Hare and Hounds Archives

March 15, 2018March 15, 2018

BPREVIEW: Rews @ Hare & Hounds 22.03.18

Words by Ed King

On Thursday 22^ndMarch, the rock powerhouse of Rews returns to Birmingham – closing off their England tour dates with a special headline gig at the Hare & Hounds (Kings Heath).

Support on the night comes from Tamworth’s garage rock two piece, You Dirty Blue, and Birmingham’s rising punk balloon, P.E.T

Doors open at 7:30pm, with tickets priced at £8 (plus booking fees) – as presented by Metropolis Music and Birmingham Review. For direct gig info, including venue details and online ticket sales, click here.

At the time of writing this gig has all but sold out, with literally only a handful of tickets left on sale. There are also waiting lists available, for returns and cancellations, through the registered ticket agents – but it’s changing by the hour, so click on the following links for Ticketmaster, Skiddle or See Tickets to get updates and info. And hopefully tickets.

You can also check in with one of the support bands, You Dirty Blue or PE.T, as well as us at Birmingham Review HQ who will be mopping up any local returns. We suggest you do it quickly though and with a few fingers crossed – swing over to the Birmingham Review Facebook event page for this gig, or email info@birminghamreview.net and we’ll can check down the backs of a few cyber sofas for you.

The term ‘rising balloon’ gets bandied about these days, and quite often by me. It’s exciting to see an artist in nascent and the tried/tested metaphor is often an appropriate badge of both recognition and applause. But I can’t use this term for Rews anymore, as their rising balloon got caught on the tail end of a NASA space shuttle and is now in confident orbit around the planet. Quite simply, and without allegory or hyperbole, Rews are set for huge things. HUGE. SO NOW I’M USING CAPITALS INSTEAD.

And every inch of it is deserved. Not only have Rews mastered the addictive rock formula on record but they are phenomenal live. PHENOMENAL. So phenomenal, in fact, that after seeing Rews at The Flapper in February 2017 we booked them to headline the Birmingham Review Winter Showcase at the Actress & Bishop the following November – a venue now probably fundraising for a new roof, after Rews tore the old one clean off and scattered it across the city. We’re biased, but it was a stonker of a gig. Which seems to be de rigueur for Rews as their relentless touring and festival sets have won them a huge fanbase in a relatively short space of time. And again, every inch of it is deserved.

Rews’ debut album, Pyro, is a stellar debut too – being one of the first artists signed to Marshall Records and doing the iconic rock brand nothing but proud. And if you haven’t already got yourself a copy of then 1) shame on you, 2) shame on you again, 3) get thee to an online retailer before we fetch the wooden spoon and naughty step. You can read our Birmingham Review of Pyro here.

The reciprocal feather in the cap of this gig is that Rews added Birmingham onto their spring tour dates because of the all-round awesomeness of their last gig in the city. So, this is down to you. Yes, you. The live music endorsing public and punters of Birmingham, you did this. It’s not too often that Birmingham sits as one of the cherries on a national tour circuit, but for Rews we are. Or were. And shall be again. So, with a single (tough and manly) tear in one eye and civic pride in my belly, I salute you all. VIVE LE BIRMINGHAM LIVE MUSIC SCENE.

But it’s not all Rews, Rews, Rews… as much as that would suffice, you’re getting two more bands for your musical buck on 22^ndMarch. Lucky sods, the lot of you.

First up is the Tamworth based garage rock two piece, You Dirty Blue. Well established on the local live circuit, Birmingham Review happened across You Dirty Blue at Centrala back in July 2017 – as they joined a pretty stellar line up at The Hungry Ghost’s ‘Amerika/Lazaro’ single launch.

Although sandwiched by the great and good, You Dirty Blue were one of the stand out acts from the evening – with the gloriously raw yet proficient edges that any true DIY artist needs to make their mark. We became hooked. And a few months later we got to sink our teeth in a little deeper, as You Dirty Blue released their ‘monstrous debut’ EP, Tough Crowd, just before Christmas. In short, we gave it a resounding thumbs up… with a cheeky middle finger thrown in for good measure. But again you can always read our Birmingham Review of Tough Crowd for yourself, just click here. Pah… independent thought is for suckers.

Second support for the night comes from P.E.T – ‘Birmingham’s rising punk balloon’… for want of a better expression. But that they are; P.E.T are the new kids on the Brummie block and have already racked up a few decent support gigs and industry endorsements since forming in late 2017.

In your face, feisty, not shy of screaming into the microphone, P.E.T are the essence of post-punk punk. But they’ve got the smarts to go with it – citing an impressive list of influences that many older (self-declared) aficionados wouldn’t have in their cultural cache. Go ahead, test it, ask P.E.T “…do you know a band called The Slits?” and see what happens.

Plus, they’ve got all the raw bolshiness that you can get from a band who just love playing and performing – you ‘aint going to see P.E.T on a stage and forget about them in a hurry, especially if your standing at the front. But we think they’re mostly harmless. At least, no one’s been injured yet. Not visibly. Keep an eye out for P.E.T though, we sense curious times ahead.

And as a picture paints a thousand words, and there’s nearly that above us already, we though we’d end with a few moving image reminders of Rews. Too tough to pick one song, so we’ve gone for two – one recorded, one live. Viddy below my droogs and we’ll see you at the Hare & Hounds on 22^nd March:

‘Your Tears’ – Rews

‘Can You Feel It?’ – Rews (live at Hawley Arms for Camden Rocks)

Rews perform at the Hare & Hounds (Kings Heath) on Thursday 22^nd March, with support from You Dirty Blue and P.E.T – as presented by Metropolis Music and Birmingham Review. For direct event information and online ticket sales, visit http://bit.ly/2FL53hm

For more on Rews, visit www.rewsmusic.com

For more on You Dirty Blue, visit www.youdirtyblue.com

For more on P.E.T, visit www.facebook.com/petbanduk

For more from Metropolis Music, visit www.metropolismusic.com

For more on the Hare & Hounds (Kings Heath), including venue details and further event listings, visit www.hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk

February 28, 2018

THE GALLERY: Average Sex @ Hare & Hounds 25.01.18

Words by Ed King / Pics by Martin O’Callaghan

Sunday, a day so hard to sell even God has to pass the hat. But Setting Son are unperturbed, as the local record label and promotions company present the London based pop/punksters, Average Sex, after having to reschedule the gig from a previously booked date back in January. And gaw’d bless them for it.

Average Sex were last in the city for The Hungry Ghosts’ ‘Amerika/Lazaro’ single launch party at Centrala – a cracking night, swirling in a maelstrom of DIY, inappropriate nakedness, steel blues, garage rock, endless cider, and a middle finger to the EHO smoke machine. Lots of fun.

But tonight Average Sex are headlining the bill, replete with their new bassist and The Hungry Ghosts and Miles Cocker in support. As far as I can see there’s no smoke machine, and I’m not taking any layers of clothing off, but with such a promising line up I reckon there’s still some fun to be had. And cider. There’s always cider.

Nestled into the ‘second room’ at the Hare & Hounds (which I curiously prefer to the main stage) a comfortable crowd and sense of camaraderie huddle together, braving the tail end of their collective hangovers and an absurd cold snap that just won’t quit.

First up is Miles Cocker, the dark fringe lyricist and ex-Horror Show front man/Youth Man bassist, who is on stage for the “first time I’ve played an acoustic guitar in public”. But like the bastard child of Kelly Jones and Kristin Hersh (now there’s a hangover), Cocker oozes snakeskin confidence – proffering an onslaught of melody and more sentences to make this writer a bit green round the gills. “Exercise me, circumcise me, drill three holes and crucify me,” awesome stuff.

A cat call to “all our brothers and sisters” announces The Hungry Ghosts are on stage next, as the man so good they named him twice waves a mic in the air and rests his other hand on the keyboard which is now front and centre to their set.

Opening with ‘Amerika’, the jangly opiate journey across an imagined West Coast, The Ghosts are on top form tonight – tight and slick, especially for a Sunday, and sounding ‘more Donington’ than I have heard them in a while, according to my notes. ‘Death Rattle Blues’ swaggers off stage second, before one of my favourite from the famished phantoms, ‘Super King King’, struts its predatory blues across the room.

(Note to self: loud public exclamations about a song with your surname in the title might appear a touch narcissistic, and I am too perfect for narcissism. But here’s some proof that it’s not just a tenuous link I’m applauding. And that I repeat myself.)

And now it’s time for the big show… as the slightly tweaked Average Sex take their places on stage, with Laetitia Bocquet’s broad smile and self-expressions filling the rest of the room. Dragging yourself to The Midlands on a Sunday could threaten the pilot light of many an out of town band, but not tonight.

Opening with ‘Hey Boy’, there seems to be no stumbling or blocks in the new path of Average Sex – with a confident punk pop sound bouncing off stage. Immediate and together, you can see the professional sheen on a band who have been taken under the OGenesis wings and recently toured with The Charlatans. ‘Sociopath’ is next, which could have been written about the man standing to my left, before The Las-esque sound (and dubious set list spelling) of ‘Come Over’ are thrown off stage in short succession.

Far from embedding a new member, and having to say goodbye to an old one, Average Sex appear as close as a rock band should be without drawing tabloid attention. Chat and banter roll around the stage and into the crowd, with a couple of publicly endearing moments between Bocquet and her band mates. Average Sex feel like they have spent many van rides and hotel rooms together, with most of them surviving to tell the tale. But its infectious, and by the time the heavy riffs and distorted love laden lyrics of ‘Ice Cream’ are rattling around the room most of the bodies within it are following suit.

Rounding off with two more relatively recently released tracks, the darkly declarative ‘Ugly Strangers’ and perfectly tilted set closer ‘We’re Done’, the polished sharp edge of this well-rehearsed anarchy is off stage without an encore. Mind you, the downstairs bar has closed (so no more cider) and all that’s left are the tight stares of bar staff who want to call it a week.

Always good to see such a commanding line up, whatever day you can squeeze it into your schedule, and I leave the Hare & Hounds both a little Sunday blissed and full satiated. Not bad for the end of a weekend.

But it would be good to see more from Setting Son, if they have the inclination, as every time they promote a gig I end up with more in my earphones than I had before going in. And as much as I love the creative corner of Centrala, if you can keep them walking (stumbling) distance to my house then I won’t be arguing. Now all we need is a well penned joke about it being cold but still wanting to by ‘Ice Cream’. A man walks into a gelateria with his earphones in…

Average Sex @ Hare & Hounds 25.01.18 / Martin O’Callaghan – Birmingham Review

For more on Average Sex, visit www.facebook.com/averagesex

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The Hungry Ghosts – supporting Average Sex @ Hare & Hounds 25.01.18 / Martin O’Callaghan – Birmingham Review

For more on The Hungry Ghosts, visit www.thehungryghosts.co.uk

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Miles Cocker – supporting Average Sex @ Hare & Hounds 25.01.18 / Martin O’Callaghan – Birmingham Review

For more on Miles Cocker, visit www.soundcloud.com/miles-cocker

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

For more on Setting Son Records, visit www.facebook.com/settingsonrecords

February 23, 2018

ALBUM: Autonomy – Table Scraps 23.02.18

Words by Ed King / Lead pic by Meg Lavender

Reasons to be cheerful: 1) Winter has fucked off, 2) Winter II has also fucked off, 3) It’s Friday, 4) Table Scraps’ new album, Autonomy, has been set free into the wild.

I’m feeling a little spring in my step, pun intended, so the ten-track-quick-hit-monster that is Autonomy could not have come at a better time. Just when I’m starting to plan my Fear & Loathing summer road trips, Table Scraps have come along with the perfect soundtrack to a bit of windows down anarchy.

Opening with ‘Sick of Me’ (which has a gloriously literal video – see below) the repeated riffs and dual vocals punch through with simplicity and style. Ain’t alliteration ace..? Garage rock as its most gorgeous, the 2 ¼ min opener sets us up for the slightly faster and drum punched ‘Always Right’, before a little dark self (kinda/sorta) deprecation with ‘I’m a Failure’. “I hate everything I do”… surely not. “And it’s all because of you”. Fair enough.

It’s difficult not to review this album track by track, but if you can listen to ‘Takin’ Out the Trash’ without thinking of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club with elephantiasis of the kahunas… awesome stuff. Then just past the midway point we get the album’s lead single, ‘My Obsession’, which Birmingham Review saw smash itself into the world at the Hare & Hounds back in April 2017. ‘Fierce and threatening, in a good way, like some clever simile involving Christian Slater and a Magnum .44’ were the words I used then, and I’m sticking with ‘em.

And whilst the first half of Autonomy was full of summer fun and ferocity, like Day #3 of a barbecue hosted by The Beach Boys and the Ramones, the latter half turns a little more dark and twisted. As David Lynch gatecrashes with “some special meat for the flames… sshhh, just eat”.

‘Frankenstein’ leads the charge with some oil drum vocals and good ol’ fashion twisted blues rock, before one of my favourites, ‘Treat Me Like Shit’, stomps out with a heavy drum spinal chord and guitar lead skin from the off. I’m pretty sure there’s a Theremin in there too, but I can’t be certain. ‘More Than You Need Me’ pulls the foot off the gas a tiny, weeny, little bit, but makes up for any perceived loss by stretching it across the longest song on the album – before Autonomy comes to a close with the lighter, almost jangly, ‘Do It All Over Again’. Which is ironically what I did. And again…

A pretty ball out of the park release from one of Birmingham’s best bands (any beyond, but fuck it – a bit of civic pride), Autonomy is a step up from an outfit that didn’t have much room to maneuver in that direction to begin with. And if you didn’t know, Table Scraps will be unleashing this particular beast at an album launch party at the Hare & Hounds on 2^nd March – presented by This Is Tmrw, with support from Yo No Se, The Hungry Ghosts, Captain Süün and a DJ set from Black Mekon.

Otherwise, or even as well as, go out and get yourself a copy of this album – for the tiny rays of sunshine expected this year WILL MEAN LITTLE without it. Fast, ferocious, fun fun FUN, Autonomy is full of summer smashing rock and roll goodness. TVs and toll booths beware.

‘Sick of Me’ – Table Scraps

Table Scraps release their latest album, Autonomy, on Friday 23^rd February – with a nationwide tour, kicking off at the Foodhall in Sheffield (23^rd Feb) and coming to the Hare & Hounds in Kings Heath, Birmingham (2^nd Mar). For direct info on the Autonomy album launch party at the Hare and Hounds, click here.

For more on Table Scraps, including full tour dates and online purchase points for Autonomy, visit www.table-scraps.bandcamp.com

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

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

February 23, 2018February 27, 2018

BPREVIEW: Average Sex @ Hare & Hounds 24.01.18

Words by Ed King

On Sunday 25^th January, Average Sex play at the Hare & Hounds (Kings Heath) with support from The Hungry Ghosts and Miles Cocker.

Doors open at 7:30pm, with tickets priced at £5 – as presented by Setting Son Records. For direct gig info, including links to online tickets sales, click here.

Hot on the heels of their tour with The Charlatans (…mic, drop) Average Sex are coming back to the Midlands for a headline show at the Hare & Hounds – ticking off the Birmingham box that was sadly missed on their winter support tour. Gaw’d bless ‘em.

And whilst they spent last December playing with the Tim Burgess’ indie pop flower/powerhouse, Average Sex have also not long released their debut Ice Cream EP – out on Burgess’ own OGenesis Recordings. Lead single, ‘Ugly Strangers’, is a cathartic (we hope) look at drink, denial and the dark corners that our minds try and run from – reported penned by vocalist Laetitia Bocquet during her evening escapes at a pub in Dalston. Whilst the other three tracks cover the familiar themes of love, unrequited love, break up (falling out of love) and licking someone’s face (kinda, sorta love). Job done, we reckon.

Fun and a little ferocious, the last time Birmingham Review saw Average Sex was at the Hungry Ghosts’ ‘Amerika/Lazaro’ single launch at Centrala, and to quote The Four Seasons… Now sharing a stage with the famished phantoms once again, albeit the other way round, we’re pretty confident this gig will be well worth your five British pounds.

But if you needed more (you cultural capitalists) then Setting Son have also thrown Miles Cocker into the mix, who can usually be found ripping an eardrum or two with the wonderful and loud (or even wonderfully loud) Youth Man. Last seen, by Birmingham Review, flying solo at the uber-muso-glorious-smorgasbord that is All Years Leaving, Senor Cocker may be a tad calmer on his own. Only a tad mind, this ‘aint a Magic FM roadshow quite yet. But in whatever form this stalwart of the local stages and scene is always worth a stop, look and listen – so get there early, you know the drill people.

But we’ll stretch our editorial neck a little further along the line and say: expect fuzz. All round, really. And with a line-up of bouncy garage punk, slaughterhouse blues, and lyrics explaining how to stretch your bread budget, this can’t be too bad an idea for a Sunday.

Meanwhile, somewhere in Dalston…

‘Ugly Strangers’ – Average Sex

Average Sex play at the Hare & Hounds (Kings Heath) on Thursday 25^th February, with support from The Hungry Ghosts and Miles Cocker – as presented by Setting Son Records. For direct event info and links to online ticket sales, click here.

For more on Average Sex, visit www.facebook.com/averagesex

For more on The Hungry Ghosts, visit www.thehungryghosts.co.uk

For more on Miles Cocker, visit www.soundcloud.com/miles-cocker

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

For more on Setting Son Records, visit www.facebook.com/settingsonrecords

December 13, 2017December 13, 2017

THE GALLERY: Touch My Secret @ Hare and Hounds 06.12.17

Words by Steve Crawford / Pics by Denise Wilson

Kushikatsu Records promised an eclectic evening tonight and so it proves to be, with three very different and distinct acts taking the stage in the smaller room at the Hare and Hounds.

The first act of the evening is Exotic Pets, a lo-fi indie garage punk trio consisting of two guitarists, Dave and Adam, backed by drummer, Becky. Although only forming a year or so ago they have already supported the likes of Ghosts of Dead Airplanes and Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam. It’s always gratifying to see a decent array of effects pedals with the guitar combination of Fender Jaguar / Fender Telecaster: we’re clearly in good, solid, garage indie territory.

Exotic Pets have a bright, single-coil, post-punk, unfussy sound, but with enough licks and flourishes to keep things interesting. The band’s first song, ‘Carrion’, is musically an upbeat cheery number, but this jauntiness belies the lyrically dark subject matter which drummer Becky delights in telling the audience about afterwards. As far can be ascertained, Liverpudlian drummer Becky is de facto leader of Exotic Pets, and her engaging banter with fellow bandmates and the audience gives us an insight into the band’s relationships and dynamics.

In stark contrast to Becky’s affable chattiness, Adam remains stoically silent, acknowledging the next track with just a thumbs up, with Becky declaring this as, “the most Yorkshire thing I’ve ever seen you do”. There are some Yorkshire vs. Lancashire dynamics going on.

Exotic Pets’ standout track is ‘Meteor’, with Adam’s vocals enhanced by delay effect on the microphone, giving it a slight Joe Meek edge. However, the biggest response from the night comes for ‘Hot Boys on Campus’ and at the time of writing this is the only Exotic Pets track available to purchase from Bandcamp for a mere £1, or more should you wish. Exotic Pets are the least polished act of the evening, at the moment at least, but it really doesn’t lessen their performance and it’s obvious that they already have a loyal following. An EP is due out next year and I look forward to more adventures in the lives of the band.

In complete contrast to Exotic Pets are Einstellung, reportedly playing live for the first time in about two years. Despite the Germanic sounding name, Einstellung are a four piece from Birmingham formed around 2004. The band are very open about their influences – given the name, plus the fact that their tracks can hit upwards of 15 minutes and all have German titles, then krautrock is one of the more obvious ones. With its members also citing Black Sabbath, My Bloody Valentine and Spiritualized as some of their favourite bands, Einstellung occupies an altogether darker and heavier sound than krautrock bands like Neu!, creating a sound that has been self-described as ‘powerkraut’.

Tonight they produce huge slabs of powerkraut, as wave after wave pummels the audience. One tune leads into another with no gaps in between. Well, virtually no gaps: there’s a point near the end of the set when the briefest of pauses allows the audience members to show their appreciation.Einstellung are a real force to witness in a venue like the Hare and Hounds.

You may think that lengthy instrumentals could get tedious and are something to be endured, but this is not the case at all. Einstellung (and it’s tempting here to now refer to the band as The Mighty Einstellung) are mesmerising live. Tracks start slowly and fairly quietly, with heavy riffs that repeat and build into something quite hypnotic, gathering pace until they can’t be contained, eventually erupting into frantic, unrestrained crescendos. The final tune sees the guitars being throttled into amps to produce wails of feedback. It’s possibly the reason why earplugs were being handed out on the door.

Chatting afterwards to Steve Hough from the band, he is asked why the two year gap between playing live? “We’re lazy, we’re getting older and we have careers”. All of which is fair enough. But he does admit just how it enjoyable it was to get back on stage again. We can but hope that all members of Einstellung enjoyed themselves equally as much, or at least enough to want play live again and soon.

There’s no setlist, apparently there never is, much to the disappointment of my setlist-stealing friend who had managed to nab Exotic Pets’ one earlier. My friend works his magic again with tonight’s headline act and duly obtains said setlist from the stage (after band has finished playing, of course). It’s a wonderful looking document, but given that it’s written in Japanese not particularly useful for reviewing purposes.

Headliners, Touch My Secret, are the second trio of the evening but an altogether different beast to Exotic Pets and, indeed, Einstellung. Labelled as ‘J-Rock’, Touch My Secret inhabit a more traditional power-rock territory compared to fellow compatriot J-rockers Mutant Monster, who they supported at the Hare and Hounds last year.

Touch My Secret are fronted by Anne on guitar and vocals, Chloe on bass, and Louie on drums. But it’s a lone Louie who emerges from the crowd to take up the sticks behind his kit and proceeds to kick things off with a quite magnificent drum solo, heralding the other two members on stage to complete the line-up.

From the start it’s clear that the trio are tremendously talented musicians. Louie’s drumming is outstanding; all drummer jokes are null and void after this opening solo and he doesn’t let up for the rest of the night. Similarly, Anne and Chloe fly around their respective fretboards note perfect with absolute precision. Anne is an exceptionally adept guitarist, with impressive chops that range from chugging power chords, dexterous solos and Eddie Van Halen-style tapping techniques along the neck. She also has the rock star moves down to a tee: foot-on-monitor poses and white Les Paul-style guitar held triumphantly aloft.

It is impressive how three people can make such an immense and powerful noise, but Touch My Secret can and do, yet making it seem so effortless. A few songs under their belts and Anne, apologising for her poor English, but in pretty much perfect English, addresses the audience, “Maybe you can’t understand Japanese lyrics. But fuck it.” She then proceeds to fire up yet another colossal J-rock monster of a tune. She’s right. It doesn’t matter that the lyrics are largely in Japanese and it doesn’t detract from the enjoyment of watching such a high calibre band. Halfway through their set, Touch My Secret do break into English with a fine cover of Hole’s ‘Celebrity Skin’, one of the few times most of the audience can sing along.

Two songs before the end, one of Louie’s snare drums is killed in action; his drumming is too much for the poor snare to take, as he proudly displays the battered and ripped instrument to the crowd. There’s a quick interlude as the snare is replaced and for the first time tonight Touch My Secret come off the accelerator to play a slower, more melodic number. The final song finishes and its cheers and applause all round from the crowd, which is reportedly the biggest audience the band has had so far on this tour.

Touch My Secret are a winner tonight in Birmingham. The city’s growing taste for all things Japanese, along with the influence of Kushikatsu Records, hopefully means that more bands from the Far East will grace midlands venues in the near future.

Touch My Secret @ Hare and Hounds 06.12.17 / Denise Wilson – Birmingham Review