Live Reviews

Casiotone for the Painfully Alone @ The Cube, Bristol 04.11.10
Entering the velour-furnished, lovingly traditional Cube cinema on the west side of Bristol’s Kings Square, you couldn’t help but make assumptions about their post-rock, art house clientele. It seemed every fifth person had come in their Victorian street urchin garb as if it were some form of dress code. The aura of the place positively screamed sad, lonely yuppie – and yet it pulled you into its clutches unable to resist the intrigue. As we all sat on our raised amphitheatre seating in front of the theatre stage, it became clear this was either going to be highly embarrassing or bloody brilliant.
Posted on Nov 12th, 2010
Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster @ Digital, Brighton 04.11.10
At the end of a country-wide tour in support of new album Blood & Fire, Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster look like they are on their last legs. However, there is nothing new here. This is a band steeped in a history of tumultuous relationships and in-fighting, which Bearded thinks just adds to their dirty charm.
Posted on Nov 12th, 2010
Hafdis Huld @ Source Below, London 01.11.10
Star quality – it’s impossible to fake, and Hafdis Huld has it in spades. Iceland’s self-styled “Pop Princess” lights up this Soho cellar bar with an unplugged performance that would charm the birds from the trees.
Posted on Nov 3rd, 2010
Black Mountain @ Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London 07.10.10
Black Mountain, Dead Meadow… what is it with stoner rock bands and their fondness for gloomy nature-inspired names? I’ve got a fiver on Sad Forest and Depressed Waterfall turning up before Christmas…
Posted on Nov 2nd, 2010
Screaming Females @ The Luminaire, London 27.10.10
Fronting the tried and tested set-up of a bass-drums-guitar trio, with some hefty vocals thrown in for good measure, Screaming Females recall the golden age of garage rock. In measures of Bikini Kill and shots of punk outfits like Television and The Slits, it is a simplistic sound made epic through leading lady Marissa Paternoster’s stellar solos and plucky riffs.
Posted on Nov 2nd, 2010
Mice Parade @ Corsica Studios, London 13.10.10
Tonight’s musical arrangement, a meagre 6 by measure of Mice Parade’s usual number, take their place on quite possibly the world’s tallest stage (easily over 4 ft) and slip readily into one of their most achingly beautiful tracks ‘Recover’.
Posted on Nov 2nd, 2010
Supersonic 22-24.10.10
Birmingham's "foremost purveyors of what is interesting, exciting and invigorating about music in the twenty-first century" strike gold again at this year's Supersonic festival
Posted on Oct 26th, 2010
A Storm of Light @ The Croft, Bristol 05.10.10
Just as wonderfully dark and dingy as ever, The Croft never disappoints. It is especially lovely for this Bearded writer tonight since he hasn’t paid a visit in over a year. Quickly noticeable are the whole host of new posters on the walls and a brand new gig room to add to the already sweaty quarters. But alas, tonight is no night for new room distractions as Brooklyn metallers A Storm of Light have come to entertain with a few friends.
Posted on Oct 19th, 2010
Of Montreal @ KoKo, London 06.10.10
Starting earlier than was to be expected, and breaking us in with the dark and drawling 'Black Lion Massacre', Of Montreal dive head first in to their hefty set, showering us with the wealth of their years and experience on the music scene.
Posted on Oct 18th, 2010
Maps and Atlases / Tall Ships @ Brudenell Social Club, Leeds 09.10.10
Ready that dead horse for a fierce beating, because this show was an odd one. Without getting too bogged down in some polemical preamble, let’s just say that it’s easy to see when a genre – as a scene or a community or a trend or whatever – is in trouble.
Posted on Oct 12th, 2010
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