ALBUM REVIEW: MUMFORD & SONS - BABEL

Listen Up Manchester Album Rating: 5/10

Mumford & Sons return with a follow up to their 2009 debut Sigh No More...... Babel. Sadly Babel feels like exactly the same album but lacking the freshness and buzz of their debut. Yes there are plenty of decent, fingerpicking, folk rock songs that seem to follow the good old formula of fast a loud intro with a quieter more melancholic middle before building to a rousing footstomping finish. All seem to work quite well as individual songs, but with the rise of this genre over the past few years, it just makes this sound like a pretty average album rather than the fresh "bringing folk to the masses" thrill of the first album. For a great new folk band you should all check out Canada's the Barr Brothers (http://youtu.be/boHhpY4_SEs). Anyway - back to Mumford & Sons - if you are a fan, then you will probably like Babel, it is enjoyable enough, we just hope they move forward and bring us something new with album no 3!

GIG: BEACH BOYS

Beach Boys live at Wembley Arena - 28.09.2012

When I saw that the Beach Boys 50th Anniversary Tour was coming to the UK, I was a little dissapointed to see only 1 date listed over here........ so this meant a trip down to London. After reading about a few "troubles" between band members (Mike Love deciding to sack the other original members) on the week of the gig, I was a little aprehensive - its possible this could be the last EVER (original lineup) Beach Boys concert - would their hearts be in it - would there be tension on stage..... I needn't have worried - they put on a truely great show!
Considering their age, they can still really pull off those beautiful, complex harmonies, and only had one mental block between them (Al Jardine forgot one of his lines, but still made a joke of it at the end of the song).
They rattled through all the hits & they just kept on coming - playing pretty much everything you could ever want to hear from them from thier huge catalogue of absolute classic pop songs. Even the deceased Carl & Dennis Wilson were remembered & even sang "live" for us, buy using vocal tracks and video from older live footage whilst the rest of the band played and harmonised along with them live on stage. For me it was great to hear and see Carl singing God Only Knows "live" - one of my all time favourite songs. Other highlights were plentiful and included: Do it Again, Catch a Wave, Surfin Safari, I Get Around, I Just Wasnt Made For These Times, In My Room, Wouldnt It Be Nice, Good Vibrations, California Girls, Surfin USA and finishing with Fun Fun Fun - thank you Beach Boys, it certainly has been!!!
For the complete setlist (a massive 55 songs) check here: http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/the-beach-boys/2012/wembley-arena-london-england-2bddd8f6.html
It was a magical night at Wembley Arena and if it really is the last time the Beach Boys play together then Listen Up Manchester is certainly very glad to have made the trip down to London for it!!!

LISTEN UP: VELOCETS

Listen Up Manchester and check out the Velocets - a new band (formed in March 2012) from Manchester. They are made up of Adam, Elliott and Dom. Acording to their brief bio they have all previously been in different bands, but have now joined forces to become Velocets. From what we have heard (there are some songs up on their Facebook page: www.facebook.com/Velocets) they sound pretty damn good - go forth and Listen Up Manchester to the Velocets - as they say on their bio 2012 looks to be a promising year for the band.

If you want to see what they sound like then check out this video now! If you enjoy then it looks like they are playing a free live gig as part of the Brewed in Britain bill at Gullivers on Oldham Street in Manchester on the 6th October, so get down and support local live music!

PHOTO EXCLUSIVE: GEORGE MICHAEL - MEN ARENA 21.09.12

Our regular photographer John Cooper @ Zoooomphotos made it down to the MEN Arena on Friday 21st September to bring us exclusive photos from George Michaels Symphonica tour as it hits Manchester. So all you George Michael fans out there - enjoy the photos!

 

 

 

 

 

ALBUM REVIEW: TOY (self titled)

Listen Up Manchester Album Rating: 8/10

The debut self titled album from the band TOY is a triumph!

From the ashes of the ill fated Jing Jang Jong - Joe Lean's backing band - unfortunatly we had the (mis)pleasure of seeing him with his "me me me..... did I tell you its all about me" attitude, he never really allowed the Jing Jang Jong to shine. After a few years regrouping and finding thier own style & sound (and with some moral support from the Horrors) TOY have emerged as something quite special. The album is a good blend of psychedelia with dreamy pop melodies, echoes if somewhat vacant vocals and pulsating guitars. Also its good to see an album of decent length - about an hour long - that keeps its quality throughout.

Stand out tracks for Listen Up Manchester are the single: Motoring, the dark instrumental: Drifting Deeper, & the album finale: Kopter. Enjoy TOY!!!



PS. they are even better live! Catch them at the Ruby Lounge in Manchester on the 28th October!

GIG: BUTCH WALKER

Date: 17th September 2012
Artist: Butch Walker
Venue: Night & Day Cafe, Manchester
Photos: John Cooper (Zoooomphotos)

As we got to the Night & Day cafe the support act Amy Holford was already on the stage playing an accoustic guitar and singing some pretty good songs - I will (as she suggested) check out her music some more online. It was already getting quite busy in there and Amy recieved a solid round of applause. Just after 9pm Butch came to the stage and played the first two songs on an organ - during the first song he hit a bum note and confessed to being "a fuck up". Butch Walker is a very American singer - but he's certainly not quite the clean cut all American guy - with his tattoos, fondness for whisky (a fan had even bought him a bottle and handed it up to him onstage during the gig) & general rocker image - he has a bit of a snarl about him. He is also very funny - not only with his banter with the crowd, but it also comes across in a lot of his songs. He normally tours with his band the Black Widows, but tonight it was just him and his bass player (who came onto the stage to the sound of the Spice Girls Wannabe - the last song I expected to hear tonight) - I think the 2 of them are only doing a couple of intimate UK gigs this time, but might be returning with a full band sometime in the future. Despite the crowded venue getting very hot and sweaty, it was a most enjoyable show & the crowed clearly loved every minute of it!

Here is a clip of Butch Walker with his band for you to check out: http://youtu.be/ZxMlvAxX8ME

GIG: A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS

Date: 16th September 2012
Artist: A Place to Bury Strangers
Venue: Ruby Lounge, Manchester
Photos: John Cooper (Zoooomphotos)

On a Sunday night what better to do than head down the Ruby lounge for a bit of "Fucked up Rock'n'Roll" - so we headed down to see A Place to Bury Strangers - having seen them back in March 2011 at the SXSW festival in Texas (and had been blown away by them then) I knew what to expect from the night!
First up were a couple of decent support bands (Mr Fist & Deadbeat Echoes) which set the mood nicely with some very loud guitars - and it was nice and loud! Then the lights went down - it was time for A Place to Bury Strangers, and the 4 projectors on stage came to life flickering and strobeing to create a great visual way of lighting the band as they powered though their hour long set. A good mix of new album with a few old favourites thrown in. For a guitar, bass & drums, they make one hell of a noise - with lots of echoes, reverb and effects, but still keeping a powerful heavy rock & roll edge. A Place to Bury Strangers is a fully exhilarating experience. Next time they play I fully recommend getting down to see them.

Top Gig!

If you dont know the band and their music check out this video: http://youtu.be/2ONZ1WgTE9U

LISTEN UP: THE MUTINEERS

So here's a Manchester band for you all to go and check out:

 

They have been together since 2010 and according to thier bio describe themselves and their debut album as: Manchester’s epic, soulful pop craftsmen Mutineers proudly present their hotly anticipated debut album ‘Friends, Lovers, Rivals’, a breathtaking collection of infectious, colossal potential hits set to inspire a heart-stirring musical future.

But dont just believe what they tell us - check out their music: 

If you like what you hear - make sure you go and order the album from iTunes or even better still get down to Sound Control on Friday the 28th September. Tickets are only £7 (plus booking) so grab yours now before its too late: www.soundcontrolmanchester.co.uk/events/the-mutineers

Links to the Mutineers website, Facebook & Twitter are here so you can help spread the word:
http://mutineersofficial.tumblr.com
www.facebook.com/mutineersofficial
https://twitter.com/mutineers__

ALBUM REVIEW: THE XX - COEXIST

Listen Up Manchester Album Rating: 7/10

Here at Listen Up Manchster we like to keep our reviews simple - aimed at the music fan on the go rather than delivering a detailed essay on the complex melodies and vocal arrangements of an album along with a load of other waffle. So to put it simply The XX's second album "Coexist" is basically the first album part 2. This is not neccessarily a bad thing (the first album was brilliant!), and a 2nd album always has that balance of either repeating yourself or being a completely radicle departure. I didnt find that there were any immediate stand out tracks (like VCR or Crytalised on the debut), but overall still a strong album & it does have that same mixture of melancholy & beauty over a deep & sparse soundscape for which we know and love the XX. After a good few listens we would put our favourite track on Coexist as:
  

WELCOME

Welcome to Listen Up Manchester!

We plan to bring you the best music going on in Manchester with Gig Reviews, showcasing new Manchester bands & record reviews!

So sit back, kick off the shoes and LISTEN UP MANCHESTER!