Tag: Review Publishing

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SINGLE: ‘Hate Myself’ – Hannah Brown 20.09.19

Words by Ed King

On Friday 20th September, Hannah Brown releases her latest single – the somewhat troublingly titled, ‘Hate Myself’. Released via Brown’s own social media you can grab yourself a stop, look and listen courtesy of Soundcloud – click here or link below/ablum artwork to you left.

Launching off with a pop punk riff that makes me think of skateboards and summer, Brown’s latest single sounds more like a trailer for an American coming of age melodrama than a piece of emotional seppuku.

It’s fun, it’s vibrant; it has that slight staccato chord progression that makes me look back at my teenage years and sigh into my shoulder. But don’t be fooled, this single is entrails on the floor with a wry ‘yes, it’s your fault’ look as the last breath becomes a rattle… a fuck you, plainly put. And one that should make all those erstwhile school ‘friends’ wait nervously for the name drop.

But this isn’t a song about revenge, it’s about strength. ‘Hate Myself’, it’s quite clear; Brown is shining the light bright in her own face and casting shadows of the past that she wants kept rightfully behind her, where shadows belong. Lasting three and a half minutes, and bouncing through trauma and trouble, the song holds no punches. Especially when to the gut. It even proudly declares in its press release: ‘Hannah begins to let go of the power others previously had over the way she viewed herself, breaking the cycle that had bound her for years.’ So yeah, just in case it wasn’t clear before… fuck you.

‘Hate Myself’ continues Brown’s tradition of visceral lyrics and public therapy. But with no doom, gloom, or long sleeves in summertime to save an awkward downwards glance – this is empowerment. ‘Hate Myself’ doesn’t wallow in self-pity, it takes the bile, gives it a name, then throws it in the right direction. It’s a clarion call for the right of the righteous, as the chorus begins and ends: “I already hate myself, I don’t need anyone else… I don’t want to hate myself anymore.”

Brown is one of the more accomplished and hard working artists in the Midlands, having built her initial six string reputation into a ferocious full band sound; her material is valid and exciting. And fresh. Recent singles ‘So Should You’ and ‘Further Away’ have continued the melodic rock vibe from her awesome 2016 EP, Better for This – with melody and strong vocals leading throughout her work. And Brown’s live performances relay something so special it just can’t be recorded.

‘Hate Myself’ has been described as the single that has taken Brown ‘from folk singer songwriter to indie rocker’, and it’s certainly as radio friendly as such self-analysis is ever going to be. But hooking her work onto a genre shift doesn’t catch it for me.

What we’re witnessing, what we’re privy too, are the cracks in a chrysalis. And with this much honesty already seeping through we’re watching something of beauty start screaming to fly.

‘Hate Myself’ – Hannah Brown.

Hannah Brown releases ‘Hate Myself’ on Friday 20th September, available to stream for free via her Soundcloud page – click here. For more on Hannah Brown, including gig info and other releases, visit www.hannah-brown.co.uk 

Hannah Brown will be playing at the NOT NORMAL NOT OK live gig fundraiser on 25th October at Centrala, alongside Flight Brigade and Lycio. Click here for more direct gig info and links to online ticket sales, via the Facebook event page. 

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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.

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SINGLE: ‘Lost’ – Fat Cat 20.09.19

Words by Nikki Ruijter / Photography by Matt Crockford

The crooner vocals have been traded in for the romanticisation of Birmingham, putting down the thesaurus of pet names and instead creating a narrative that embodies the sounds of the city in Fat Cat‘s latest single ‘Lost’.

The four-piece have moved from over-sexualised pop vibes to tight alternative rock. The song is a swirling ballad, ear-worming its way into your head, reminiscent of a late Kings of Leon belter; the chord progression through the lead guitar and a punchy chorus that repeats itself neatly cements the track as one to be remembered.

‘Lost’ stands apart from Fat Cat‘s previous releases in this way, it captures a story and the essence of a city they are a part of. ‘Lost’ is the tall, dark, mysterious man standing at the end of the bar, whereas ‘Corner Room, Change in Mind’ and ‘Josie Moon’ is the guy telling you to smile more.

The composition, narrative and overall sound of Fat Cat’s latest single marks an exciting maturing of the band. ‘Lost’ is a slick new offering from Fat Cat, showing they’ve found themselves as a group – stepping up for their growing following, proving they’ve got much more to give.

‘Lost’ – Fat Cat

‘Lost’ is released on Friday 20th September. For more on Fat Cat, visit www.facebook.com/thatfatcatband 

Fat Cat will be performing at The Victoria on the same Friday, alongside Bermuda, The Serpents, Afterglow and China Moon – as promoted by The Future Sound Project. For more gig information, click here to visit the Facebook event page.

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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.

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BPREVIEW: Dragpunk’s Ghoul School Grand Final @ The Nightingale Club 20.09.19

Words by Ed King

On Friday 20th September, the Grand Finale of Dragpunk’s Ghoul School will be held at The Nightingale Club.

Doors open for this devilish delectation from 8pm, with tickets priced at £5 advance and more on the door. For direct event information, including online ticket sales, click here to visit Dragpunk’s Ghoul School Facebook event page.

Hosting heats 1 & 2 in August, the time has come for the Grand Finale of Dragpunk’s Ghoul School – the celebration competition where fledgling kings and queens get to ‘push the boundaries of drag’ and possibly run home with a huge bag of cosmetics and a ‘giant handmade Dragpunk gothic crown and trophy’. That and a paid up performance slot at Dragpunk’s Halloween Drag Me to Hell Part II at Eden Bar on 11th October, which ‘aint to be sniffed at no matter how much dried blood you’ve got stuck round your nostrils.

Always inclusive, Dragpunk have emphasised in the application process for Ghoul School that the competition is ‘alternative’ and open to any gender, age, ability or style. You can be political, you can be subversive, you can be a comedy or tragedy – indeed, in their own promotional words Dragpunk ‘believes competitions should be fun and creative, full of learning and guidance… It’s all about the taking part and putting on a show for you the audience.’ And if you’ve ever been to a Dragpunk event before, it’s usually quite a spectacular.

But it is a competition, after all, and battling to out-spook each other on stage will be some impressive acts from the August qualifying heats. Emily Doyle, Birmingham Review’s resident drag writer and illustrator, has been watching the Ghoul School unfold…

“Ghoul School set out to create a platform for Birmingham’s up-and-coming alternative performers,” explains Emily, “and they’ve certainly delivered on that so far. In the heats of Dragpunk’s inaugural talent contest, we’ve seen everything from mime and juggling to facial stapling and microwave lasagna – it’s hard to imagine what the final could look like. It will without a doubt be the place to see the rising stars of Birmingham drag, although it’s worth noting that the first few rows may get wet…

Dragpunk’s Ghoul School Grand Final comes to The Nightingale Club on Friday 20th September, as promoted by the Dragpunk Collective. For direct event information, including online ticket sales, click here to visit the Dragpunk Facebook Page.

For more on the Dragpunk Collective, visit www.dragpunkcollective.wordpress.com

For more from The Nightingale Club, including full event listings and online ticket sales, visit www.nightingaleclub.co.uk 

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‘I pick my way through the dressing room, stepping over debris from previous performances – a toy guitar, a picked-over sheet of stick-on moustaches, and a slowly deflating blow up doll. The front of my shirt is damp from where I tried to sponge out a pale purple stain from the Dark Fruits. I slip on my coat, grab my umbrella, and make for the stage with what I hope is an air of masculine confidence.’

Watch out for Emily Doyle’s Diary of a Short Lived Drag King, a 24 page A4 ‘zine recanting her own experiences of when she manned up and got on stage – with illustrations from Emily and photography from Eleanor Sutcliffe. 

Diary of a Short Lived Drag King will be available through Review Publishing from 7th October, click here for more details and links to online orders.

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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.

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ALBUM: Beneath the Eyrie – Pixies 13.09.19

Words by Abi Whistance

It feels necessary for this review to come with a cover letter of sorts. When it comes to Pixies, I’m a diehard. In my eyes, Francis can do no wrong.

Yet, on receiving a copy of new album Beneath the Eyrie, I knew I needed to put my Surfer Rosa loving, Trompe Le Monde abiding ways behind me. So, this is it – welcome, not to a shrine, but to a review.

I’ve never heard anyone say their favourite album by Pixies is Indie Cindy, and if they did I’d hurtle a copy of anything else in their discography at them and declare them criminally insane. What made, and continues to make, Pixies so goddamn great is their unadulterated strangeness, rage and ability to make you sick to your stomach.

In the same way Indie Cindy is good but lacking in the musto-gusto, Beneath the Eyrie just ain’t their best. It’s passive in parts, lacking the otherworldly force you know exists but can’t quite put your finger on, and kind of pussyfoots its way through twelve tracks. For Pixies, a vast chunk of this album is unremarkable; a strong start dwindles away into records that play it safe, occasionally throwing a much needed wild-card in there to grab your attention again as the mind wanders.

Yet there are still some real gems to find on here. Album opener, ‘In the Arms of Mrs. Mark of Cain’, makes for one of the best on the record – setting the tone for a surprisingly consistent forty minute ride of more subdued Pixies material. Standard biblical omens and a strong riff are all they need to get my attention, and in the first few minutes I’m feeling satisfied. Promotional single, ‘On Graveyard Hill’ features our beloved screeches and howls from Francis himself – no doubt as a demonstration that hey, the kid’s still got it and he’s not afraid to let us have it.

We then slip into the mediocre, which makes it even more infuriating when they throw a kicker in the mix with ‘St. Nazaire’. One of the best modern Pixies tracks to date, it feels wasted on an album that for the most part doesn’t deserve to possess such a, for want of a better word, kick-ass track. The musical lull perishes and suddenly there’s fire here; this is exactly what I wanted from the whole album and failed to get from pretty much anything else on it.

Nevertheless, it must be noted that what Beneath the Eyrie lacks in strength it regains in its storytelling ability. It seems to me that a choice has arisen with this record, a choice between weaving fiction and sounding mighty had splayed itself on the table, and for most tracks Pixies have sacrificed the power for the fable. The carefully fashioned imagery of ‘Catfish Kate’ and ‘Silver Bullet’ stand as a reminder of that, crafting complex stories that can sway you to forget what it is they’re missing.

So, do I like it? Of course I do, and so will everyone else. It’s great. It’s fantastic, even. But does it give me the fuck yeah feeling I was gifted with Trompe Le Monde, or even Head Carrier? No.

There’s nothing wrong with this record just being good. With a back catalogue as strong as that of Pixies, there’s no harm in dropping a, let’s say, ‘filler-not-killer’ into the mix. Three years ago, Head Carrier threw us right back to the band at their finest hour; tracks like ‘Baal’s Back’ and ‘Um Chagga Lagga’ quelling all doubts that they’d ripened and gone soft.

Maybe if Beneath the Eyrie wasn’t preceded by such a formidable force of an album I’d be concerned, but instead this feels like the calm after the storm.

‘On Graveyard Hill’ – Pixies

Pixies release Beneath the Eyrie on Friday 13th September, out on Infection/BMG and available through all the usual online outlets. For more on Pixies, including links to online sales, visit www.pixiesmusic.com

Pixies will also be performing at the O2 Academy Birmingham on Monday 16th September – for more direct gig information, including venue details and online ticket sales, click here.

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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.

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INTERVIEW: Feeder

Words by Abi Whistance

‘Tunes that connect with people have always been the main focus.’ – Grant Nicholas, Feeder

It’s been a pretty wild ride.

With over two decades in the making, Feeder have lived a life long enough to suffer turbulence like you wouldn’t believe; their career tackling the highs and the lows, the riches and the rags. It’s safe to say the Welsh rock stars have been through the wringer, earning them a lifelong place in our hall of fame, even if not in the actual one (yet).

Ups and downs aside, the run-up to the release of their latest album Tallulah has begun, and here at Birmingham Review we wasted no time in pulling frontman Grant Nicholas for a chat.

BR: You have your new record Tallulah coming out on 9th August – what can we expect from the album?

GN: I feel that Tallulah has a bit of a road trip feeling about it in some ways.  Positive, nostalgic and generally pretty uplifting, so hopefully it’ll take the listener on an interesting journey.  It was a really enjoyable album to make and I’ve had time to live with it over the past few months. It feels fresh but still classic Feeder.

BR: So, you’re dubbing Tallulah as a ‘classic Feeder’ record – what about it makes you feel that way?

GN: Feeder has always been about melodies, dynamics and lyrics that tell a story or moment. I think Tallulah has a lot of those key elements and will tick a few boxes for our diehard fans, as well as the new generation of young fans coming to our shows.

BR: It feels like you’ve heavily focused on creating a narrative with this album, and Feeder are known for their storytelling – is this something you’re conscious of when writing?

GN: I generally write with a very visual image and narrative in my head. This is a massive part of the process and as you get older you experience more about life and it fuels a lot of creative ideas. I guess it gives a bigger musical canvas to work with and touches on new subjects and emotions.

BR: With 25 years in the bag, do you think you’ve matured as a band musically? Has your music become a lot more reflective of your own experiences?

GN: I think we know our strengths and at the end of the day it’s always been about the songs. Tunes that connect with people have always been the main focus. That and the dynamic and honesty of the band live and on record is what makes it Feeder.

BR: You’ve got a handful of festivals lined up for the rest of this year, do you see them as an opportunity to get your music out there to a wider audience, especially with the new record on the way?

GN: Doing festivals is always a great way of gaining new fans for any bands or artists. We’re doing less festivals this year as we have the Tallulah album tour coming up in November. Festivals can be so unpredictable at times as you never really know how it’s going to go until you step out onto stage, but when you have a good one the buzz after is something I never grow tired of experiencing. It’s what keeps being in a live band so exciting.

‘Dirty Habit’ – Feeder

Feeder release their tenth studio album, Tallulah, on Friday 9th August – out via BELIEVE, available through all online and traditional music outlets.

Feeder will be playing at the O2 Institute (Birmingham) on Monday 11th November. For direct gig information, including venue details and online ticket sales, visit www.academymusicgroup.com/o2institutebirmingham/feeder-tickets 

For more on Feeder, visit www.feederweb.com

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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.