The Magic Tombolinos @ The Musician Thursday Jan 26 2012 £7 adv £9 door
Magic Teapot + LiveInLeicester presents
The Magic Tombolinos + Fay Brotherhood + Fatbwoi @ The Musician, Clyde Street, Leicester LE1 2DE
They are to be featured on the Rob Brydon Show Christmas Special 2011.
The Magic Tombolinos, fronted by the charismatic Argentine – Alejandro Toledo, seem to have come from out of nowhere, not only storming the world music scene, but bursting its banks in the process & leaving audiences breathless, elated and shouting for more!
Triumphant performances at many festivals across Europe , including raucous shows at WOMAD and Larmer Tree in the UK, and not forgetting the release of their debut album ‘Full Attack, With Sudden Defenses’ are amongst the year’s highlights.
With members hailing from Italy , Portugal and Costa Rica (in addition to Argentina ), the group have woven together a cohesive, lithe and exuberant sound, despite their varied musical backgrounds. Elements of Balkan, gypsy, jazz and flamenco music (all performed with an assured swagger), coupled with their energetic off-the-scale live shows, have invited comparisons to bands such as Gogol Bordello, Mano Negra (Manu Chao), Rodrigo y Gabriela and Fanfare Ciocarlia.
“I love the music these guys come out with, great energy” Maxi Jazz (Faithless)
“They don’t do energetic, they do nuclear!” Rob Brydon
“Be sure to catch them live, and bring your dancing shoes” Songlines
“Bursting with a contagious happiness” fRoots
“Multinational they may be, but to a man they’re very much our own” WOMAD
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The Magic Tombolinos will appear as guests on The Rob Brydon Show: Christmas Special, which will air on BBC2.
The Magic Tombolinos won Channel 4’s 2010 Evo Music Rooms Award.
Fay Brotherhood
| Fay Brotherhood creates her own quirky brand of pagan folk, ranging in subject matter from local history, to mythology, folk lore and the natural world. All of this is carried upon her distinctive emotive, powerful voice compared by some to Sandy Denny and Joan Baez, and given a medieval and ethereal feel via the melodic and haunting fiddle and mandolin lines of Lee Burns www.faybrotherhood.bandcamp.com www.faybrotherhood.com Fatbwoi http://www.facebook.com/fatbwoi.13?sk=app_2405167945
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Blue Rose Code + Jinwoo + Theo Miller + Courtney Askey @ The Musician Jan 29 £5 adv
Magic Teapot + LiveIn Leicester presents
Blue Rose Code + Jinwoo + Theo Miller + Courtney Askey @ The Musician, Clyde Street, Leicester
Sunday 29 Jan 2012
£5 adv £6 door – Doors 8pm
| Influential London alternative folk artist Blue Rose Code has shared the stage with many a celebrated writer: Kris Drever, King Creosote, Lou Rhodes, John Renbourn, Joan As Policewoman and James Yorkston. Songwriter, Ross Wilson, moved from Edinburgh a full eight years ago, drawn to the pace and the hubbub of London.Having just recorded his debut with London indie Ho Hum Records, Ross has a crop of new material and a brand new live band comprising voices, guitars, banjo, fiddle, upright bass and whistle. ‘North Ten’, is slated for release in Spring 2012 followed by a UK tour and festivals. |
Jinnwoo
http://soundcloud.com/jinnwoo
http://www.myspace.com/jinnwoo
http://twitter.com/#!/iamjinnwoo
Yellowire + The Fazed + guests @ The Musician Wed 8 Feb £5 adv £6 door
Magic Teapot + LiveIn Leicester presents
Yellowire + The Fazed + guests
The Musician, Clyde Street, Leicester £5 adv £6 door
Since forming Yellowire in 2010 the band has performed at HMV’s Next Big Thing, Isle of Wight Festival, Rock am Ring & Rock im Park – Germany, Hard Rock Calling in Hyde Park, Latitude festival and Reading and Leeds festival. The band’s first single ‘One Last Breath’ was playlisted by Radio 2 in the UK and had international support with Radio play across Europe, to as far afield as Dubai.
On the back of this success the band are releasing their debut album ‘Machines On Fire’. Their latest single, also named ‘Machines On Fire’, has already had plays on Absolute, BBC Radio London and Radio 2.
Machines On Fire will be released under Swiss independent label id Records and distributed by Universal. It features a one of a kind collaboration with renowned graphic artist Jimmy Turrell (Dazed and Confused, The Prodigy, Getty, The Wall Street Journal, The Observer). The physical album will be a limited edition and includes a 24-page booklet of original art, 12-panel poster and a unique signed animation cell from the bands promo video ‘Starlife’. This package gives fans the chance to own a bespoke piece of art by Jimmy along with the Yellowire album.
Ghostpoet + Alt J + Jinnwoo @ Sumo, Braunstone Gate, Leicester £10 adv Fri 17 Feb 2012
OH YEAH!!!
LiveIn Leicester + Magic Teapot presents
Ghostpoet + Jinnwoo + guests @ Sumo, Braunstone Gate, Leicester £10 adv Fri 17 Feb
Ghostpoet – Survive It from Kayak Music on Vimeo.
An early contender for 2011′s finest out-of-leftfield long-players. Adam Kennedy 2011-02-02
Rarely does a British debut album forge such a fully formed, genuinely unique direction that attempts to slot it into established scenes prove almost entirely fruitless. But Peanut Butter Blues and Melancholy Jam, the full-length bow of late-20s wisdom dispenser/producer Obaro ‘Ghostpoet’ Ejimiwe, achieves such a feat. You probably have to go back to Original Pirate Material, in fact, for similar impact.
Dubbing himself “a lad with a lisp with some stories to tell”, the truth is a mite more complex, as hinted by the record’s tricksy, somewhat over-self-aware title. His recent relocation from Coventry to London will doubtless ensure plentiful parallels with famed West Midlands to Big Smoke migrant Mike Skinner. But while sharing a knack for anxious streams of consciousness peppered with endearing everyday Brit culture references, Ejimiwe’s subtleties outstrip The Streets.
Anybody who’s had the misfortune to visit Coventry will agree the city is sufficiently depressing to breed levels of urban dread last equalled in Tricky’s heyday. From stuttering, held-together-with-Sellotape-and-elastic-bands intro Onetwos onward, Ejimiwe’s sleepy delivery owes little to any other UK rhymers, however, despite an air of a bedsit Roots Manuva, eyebrow-cocked self-deprecation and all. It’s a fact he notes himself on I Just Don’t Know, declaring “Other MCs want to talk about crime / But that ain’t me…” before an off-kilter chorus that catches you so off-guard that gleefully humming along is the only logical response.
The album builds to a fascinating climax, the whisky-fuelled Cash and Carry Me Home succinctly encapsulating all the hungover loathing and creeping worry that follow an out-of-control drinking session, while Liiines is truly spirit-elevating with its “Life is too short to store up grudges” refrain. During the latter Ejimiwe complains that “I keep on writing, writing / But them folk ain’t biting, biting”. Such indifference, though, is about to change.
Hipster-hating hip hop aficionados may take one look at Ejimiwe and run a mile. Don’t be dissuaded by his fashionable hat and spectacles: Peanut Butter Blues and Melancholy Jam throws its headgear into the ring as an early contender for 2011′s finest out-of-leftfield long-players.
Bleech + One Cure For Man + Four Point Oh! @ Lock 42 Wed 22 Feb £6 adv
LiveIn Leicester + Magic Teapot presents
Bleech + One Cure For Man + Four Point Oh! @ Lock 42, 2-4 Frog Island, Leicester
Last night, Bleech rocked the Lower East Side at the NYLON x Kangol party in NYC. Fronted by sisters Jennifer and Katherine O’Neill, this London three-piece is blonde, stylish, and prove that you can still look cute while dancing onstage barefoot and shredding on the guitar. Not to mention, these girls make the type of scrappy infectious indie-rock that harkens to back to the Brit pop days of the ’90s.
Nylon
Beth Jeans Houghton and the Hooves of Destiny + guests @ The Musician Sun 26 Feb £8 adv
Magic Teapot and Andy Wright presents
Beth Jeans Houghton and the Hooves of Destiny + Goodnight Lenin + Silent Devices @ The Musician, Clyde Street, Leicester £8 adv £10 door
We welcome Beth Jeans back its been awhile!!
Picture a modern-day Joni Mitchell- airy vocals and poetic sound – in a collision course with Lady Gaga, at least when it comes to the bizarre visuals, though sans the couture. Toss in a bit of the quintessential irony ever present in British humor, and you’ve arrived at your final destination- Beth Jeans Houghton and The Hooves of Destiny.
Not that they will soon need much of an introduction, we suspect.
For now, it suffices to say that the Newcastle native met up with her Hooves- guitarist, trumpeter and roomate Ed Blazey, Dav Shiel (drums), Rory Gibson (bass) and facial reconstruction surgeon, now violinist, Findlay Macaskill-and arrived at their collective destiny, an awesome blend of psychedelic meets pop meets alternative meets indie folk.
Er, folk? Did you say folk? Just don’t mention it out loud around the lead, for she’s adamant that no such element could possibly be present in their music.
No matter.
The band’s debut album, Yours Truly, Cellophane Nose, is slated for release in January 2012, on Mute. The track “Lilliputt”, the first single off the album, was released on 7” back in October, and we had a chance to listen to it plus some other material and….wow!
One thing left to do and that is share it with the rest of you.
Once you’ve listened to Beth Jeans Houghton and The Hooves of Destiny, it becomes abundantly clear that the band is not only a unique tour de force, but one that will soon be taking the world of pop by storm. And can we say we’re so happy to share in their journey to stardom?
Indie Pop Nation
Allo Darlin’ + Tigercats + Red Shoe Diaries @ The Musician Mon 27 Feb £8 adv
Magic Teapot + Andy Wright presents
Allo Darlin’ + Tigercats + Red Shoe Diaries @ The Musician, Clyde Street, Leicester LE1 2DE £8 adv £10 door
Allo Darlin’ – My Heart is a Drummer (Official Video) from End of the Road Films on Vimeo.
We welcome Allo Darlin’ back to Leicester. They were AWESOME in Jan 2011!
Allo Darlin’ are many things. They can turn a room in a famous punk venue into a joyous, jumping, sweaty, pop-mosh pit. Or bring a room of 500 to hushed silence with the few strums of a ukulele and a love song about cooking.
Allo Darlin’ is the music of Australian-born, London-based songwriter Elizabeth Morris. Originally from a country town in Queensland, Elizabeth moved to London in 2005 and, inspired to write songs by her purchase of a ukulele from the famous Duke of Uke shop in Brick Lane, began to make music. Although Elizabeth has been releasing music under various guises since 2007, it wasn’t until 2009 that Elizabeth hooked up with Paul Rains (guitar), Bill Botting (bass) and Michael Collins (drums) and Allo Darlin’ was properly born. Elizabeth and Bill are from Australia, Mike and Paul are from Kent, and they all play in other bands too – Elizabeth is in Tender Trap, Paul and Michael are in Hexicon, Bill is one half of Moustache of Insanity and also in Darren Hayman and the Secondary Modern.
Early in 2009, augmented by Terry Edwards of Tindersticks/Gallon Drunk fame on trumpet and sax, Allo Darlin’ cut their first single, Henry Rollins Don’t Dance, released in 2009 on the cult WeePOP label. Much to their surprise, Henry Rollins started getting airplay on BBC Radio 1, 6 Music and XFM and the like, and received glowing reviews in places such as the Metro, The Fly and The Guardian, the latter calling it “the best indiepop song for years”. The band’s single that followed, The Polaroid Song, was named as one of Drowned In Sound’s Top 50 singles of 2009, while their next single Dreaming was voted Single Of The Week by Jarvis Cocker, Peter Hook and Huw Stephens on Steve Lamacq’s BBC 6music round table (beating MGMT, The Radio Dept and Kate Nash in the process!).
In their brief lifetime Allo Darlin’ have been interviewed (three times) by Steve Lamacq on BBC 6 Music, who also selected them as his choice for BBC Introducing week resulting a BBC session at Maida Vale studios. They’ve also recorded sessions for John Kennedy on XFM. They’ve played Indietracks Festival, stealing the show with their impromptu station platform performance (and this year will be playing on Friday’s main stage!), have toured in Sweden and Germany, and appeared at the prestigious S?n Festival in Cardiff promoted by BBC Radio 1 DJ Huw Stephens. In March 2010 they headed out on their first major UK tour as support to The School, followed by trips to the States for SXSW festival, NY Popfest and an East Coast tour, the appearance at NY Popfest leading to a glowing review on the front page of The New York Times website!
Spotlight Kid + guests @ Lock 42 Tues 28 Feb £6 adv
Andy Wright and Magic Teapot presents
Spotlight Kid + guests @ Lock 42, 2 – 4 Frog Island, Leicester
“Purveyors of shimmering, chord-soaked shoegaze and trancey indie, they know their way around an insistent, slowly building space-pop gem” – sevenstreets.com.
…
It’s been a while since we had a decent shoegaze record grace this world. Thanks to Nottingham six-piece Spotlight Kid’s ‘All is Real’/'April’, we have another.
In a throwback to early-90s fare, ‘All is Real’ delivers in giving listeners what die-hard shoegaze fans are after – atmospheric jangling guitars, tender vocals and an up-tempo rhythm. And what a potent mix they turn out to be – the sound will serenade you into a state of bliss and euphoria. Think Spiritualized without the space-age sounds.
In contrast, flip-side ‘April’ sounds grittier, harder and rougher than the softer a-side. Yet lead singer Chris Davies’ strong vocals do a great job holding the various parts of the single (guitar, drums and sweet synths) together like a freshly-woven tapestry. You’ll feel like you’re driving down a busy street at 60mph when you hear this song on a good night. Soundlab
In an ideal world, both songs would stand out successfully on their own. But together, they are magic. There’s only one question – will their follow-up sound as cool as this?
Ellen and the Escapedes + guests @ Sumo, Braunstone Gate, Leicester Tuesday 6 March £6 adv
Sumo, Braunstone Gate, Leicester £6 adv £8 door Tuesday 6 March 2012
The delicate, bittersweet and soul-searching alt-folk/folk rock of quintet Ellen and the Escapades has garnered support from Steve Lamacq and Rough Trade, as well as being selected by BBC Introducing to play both Reading and Leeds Festivals that year.
Since then, Ellen’s dusky, captivating vocals and honest lyrics have helped push the band to new heights, including winning the Q Magazine/Glastonbury Emerging Talent Competition and playing a total of 5 stages at 2010’s Glastonbury Festival. Having firmly established themselves on the festival circuit, the band went on to play Larmer Tree and Summer Sundae before supporting Paolo Nutini at the Pilton Party in September 2010.
Having self-released debut EP ‘Of All The Times’ at the end of 2010, the band sold out venues across the UK and have continued to go from strength to strength on the UK live circuit. With Glastonbury director Michael Eavis calling them “better than Joni Mitchell” and equally high praise coming from Chris Salmon at The Guardian and BBC 6 Music’s Lauren Laverne, Ellen and the Escapades have firmly established themselves as ones to watch on today’s music scene.
2011 was a very busy year for Ellen and the Escapedes as they played Summer Sundae, Glastonbury, Lounge On The Farm and Green Man Festival and supported Peggy Sue, The Leisure Society and Stornoway.
Ellen and the Escapades are currently writing and recording material for their first album.
Those Darlins + guests @ Lock 42 £7 adv Sat 31 March
LiveIn Leicester + Magic Teapot presents
Those Darlins + guests @ Lock 42, 2-4 Frog Island, Leicester £7 adv
| Four years have gone by since Nikki, Jessi, and Kelley Darlin spat in their palms and slapped hands in a three-way promise that would become Those Darlins. Since then, they’ve broken hearts and broken bones, all the while honing their chops and gaining a lifetime of experiences through endless touring: bros to the bitter end. Screws Get Loose is their second album–and the first to show off drumme…r Linwood Regensburg stepping up as a songwriter. Each song bears the scars of the highs and lows they’ve soldiered through together on the road, accentuating the realities of growing up in a rock and roll band.
This latest collection of songs reveals the Darlins’ road-weary and hardened spirits as the full-throttle charge of their freewheeling early anthems, such as “Red Light Love” and “Wild One,” has faded into the clarity and the life lessons of , “Let You Down,” “Be Your Bro,” and the album’s title track. In “Be Your Bro,” Jessi sings “I just wanna be your brother, you just wanna be my boyfriend. I just wanna run and play in the dirt with you, you just wanna stick it in.” It’s the kind of lyric that any woman can relate to, and the kind of writing that tells a story with just enough detail to make your mind fill in the blanks and make it your own. But the album’s true tone culminates in the distant yearning of “Waste Away”: “What happened that makes you wanna go face first into the ground? What happened to me that I keep followin’ you around?” The band re-enlisted producer Jeff Curtin (Small Black) and headed down to Atlanta, GA to record Screws Get Loose with engineer Ed Rawls at his Living Room Studio (Black Lips, Jacuzzi Boys). While the band’s country punk nature is still evident, the Southern roots that shine through are more in line with the dirty South garage rock blasting out of Memphis, Atlanta, and Nashville in recent years. Haunting and hook-laden numbers such as “Hives,” “Tina Said,” and “BUMD” tussle with the confessional weight of other songs, like “Waste Away” and “Let U Down.” Stylistically, the band has created a range of sounds: “Boy” is reminiscent of Spector’s summery girl pop, “Mystic Mind” is a fully-realized stoner jam, and “$” is a lesson on the slippery nature of money sung in an infestation of gang vocals. These songs show that life on the road is no place for the faint of heart. So, naturally, songs take shape with bold narratives, strong voices, and full-bodied performances that are no less vibrant than previous offerings, but are a little less naïve. Maturity and experience combine to open up wholly new dimensions for Those Darlins. But that doesn’t mean they have forsaken the spirit of fun and frivolity that has come to define them. Screws Get Loose was released via the Oh Wow Dang label on March 29, 2011. |