The pairing of Jon Gomm and Jo Quail for this co-headlining “Parallel Worlds” tour is one that might seem unusual at first glance, but that from another angle makes perfect sense. Continue reading
Tag Archives: Duncan Evans
ALBUM REVIEW: New Model Army – Unbroken
Not unlike their Parliamentarian namesakes, Bradford’s New Model Army have tenaciously hung on to their libertarian left-wing hopes of a new “utopian” society, fusing Punk, Folk, and their own twisted brand of progressive Pop along the way.
The band’s latest full length, Unbroken (earMUSIC) marks their forty-fourth year, and this record brings exactly the experience fans of the band will be looking for.
ALBUM REVIEW: Mountain Caller – Chronicle II: Hypergenesis
Mountain Caller’s latest release, Chronicle II: Hypergenesis (Church Road Records), is the much-anticipated follow-up LP to 2020’s Chronicle I: The Truthseeker. The London-based three-piece (Claire Simson on guitar, El Reeve on bass, and Max Maxwell on drums) perform mostly instrumental music that (so it is said) “[transcends] language and [communicates] through the universal language of sound”.
And, true to the words of the press hype in question, Hypergenesis does indeed cross musical boundaries in a way that, whilst not entirely new, feels burstingly fresh and urgent.Continue reading
FESTIVAL REVIEW: Damnation Festival and a Night of Salvation 2023 Live at Bowlers Exhibition Centre
This year’s Damnation Festival is the second since it has returned to its original home of Manchester after many years at the University of Leeds. The festival had outgrown the confines of its erstwhile venue and now takes place at Manchester’s Bowlers Exhibition Centre across three large stages. Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Jo Quail – Invocation – Supplication
Invocation / Supplication (By Norse Music), the new offering from experimental cellist Jo Quail, is actually a compendium of two connected three-song cycles. The first, Invocation, features the contributions of Heilung vocalist Maria Franz, plus brass instruments, percussion, bass and a choir assembled from crowdsourced mobile phone recordings of individual syllables. Supplication, on the other hand, is a less embellished affair, with just vocals from Lorenzo Esposito Fornasari and Koen Kaptin’s trombone parts to augment Quail’s cello and sound design.
ALBUM REVIEW: Reverend Kristin Michael Hayter – SAVED!
Kristin Hayter is perhaps better known by her erstwhile pseudonym Lingua Ignota, under which moniker she has released several albums that combine dark experimentalism with the influence of classical and folk music. Stating that it is “not healthy for [her] to relive [her] worst experiences over and over” through the music of her previous project, she has now recast herself as Reverend Kristin Michael Hayter, under which name her new album SAVED! (Perpetual Flame Ministries) arrives.
ALBUM REVIEW: Blodet – Death Mother
Death Mother (Church Road Records) is the debut full-length from Sweden’s Blodet, and it arrives after the tragic death of their guitarist Rickie Paleski-Östland, who contributed to the writing of the album. In spite of the inevitably difficult process of getting the record finished, it is nevertheless described as “cathartic”, “mesmerising”, and “alluring” by the press release which also draws comparisons to Chelsea Wolfe, Cult of Luna, and Sonic Youth.
PODCAST: Episode 335 – Duncan Evans Interviews Matteo Rizzardo of Calligram
Duncan Evans chatted with Matteo Rizzardo of Calligram! Their new album Position | Momentum is out now via Prosthetic Records! Duncan and Matteo discussed the formation of the band, the new album, what kind of “Black Metal” band they are, and more!
ALBUM REVIEW: Mad Honey – Satellite Aphrodite
Satellite Aphrodite (Deathwish Inc.) is the debut album from Oklahoma’s Mad Honey, a four-piece who are variously described as dream-pop, shoegaze, indie and glitter rock (whatever that is).
FESTIVAL REVIEW: ArcTanGent Festival 2023 Live at Fernhill Farm
ArcTanGent Festival, a yearly outdoor four-day fixture at Fernhill Farm near Bristol, attracts a devoted following to its niche yet eclectic lineups of artists who generally have an association with post-rock, progressive metal, or experimental rock. It’s “sort of” a metal festival, but the range of acts it showcases steers towards the more left-field and eccentric end of heavy music and at times stretches beyond what could reasonably even be labelled as “rock”.