Gallows @ Oxford, The Zodiac

[live] Gallows @ Oxford, The Zodiac @ The Academy, 25/09/07 Some bands you hear (usually on record) and you think ‘why all the hype?’ You own the album they released back in 2005, you know that they have been signed to a major label for a reputable one million pounds; you know this because every

Justice – D.A.N.C.E (Remixes)

Justice – D.A.N.C.E (Remixes) (Ed Banger Records) Release Date: 24/09/07 Rating: 4/5 Daft Punk have a lot to answer for it; were it not for their infectious electronic/rock crossover album ‘Discovery’, dance music would have been infinitely condemned to consumption via pill popping, neon tee wearing, jump around types brandishing glow sticks. On D.A.N.C.E (aptly

Noah and the Whale – Five Years Time

Noah and the Whale – Five Years Time (Young and Lost Club) Released: 24/09/07 Rating: 3/5 Before we delve into the politics of appropriating an already decent band’s joie de vivre, we must first exclaim that London quartet Noah and the Whale are not a bad band. ‘Five Years Time’ is a cute little single,

Black Lips @ The Cellar, Oxford

Black Lips @ The Cellar, Oxford Date: 16/09/07 Venue: The Cellar, Oxford Rating: 2.5/5 Experimental post-rock is so hot right now; having bought Sonic Youth back from under its rock/hard place and swinging a cat amongst the pigeons and into the faces of those who practice (eurgh) melodies and intonations. What are you bastards on

Reverend and the Makers – The State of Things

[album] Reverend and the Makers – The State of Things Label: Wall of Sound Release Date: 17/09/07 Rating: 1/5 Some records you hate on sight; maybe it’s not so much the record itself but that the twat hanging from it as a centre piece, fog horn, mouth piece is that Jon McClure, aka Johnny Borrell

Stephen Fretwell Interview

Stephen Fretwell Interview Manchester songstrel Stephen Fretwell is riding high in the popularity stakes these days. His debut album ‘Magpie’ was a surprising success story. Luisa Mateus caught up with Stephen via the wonders of new fangled mobile technology to recap on his success so far whilst getting the skinny on the newly anticipated album

Scouting for Girls Interview

Scouting for Girls Interview After the recent release of their single ‘She’s so lovely’, Scouting for Girls have had a busy few months. This week, Luisa Mateus caught up with head honcho/Scout Master Roy Stride for the low-down on what life has in store for Scouting for Girls- world domination perhaps? Well their self-titled album

Sleeping States – There the Open Spaces

Sleeping States – There the Open Spaces (Tome) Released: 10/09/07 Rating: 5/5 Music is one of those wonderful things that means everything to some people and absolutely nothing to others. Some people go their whole lives, listening to whatever music is played incessantly on the wireless, whatever neon coated ‘trendy’ looking record glaring at them

Manchester Orchestra – I’m like a Virgin Losing a Child

[album] Manchester Orchestra – I’m like a Virgin Losing a Child Label: Columbia Release Date: 10/09/07 Music writers are screamed at and branded with sharpened black metal sticks for blatant disregard of hack rules, such as the use of the ‘I’ word; uttering the words ‘I love this band’ in a review for example is

Paramore – Hallelujah

[single] Paramore – Hallelujah Label: Fueled by Ramen/ Atlantic Records Release Date: 3/09/07 Rating: 3/5 The basic formulations of pop punk are practised so often these days that you’d be conned into thinking that the genre began with Blink 182’s fart jokes, ended with Avril Lavignes’s doll-brat screaming and had Pete Wentz somewhere in the