BPREVIEW: GETRZ @ The Sunflower Lounge 11.03.20

Words by Ed King

On Wednesday 11th March, GETRZ come to The Sunflower Lounge – performing against a stacked support line up including Gen & the Degenerates, Spit, and Sedated Society.

Doors open at 7:30pm with tickets priced at £6, as promoted by Indie Midlands. For more direct gig info and links to online ticket sales, visit www.thesunflowerlounge.com/event/getrz-gen-and-the-degenerates-spit-sedated-society

Last seen in Birmingham back at the Hare & Hounds, pretty much two years ago to the day, GETRZ have been keeping busy. Swindon’s hot alt rock potato (to expand a metaphor past any reasonable level…) have been accumulating festival dates and accolades across the country – stamping their authority and arguable shift in sound with the release of their debut EP, Think of the Future, in August last year.

Now, following a brief sojourn in Liverpool, Leeds, and Manchester, GETRZ are back on the road – coming to The Sunflower Lounge on Wednesday 11th March, before heading down to Bristol the day after and ending up back in Swindon for the tour’s home town swan song on Saturday 14th March.

Joining GETRZ as tour support are self-declared ‘gate crashers’ of the North West, Gen & the Degenerates – with Stourbridge’s Sonic Youth inspired four piece, Spit, and Worcester’s experimental pop psych rockers, Sedated Society, making up the more local line up.

Although relatively fresh faced, Spit have carved a confident curve for themselves on Birmingham’s live music circuit – playing regular support slots at The Sunflower Lounge, alongside more established acts such as Bad Girlfriend, MeMe Detroit, and A Void, when the latter came to the city in February. And with some line-up changes and song writing pencilled into the 2020 diary, this could be an defining year for a band already building up some noticeable Midlands momentum.

Sedated Society are another addition to the fuck-you-and-your-genre strata of the modern music scene, taking influences from across the audio spectrum and self-declaring to ‘bleed an expansive combination of stoner rock, blues, grunge, R&B, jazz, shoegaze and pop music…’ Stick that in your HMV shop assistant and smoke it.

…and not bad for £6. Well, what else are you going to do for the safer side of a tenner?

‘Annie’ – GETRZ 

GETRZ play at The Sunflower Lounge on Wednesday 11th March, with support from Gen and the Degenerates, Spit, and Sedated Society – as presented by Indie Midlands. For direct gig information and links to online tickets, visit www.thesunflowerlounge.com/event/getrz-gen-and-the-degenerates-spit-sedated-society 

For more on GETRZ, visit www.facebook.com/GETRZBAND

For more on Gen & the Degenerates, visit www.open.spotify.com/artist/7oEVPoHXaj73ddUCTNlO9E
For more on Spit, visit www.facebook.com/spit.banddd
For more on Sedated Society, visit www.facebook.com/SedateddSocietyy

For more from Indie Midlands, including further event listings and online ticket sales, visit www.indiemidlands.co.uk

For more on The Sunflower Lounge, including venue details and further event listings, visit www.thesunflowerlounge.com

________

NOT NORMAL NOT OK is a campaign to encourage safety and respect within live music venues, and to combat the culture of sexual aggression in the music industry and beyond – from dance floor to dressing room, everyone deserves a safe place to play.

To learn more about the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign, click here. To sign up and join the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign, click here.

If you have been affected by any issues surrounding sexual violence – or if you want to report an act of sexual aggression, abuse or assault – click here for information via the ‘Help & Support’ page on the NOT NORMAL NOT OK website.

BPREVIEW: Beastly Belle @ Midlands Arts Centre 15-16.02.20

Words by Ed King / Pics by Andi Sapi

Running for four shows across two days, Beastly Belle comes to the Midlands Arts Centre (MAC) on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th February – kicking off Birmingham’s half term holiday weekend.

Presented by the Norwich Puppet Theatre, tickets for Beastly Belle range from £8.50 to £12.50 – covering a variety of options for adults, children (4yrs+) and babies.

With an 11am performance and a 2pm performance across the weekend, held in the MAC’s Foyle Studio, you can find out more information (and online ticket links) for Beastly Belle by visiting www.macbirmingham.co.uk/event/beauty-the-beast-beastly-belle

For those of a certain generation, the Midlands Arts Centre is somewhat synonymous with puppets – beautifully crafted characters that used to adorn both the walls and the stages of the old Cannon Hill Park complex. Now, to start a programme of productions and workshops for the Birmingham half term holiday, MAC is welcoming another ensemble of wood and string – as the story of Beastly Belle takes to the Foyle Studio on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th February.

With a narrative perfectly pitched for today’s Instagram and Love Island devotees, yet one ‘inspired by the iconic era of 1920s and 30s cinema’, Beastly Belle tells the story of the eponymous Belle – a wannabe starlet that is plucked from poverty and given all the ‘glitz and glamour’ of the silver screen.

But what coulda, would, shoulda been a wonderful tale of rags to riches soon turns sour, as our titular heroine become seduced by the adulation of aesthetics and becomes ‘ensnared by a world obsessed with good looks’. Sounds sadly all too familiar.

Told through puppet theatre, against a backdrop of film projections and an original score, Beastly Belle tackles an issue that is all too prevalent in the world of young people today – self-worth, and the misguided benchmarks of ‘beauty’ that can be so crudely used to define it.

The play’s promotional material also cites influences from the classic fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast – so chances are this story ends with a newfound sense of self and an insightful epiphany. Which is no bad thing, for anyone at any age.

But told through puppet theatre, Beastly Belle will at least to give you a good hour of distraction (and silence) even if the message gets missed – which again to those of a certain generation, namely the one’s paying the ticket price, might not be a terrible consolation prize this half term.

And if you remember the MAC’s puppets of yore there may be some warm nostalgia as you stretch back and recall your younger days at the Cannon Hill Park complex… just remember it’s the weekend, and a school holiday, so that ice cream truck is also probably still there too.

Beastly Belle – official trailer (as used for performances at the Norwich Puppetry Theatre)

Beastly Belle comes to the Midlands Arts Centre on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th February – with shows at 11am and 2pm on both days. For more direct information and links to online ticket sales, visit www.macbirmingham.co.uk/event/beauty-the-beast-beastly-belle

For more from the Midlands Arts Centre, including further event listings** and online ticket sales, visit www.macbirmingham.co.uk

For more from the Norwich Puppet Theatre, visit www.puppettheatre.co.uk

_________________

**If you like the look of this, why not check out some more family friendly shows at MAC:

Roald Dahl & The Imagination Seekers (21st and 22nd Feb), visit www.macbirmingham.co.uk/event/roald-dahl-the-imagination-seekers

Sarah & Duck’s Big Top Birthday (4th to 6th Apr), visit www.macbirmingham.co.uk/event/sarah-ducks-big-top-birthday

Through Time (17th Apr), visit www.macbirmingham.co.uk/event/the-noise-next-door-through-time

________

NOT NORMAL NOT OK is a campaign to encourage safety and respect within live music venues, and to combat the culture of sexual aggression in the music industry and beyond – from dance floor to dressing room, everyone deserves a safe place to play.

To learn more about the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign, click here. To sign up and join the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign, click here.

If you have been affected by any issues surrounding sexual violence – or if you want to report an act of sexual aggression, abuse or assault – click here for information via the ‘Help & Support’ page on the NOT NORMAL NOT OK website.

BPREVIEW: REWS + Novacub, [SKETCH] @ O2 Institute 3 – 21.03.20

Words by Ed King / Pics courtesy of REWSMarshall Records

On Saturday 21st March, REWS come back to Birmingham – bringing The Phoenix Tour to the O2 Institute 3.

REWS will be joined by their travelling companions and Bloc Party splinter group Novacub, performing alongside local support band [SKETCH] – hot off the heels of a sell out show supporting The Pagans S.O.H. and Kioko. But more on these little beauties a little later…

Minimum age of entry to the REWS 21st March show is 14 years old, with the O2 Institute opening the top floor venue doors from 7pm. Tickets are priced at £10 (+ booking fee) – as promoted by Metropolis Music and Birmingham Review. For more gig info and links to online ticket sales, click here to visit the Facebook event page.

** Birmingham Review will donate £1 from all tickets sold through Review Publishing to the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign – challenging sexual violence in the music industry. From dance floor to dressing room, everyone deserves a safe place to play. Click here for tickets: www.reviewpublishing.net/product/rews-novacub-sketch-o2-institute-21-03-20**

REWS, or ‘the mighty REWS’ as we have begun calling this band, were last in Birmingham supporting The Darkness – playing to a packed out arena at the O2 Academy just before Christmas. Before that, the mighty REWS (…told you) were supporting Halestorm, again at the O2 Academy, as the North American rock giants stomped their sell out tour across the UK in September 2018.

Now REWS are back in Birmingham for one of the final few dates on The Phoenix Tour, which founder and frontwoman Shauna Tohill explains is: “celebrating rebirth and change, which seems quite apt, given that we are all going through dark times at the moment. I’m hoping it will inspire people to keep positive, be confident and change for the better. Expect new tunes, a new band and a safe space to immerse yourself. See you at the front!”

Led by N. Irish musician and songwriter Shauna Tohill, REWS somewhat exploded onto the UK’s live circuit a few years ago – releasing their first album, Pyro, in November 2017. Chocked with ‘wall to wall bangers’ (which is you’ve ever been to a REWS gig is a pretty appropriate metaphor) this ambitious debut featured previously released singles such as ‘Miss You in the Dark‘, ‘Shine’, ‘Your Tears’, and Birmingham Review favourite ‘Can You Feel It?

A monster of an album, with an infectious onslaught of high energy alt-rock/pop, the onlything better than listening to a copy of Pyro is when REWS play it live. But don’t take our word for it, as this 10 track line in the sand won REWS a bevy of Radio 1 airtime and a spot on the John Peel Stage at Glastonbury 2018 – with plaudits across the BBC and Pilton festival alike, including Mark Radcliffe’s clarion call: “Stupendous – if you get a chance, go and see them. Go.” A sentiment we whole heartedly agree with.

REWS were also the inaugural UK signing to Marshall Records, when the ionic rock music brand formed it’s own record label in 2017 – opening up territories across the globe and seeing this ferocious high rising balloon travel even further.

And it’s been strength to strength for REWS ever since (albeit with some lineup changes at the tail end of 2018, turning the two piece into a three piece) as the act once nominated for Planet Rock’s ‘Best New Band 2017’ are now back on the road and releasing some of their best new music to date. Which considering their back catalogue is a hard bubble to burst, with only the inevitable ‘…album two’ question left hanging in the air.

But again, don’t take our word for it – to check out REWS’ latest single, ‘Birdsong’, click on the airtwork above or the video below. And if after listening to it you think all the hype is hyperbole, then you’re either a cynic by default or clinically dead on the inside. And that’s as objective as I can get.

Then again, you might just want a little more proof. Perhaps in a live setting, for example. Which is fair enough… I suppose. Did we mention REWS come to the O2 Institute 3 on Saturday 21st March?

‘Birdsong’ – REWS

REWS perform at the O2 Institute 3 on Saturday 21st March, with support from Novacub and [SKETCH] – as promoted by Metropolis Music and Birmingham Review, with support from the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign. For more gig info and links to online ticket sales, click here to visit the Facebook event page.

**Birmingham Review will donate £1 from all tickets sold through Review Publishing to the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign – click here for tickets: www.reviewpublishing.net/rews-novacub-sketch-o2-institute-21-03-20/**

________

For more on REWS, visit www.rewsmusic.com

For more on Novacub, visit www.wearenovacub.com
For more on [SKETCH], visit www.sketchband.com

For more on the O2 Institute, including venue details and further event listings, visit www.academymusicgroup.com/o2institutebirmingham

________

NOT NORMAL NOT OK is a campaign to encourage safety and respect within live music venues, and to combat the culture of sexual aggression in the music industry and beyond – from dance floor to dressing room, everyone deserves a safe place to play.

To learn more about the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign, click here. To sign up and join the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign, click here.

If you have been affected by any issues surrounding sexual violence – or if you want to report an act of sexual aggression, abuse or assault – click here for information via the ‘Help & Support’ page on the NOT NORMAL NOT OK website.

BPREVIEW: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs @ running until 02.02.20

Words by Ed King / Pics by Simon Hadley

Running until 2nd February 2020, the classic fairy tale and beloved pantomime Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs will be on stage at the Birmingham Hippodrome.

Family friendly, for adults and children above the age of 3 years old, tickets to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs are start from £17 – with prices dependent on the day/time of performance and seating position within the Hippodrome theatre. Click here for more direct information – including a full performance schedule, theatre seating plan, and ticket links for online bookings.

Jac Yarrow (The Prince) and Faye Brookes (Snow White) / Simon Hadley

**Many performances have already sold out, so get in touch with the Hippodrome quick smart and see what you can snap up before February**

Some things are as perennial as the grass. Like love. Apparently. And the grass. But coming in a close third could be the wintertime obsession with old trope gags, star crossed lovers and garish cross dressing – I am referring, of course, to the Hippodrome’s annual pantomime. Although, whilst you’re on Hurst Street…

Back ‘at the helm’ of this year’s panto, which is the tried and tested Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, is Michael Harrison – herr direktor of the Hippodrome’s Christmas show for the last decade and managing director of Qdos Entertainments, the ‘world’s biggest pantomime producer’ and operator of twelve theatres across the UK. So, you know, you’re in pretty good hands backstage.

Onstage, the cast are cherry picked familiar faces from stage and screen – with Lesley Joseph leading the charge, reprising her role as The Wicked Queen.

Full cast - on stage / Simon Hadley

Eastenders super cop and ‘Hippodrome panto favourite’ Matt Slack is cast as Muddles – whilst the happy couple (eventually… spoiler alert) are played by Faye Brookes, Coronation Street’s Kate Connor when she’s not picking bad apples, and the ‘break-out star’ of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jac Yarrow, playing The Prince.

Other cast members include X Factor winner Joe McElderry as The Spirit of The Mirror, Britain’s Got Talent finalists Flawless, self-unemployed Queen of the Black Country Doreen Tipton, and longstanding/suffering/celebrated panto dame Andrew Ryan.

The titular supporting cast, referred to in the show’s blurb as The Magnificent Seven, are played by Josh Bennett, George Coppen, Simeon Dyer, Craig Garner, Lee Hill, Jamie John and Blake Lisle.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs / Official trailer

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs runs at the Birmingham Hippodrome until 2nd February 2020. For more information, including a full production schedule and links to online tickets sales, visit www.birminghamhippodrome.com/calendar/snow-white-the-seven-dwarfs

For more on the Birmingham Hippodrome, including venue details and further event listings, visit www.birminghamhippodrome.com

________

NOT NORMAL NOT OK is a campaign to encourage safety and respect within live music venues, and to combat the culture of sexual assault and aggression – from dance floor to dressing room.

To learn more about the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign, click here. To sign up and join the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign, click here.

If you have been affected by any of the issues surrounding sexual violence – or if you want to report an act of sexual aggression, abuse or assault – click here for information via the ‘Help & Support’ page on the NOT NORMAL NOT OK website.

BPREVIEW: Grandpa’s Great Escape Live @ Arena Birmingham 23-6.12.19

Words by Ed King / Pics courtesy of Arena Birmingham

Running from 23rd to 26th December (withstanding Christmas Day), Grandpa’s Great Escape Live gets it’s first on stage outing at Arena Birmingham this Christmas.

Tickets are on sale from £29.50 to £52.25, depending on seating position with Arena Birmingham, with two performances daily – doors opening at 12noon (show at 1pm) and 3pm (show starts at 4pm). There is a further evening performance at 7pm on 23rd December. For direct information, including venue details and online bookings, visit www.arenabham.co.uk/whats-on/grandpas-great-escape

After finishing at Arena Birmingham, Grandpa’s Great Escape Live will be touring the UK until 4th January 2020 – with dates in London, Sheffield, Nottingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow, and Liverpool. For more on Grandpa’s Great Escape Live, including full tour details and online ticket sales, visit www.grandpasgreatescapelive.co.uk

Since being released in 2015, David Walliams’ children’s story Grandpa’s Great Escape has gone on to sell over 2million copies worldwide. Now, in its live production adaptation, the story of Jack and his titular Grandpa (and escape) come to life on stage – opening at Arena Birmingham this Christmas.

The story is simple: Grandpa is getting older and his behaviour becomes increasingly odd and erratic, to the point where one night he must be coaxed down from the local church roof. Grandpa is suffering with dementia and flits between the present day and his time flying Spitfires in World War II.

Eventually, his family reach their wits’ end and make the decision to send Grandpa off to the appropriately titled old people’s home, Twilight Towers. Alone and confused, Grandpa’s world is ebbing away, both the one in his head and the one at his fingertips. But Jack and Grandpa can still connect and armed with imagination (and the ability to fly a plane) they embark on a final ‘great escape’ – breaking free from Twilight Towers and the self-serving staff at the horrible nursing home.

Since turning his hand to children’s fiction in 2013, David Walliams has released 13 novels – alongside a selection of picture books and short stories. But compared more than once to another great children’s writer, who again could balance the marvellous and macabre, Walliams’ fairy-tales are more than a childish play in the park.

His first book, The Boy in the Dress, addresses gender identity (in both young people and adults) – whilst his second and third books, Mr Stink and Billionaire Boy respectively, tackle the adage that money can’t buy you love. Well, not real love anyway. Grandpa’s Great Escape, Walliams’ eighth children’s book, tackles the issues surrounding dementia and our perceived care for the elderly.

But with fun firmly at their hearts, Walliams’ stories have been embraced by families the world over – with near constant adaptations onto stage and/or screen since his debut back in 2008. Grandpa’s Great Escape was first taken to the small screen – aired on BBC One on New Year’s Day 2018, with Tom Courtney as Grandpa, Kit Connor as Jack, and Jennifer Saunders as Miss Dandy.

This Christmas, Arena Birmingham will welcome the first stage production of Grandpa’s Great Escape Live – before it’s chocks away across the country, with subsequent dates in London, Sheffield, Nottingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow, and Liverpool.

Nigel Planner will be starring as Grandpa, with Tom Cawte as Jack, and Siobhan Redmond as both Miss Dandy/Reverend Fine.

David Walliams talks about Grandpa’s Great Escape Live

Grandpa’s Great Escape Live comes to Arena Birmingham this Christmas, with shows on 23rd, 24th and 26th December – as presented by Phil McIntyre Entertainments. For direct show information, including venue details and online ticket sales, visit www.arenabham.co.uk/whats-on/grandpas-great-escape

For more on Grandpa’s Great Escape Live, including full tour details and online ticket sales, visit www.grandpasgreatescapelive.co.uk

For more on Arena Birmingham, including further event listings, visit www.arenabham.co.uk

________

NOT NORMAL NOT OK is a campaign to encourage safety and respect within live music venues, and to combat the culture of sexual assault and aggression – from dance floor to dressing room.

To learn more about the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign, click here. To sign up and join the NOT NORMAL NOT OK campaign, click here.

If you have been affected by any of the issues surrounding sexual violence – or if you want to report an act of sexual aggression, abuse or assault – click here for information via the ‘Help & Support’ page on the NOT NORMAL NOT OK website.