I like to go to all kind of gigs. There’s unquestionably something exciting about going to a major event. When I do this I get my friend to come round with her trusty Joewell scissors and give me a new hairdo and we get all glammed up for the big occasion. However, I also love going to tiny venues like the back room of a pub to see up-and-coming bands that may or may not become the next big thing. Most of them won’t, of course, but even then, I still treasure a huge collection of artists who never made it to the big time.

The most recent act I saw that fits this bill is Islet. Islet are a Welsh band who have studiously avoided an online image – preferring instead to cultivate a fanbase through continuous gigging and word of mouth. They have no myspace or facebook accounts and do not make their music available online (although there are a couple of tunes on youtube now). Bizarrely, I heard one of their songs on an advert for a television programme the other day so this is not an intentional stance. They just don’t seem to care too much about marketing and can’t be bothered spending any time on it.

Musically, they are equally intriguing. The first time I saw them, they played one song and then three of the band members swapped instruments and the new vocalist jumped into the crowd to chant his way through a standout track from their mini-album Wimmy. The musical style varies from track to track, including strands of indie and electronica. I wouldn’t be surprised by anything I heard coming from one of their records though. File next to Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci (if you remember them?) or ignore all comparisons and just sit back and enjoy. You will be rewarded.

similar posts:
Jersey Boys the Musical in London : Jersey Boys is a jukebox…
Best summer in how long – Comment : A blog on the World Cup…
Big Energy Business : Poor energy saving. It used to be the kid…
Connected Youth : There was a time when the older generation…

Bay Area thrashers Metallica are bringing forward their 2013 European tout to next year instead, inspired not by bringing the usual fun and frivolity, but instead to ensure they don’t suffer from low ticket sales if the Eurozone collapses before 2013.Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, band manager Cliff Burnstein said that with the Euro in jeopardy like never before, it would only be sensible to move the shows to an earlier date. “Over the next few years, the dollar will be stronger and the euro weaker, and if that’s the case, I want to take advantage of that by playing more of these shows now, because they will be more profitable for us,” said Burnstein speaking to reporters.

Acts the caliber of Metallica can ask for anything up to $1 million to headline festivals and other events across the world. Always known to be shrewd when it comes to financial matters, the band has been keeping an eye on currency values and exchange rates for quite some time now. When the Euro sees a drop in worth, payment is demanded in US dollars and the same to the contrary. “We’re a U.S. export the same way Coca-Cola is…We look for the best markets to go to.” said Burnstein in the same interview.Thrown your horns in the air to that pearl of wisdom.

similar posts:
Jersey Boys the Musical in London : Jersey Boys is a jukebox…
Best summer in how long – Comment : A blog on the World Cup…
Big Energy Business : Poor energy saving. It used to be the kid…
Connected Youth : There was a time when the older generation…

There’s only one topic that a music blog worth its salt can discuss this week, and it’s not whether to buy tin plate CD covers for your friends for Christmas presents. Even though they are really cool. No, the death of REM has been the hot topic of every musically-based conversation ever since Michael Stipe and the boys announced that they were calling it a day after releasing their first single, ’Radio Free Europe’, a mighty thirty years ago. Thirty years! I haven’t even been alive as long as REM has been making music, which is a pretty scary thought.

REM is one of those bands that everyone really likes, but I don’t know anyone who’s a massive fan. We all have a couple of albums in our collection, usually Monster or Automatic for the People rather than any of the much older or newer stuff, and some of us have even seen them in concert more than once. However, I would guarantee that myself and all of my mates are big fans of a group or solo artist who had been massively influenced by REM at some point in their career. Think about how many times they are cited as the inspiration for someone picking up a guitar or starting to sing in interviews and you’ll realise that without REM today’s music would sound pretty different. Which is another scary thought!

It’s almost impossible to pick a favourite REM song. The music is so diverse that it entirely depends upon your mood; there’s not many bands out there where the choice are as diverse as “Shiny, Happy People” at one end of the scale and “Everybody Hurts” at the other! As I write this blog I’m listening to the 2001 album ’Reveal'and have just been reminded how great the track “I’ll Take the Rain” is for a dark and dreary Sunday night when you have to go back to work in the morning. So, for now, I’ll choose that one…

similar posts:
Jersey Boys the Musical in London : Jersey Boys is a jukebox…
Best summer in how long – Comment : A blog on the World Cup…
Big Energy Business : Poor energy saving. It used to be the kid…
Connected Youth : There was a time when the older generation…

The recordings which are within this release have been taken from live concerts in the years of 2008, 2007, and 2006. A testament to the excellence of Chirs Weeda, their sound engineer, is the undeniable fact that the songs sound incredibly the same when regarding the sonic presence, most notably because they have been taken from various live concerts as well as other venues.

Thielemens'longtime group, Karel Boehlee upon key boards, bass man Hein Van de Geyn and also Hans van Oossterhout on the drums, are usually therefore in tune using the master of harmonica’s phrasing and also curve lines, that the ensemble’s masterful interplay they will create only can come from many years of concerts tours and rehearsals. Any time Thielemans slows, it really is as though the particular outfit has already been prepared for this. Whenever they soften, it is as if the four music artists tend to be of one thought inside how to handle the particular slight shading essential that is needed to make the powerful transition ideal. Any time Thielmans go away into an unaccompanied cadenza, the group makes it look like there was absolutely no other way, yet to have his or her fearless head make a single statement at specifically that moment. Terms do not identify the extraordinary degree of greatness built in this group.

Moving as endlessly as a polcat on a cozy summer day time as it takes in it’s surroundings, this documenting is actually, to put it simply, great. Each and every of the four music artists are not just nicely schooled inside the fine art associated with jazz, however will also be monsters on the respective instruments. In the event that you do not own a CD associated with Thielemans, then proceed get yourself this Challenge Jazz Data release right now; you will not be sorry.

similar posts:
Jersey Boys the Musical in London : Jersey Boys is a jukebox…
Fernando’s Kitchen  : The Junction, in Cambridge, might sound…
Tonight’s The Kind of Night : Last weekend I was staying in…
Foo Fighters: Wasting Light : The Foo Fighters are one of the…

Right, i know i normally blog about gigs in and around London, but a band i saw recently whilst abroad has to be mentioned, so this time i’m talking about a little further afield. When i go on holiday or are perhaps in a different UK city from my normal haunts i always check out what local gigs are on. Attending local gigs is a great way to be lucky enough to get to see a band first, before they become perhaps huge in the future – then their heads are inflated by pounds signs and their increasing popularity fuel management companies to scrabble to sign them up. These young bands that haven’t struck the big time yet often perform with more soul and truth than of the big names. Anyway back to the band in question, whilst in Galicia (Northern Spain) I was spending a Saturday night in the town of Monforte de Lemos and happened to end up in bar where a local band Holywater were playing. I was blown away with their set, it was loud, heartfelt and real. Their music is a mix of rock and grunge rock and their set produced a balance mix of songs that displayed their talent and range wonderfully. Watching this great band in a small town out in what felt like the middle of nowhere got me thinking about how much great music is never heard by those who don’t go outside the mainstream and seek out alternatives to what we are fed by the media. This kinda made me sad…..

similar posts:
Jersey Boys the Musical in London : Jersey Boys is a jukebox…
Fernando’s Kitchen  : The Junction, in Cambridge, might sound…
Tonight’s The Kind of Night : Last weekend I was staying in…
Arch Enemy – The Death Metal Band  : Arch Enemy is a very…

Barbados born Rihanna is one of the best selling music artistes of all time, having sold more than 45 million singles and 15 million albums – which gives competition to the sale of homeware UK! This is a tremendous achievement on its own, and even more so if you consider that her career only began in 2005. Rihanna is only 23 years old and has millions of fans all over the world. She also has her own wax figure in the famous Madam Tussauds Wax Museum in Washington DC. You would also be surprised to know that this young artiste is also an actress, author and philanthropist!

Since her debut hit single “Pon de Replay” in 2005, Rihanna has just continued to churn out hit after hit. Although Rihanna is a R&B singer, her songs also sometimes converge into the dance, pop, dance, reggae and Eurodance genres. Her Caribbean upbringing is also reflected in her songs, much to the delight of her fans.

Rihanna has been nominated for 4 Grammy awards this year, and in the London gig, you can expect her to belt out hits from her chart topping album “Loud.” These hits include “Only Girl (in the world)” and “What’s My Name?” She is also expected to sing popular songs from her other number 1 albums for the audience.

Tickets to Rihanna’s gigs sell out fast, especially in London, where she has a large number of loyal fans. Currently, they are available from £40 upwards, and can be purchased through online ticketing websites such as Ticketmaster. Book your tickets early to avoid disappointment.

similar posts:
Speaking for our Favourite Rock Stars : Rock is a genre of…
What is good music to you? : Good music means different things…
Creedence Clearwater Revival and The Kinks : Good music is a…
How do you like to listen to Music? : There are many music…

G-unit rapper 50 Cent is also a big name when talking about the rich in rap music. An observer recently that 50 cent has become even richer than many of the rappers he met in the game. His wealth came from wise investments and of course his G-Unit fashion line which makes clothes and footwear. Another rich rapper who has business interests in the fashion industry is Diddy. His Sean John line fetched him millions of dollars and he was recently chastised by a small section of the media for buying an expensive car for his son who turned 16. The common thing about these rappers source of wealth is that they all invested in fashion.

similar posts:
You know you’re getting old when… : I still think I’m…
Gig etiquettes : There has been lots of media coverage of the…
Festivals : Summer only means one thing to me; festivals. OK…
The Magic of Rock and Roll : Music as I have heard is a…

OK, so it’s only three months until the Scottish music festival T in the Park, which means I am officially allowed to get excited about the big Perthshire event! I check the website religiously every week to see what new names have been added to the line-up. The last big name to be added was one I was delighted to see as they’ve not played live together for years; my personal heroes of Britpop, Pulp.
Cooler than a chilled cucumber and more stylish than a pair of custom rings, Jarvis Cocker could do no wrong in my eyes at his peak, so let’s just hope this mini-comeback of sorts (I don’t really count it as a proper comeback as he has been making solo music since Pulp split up) lives up to my expectations. It’s always slightly worrying when you go to see a band that you’ve worshipped and adored for many years; you can’t help but build up their performance in your mind, even before the warm-up band have got onto the stage.
I don’t think I’ve ever been really disappointed by a concert before. Sometimes I’ve been more intrigued than impressed by a performance – like when I went to see The Darkness and Justin sang one sang from the shoulders of a roadie walking among the crowd like a spandex-clad Jesus – but as long as the band can play their instruments and the singer can hold a tune, then I’m willing to forgive most mistakes or faults in a live performance. After all, it’s not like I could do any better!

similar posts:
Is this the music of the future? : A colleague of mine, who is…
Tip for the top : I can be a bit of an evangelist when it comes…
Using music in the theatre – Love, Love, Love by Mike Bartlett : A…
Too old to mosh? : I’ve long accepted that I’m too…

When someone asks you who your favourite guilty pleasures are, what kind of responses do you get? For me, my answer to this question is The Spice Girls, and it is always met with groans from whoever posed this common question initially.
Let’s admit it – you also smirked or even considered closing this tab on reading that last sentence. As a music lover however, I propose we ban this notion of ’guilty'once and for all.
Like film and literature, music is one of those things that unites us and the passion for this media is incredibly strong. There is no stigma attached to loving music to such an extent that it’s fanatical, so why should there be judgement passed on how one fulfills this passion?
When I’m done with general life stuff such as mortgage payments or investing through companies like Galvan research, I like nothing more than to unwind to a good record. Obviously ’good'is subjective not only from person to person but even to an individual’s mood (I don’t always listen to The Spice Girls, you understand!). To judge something as a ’guilty'song or band implies that one knows what music is ’good'and what is ’bad’, and there is a description for people like that – intellectual snobs.
At the end of the day, we’re never going to agree definitively on matters such as what is and isn’t quality music. You can trash an artist or production as much as you like, but a person’s tastes are untouchable – so long as that person fully enjoys it, nobody has the right to try and make them feel bad about it.

similar posts:
Spotlight on Jason Mraz – the new Cohen? : A good artist can…
5 Of My 2011 Predictions For Digital Music : Now I don’t…
Sheila’s broken down : Big things are afoot in the world of no…
What’s the Future of Live Music? : The future of the music…

I always find the annual list of the top earning dead musical celebrities pretty cool, if a little macabre. Maybe it’s just me, but I can help imagining their ghoulish figures appearing on stage to accept the accolades from the industry and their adoring fans. I have to stop eating cheese last thing at night, and falling asleep looking at my Jonathan Shaw landscapes don’t I?

It certainly seems that dying is a sure fire way to resurrect your career, if you’ll pardon the pun. Perhaps it’s a little extreme, though if the Cheeky Girls decided to throw themselves off a cliff in the hope that “Touch My Bum” would make it to number one, I don’t suppose many people would notice.

Unsurprisingly, the number one earner for 2010 was Michael Jackson, whose agents and record label had the relaunched Greatest Hits album out before he was even cold in his grave. Or so it seemed. I can still remember where I was and what I was doing when I heard that Michael Jackson had died; I was texting my friend a sick joke about Michael Jackson dying…

As the list goes down it gets a little classier, with the King in second, though a massive $215 million behind Wacko Jacko. Perennial successful dead musician John Lennon came in third, with Jimi Hendrix bringing up the rear at number five.

So which rock legend is at number four, in amongst that exalted company? Jim Morrison perhaps? Or was 2010 the year of reggae and Bob Marley made it into the list? No, it’s the composer Richard Rodgers, the man responsible for my favourite musical of all time, The Sound of Music. I may try and act like a hip and cool musician, but when I was fourteen I didn’t just know all the lyrics to Sound of Music, I knew every line of dialogue too. Well, that’s my street cred blown out of the water…

similar posts:
The era that good music forgot? : Despite needing to build an…
5 Of My 2011 Predictions For Digital Music : Now I don’t…
Metal Deserves More Credit : Some genres of music seem to get…
Spotify is the Future of Music : Music has changed a lot in…