Three Chords and the Truth UK

While it has been interesting watching the rise of Jarrod Dickenson over the last three years, what has been missing is that follow up full length release to really catapult him to his destiny. In fact this hugely anticipated record was due to drop in early March in time for Jarrod’s latest UK tour. We will have to wait and see whether the delay is eventually going to herald further good news, but on the evidence of this Birmingham show everything is ticking along splendidly on the performance front. This is the fourth occasion of seeing Jarrod live in Birmingham since he first supported Diana Jones at the Hare and Hounds in 2014. All the other subsequent gigs have been at the Glee Club, although probably the major boosts for his increased popularity in the city were due to support slots at the larger venues for The Waterboys and Bonnie Raitt. Perhaps a measure for the progression from a headline perspective was a switch in rooms in the Glee Club since last year’s visit, the uti...

Perhaps it was appropriate that Ruth Theodore’s return to Birmingham was held in a library and all the connotations of where different art forms can take you. So among the fact, fiction, sonnets and surrealism, a series of thought provoking songs were sewn in an inimitable style and soundly planted. There is a mind stretching escapism to her music. This can have as much effect of freeing your own mind of everyday clutter as to truly getting inside the cognitive element of Ruth. Hailing from London, and the architect of half a dozen albums, Ruth is currently heading out on tour in support of her latest record CACTACUS. This album saw the light of day in 2016 with the tour being aligned to the release of the single ‘ Kissing in Traffic’ . Like so much of the material from the new record, this track appeared in Ruth’s second set where she added the keyboard as her alternative instrument of choice to the trusty guitar. The assertion that the show’s impromptu set list was going to ...

Pedal steel, melancholic sentiment and the overriding effect of the song feeds the country side; Rock ‘n’ roll and a sharp degree of edginess feeds the alt side. American Aquarium is as complete an alt-country band that you are likely to come across in 2017. The power of live music never ceases to amaze and this five piece combo from Raleigh North Carolina has blitzed their way across Europe for the last month with a memorable set of debut overseas performances. Not that this BJ Barham-led band are novices to the live scene with annual gig returns running well into the hundreds across their eleven year tenure as a functioning band. The Bullingdon, located on Oxford’s vivacious Cowley Road, proved an ideal venue for American Aquarium as they headed towards the completion of an interesting week-long run of UK dates. For an independent band on a first visit, a turnout approaching three figures was a respectable gathering and this will surely grow if BJ keeps his promise of repeat visit...

The release of SHADOWLANDS signals the end of Romantica’s lengthy hiatus and the added good news is that At The Helm Records have stepped in to make this album readily available in the UK. This development is buoyed by the distinguished nature of this hefty release which weighs in at fifty nine minutes and fourteen tracks. Any trepidation of a record of such length struggling to entirely engage is sent packing after a couple of listens. Maybe the content is a mix of growers and those with an instant impact, but Ben Kyle has done a tremendous job in channelling so much determination, skill and guidance into a record packed with endless high points. In the interim years since Romantica’s last album in 2009, Ben has been active in releasing a duet record with Carrie Rodriguez. In fact a UK tour around the time of that release saw Ben and Luke Jacobs play a set of Romantica songs in support of Carrie. Luke has since cemented his relationship with Carrie on many fronts, leaving Ben t...

Watching Laura Marling perform is an absorbing experience as she retains a knack of holding you to every note, breath and lyric. Maybe the deadpan static steely delivery plays a vital role alongside a meandering vocal style effortlessly floating around the breadth of the scale. The ability to transfix an engrossed audience, even in a four figure mainly standing rock venue, is a testament to an alluring appeal which continues to garner widespread praise from scribes, many of whom are partial to a little poetic waxing. It was a Birmingham return to the O2 Institute for Laura, almost two years from the moment when she played the venue in the midst of promoting 2015’s SHORT MOVIE album. If the house was almost full on that occasion, this time the sold out signs were up with a similar situation of a brand new record to present. SEMPER FEMINA had been only released a matter of days before this show, which was slotted in the middle of a run of UK dates.Not a single moment was wasted in tu...

For those of a local persuasion this gig was a case of a Black Country band crossing over the divide to play a Birmingham venue. For the rest of you this was the first headline gig at the Kitchen Garden Café for Kim Lowings and the Greenwood with the impact being another glowing display by one of the region’s finest folk artists. The Greenwood might have been slightly depleted for the evening, but the structure and delivery of a familiar bunch of songs was as good as ever. Kim’s live performance continues to flourish with each show and 2017 is shaping up to be an exciting year in terms of projects and new releases. While the new record, what will be their third full length release, is still some months and funding away, the focus this evening was very much on the songs that have strengthened Kim’s live presence over the last few years. To this extent there was only a couple of new songs previewed, both of traditional origin, with most of the upcoming material still being tantal...