Pablo’s Finest Hour at the Deaf Institute, 31 May 2012

23 July 2012 by · 2 comments · Categories: manchestertaper · Tags: , ,

photo by manchestertaper

Sometimes it seems that merely mentioning a band’s name out loud condemns one to a never-ending barrage of messages and tweets via every conceivable medium, keeping you up to date with the minutiae of their movements. Sign up for notifications of live dates and you’ll soon have enough material in your inbox to write a passable biography. It is refreshing then to be greeted by such a dearth of information when looking for some background on Manchester duo Pablo’s Finest Hour.

Aside from a spartan Facebook page and a neglected Myspace site all we have to go on are some sadly under-annotated YouTube videos. But there is considerable eloquence in this unassuming approach, with Simon and Hannah content to let their gentle but wryly perceptive songs stand on their own.

We saw them for the first time supporting Gideon Conn at his recent album launch and they set the scene for him perfectly: despite having to go out in front of a packed and partisan audience, PFH played a compact, crowd-pleasing set couched in self-effacing banter that belied the accomplished songcraft on display.

They won us over and we hope to feature them again soon. Follow the links below to check out one of Manchester’s best-kept secrets.

Stream “My Heart’s Just Not in It”:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download complete show in MP3 format (click here)

Download complete show in FLAC format (click here)

Setlist:

Forever Restless
Lazybones
My Heart’s Just Not in It
For Hours
Tiny Splendour
Set in Stone
World Keeps Turning

If you download and enjoy this music we would fully expect you to support the band by buying their records and attending their gigs.  Pablo’s Finest Hour’s Facebook fan page is here.

Gideon Conn at the Deaf Institute, 31 May 2012

14 July 2012 by · Write a comment · Categories: manchestertaper · Tags: , ,

Photo by manchestertaper

Having spent Gideon Conn’s formative years on the Manchester singer-songwriter scene living on the other side of the planet, I must confess ignorance of him before this night.  The only information I am armed with as I enter my favourite venue in town is that Conn is “eccentric”.  So is Tom Cruise, I silently ponder.

The opening number is an amusing little ditty about a hard-working fishmonger, quietly strummed by a solo Conn.  It’s a fun lyric, but I’m not yet convinced.  With his ironic trucker cap and mannered speaking voice, one can’t help but wonder if all this isn’t just a hipster put-on.

All fears are soon assuaged as the band takes the stage and begin kicking out a funky rhythm.  Conn launches into a hip-hop vocal and before I know it he’s in the audience, dancing like your kid brother who’s drunk too much Buck’s Fizz at a family wedding.

“Quite early for me to go downstairs,” he announces with a cheeky grin.  I’m officially converted.

What follows is, indeed, eccentric, and often amusing.  Conn is far from being a comedy act, however.  More he’s Manchester’s answer to Jonathan Richman, with all the wide-eyed joy that tag implies.  I can’t remember the last time I smiled so much at a gig.

Musically, Conn and his band are all over the map, switching effortlessly from gentle ballad to soul and beyond.  Guest vocalist Josephine Oniyama is a particular highlight, her warm tones bringing an extra dimension to “Colours” and “Raise the Bar”.  And for the funk nerds out there, there’s even a cover of Archie Bell & the Drells’ 1968 hit “Tighten Up”.  Clearly, Gideon Conn knows his onions as well as his fish.

Stream “State of the Nation”:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download complete show in MP3 format (click here)

Download complete show in FLAC format (click here)

Setlist:

The Man Who Drives Around Selling Fish
I Want You Around
Mighty Lightning
Wildfire
Carcenogenics
Read the Signs
Colours
Take It All
Fall Under Tokyo
Trademark
Our Future
Tighten Up
Real Life
Raise the Bar
State of the Nation
Inside

If you download and enjoy this music we would fully expect you to support the band by buying their records and attending their gigs.  Gideon Conn’s official website is here and his current album can be purchased here.

Liz Green at Deaf Institute, 5 April 2012

09 June 2012 by · Write a comment · Categories: manchestertaper · Tags: ,
Liz Green at Deaf Institute 2012-04-05
photo courtesy of Hey! Manchester

A lot has been written about Liz Green; mostly focusing on her quirkiness, eccentricity even, and how she’s been slowly gaining traction in her home of Manchester.

The latter is certainly true – Liz has been on the collective manchestertaper radar for only a little while, and it was only by good fortune that we were here at tonight’s show.  The venue was absolutely packed, much to Liz’s genuine surprise (“wowsers!  I told them that this venue was far too big!”).

To some extent the former is also true – no-one could accuse Liz of being conventional, although from tonight’s set it is obvious she is not being deliberately obtuse, merely it’s just how she is.  Liz gave us an insight into her formative influences with her opening cover of Son House’s Grinnin’ In Your Face, working her way from blues through light jazz to folk.

It was a mesmerising evening, and we look forward to catching Liz again in the future.  Special thanks to Howard for helping facilitate this recording; we hope you enjoy it!

Stream “Midnight blues”:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download complete show: click preferred format: mp3 or flac

Setlist:
Grinnin’ in your face
Help the aged
Come into my arms
Midnight blues
Luis
Rybka
Hey Joe
Who killed cock robin?
[new song]
The quiet
Displacement song
Rag & bone
Bad medicine
French singer
Gallows

If you download and enjoy this music we would fully expect you to support the band by buying their records and attending their gigs. Liz’s official website is here and O, Devotion! can be purchased here.

Arthur Rigby & the Baskervylles at Deaf Institute, 20 April 2012

02 June 2012 by · Write a comment · Categories: manchestertaper · Tags: , , ,
Arthur Rigby & the Baskervylles, Deaf Institute
photo by manchestertaper

“Orchestral pop” as a descriptor can cover a multitude of sins and is usually shorthand for an approach that involves smearing unimaginative arrangements over uninspired songs in the hope of obscuring the mediocrity at their core. So Manchestertaper didn’t know quite what to expect when the Baskervylles (and their fictitious Arthur Rigby) brought their 5-piece line-up to the Deaf Institute to support the magnificent Miserable Rich last month.

We needn’t have worried. The band sweep and swagger between arrangements that can be sparse and stark or full-bodied and infused with high drama but which, crucially, never detract from the vital songs that they envelope.

Benjamin Hatfield’s voice is an instrument of rare power and subtlety: soaring but never overwhelming and pleasingly at odds with his unassuming plaid-shirt-and-beard image. But it would be unfair to single out any band member for special praise here: performances like these exist on a knife-edge and require each performer to be perfectly attuned both to the song and their fellow musicians. We think they acquit themselves admirably – have a listen to their eight-song set and decide for yourself.

Stream “While Away”:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download complete show in mp3 format (click here)

Download complete show in FLAC format (click here)

Setlist:

While Away
Spies
Moonlit Strangers
Ode to Gog
Fly Far Away
Nine Silver Rings
Follow
White Houses

If you download and enjoy this music we would fully expect you to support the band by buying their records and attending their gigs. Arthur Rigby & the Baskervylles’ official website is here and their current EP can be purchased here.

The Miserable Rich at Deaf Institute, 20 April 2012

22 May 2012 by · 1 comment · Categories: manchestertaper · Tags: , ,
photo by manchestertaper

Looking at the Miserable Rich’s website, the first thing that strikes you is that this is a band that plays a lot of gigs. Including, apparently, two previous appearances in this very room – how they’ve managed to pass me by I do not know. And what a wondrous band I’ve been missing out on: from the introductory whine of stringed instruments being brought to order to the final, unforgettable, encore the Brighton sextet kept the Saturday night Deaf Institute crowd completely spellbound.

The setlist leaned heavily on last year’s “Miss You” LP, a chamber pop concept album about ghostly goings on – but don’t let that lazy description put you off: what in lesser hands could have been fey and indulgent is here full-blooded, captivating and shot through with an irresistible black humour.

Singer James de Malplaquet makes for a captivating host; between keening vocals and stage patter to elucidate the ghostly thread holding the new songs together, he even managed to sweet talk the audience into buying him a single malt to soothe his ailing larynx. It certainly seemed to do the trick as he effortlessly led the band through a set that kept the entire audience entirely rapt.

After 15 perfectly poised songs, we probably couldn’t have reasonably asked for any more but the band saw fit to circumvent the curfew they’d already broken by unplugging their instruments and playing the final two numbers of the night unamplified in the centre of the room. I’ve no doubt whatsoever that this is a trick they regularly pull out of the bag rather than the impromptu gesture it ostensibly was but it was still absolutely magical. An unforgettable end to an exceptional gig.

What a fabulous band. And they’re back in town in a few weeks, too.

Special thanks to Howard, the band and all at the Deaf Institute for facilitating this recording and, of course, much respect to Hey Manchester for another memorable night.

Stream “Ghost of a Dog>Tramps”:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download complete show in mp3 format (click here)

Download complete show in FLAC format (click here)

Setlist:

Imperial Lines
Laid Up In Lavender
Honesty
On a Certain Night
The Lighthouse
Let Me Fade
Telephone
Chestnut Sunday
Heaven’s Sake
Ghost Of A Dog>Tramps
Under Glass
Pillion
Ringing The Changes
Fear of the Dark
True Love
Monkey
Hungover

If you download and enjoy this music we would fully expect you to support the band by buying their records and attending their gigs. The Miserable Rich’s official website is here and their releases can be purchased from record shops of quality and distinction such as Piccadilly Records.

Simone Felice Band at Deaf Institute, 16 April 2012

23 April 2012 by · 1 comment · Categories: manchestertaper · Tags: ,
Simon Felice Group at Deaf Institute
photo by manchestertaper

 

We knew that this would be a special show but even with our expectations primed by a slew of already-classic albums and universally glowing notices for his first solo LP proper, I don’t think anyone could have anticipated the astonishing show that Simone Felice turned in with apparent ease last Monday night.

After Simi Stone’s riveting support slot set the scene, Felice and his band took the stage and played an hour and a half of literate, heart-breaking, life-affirming music that took in most of the (fantastic) new album alongside selections from both the Duke & the King and Felice Brothers back catalogues plus the obligatory crowd-pleasing covers.

Although his writing frequently taps into the seedier side of life and he specializes in tales of the helpless and hopeless, Simone does so in a way which is never maudlin and his stark character sketches lend his protagonists a depth and realism that cannot fail to move the listener.

Already almost a mythical figure himself and blessed with a voice and stage presence that never fails to do his unique songwriting justice, Simone Felice left no-one in any doubt that they were witness to an uncommon talent at the very top of his game.

I very much doubt I will see a better gig this year. The recording we present here is one of our best; Simone was gracious enough to let us record both from the soundboard and with ambient mics and we have mixed the two together to give the best possible approximation of the heady atmosphere of the night.

Stream “The Morning That I Get to Hell”:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download complete show in mp3 format (click here)

Download complete show in FLAC format (click here)

Setlist:

1. New York Times
2. You & I Belong
3. Summer Morning Rain
4. Charade
5. Shaky
6. Stormy-Eyed Sarah
7. Don’t Wake the Scarecrow
8. Gimme All You Got
9. If You Ever Get Famous
10. Hey Bobbie Ray
11. The Morning That I Get to Hell
12. Dawn Brady’s Son
13. Radio Song
14. Wish You Were Here
15. One More American Song
16. Your Belly in my Arms
17. Knocking on Heaven’s Door

 

If you download and enjoy this music we would fully expect you to support the artist by buying their records and attending their gigs. Simone Felice’s official website is here and his releases can be purchased from record shops of quality and distinction such as Piccadilly Records.

Field Music at Deaf Institute, 19th February 2012

22 February 2012 by · Write a comment · Categories: manchestertaper · Tags: ,
Field Music at Deaf Institute 2012-02-19

photo courtesy of tarquinlive

‘Plumb’ is the fourth album from Sunderland’s Field Music (“are we allowed to say that?  only me and Peter are from Sunderland”). Despite the album being only very recently released, and the band not yet blessed with commercial success, the evening sold out weeks ago.

Support for the evening came from Stealing Sheep, whose frontlady Emily we caught up with last month playing under the moniker Emily And The Faves.  It’s not hard to see why they were chosen as support, as their angular playing neatly mirrors that of Field Music.  We at manchestertaper highly recommend seeing them in either incarnation!

Field Music played a substantial chunk of their new album (indeed, they opened with the first three tracks).  Musically, it is a natural evolution of their earlier material: if anything, even more angular and obtuse.  Not an easy first listen, but we are certain it will be a grower.  The set was interspersed with a good balance of more familiar songs (it would be hard to imagine a Field Music set without the Rockist > Shorter segue), so plenty to keep the diehard fans satisfied.  Our only real gripe is that, at a hair over 70 minutes, the set was woefully short for a band with such an extensive back catalogue.  See them in small venues while you can, these guys deserve more than critical acclaim.

Stream “Them That Do Nothing”:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download complete show: click preferred format: mp3 or flac

 

Setlist:
01  intro
02  Start the day right
03  It’s okay to change
04  Sorry again, mate
05  Rockist part 4
06  Shorter shorter
07  Is this the picture?
08  Choosing sides
09  Let’s write a book
10  A gap has appeared
11  If only the moon were up
12  Effortlessly
13  A new town
14  Them that do nothing
15  Who’ll pay the bills?
16  A house is not a home
17  Something familiar
18  Share the words
19  How many more times?
20  Just like everyone else
21  (I keep thinking about) a new thing
22  Tell me keep me

If you download and enjoy this music, we would fully expect you to support the artist by purchasing their music and attending their gigs. Plumb can be purchased here: http://www.field-music.co.uk

Malcolm Middleton at Deaf Institute, 12th December 2011

27 December 2011 by · Write a comment · Categories: manchestertaper · Tags: ,
photo from carlickio’s youtube upload

Malcolm’s new project, Human Don’t Be Angry, opened. So in effect we were treated to a double dose of Malcolm this evening. The main set, presented here, is his more familiar singer-songwriter fare with a few new tracks thrown in for good measure. The audience interaction was fairly minimal – Malcolm appearing somewhat introspective tonight – until someone asked if he was taking requests, which lightened the mood. Mostly attentive audience, with the odd sing-along here and there (eg. Blue plastic bags).

Stream “King of bring”:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download complete show in mp3 format (click here)

Setlist:
01  intro
02  Four cigarettes
03  Devastation
04  Monday night nothing
05  Autumn
06  Week off
07  A brighter beat
08  We’re all going to die
09  Blue plastic bags
10  Gone, gone, gone
11  [Pants down]
12  Choir
13  Shadows
14  Moments
15  Love comes in waves
16  Burst noel
17  The whole world’s gone to fuck
18  Loneliest night of my life came calling
19  King of bring
20  Devil and the angel