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May 14, 2013May 14, 2013

REVIEW: Alt-J @ O2 Academy, May 5th

By Matthew Osborne / Pics by Katja Ogrin

Going to see Alt-J seemed like an inconvenience on a Sunday, as I had to tear myself away from the Swingamajig festival – which was infected with Type A Carnival Fever when I left.

Whilst Alt-J undoubtedly know how to party off-stage, I expected the show to be a come-down of sorts; so the onus was on the band to perform the show of their career in order to impress me (and gain valuable positive column inches).

Opening act, Princess Chelsea, failed to engross me – so I headed to the bar and tried to wedge myself into a good vantage point, in the claustrophobically packed arena.

Eventually I managed to find a good spot, away from the usual giant men I stand behind; but instead positioning myself next to the two drunkest blokes in the venue.

When Alt-J came on, it transpired that not only did these two know every word (and apparently were taking bets on which track would be played next) but were incredibly adept at dancing to downbeat music. And seemed fairly intent on starting a mosh-pit.

Moving as swiftly as the crowd would allow away from the duo, I noticed that the varied make-up of the audience. Alt-J must have struck a chord with the folk of this land; perhaps intrigued by the unusual way Joe Newman sings, or the ethereal sounds that seep out of the band’s debut An Awesome Wave.

Whatever the ingredients, the formula is a winner for this moment in history – with the entire crowd knowing pretty much every word, as it turned out. The only thing that separated Alt-J‘s impeccably sharp performance from their recordings was when the band took a step back and let us sing.

It turned out that I knew most of the words too.

There was a real sense of togetherness between the crowd and the band, and songs were performed and greeted like old standards, despite being all less than a year or so old.

The only new additions to the set were ‘Buffalo’ (Alt-J‘s contribution to the film Silver Linings Playbook) and a couple of unusual covers including (I was told by another member of the audience) a Kylie Minogue song.

But the true test of Alt-J‘s mettle will be in the coming years. Right now seems like the right time for them, and even though they didn’t continue the party spirit that I had left behind to see them, I was not disappointed.

The crowd rooted for them, and the fact that they are very likable, normal guys, I feel is a good part of their appeal.

The live show, however, is not dynamic; there was very little movement onstage and the songs are perfect replicas of their recorded counterparts. But the songs are good, and to be able to hear them at very high volumes is a treat.

Throw in some flashy lights and you’ve got yourself a lovely show. My advice would be to catch Alt-J in the smallest, most intimate club that you can, and catch them quick – before they become absolutely massive.

For more on Alt-J, visit http://www.altjband.com/

For further listings at the O2 Academy (Birmingham), visit http://www.o2academybirmingham.co.uk/

May 9, 2013

REVIEW: Alessi’s Ark @ Hare & Hounds, May 1st

Words by Katherine Priddy / Pics by Lucy Heath

Alessi is a name I’ve caught floating around the folk circuit for a while now, overheard in fervent discussions at the Moseley Folk Festival and cropping up in conversation at various gigs. But up until now I’ve not listened to her much myself.

So with both quiet optimism and slight trepidation I abandon the first warm evening of the year, to watch Alessi and her ‘Ark’ of musicians at the Hare & Hounds in Kings Heath – on the last date of her UK tour showcasing her new album, ‘The Still Life’. This had better be good.

Arriving at 7:14pm I’m surprised and encouraged to see a queue already forming up the stairs; a line of claret chinos and chunky-knit sweaters. It seems Alessi’s music appeals to the arty/student crowd, and having a more traditional taste myself I wonder whether this is going to be my cup of tea.

We settle into the smaller room of the two; the late sun shines in, people flick through books and magazines, and I relax into the atmosphere. There’s a quiet rumble of anticipation in the room as Canon Street, two sisters from Moseley, lull us with folk harmonies – before the mood becomes noticeably livelier as Ralfe Band, the second support, challenge anyone to resist a foot-tap with their stomping rhythm.

Then, somewhat breaking traditional gig convention, Alessi joins Ralfe Band on stage – singing the lyrics from torn scraps of paper. And whether it’s the wine or home made charm, I find myself getting caught up in anticipation.

Eventually both Alessi and Ark, a drummer and bass guitarist, emerge to loud applause – going straight into ‘Sans Balance’, a track form her latest album. It takes me a moment, but I realise her lyrics are flowing easily between French and English; something I find both unexpected and intriguing.

Alessi is quiet and faltering, although with a quirkiness I find at first disconcerting. Her songs are a strange but satisfying blend of heavy drums, drifting synths and her quiet, unassuming voice.

I find myself momentarily bewildered by the sudden, rather abrupt endings of the songs. But as she moves through the dreamy vocals and gentle rhythms of ‘Veins Are Blue’ and ‘Big Dipper’, again new tracks from ‘The Still Life’ her unassuming posture and shy attitude create a strangely hypnotising and soothing effect.

However I’m still not completely convinced, perhaps thrown by her quirky delivery and less than conventional stage presence, until she performs a cover of ‘Afraid of Everyone’ by The National. The clever looping of vocals and electric drums create something suddenly darker and sexier. Now I’m sold.

Her crowd interaction is charming and amusing, as Alessi introduces her song ‘Run’ whilst joking “that’s my advice to you”. Even nearly dropping her bass guitar only serves to endear me further. And I can’t help but notice that her guitar matches her tights – ‘my kind of woman’, I write.

The final two songs of the set, ‘Honey’ and ‘The Rain’, are short and sweet, and as she invites the audience to join in I’m smiling and singing along.

The encore consists of two more songs, one of them being ‘Whatever Makes you Happy’, and by now I challenge anyone not to be affected by her infectious glee. And as she leaves the stage, members of the audience stand up and give her a hug. I get a sense of real humility.

What I first saw as a shy and strange delivery I now see is part of Alessi’s simple, quirky charm.

And as we finally spill out onto the street, and despite the ebb of late evening heat, I feel honestly happier than when I first walked in.

For more on Alessi’s Ark, including full tour dates and digital downloads of ‘This Still Life’, visit http://www.alessisark.com/

For further gig listings at the Hare & Hounds, visit http://hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk/event-listings

May 7, 2013

10 WORD REVIEW: Johnny Kowalski & the Sexy Weirdos @ Freestyle (The Bull’s Head)

Pics & 10 Word quotes by Lucy Heath / Words by Ed King

Brainchild of ‘Birmingham’s beardiest DJ’ (producer, promoter…) Sam Redmore, Freestyle has been cramming a broad genre policy into the upstairs room at The Bull’s Head for the past three years.

Starting off with live acts then rounding up with DJs, Freestyle’s eclectic approach has brought an array of bands you might not know but probably should. Or not. Nothing’s ever that linear. Let’s stick with information + opportunity = informed opinion.

Friday May 3^rd saw Johnny Kowalski & the Sexy Weirdos take centre stage, playing their ‘Carnival Punk’ to the Freestyle crowd.

Purveyors of self professed ‘musical lunacy’, Johnny Kowalski & the Sexy Weirdos launched themselves in the year of our lord 2010.

Building a fast track reputation from reportedly energetic (a wide reaching descriptive) performances, Mr K & Co enjoyed a successful 2012, including festival slots at both Boomtown and Nostock.

Having recently released their debut album, ‘Victory for the Monsters’, it’s been a busy 2 ½ years for Johnny Kowalski & the Sexy Weirdos – with more festival and UK tour dates in the offing

Lucy Heath went to Freestyle @ The Bull’s Head, armed with a camera, notebook and generously unsolicited +1, for a sexy & weird Birmingham 10 Word Review.

10 WORD REVIEW

“The venue is awesome! The band were very good, the support band could’ve been better but I enjoyed it a lot.” Alfie

“The band sounded great! They have a very ‘Birmingham’ vibe, It’s very unique to Birmingham. I like the feel of the venue, it’s nice to come down and unwind with a good band” Helen

**To submit your own 10 Word Review, email ed@birminghamreview.net – citing the date, venue and gig. Make us laugh (cry, think, respond) & get your reward**

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For more on Johnny Kowalski & the Sexy Weirdos, including digital downloads of ‘Victories for the Monsters’, visit http://www.sexyweirdos.co.uk

For more on Freestyle, visit https://www.facebook.com/freestylebirmingham

For further listings at The Bull’s Head http://bullsheadmoseley.co.uk/

May 6, 2013

10 WORD REVIEW: Frank Hamilton @ The Institute, Apr 24th

Pics & 10 Word quotes by Lucy Heath / Words by Ed King

Not to be confused with the older, balder, more American musician, Cambridgeshire born Frank Hamilton released his first EP, ‘You, Your Cat and Me’, back in 2008.

Gaining significant support from BBC Radio 2 and XFM, Hamilton‘s debut EP soared.

Support slots and plaudits followed, with record exec promises close behind. It looked like stardom loomed.

But the 7^th floor dreams were never made a reality, and three reluctant years passed until Hamilton’s next widespread release – the self financed, ‘Words and Nothing More’.

Entering the iTunes singer/songwriter charts at #4 in Dec 2011, Hamilton decided to maintain the momentum throughout 2012 with his ‘One Song a Week’ project.

An ambitious plan to write, record and release one song a… you get the idea.

So a busy 2012, but one that ended in a No1 selling album of his 52 week endeavour. Job done. And you can’t argue the man’s graft.

Frank Hamilton played The Institute on Weds April 24^th. Lucy Heath went in search of a Birmingham 10 Word Review.

10 WORD REVIEW

“It’s (Frank Hamilton) an original act, it’s been a good night. I like that its small and close-nit” Hayley & Heidi

“It’s the first time I’ve been here and it’s been fantastic. The support acts were good. It’s been a really great night.” Mark

“Amazing, really good night. We now want to stalk Jasper in the Company of Others (support band) and we LOVE Frank!” Nikki & Rachel

**To submit your own 10 Word Review, email ed@birminghamreview.net – citing the date, venue and gig. Make us laugh (cry, think, respond) & get your reward**

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For more on Frank Hamilton, visit http://flavors.me/frankhamilton

For further gigs at The Institute, visit http://mamacolive.com/theinstitute/

May 4, 2013

INTERVIEW: Harley Davies – founder of Beta Birmingham

One of the good things about music journalism is being sent new music for free.

From bootlegs and demos, to albums and EPs; raw home spun productions that you may otherwise never hear.

One of the better things is when these independent releases turn out to be good. Or really good. So good that you listen to it twice, then again, then again the next day – eventually laying it to rest in your iTunes account next to polished purchases from the majors.

Beta Birmingham’s latest album, ‘Council Pop’, was one of the latter; I think the response I penned was ‘spanked’. But ‘really good’ will do just as well.

A ten track mash up melange of Roots, Dub and Hip Hop, featuring a range of Birmingham based artists, including Automaton, Feva, Sam Redmore, DJ Switch and Redi Knightz – to cite but a few.

So, enthused by production values and a B fronted postcode, Birmingham Review went on the hunt – tracking down Beta Birmingham’s founder, Harley Davies (aka Terrorbyte), in his Hockley studio.

“I always want it to be a Birmingham thing,” says Davies, explaining the ‘Council Pop’ album. “A lot of people were getting exposure through producing bootlegs, or remixes in general, and I knew so many people in Birmingham who were doing that, it just seemed right to make it into a release.”

And how was that coordinated, was it difficult to pull in so many collaborators? “I started off thinking ‘I’ll make an EP – with four tracks’. Then I ended up with six tracks. Then eight tracks. Then I thought, ‘now I’ve got to get ten tracks and make a full album’. It became a question of where to stop.”

Birmingham Review was impressed by the production value of ‘Council Pop’. And although each track is underpinned by samples, including The Specials, Bob Marley & The Wailers, Ludacris, Royce Da 5’ 9” and even The Beatles, it felt each contributor maintains an identity, whilst feeding into the overall feel of the album.

Was it hard to compile something old, new and borrowed (the cover is a light blue)?

“There were times where I had to go back and say ‘that doesn’t fit into the style of the release’, but once you start to pull the tunes together you get an idea of what the whole album will sound like.”

So did anything not make the final cut?

“No… well, I remember one tune was a bit too Gangster Rap. Not that it was a bad tune, it just didn’t fit in with the Roots and Hip Hop feel of the rest of the album. So that didn’t get included.”

Roots, Hip Hop, Dub, Gangster Rap. And now Glitch Hop. Which Davies and his label are proud purveyors of, having recently come back from a UK Glitch Hop Tour. A tour which took them the several cities, but not Birmingham.

“I think maybe I’ve got home town blues,” admits Davies, “but I’ve put so many parties on in Birmingham where they can be really hit or miss; sometimes they’re brilliant, sometime they’re utterly terrible. And it’s not just our own events; if it’s not easily commercial I think you can struggle as a promoter in Birmingham.”

But you run a label with Birmingham in the name? “I wanted to galvanise what I saw as a fractured scene in Birmingham,” explains Davies, “and I hoped by setting up the label, and calling it Beta Birmingham, that people from Birmingham would present it. That it could only be positive.”

Has that happened? “In some ways it has, and then… in a lot of ways it’s put the people who are on the label…” I sense creative, entrepreneurial, or civic, frustration, “how to explain it.

None of our artists are ‘up and coming’, they’re all established in Birmingham – in their own right, but I feel they’re now better known outside of Birmingham because of it (Beta Birmingham), which is interesting. But I think in Birmingham it hasn’t changed much at all.”

I’ve heard this before. And I remember Davies telling me about two punters at their Bristol gig, proudly explaining to him and Tom Dunstan (aka Automaton) how they had travelled from Edinburgh to see them. Maybe its “home town blues’” as Davies reiterates, but there’s no denying Birmingham can expose a provincial mentality.

So what’s next? ‘Council Pop’ is gathering momentum, Beta Birmingham are hosting a stage at the Drop Beats Not Bombs 10^th Anniversary; what’s the next move for Davies?

“We’re getting much more into the Glitch Hop scene, so that’s led me to the next stage of the label – Beta Test.”

Explain?

“Beta Birmingham is just Midlands based producers, and through doing the mash ups (Council Pop) I’ve realised the scope of genres we can put out in that label can be anything really, and I like that. Whereas the new label, Beta Test, will be just Glitch Hop releases”.

And why Glitch Hop?

“There’s a freedom with it that I’m excited to work with. And from putting various events we’ve got to know some solid producers from all over the country, and are now we’re affiliated with UK Glitch Hop (the widely regarded pioneers of the subgenre). So now that ‘Council Pop’ has been released, my attention is on the new label – Beta Test.”

And Glitch Hop. Which is what, exactly?

Davies grins, “…I would hate to define what it is,” Try? “Well, to me its stuttered edits, accidental glitches, wobbly basslines, all on a Hip Hop tempo. But it can be anything. It can encompass so many genres, from straight out Hip Hop, scratching, to more funky inspired stuff.

It gives you the freedom to make anything. That’s what I love about Glitch Hop.”

Beta Test broadcast a monthly show on Glitch.FM, the online radio station devoted to the subgenre, so you can describe it yourself.

To listen in, visit http://glitch.fm/relevant-tags/beta-test

For more on Beta Birmingham, visit http://www.betabirmingham.co.uk/