Gig Reviews

Henry Rollins - Good To See You - Bath Komedia

by jessicajolly / Apr 05, 2023 / 0 comments

During two and a half hours, while speaking two and a half times faster than most, Henry Rollins only told three stories (with a bit of politics at the start and motivation at end.) But my god, what stories.

The Black Angels - Live Review - Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London

by Mils / Mar 08, 2023 / 0 comments

The Black Angels create a fully immersive, deeply hypnotic experience in Shepherd’s Bush Empire with their fuzzed-out Texas take on psych-rock.

Hell Is For Heroes - Live Review - Eventim Apollo

by Mils / Mar 06, 2023 / 0 comments

Hell Is For Heroes treat an incredibly enthusiastic Eventim Apollo audience to a blistering set featuring ever-potent classics, two brilliant new songs, and a lead singer clearly still hooked on crowd surfing.

Yungblud - Live Review - Wembley Arena, London

by Mils / Feb 28, 2023 / 0 comments

Yungblud wraps his first UK arena tour with a thrilling Wembley show that combines newfound spectacle with a familiar intimacy.

Inclusion is important to Yungblud. His songs, which touch on everything from gender identity and prescription pharmaceuticals to mental health and family dysfunction, preach self-acceptance and resisting society’s pressures to conform. His fanbase, the Black Hearts Club, is built on what’s described as a shared sense of unconditional love and communal support.

PVRIS - Live Review - Eventim Apollo, London

by Mils / Jan 28, 2023 / 0 comments

PVRIS bring new songs and old to a packed Eventim Apollo, showing off their talents as dynamic live performers as well as their musical evolution.

Too often live shows highlight a band’s shortcomings. Especially if that band’s carefully crafted albums favour a big, slick production style over capturing the raw energy of real people playing together. Without the studio trickery to hide behind, on stage their limitations as performers, musicians, or songwriters become glaringly obvious.

The 1975 - Live Review - The O2 Arena, London

by Mils / Jan 14, 2023 / 0 comments

The 1975 support their most focused album yet with their most ambitious stage show to date. Even a surprise appearance by Taylor Swift can’t eclipse the sensory-overload spectacle they’ve created.

To the strains of Mahler’s Adagietto, Matty Healy has just felt himself up on a couch, taken at least two bites of a raw slab of meat, done shirtless push-ups in front of a wall of ’60s TV sets, and climbed right into one of those flickering screens.

Where does one go from there?

Fields Of The Nephilim & The Membranes - LIve Review - Shepherd’s Bush Empire

by john / Dec 19, 2022 / 0 comments

Fields Of The Nephilim embark on another dark voyage as they perform their landmark 1988 album The Nephilim in full.

The Cure - Live Review - Wembley Arena, London

by Mils / Dec 15, 2022 / 0 comments

The Cure wrap their Lost World Tour of Europe with three Wembley Arena shows that are all about astonishing new songs, the mood swings of an epic back catalogue, and a celebration of the big pop hits. Nils van der Linden was there, with photos by Naomi Dryden-Smith from the Glasgow show.

Fontaines Live Review: Eventim Apollo

by mintyhit / Nov 29, 2022 / 0 comments

Fontaines D.C. put on a breathtaking show to end their run of three successive sold-out nights at Hammersmith’s Eventim Apollo. Nils van der Linden finds a band with the live performance skills to match the brilliance of their albums. (We were the first people to ever write about the band back in 2015 here)

Beth Orton: KOKO, London – live review

by jessicajolly / Oct 19, 2022 / 0 comments

Beth Orton at KOKO is less of a gig and more of a celebration — of an artist, her determination, and the resulting masterpiece: new album Weather Alive.

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