Listings
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Tuesday 21st May 2013
Drawing on a broad range of influences including a hefty drawing from the blues, soul and rock classics of the later ‘60s, the Hungry Kids Of Hungary provide an eclectic and soulful set of sonic surprises. You could make comparisons to acts such as The Cold War Kids and The Shins, and while these comparisons would certainly be no crime, Hungry Kids of Hungary seem to stake their claim in a musical spot that is quite refreshing in its difficulty to pin down to an obvious, clichéd derivation of something else. On the surface, their songs are catchy, rhythmic and well balanced with fetching guitar chops and contempory stylings. But also employ light and shade, and sweet vocal harmonies that’ll knock the pants of you. It’s basically fun and energetic music that anyone can get into… Even Grandma! Their new album ‘You’re A Shadow’ is out now.
7.00pm – £8/£6 adv
Wednesday 22nd May 2013
Born and raised in North London, the capital city features predominately in English soul/pop/funk singer-songwriter Steve Violaris’ contrasting sound. He grew up listening to artists such as Bill Withers, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Elvis and Frank Sinatra who inspired a passion for singing and ignited his love for soulful, warm, clearly presented vocals. A later love for the production and energy of 2Pac, Dr Dre and Musiq Soulchild led Steve to collaborate with up and coming producers such as Muddyloop on Future Romance and with OT Productions.
8.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Wednesday 22nd May 2013
Katerina Georgiou is a self taught pianist singer-songwriter based in London. Dabbling in pop, jazz, blues, and soul she draws her influences from artists such as Regina Spektor, Zero 7, Kate Bush, Amanda Palmer, and Amy Winehouse. After making her performance debut at the Lounge on the Farm festival and having released her debut EP ‘Brighter Shade Of Grey’ in 2012, Katerina has recently finished her debut album, and will soon be releasing her first single.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 23rd May 2013
House On Fire are a four piece indie/rock/punk band from Tunbridge Wells and Brighton known for their tight and energetic live shows. The current line-up has been together since March 2012 and has since worked to spread their name across the South East of England and increase their following, regularly playing shows across Sussex, Kent and London, including the odd acoustic gig. The band released their debut E.P. ‘Truth Or Dare’ in May 2012, which was featured on BBC introducing in Kent and earned the boys a place supporting Funeral Suits on their tour. At the end of 2012 House On Fire shot their first music video with The Grad Factor and STAG Music, appearing on the TV series ‘The Grad Factor’ under their previous name ‘The Visitors’ and ultimately winning the Twitter vote as the favourite band of the series with their song ‘Menace Boys’. In January 2013 House On Fire recorded their second five-track EP ‘House On Fire – EP’ at UnStudios which is available on iTunes now. Right now the band are regularly playing shows all across East Sussex, Kent and London whilst finishing off writing their debut album.
7.30pm – £5/£4 adv
Thursday 23rd May 2013
Fake Club are the antithesis to a modern brand of music. Their music will make you tingle in places that were left behind when rock n roll was a lifestyle. To their peers they are a threat. And to the general public they are their new favorite band. Birthed from a society obsessed with fake-ness and augmented reality, Fake Club take that attitude and turn it on its’ head, mocking and feeding from any negative associations and creating a refreshing culture of their own.
Born in the late 80’s / early 90’s and sick of the values of our current generation: celebrity worship, glorified karaoke contests and “flawless” faces on the cover of every magazine. Fake Club are going to initiate the Fake Revolution through their music. Fake club want to inspire the young generation, show them that there is a bigger picture, its ok for girls to cut their nails and play the guitar, and for young boys not to be computer gamed into oblivion.
7.30pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 23rd May 2013
The Lost Children were formed in 2007 and come from the small market towns of Kettering and Corby in Northamptonshire. Their views and sound, however, are not quite so small. From what can only be described as a “fucking onslaught”, they exploded onto the underground local scene. Supporting the likes of Raging Speedhorn, Devil Sold His Soul, Mirimar Disaster and Fei Comodo they prospered engaging with many of the headline crowds. In late 2008 the band decided to part ways reforming only on occasions for special shows. But now, after this hiatus, The Lost Children are back! This is honest Hardcore/Punk straight from the working mans heart.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Friday 24th May 2013
Blues sorcerers, with a rock and roll spirit. Formed in Manchester, United Kingdom in 2010, Turrentine Jones comprises Julian Neville (guitar, vocals), Thomas Scotson (organ) and Rich Watts (drums), they’re frequently compared to The Animals and The Doors due to Neville’s emphatic voice and Hammond sound. Their songs juxtapose the structural and chordal simplicity of 50′s and 60′s rock with tweedy telecasters, melodic bursts of Hammond organ, driving beats and lyrical content often of a sexual nature, similar to another of the band’s influences, The Velvet Underground. They make no bones about the fact that they’re “the antithesis of contemporary music”.
7:00pm – £8/£6 adv
Friday 24th May 2013
Founded in Feb 2012 via music social media Sheabou was initially built around the ethos of democratic song writing. By incorporating first vocals/bass then guitar and drums they have managed stay away from the traditional singer/songwriter set up. This has given them a slightly more eclectic balance which is reflected in their songs, they have achieved an indie sound which they hope will be a consistent theme. Sheabou have huge amounts of passion, energy and enthusiasm which they’re keen to share with a wider audience along with the music!
7.30pm – £8/£6 adv
Saturday 25th May 2013
The Meds Collective are a new dynamic London based music group who consist of West London based Singer Paul-Lee, South West London based Rapper Hi Breed, and North London based Rapper Mark Anthony. The Meds Collective are currently performing their material in and around Great Britain, as well as writing and recording tracks. Their debut album ‘Heartbreaks & Remedies’ is out now on iTunes and through the group’s official website. This album features musical styles that incorporate hip-hop, R & B, hard-edged pop, jazz, rap, funky house and nu-soul influences.
7.00pm – £8/£6 adv
Saturday 25th May 2013
The Black Bullets consist of four bastard children from hell locked together to produce the most filthy Rock ‘n’ Roll ever to penetrate human ears. Hailing from the south of England, the band came together after Rob and Stevie decided to form the darkest and nastiest project they always rambled of. The Bullets soon hit the music scene like a freight train with their hard and fast filthy sound to sterling reviews from around with world and a sell out E.P.
7.30pm – £8/£6 adv
Sunday 26th May 2013
Jamie Graham is a 23 years old singer songwriter from Teeside who began writing at 16. His passion stems from a desire to follow the dream he’s held since childhood. Jamie’s music is a reflection on his life; the things he sees and his personal experiences. His heartfelt lyrics sum up how he feels and have led to a series of beautiful songs which showcase his immense talent.
7.00pm – £5/£3 adv
Monday 27th May 2013
Jack J Hutchinson is a British blues/rock guitarist and singer/songwriter. He is lead guitarist for a variety of bands, including David James Herbert’s Vive La Rose. Currently recording his latest E.P. and album, due summer 2013. Having been gigging and recording for 15 years, Hutchinson’s early influences include the Grateful Dead, Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones and The Beatles. 2013 has got off to a flyer, mixing guitar and vocal duties for a long list of bands, he is now putting the finishing touches to his debut solo album, ‘This Is Not Here’ while releasing two singles with a tour scheduled for the Summer.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Tuesday 28th May 2013
The moment that ignited the singer, the songwriter, musician and bard in Kieran Leonard was being forced by his mum to watch a David Bowie retrospective on the telly as a 13 year old kid. In response, Kieran wrote 100 songs in 6 months, the die was caste. Since that epiphany, Leonard has been driving; guns blazing, eyes open, pen poised to this point. With his debut album receiving critical acclaim and gathering an intense following, now is the moment that will undeniably propel this impassioned and politically galvanised talent onto the global stage.
With a weird & restless childhood spent living between Ireland, the US, and then London, and lyrical references drawn widely from Backett & Burroughs to Shakespeare & Tupac Shakur, his output has much more substantial bite and subsequent gut fill than many of his contemporaries. Over the last year, he’s played on the same stages as Bob Dylan, Billy Bragg, Mick Jones, Carl Barat, Peter Doherty, Graham Coxon, Baba Maal, Fionn Regan, Lee Mavers & Keane. More highlights included performances at Glastonbury, Reading & Leeds Festivals, and being invited to support The Libertines at their reunion concerts in London.
With extensive live dates following the release of his debut album “Out of Work Astronaut”, the changing world of 2013 is about to see a lot more of the remarkable & mercurial talent of Kieran Leonard.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Wednesday 29th May 2013
Conundrum In Deed are a London based four piece playing original music with diverse influences from 70′s prog to folk, jazz and psychedelia. Described as lyrical, elegant pop dripping with Bowie-ish goodness and jazzy piano breakdowns the band consist of Greg Shields (Guitar/Lead Vocals), Michael Sadler (Piano/Keyboards), John Davidson (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals), and Tom Sibly (Drums). Drawing on influences such as Donovan, Genesis, Yes, Magma, and Lou Reed, Conundrum In Deed continue to procure their own brand of surreal folk-psychedelic-prog-fusion with gigs around London.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 30th May 2013
Camper Van Beethoven is an American alternative rock group formed in Redlands, California in 1983 and later located in Santa Cruz and San Francisco. Their eclectic and ever-evolving style mixes elements of pop, ska, punk rock, folk, alternative country, and various types of world music. The band initially polarized audiences within the hardcore punk scene of California’s Inland Empire before finding wider acceptance and, eventually, an international audience. Their strong iconoclasm and emphasis on do-it-yourself values proved influential to the burgeoning indie rock movement.
Released within an 18 month period, the band’s first three, independent records enjoyed critical success, each placing in The Village Voice’s 1986 Pazz and Jop Top 100 Albums list. Their debut single, “Take the Skinheads Bowling”, remains a college rock radio staple. The group signed to Virgin Records in 1987, released two lauded albums and enjoyed chart success with their 1989 cover of Status Quo‘s “Pictures of Matchstick Men”, a number one hit on Billboard Magazine’s Modern Rock Tracks. They disbanded the following year, however, due to internal tensions. Individual members found greater commercial success thereafter, with lead singer David Lowery forming Cracker, multi-instrumentalist David Immerglück joining the Counting Crows, and several other members playing in Monks of Doom. Beginning in 1999, the former members resumed their collaboration, resulting in a full-fledged reunion and several new releases.
Their latest album, ‘La Costa Perdida’, was released on January 22, 2013, preceded by the single “Northern California Girls”. The music was inspired in part by Holland-era Beach Boys, with a heavy Northern California influence. The album contains the band’s usual diversity, with ska, country, psychedelia, and Northern Mexican, Eastern European and South Asian-influenced melodies all making appearances. Lowery later revealed that there were seven songs recorded during the sessions that were not released, which would be included on a follow-up album to be finished in 2013.
7.00pm – £15 adv
Thursday 30th May 2013
LGM One are a band on a mission who enjoy launching themselves into a frenzy of creativity. The band are from the city of Plymouth otherwise known as the city of discovery and explore a wide range of influences from indie/alternative rock bands, to comic book characters and classic science fiction films. The band enjoy getting together and sharing the ups and downs of everyday life; mainly Geoff’s travelodge adventures! Their music can be described as a blend of sounds with punktastic riffs, inviting hooks and spaced out indie vibes. So put your headphones on and go into hyperdrive.
7.30pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 30th May 2013
With their soaring hooks and glam looks, Joywride are looking to redecorate the charts with glamorous pop panache, and you can join them from the start. Not ones for understatement, dance rock revivalists Joywride are proving to be one of the most dynamic live acts to emerge from London’s underground in years. With a mix of classic-styled pop and a well-groomed fashionista charm, Joywride are poised to take centre stage at the forefront of pop music. With their debut single ’21st Century Love’ available now and a busy Summer schedule supporting artists such as Olly Murs, Jessie J, Plan B, and Diana Vickers, right now, you need to see Joywride.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Friday 31st May 2013
Hunter As a Horse draw inspiration from sources as diverse as astral travel, shamanism, psychedelia and the macabre, as well as from an eclectic collectanea including Stephen King, Nina Simone, Chopin, Clive Barker, Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Cash and Jan Bartell’s ‘Spindrift’. They live in Richmond upon Thames next to the river and the trees, composing music, learning to astral travel and dreaming up ways to communicate with the other side. Now, after years of subterranean gestation, they are set to haul their ethereal sounds and broody vocals above-ground.
7.15pm – £7/£5 adv
Friday 31st May 2013
A post-modern sex crooner and trombone player, Smoota sings steamy, sensual, sexual songs for listeners who like their music simultaneously groovy and arousing. Drawing comparisons to Serge Gainsbourg, Barry White, and Bryan Ferry, Smoota obviously sees no shame in dirty thoughts or dirty sheets. Equally renowned for his passionate trombone playing and tours with TV on the Radio, Sufjan Stevens, and Spoon, Smoota debuted his solo act in 2010 and quickly developed a reputation for his rare combination of provocative, entertaining lyrics and warm, sexy sounds. Desire and joy are truly bedmates at a Smoota show.
8.00pm – £8/£6 adv
Friday 31st May 2013
One day, four market research executives had a dream. That dream was to go out and make the best god damn music anyone had ever heard. Then they decided they weren’t good enough yet and still needed to work so instead they played some Bruce Springsteen covers outside of work while producing unprecedented insights into dried gravy and fish during the day. Now First To The Fire returned to our original plans. After a recording session plagued by bigger egos than Metallica and more disagreements than Israel and Palestine, they’ve begun the journey towards fulfilling their dreams.
7:00pm – £8/£6 adv
Saturday 1st June 2013
Playing a blend of alternative rock, britrock, and grunge, Afterglow are gaining a reputation for well crafted, powerful high energy rock. With funky basslines, chunky rhythm guitar, pounding drums, innovative lead, combined with a stunning vocal line, Afterglow give the crowd a set to remember. Hailing from Southend-on-Sea the band consists of Andrew Mark Newman, Ruth Cordey, Christopher Dawson, Simon Newman, and Mickey Pearce.
7.00pm – £8/£6 adv
Saturday 1st June 2013
Born and raised in Paris the artist known as Axel Loughrey picked up his first guitar at the tender age of 8, completed his first songs at 14 and hasn’t looked back since. He eventually packed up his guitar with a head full of songs and ventured across the North Sea to arrive on these shores and try his luck in the demanding world of the UK music scene. Axel released his debut E.P ‘love Thing’ on All Sorted Sorted!?! Records in May 2011 to great acclaim, he secured air play on BBC, Kerrang, Q and recieved countless outstanding reviews. Axel also had the title track ‘Love Thing’ named as Classic Rock Magazine’s song of the day in the summer of 2011. Whilst touring relentlessly, Axel also supported and shared bills with the likes of Frank Turner, The King Blues, Secret Sisters, The Future Heads, Louise & The Pins to name a few.
With a voice and music style as velvet as Lou Reed’s Underground, Axel certainly has the style, the look, and most importantly the songs ready to deliver to the wider audience. With two self released EP’s and a label released E.P already in his kit bag, the beautiful ‘Small Town, Small People’, the invoking ‘Galloway Hill’ and the powerfull ‘Love Thing E.P’ Axel is already taking the acclaim and plaudits on the live scene and is now ready to step forth with his fourth and highly anticipated release, a darker side of the blues which makes ‘Crayon Factory’.
7.30pm – £8/£6 adv
Sunday 2nd June 2013
Decoy Jets + Joe Mills + Ben Madley
Decoy Jet are the sound of North London, a hot four piece from Enfield/Barnet ready to scorch the crowd with some catchy stuff! With two guitars, two vocals, a bass, and a sexy drum kit, they’re ready to go one venue at a time! When it comes down to it, Decoy Jet are some good blokes with some sweet instruments. Grab a beer and listen.
7.00pm – £5/£3 adv
Monday 3rd June 2013
As a small but perfectly formed, twenty-five year old, bass player, Sofi Reed has developed into an intelligent and emotionally insightful songwriter whose inspiration comes from the everyday and the normal experiences of a young woman with a unique take on the world. The physicality of playing the bass has led to a brave and quirky approach to fusing her music you find yourself submerged in an urban groove laden acoustic pop landscape partnered with unforgettable melodies and provocative lyrics. The ‘we’re not in Kansas anymore’ moment comes with the vocal, one of the most distinctive and beautiful voices to emerge in the past decade, which literally has audiences lost for words. Her voice takes you in, caresses and soothes your journey through this disparate and challenging music. Sofi has begun her musical exploration and invites you to join her on this ever changing and developing adventure.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Tuesday 4th June 2013
Hailing from the heart of London, Trip To Miami play a heady mix of alt rock/grunge/pop, bolstered by searing vocal melodies and harmonies. Including former members of My Red Cell/Inner City Pirates and Goldheart Assembly, and influenced by bands such as Wilco, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Talking Heads, Soundgarden, Neil Young, Husker Du and Jeff Buckley; Trip to Miami are a fresh alternative to the dearth of UK indie guitar bands on the current music scene.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Wednesday 5th June 2013
Spotlight Kid continue their assault against sonic mediocrity with an assuredness and an emotional depth so many guitar bands are currently lacking. This is the sound of a band rising to the top of their game, while wearing their hearts on their sleeves and performing live shows like their next meal depends on it. Influences from the likes of The Cure, Swervedriver and My Bloody Valentine have allowed Spotlight Kid to produce a heady mix that runs through the entire gamut of emotions. The new album moves from the brittle melodic “Haunting Me”, a towering epic, underpinned by hopeless romantic loss, before plunging without warning headlong into the Mary Chainesque two-minute punk blast “Plan Comes Apart,” providing a marvellous wake-up call to the senses. This is exactly what the album is about. You’re in the arms of your lover one minute and then cast into a dark void the next. Spotlight Kid’s music features mixtures of shoegaze, krautrock and 90s psychedelia. Fuzzy guitars wrapped in layers of reverb and boy/girl vocals subtly building on the layered walls of distortion.
7.00pm – £8/£6 adv
Thursday 6th June 2013
HiDef is a music group formed of four friends namely Zulu, Alternative, Magic and Tim0 all hailing from the east of London, UK. Combining strong vocals with expressive lyrics, they’ve solidified their sound in the Electric/Urban genre creating music that literately “Makes Your Heart Beat”. Currently working on their first EP, Long Way Home (L. W. H.), with hopes of completion in June 2013, they aim to captivate hearts with their electrifying music.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 6th June 2013
Carlito are a four piece indie-punk band formed in Kingston in 2011. The group is comprised of Jack Dodd (Lead Vocals), Laurence Stevens (Bass), Tommy Cruickshanks (Guitar, Backing Vocals) and Pearl Maburutse (Drums, Backing Vocals). Since the autumn of 2011 the band have been gigging around the UK, wowing audiences with their high energy frenetic shows, with a sound that is as much influenced by the power of Iggy and the Stooges as it is by the melodic pop sensibilities of groups such as The Stone Roses. The band released their debut single “Youth Is Wasted On The Young” in September 2012 to great acclaim. Also very recently Carlito blew away a huge home crowd as they supported Palma Violets in Kingston as special guests.
8.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 6th June 2013
House of Sticks are an alternative rock band from Essex, comprising Dave Bonds (Vox/guitar/piano), Rachel Geller (Bass/vox/guitar), and Mike Sutherland (Drums). Finding influence from a range of different styles, House of Sticks have a diverse sound, containing guitar heavy tracks with elements of rock, indie, grunge, heavy metal, progressive rock and punk, alongside softer and quieter textures. Their variation of styles is also reflective in their approach to composition as they include raw, simple songs to more elaborate and diverse arrangements.
7.30pm – £7/£5 adv
Friday 7th June 2013
Viv Albertine is a British singer and songwriter, best known as the guitarist for the influential, all-female English punk group, The Slits. Viv Albertine was amongst the first “inner circle” fans of the Sex Pistols, and was close friends of both Mick Jones and Joe Strummer of The Clash. Albertine joined The Slits as the band’s guitarist, after founding member Kate Korus left in 1977. After twenty five years away from music, influential guitarist and songwriter, Viv Albertine, releases her first solo album ‘The Vermilion Border’ – released 5th November 2012 through Cadiz Music. The album features a renowned bass player on each track, and even reunites Viv with Mick Jones of The Clash, who plays guitar on ‘Confessions of a MILF’.
Best known as the lead vocalist for Stereolab, Laetitia Sadier was born in France and was working as a nanny in the late ’80s when she met McCarthy member Tim Gane at one of the bands gigs in Paris. She followed Gane to London and the duo formed Stereolab soon after McCarthy disbanded in 1990. The pair was inspired by lounge-pop, bossa nova, film music, and Krautrock, but Sadier’s hypnotic vocals and leftist lyrics made the band’s sound even more distinctive. Stereolab earned critical acclaim for albums such as 1993′s ‘Transient Random Noise Bursts with Announcements’, 1995′s ‘Mars Audiac Quintet’ and 2001′s ‘Sound-Dust’ Sadier’s immediately recognizable voice also appeared on many other collaborations over the years, including songs with Blur, Luna, The High Llamas, and Mouse on Mars. Stereolab went on hiatus in 2009 and Sadier began work on her first solo album, working with the Spinanes’, Rebecca Gates, April March, Richard Swift, and former Monade players Julien Gasc and Emmanuel Mario. ‘The Trip’ was released in 2010, the same year that another Stereolab collection, ‘Not Music’, arrived. Two years later, the more introspective, political ‘Silencio‘ appeared.
8.00pm – £10/£8 adv
Friday 7th June 2013
Faith N Fury are a hard rocking three piece from south London that blend huge riffs and souring melodies together to create an explosion of musical energy that keeps you partying all night. With the release of their debut EP “Close to the edge” this concoction of epic hooks, driving basslines and eclectic drumming makes you wonder how a three piece could achieve such a giant sound. The band has been firing off live shows across the UK, making their presence known. This band just keeps growing from strength to strength with an incredible show that will have you singing your heart out and rocking your socks off!
7.30pm – £8/£6 adv
Friday 7th June 2013
Formed in December 2012, London based Sweetheart Of The Rodeo consists of Adrian Badger (Vocals/Guitar), Dan Howe (Guitar) David Foster (Drums) and Callum Hayes (Bass/Vocals). This guitar driven, harmony led band inject vitality into the tired rock formula and are fast establishing themselves as an incendiary live act.
7:00pm – £8/£6 adv
Saturday 8th June 2013
Viv Albertine is a British singer and songwriter, best known as the guitarist for the influential, all-female English punk group, The Slits. Viv Albertine was amongst the first “inner circle” fans of the Sex Pistols, and was close friends of both Mick Jones and Joe Strummer of The Clash. Albertine joined The Slits as the band’s guitarist, after founding member Kate Korus left in 1977. After twenty five years away from music, influential guitarist and songwriter, Viv Albertine, releases her first solo album ‘The Vermilion Border’ – released 5th November 2012 through Cadiz Music. The album features a renowned bass player on each track, and even reunites Viv with Mick Jones of The Clash, who plays guitar on ‘Confessions of a MILF’.
Best known as the lead vocalist for Stereolab, Laetitia Sadier was born in France and was working as a nanny in the late ’80s when she met McCarthy member Tim Gane at one of the bands gigs in Paris. She followed Gane to London and the duo formed Stereolab soon after McCarthy disbanded in 1990. The pair was inspired by lounge-pop, bossa nova, film music, and Krautrock, but Sadier’s hypnotic vocals and leftist lyrics made the band’s sound even more distinctive. Stereolab earned critical acclaim for albums such as 1993′s ‘Transient Random Noise Bursts with Announcements’, 1995′s ‘Mars Audiac Quintet’ and 2001′s ‘Sound-Dust’ Sadier’s immediately recognizable voice also appeared on many other collaborations over the years, including songs with Blur, Luna, The High Llamas, and Mouse on Mars. Stereolab went on hiatus in 2009 and Sadier began work on her first solo album, working with the Spinanes’, Rebecca Gates, April March, Richard Swift, and former Monade players Julien Gasc and Emmanuel Mario. ‘The Trip’ was released in 2010, the same year that another Stereolab collection, ‘Not Music’, arrived. Two years later, the more introspective, political ‘Silencio‘ appeared.
7.30pm – £10/£8 adv
Saturday 8th June 2013
Having grown up together in South West London, Wyldeck formed in March 2012 and have already played shows for Marshall and won plaudits from Jen Long (Radio 1) as well as airtime on Radio 1 Introducing show. Wyldeck spent their first four months crafting and honing their unique blend of dark, rock tinged folk before winning over audiences at every gig and being invited to perform a session on CitySessions.com Their first self titled EP and subsequent music video for Wolves helped grab the attention of Radio 1’s Jen Long, who featured the band on her introducing show, helping bag a series of headline shows around London. Currently in the studio recording the follow up to their self-titled EP, Wyldeck are Cece Wyldeck (Guitar & vocals), Dom Cheung (Guitar), Jacob Hollebon (Bass), and Dave Churchyard (Drums).
8.00pm – £8/£6 adv
Saturday 8th June 2013
Cardboard Carousel is a duo comprising of Calliopi McDowell (Vocals, Electric Double Bass), and Richard Dawson (Vocals, Guitar, Percussion). With a wide variety of influences such as Mumford & Son’s, Civil Wars, Young the Giant, and Bob Dylan, Cardboard Carousel produces a unique contemporary/folk sound centered on smooth harmonies.
7.30pm – £8/£6 adv
Sunday 9th June 2013
Angela Ashby + Rory Butler
Born & raised in Australia on the beautiful NSW South Coast, Angela Ashby recently decided to take time out from her career as a Veterinary Surgeon and venture to the mean streets of London to further develop her passion for both creating and performing music. She has been playing guitar for over 10 years and in more recent years fell deeply in love with Duke, her trusty ukulele. Duke travelled all the way from Oz to bring smiles and sunshine to many a Londoner on those long dreary grey days. Angela has started recording some of her recent compositions with other wayward musical travellers and may soon start to venture further afield, both virtually and in reality, taking those mischievous melodies out into the big wide world!
7.00pm – £5/£3 adv
Tuesday 11th June 2013
The Ballroom Fighters were born in a londoner house the day that Ruben (vocals) and Mariano (guitar) met each other by a friend in common. Ruben had been banding in Spain for 8 years and he wanted to set up his first band in London, and Mariano was a self-taught and lonely guitarist with a big creativity. They decided to play together after making a improvised song that is not included in the song list yet due to its strangeness, but they still trying to adapt it to the band style. This band is the result of the mix between a rockabilly singer, a power pop lover guitarist, a heavy metal beast bassist and a traditional iranian music drummer and on 12th of January of 2013 they recorded their first demo, and now they are ready to rock you as anybody did it before.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Wednesday 12th June 2013
Low Sea plumbs depths that few other bands could fathom. The sound of Spaceman 3 and Mazzy Star being thrown to the bottom of the most tranquil ocean leaving the listener pining for the inevitable beautiful songs to emerge from below. A surprisingly big sound for a duo, Low Sea has created what can only be described as an album of shoegaze sea shanties. The classic, sexy French vocals of Billie (vox/guitar/percussion) fuse with the ambient layered arrangement of synthetic and acoustic sounds created by Bobby D (guitar/bass/sounds) and the synthesis is undoubtedly something special. Low Sea is one of those bands that it pays to immerse yourself in to fully comprehend their brilliance.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Wednesday 12th June 2013
Lily Buchanan is The Graphite Set. Growing up in East Lothian, Scotland, music and art were always her passions. Lily is constantly painting and sketching and has had band since she was 16. After school she moved to London to study Illustration at Central St Martins and immersed myself in London’s music scene. The idea of The Graphite Set is that one day she’d be able to design and make a full sized stage set using her art which she can perform on. It’ll be black and white, linear, atmospheric and will give her the best sounding reverb you have ever heard. The Graphite Set’s sound is quite heavy, with psych folk freakouts and angular pop punk songs. They are adding new songs to the live set all the time, and are building up to record an album.
8.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 13th June 2013
Originally founded in Rio de Janeiro, “The Immigrants” rise again in 2012′s London with a new Line-Up coming from Milan, Czech Republic, Tabor, and Berlin. Consisting of Pedro Caetano (Guitar), Daniel Cherney (Bass), Alex Prete (Drums), and Robin Paul Braum (Guitar) the band integrate elements from each of their cultural background, blending them into the sound of the English music scene, “Immigrants” tell their story of leaving, longing and determination.
7.30pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 13th June 2013
Having spent years together performing primarily as a function/cover band, these talented school friends from Portsmouth formed Heronshaw, specialising in alternative folk rock, in late 2011 with a view to entertain through new original music. They produced their first studio EP, ‘The Truth, It Hurts’, in the summer of 2012 at Wallops Wood Studios, Hampshire and perform as a four piece. With influences ranging from Mumford & Sons to Radiohead, their sound is constantly evolving as they seek to carve out their own mark on the live circuit. 2013 will be a huge year for this talented, multidimensional group as they seek to take up the mantle of a new wave of folk rock and push into new territory with their impressive repertoire.
7.30pm – £7/£5 adv
Friday 14th June 2013
The Strangers are north London songwriter/rapper Covo (Inferno, London Urban Collective, Spa Cru), singer/songwriter Robert Bowers (Universal Music Emerging Icon 2012), lead guitar Rob Foster, bass Craig Taylor, drummer Andy Burt and keys Daisy Conquest. Having released debut single Stranger as a duo in 2011, Covo and Robert formed the band and began writing, recording with Hackney’s finest producer engineer and pedal steel player Steve Honest (Bobby Womack, Oasis, Das Psycho Rangers, Culture Club, Dolly Parton). New single “I Feel Strange” is out in Febuary and EP “There Is No Genre” is due Spring 2013 on Revolution Harmony Records.
7.30pm – £8/£6 adv
Friday 14th June 2013
Swagga is the Brainchild of Essex songwriter/rapper Ray Gudge AKA The Rapskallion. They’re the skankinest, funkiest, hip hoppity fusion with some of the best storytelling you’re likely to hear. Fusing ska, hip-hop, funk & punk all wrapped up with great lyrical storylines documenting life in modern Britain, taking in such subjects as wannabe Essex gangsters, the ASBO generation and the Americanisation of British culture.
7.30pm – £8/£6 adv
Saturday 15th June 2013
The Electric Mainline are a musical collective based in London. The bands sound falls somewhere between shoegaze, punk and psychedelia. This is music for kids with their eyes rolled back in their heads and their heads in the clouds. Their first official release came courtesy of Northern Star Records’ Psychedelica series with an appearance alongside The Black Angels, Brian Jonestown Massacre and The Telescopes. This was followed by the self-released 6 track ‘All Too Much’ EP. Since then the band have gone on to appear on numerous compilations all over the world.
The band have been picked up by Strummerville, appeared alongside A Place To Bury Strangers on a US compilation and have featured on 2 covermount cds of a popular Russian music magazine which introduced the band to over 80,000 households in Mother Russia. The band have shared the stage with The Nova Saints, Youngteam, The Lost Rivers and 2013 saw a brand new line-up support The Telescopes at the Northern Star Weekender. The Electric Mainline are currently preparing for the release of their new single ‘Don’t You Know’ and an appearance on Psychedelica 5, both of which will be released on the legendary Northern Star imprint.
7.00pm – £8/£6 adv
Friday 15th June 2013
Formed in February of 2012, NE(b)BIA shared a vision of creating and performing honest and heartfelt music. Drawing influences from vastly different genres, their sound is one that is hard to pigeonhole but one that remains accessible and that tugs at the heartstrings. Playing their debut show in May 2012, NE(b)BIA impressed with their rich soundscapes and arrangements. The end of June saw them record their debut single “Cruel” at Legacy London Studios with the hope to reach a wider audience and take a stronghold on the live circuit.
7.30pm – £8/£6 adv
Monday 17th June 2013
Exploding into the blogosphere despite the release of only one free download to date, ‘BON-BON‘ the guise of singer Sian King was born. With support from the likes of Tom Robinson at 6 Musics BBC Introducing, it is a great start to the year for the feity indie-pop singer. Taken from her forthcoming EP – ‘Lois Lane’ was written after a young, turbulent and somewhat destructive love affair went sour. After years of working alongside her long time guitarist and friend John Landau, both musicians having a shared loved of soul and indie pop/rock resulting in an eclectic but clearly very personal EP – co-written together and due out later this year.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Tuesday 18th June 2013
Symptomatic are honoured to present Grant Hart‘s first full band live appearance in The UK for over a decade and his first UK show since signing for Domino Records.
Grant is best known as the drummer and co-songwriter for the legendary alternative rock band Hüsker Dü. Following the band’s breakup in 1988 he formed Nova Mob, where he moved full-time to vocals and guitar. Grant’s solo career has become his main focus after the dissolution of Nova Mob in 1997. Many of his songs (such as “The Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill” and “Turn On The News”) have received acclaim from critics and contemporaries alike. His diversity and skill as a lyricist (encompassing themes which range from teenage alienation in “Standing By The Sea”, to the depiction of a murder in “Diane,” and the playful story-telling in “Books About UFOs”) has been credited with expanding the boundaries of alternative rock.
His latest album “The Argument” will be officially released in July on Domino Records.
7.00pm – £14 adv
Tuesday 18th June 2013
Sometimes you have to steal your life back. All it takes is an open door and leap of faith. For Most Thieves that open door was a chance reunion of friends at a small coffee house in downtown Las Vegas. In two days the band was in a room, knocking out the first of their signature ethereal anthemic rock songs. In thirty days, they were recording their first batch of songs… with three days notice before entering the studio. Add seven days to that and their first six recordings were complete. In less than a year Most Thieves have been dubbed the band to watch in the Las Vegas valley after becoming the only local act invited to play a three night residency at the Cosmopolitan’s Book & Stage as well as being named the Best Breakout Band by The Las Vegas Seven. In September of 2011 The Killers drummer Ronnie Vannucci invited the Thieves to open for his band Big Talk on a tour of the UK. These Thieves don’t believe that a moment should ever pass wasted.
Although the speed at which this band works is staggering for most new projects, the real story here are the songs. More than sixty of them populated songwriter Eric Koch’s ever expanding notebooks. Over time twelve of those songs rose to the occasion being documented in their, freshly completed, full length debut “Unnecessary Maps”. Soaring, powerful, masterful songs delivered with dense lyrical concepts and passion of heart. Most Thieves present the heart wrenching and celebratory moments as natural bed fellows. At times they present them in unison. This is the sound of a band attempting to encapsulate the entire sweep of human emotion in their set. Twelve stories of being tethered to the past as you fight for the future. Stories of mistakes and forgiveness, fires and floods, ghosts and blood, and the grasp of love. Heady stuff for a band seemingly addicted to melody. Don’t worry about your wallet around these Thieves, but make sure to mind your heart.
8.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Wednesday 19th June 2013
The Blue Aeroplanes are one of Bristol’s most celebrated bands having released over a dozen albums plus multiple singles, EP’s and compilations over the last 30 years. They return for a short tour to celebrate the 20th anniversary of one of their most popular albums ‘Beatsongs.’ Much of the appeal of The Blue Aeroplanes lies in their excellence as a live act. Happy headlining gigs in small indie venues or supporting big acts such as REM and Siouxsie & the Banshees on major international tours, The Blue Aeroplanes have a reputation for keeping their set list as fresh as the line-up of guitarists.
Frontman Gerard Langley has a huge stage presence, always wearing his trademark shades even at night in dark venues, and will move from casually introducing songs and making cryptic comments to answering questions from the audience back to his half-sung, half spoken snarling delivery of his lyrics. Memorable performances include the band’s 1992 appearance at Glastonbury which was broadcast on BBC Radio 1, the finale at the Hammersmith Apollo when 12 guitarists were seen on stage performing “Breaking in My Heart” and their annual appearance at Fiddlers in Bristol which has now been relocated to the band’s own venue, The Fleece. ‘Beatsongs’, released in 1991, was the band’s most successful record in America with ‘Yr Own World’ garnering rotation play on all major alternative radio stations. Recorded at Oceanway in Los Angeles, the album was a broader-based affair than Swagger, featuring many songs that were to become staples of the Aeroplanes’ live set for many years. The album was partly remixed and overdubbed in Bristol but all the tracks from the original playback in LA are included on CD2. The booklet for ‘Beatsongs’ remastered contains many fascinating archive photos.
The band will be performing songs from both ‘Beatsongs’ and last years ‘Anti-Gravity’ as well as other live favourites. ‘Beatsongs’ Deluxe was reissued through Cherry Red on March 24th 2013.
7.00pm – £14/£12 adv
Wednesday 19th June 2013
Alice Lewis spent her early years in England. She recorded her first songs while at The Ecole des Beaux Arts, Paris where her work with soundtracks, installations, audio engineering and her singing practice, gradually led her towards writing music. After graduating, she did a number of commissions for short films, dance productions and commercials (including ads by David Lynch and Patrice Leconte). She also composed part of the original soundtrack for the feature film “The Fox and the Child” (2008) by Luc Jacquet (director of the award-winning “March of the Penguins”). Alice’s mesmerising stage performances combine an ethereal and unique voice with unusual instruments such as the omnichord. Her interest in other musical forms has taken her around the world, including Beijing, to study Peking Opera, and Taipei, to learn the Chinese zither, the Guzheng. Her debut album, recorded in the UK and France and produced by Ian Caple (Tricky, The Tindersticks, Stina Nordenstam), was released in October 2010, on French record label “Naïve”. She has just finished recording her second album.
7.30pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 20th June 2013
The Blue Aeroplanes are one of Bristol’s most celebrated bands having released over a dozen albums plus multiple singles, EP’s and compilations over the last 30 years. They return for a short tour to celebrate the 20th anniversary of one of their most popular albums ‘Beatsongs.’ Much of the appeal of The Blue Aeroplanes lies in their excellence as a live act. Happy headlining gigs in small indie venues or supporting big acts such as REM and Siouxsie & the Banshees on major international tours, The Blue Aeroplanes have a reputation for keeping their set list as fresh as the line-up of guitarists.
Frontman Gerard Langley has a huge stage presence, always wearing his trademark shades even at night in dark venues, and will move from casually introducing songs and making cryptic comments to answering questions from the audience back to his half-sung, half spoken snarling delivery of his lyrics. Memorable performances include the band’s 1992 appearance at Glastonbury which was broadcast on BBC Radio 1, the finale at the Hammersmith Apollo when 12 guitarists were seen on stage performing “Breaking in My Heart” and their annual appearance at Fiddlers in Bristol which has now been relocated to the band’s own venue, The Fleece. ‘Beatsongs’, released in 1991, was the band’s most successful record in America with ‘Yr Own World’ garnering rotation play on all major alternative radio stations. Recorded at Oceanway in Los Angeles, the album was a broader-based affair than Swagger, featuring many songs that were to become staples of the Aeroplanes’ live set for many years. The album was partly remixed and overdubbed in Bristol but all the tracks from the original playback in LA are included on CD2. The booklet for ‘Beatsongs’ remastered contains many fascinating archive photos.
The band will be performing songs from both ‘Beatsongs’ and last years ‘Anti-Gravity’ as well as other live favourites. ‘Beatsongs’ Deluxe was reissued through Cherry Red on March 24th 2013.
7.30pm – £12/£10 adv
Thursday 20th June 2013
Alice Lewis spent her early years in England. She recorded her first songs while at The Ecole des Beaux Arts, Paris where her work with soundtracks, installations, audio engineering and her singing practice, gradually led her towards writing music. After graduating, she did a number of commissions for short films, dance productions and commercials (including ads by David Lynch and Patrice Leconte). She also composed part of the original soundtrack for the feature film “The Fox and the Child” (2008) by Luc Jacquet (director of the award-winning “March of the Penguins”). Alice’s mesmerising stage performances combine an ethereal and unique voice with unusual instruments such as the omnichord. Her interest in other musical forms has taken her around the world, including Beijing, to study Peking Opera, and Taipei, to learn the Chinese zither, the Guzheng. Her debut album, recorded in the UK and France and produced by Ian Caple (Tricky, The Tindersticks, Stina Nordenstam), was released in October 2010, on French record label “Naïve”. She has just finished recording her second album.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 20th June 2013
Nothing But Thieves are a rock band from the London area. Consisting of Conor Mason (Vocals, Rhythm guitar), Joe Langridge-Brown (Guitars, Backing vocals), Dom Craik (Guitars, Keys, Backing vocals), and Dave Dickinson (Drums and Percussion), they have spent the last two years crafting songs by soaking up their surroundings in LA, Nashville, New York and London, and are now ready to play to as many people as will listen.
7.30pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 20th June 2013
Kind Sirs are a brand new Brighton based indie-dance four piece constructed of four fine exports from Essex. A strong set of songs had arisen ready to take to Brighton’s scintillating stage. Influence being taken from Arctic Monkeys, Maccabees, The Strokes and Metronomy whilst paying particular homage to the masters behind the Motown movement and in particular Disco. Kind Sirs are already being recognised as being a majorly tight outfit offering a groove with their sound complimented by undeniable guitar hooks with bass parts wandering far away from your typical “root-note” following melodies. Particular interest has been received for the intricate rhythmic skills portrayed by the man that simply hits things with sticks. Vocals provide the extra dimension of melodies that leaves more than enough for ears and hips to handle.
7.30pm – £5/£4 adv
Thursday 20th June 2013
Black Cannons are an indie rock band that make music to make girls dance with boys. And vice versa. Think Arctic Monkeys and The Strokes, with a touch of bluesy guitar fuzz. Think tales of love, loss and frustration. Think four skinny, questionably dressed boys with guitars. Now take those things, and put them in a big blender. No, not the shitty £10 ones from Argos. The kind you say you’ll never need, and then your girlfriend goes out and buys one anyway. Yup, those ones. The kind that could blend lead. Any idea what the outcome would look like? Neither do we, but it may or may not look a little like Black Cannons.
7.30pm – £7/£5 adv
Friday 21st June 2013
Musician, misfit, culture warrior and bullshitter: Robert “Bobby” Conn.
Bobby Conn has equally delighted and annoyed hipsters since first appearing on the Chicago music scene in the mid ’90s. Blending aggressive showmanship with an omnivorous love of musical genres, from Suicide to Streisand or from The Sweet to Stravinsky, Bobby has often irritated and provoked audiences, but never bored them. In 2012 Bobby Conn released the stunning ‘Macaroni’ via Fire Records, and after plenty of tours since the 90′s Bobby Conn will now return to Europe to get you people shaking with his music. This is first Brighton show since 2007 – tickets will sell-out in advance!
7.30pm – £10 adv
Wednesday 26th June 2013
Melic are a four-piece band based in London. Their sound is derived from an eclectic blend of musicians – fusing a metal drummer, a funk-rock bassist, a classically trained pianist/saxophonist, and a singer/song-writer rock guitarist. Formed in 2008, the band have recorded two independently released EPs while cutting their teeth on the London live music circuit. In 2011 the band played shows with the likes of Katchafire, Ladi 6, Jayson Norris and I Am Giant, and performed at numerous festivals with acts like INXS, Status Quo and Shihad to name a few. Melic’s latest EP titled ‘Nowhere I’d Rather Be’ was released on 17th February 2012.
7.00pm – £7/£5 adv
Thursday 27th June 2013
Kentucky born Dawn Landes first traveled to Paris to perform in the Les Femmes s’en Mêlent festival as a 22 year old songwriter. Her hand-made cds caught the attention of indie label Ocean Music who released her first album “Dawns Music” in France in 2005. She toured the country for the next few years, not speaking a word of French. Picking up bits of slang from the musicians she met on the road, Landes started to learn the songs of French greats Serge Gainsbourg, Francoise Hardy and Georges Brassens. When Paris-based label Fargo released her second album “Fireproof” in 2008, it was praised by the European press and she appeared on many French radio programs, touring the French countryside with artists such as Feist and Andrew Bird. Shortly after, Landes moved from New York to Paris into a little flat near Parc Georges Brassens. One morning she found herself at an antique book fair in the park and discovered a picture book with a 45” vinyl record titled “George Brassens Chante Pour Les Enfants” (George Brassens Sings for Children). The songbook inspired her to write the first song on this album “Mal Habillée” (Badly Dressed) in nursery rhyme style: part sweet, part sinister.
7:00pm – £9/£7 adv
Friday 28th June 2013
Kentucky born Dawn Landes first traveled to Paris to perform in the Les Femmes s’en Mêlent festival as a 22 year old songwriter. Her hand-made cds caught the attention of indie label Ocean Music who released her first album “Dawns Music” in France in 2005. She toured the country for the next few years, not speaking a word of French. Picking up bits of slang from the musicians she met on the road, Landes started to learn the songs of French greats Serge Gainsbourg, Francoise Hardy and Georges Brassens. When Paris-based label Fargo released her second album “Fireproof” in 2008, it was praised by the European press and she appeared on many French radio programs, touring the French countryside with artists such as Feist and Andrew Bird. Shortly after, Landes moved from New York to Paris into a little flat near Parc Georges Brassens. One morning she found herself at an antique book fair in the park and discovered a picture book with a 45” vinyl record titled “George Brassens Chante Pour Les Enfants” (George Brassens Sings for Children). The songbook inspired her to write the first song on this album “Mal Habillée” (Badly Dressed) in nursery rhyme style: part sweet, part sinister.
7:00pm – £10/£8 adv
Thursday 11th July 2013
Richard Walters, at 30 years old, has been performing for over a decade, and has been a voice-for-hire for many prominent musical projects. He sings in such a beautifully gentle falsetto, without theatrics or histrionics, like a choirboy, that when he really hits the high notes, that the subjects of his songs might come as a surprise. He has released three full length albums – ‘The Animal’ in 2009, the Bernard Butler produced ‘Pacing’ in 2011, and his gospel-folk masterpiece ‘Regret Less’ in 2012 – and his music has featured on the soundtracks of world eating US & UK TV shows ‘Grey’s Anatomy’, ‘Revenge’, ‘CSI: Miami’, ‘Criminal Minds’, ‘Private Practice’, and ‘So You think You Can Dance… America’.
Richard has a loyal following in the UK and received vast exposure as tour support for Dave Matthews, The Cranberries, Martha Tilston & Gemma Hayes to name but a few, and has a good record of attendances at his own headline shows. His voice, reminiscent of early-period Judee Sill and late-period Billy Mackenzie, in the way that it transmutes feelings of dread into a sort of ecclesiastical awe, could so easily have lost control but it hasn’t: it intimates, teases and hints as often as it swoops and soars. Richard Walters writes songs which manage to sound moreish and accessible while having an indefinable experimental, even avant-garde quality, with the odd texture and stray curlicue of synth noise upsetting the order of the melody, and adding to the sense of these songs as (ok) computer reveries. It’s as though Radiohead had suddenly decided to cover the aching, easy-listening melodies of ‘70s soft-rock superstars Bread.
7.00pm – £8/£6 adv
Friday 12th July 2013
The Caretaker Race formed in East London in the heat of C86 when singer/guitarist Andy Strickland (ex-The Loft) got together with Dave Mew (drums), Andy Deevey (guitars), Henry (bass guitar) and Sally Ward (keyboards). The band formed their own Roustabout label before being snapped up by Smiths producer, Stephen Street for his Foundation label alongside Morrissey faves, Bradford, and Gene.
With Street at the controls, the band produced three singles and a critically acclaimed album, ‘Hangover Square’ and toured the UK and Europe with the Darling Buds and House of Love. The band’s name came from a Star Trek paperback adventure. Gaining favourable comparisons with The Go-Betweens, their guitar driven soundscapes earned radio plays from John Peel and Janice Long among others. Hersom left to join Bob, his replacement being ex-Flatmates bassist Jackie Carrera, Returning from a 1991 European jaunt to find their distributor had gone bust the band simply shrugged and called it a day.
Now, with those old tunes and videos still being featured on You Tube, Andy Deevey freed from his stint in the Beatles West End stage show, Strickland not currently strumming for The Loft and with a clutch of new songs to their name, the band is back for their first public show in 20 years.
7.00pm – £8/£6 adv
Saturday 13th July 2013
The Bevis Frond is a British musical group whose range covers hard edge to melancholy vintage indie rock to poetic, “classic-rock” songcraft with a thick Walthamstow accent. Nick Saloman is the band’s frontman and songwriter. Marking a welcome return after seven years with two sold out shows for Symptomatic at 229 The Venue and the 100 club, their new, acclaimed album ‘The Leaving of London’ showcases all of what we expect from The Bevis Frond and more. With much higher production values and a set of extremely strong and memorable songs, ‘The Leaving of London’ is arguably the most complete and accessible Bevis Frond album to date.
7.30pm – £15/£12.50 adv
Saturday 13th July 2013
Melodic, angry and thought provoking are some of the words to describe The Blue Collars, but seriously, you have to see this band live to get the full range of emotions and intensity. They have the songs, the banter and the confidence to go very far. This is a superlative, tightly reflective of the world around, the instruments weave a tour of angst and above it all rises a desolate vocal as the wringing lyrics tell of the story of the reality of The Blue Collars. Last time they played London Cass Pennant took to the microphone, “That was heavy duty or what?” They closed their set with a song called ‘The Dance’ and front stage was a mass of jumping and clapping bodies. They came, they conquered. Enough said. Not bad for a support band, eh? A great night out. Don’t miss it!
7.00pm – £8/£6 adv
Thursday 15th August 2013
Lydia Baylis is a 23-year-old singer songwriter based in London. After finishing her history degree at Oxford and raising over £1000 for the Welsh Guards Afghanistan Appeal, this Welsh beauty started work on her debut album ‘A Darker Trace’ with producers, Richard Cardwell (Annie Lennox, James Morrison) and Owen Parker (Pet Shop Boys, The Gossip). A mediation on the darker side of human nature, this album was inspired by the literature of Virginia Wolf and the Bronte Sisters, as well as music by artists such as Beth Orton & Florence and The Machine. The album also has song writing collaborations with Paul Statham (Dido, Kylie Minogue) and Ian Pickering (Sneaker Pimps) and is an exploration of life’s mellow depths, as well as it’s overarching joy.
7.30pm – £7/£5 adv
Friday 16th August 2013
Love Thy Neighbour & Symptomatic Presents:
U.S. Girls is the creative force of a lone American woman, Meghan Remy. For the past four years she has pursued her minimalist aesthetic with a militant by-any-means-necessary attitude, merging experimental compositions tracked on borrowed four track recorders with her distinctive photocopy-art visual aesthetic to deliver starkly defined statement LP’s like ‘Introducing…’ & ‘Go Grey’ on Siltbreeze Records. While Lo-Fi recording techniques have seen something of a renaissance in recent years, Remy’s favouring of this approach was born less of aesthetic choice and more of necessity. Even as she’s inevitably been lumped in with other DIY solo artists such as Inca Ore and Sally Strobelight, her influence has unwaveringly been declared to lie with oldies radio and the distinctly American songcraft of writers like Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen (whom she covered to startling effect on Introducing…).
With the arrival of a new decade the entity of U.S. Girls takes an unexpected turn. Contradicting her patriotic moniker Remy has spent the last 6 months in collaboration with Canadian artist Slim Twig whose combination of reverence for and divergence from classic pop tropes matches her own. With the same determination she once used to tour America solo via Greyhound, Remy relocated her recording to Toronto where the shroud of abstraction surrounding her songcraft has been somewhat lifted to reveal a consciously produced sound with her strikingly original voice now at the centre. Co-produced by Remy & Slim Twig, the new direction sees U.S. Girls take American pop head-on with a cover of Joe South’s ‘Untie Me’ while pursuing innovative future-music with the psychedelic ‘Pamela + GG.’
Fresh from playing a series of dates in the U.S. and back to recording for a full-length album, the release of 12PALM01 marks the start of an exciting new future for U.S. Girls.
7.30pm – £8 adv
Saturday 24th August 2013
The Flatmates, part of the mid-1980s British indie pop boom, were part of The Subway Organization, a Bristol record label formed by Martin Whitehead, who was also guitarist and main songwriter for the band. Following the band’s formation in 1985, singles such as ‘I Could Be in Heaven’, ‘Happy All the Time’ and ‘Shimmer’ established the band as potentially one of the most successful indie bands of the time, but the Flatmates disbanded in early 1989 before releasing a proper studio album. Closely associated with the C86 scene that included The Soup Dragons, Primal Scream and The Wedding Present, the band’s lasting influence can be heard in a raft of new indie pop bands (mainly from the States) including Dum Dum Girls, Best Coast and Bleached.
The Flatmates are now reforming after a gap of 23 years, with a new line-up including singer Lisa Bouvier. They will be playing a mix of new material, and tracks from their compilation album ‘Potpourri (Hits, Misses and Demos ’85 – ’89)’, shortly to be reissued in a limited double vinyl edition by Optic Nerve Records. The band also have a track on the mega Cherry Red Records indie pop anthology ‘Scared To Happen’ which is out in June.
8.00pm – £10/£8 adv
Thursday 5th September 2013
John Parish is best known for his work with the acclaimed British artist PJ Harvey, which dates back to when she was backing singer and guitarist in his cult band Automatic Dlamini. He is also an accomplished composer, solo artist, and producer. Parish co-wrote and performed on Eels’ 2001 album ‘Souljacker’, and has worked with Sparklehorse, 16 Horsepower, Tracy Chapman, Adrian Utley and Howe Gelb/Giant Sand, among many others.
His first release on Thrill Jockey Records for eight years, the last being ‘Once Upon A Little Time’ in 2005, new album ‘Screenplay’ is a collection of tracks taken from John’s acclaimed film scores over the years; drawing from several Parish scores including ‘Nowhere Man’, ‘Plein Sud’’, ‘Sister’ (original title L’enfant d’en Haut) and Patrice Toye’s latest film ‘Little Black Spiders’. ‘Sister’, directed by Ursula Meier, won the special Silver Bear at the 2012 Berlin Film Festival, and was shortlisted for Best Foreign Language Film at this year’s Oscars.
While a couple of his scores have been released as original soundtracks, ‘Screenplay‘ is the first that brings his film work into clear focus. He explains: “rather than release each one as a ‘Soundtrack to…’ it might be an interesting idea to try and compile an album with the highlights from several movies, something that would be a good listen regardless of whether you have seen the films”. So ‘Screenplay’ was born… a collection of scores that captures the beauty of each film giving listeners the sense of the atmosphere without having seen them.
‘Screenplay’ is out on 15th April 2013 via Thrill Jockey in the UK/Europe and these shows will see his band perform the album live with visual accompaniment plus selections from his extensive back catalogues.
7.00pm – £12 adv
Friday 6th September 2013
John Parish is best known for his work with the acclaimed British artist PJ Harvey, which dates back to when she was backing singer and guitarist in his cult band Automatic Dlamini. He is also an accomplished composer, solo artist, and producer. Parish co-wrote and performed on Eels’ 2001 album ‘Souljacker’, and has worked with Sparklehorse, 16 Horsepower, Tracy Chapman, Adrian Utley and Howe Gelb/Giant Sand, among many others.
His first release on Thrill Jockey Records for eight years, the last being ‘Once Upon A Little Time’ in 2005, new album ‘Screenplay’ is a collection of tracks taken from John’s acclaimed film scores over the years; drawing from several Parish scores including ‘Nowhere Man’, ‘Plein Sud’’, ‘Sister’ (original title L’enfant d’en Haut) and Patrice Toye’s latest film ‘Little Black Spiders’. ‘Sister’, directed by Ursula Meier, won the special Silver Bear at the 2012 Berlin Film Festival, and was shortlisted for Best Foreign Language Film at this year’s Oscars.
While a couple of his scores have been released as original soundtracks, ‘Screenplay‘ is the first that brings his film work into clear focus. He explains: “rather than release each one as a ‘Soundtrack to…’ it might be an interesting idea to try and compile an album with the highlights from several movies, something that would be a good listen regardless of whether you have seen the films”. So ‘Screenplay’ was born… a collection of scores that captures the beauty of each film giving listeners the sense of the atmosphere without having seen them.
‘Screenplay’ is out on 15th April 2013 via Thrill Jockey in the UK/Europe and these shows will see his band perform the album live with visual accompaniment plus selections from his extensive back catalogues.
7.00pm – £10 adv
Tuesday 24th September 2013
Once upon a time, many, many years ago, in the little village of Keston there was a man who mended shoes. The Cobblers’ business was struggling, but with the pennies he had inherited from his late father, he bought himself an old fiddle and would cheer himself up by playing ’till the early hours of the morning in the rickety old public house on the corner. Before the warm fires and under the cavernous ceilings, village folk would gather, fill their jugs with beer and dance with each other to the jolly haphazardness of his music.
Based on folklore but full of modern kick, Keston Cobblers Club’s music is catchy and contemporary. In 2010, siblings Matthew and Julia Lowe gathered school friends to revive the legacy of the old struggling Cobbler of Keston and his foot – stamping, shoe – scuffing music club! With beautiful harmonies, an oom-pah tuba line and a mish – mash of other instruments, the Cobblers make music that will make you dance until your “shoes wear out”. Their debut album ‘One, For Words’ was released to critical acclaim and achieved widespread praise from BBC Radio 2 and 6Music’s Steve Lamacq, Simon Mayo and Bob Harris amongst many other publications and blogs. They have recorded sessions for Bob Harris, Steve Lamacq, BBC Introducing, Burberry Acoustic, Daytrotter and have made many festival appearances and have played numerous sell-out shows.
7.30pm – £7/£5 adv
Monday 21st October 2013
Since forming in 1997, the Appleseed Cast has morphed from one of the definitive bands of the emo era into a group that has continued to open up the possibilities of rock music. Whether cloaked in delicate melodies, atmospherics and instrumental experimentation, or stripped down to the band’s spin on the basics of rock ‘n’ roll, with each new recording fans around the world have learned to expect the unexpected.
7.00pm – £11 adv
Saturday 23rd November 2013
England’s most elegant post-punk band, The Monochrome Set, are back with its original members!
Notable for its witty lyrics, the laconic delivery of lead singer Bid, and the idiosyncratically retrogressive playing style of original lead guitarist Lester Square, The Monochrome Set defined themselves in the late 70s and 80s as England’s wittiest troubadours, avoiding the sombre overtones of post-punk by penning songs that had a clean 60s pop sensibility, allied to vocalist and guitarist Bid’s sandpaper-dry reflections on life and love.
Suave; debonair; sophisticated. Haughty, perhaps, for those who favour the pejorative. Aristocratic in more than one sense, classy in at least as many, The Monochrome Set – to whom The Smiths, Franz Ferdinand and Graham Coxon all owe a musical debt – were effortlessly inventive, literate, poised and immaculate of tuneage.
7.00pm – £15 adv
