New Music

Posted on 18/09/2014 by brightonmusicblog

It’s ten days since our last new music post, and the music has been flooding in.

First up is the new single from Fickle Friends. For You is currently Hype Machine’s most blogged about track, so we’re a few days behind the curve with this one. That’s what happens if you take ten days between new music posts I guess. For You is another fantastic 80s influenced pop tune, following on from their previous singles Swim and Play.

J Tropic are Fickle Friends’ labelmates but Love Up is more r’n’b than pop. J Tropic’s three track debut EP is out on Duly Noted records on 27th October.

Human Touch by Gazelle Twin got a premier on The Line of Best Fit last week, and is taken from her upcoming album Unflesh, out next Monday. Gazelle Twin headline the next Spectrum Music Night at the Dome Studio Theatre next Friday night. The whole evening is a showcase for Gazelle Twin’s label Anti Ghost Moon Ray, and also has Benholz and Great Pagans on the bill.

We haven’t been slow off the mark with all of the tracks we’re posting – Champion Fever‘s latest offering is hot off the fresh, only appearing online this afternoon – VolcaNO is four minutes of uplifting electronica

Next week, Cate Ferris launches her new EP. Disappear is already available for people who supported her pledge campaign, but is getting a full launch at Latest Music Bar on Tuesday. Here’s the title track:

We posted about the upcoming Levellers album a few weeks back and shared the collaboration they had made with Billy Bragg. They’ve now shared another of the new collaborations of their old tracks which feature on their new best of, this time working with Imelda May on a new version of Beautiful Day:

Dark Train are a new Brighton duo who make dark brooding synth pop. Here’s their latest track Sing To You. If you like what you hear, Dark Train are supporting Return To The Sun at Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar next thursday:

Transformer have a new three track EP out entitled Feel The Beast. XLR8R offered a free download of the track Deepak from the EP, but here’s the title track:

We hadn’t rushed to write anything about the new Salt Ashes single If You Let Me Go because the PR email we got told us that it wasn’t out until October. However, a few clicks around the internet has told us that the single is actually out already on iTunes, and has been for a couple of weeks. Oops:

The last track we’re featuring today is something guitar based, from the debut EP Empiricism from Brighton based alternative rock band Rory Indiana. The EP comes out on September 26th. So far the only track out there from the EP is Sanctuary, which you can hear below:

Gigs of the Week

Posted on 27/01/2014 by brightonmusicblog

In an effort to be a little more on the ball than last week we’re posting up our Gigs of the week on Monday night. As it happens, we need to this week because there’s a lot of great gigs to mention, a few of which have already cropped up in these pages.

We posted up about BirdEngine supporting Samantha Crain over the weekend. That’s happening on Tuesday night at the Komedia, and we’ll be along to cover that.

On Wednesday night, Metronomy play a one off date at The Old Market to warm up for their European tour taking place in March. Their new single is the title track from forthcoming album Love Letters is out on 11th March, and has a video directed by Michel Gondry.

Talking of new singles, Fickle Friends are holding a launch party for their debut single Swim at the Green Door Store on Thursday night. There’s a remix of Swim which we’re going to be sharing with you very soon, so keep your eyes peeled for that.

There’s two gigs on Friday night that we’d be seen at (and hopefully with a bit of planning we will be spending a bit of time at both). Milk & Biscuits gig at the Green Door Store has been in our diary for a while. They’ll be supported by labelmates Octopuses and Prince Vaseline. Meanwhile down at the Blind Tiger it’s the first Les Enfants Terribles of the new year and it’s got a slightly different format for 2014. The night will run from 9pm-2am and now has DJs as well as local bands. This month Transformer, Dog in the Snow, Normanton Street and NYX all play live.

Last, but by no means least, on Saturday night Momotaro are holding their album launch Second Side at the Green Door Store. The band gave us a copy of the album when we interviewed them last week and it hasn’t left our stereo. See you down the front, and maybe at the afterparty at the Eddy.

Weekend Gig Picks

Posted on 09/10/2013 by brightonmusicblog

Last weekend’s gig pick post was all about quality not quantity, and we promised we’d be back this week bigger than ever. We’re still not scrimping on quality but we’re probably featuring more gigs this week than we ever have done.

We’re going to kick things off with a couple of gigs happening tonight. Normally we treat Thursday as the start of the weekend, but when two of favourite bands are playing we’d be fools not to give them a mention. IYES play their first ever headline show at the Prince Albert, which we’re very excited about. We’ve been huge fans since we first heard Lighthouse at the end of the year, and they haven’t disappointed since. Best of all it’s a free gig! Elsewhere, down at the Blind Tiger, Brighton Music Blog favourites The New Union are supporting Let’s Buy Happiness.

Thursday night is where we normally start our weekend gig round up, and the weekend proper is starting strong with Calico headlining Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar. Support comes from 900 Spaces and Blackwell, and it’s four pounds to get in. Meanwhile, Normanton Street are playing at the Mesmerist.

On Friday some more of our favourite bands are supporting at the same gig. Pawws are supported by the fantastic GAPS and Dog in the Snow (as well as Saint Savanna, who are local and new to us). And it’s a free gig – Green Door Store, you do spoil us. There’s also a free gig at the Blind Tiger, headlined by Transformer, with support from Eagles for Hands, whose new EP we love.

Saturday night’s big gig is the Physics House Party taking place at Sticky Mike’s. As well as the awesome Physics House Band, AK/DK, Alphabets Heaven and Suffer Like G Did are also playing. Over at Fitzherberts, Speak Galactic and Soft Arrows are playing at a night called Ruff Stuff, where Owen from Speak Galactic and some of his old bandmates from Cinemascopes are unveiling a new project called Merlin Tonto.

Rounding off the weekend nicely at Sticky Mike’s, Esben & The Witch play the Brighton leg of their national tour promoting Wash The Sins Not Only The Face. At the Green door store, there’s an event to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Gram Parsons early death in 1973, aged only 26. There’s loads of local bands getting involved – the list includes The Self Help Group, Dollboy, and Amy Hill plus various members of Laish, The Repeat Prescriptions, Super U, The Standard Lamps, Woodland Blue, The Pooh Sticks, Lolly & the City of Flies, Redlands Palomino Company, Englemann Spruce, and Lost Dog. Get there early enough and you’ll also get to see Pete Wiggs from Saint Etienne DJing before the live acts.

Weekend Gig Picks

Posted on 29/05/2013 by brightonmusicblog

Now that we’re done with the madness of May, things are getting back to normal in the world of Brighton gigs.

Tigercub headline the Green Door Store on Thursday night, with support from Semper Teens, Animal Language and the Flash Gordons. Tickets are four pounds. Staying in the part of town, Ellekaye play at the North Laine pub.

There are loads of great gigs on Friday night. Kovak top the bill at the Hope alongside Storms and Cat Fire Radio, and The Self Help Group are on at the Brunswick with Eliza Jaye, The Beautiful Word and Bella McKendree. Friday Night also sees some of Brighton’s regular nights with strong line ups – Late Night Lingerie at Sticky Mikes is headlined by Skirts with The Repeat Prescriptions also on the line up, and it’s also Les Enfants Terribles at the Blind Tiger, with Written in Waters, Spit Shake Sisters, Calico and Glossy Coat.

Saturday is Kemptown Carnival. There are loads of bands on the bill, including Derriere, The Kalakuta Millionaires and Carnival Collective. The afterparty is at the Blind Tiger from 8pm and is headlined by Transformer. Up at the Hope, The Wytches are having their single launch party, and it’s free!

New Music Round Up

Posted on 15/05/2013 by brightonmusicblog

The Great Escape is almost upon us – great news for seeing bands, not such great news in terms of having time to write about them. So, very quickly it all kicks off, here’s the things on our list which if why don’t write about now, we’ll never get around to.

Cave Painting have a new EP out called Rio, which is packaged just as beautifully as their album was last year. You can buy it for a fiver from Resident or from the Cave Painting website. Here’s the video for the lead track:

Phantom Runners debut single Goddess of War recalls the best of early 90s guitar indie pop. There’s a hint of Stone Roses in the drums, and the guitars sound like The Railway Children or some other Factory band from that era. We hit download before we’d even listened the whole way through:

Next is the video for Battersea, the lead track from AK/DK‘s new single we wrote about recently:

The new Transformer single is out on 31st May, sees them dropping the vowels for three and a half minutes of electro pop:

Luo‘s new single Dissolver is available to download on Soundcloud. We’ve been big fans of his glitchy laid back jazzy electronica since we first saw him at Sea Monsters, and this track is another fine string to his bow:

AK/DK aren’t the only local analogue synth dance band with new material out. DA-10 also have a new EP called The Shape of Space. Redshift is ravey, Respirator is instrumental hip hop with huge bass (and is still available for download over at XLR8R), Anaphase is retro sounding space-rock, I Have to Survive is broken beat house number and closer Out Of Reach Of Earth brings together a lot of the sounds from each of the preceding tracks. There’s a sampler up on soundcloud, which you can hear here:

The new Call Me Jolene EP, May, is a real change of pace and mood to something far more personal and reflective. It was out on the first of may, and sounds a bit like this:

Finally we have Alice Amelia‘s new single Passion. What starts off sounding like a piano ballad transforms into some slick r’n’b. There’s a free download on the soundcloud link below:

Weekend Gig Picks

Posted on 14/02/2013 by brightonmusicblog

Here’s our pick of the local bands playing in Brighton this weekend. As always, you’re spoiled for choice – there’s some fantastic bands playing, and we’re a bit torn ourselves.

Tonight we were planning to go and see Bent Cousin at Sticky Mike’s, but sadly that’s been cancelled. Instead, we’d recommend heading down to the Green Door Store for an event called Hooray For Love! Well, it is Valentines day. Transformer headline, supported by Bob Wants His Head Back, Fire Eyes and Duke of Burgundy. Doors are 5pm, music starts at 7.30pm, so it will have already kicked off by the time I post this.

Friday night Run Young Lovers headline the Haunt, supported by Tiny Dragons and Daniel & The Scandals. Meanwhile, Simonne & The Dark Stars headline the Seven Stars, and Carnival Collective take over the Blind Tiger.

Saturday Night our friends over at Brighton Noise are putting on their third regular gig. Noise Night three has a fantastic line up – AKDK, P for Persia and Black Black Hills. Over at the Dome Studio Theatre, Source New Music have invited Innerstrings Light Show to work with them on the line up for their monthly gig. The brilliant Physics House Band headline, supported by Baron, Reds, Pete Fij & Terry Bickers and Baal Fire.

Then on Sunday is the gig that we’re most looking forward to – Dome Studio Theatre host the Nordic Giants for the launch of their new single Speed The Crows Nest, and they promise a set of new songs and new films. Support comes from Brighton Music Blog favourite Abi Wade and Saturday Sun.

Weekend Gig Picks

Posted on 31/01/2013 by brightonmusicblog

Here’s our regular pick of where to go and get your fill of local music this weekend.

Tonight we recommend heading to The Brunswick to see some members of bands playing solo sets. Hannah from Moulettes is supporting Sam Walker from The Muel, and door tax is a fiver. If Hove seems a long way away (which it does sometimes), then there’s also Flash Bang Band at the Prince Albert, which is only four pound entrance. Support comes from Lion Bark and The Vinyls.

Our Friday night choice is Transformer, who are playing at the Blind Tiger and is free to get in! Saturday night’s pick is this week’s Brighton Rocks at Sticky Mikes with Running Dogs, The Chances, High Tyde, Clipper and Harting, and will set you back four pounds.

Weekend Gig Picks

Posted on 12/12/2012 by brightonmusicblog

So, we’ve got a veritable bonanza of weekend gigs for you this week. Last week I was musing that maybe things that might get a bit quieter in the run up to Christmas – how wrong I was.

Holy Vessels Let’s start this with Thursday – it is the start of the weekend after all. We’ll be heading down to the Concorde 2 to see Saint Etienne (with support from Scritti Politti – what a line up, eh?). Also on thursday night there’s Mr B‘s Chap Hop Christmas Ball at the Prince Albert. Holy Vessels play their album launch at the Blind Tiger, with support from Soccer96, Autumn Red, The Common Tongues and Songs For Walter. Last Orders at the Marshall Arms is out now and available from iTunes. Paul Diello plays his annual Christmas party at the Brunswick, and Alice Amelia plays the Constant Service.

Noise Night On Friday British Sea Power return with a special Christmas Krankenhaus at The Haunt. Our friends over at Brighton Noise are putting on their second night at the Green Door Store. They were turning people away from first one, so get their early to see Traams, Bitches and the fantastic Negative Pegasus. Transformer are launching their single Dragonfly at the Blind Tiger. Check out the Facebook event for more details and a look at the video. The last gig on our radar on friday is at the Coach House in Kemptown (not the pub on Middle Street), where Crayola Lectern headlines a “veritable melange of auditory delights”.

binge2poster On Saturday The Impellers hold their Office Christmas Party at The Brunswick, which is cheap to get into if you’ve got a ticket for Craig Charles later that night. If you’d like to start things a bit earlier on in the day, Beatabet kick things off at 1pm. They’ve got twelve bands playing at their Betabet Binge – P for Persia, Spacenoid, Napoleon III, Colectress, Speak Galactic, Laboratoro, Old Man Diode, Scalar Fields, Duot, Operator, Temple Decade and Burnt Toast. Phew!

art noise If you’ve still got any energy left come Sunday, then our top pick is Cate Ferris at The Neptune. There’s also an art event at the Blind Tiger called Wonderland, where Amongst The Pigeons, Them The Sky, Tiny Dragons, and the Elevators and Ribbon play in the evening. In yet another night in town with an above average number of bands on the bill, there’s also Club Criminal at Sticky Mike’s, starting from 5pm, with Trip to Dover, The Flip Flays, The Kut, Thieves by the Code, The Trophy Hearts, Childbrain and King Mews.