Category: The Gallery

Words by Ed King / Pics from Rob Hadley (Indie Images) & Michelle Martin (Visual Voice Media)

On Weds 14^th October the Stoke-born-Manchester-raised-Indie-Electronica, Delamere, came to The Sunflower Lounge – with support from The Hungry Ghosts, Plastic Factory, Chasing Deer.

Birmingham Review sent a couple of snappers along for THE GALLERY – with shots from Rob Hadley here and Michelle Martin here. Or have a look a little further down and click on the relevant images/links.

On the second date of their UK tour, Delamare will be on the road until 14^th November – wrapping up their 9 date autumn excursion at Bodega in Nottingham. There’s also a sneaky pre-Christmas date at The Barfly in Camden on 2^nd Dec; for direct tour details, click here

Delamere have been gathering some speed over the summer, with a pretty consistent festival diary and the release of their debut EP, Bright Young Things, – as always, through the Manchester Independent Scruff of the Neck Records. And having ‘spent previous two years honing their sound’, there is a definite fullness to the Delamere today.

Not that their earlier singles, ‘Headstrong’ (Aug ’14) and ‘Do You Want Me?’ (Mar ’14), were lacking in substance; there is, perhaps, a touch more maturity across the new lyrics and production, with a braver big room sound to back up the moxie. ‘Tis no bad thing neither – a little more Rock/Pop, perhaps, but a hiatus well spent if they want a firmer crack at the whip.

Delamere have also rerecorded & released their track ‘Heart’, which came out on 9^th Oct, as ‘one last dose of shimmering Summer sun’ before they get on the road and prep for their debut album.

So first have a listen…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezCeVs0Gs0w

And now have a look…

 

 

 

 

Delamere + The Hungry Ghosts, Plastic Factory, Chasing Deer @ The Sunflower Lounge 14.10.15 – THE GALLERY by Rob Hadley (Indie Images)

For more from Rob Hadley (Indie Images), visit https://www.facebook.com/photosbyindieimages

 

 

Delamere + The Hungry Ghosts, Plastic Factory @ The Sunflower Lounge 14.10.15 – THE GALLERY by Michelle Martin (Visual Voice Media)

For more from Michelle Martin (Visual Voice Media), visit http://www.visualvoicemedia.co.uk/

 

For more on Delamere, visit http://delameremusic.com/

For more from The Sunflower Lounge, visit http://thesunflowerlounge.com/

 

Ed’s…

Manchester’s four piece Punksters, PINS, came back to Birmingham on Tues 22^nd Sept – playing at the Hare & Hounds, as presented by This is Tmrw. Another chance for Birmingham Review to see them, having missed their previous gig at The Sunflower Lounge, Helen Knott and Paul Reynolds went to cover the gig for THE GALLERY*.

Read Helen Knott’s interview with PINS’ founder, Faith Vern, here – first published on 21.09.15

*Click here, or on the link below, to see the full Flickr of pics from Paul Reynolds in THE GALLERY

Words by Helen Knott / Pics by Paul Reynolds

“Don’t be shy”, purrs PINS’ Faith Vern, as she lures the Hare & Hounds crowd out of its Tuesday night languor.

Manchester four piece, PINS, are visiting Birmingham as part of their latest UK tour, in a year that has seen them release second album, Wild Nights, tour America and support riot grrrl legends Sleater Kinney.

PINS start with ‘Baby Bhangs’, a sleazy fuzz of a track (“love, lusting, it’s disgusting”), before briskly moving through a number of dirgey mid-tempo songs in breathless succession. ‘Young Girls’ feels like sunshine breaking through the clouds after all that, with its breezy backing vocals and saccharine guitar lines.

Mid-set, things slow right down for straight-up love song ‘Got it Bad’. Gentle arpeggiated guitars push the vocals to the fore, where things get emotional in a way that’s a sharp contrast to the band’s normal detached swagger. Vern just about manages to pull it off.

Faith Vern is certainly a charismatic front woman who has no regard for the fourth wall, striding through the crowd, serenading us. She invites the women in the audience up on stage for some dancing and backing vocals in penultimate song, ‘Girls Like Us’, which seems to get mashed up with Cyndi Lauper’s ‘Girls Just Want to Have Fun’ somewhere along the way.

A spirited rendition of The Misfits’ ‘Hybrid Moments’ makes for a lively, if not slightly chaotic, end to the evening. And, finally, we’re all feeling a lot less shy.

For more on PINS, visit http://www.wearepins.co.uk/

Support on the PINS tour came from Peace & Love Barbershop Muhmmad Ali, or PALBMA for short – scraping the dirty floor of Garage Rock and flinging it off stage.

Named in homage to the Peace & Love Barbershop on Princess Rd in Moss Side, and its founder/owner Muhammad Ali, PALBMA have recently released on Stolen Body Records.

For more on Peace & Love Barbershop Mohmmad Ali, visit https://soundcloud.com/palbmaband

For more from the Hare & Hounds, visit http://hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk/

For more from This is Tmrw, visit http://thisistmrw.co.uk/

 

 

 

Words by Ed King / Pics by Rob Hadley

On Thursday 6^th August, Goodnight Lenin played at the Hare & Hounds – with live support from Hoopla Blue & Chartreuse, alongside the DJs from Killer Wave.

Heralded as a ‘return to their favourite Birmingham venue,’ Goodnight Lenin were sandwiched between a couple of festival dates – squeezing out of the mustard & lettuce to slide onto the Kings Heath stage again. And as with any This Is Tmrw event, the support line up was pretty well placed too; all in all, not bad for a Darwin.

Rob Hadley was there for a Birmingham Review, happy slapping some snaps for THE GALLERY. Links & intros below:

Goodnight Lenin

‘Twas the winter of 2014, when Messrs Fell, Conway, McCreedy, Sherlock & Berry released their debut LP to the world – In the Fullness of Time. Now, with another harvest soon approaching (and extra hands working the fields this year) will the fruits of labour bring forth another album from the ‘West Coast Americana… with an old school attitude to music.’ Probably, maybe, hope so, we reckon its gonna be rockier; here’s some visual distraction in the meantime.

For more from Goodnight Lenin, visit http://www.goodnightlenin.com/

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Hoopla Blue

Knock Knock. Who’s there? 4AD, psychedelic Surf Rock, brown sugar chic, smooth vocals, awesome bass lines, hat tips to early Pumpkins & Swervedriver, and a large pestle & mortar. You’d better come in then. One of the more (INSERT COMPLIMENT) bands in Birmingham, Hoopla Blue are absolutely worth some time in the sun. Watc
h out for ‘the Blue’ coming back to the Hare & Hounds – supporting Outfit on 10^th Sept ’15.

For more on Hoopla Blue, visit https://soundcloud.com/hoopla-blue

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Chartreuse

Sultry, sublime, Shoegaze; Chartreuse are picking up some well deserved accolades (and alliteration) since forming in 2014. Fronted by confident yet ethereal vocals, and backed by a languid blanket of dreamlike loveliness, Chartreuse are the b*stard love child of Mazzy Starr and the more early morning side of The Velvet Underground. Also appearing at the All Years Leaving festival in late October – bring a comfy cushion along and check ‘em out.

For more on Chartreuse, visit https://soundcloud.com/chartreuse-uk

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This is Tmrw are arguably one of the more tenacious promoters in the city; battling through the Lacoste shirts of a musically moribund Solihull, to rest between the more welcoming walls of the Hare & Hounds – all the way, promoting bands that may have side stepped Birmingham altogether.

And like, loathe or simply don’t know who they are putting on, if you see a name in capitals on a Lewes Herriot flyer it’s probably worth some attention.

So, with a finger on Google and thumb on Spotify…

Ought @ Hare & Hounds / Sept 3^rd

Outfit @ Hare & Hounds / Sept 10^th

Girlpool @ Hare & Hounds / Sept 11^th

Pins @ Hare & Hounds / Sept 22^nd

Surfer Blood @ Hare & Hounds / Sept 24^th

Kid Wave @ Hare & Hounds / Sept 30^th

For more on This Is Tmrw, visit http://thisistmrw.co.uk/

For more on the Hare & Hounds, including full event listings, visit http://hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk/   

Words by Ed King / Pics by Rob Hadley

On Saturday 25^th July, One Beat Festival returned to the outdoor Arena at mac – promoting a mixed bag of local acts & beyond.

Formed in 2010 by Ian Light and Jon Brookes, One Beat Records has played a huge part in championing acts from the West Midlands – with their annual showcase & eponymous festival being a badge of honour for those on local music scene.

Birmingham Review’s stalwart photographer, Rob Hadley / Indie Images, was there to capture the day for THE GALLERY – with a quick cherry picked editorial introducing some of the acts below.

Headlining One Beat Festival 2015 were God Damn, the Wolverhampton spawned two piece that have been steadily climbing the Rock rudders over the past year. Having recently released and toured their debut album, Vultures (One Little Indian), across the UK (including a packed out Sunflower Lounge) the time is nigh for God Damn. Eighteen months can be a crucial curve for a band on the rise and BR is keeping it’s fingers crossed for this healthy thrash of fresh air.

For more about God Damn, including online purchase points for Vultures, visit http://goddamntheband.com/

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Ocean Cold Lies were a little further down on the One Beat ’15 bill but high on the BR radar – with ‘The Game’ and ‘Fade’ a couple of tempting precursors to their impending debut album. The four piece Indie Rockers from Lichfield are still relatively early doors, having formed in 2013, but have already churned out some serious 4AD homage – enough to grab us by the short and curlies anyway.

Remember, remember the 13^th of November; for more on Ocean Cold Lies, visit https://www.facebook.com/ColdOceanLies

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Representing London Town, the Finchley three piece have been enjoying a pretty hectic festival season so far – stopping off at One Beat ’15 between bookings at Secret Garden, Tramlines and Y Not. Self releasing their debut single/EP, ‘Faultlines’, in 2014, Jagaara gained some deserved adulation and attention – with their latest release, ‘In the Dark’, being an even more serious contender. Melodic, strong and refreshingly fresh, Jagaara are a genuinely exciting addition to their genre; if they nail down an album before Christmas, expect big(ger) things from this band in 2016. 

For more on Jagaara, visit http://jagaara.com/

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Elsewhere on the bill were The Magic Gang, Youth Man, Kioko, Faux Palms, Field Harmonics, Kagoule – with the appropriate links to each act available by clicking on their name.

Birmingham Review would further like to express thanks to Dan Whitehouse (words not music) at mac for aiding & abetting.

For more about One Beat Festival, visit http://www.onebeatfestival.co.uk/

For more about One Beat Records, visit http://www.onebeatrecords.co.uk/

For more from mac, including a full programme of events and workshops, visit http://macbirmingham.co.uk/