Did you? Get tix to see the xx, I mean. It’s a measure of the perennially black-clad London trio’s massive success that tickets apparently sold out in just half an hour – something of a rarity in ZH. After the mind-boggling success of their debut album late in 2009 (every radio station and every TV channel in … Continue reading »
When I first started this site back in late 2009 I didn’t know how the music industry worked from the inside – I’d only ever experienced it from outside, as a fan (even now I don’t fully understand all the arcane workings of it – one of the reasons why I’m doing this series). But … Continue reading »
Buzz bands are a dime a dozen, and it’s rare that I stop and pay any attention to them. But Creep…well, Creep turned my head. Just the right mix of thoughtful intelligence and insouciant creativity behind the music to make me stop and listen, and *shock horror* even consider venturing out into unknown (to me) … Continue reading »
It’s a beautiful warm early summer evening and I’ve been lured inside the cool confines of the Mascotte with the promise of rare and precious things from Brooklyn buzz band Creep and Brighton buzz band Esben and the Witch, so I reluctantly get my head around being inside where it is cold and dark instead … Continue reading »
The highlight of my week last week was seeing Creep play @ Mascotte along with Esben and the Witch (review coming up). A truly mesmerising show. Brooklyn DJ/producer duo Lauren Flax and Lauren Dillard combine trip hop beats with witchy, shoegazy atmospherics and suitably sinister and unearthly visuals. After their stellar collaboration with Romy Madley-Croft … Continue reading »
When I was little the local public radio station where I lived had a children’s fairy tale session on Sunday mornings. I’d lie in bed listening to the tales of Mollie Whuppie, Hansel and Gretel, Jack and the Beanstalk, Tom Thumb and Esben and the Witch, lost in a world of ogres, evil witches, clever … Continue reading »
My only concession to the terrible, ubiquitous trend of Best-of lists will be the following summation of my best live gigs of 2010. And, in a huge feat of rebellion, I have chosen 6 of the best, rather than the usual 5, 10, 25 or 100 Best-of’s. Yes, I’m really walking on the wild side … Continue reading »
I arrived prepared for battle with the elements, with heavy-duty wet weather gear, gumboots and 4 layers of clothes. The skies stretched cold, grey and dreary overhead as I picked my way carefully through the mud and flotation devices masquerading as walkways scattered around the festival site. Continue reading »
Day 2: Yawning, stretching and cursing the sticky, stinking mud. Great wallows of mud, as far as the eye could see, with flotation devices masquerading as wooden walkways in the deeper crevices. Good people watching (and no small amount of schadenfreude) to be had watching the look of horror on the faces of new arrivals … Continue reading »
The heavens opened up with full force yesterday for the the first day of Zurich Openair. Gumboots and rain ponchos were de rigeur amidst the squelching puddles of mud and torrential rain. A staunch crowd braved the elements to see The Shout Out Louds, a crushing (literally) show from The Hives, Hole, the awesome Vive … Continue reading »
