Hifi Pig

The support act for Bryan Ferry’s current tour is Welsh singer-songwriter Judith Owen who describes her new album, Ebb & Flow, as “a love letter to Laurel Canyon”. Earlier in the day while I was on the phone to my friend Terry, arranging to meet up for the concert, he checked out Judith’s website and noted that the backing band on Ebb & Flow were stellar LA session musicians Leland Sklar, Waddy Wachtel and Russ Kunkel. Those guys are all over our record collections. “It would be great if they were her touring band” I joked. We laughed, knowing that would never happen. So to say that we were pleasantly surprised when the unmistakable figure of Sklar, looking like one of ZZ Top’s beardy uncles, ambled on stage accompanied by Wachtel and Kunkel would be something of an understatement. More »

The Unthanks brought their UK tour in support of new album, Mount The Air, to a close in front of a sell out crowd at The Queen’s Hall in Edinburgh. Departing from tradition, not for the first time tonight, The Unthanks eschew the time-honoured format support band followed by main act. Instead, The Young Uns – a trio of acapella close harmony singers – open each of the two halves of the show. Beginning with a terrific version of Billy Bragg’s Between The Wars, the Young Uns win over the audience instantly with a combination of first class vocals and humour. “How could you not love The Young Uns?” asks Becky Unthank later, and I honestly can’t imagine anyone not doing so. More »

Somewhere in the deep, dusty archives of the BBC television centre lies an unseen episode of Dr Who in which Rumer becomes the Doctor’s assistant and travels back to 1975 where her new album Into Colour becomes the best selling album of the year. More »

If I required yet another reminder that The Supreme Being does not evenly distribute his gifts, I need look no further than Steven Wilson. Let’s have a think about this: Does he have a back catalogue spanning more than 20 years, covering a diverse variety of genres? – He does. Can he sing and play a multitude of musical instruments to a more than acceptable standard? – He certainly can. Do rock legends such as King Crimson’s Robert Fripp, Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson and Yes’ Steve Howe and Chris Squire queue up to have him remix their classic albums to give them a 21st century sonic spring clean? – They do. And on top of all this, he looks at least 10 years younger than his age and seems like the kind of bloke that you would happily spend a highly entertaining evening with in the pub. Bastard. More »