Month: June 2016

Reviews

Hail To The Thief ~ Radiohead

Some tough questions still remain unanswered in mid-2003, with regards to the mainstream’s ultimate millennial band. Are we to scorn them for a continued disdainful neglect of their own stomping ground, the mainstream? Pity them for their incomplete excavation of the leftfield? Treat them like remedial children for not sticking to the plot, berate them for failing to replicate works so singular and definitive that they could and should never be repeated anyway, for the sake of themselves? Do we Continue Reading

Reviews

The Private Press ~ DJ Shadow

Six years since his debut ‘Endtroducing..’, here comes DJ Shadow with his second solo album proper. ‘The Private Press’ more than wears its heart on its sleeve – the title refers to those musicians who release their own music, regardless of commercial success, out of a belief in what they have created. DJ Shadow seems to be feeding off and paying homage to that spirit with this messy, idiosyncratic, wonderful album that appropriates generously then returns with interest a diverse Continue Reading

Features

George Martin (1926-2016)

In some ways it seems pretty apt that the death of Beatles producer, George Martin wasn’t accompanied by a burst of dramatic orchestration, a piccolo trumpet solo or a tumultuous crescendo of instruments followed by a dramatic final chord played on three different pianos. That’s because a really good producer is one you barely know is there. They sit quietly in the background as unassuming and supportive as the gentle whir of the tape as it purrs along to the Continue Reading

Features

Death of David Bowie

So there we have it: the death of David Bowie, trending in its now customary fashion along the volatile cardiac graphs that characterise Social Media. It’ll probably reach a peak over the next few days when the waves on the Cultural ECG monitor practically shoot off the screens. It’s been a long time coming. 69 years to be precise but it arrived with no less shock and awe than Aladdin Sane and Ziggy Stardust combined. Last night’s News 24 saw Continue Reading