This entertaining album stands repeated listens; Deak is a man who clearly enjoys his music. He is the young composers advocate of the New York Philharmonic, where he founded the award-winning Very Young Composers Program in 1995. His interest in making music accessible to younger listeners is clear. Two of the works are for full […]
New Vic: Wind In The Willows
The latest Christmas production at the New Vic, Newcastle, is a re-telling of Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows — 110 years old this year — the tale of anthropomorphised animals in a pastoral version of ye olde England as progress, in the form of motor cars, arrives. It’s the best Christmas show the […]
Calendar Girls The Musical
(Photo: John Swannell). Extraordinary tales about ordinary people make the very best stories and Calendar Girls The Musical is no exception. Showing at Hanley’s Regent Theatre this week, the show shines a light on the ubiquitous story of a group of WI members who bravely bared all for a fundraising calendar in memory of […]
Bluedot’s stars shine brightly
It’s fair to say that life really does get no better than the opening song at a Flaming Lips gig: music so happy it brings a lump to the throat, confetti cannons, giant balloons and lasers. France might think winning the World Cup was a top moment, but even they’d probably concede that hearing Race […]
A world of pure imagination
Thousands of festivalgoers began to descend on Scholar Green, on Friday (17th August) for the annual weekend of extraordinary escapism. And as the 2019 edition of the Just So festival at Rode Hall proved, it gets bigger and better each year. Just So promises a secret and joyous world — offering parents and children the […]
Lauri Porra: Entropia
This meld of prog rock and classical is as interesting an album as you’d want; entertaining if you like your prog broken down and your classical with bass solos and lots of 4/4 time. Mike Oldfield managed it on Tubular Bells. Adventurous brass band fans might also find much to like. Porra, (40), is an […]
Treasure Island at the New Vic Theatre
The New Vic Theatre’s Christmas production (it’s not a panto) (oh no it’s not) is a new adaptation of the famous RL Stevenson book Treasure Island. The book created much of the modern mythology of pirates (maps, Xs marking spots, pieces of eight and wooden legs) and all the trademark piratical images are seen on […]
Hackney Colliery Band: Live
Whenever we’re down in the dumps in the Review Corner, we often play Rock With the Hot 8, by The Hot 8 Brass Band, a New Orleans outfit that blend hip-hop, jazz and funk. It’s not brass as you might expect if you’re a fan of Foden’s Band, and nor are there eight of them, […]
Amber Run + Meadowlark + Island (Manchester Academy 2)
Although the headliners at Manchester Academy 2 were Amber Run, it was support band Meadowlark I wanted to see, their singles of the past year or so being among my favourite releases, Kate McGill’s winsome vocals accompanied by sparse music. Sadly, faulty traffic lights at Monk’s Heath and incompetent traffic management for roadworks in Manchester […]
