Review Corner

Tag: Congleton Chronicle

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    Maximo Park: Risk to Exist

    The Review Corner are big fans of Max Park, but this album has divided us. The hard-core fans find it a little too formulaic in places, the less ardent among us think it’s their best album, main songwriter Paul Smith upping his game quite some way. There’s no predictable indie material, which they tend to…

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    Robert Radecke: Piano Trios

    Radecke was a skilled player of the pianoforte, organ and violin — the sleeve notes report he was a “sensation” when he played Beethoven in Berlin. He was top in his class at Leipzig Conservatory and as a reward played a Schumann piece to the composer himself, remaining friends with him afterwards. He also greatly…

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    Bleeker: Erase You

    Bleeker are a Canadian trio and this album is as polite and well-behaved as the national clichés have it. Opener Highway is somewhat of an imposter and kicks things off in misleading fashion. It’s a sleazy glam stomper, with scuzzy if polished riffs and a throbbing bass. It was, the internet reports, played at the…

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    Tchaikovsky: 12 Morceaux

    We always like programmes like this: though it’s Tchaikovsky it’s (i) not too highbrow and (ii) was written for commercial reasons; these two factors make a review easier. Tchaikovsky wrote music for the piano throughout much of his life, mostly as pieces aimed at the amateur — back in those days, composers earned money selling…

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    Emmerich Kalmain: Die Bajadere

    This is an enjoyable CD, presenting an operetta that was first performed in the early jazz age, and combines Hungarian folk tunes, Viennese waltzes, popular American dance rhythms, and exotic moments suggesting distant India — bayaderes are Indian temple dancers — as well as snatches of various national anthems. The main story is of an…

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    David Lumsdaine and Nicola LeFanu: Mandala 3

    A mandala (Sanskrit, circle) is a ritual symbol in Hinduism and Buddhism, representing the universe, and the sleeve of the CD bears a modern interpretation of this. The sleeve notes indicate that it’s about big topics: life, death and the other thing as Douglas Adams wrote. Lumsdaine and LeFanu clearly like the imagery (mandalas created…

  • Ed Sheeran: ÷

    The Review Corner saw Sheeran on an early tour, in a venue so small he didn’t need screens for the fans and we were able to get near the front. While we found the music a bit bland, as a performer he was impressive — confident, talented, good with his fans and very clever; not…

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    Vera Lynn: Her Greatest From Abbey Road

    Dame Vera comes from a different age, when there was less choice in entertainment and people wanted nice songs they could sing to in the front room (while watering the aspidistra) or down the pub. She’s had a long and successful career — she began performing at seven, her first radio broadcast was with the…

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    Michael Bublé: Nobody But Me

    Nobody But Me It’s Christmas! It must be time for the Bublé to release an album. Thankfully it’s not a re-release of Christmas, though having released it as a normal CD, then deluxe, super deluxe, super deluxe with bells, super super deluxe with whistles and tassels and super dooper deluxe best-ever honest (remastered) with free…

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    Kate Williams: Four Plus Three

    Williams is the daughter of one of the world’s greatest guitarists, John Williams (a member of Sky for those with long memories), though given her own talent it would be appropriate to say that John is the father of pianist Kate. This latest project of hers combines a jazz piano trio with a string quartet…