ALIVE AND SWINGING WITH MARILYN MONROE
Komedia Friday 12th
She was born Norma Jean Mortensen on 1 June 1926 in Los Angeles. Ben Lyon casting director for Fox renamed her Marilyn Monroe in 1946. The iconic love goddess of the midcentury and creature of unresolved contrasts, Marilyn Monroe is off the Nembutal and joins us for one last swinging party at the Komedia. Come and witness the original Hollywood sex symbol entertain us with what promises to be an incredible evening, with an appearance from some famous friends. (JJM)
EXIT TEN
Hydrant Thurs 4th
Reading’s Exit Ten are steadily rising Brit metal hopefuls, with approval from the mainstream rock press and slow-building slots at the likes of Download and Sonisphere. Intelligent but not pretentious, epic but not overblown, they’re a decent bet for a deserving crossover. Having revitalised live music in their Eastbourne hometown, the tireless Rio Bravo Promotions have pulled together a strong regional support bill (Here There Be Monsters, Decodes, City Of Ashes) for this latest incursion into the Brighton scene. (SH)
WORLD/INFERNO FRIENDSHIP SOCIETY
Hydrant Fri 5th
For five summers now, a cluster of Brooklyn anarchists have gathered together whatever instruments they could and descended on Brighton for one night to “fuck shit up.” Front-man Jack Terricloth, a bouncer-baiting rabble-rouser who treats his microphone as a megaphone, is backed by a punk cabaret supergroup playing deranged circus music, anarcho jazz and more. Previous visits have seen them increasingly heat up audiences, but don’t panic should an actual inferno ensue. This time the fire station is next door. (AP)
ILLNESS • Cowley Club Fri 5th
Instrumental pair Illness create choppy, melodic tunes from the basic elements of thrashed drums and tightly wound guitar. They’re splitting up after this weekend’s brief Hastings-Brighton-London farewell tour, leaving a neat legacy of deceptively simple small-label recordings behind them. Tour partners Depakine Chrono offer a Czech alternative, extracting a slightly proggier sound from the same source materials as the Brighton duo. Not speaking Czech, we could only grasp the phrase “acid punk” from their website, but that’ll do it. (SH)
JASON RINGENBERG
Greys Mon 8th
The Greys’ impressive international reach brings one of the godparents of alt.country inside its intimate walls this evening. Jason Ringenberg is most widely known for fronting Nashville cowpunk legends Jason & The Scorchers, who have spread their raucous rock’n’roll twang around the world for thirty years now. Wonderfully, the indefatigable Ringenberg also performs animal-centric kids’ songs in the guise of Farmer Jason. Tonight, expect a selection of upbeat and heartfelt tunes from Ringenberg’s broad songbook. (SH)
WASHED OUT Haunt Weds 10th
Over the last couple of years Ernest Greene has helped pioneer chillwave; a genre whose sticky ingredients – including the signature slow pace, hazy synths and drifting vocals as well as all the bleached imagery – seemed to have permeated through a multitude of other genres ever since. Following two years of EPs and much blog hype, (some seemingly started purely to cover his genre), we now get to hear his much-anticipated debut album, ‘Within And Without’, which he’s showcasing on an extensive tour throughout the UK and Europe this summer. (TR)
GRIMES The Haunt Fri 12th
If you want an example of just how the giant SXSW Texas festival can help bring an artist to the attention of those hunting out new music, then look no further than the Montreal-based solo artist, Clare Boucher. She had the music media’s tails well and truly wagging following her performance at the Gorilla vs Bear blog’s SXSW showcase. Her inventive concoction of ethereal pop music is utterly hypnotic live, so her support performance for headliners How To Dress Well is well worth your early arrival. (TR)
THE BEAUTIFUL WORD •
Brunswick Fri 12th
For some of the hipsters walking our streets, ukulele bags and glockenspiel cases are the new handbags. Sounding like a folk session in a kindergarten, but a good one, The Beautiful Word have been playing their ‘mystery pop’ regularly across Brighton’s Land Of The Twee. Tonight’s gig is a bit special though, marking as it does the end of their UK tour and the launch of new single ‘Emily’, described by one somewhat disconcerting YouTube commenter as “a great song to masturbate to on a beach.” (AP)
FLEET FOXES Dome Tues 16th
In 2010, determined not to become typecast as archly gifted purveyors of hymnal, rustic Americana, Fleet Foxes retreated to the underground cave they call home to record the follow-up to their self-titled breakthrough debut album. Ripping up the rule book with the sort of wild imagination they should perhaps consider using next time a hairdresser drops by, they emerged energised with ‘Helplessness Blues’, breaking stunning new ground as archly gifted purveyors of hymnal, rustic Americana. Where they go next is anyone’s guess. (BG)
DELS Concorde 2 Fri 19th
Ipswich isn’t an obvious place in which to source the next big thing in UK hip hop, yet in recent months the Suffolk-born Kieren Dickins has made himself one to watch. Now London-based, he’s signed to the Ninja Tune imprint, Big Dada, and had Kwes, Micachu and Hot Chip’s Joe Goddard on hand to produce his debut album, ‘GOB’, which arrived earlier this year. You would struggle to find a better example of an urban record with crossover appeal, so this gig should suit all. (TR)
QUEEN TRIBUTE Komedia Fri 19th
Fans of the British chart goliaths could be mistaken for thinking tonight’s tribute will actually come from the post-Freddie Mercury incarnation/aberration. For some years Brian May and Roger Taylor, seemingly blind to exactly what it was they were doing from atop their lofty throne in rock’s House of Lords, have used the band’s legacy as some kind of pop culture bog roll. All praise then to John Deacon, who gracefully stepped out long ago, and this lot, who have no interest in such blasphemy. (BG)
CSS Digital Sun 21st
CSS were once the coolest band in the world. But, where 2003-5 was all about so-called punk funk, the world turned and punk funk went the way of electroclash: into the annals of flash-in-the-pan genre names. The fact that knowingly dirty disco pop, played by a rag-tag mob of South American girls doesn’t have a handy name any more doesn’t make it any less groin-grabbingly brilliant live than it always was. And it really was. (MB)
NEW FOUND GLORY
Concorde 2 Weds 24th
Fancy seeing New Found Glory in weather-protected surroundings just a few days before their main stage Reading and Leeds appearances? Well if you do, you’re in luck because they’ve chosen to warm up at the Concorde 2. They’re known for their energetic live shows so be prepared to get sweaty. Oh, and just to make your night even better (and to add insult to injury to those who can’t make it) pop punk’s next big thing Save Your Breath will be supporting. (AJM)
NEW FOUND GLORY
Concorde 2 Weds 24th
Pop- punk rockers New Found Glory from Coral Springs Florida are invading Brighton with their upbeat teenage anthems and allusive stage antics. The fivesome formed in 1997 and released their debut album ‘Nothing Good Can Stay’ in 1999. Since then they’ve gone from strength to strength and built a loyal following. They reunited in 2010 and began recording a new album titled ‘Radiosurgery, due for release in October 2011 with current record label Epitaph Records. We wonder whether the guys have hardened their edge since signing to the new label. (JJM)
WATER TOWER
BUCKET BOYS Haunt Sat 27th
After selling out their two previous Brighton shows, the Bucket Boys will once again be bringing their hard-driving, fast-picking, harmony-fuelled fusion of bluegrass, old-time and country music to town and throughout the UK in support of their new EP, ‘Where The Crow Don’t Fly’. An incredible live band – if there was ever music to dance and drink whiskey to then this is definitely it. Support comes from locals Amy Harrison & The Secondhand Stringband. (IC)
AT THE EDGE OF THE SEA
Concorde 2 Sat 27th
At The Edge of The Sea, the annual one-day shindig curated by the Wedding Present’s David Gedge returns to, er, the edge of the sea. The stellar line-up features London electro popsters Summer Camp, Badly Drawn Boy, Cinerama and a headline set by The Wedding Present. Also on the bill are three bands featuring members of the current Weddoes line-up: Graeme Ramsay’s shoe-gazey outfit Silvermash will appear alongside Charles Layton’s Dirty Fingernails and Pepe le Moko’s Brighton combo Stars Down To Earth. Last year’s bash sold out, so get your tickets sharpish. (GS)
OUTFIT Green Door Store Tues 30th
Fledgling Brighton-based music promoters Be Nothing team up with hot London indie label Double Denim to bring you Outfit. They’re an art rock five-piece from Liverpool, for fans of Talking Heads, Roxy Music and early Franz Ferdinand, who (refreshingly) use their interest in aesthetics to grab people’s attention where most bands rely on internet presence. Their first single ‘Two Islands’ is due to be released in September. (JG)
EAST 17 Concorde Weds 31st
What could go wrong for East 17, as they look to recreate Take That’s astounding chart renaissance? There were fears that Brian Harvey might scupper the comeback, perhaps by reversing over the entire band in a tour bus prank gone badly wrong. So he’s been wisely sacked, while Tony Mortimer is back. Sadly, new single ‘Secret Of My Life’ suggests the quartet’s look has developed to that of ‘builder’ chic, while their prehistoric pop sound hasn’t developed at all. Give up, lads. That cement needs stirring. (BG)
RON SEXSMITH Komedia Weds 31st
Elton John, Chris Martin and Michael Buble are all big fans, but don’t let that put you off. Now 12 albums in, Canadian singer-songwriter Ron Sexsmith is finally getting the attention he deserves and craves, and not only from middle-of-the-road ‘megastars’. With the aptly-titled, ‘Long Player, Late Bloomer’, he’s even managed to combine a fair few UK sales to match the critical praise he’s had for years. The album sees him veer from crooning melancholy to rousing jangle-fests, all of which should be perfect for a late summer’s night out. (GS)
WORDS BY MATT BARKER, IAN CHAMBERS, BEN GILBERT, JOSEPH GRANT, STUART HUGGETT, JESSICA MARSHALL MCHATTIE, AMY JO MCLELLAN, ADAM PETERS, THE RECOMMENDER, GARY SCATTERGOOD, JOHN J. MCLEAN