BPreviews Archives - Page 34 of 69 -

April 24, 2017April 24, 2017

BPREVIEW: Imbalance @ The Patrick Centre 26-7.04.17

Words by Charlotte Heap / Pics by Moving Productions

Are you in or out of balance? Do you spend every waking moment scrolling on your smart device? Is your virtual existence enhancing or stunting your reality?

Joli Vyann are exploring the impact of society’s obsession with technology on our everyday lives with their latest production, Imbalance – performed at The Patrick Centre on Wednesday 26th and Thursday 27th April.

Doors open at 8pm with tickets priced at £14, as presented by DanceXchange and Joli Vyann. For direct event info, including venue details and online ticket sales, click here.

Ex-stuntman Jan Patzke and ex-gymnast Olivia Quale formed Joli Vyann almost five years ago and have been celebrated for their unique fusion of dance and circus: winning the audience prize at the Stockton International Riverside Festival for the dramatically playful Don’t Drink and Dance. The flexible friends now turn their impressive athleticism and acrobatics to a look at our obsessive dependence on technology.

Ah, technology… both the saviour and scourge of society. One can hardly fail to notice that modern life’s every interaction is punctuated by the ping of a mobile phone. There exists, today, a desperate demand for constant entertainment brought to us in more and more convenient forms. It is unassailable that the Internet and technological revolution have changed the way we live, how we interact, and how we think. Alongside the current culture of ‘fake news’, it will be interesting to see how Joli Vyann’s Imbalance tackles this hot topic, asking ‘when and how do we separate ourselves from the virtual chaos surrounding us?’

For Imbalance, the duo are collaborating for the first time with acclaimed choreographer and director Jonathan Lunn, renowned for his work on films Truly, Madly, Deeply and Love Actually.

Individually Jan Patzke and Olivia Quale have impressive credentials, and having worked with many companies and choreographers – including Dragone, Legs on the Wall, Motionhouse and Cirq’ulation Locale – the pair have honed their craft together, performing their blend of dance, circus skills and stunts together for half a decade. Imbalance is their second indoor show, following Stateless in 2015. As Joli Vyann they’ve created a further two well-received outdoor shows, Lance moi en L’air and H2H, and will be reprising the former following the Imbalance tour in France, Graz and Ireland.

Jan Patzke and Olivia Quale have stated that they enjoy “the subtleties and sophistication of lighting and intimate and focused environment” that performing indoors provides. The Patrick Centre, home to DanceXchange and ‘the first dedicated dance space outside of London’, provides an appropriately intimate space for Joli Vyann’s acrobatic spectacle.

Imbalance – Joli Vyann

Imbalance comes to The Patrick Centre on Wed 26^th and Thurs 27 April, as presented by Joli Vyann and DanceXchange. For direct gig info and online tickets sales, click here.

For more on Imbalance, visit www.joli-vyann.com/dance-and-theatre-company-performances/imbalance

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For more from Joli Vyann, visit www.joli-vyann.com

For more from DanceXchange, including full event listing and online ticket sales, visit www.dancexchange.org.uk

April 12, 2017April 12, 2017

BPREVIEW: The Big Birmingham Soul Night @ Town Hall 15.04.17

Words by Ed King / Pic by Jayne Billi

On Saturday 15^th April, The Big Birmingham Soul Night comes to the Town Hall – presented by The Night Owl and THSH. Running from 9pm until the wee hours, DJing throughout the event will be Colin Curtis (Golden Torch Set), Ian ‘Pep’ Pereira (Catacombs/Wigan Casino), Sonny & Spare (Boogaloo).

Tickets are priced at £12 advance, £14 on the door. For direct event information, including venue details and online ticket sales, click here.

The Night Owl has been committed to Northern Soul since the moment they opened their small but secure back street Digbeth doors. Cosy and clandestine, they did it for the love. But the echoing footsteps from the floorboards of the Wigan Casino, Blackpool Mecca, Wolverhampton’s Catacombs and Stoke’s Golden Torch nightclubs are behind every Northern Soul night and it was, arguably, a matter of time before we saw the words ‘wooden dancefloor’ appear in print.

But to up the stakes of nostalgia, The Night Owl has managed to bag the Town Hall for their larger late night revel. Stick that in your Vesper tailpipe and smoke it. Plus they’ve booked one of the DJs behind the burgeoning Northern Soul scene of the 60’s and a previous resident of the famed/infamous Golden Torch all nighters – Colin Curtis.

And if you’re of a fresher faced age… staying up until dawn, hopped up on adult pills with childish names, dancing to music that will tear down the establishment is not the invention of the post millennials. Northern Soul was a powerhouse of a scene in the 60’s and 70’s, redefining the culture of UK clubland whilst streaming African American music into Britain’s tacitly segregated waters.

Plus the term ‘rave’ was first used in the British press (as a badge of debauched youth culture) to describe all night jazz events in and around Wardour Street. So pass the potatoes Gran, you’re looking a little off colour this Sunday lunch.

But the chance to foot stamp in the Town Hall is almost too tempting to miss, and if Northern Soul is your thing then you’re almost obligated to go. Tribal loyalty: another thing that’s not new. But references and alteration aside, The Big Birmingham Soul Night is a bold move from a venue that has been steadily grafting away – plus the line up is a handpicked homage to Northern Soul’s phenomenal rising balloon.

“We are delighted to be working with Birmingham Town Hall,” says Mazzy Snape – promoter of The Night Owl, “with its huge wooden floor and iconic design it really fits with the ethos of the legendary Northern Soul all nighters of years gone by such as Wigan Casino and Blackpool Mecca.

It holds so much history with artists such as Buddy Holly and The Kinks having played in the 50s and 60s, the soul fans are going to love it! The Night Owl regulars will be happy as they’ll have more room to dance and there will be about 3 or 4 times as many people as we can normally fit in! If all goes well this could become THE Birmingham soul event”.

The Big Birmingham Soul Night comes to Birmingham Town Hall on Saturday 15^th April, in conjunction with The Night Owl. For direct gig info and online tickets sales, click here.

For more from The Night Owl, visit www.nightowlbirmingham.com

For more from the Town & Symphony Halls, visit www.thsh.co.uk

April 7, 2017April 6, 2017

BPREVIEW: You Me at Six @ O2 Academy (B’ham) 10.04.17

Words by Ed King

On Monday 10^th April, You Me at Six perform at the O2 Academy (B’ham) with support from Tonight Alive + Black Foxxes.

Doors open at 7pm with tickets priced at £32.75 – as presented by Kilimanjaro Live. For direct gig info, including venue details and online ticket sales, click here.

Born on the back streets of Surrey, You Me at Six have spent just over a decade clawing their way up the UK rock ladder – suffering awkward award elbows and all too easy genre alliterations.

But the boys from Weybridge have built a pretty phenomenal following too, with the savvy Leeds based Slam Dunk label (…club night, festival) being the first to pick them up, shake them good, send them to Reading and get a 13 track debut to fall out of the boys. No pun… Take Off Your Colours was released in October 2008 and the pop-punk snowball has been building ever since.

Hop-scotching majors, You Me at Six are now on the books at BMG – with their latest LP coming out on the Infectious subsidiary. Ah… Mushroom Records. Being the arguable make or break of the band, after a grueling ten year tour schedule, gears were shifted, home studios were built and the bulk of the recording took place at Blackbird in Nashville.

Jacquire King was brought in (and brave enough) to produce, with the award winning all rounder, Andrew Schepps, as engineer. The end result came out in January this year, with You Me at Six no doubt hoping their fifth studio album, Night People, will be as well received as its No1 spot reaching predecessor.

Things seem hopeful too, with You Me at Six dropping in for a secret Saturday ‘highlight’ set at this year’s Reading Festival before getting back on the road for nine UK dates across April. Birmingham gets its chance to see them midway through at the O2 Academy, with Tonight Alive and Black Foxxes joining them as tour support.

Check out the title track and first single off Night People, link below:

‘Night People’ – You Me at Six

You Me at Six perform at the O2 Academy (B’ham) on Monday 10^th April, with support from Tonight Alive + Black Foxxes – as presented by Kilimanjaro Live. For direct gig info and online tickets sales, click here.

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For more on You Me at Six, visit www.youmeatsix.co.uk

For more on Tonight Alive, visit www.tonightaliveofficial.com

For more on Black Foxxes, visit www.blackfoxxes.com

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For more from the O2 Academy (B’ham), including full event listing and online ticket sales, visit www.academymusicgroup.com/o2institutebirmingham

For more from Kilimanjaro Live, visit www.kilimanjarolive.co.uk

March 27, 2017March 27, 2017

BPREVIEW: The Moonlandingz @ Hare & Hounds 28.03.17

Words by Steve Crawford

On Tuesday 28^th March, The Moonlandingz come to the Hare & Hounds (Kings Heath) on the first date of their UK tour, with support from Goat Girl.

Doors open at 7.30pm. But at the time of writing, this gig has been SOLD OUT with your only chance being the This Is Tmrw waiting list only. For direct gig info, including venue and waiting list details, click here.

It didn’t end well for Johnny Rocket of The Moonlandingz. Stalked by an obsessive fan since seeing him (resplendent in blue jumper and tin foil socks) and ‘his band’ play their ‘cosmic synth, Krautabilly, fuzzy Joe Meek style pop’ at the Valhalladale Working Men’s Club.

Pushed to the edge by his constant rejections and the celebratory mood in Valehalladale following Margaret Thatcher’s death (the stalker has reason to believe she is Mrs Thatcher’s love child), she eventually catches up with Johnny, stoves the side of his head in with a rock and watches as he falls backwards into a river and sinks to the bottom, until the air bubbles stop. So ends Johnny Rocket and The Moonlandingz.

Or at least the fictional versions as created by the Eccentronic Research Council (ERC) for their album – Johnny Rocket, Narcissist & Machine Music… I’m your Biggest Fan. This 2015 release saw the ERC collaborate again with the magnificent Maxine Peake – taking on the role of ‘the stalker’, alongside Fat White Family’s Saul Adamczewski and Lias Saoudi.

Over the course of 2015-16, The Moonlandingz started to make the move from fictional to semi-fictional. Johnny Rocket was resurrected by Lias Saoudi, a junkie Major Tom figure who fell to Earth as a dishevelled glam rocker in silver cod-piece with make-up gone awry (See The Moonlandingz‘ ‘Black Hanz’ video below).

Initially conceived as a recording project only, it was after a session for 6 Music’s Marc Riley that The Moonlandingz’ potential as a live act took hold. In 2016 the band played a handful of gigs and festivals including South by South West and the Liverpool PsychFest

Skip ahead to 2017 and a fleshed out Moonlandingz release their debut album – Interplanetary Class Classics, through Transgressive Records on March 24^th. Recorded in Sheffield and New York, the album sees yet more collaborations including Sean Lennon (who after re-mixing ‘Sweet Saturn Mine’co-produced the album) Yoko Ono, Randy Jones (the cowboy from The Village People), Phil Oakey and Slow Club’s Rebecca Taylor.

Already a band that are causing rips in the cosmos as a live act, a now infamous naked/dirty protest at their outset meant The Moonlandingz have gained a bit of a reputation, with subsequent gigs having been ‘riotus…feral’. Hang onto your cod-pieces Birmingham.

‘Black Handz’ – The Moonlandingz

The Moonlandingz perform at the Hare & Hounds (Kings Heath) on Tuesday 28^th March, with support from Goat Girl – as presented by This Is Tmrw. For direct gig info and online tickets sales, click here.

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For more on The Moonlandingz, visit www.themoonlandingz.com

From more on Goat Girl, visit www.facebook.com/goatgirlofficial

For more from Transgressive Records, visit www.transgressiverecords.com

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For more from the Hare & Hounds (Kings Heath), including full event listing and online ticket sales, visit www.hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk

For more from This Is Tmrw, visit www.thisistmrw.co.uk

March 27, 2017March 26, 2017

BPREVIEW: Stewart Lee – Content Provider @ Symphony Hall 27&28.03.17

Words by Helen Knott / Pics by Idil Sukan

On Monday 27th and Tuesday 28th March, Stewart Lee brings his new show, Content Provider, to the Symphony Hall.

Doors open at 7.30pm, with tickets priced at £25 (including £3 booking fee). For direct gig info, including full venue details and online ticket sales, click here.

After four critically acclaimed series, the BBC finally wielded its axe and killed off Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle. If you never saw it, Comedy Vehicle featured a half hour Stewart Lee stand-up routine, interspersed by interview segments of Lee examining his performance, joke writing abilities and career. It was a clever, insightful and funny show, but it’s hard to imagine it had mass-market appeal.

Anyway, it’s gone now and Stewart Lee had some unexpected time on his hands. The result was Content Provider, an anthology of selected short prose from the columns he writes for The Observer ‘every time that David Mitchell was away’. First published by Faber & Faber in July 2016, Lee is now taking Content Provider out on an 18 month UK tour as his new stand up show.

This is Stewart Lee’s first full-length show since 2011’s Carpet Remnant World, with his most recent tours testing out 25 minute segments of material for his TV work. As such, the axing of his BBC show is perhaps a blessing in disguise for Lee fans: a full-length show is arguably a better channel for his carefully constructed, reflective and analytical comedy.

As Stewart Lee is a fully paid up member of the metropolitan liberal elite, it’s safe to expect Content Provider will contain left-leaning attacks on the Tories, Trump and Brexit. However with the need to keep the show topical for a long 18-month stint, Lee‘s focus will also be on consumerism, narcissism and their role in today’s society. Hopefully at the Symphony Hall, as a local boy made good, there may be some Birmingham jokes too (Lee was born in Shropshire before growing up in Solihull).

But with Stewart Lee there’s little middle ground – most people either think Lee’s the best stand-up comedian in the country, or can’t stand his long, repetitive speeches and smarmy persona. And for all his five star reviews, Dominic Cavendish (Daily Telegraph) made public his decision to walk out of a Stewart Lee gig in 2013:

‘If Lee had a shred of interest or insight into the working lives of other people, he’d realise that those who give up an evening at the end of a week to see him deserve his thanks not his toxic scorn.’

Of course, you could argue that Cavendish missed the point; Lee is playing a character, he’s pretending to be scornful to be funny, and he’s pushing the confines of comedy as far as he can. But it can undoubtedly get under your skin if you don’t take it for what it is. And with all the bad reviews and negative social media comments that Lee posts on his own website, I don’t think that he would want it any other way.

Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle Series 4 – ‘Telegraph Review’

Stewart Lee performs at the Birmingham Town Hall on Monday 27^th & Tuesday 28^th March. For direct gig info and online tickets sales, click here.

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For more on Stewart Lee, visit www.stewartlee.co.uk

For more from the Town Hall and Symphony Hall, including full event listing and online ticket sales, visit www.thsh.co.uk