Nobody likes Mondays. Badly managed train companies, rude customers, horrible booses – all of the above and more can join together in making us feel like the world is against us. Come the evening, a reprieve is badly needed.
Guildfordian musician Andrew Ford (aka Inner Pieces) has hit on an awesome way to retreat from Read more…
Sometimes, an EP is so good that you can’t quite get your head around it. So Read more…
I’ve never heard anything quite like this.
The automatic response to the unfamiliar is often to find a quick way to dismiss it, to chuck it in the metal box labelled Read more…
The fact that this show even happened is a true testament to the strength and indomitable passion of its organisers. Few life experiences are as devastating as losing a friend or family member to cancer; when that happens, most of us would become too overwhelmed to function, and with good reason. Nobody would have blamed Tom Morley and the team behind Smile For Hatti (a campaign set up to support the courageous and inspiring Hatti Sandall, who sadly passed away only three days before this gig) had they rescheduled or cancelled this fundraiser – but they didn’t. For that, they deserve all the respect in the world – not to mention the sheer success of this awesome event, which raised over £2000 for Smile For Hatti (which is in the process of becoming a new charity, to which future donations will be directed) and Sarcoma UK.
As far as opening acts go, Read more…
An elegantly understated and wistfully melancholic collection of prime-cut songs in the singer-songwriter vein, Symptoms managed to halt my search for something dense and heavy, and keep me blissfully entranced by something delicate instead. On the day after the Charlie Hebdo murders, angry aftershocks are rippling around the world – but albums like this are fully capable of reminding us all that peaceful action is a more effective response to conflict than blind rage. Read more…
Although I’m not exactly a pop fan (see here for proof), every now and then a track pops up with exactly the right vibe and vocal to pique my interest. Thanks to the likes of Submotion Orchestra, Luciana Caporaso, and Princess Slayer, that may well start happening more and more often in 2015 – starting with Cherae Leri’s deep, slow, and exotically hypnotic blend of R&B, pop, and modern soul. Read more…
The “death of the album” has been declared many times in recent years – but nonetheless, musicians keep making them and are showing no signs of stopping (and thank God for that!). Almost a decade and a half into the twenty-first century, there still exist bands and artists capable of composing immersive, engaging, and fully satisfying collections of songs that stand up to repeated, unshuffled listens. Here are fifteen of them. Read more…
I have a very strong emotional attachment to many of the releases listed below. Choosing this list was exceptionally tough; I’ve been fortunate to discover some incredible bands and artists over the past year, and it’s safe to say that outside this list lie a great many immense tunes that can be found via a quick browse through TMMP’s archives when you’re done with this lot. However, the following choices are the cream of the crop. Read more…
UPDATE: TMMP has been reborn! This video has the full story:
Click here to subscribe for free on YouTube!
On the walk from Waterloo station to Camden, I passed at least three busking beatboxers. The faces were different, but the acts were the same – a combination of robot impressions, oppressively generic beats, and faithful and flawless impressions of a variety of non-percussive instruments. By the time KOKO’s dramatic facade came into view, the novelty of solo beatboxing had more than worn off; London was beginning to feel saturated by Beardyman wannabes. Read more…
Sofar Sounds are the most fascinating live music promoters you’ve never heard of. A global collective of music fans, Sofar tap into humanity’s need for community, connection, and intimacy by hosting secret small-scale shows showcasing the talents of a diverse range of artists. This evening’s event took place in an endearingly arty Brighton basement – an appropriate location for what was to come. Read more…