What does it sound like?: It’s 11 years since Suzanne Vega’s last album of self-penned original material (2014’s snappily titled Tales from the Realm of the Queen of Pentacles). … [Read More...] about Suzanne Vega – Flying With Angels
The Afterword
Musings on the byways of popular culture
Nights In
Pink Floyd At Pompeii MCMLXXII
What does it sound like?: This is the first standalone release of the soundtrack to the 1972 film, available on double cd and double vinyl. Although you don’t get the excerpts … [Read More...] about Pink Floyd At Pompeii MCMLXXII
Andy Summers & Robert Fripp – The Complete Recordings 1981 – 1984
What does it sound like?: This 3cd plus bluray set rounds up the music produced in the early eighties from a collaboration between Fripp and Summers. I Advance Masked was the … [Read More...] about Andy Summers & Robert Fripp – The Complete Recordings 1981 – 1984
The Mars Volta: Lucro sucio; Los ojos del vacio 
What does it sound like?: It's hard to explain it. I am a huge fan of Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, who is a kind of conceptual artist with a landscape of 100+ albums under various … [Read More...] about The Mars Volta: Lucro sucio; Los ojos del vacio 
Nights Out
Alison Moyet – Live
Venue: Civic Theatre, Auckland Date: 21/05/2025 This was an efficient and stylish show where the show starts just after 8 and we’re in the car going home by 10. No support act. … [Read More...] about Alison Moyet – Live
Something beautiful, something glorious, something magical and profound
Venue: St Georges, Bristol Date: 15/05/2025 Yesterday evening, somewhat bruised and cowed by a punishing week of 21st century nonsense, we made the pilgrimage to St. Georges once … [Read More...] about Something beautiful, something glorious, something magical and profound
Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band
Venue: Co-Op Live, Manchester Date: 14/05/2025 Over the past few tours we've got used to seeing Bruce Springsteen in a reflective mood; reflecting back on times past and on lost … [Read More...] about Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band
Go West
Venue: London Palladium Date: 08/05/2025 This was the third of three Go West gigs with the Sinfonia Smith Square orchestra to celebrate 40 years since the band’s debut album. The … [Read More...] about Go West
Features
“COME SING AGAIN: Exploring Martin Carthy’s ‘new old’ album”
Kev Boyd on the ‘new old’ Martin Carthy album.
Martin Carthy’s first entirely solo album in 21 years will be released this year on his 84th birthday. A key feature of Martin’s recent live shows has been his purposeful revisiting of several songs from his earliest recorded repertoire. I had speculated for some time that this might signal a desire to revisit some of those old songs on a new album. The announcement of TRANSFORM ME THEN INTO A FISH confirmed this. It consists of 11 songs, eight of which originally appeared on Martin’s eponymous debut album in 1965, with the remaining three having featured in his live and recorded repertoires to varying degrees in recent (and not-so-recent) years.
It’s not unusual for Martin to revisit songs from his past. He’s sung different versions of some of the songs from his debut album, and entirely rewritten and rethought others. Some have rarely left his live repertoire, while others have dipped in and out, occasionally vanishing as quickly as they seemed to have appeared. What follows is an attempt to catalogue the various versions, revisions and variations of the songs from his new album that he has been known to » Continue Reading.
Films
20 Days in Mariupol
Year: 2023 Director: Mustyslav Chernov I’ve only just got round to watching this and I’m not sure if it’s been reviewed already. As the name suggests it covers the first 20 days … [Read More...] about 20 Days in Mariupol
Bjork’s Cornucopia
Year: 2025 Director: Ísold Uggadóttir Well, it’s not often that I see a film, let alone see it the day after its release. Fair play to the Curzon in little old Knutsford for … [Read More...] about Bjork’s Cornucopia
Wallace & Gromit – Vengeance Most Fowl
Year: 2024 Director: Nick Park We watched this on yer ‘flix a couple of nights ago. It was a shared family experience of the kind that happens very rarely these days. The … [Read More...] about Wallace & Gromit – Vengeance Most Fowl
Daisies
Year: 1966 Director: Vera Chytilova There are good films that are good, good films that are hard work, and a very small subset of good films that are profoundly irritating. While … [Read More...] about Daisies
Reads
This House of Burning Bones
Author:Stuart MacBride After a series of standalone novels, Stuart MacBride marks the 20th anniversary of the debut of Logan McRae in Cold Justice with the first addition to the … [Read More...] about This House of Burning Bones
The Who – Album by Album: Listening To You
Author:Dante DiCarlo London based musician and member of the tribute band 'Who’s Next' Dante DiCarlo has put together this comprehensive look at the studio albums released by The … [Read More...] about The Who – Album by Album: Listening To You
Justin Currie – The Tremolo Diaries
Author:Justin Currie Working as I do in community transport I encounter the gradual or in some cases instant deterioration in humans on a daily basis. People approach their … [Read More...] about Justin Currie – The Tremolo Diaries
Chris Frantz – Remain In Love
Author:Chris Frantz This book came out in 2020. I picked it up cheap and just read it. Chris Frantz is the drummer of Talking Heads, the dorky one in polo shirts and the uncool … [Read More...] about Chris Frantz – Remain In Love
Noticeboard
A small favour- gratitude
Hey everybody, I have a small favour to ask. Mrs. Paws is currently at the end of two years studies at the university of please yourself, California and is carrying out a bit of … [Read More...] about A small favour- gratitude
Nine days into 30, Dick Gaughan crowdfunder nears $100,000
01/04/2025 Vulpes Vulpes berated me privately about not promoting the Dick Gaughan box set aggressively enough here... Trust me, I've been busy throwing track down in front of … [Read More...] about Nine days into 30, Dick Gaughan crowdfunder nears $100,000
Horslips at the BBC
30/05/2025 Few bands have left as distinct a mark on the musical landscape as Horslips. Emerging in the early 1970s, they more or less created ‘Celtic Rock’, drawing from Irish … [Read More...] about Horslips at the BBC
200 Shows!
06/03/2025 Who'd have thunk it, eh?!? This evening, live at five UK time, will see the 200th show of Songs From Under The Floorboards. "I have to confess, I'm proud as hell of … [Read More...] about 200 Shows!
Dick Gaughan 1969-83 box set via crowdfunder two weeks away
19/03/2025 Dick Gaughan – R/evolution: 1969–83 Advance notice of Kickstarter campaign (due in mid-March) Music biographer Colin Harper is launching a Kickstarter campaign in … [Read More...] about Dick Gaughan 1969-83 box set via crowdfunder two weeks away
‘The calm beyond the storm’ by The Eisenhowers
21/02/2025 Available from an internet near you from Friday 21st February, ‘The calm beyond the storm’ is a single lifted from the recent ‘Infodemic’ album. A spokesperson for … [Read More...] about ‘The calm beyond the storm’ by The Eisenhowers
