JOSH DOYLE – Live @ The Cellars At Eastney 24/05/09

It’s a gloriously sunny Sunday afternoon and the crowds are heading to the beach en masse, except for a select few who have, instead made their way to the cool interior of The Cellars at Eastney. Stiff Promotions are known for putting on an eclectic line up of gigs and today they’ve secured a familiar face on the UK music scene who has returned from his new home across the pond to share tunes new and old with audiences around the country. First up though we have Joey MC, whose acoustic tunes conceal a taste for electronica that will, hopefully, be on display at future gigs. This young man has some good tunes and plenty of potential. Kodiak Jack took to the stage next, eschewing their usual hard rock aesthetic for an acoustic set that showcased the bluesy foundations of their music. They inadvertently made one of the highlights of the afternoon too, as the promoter was stopped outside the venue by a tee asking him to “go in the shop and buy some fags” lead singer Bryn could be heard on stage introducing their next number “this is a song about chavs”. Soon enough Mr Doyle himself took to the stage. It’s clear he’s grown a huge amount as a performer and writer since his days as lead singer for The DumDums, but here, today, there’s still a pop-punk tint to his vocals that’s refreshing among the glut of singer/songwriters peddling their wares in a crowded market. The crowd is treated to a wealth of songs from his solo career, the highlights including a stunning take on ‘Aphrodite’ and ‘Ghost Like You’, a new track that’s heavier than previous solo songs. There were old favourites from The DumDums too of course, with ‘Can’t Get You Out Of My Thoughts’ particularly driving the audience (and this reviewer) to sing along and tap toes to the beat. He may not be a name on everybody’s lips right now, but Josh Doyle stands up to just about any other guitar toting young man releasing material at the moment and if you want to be ahead of the curve check him out right now!

Check out Josh at: www.joshdoyle.com

POLLY SCATTERGOOD – Live @The Talking Heads, 19/04/09

Stiff Promotions have a strong reputation and steady following in Portsmouth, but when they decided to venture into Southampton we at Call Upon The Author decided we had to be there! The Talking Heads is a real spit & sawdust venue, a stage in the large back area of what is essentially a pub. It really works though, there is a ton of atmosphere here. First up on stage were Loz Bridge and the Box Social. Bridge and his band have really grown in the past year from a bunch of guys with good songs into one of the most impressive bands in the south. Tonight they played old favourites like ‘Witches’ and China and a couple of new tracks, most notably ‘Brazen Bull’, a departure for the band musically with it’s much more uptempo vibe. Andy Foster was on form tonight too, layering bluesy guitar over the songs in ways I’d not heard before from the band. Next up were Light Effect. You may remember these guys as Beau Monde, but their former front man is gone, replaced by rhythm guitarist Austin. It seems to have worked in the bands favour, shaping them into a much more cohesive unit. Of all the bands that regularly ply their trade locally, these guys look most suited to mainstream success. When Polly Scattergood took to the stage I really wasn’t sure what to expect. Speaking to her before the show she seemed a little shy and withdrawn and I’d heard tales of stage fright, but when she began performing she held the attention of every audience member. Swaying and gesturing like Kate Bush, she put me in mind of a British Paula Cole with her interesting song structures. She is already picking up plenty of media interest and judging by the crowd reaction when she attempted to leave the stage, she’s only going to get more popular with the public too!

check out Stiff Promotions at: www.stiffpromotions.co.uk

check out Polly Scattergood at: www.myspace.com/pollyscattergood

check out Light Effect at: www.myspace.com/lighteffectband

check out Loz Bridge & The Box Social at: www.myspace.com/lozbridge

THE DAWN CHORUS AND FRIENDS – Live @ The Cellars At Eastney 17/04/09

We at Call Upon The Author have a great deal of time for Stiff Promotions, not only do they consistently put on top gigs, but they have a great reputation for looking after their performers too, so it was with utmost anticipation that we trekked to The Cellars At Eastney. Tonight’s bill sees The Dawn Chorus return from their short tour around the UK with The B Of The Bang in tow. they’ve invited some friends too, Holdfast and CM Arnold and the Delta Breaks, who are first on stage tonight. It’s front man Clym’s birthday and this seems to have fortified him with enough strength to bellow his vocals at the audience as his band play punchy blues rock and propel their vocalist to levels of energy not seen since the days of The Deads. This is good stuff indeed and a great way to start the night. Holdfast are next up, winners of The News’ Guide Award, they showed their quality with a truly beautiful set. Singer Roberta’s vocals wafted over some superbly crafted songs, this girl is the complete package, a talented musician with a truly haunting voice and enough charisma to spare. Bassist Ben and Toby on drums kept the tracks pumping with an often frenzied beat whilst guitarist Adam, the previously missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle, provided the lynchpin to their sound. These guys (and gal) were previously a band I really admired, but after tonight they’ve leapt into my absolute favourites! The B Of The Bang, old friends to this site already, were up next. It was a different set from these guys tonight, almost subdued by their standards, but in no way lacking the emotional punch they always pack. ‘Lung’ was particularly haunting with the slightly more sparse arrangement, and when Roberta joined Wit to sing ‘Dolores’ the hairs stood up on the back of this writer’s neck! Finally the returning Dawn Chorus took to the stage. I was a little apprehensive after seeing them at the Jelly Maid showcase, but tonight they showed just how foolish I can be! This was a superb set, bright and bubbly and sounding utterly lovely. In fact, on tonight’s evidence the band should  go down an absolute treat on their forthcoming festival appearances! Track after track from their brilliant debut album soared through the venue, leaving the audiences beaming and toes everywhere tapping. Vocalist Kyle Evans sounded like he was having the time of his life and judging by the way the band were playing he wasn’t the only one. With the chiming trumpet of ‘The Big Adventure (Part Two)’ filling this listener’s head and sound tracking the whole of the weekend, I have spent the last couple of days wondering if this is the best line-up I’ll see on stage this year? It’ll certainly be tough to stop it!

Check out Stiff Promotions at: www.stiffpromotions.co.uk

Check out The Dawn Chorus at: www.myspace.com/thedawnchorusuk

Check out The B Of The Bang at: www.myspace.com/thebofthebang

Checkout Holdfast at: www.myspace.com/holdfast

Check out CM Arnold and The Delta Breaks at: www.myspace.com/cmarnoldandthedeltabreaks

NEWSFLASH: Top Portsmouth Bands to play Eastney Cellars on Friday 17th April

Fresh off the road from their debut UK tour, Jelly Maid record’s The Dawn Chorus return home to Portsmouth to wrap their heartfelt tunes around the intimate interior of The Cellars at Eastney. Having stockpiled praise from a number of sources in 2008, from the likes of Clash Magazine, who wrote about their “Beautifully Melancholic Songwriting” to Rock Sound lauding the band’s debut release as “A Country-Pop classic waiting to happen” these guys are certainly earning the praise. Indeed just a month ago they headlined their record label’s inaugural showcase event in a packed to the brims Wedgewood Rooms!Their debut release, The Big Adventure, is a disc designed to actually be listened to. Here is a band who crafted an album of songs that actually fit together and flow, rather than throwing eleven random songs onto a disc. In the live arena they have a fearsome reputation for providing heart rending music that envelops the audience and takes it on a journey. Coming on like the UK’s answer to The Shins there really is something unique about these guys.

Support comes from two of Portsmouth’s best loved bands The B of the Bang and Holdfast. The B Of The Bang too, have just returned from tour, supporting their lasbel mates up and down the country, providing audiences with the rare site of the same line up for consecutive gigs. No doubt now that they’re home front man Wit will have some surprises in store as his ever changing collective take to the stage! Holdfast, winners at the 2008 Guide Awards, take to the stage with a set of vice like tightness, centred around the surprisingly powerful vocals of petite vocalist Roberta and built on rock solid rhythms to present a set of post-punk/electro pop exquisiteness! 

The Dawn Chorus are at The Cellars At Eastney on Friday 17^th April 2009. 

LUPEN CROOK & THE MURDERBIRDS – Live @ The Cellars, 25/01/09

I’ve seen Lupen Crook before, and I was mesmerised. There’s something of a wandering minstrel feel to Lupen and his Murderbirds, packed into their van and zipping from gig to gig to play their tunes. For those who haven’t had the pleasure before, and there were a few in the audience, it would be an interesting gig. Catching up with the band before the gig I was told they were going to be trying out a whole bath of new tunes, so it was a rare chance to see a work in progress.

To warm the audience up Tired Rabbit took to the stage, these south coast folksters played a rich mix of tunes that started the night on the right track before Kurt Cooder took to the stage to give us an idea of what Joe Strummer’s output may have sounded like if he’d been into folk!

Then The B Of The Bang took to the stage. One of the South Coast’s most exciting young acts, these guys have a knack for surprising their audiences. Lead singer Wit’s vocals sift hauntingly across a cornucopia of songs that veer from Radiohead -esque alt.Rock to haunting solo numbers and even a powerful duet with London based singer-songwriter Jessica Spencer.

After such high quality supports Lupen and band take to the stage. The songs are nearly all new, the names escape the audience (and this reviewer), but each track builds on the last and the haunting, slightly gothic (as in Bram Stoker, not Robert Smith) feel of the songs serves to transport the audience from a dark and windy night in 2009 to a timeless place, you can almost picture a log fire roaring and stout men swigging flagons of ale. Not that this is folk for people in chunky sweaters. Like other Medway dwellers (Billy Childish chief among them), Lupen beats a path that sets him apart from his peers. He has the perfect foils for his wild vocals and twinkling guitar lines too, the Murderbirds are certainly a well honed unit. Bob and Tom Langridge, on drums and bass/keyboards respectively, are the foundations on which these songs can pulse and grow and form the bedrock for Lupen and fiddle/mandolin player Craig Harff to duck and weave around each other. On the evidence tonight, these new tunes may be Lupen’s strongest yet… which can only be a good thing for anyone smart enough to get tickets for his gigs!

Thanks to Justin Parry (www.justinparryphotography.co.uk) for the photography.