If there is one band that is destined for super stardom in our new decade (the Tennies? the Teens? Whatever) then it is surely the Noisettes and after an aborted attempt to see them live in action last year I finally got the chance to watch them this week. Let me tell you that I wasn’t disappointed!

The Noisettes are a trio of London origin. Drummer Jamie Morrison, guitarist Dan Smith and of course the all conquering presence of singer and bass player Shingai Shoniwa. Since their inception in the early years of this century their star has been ascending and now their music can be heard on commercial breaks as well as being ubiquitous across the nation’s airwaves.

What I love most about this band is their fusion of musical forms that have been worked almost to death into something new, unique and life affirming. Their albums (second album Wild Young Hearts is still riding high in the charts) are an experimental mixture of punk, blues and dance with more than a hint of Motown thrown in. This is what The Supremes might have sounded like if they had formed in the 21^st Century, and compliments don’t come much higher than that!

I had originally planned to see The Noisettes at the Reading Festival in 2007 but circumstances conspired against me, so when it was confirmed that they would be playing at Sheffield’s Carling Academy nothing was going to keep me away. The atmosphere was tangible before the band had taken the stage, and the large audience, younger than the average gig going crowd, had dressed to impress. Beautiful young women in outre outfits attempted to emulate their hero but as soon as The Noisettes entered, to deafening cheers, it was clear that there was only one woman that eyes would be on tonight.

Shingai Shoniwa is the show woman supreme, dominating the stage and holding a magnetic attraction over the crowd. Shingai’s stark and striking make up and retro mini dress were stunning. Her soaring voice was even better live than on record, deeper and imbued with a blues beauty that seems to pierce the heart. She was never still for a moment, dancing wildly around the stage and wielding her bass like a weapon.

Every tune was a winner, but the crowd, myself included, roared out their approval for ‘Never Forget You’ that Shoniwa sang in a slow teasing tempo whilst leaning over a balcony high above her audience. The other undisputed winner was ‘Don’t Upset The Rhythm (Go Baby Go)’, left until the encore and ensuring that the crowd formed one large frenzied dancing creature.

The Noisettes are a band on the top of their game at the moment, supremely confident and with the killer tunes to match. It will be hard to imagine a gig surpassing this one in 2010!

While I am here and actually writing something on this blog, everyone really needs to check out this new enigin PLC site, well worth a read if you have a moment!

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A lot of bands came through Cologne, so when I heard that The Strokes were playing half an hour away from my flat (at a venue whose name I sadly don’t recall), I wasn’t exactly on the edge of my seat to get to the front of the crowd first; They’d never been my favourite band, not even near the top of the list, so I’d convinced myself that what I was about to see would be a let down, as per usual. I was just going because some friends were going and that was it. No expectations; the only thing on my mind was a mild interest as to what degree I had wasted my money.

The venue, it’s starting to come back to me now, was called E-Works. It was packed out when we got there, so we stood around at the back; the support band were better than I expected but over within ten minutes of us arriving–I wished they’d stay a bit longer. I shut my eyes and sighed, glum and miserable, like you are after a hard day’s work and the last thing you want to do is listen to not your favourite kind of music.

Then the stage lights exploded—there’s no other word for it, they literally exploded, making a sound as raw heat hummed against hot metal—and the band powered into their first song. What I remember particularly was the volume, or lack of it; it was loud, but the beats registered perfectly in the huge room. The music, the lead singer’s voice especially, had a clarity to it that you only get with quality vocals combined with excellent music. I was converted immediately, and smiled as my friends stared at me clapping, forcing me to eat my words.

Why was that one gig so memorable? I don’t know. I still don’t think The Strokes are the best band ever, but I do know one thing: that band know how to play a live gig—not only play it, but put on a serious show. Like all good bands should.

One last thing, I have just became aware of the fact that I have been gapeing at my computer screen for the last few days and am really tired of my Heroes Wallpaper, I think it is time for a change, these and more updates coming soon!

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Maybe it’s just me, being British and proud, but growing up watching Last Of The Summer Wine—a piece of television so inherently British in its style that I’ve always thought it to be utterly unmistakable—I always thought it was thoroughly unique and stood apart in its own special way from U.S. or any other television. Not there’s anything wrong with U.S. or any other television, of course; what I mean to say is that I was and am proud of our tiny little stiff-upper-lip Island. And the forum subject in question—presumably posted by an American, a presumption based on the expression ‘reallý awesome’—got me thinking about mistaking things.

First I pondered Baywatch, it being so groundbreaking and all (not to mention responsible for bringing us The Hoff). I thought, could you be mistaken for thinking Baywatch was actually filmed on Great Yarmouth’s sandy beach? I decided no, you could not. For one thing, Great Yarmouth is largely inhabited by the older generation—who rarely, I hope, strip down to the kind of revealing beach wear that Baywatch is so famous for. But who knows? Maybe that’s why people don’t visit Great Yarmouth in the hordes after all?—and for another, the sun shines for little more than a week every year, not nearly long enough to film more than a few episodes.

Then I considered the infamous Beverly Hills 90210; could that have been filmed in the south of France? Or in Bognor Regis, or Hull? That too, I decided, could only have been filmed in the states.

What can we draw from these conclusions? Well, apart from giving people yet another reason to think that Americans are stupid people—not something I endorse, of course—I’m happy to say that this forum posting actually opened my eyes to something; if Last Of The Summer Wine is loved in the U.S. then may be there’s the chance of another series?

If they can do it with Only Fools And Horses, then why not a prequel to Summer Whine? (With any luck it has to be better than the prequel to the former…)

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In 1999, Dido released her stonkingly good debut album, ‘No Angel’. It was a huge success with all kinds of different people. On one level, it could be seen as having a very middle class feel, but there was a bit more to it all than that. This collection of songs could have been described as being slightly twee, but there were so many more aspects to this album than that.

A large part of the album is influenced by her involvement with Faithless. Dido had helped to write several of their tracks and had also leant her voice to a few. It is also worth remembering that her brother, Rollo Armstrong, is one of the key members of the band…

‘No Angel’ ended up going platinum in 35 different countries and worldwide sales are estimated to be more than 21 million. Not bad going for a first album by an unknown girl from London.

The album contained four successful singles and two of these made the UK top ten. The other songs on ‘No Angel’ were equally as strong and it is a shame that more could not have been released. My personal favourite is the closing track, ‘Take My Hand’. This is probably the most electronically-based song, but there is also a wonderful use of a string section. This, along with a really dirty, throbbing bass, results in an extremely catchy tune.

In my mind, Dido has never gone on to do anything that is quite on par with her debut album. She still writes some excellent music but ‘No Angel’ was just so strong on each of its twelve tracks. Her other albums, whilst being very good, don’t quite seem to have the same flow of songs about them somehow.

Saying this, Dido is still a national treasure and the way that she has managed to retain much of her ‘girl next door’ persona is genuinely sweet.

Before I go I have a cheeky and rather unexpected favor to ask of you guys. A friend of mine is employeed by a theatre and needs a set of shutters for this play that is beginning in a couple weeks. If you know of anyone who has any kicking around please let me know.

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If you have had a friendship with someone over a number of years then there are plenty of things to remember. And if that person has since died then it can be a rather emotional experience.

Imagine then, experiencing all this beneath the watchful eye of the media and you will then have a vague idea of how Lou Reed and John Cale felt after losing Andy Warhol. There had been several disagreements between them all and for Lou and John to get back together to record an album about it could not have been an easy thing to do.

‘Songs for Drella’ comes across as being a deeply personal record. It is a chronicle of Warhol’s life, the creation of ‘The Factory’ and his work with The Velvet Underground. Drella was Lou Reed’s own name for Andy Warhol as he said that he was like a cross between Cinderella and Dracula.

There are many artists that I like and Warhol has never really appealed to me very much. However, whenever I have listened to this album I always feel that I can understand him a little bit better. Like many painters, he had various personality problems and he found interaction with those around him very difficult a lot of the time.

As a record in itself, ‘Songs for Drella’ is very good. The instrumentation varies from being very minimalistic to becoming the most important part of the recording; transcending even the lyrics themselves. You will get a real sense of Andy Warhol’s ambition, pain and isolation when you listen to this album. Nothing is seen as being too trivial to sing about and the result is a set of songs that are incredibly personal, honest and poignant.

Lou Reed and John Cale are two talented individuals who have managed to pay tribute to a dear friend with an album that is both dignified and touching.

Side note: I just heard about different Soft skill training UK that you actually just play around with all of your collegues that you normally just sit beside. Apparently this impro helps you will all sorts of things, soft skills, presentation skills, endless possibilities. My brother who runs a company asked me what I thought about it and I was at a loss for an opinion (for once). Do any of you have opinions on it?

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Over the past few years in music there have been some pretty interesting bands. People are trying to come up with different ideas and it is hard work because so many things have already been done. Music is no longer the young and largely uncharted land that it once was; now it is home to many turning points and landmarks.

I think that the last really fresh idea to come along in music was probably Trip-Hop. Bands such as Portishead and Massive Attack pioneered a distinctly retro sound that was offset with modern drum patterns, sampling and record scratching. Their ideas inspired other musicians and new bands came along, mixing Trip-Hop with other things.

Goldfrapp started out as having a definite ambient Trip-Hop sound. Their first album was very much in this vein and was also rich with the influence of Ennio Morricone. With their next recording, Goldfrapp went far more mainstream and settled into a ‘poppy’ electro-dance image.

Morcheeba started out with a very trippy sound. Their first two albums; ‘Who Can You Trust?’ and ‘Big Calm’ managed to blend some interesting new instrumentation into the Trip-Hop mix. A lot of their fans began to lose interest in the band after they went far more commercial with their third release; ‘Fragments of Freedom’ and some thought that they were going to become the new M People–

In 1998 the French band, Air released a brilliant debut album entitled, ‘Moon Safari’. This was certainly Trip-Hop inspired but they had also found a very strong individual style; their music is very spacey and electronic. ‘Moon Safari’ even featured the catchy, ‘Sexy Boy’ which found itself in the English charts. Since the first album, Air have released another five recordings. They have tried out a few different ideas but they have still got essentially the same sound.

Trip-Hop is far from being over. The latest offering from Portishead; ‘Third’ has still got that definite sound but it is a lot darker; it could almost be classed as ‘Trip-Goth’. Even though it is now almost fifteen years since the birth of Trip-Hop, there is still plenty of room for further experimentation.

Before I go, and the actually reason why I went online, I have good news for all of you green earth fighters out there, more and more buzz for enigin is being picked up. It looks like this company may be here to stay!

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When ‘Take on me’ stormed into the charts in 1985, a lot of people assumed that a-ha were just another ‘boy band’. It was a forgivable mistake to make, partly because of the single’s poppy sound, the way Warner Brothers marketed the band and because Morten Harket was so damn handsome.

Even after a-ha had released several other incredibly good songs as singles the image stuck.

Their debut album,’ Hunting High and Low’ was flawless. Every track was a joy to listen to and it became one of the biggest selling records of the eighties. In 1986 the band followed it up with the excellent, ‘Scoundrel Days’. Some of the tracks on this had a darker element and even the single, ‘I’ve Been Losing You’ which got to number eight in the UK charts, was about a guy who had killed his girlfriend. But the ‘boy band’ image would still not go away. Its spectre has continued to haunt the members of a-ha right to this day.

The truth is that a-ha never were the simple pop band that was so commonly thought. They are all brilliant musicians whilst Morten Harket’s voice is beautiful and distinctive. Their songs are very cleverly written and the lyrics read like poetry. A lot of people have missed out on some wonderful music simply because of having the false preconception of them not making ‘serious’ music.

A-ha recently announced that they were going to call it a day and concentrate on their own separate careers. Morten Harket has already released four solo albums and the most recent one, ‘Letter from Egypt’ is his best to date.

So, if you have made the mistake of overlooking a-ha up until now, have a listen to some of their material. They have written some truly beautiful songs and are well worth investigating.

Final thing, I have just found a really cool blog on the Enigin Scam . It has all sorts of exciting new energy saving suggestions and campaigns, and some pretty amusing posts as well! You should all check it out!

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Having already wowed Gothic Rock fans with, ‘First and Last and Always’, Andrew Eldritch released, ‘Floodland’ on a wave of expectation in 1987. In many ways the album could not have been more different from its predecessor. However, out of the listeners who eagerly rushed out to buy it, there were certainly no complaints.

‘Floodland’ moved away from a heavy reliance on guitars and lurched off toward a more synthesised and industrial sound. Andrew Eldritch delivered an album that was poetic, powerful and tantalisingly mysterious.

There are no weak tracks on ‘Floodland’ and it is more like one, dark symphony than a collection of songs. Of course, there are the ‘catchy-but-not-too catchy’ singles such as, ‘Lucretia’ with its expertly driven beat and enigmatic lyrics; but these do not stand out too much and lessen the blow of the rest.

This record was to change the whole image of Goth. Until now, Gothic music was more guitar-based, with an almost Punk undercurrent. With ‘Floodland’, Andrew Eldritch had invented a whole new sound.

The production on the album is huge. When you listen to tracks like, ‘This Corrosion’ they almost shine with the amount of polishing they have received. Other songs such as, ‘Driven like the Snow’ and ‘Neverland’ are stark, cold and abstract; but the production is still evident, giving them a crisp and icy feel.

‘Floodland’ is a place of pure, dark and throbbing power. The lyrics can be pondered for hours on end and the imagery they conjure up is magical. It will make you think of night and snow and water and shimmering light. It is probably the first Goth record that ever encouraged anyone to dance. The bass and drums are too insistent to resist and you will soon be hypnotised with Eldritch’s dark and brooding compositions.

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By the way, I have finally decided to use the money that I got as a Christmas present from Victoria to rent out a cannes villa for this winter. I was playing with the idea of putting it towards the rent, but that didn’t last long!

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One of my favourite bands is Dead Can Dance and one of my favourite albums is their ‘Within the Realm of a Dying Sun’.

Out of all of the CDs that I have in my collection (which is an awful lot) this is one of the few that makes the hairs stand up on the back of my neck.

The album is split into two halves. The first part is a vehicle for the vocals of Brendan Perry whilst the second half is dominated by the voice of Lisa Gerrard. The atmosphere that is contained within this album is awesome. It is perfectly capable of transporting listeners to another world. Both members of the duo have got commanding voices but Gerrard’s is breathtaking.

There are no particular tracks that stand out more than others and this is the strength behind ‘Dying Sun’. It flows without flaw from the chimes of the first track right the way through to the haunting vocals of the final piece. If music were cinema then this album would take you into numerous epic pictures with photography to die for.

There is a melancholy edge to ‘Dying Son’ that is present on every track. It is not depressing; it is more like a contemplation of life and all its mysteries. The album is deeply thoughtful and thought-provoking. It is complex, yet simple and its dark beauty quietly shines through. Instrumentation on each of the eight tracks is amazing. Beautiful and spiralling melodies colour each song with dark and mysterious hues.

When Dead Can Dance recorded this work of art back in 1987 they were working far ahead of their time. ‘Within the Realm of a Dying Son’ has not dated one little bit in over twenty years and it still stands tall amongst its imitators today.

In other news, I have finally been paid for that last copywriting job that I did, it’s about time to hit the store and pick up that new pair of running shoes that I have been waiting to get. Ryan, are you up for a treck into London this weekend?

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As far as I am concerned, Portishead are one of the most original groups to emerge for a very long time. I have enjoyed their music right from the first album, ‘Dummy’, to their last offering, ‘Third’.

If they really are to start working on their fourth album then I shall be a very happy man indeed. It was a long time to have to wait (around eleven years) for the release of ‘Third’. Mind you, it was worth it. In my opinion, ‘Third’ is the best thing that they have done up to the present time. It is an amazing album that flows beautifully and flawlessly from start to finish. Their previous two albums we excellent, but this one took the band to a whole new level. It is now more difficult to simply label Portishead as being ‘Trip-Hop’; something more than this is at work on ‘Third’.

As for what their next record will be like– who knows? Will they retain their present dark and chilled style or do they plan to explore other styles? One thing is for sure; it is not likely to be a disappointment. Portishead really are rich in talent and artistry.

I’ve spell checked on hair loss treatments page. My bad sorry.

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