As thousands of bleary eyed festival-goers awoke sweating in their tents as the sun beat down on them, still harbouring the muddy wellingtons and rain-lashed clothing from the day before in their porches, it was clear the second day of End of the Road was going to be an absolute belter. Welcoming the Indian Summer onto the main stage from midday were the warm, deep vocals and slow paced soothing tunes of London five-piece Absentee, who briefly burst into more stompy, upbeat rock to showcase the sound of their new album Victory Shorts, due out on September 22.
Festival Review: End of the Road – Friday
For FFS, End of the Road kicked off with Peter and the Wolf and this reviewer was alone among her cohorts in enjoying his set, from his rambling tales about New York rich kids who walk across America to his story-telling old-school folk. He was swiftly followed by Laura Marling who, in the couple of months since FFS last saw her headline, has grown into her pageboy crop as well her stage persona. Her inter-track chat leaves you wanting for exactly the intimacy her songs deliver. My Manic and I was a particular highlight as was Cross Your Fingers b-side ‘Blackberry Stone’ which features the lyrics ‘I’m sorry I never did hold your hand as you were lowered’ a reference surely to the boy with black curly hair, Charlie Fink from Noah and the Whale. Marling was supported by her usual band, including drummer Marcus Mumford and bassist Ted Dwane from Mumford and Sons, whose were booked to play later in the evening, but cancelled because they had to fly to the US for the Marling/Flynn tour.
It Hugs Back
They Say: Matthew, Paul, Dimitri & Jack began making thier soft-centered dream pop back in early 2006. Switching between joyous pop-punk delight and delicate melancholia in a heartbeat, It Hugs Back melt layers of fuzzy vocals and guitars into their…
It Hugs Back kick off UK tour at Brixton Windmill
Dreamy Kent popsters It Hugs Back kick off their UK tour on Tuesday 30th September at Brixton’s Windmill.
Live review: Shearwater @ Rough Trade East, September 18th 2008
The remit for Shearwater’s live appearance at Rough Trade East was simple: play the new album, “Rook” in its entirety, in order. Unusually for an album exposition, this would take less than 40 minutes. And what splendid minutes they were.
Folk the south: Winchester Live
Winchester (incidentally For Folk’s Sake hometown) is to play host to a plethora of folk favourites at the inaugural week-long Winchester Live festival.