hearts | Leave a comment

Interview: TIM ARNOLD

Posted on March 31, 2017 by jason

Tim Arnold has just released a new single ‘Change’ and here we catch-up with Tim to learn more about the single’s video that features mime artist Lindsay Kemp, plus his musical plans for the coming months. How did you get to … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, INTERVIEWS, Interviews/10 Questions | Tagged Change, interview, Kate Bush, Lindsay Kemp, music, pop, singer songwriter, Tim Arnold | Leave a comment

Quick plays: HARROW FAIR, OH SUSANNA

Posted on March 29, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

HARROW FAIR Call To Arms Roraing Girl Records [Release date 19.05.17] Deploying that now familiar White Stripes, unaccompanied two piece modus operandi, Canadian duo Miranda Mulholland and Andrew Penner let loose a kick drum fuelled debut laced with rootsy guitar … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged A Girl In Teen City, acoustic, album, Call To Arms, country, folk, Harrow Fair, Oh Susanna, pop, review, rock, roots, singer, songwriter, Suzie Ungerleider | Leave a comment

Album review: AIMEE MANN – Mental Illness

Posted on March 29, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

SuperEgo/Membran [Release date 31.03.17] Not exactly an uplifting title for an album? But then Aimee Mann’s never exactly been what you might call a happy singer, or a “heaven is a place on earth” composer. No, Aimee was born looking … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, The Best of 2017 | Tagged acoustic, Aimee Mann, album, Mental Illness, pop, review, singer, songwriter | Leave a comment

Gig review: THUNDER – Clyde Auditorium, Glasgow, 22 March 2017

Posted on March 23, 2017 by david.wilson

I have been a Thunder fan for more years than I care to remember, in fact I was a fan of the guys right back in the big trousered and big haired days of Terraplane, which is showing my age … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS, The Best of 2017 | Tagged 22 March 2017, blues, Cats In Space, Clyde Auditorium, Danny Bowes, gig, Glasgow, live, Luke Morley, Paul Manzi, pop, review, Rip It Up, rock, Terraplane, Thunder | Leave a comment

Gig review: ROD STEWART – 02 Arena, London, 27 February 2017

Posted on March 19, 2017 by andynathan

The death of so many stars in 2016 – from Bowie and Prince to Rick Parfitt and George Michael – makes it all the more imperative that we catch the greats of rock and pop while we still can. One … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, GIG REVIEWS | Tagged 27 February 2017, gig, Jimmy Roberts, London, MOR, O2 Arena, pop, review, rock, Rod Stewart, The Faces | Leave a comment

EP review: FRAGILE THINGS, THOSE WHO KNEW

Posted on March 16, 2017 by jason

FRAGILE THINGS Broken Sun www.fragilethingsoffical.com Release date [17.02.17] Hailing from Milton Keynes, this four piece band consist of Richie Hevanz (vocals), Mark Hanlon (guitars), Steve Lathwell (bass) and Hugo Bowman (drums). Vocalist Richie Hevanz you may recall from Heaven’s Basement, … Continue reading →

Posted in ALL POSTS, Single and EP reviews | Tagged 2 Far 2 Jump, Broken Sun, EP, First Attempts At Everything, Fragile Things, indie, metal, New Perspective, pop, review, rock, Those Who Knew | Leave a comment

Quick plays: MADISON VIOLET, STEVE RAVENSFIELD, BLACK ANGELS

Posted on March 14, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

MADISON VIOLET The Knight Sessions (Big Lake Music) With their last album Year Of The Horse (2014), Madison Violet (two piece Canadian female harmony duo Brenley MacEachern and Lisa MacIsaac) shifted from their country/ folk roots to a bolder, dare … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS, Quick Plays | Tagged album, Broken Diamonds, country, Death Song, Madison Violet, pop, Psychedelic Rock, review, rock 'n' roll, singer, songwriter, Sound Of The Suburb, Steve Ravensfield, the Black Angels, The Knight Sessions | Leave a comment

Album review: SAMMY HAGAR – This Is Sammy Hagar

Posted on March 12, 2017 by jason

Mailboat/Membran [Release date 17.03.17] Subtitled ‘Volume One’, this collection collates Sammy Hagar’s solo output from 1999’s ‘Red Voodoo’ through to 2005’s ‘Livin’ It Up’. For fans/collectors there are two new songs plus an outtake mix of ‘Shag’. His band throughout … Continue reading →

Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS | Tagged album, pop, review, rock, Sammy Hagar, Solo, This Is Sammy Hagar, Van Halen, Waboritas, When The Party Started | Leave a comment

News: ELEANOR McEVOY – UK tour (May 2017)

Posted on March 11, 2017 by GRTR! HQ

Eleanor McEvoy - Alexanders, Chester, 12 March 2015

Ireland’s internationally acclaimed singer-songwriter Eleanor McEvoy continues her ‘Naked… Live’ tour with the announcement of a fourteen-date tour across England and Wales throughout May 2017. Best known for her songs ‘Sophie’ and the Irish standard ‘Only A Woman’s Heart’, which … Continue reading →

Posted in Gigs and Tour News, NEWS | Tagged acoustic, Eleanor McEvoy, folk, Ireland, may 2017, pop, rock, singer, songwriter, Tour, uk | Leave a comment

Album review: LISBEE STAINTON – Then Up

Posted on February 17, 2017 by jason

Marionet Music [Release date 21.04.17] Lisbee Stainton returns with her first new album in three years. Like previous albums she utilises skilled musicians she has worked with either in Seth Lakeman’s band – guitarist Jack Rutter and percussionist Cormac Byrne – or long … Continue reading →