Emma Millward
Give Me Walls
It's not been a bad few years for the girls, music-wise...
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What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?
With the recent ice-cream-friendly sunshine and subsequent emergence of wintry white skin in local public places, you would have been forgiven for thinking we had reached the heights of the British summertime. And of course, every summer needs its soundtrack. It’s about more than just music, it’s about memories too....
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The Night Before
_The Night Before_ is actually the first of the two mini-albums released by Manchester band James in 2010, followed shortly after, inevitably enough, by _The Morning After_. Despite the knowing humour here, and their position as the band behind party favourite ‘Sit Down’, James have always been a much more...
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A New Athens
For those who actually remember the Britpop era, The Bluetones may still only register as a minor blip on the musical radar. Perhaps there’s some recognition for indie standard ‘Slight Return’ or the anthemic ‘If…’, but, for most, the Bluetones brand of whimsical English indie lacked the swagger of their...
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Manic Street Preachers
Although gigs often kick off late, seven weeks is perhaps a little excessive. The original date was postponed due to singer James Dean Bradfield’s laryngitis but, never a band to willingly let down fans, tickets remained valid for the rescheduled date and even the support act were able to accommodate....
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My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Kanye West is one of the most frustrating artists around at the moment. Whilst a bit of swagger is an essential aspect of a true rap persona, there’s little doubt that West has succeeded in taking this to pretty incredible heights. Debut album _The College Dropout_ showcased a mix of...
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Grinderman 2
In 2006, Nick Cave, of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds fame, started a band called Grinderman with, er, the Bad Seeds. Who sounded a lot like Nick Cave’s other ‘other’ band The Birthday Party. Incestuous beginnings aside, ‘debut’ album, the imaginatively titled _Grinderman_, was a raucous exciting slice of...
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Postcards From a Young Man
About 18 months ago, it looked like the Manic Street Preachers were down and out. Their last album, 2007’s ‘Send Away the Tigers’, had received positive reviews but little seemed to follow from it, besides the cover of Rihanna’s Umbrella. And then a new album, ‘Journal for Plague Lovers’, appeared....
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