That Night

My spine is a fret board, I feel electricity in my hair. The bass just hit me and the drums turn the tips of my fingers into claws. We’re sandwiched between each other and now they’re playing my favourite song, you know the one from the debut. You’re twirling, I don’t know why. You lookContinue reading “That Night”

The Body Keeps The Score

Before we left, before the final barbs, before the hurt, before the anger, before the indifference, I knew. I knew that the kindness was performative, that you’re an imposter. I knew that you study others, because you are dead inside. Before goodbye, the smiles, winks, studied lines, I knew it was only a matter ofContinue reading “The Body Keeps The Score”

The Great Performance Debate

Commedia Dell’arte Dr Gareth K Vile, great friend of mine and brilliant thinker, recently ruminated on the great Scottish theatre debate, because some critics hadn’t been invited to the musical version of ‘One Day’ : is it dying? I can’t speak to a broader academic discourse, as I’m a university dropout, and not a doctorContinue reading “The Great Performance Debate”

Book Review : Twee by Marc Spitz

Marc Spitz was a fine writer, and it’s clear he had an eye for the vagaries of pop culture, but Twee didn’t always convince me. What he described wasn’t a tribe, but an aesthetic. This would have been okay, were it a style guide (he was no stranger to a cute bow tie and fiftiesContinue reading “Book Review : Twee by Marc Spitz”

Overlooked Classic: Lisa Germano- Lullaby For Liquid Pig

Multi-instrumentalist Lisa Germano could have been dismissed as another “whisper singer”, but for the fact she can really sing, write and play. She always mines the saddest, most traumatic parts of her soul and turns them into eerie beauty. Dark night of the soul art can often be self-indulgent or mawkish, but Germano deals inContinue reading “Overlooked Classic: Lisa Germano- Lullaby For Liquid Pig”

Album Review: Tenderness- True

Tenderness’ new album True is her debut as a solo singer. Katy Beth Young was previously in the trio Peggy Sue and a part of the collective Deep Throat Choir. There’s a lot of loss and grief baked into the songs, as Young recently lost her father, but also a tentative sense of resilience andContinue reading “Album Review: Tenderness- True”

Lost In Music: Lucrecia Dalt- A Danger To Ourselves

Colombian artist Lucrecia Dalt’s seventh album was born in struggle. She’d suffered seizures and a near-death experience, which is possibly why the album is so intense, contemplative and beautiful. Co-produced with David Sylvian, her real-life partner, it covers many influences as you may expect from working with such an esoteric musician. It’s stunning. Juana MolinaContinue reading “Lost In Music: Lucrecia Dalt- A Danger To Ourselves”

Favourite Cover Versions: The Mike Flowers Pops- Wonderwall

Set the table for fifteen, get the bowls ready for the keys, tout de ruddy suite. Make sure the kids are safely ensconced with the neighbours across the road, chill the Blue Nun and get the Twiglets and cheese and pineapple on sticks onto the orange. We’re swinging tonight, like it’s 1969. The Mike FlowersContinue reading “Favourite Cover Versions: The Mike Flowers Pops- Wonderwall”

Adulting

I have never thought of myself as nostalgic, but moving back to where I grew up, I found myself thinking about my first proper boyfriend and the way we bonded over music: Siouxsie and the Banshees ‘Juju’, The Cure ‘Disintegration’, Sonic Youth ‘Daydream Nation’. I was one of the few goths in the town, andContinue reading “Adulting”

Keep It Live

There’s nothing like seeing artists playing live. The energy, that electricity that can’t be replicated elsewhere is one of my favourite experiences in life. New artists are passionate and give their all. At the moment, though, I’m recovering from hip replacement surgery, so unable to see music like I used to. This town has noContinue reading “Keep It Live”