CDs/DVDs
Albums of the Year 2017: Tom Russell - Folk HotelSaturday, 16 December 2017
A regular reviewing gig inevitably opens the ears to lots of “stuff”, what with the CDs (and downloads, so irritating to review from) dispatched by hopeful PRs and Spotify (great for browsing, crap for artists) offering the opportunity to dip in and... Read more... |
CD: N.E.R.D - No_One Ever Really DiesFriday, 15 December 2017
In the seven years since N.E.R.D last had an album out, Pharrell Williams’ profile, which was already massive, has achieved some sort of pop supernova. “Happy”, “Get Lucky” and the less loveable “Blurred Lines” have made him a megastar. He now... Read more... |
Albums of the Year 2017: Nick Mulvey - Wake Up NowThursday, 14 December 2017
For the past few years my Album of the Year has leapt out at me, craved attention, stood out from the competition. With no disrespect to Nick Mulvey’s fine second album, that wasn’t the case in 2017. Many albums this year had vital, enjoyable music... Read more... |
Albums of the Year 2017: Idles - BrutalismWednesday, 13 December 2017
In March, Bristol’s Idles drove up and down the country, leaving painfully small quantities of their debut album Brutalism in each independent record shop they went into. The lucky among us who managed to get a first-pressing copy of the beautifully... Read more... |
DVD: A Journey Through French CinemaTuesday, 12 December 2017
Bertrand Tavernier’s trip through French cinema is shot through with the love of someone who has grown up with cinema and knows how to communicate his passion in a way that is totally engaging. The three hours-plus that he delivers make you want to... Read more... |
CD: Gaspard Royant - Wishing You a Merry ChristmasMonday, 11 December 2017
French stylist Gaspard Royant has recorded at London’s garage-rock-central studio Toe Rag and been produced by Edwyn Collins. Both fit a worldview which encompasses collaborating with Eli Paperboy Reed, who crops up here on “Christmas Time Again”, a... Read more... |
CD: Cheap Trick - Christmas ChristmasSunday, 10 December 2017
It’s been a busy year for veteran power poppers Cheap Trick. Christmas Christmas is their second album in six months, after June’s We’re All Alright, and their nineteenth since the heady days of 1977. The sound of Christmas for Cheap Trick, however... Read more... |
CD: Tom Chaplin – Twelve Tales of ChristmasSaturday, 09 December 2017
It’s easy to be cynical about Christmas pop albums. This is, of course, because so many of them are awful, hastily cobbled together collections of nothing, and about as much fun as munching your way through a kilo of sixpences hoping to find a tiny... Read more... |
DVD/Blu-ray: The L-Shaped RoomFriday, 08 December 2017
Cinematographer Douglas Slocombe is a true prince of darkness here, picking out Leslie Caron’s beautiful eyes and gleaming mouth despite the gloom of a seedy Notting Hill boarding house. Taking a break from her usual roles as a happy hoofer, Caron... Read more... |
CD: Sia - Everyday Is ChristmasThursday, 07 December 2017
Sia is a 21st century pop behemoth, an unstoppable figure who, despite no longer wishing to take part in the increasingly visual aspects of our social media age, still maintains a top-flight career. The best of her output hits the Venn diagram sweet... Read more... |
CD: Christmas with Elvis and the Royal Philharmonic OrchestraWednesday, 06 December 2017
It’s that time of year again, and we’re forced to endure crap Christmas songs while waiting to pay for milk and loo rolls. The fingers of one hand are sufficient for listing the world’s only good Christmas albums and songs: Phil Spector’s Christmas... Read more... |
DVD/Blu-ray: Terminator 2 - Judgment DayTuesday, 05 December 2017
In the last 25 years anything and everything has become possible in cinema. The budgets got bigger, the SFX more spectacular (and the audience ever more infantilised). By rights Terminator 2: Judgment Day, the first film that cost $100 million to... Read more... |
