Entertainment

By Steve Taggart To quote Adam Smith – is “Every man lives by sharing”. The simple fact of stepping onto a stage, with no idea of what your fellow improvisers are going to say or do, means you have to be open and receptive, and ready to reciprocate. A core improvisation rule is “Yes… and” i.e. take an idea, react positively and then respond.  Taking what is offered to you and adding something to that offer yourself is perhaps one...

With ten years, one name change and three critically-acclaimed albums under their belt, why aren't Leeds hard rockers Hawk Eyes on the radar of every punk, metalhead and heavy music enthusiast in the country? It's hard to say, but with the release of their  latest album 'Everything Is Fine' earlier this month; 'the most thrilling and visceral of listens',  the band looks set to seize a slice of the recognition they deserve. We caught up with Hawk Eyes drummer John Mackenzie at...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor We caught up with Gary Delaney, the one-liner maestro, who a lot of people will know from his guest appearances on the TV show Mock on the Week. However, he is also an accomplished comedy writer, contributing to a lot of major comedy/light entertainment shows. We spoke to him as he starts the new leg of his "Purist" tour. Hello Gary how are you today? I’m good, thank you. How are you? Today I have mostly been...

By Grant Bailey (@GrantDBailey) Tomorrow (25th Feb) the BRIT Awards return for their 35th year to crown the best in modern pop music. Chances are the event hasn’t gone by you unnoticed, with BRITs Week and the social vote building hype throughout February. You probably have your favourites to win too, with British artists such as Sam Smith, FKA Twigs and Alt-J making big waves in the last 12 months, while huge hits from John Legend, Taylor Swift and 5...

By Esin Huseyin (esin_huseyin) Marika Hackman has previously been dubbed the queen of electro folk, but this album blows her out of that category completely. She opens her long-anticipated debut album with the lyrics “Oh, I am bold,” and she’s not far off; this album is packed with 12 tracks bursting with eerie ambience. The opening track ‘Drown’ lulls us with rhythmic, shimmering guitar riffs and ghostly vocals. The song explodes into a dark merging of plucky guitars and sinister...

By Will Bateman (WillBateman6611) Electric Ballroom - 12/02/15 After over 10-years The Cribs have become a staple of the UK live gig circuit, an institution. A consistent level of sweaty, raucous performances, specifically wherever they can in small, intimate venues. Any fan worth their salt will have likely witnessed their brand of anarchic Wakefield punk a good handful of times, with a high chance of crowd surfing, mosh-related cuts and bruises and the occasional chance of a stage invasion. The...

By William Bateman (@WillBateman6611) You’ll be hard pressed to find any article or review of Pond without a mention or comparison to sister-band Tame Impala closely following. With shared members Nick Aldbrook, Julian Barbagallo and Jay Watson, “the other” Australian psyche-rock band are one often discredited, or simply overlooked to say the least, as a collective side-project born out of Kevin Parkers international success vehicle. But Pond’s phenomenally prolific output is largely, and criminally, unknown, ‘Space…’ being their sixth album, and...

By Alex Jones (@Alex_Jonze) Sir Bob Geldof. He’s a bit of a character to say the least. The creator of Band Aid, Band Aid 20 and now Band Aid 30 has raised millions for charity but has also raised the blood pressure of TV executives the world over on several occasions. He’s a Knight of England like no other. Even the outrageous outbursts from Kanye West pale in comparison to some of Sir Bob’s more lambasted laments. In celebration of...

By David Morin I am often asked why I continue to busk when I have access to so many opportunities to play in venues and I understand why people are perplexed. Most people may think it's a low-brow form of entertainment, and in all honesty they are partially correct, but mostly I think, incorrect. I quit my job in 2010 to play music full-time. If it wasn’t for the cold hard streets, I wouldn’t have the fans, the amazing team,...