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The Latest New Music Reviews by The Arts Desk by Steve Alexander
It’s been a bumper week for new music on The Arts Desk – interviews, gig reviews and CD releases bring everyone from Feist to KT Tunstall to Radio Slave to Cosmo Jarvis together on its pages.
At one rather nostalgic gig, Thomas H Green was pleased to see underrated punk originals The Damned back in action, albeit in a rather characterless Brighton venue. Their current tour, celebrating 35 years of being together, sees them playing their debut album ‘Damned Damned Damned’ and their best, ‘The Black Album’, rather than any new music, but those albums, it seems, have aged well, getting an appreciative crowd both singing and pogoing along.
KT Tunstall, meanwhile, scaled everything down for an intimate Edinburgh gig, perhaps by necessity as her record sales have inevitably dropped from their quadruple platinum high, but the shift suits her, thought Graeme Thomson. Her folksy, soulful songs worked well in the stripped-down set-up – just Tunstall creating live loops to accompany herself – proving just how great many of them are.
Having always been an admirer of Susheela Raman, Howard Male is now a more whole-hearted fan following her new, gutsy, uncompromising album ‘Vel’ and a superb gig at the Islington Assembly Hall. Despite a low-key start and missing out her most crowd-pleasing number, “Raise Up”, the gig’s intensity grew, with ominous art-house rock mixing with Tamil roots music, all punctuated by some truly magical love songs.
Over at the Barbican, Jazz Voice kicked things off at the London Jazz Festival (now in its 19th year and boasting 280 gigs) and impressed Peter Quinn no end; this annual vocal spectacular brought together singers from jazz, soul and pop including Gregory Porter, Ian Shaw, Ayanna Witter-Johnson, Mary Pearce and even Michelle Dockery from ‘Downton Abbey’. The greatest plaudits, however, go to trumpeter and composer Guy Barker whose expert musical arrangements stole the show.
Though Norwegian Sweden-based singer Ane Brun has previously been best known for her work with Peter Gabriel, Kieron Tyler from The Arts Desk declared her a superb artist in her own right after seeing her at the Scala. Though her tracks, with echoes of Pink Floyd and Joy Division, sounded similar live to the recorded versions, the feel of the night was one of moving forwards, with songs from her new album ‘It All Starts With One’ providing the momentum and Brun finding a new freedom on stage. Despite the venue’s poor acoustics and a rather talkative crowd, Brun’s enjoyment shone through.
Meanwhile Joe Muggs interviewed Leslie Feist, a woman who might be called the ultimate 21st century pop star – independent yet mainstream, a mix of traditional values and modern savvy. Muggs asked her all about her “family” of regular collaborators, her influences and how she maintains her identity in the industry. Thomas H Green, however, caught up with Devonian actor, musician and guerilla film-maker Cosmo Jarvis, who may not yet be a household name but is an unconventional talent who ought to be destined for great things. With Stephen Fry already a fan, Jarvis discusses his upbringing, his work and the struggle for recognition.
And in new music CD releases this week, The Arts Desk’s reviewers by turns gave a tepid response to Snow Patrol’s attempt at an “experimental” album, ‘Fallen Empires’, but offered high praise for the infectious art pop of The dø’s ‘Both Ways Open Jaws’, the rewarding tech-house collected on Radio Slave’s ‘Works! Selected Remixes 2006-2010′ and the eloquent heartbreak on Kami Thompson’s debut album ‘Love Lies’.
And finally Graeme Thomson remembers bad-boy singer-songwriter Jackie Leven who died this week from cancer. Alongside a few words of appreciation for Leven’s career, first with pre-punk outfit Doll By Doll, and then as a diverse, challenging and highly original solo artist, is an interview with Leven from a few years ago in which the Scottish singer discusses his troubled past and an unusual collaboration with the novelist Ian Rankin.
About the Author
Steve Alexander has a keen interest in new music in the UK. For more information and reviews on all the latest new music in the country, go to The Arts Desk.
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