Category Archives: Rock
KROKOFANT-KROKOFANT.
KROKOFANT-KROKOFANT. What do you get if you cross a crocodile with an elephant? A Krokofant. For those not familiar with this surreal hybrid, then you’ve never heard the popular Norwegian children’s song. The Krokofant has been described as “a lumbering trumpeting beast with a fearsome array of teeth in its snapping jaws.” However, Krokofant is …
BLY DE BLYANT-HINDSIGHT BIAS.
BLY DE BLYANT-HINDSIGHT BIAS. Bly De Blyant are the equivalent of international musical superheroes. They dare to create innovative, groundbreaking and genre-melting music. To do this, they combine musical genres and influences. This includes everything from classic rock, jazz, Krautrock and math rock. It’s an inventive and innovative combination. No wonder. This is what we’d …
MICHAEL BLOOMFIELD-FROM HIS HEAD TO HIS HEART TO HIS HANDS.
MICHAEL BLOOMFIELD-FROM HIS HEAD TO HIS HEART TO HIS HANDS. Michael Bloomfield was an unlikely candidate to become one of the finest blues guitarists of his generation. He was born in Chicago in 1943. His family were a wealthy Jewish-American family who lived in the north side of Chicago. His family hoped he’d join the …
BOBBY CHARLES-BOBBY CHARLES.
BOBBY CHARLES-BOBBY CHARLES. Bobby Charles will always be remembered as one of the pioneers of swamp pop. He played a huge part in popularising swamp pop, not just in Louisiana, but much further afield. However, there’s more to Bobby Charles’ career than that. Much more. Bobby was also a successful songwriter. The story begins in …
AIR-MOON SAFARI.
AIR-MOON SAFARI. Enigmatic describes Air, one of the most innovative European electronic bands of the past twenty years. Air were formed in 1995, in Versailles, France. Originally, Nicholas Godin, a former architecture student was the only member of Air. He was later joined by former maths student Jean-Benoit Dunckel. They’d previously been members of Orange, …
DISCO RECHARGE-THE DUNCAN SISTERS.
DISCO RECHARGE-THE DUNCAN SISTERS. It’s been a while since the last instalment of the Disco Recharge series. That was when Tantra’s The Collection was released in July 2013. Since then, releases have been scheduled, but cancelled at the last minute. Meanwhile, readers have constantly emailed me asking what was happening with the Disco Recharge series? …
KRAFTWERK-TRANS-EUROPE EXPRESS.
KRAFTWERK-TRANS-EUROPE EXPRESS. In the history of electronic music, one of the most important and influential, groups are Kraftwerk. From their formative years, and their eponymous debut album Kraftwerk, released in 1970, they’ve constantly reinvented their music, using the latest technology. In the early years, they were one of first groups to realize the potential of …
JETHRO TULL-BENEFIT.
JETHRO TULL-BENEFIT. If I was to ask what group had nine albums certified gold, and one certified triple-platinum, between 1969 and 1979, how many people would say Jethro Tull? That’s because most people forget how successful Jethro Tull were. They were one of the most successful, groundbreaking and innovative of the prog rock bands in …
THE BEATLES-RUBBER SOUL.
THE BEATLES-RUBBER SOUL. It was fifty years ago, The Beatles made a breakthrough in America. This was when they released Introducing…The Beatles on 20th January 1963. It reached number two in the US Billboard 200. The Beatles had arrived. Ironically, Introducing…The Beatles proved to be the least successful album The Beatles released in America. After …
BREAKAWAY-BREAKAWAY AND STRAIGHT TO THE TOP.
BREAKAWAY-BREAKAWAY AND STRAIGHT TO THE TOP. BBE Music’s latest release sees two of the rarest albums make their CD debut. For years, both of Breakaway’s two albums have been prized assets among record collectors. Copies have exchanged hands for ever increasing sums of money. Despite this, no record company decided to take the plunge and …
MOGWAI-RAVE TAPES BOX SET.
MOGWAI-RAVE TAPES BOX SET. Nowadays, it’s a common occurrence for bands to release their new albums in a variety of formats. Usually, this includes CD, vinyl and MP3. Sometimes, there’s also a box set available. This is the case with Mogwai’s eighth studio album Rave Tapes. It’s a limited edition of 4,000 which was released …
KRAFTWERK-AUTOBAHN.
KRAFTWERK-AUTOBAHN. Formed in 1970 by Ralf Hutter and Florian Schneider, Kraftwerk went on to become one of the most innovative, influential and groundbreaking groups in musical history. Kraftwerk have gone on to influence several generation of musicians. Without Kraftwerk, musical history would’ve been very different. However, still, many people struggle to describe Kraftwerk’s music. It’s best …
DOUG PAISLEY-STRONG FEELINGS.
DOUG PAISLEY-STRONG FEELINGS. For anyone yet to discover Doug Paisley’s music, you’ve been missing out on one of the most talented singer-songwriters of his generation. Born in Toronto, Canada, Doug has just released his third album Strong Feelings on No Quarter Records. Strong Feelings is a fusion of alternative country, Americana and folk. The album …
AFRO-BEAT AIRWAYS-WEST AFRICAN SHOCK WAVES 1972-1978.
AFRO-BEAT AIRWAYS-WEST AFRICAN SHOCK WAVES 1972-1978. Without doubt, one of the best compilations of 2013 was Analog Africa’s Afrobeat Airways Return Flight To Ghana 1974-1983. It was the perfect introduction to Ghanaian music and featured thirteen slices of Afrobeat and highlife. This was music that’s irresistible. Uplifting, joyous, spiritual and infectiously catchy, it’s also funky, …
MOGWAI-LES REVENANTS.
MOGWAI-LES REVENANTS. Next week, Glasgow’s very own Mogwai will release their eighth studio album Rave Tapes. This will be their first album in three years, since the release of Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will. However, during that three year period, Mogwai have been busy. They contributed the soundtrack to the French television series …
BLO-CHAPTER ONE.
BLO-CHAPTER ONE. The first thing that strikes you about BLO’s Chapter One, the latest vinyl rerelease from Mr. Bongo Records, is the cover. Naive, psychedelic, lysergic and surreal, it’s a min-masterpiece. It’s up there with some of the best album covers in music history. So good is the album cover, that I’m sure many people …
LIGHTNIN’ SLIM-HIGH AND LOW DOWN.
LIGHTNIN’ SLIM-HIGH AND LOW DOWN. When Lightnin’ Slim recorded his 1971 album High and Low Down, it only took three days to record the album. There’s a good reason for this. Three days holidays was all Lightnin’ Slim could get from the lock factory he was working in, in Pontiac, Michigan. However, for three days …
HARMONIA-MUSIK VON HARMONIA.
HARMONIA-MUSIK VON HARMONIA. Forty years ago this month, German supergroup Harmonia released their debut album Musik Von Harmonia in 1974. It was released to critical acclaim and hailed a groundbreaking, genre-melting album. Musik Von Harmonia saw Harmonica fuse ambient music and Krautcock. This was unheard of, and akin to a musical revolution. Mind you, that’s …
THE BLUE NILE-HIGH.
THE BLUE NILE-HIGH. Previously, I’ve described The Blue Nile as enigmatic, reluctant and contrarian. They could’ve and should’ve been the biggest band of their generation. However, The Blue Nile were always determined to do things their way. The Blue Nile are the complete opposite of most bands. They’re publicity shy. Describing the Blue Nile as …
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