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PREVIEW
THE TEARS - Somerset House
THE biggest gig so far for Suede sailors Brett Anderson and
Bernard Butler since they became The Tears comes at Somerset House
on Sunday.
It’s a lovely setting, I just hope this quickly-becoming
tiresome duo can do it justice in the same way that bands like
Snow Patrol, Starsailor and Supergrass have recently.
I’ve always thought of Anderson as someone who sees himself
as Britpop’s Billy Big Biscuits.
See him on stage and he appears odious and arrogant. But maybe
we would all be like that if we had such achievement with a band
as competent as Suede.
The Tears project is a different kettle of steamed vegetable.
You can scream for The Beautiful Ones but don’t expect any
Suede songs in the tax office courtyard – Anderson and Butler
are determined that you will like their new songs.
Yet the new tunes are sad shadows of what once was. On the debut
album, Here Come The Tears, Anderson does his best to summon up
the strength to pump out his David Bowie impression to the limit
and songs like The Lovers and Refugees offer brief glimpses of
interest.
But, if you forgive the lazy, obvious and unclever wordplay, it
ends in tears.
Here’s hoping that it all hangs together better as a live
show.
• The Tears play Somerset House on Sunday August 7. (Charing
Cross Tube) £20.
A dance revival
CD REVIEW
DARREN EMMERSON + SHARAM JAY - Underwater Records
IT has been months and months, maybe more than a year, since
Grooves last recommended a dance collection worth forking out
for – so well done that old Underworld stalwart Darren Emmerson
for making this page sit up and take notice.
His new giant mixtape, compiled with stirring house DJ Sharam
Jay, is one for the shortlist if you like good old-fashioned,
block-rocking beats. A lot of the tracks will be obscure, unless
you are one of those hooded-top types who spend your time in the
basement of record shops. But super grooves like Joel Mull’s
Fantastish and Evil Nine’s For Lovers Not Fighters are finger-clicking
delights.
Jay’s flipside mix is less interesting but has the highlight
of Quesh’s Candy Girl.
Demo of the week – Piney Gir
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I HAVE fallen out with the manager of a Camden charity shop
because of you. It’s all your fault. Last week, I clearly
said no more demos that are moody and depressing. We have had
our fill of Chris Martin karaoke.
But you wouldn’t listen. This week 15 more rubbish demos
turned up. Take them to the charity shop and the volunteers just
don’t want them. All said, our new policy does not excuse
the man who sent in the acoustic version of Survivor’s Eye
of The Tiger. I can imagine him thinking: “I’m wacky,
me – I’ll send that to Richard Osley, he’ll like
that.” So what are we left with? Well, one that was worth
listening to this week was by Piney Gir, whose curious, sometimes
clunky, lo-fi mix is different than the rest, if nothing else.
Gir’s music may be a bit whiney American for some. I’ve
road-tested it on some pals and colleagues and they said ‘no
way’, not realising that they were sounding like whining
Americans themselves (and they have the cheek to keep James Blunt
at the top of the charts).
Gir has the delicacy missing on the songs pushed out by the young
American singers that have already stifled the charts.
Songs like Janet Schmanet and Ruth is Coming to America are cute
tunes with tingly-jingly organ. Not blow your mind – but
not bad, and as I’ve said before and no doubt will say again,
not bad is good when you’ve ploughed through some the rubbish
that arrives on the Grooves doormat. Samples, as well as pictures
of squirrels and woodland creatures, can be found at www.pineygir.com.
• If your band isn’t rubbish send your promo to Demo
of the Week, Grooves, 40 Camden Road, NW1 9DR.
Let’s do lunch – with a concert
or two
PREVIEW
LUNCHTIME CONCERTS - ST MARTIN- IN-THE-FIELD
AS it is the summer season London’s great concert houses,
Wigmore Hall, St John’s Smith Square, the Barbican etc have
shut up shop for the month of August.
But it is good to see that a few of the city’s great churches
are continuing to provide a broad range of concerts for tourists
and music lovers.
Perhaps most notably St Martin-in-the-Fields in Trafalgar Square
has a large lunchtime programme throughout August. A real highlight
comes on Friday when the London Concertante (pictured) performs
a series of Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos, complimented by works
by Handel and Vivaldi.
The ensemble, directed by violinist Adam Summerhayes, is a particularly
busy group, playing more than 90 concerts a year, winning great
reviews and a loyal band of followers. In this concert, numbers
three, six and five of the Brandenburg Concertos – so familiar,
yet always a joy to hear – are to be performed.
And between each concerto will appear Handel’s delightful The
Arrival of the Queen of Sheba and Vivaldi’s La Notte. St Martin’s
programme also includes performances of works by Rachmaninoff by
a piano and violin duet and a whole concert concentrating on Chopin.
• For more information ring 020 7839 8362.
New blood at the Wigmore
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THE announcement in May that Paul Kildea was resigning as
the artistic director of Wigmore Hall in May was received with
some surprise.
He had only been in the post for two years, after the retirement
of long-standing director William Lyne who had held the post for
37 years.
But this week the Marylebone concert hall has announced that its
executive director John Gilhooly (pictured) is to become the overall
director of the venue. He is the first person to combine the roles
of artistic and executive directors.
The Board of Trustees, chaired by former BBC newsreader Sir John
Tusa, voted for him unanimously following a meeting last week.
Sir John said: “We are delighted to announce that John Gilhooly
is to take on the artistic role, in addition to his role as chief
executive.
And he got support from Mr Lyne, who is still a regular attendee
of Wigmore concerts and events.
He said: “This is a key appointment in the international
music world. I could not be happier or more confident in John’s
ability to combine both roles.
“John is devoted to the Hall and, I am sure, will bring it
great future success.”
Mr Gilhooly is a trained tenor who studied singing at the Dublin
City College of Music and the Leinster School of Music and Drama.
He has been executive director at Wigmore Hall since 2000.
He said: “I am honoured to add the artistic leadership of
Wigmore Hall to my existing role and I will do everything possible
to maintain the Hall’s position as the world’s leading
chamber music and recital venue.”
Paul Kildea resigned in May claiming he wanted to concentrate
on conducting and a book project but his tenure had been subject
to criticism from some Wigmore Hall regulars who believed he was
replacing familiar faces with new performers.
With strings attached
PREVIEW
String Quintet - St James’s Piccadilly
STRING Quintets do not get the attention they deserve, they
are so often overshadowed by the immense canon of quartets.
But a quintet is to perform at St James’s Piccadilly on Monday
performing a couple of particularly well known quintets by two
of the genre’s greatest composers, Mozart and Brahms. With
Fenella Humphries and Zoe Beyers on violin, Becky Jones and Jonathan
Stone on viola and Ben Hughes on cello, Mozart’s quintet
no. 6 in E flat and Brahms’s Quintet no.2 in G Major are
to be performed.
The concert is free and is part of a series of lunchtime concerts
that run throughout the year.
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