WILLKOMMEN COLLECTIVE The Dome Weds 3rd
The Willkommen Collective, Brighton’s most well known and highly lauded folk collaboration, are back for another night of melodic mayhem following the successful tours that several of their offshoot bands scarpered off on recently. The Leisure Society will be headlining with support from Sons Of Noel And Adrian and a few other mystery guests. Expect disgusting amounts of musical dexterity, folk whimsy, and a night to herald the coming of Brighton summertime. (NH)
HUNX & HIS PUNX Prince Albert Weds 7th
Unmissable bubblegum fun from Gravy Train!!!!’s Hunx and his, er, Punx. With ultra tuneful, very knowing, garage guitar hi-jinks aplenty (check out ‘Cruising’s cheeky appropriation of New Order’s glorious ‘Age Of Consent’ riff), Hunx ramps up the homoerotic appeal of 50s doo wop and rock’n’roll into the John Waters-directs-Grease night out of your dreams. Beware, he may bring along his helium-voiced animated sidekicks The Chiphunx for a few tribute numbers too. (SH)
BOWLING FOR SOUP Concorde 2, Thurs 8th
A bit of a no-brainer this one. Back in the early days of the Vans Warped Tour, before No Doubt dirtied the good name of Californian ska punk, there was a slice of good-time, sunshine pop that was forever on late mid-to-late 90s teen flicks – think Save Ferris, Reel Big Fish – and BFS were right there (despite being from Texas). They write funny songs about burritos and drinking and do the odd non-ironic ironic cover of 80s classics. A no-brainer in more than one sense. (MB)
CANDI STATON Concorde 2, Fri 9th
Coming on the heels of some fantastic old soul legends slaying new and (mostly) old audiences alike (see Martha Reeves and the Vandellas (twice), Sister Sledge, Terry Callier and Marlena Shaw et al). The appeal is irresistible: a living legend with bright, peerless, undiminished talent, playing all-time classic tunes, live on stage, on your doorstep. That’s some serious bragging rights for your Grandkids. Expect ‘Young Hearts Run Free’ and ‘You Got The Love’ and, y’know, other stuff. (MB)
THE KING BLUES Komedia Sat 10th
The King Blues are one of the better underground punk rock groups, resculpting their gorgeous medium with a pinpoint precise delivery of powerfully expressive lyrics and a mixture of heart-jumping beats, warm fuzzy guitar and impassioned exuberance. Now headlining a tour across Europe, it seems they’re finally getting the recognition they justly deserve for their well-observed rock rap arrangements. Catch them before global stardom hits. (NH)
VASHTI BUNYAN St Georges Church, Sat 10th
Vashti is the ultimate 60s heroine – fragile, solemn and intimate vocals with an honest approach to life, love and everything in between. With a career spanning over 40 years, inspired by Dylan and including a stint in Donovan’s Herbridean Island commune, it’s no wonder the likes of Devendra Banhart and Joanna Newsom celebrated Vashti’s resurgence with a ‘nu folk’ seal of approval. But don’t hold that against her – signed to local label FatCat, this legend with (rare) valid cult status makes a welcome return to a suitably exquisite venue. (DE)
I LUDICROUS Greenhouse Effect Sat 10th
A rare chance to see Peel show legends I Ludicrous outside of their London stomping ground, courtesy of unlikely promoters The Brighton & Hove Curry Guide (under their alter ego Spinning Chilli). A dry, southern equivalent to Half Man Half Biscuit, I Ludicrous’ deadpan stories of pubs, football and the like are hacked out with the droning, one chord wonderment of The Fall, if they’d been dopeheads and never discovered amphetamines. Top, bitter-fuelled entertainment for the venue’s real ale heads. (SH)
ROLO TOMASSI Engine Room 15th
Brighton is a lesser place without Maths Class who have all chipped off the London to find their fortunes with a new name and new drummer. Our favourite memory of them is their Great Escape party where Rolo Tomassi played in bassist Al’s bedroom. Absolute mania: screaming, shouting, diving around – and that was just the band. They were pretty powerful performers, even a couple of years ago, and their dynamic post-hardcore is tight enough to get the party started even in the more conventional setting of the Engine Room. (JK)
ELLIE GOULDING Digital Fri 16th
Having won the BBC Sound Of 2010 Poll and The Brits Breakthrough Award, Ellie followed up with a number one single and a number one album, so could her promise get delivered any better? Well, if you read the Guardian’s review, or the critique on Drowned In Sound, then you might believe Ellie’s actually a bit average, with bags of ludicrous hype. The backlash may be predictable, but seeing as they can’t all be right we suggest you judge for yourselves. (TR)
THE BEAT Concorde 2 Fri 16th
The mirror in their bathroom may well be reflecting some craggy visages these days, but The Beat are still remarkably good value live, with a canon of crowd pleasers that time doesn’t seem to dim. Never quite the critical or commercial draw of onetime label mates The Specials, and suffering the tricky departure of original lead singer Dave Wakeling, the band have nonetheless toured incessantly to heaving rooms of creaky-kneed old rude boys. Tonight should be no exception, and has the added bonus of bouncy ska locals The Meow Meows as support. (NC)
HEALTH Audio Mon 19th
After releasing Get Colour in 2009, HEALTH have cemented their place amongst the hipsters of the day whilst reaching a new maturity in their repertoire, whilst being as accessible to the mainstream. Die Slow, a standout track from the aforementioned blends perfectly angular guitar noises similar to Liars, with the industrial dance vibe heard from early The Rapture records, as a starting point for this enterprising act. See them at Audio for what promises to be a blinder. (LS)
CHRIS CUNNINGHAM The Dome Mon 19th
This should be a fascinating and possibly terrifying evening with Chris Cunningham, illustrious music moviemaker and oftentimes collaborator with Aphex Twin. The Dome should afford the perfect backdrop for a dark, disturbing, and mind-warping audio and visual polyphony, including support from an unknown special guest (come on, Richard James!). Mystery over the support aside, this will be a unique and unforgettable experience, as long as you can afford the seats that provide the best view. (NH)
BOY GEORGE Dome Tues 20th
Everyone’s favourite pop felon with tattoos all over his bonce gets back to his proper day job after sweeping the streets with this visit to Brighton. It’s billed as a possibly tricky mix of hits, covers and new material – hopefully the Boy won’t be too obtuse in the weighting of the set towards a load of stuff no one knows or wants to hear. But either way, when he’s not busy chaining up rent boys he’s still got one of the best white soul voices around, and he’s sure to be good value if that’s your bag. (NC)
BEAR IN HEAVEN Freebutt Weds 21st
Brooklyn currently has the hipster blogs’ attention, as it’s producing some of the world’s most inventive and refreshingly creative new music. Considering Bear In Heaven are several albums in, it’s perhaps testament to their quality that they’re still at the forefront of the New York borough’s scene. Recently touring with the excellent Oh No Ono and the hotly tipped Freelance Whales, they bring their alternative, electronic, dreamlike pop to the UK, prior to returning to the USA for SXSW. (TR)
WILD PALMS The Recommender / Jam – Sat 24th
Post-punk indie music is a well-weathered sound that’s been familiar to us for decades now. It therefore takes something rather special to earn your attention and something even more remarkable to keep it fixated. Well, this exciting, new London four-piece buys your attention outright, with their angular guitars and styled vocals. The Recommender’s been promoted to Saturday nights on the back of the buzz they’ve generated thus far, so we expect a night of fulfilled promise all round. (MB)
LIGHTNING SEEDS Dome Sat 24th
Ian Broudie has made a fair few pleasing tunes over the years – who can forget ‘Lucky You’, ‘Pure’ and that football’s coming home one? Deserving milestones along pop music’s long road, all of them. But while they’re ubiquitous radio fodder, the band (basically Broudie and some jobbing musos) never developed any kind of live reputation, to the point where going to see them now somehow seems a bit of an odd idea. Those stupid sunglasses he wears day and night don’t help the cause much either. (NC)
NEDRY The Basement Sat 24th
There’s a unique dark art practiced by this three-piece. Initially they’ll envelope you with Chris and Matt’s gripping synths and juddering samples, but it’s the extraordinary, thunderous basslines, as big as a Spielberg storm cloud, that will really back you up against the wall. Just before your breath seems to fail you the beautiful vocals of Ayu Okakita drift in. Mesmeric music like this hasn’t been lifted to these heights since the likes of Portishead or Bjork. (TR)
LA ROUX Dome Weds 28th
A silly haircut and vocals that mess around with the auto-tune too much won’t spoil our appreciation of this Brixton duo’s talents. Accusations of not being able to sing properly dismiss Elly Jackson’s undoubted skills and abilities for penning an electro pop tune rammed with catchy hooks. Their story could be one of two lessons; firstly in not believing the initial hype, but just as importantly not believing the subsequent trendy doubters. There’s plenty left to enjoy after the dust has settled. (TR)
THREE TRAPPED TIGERS Freebutt 28th
There aren’t enough Holy Fucks in the world. Sure, they always pop into Brighton when they’re on tour (they’re back this month on ***) but if you like a bit of instrumental glitch you’d be as wise to check out these young pups too. Closer to techno thank the Canadians, these Brits share the same quiet and pretty/noisy and abrasive two prong attacks. Prog, electronica, punk and post rock all rolled into one shifting set of songs. (JK)
BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB Concorde 2 Thurs 29th
Creators of tracks such as ‘Whatever Happened To My Rock’n’Roll’, rock titans BRMC return to Concorde 2 for an intimate show which will showcase material from their brilliant new album ‘Beat The Devil’s Tattoo’. Adopting a more acoustic and bluesy sound, critics have pronounced this as the band’s best work. Support comes in the form of hugely exciting new local art rock band Dark Horses. (PW)
VOODOO GLOW SKULLS Prince Albert Thu 29th
The Albert’s usual cosy atmosphere will be ramped up to uncomfortably hot and sweaty tonight for the Voodoo Glow Skulls, one of California’s best exports in hardcore ska still selective enough to experience in such intimate surroundings. Just as well – this is music best experienced with a steaming throng and a dripping ceiling – the occasional shower of lager the only respite from the heat. There won’t be any respite from the skanking though, be warned. (NH)
Words by Mike Bradford, Nick Coquet, Dionne Elizabeth, Nicole Holgate, Stuart Huggett, The Recommender and Pia Webley