National Album Day 2019: Dogviolet by Laurel
Laurel perfectly encapsulates what it’s like to be a music maker in today’s landscape of artists with more control over their sound. Her 2018 debut album Dogviolet struck me with a deep level of confidence in both vocal delivery and performance that few artists are...
National Album Day 2019: Ten by Pearl Jam
I was 12 and a half years old when Pearl Jam’s Ten album came out. It had a huge effect on me and my life. The thundering rawness of it. It’s lyrics screamed right to me, pushing through into my young tormented world. You might wonder why would a 12yr old need to hear...
National Album Day 2019: The Wall By Pink Floyd
When I was a young lad starting to try and get serious about music, I had discovered Led Zeppelin and AC/DC, but could not get into Pink Floyd. I knew I should, but having listened to my friends copy of Dark Side Of The Moon, i just did not get it. Then at the end of...
National Album Day 2019: Stars Of CCTV by Hard Fi
Whilst sadly the fame and fortune wasn’t that long lived (the second and third albums couldn't match the brilliance of this and with the band on seemingly indefinite hiatus nobody seriously expects any more from them), Stars Of CCTV, the debut album from Staines...
National Album Day: Remain In Light By Talking Heads
Almost thirty nine years to the day Talking Heads presented us with Remain In Light. I was hooked on these former art school students from the moment I heard Psycho Killer three years earlier but with Brian Eno working his production magic on this album it has never...
National Album Day 2019: Ultra by Depeche Mode
Ultra isn’t the best Depeche Mode album. (That’s Violator.) It isn’t even my favourite Depeche Mode album. (That’s Songs of Faith And Devotion.) But it’s the one that changed my life. It was 1997. I was battling through a medical degree that I had no right doing in...
National Album Day: Hybrid Theory by Linkin Park
Linkin Park’s Hybrid Theory was my first ever album and a very important and enduring eye opener for many listeners. In 2000, at aged 10, I put this album on my Christmas list based solely on word of mouth. A schoolfriend wouldn’t shut up about how desperate he was...
National Album Day 2019: The Bride by Bat For Lashes
I've always thought Natasha Kahn's voice was beautifully melancholic, until this album best evidenced for me on tracks like Sad Eyes or the single Laura. With The Bride she uses her songwriting and performing talents superbly to tell a story of love and loss. The...
National Album Day 2019: the B52’s by The B52s
I like a challenge in life. I like to push my comfort zone a little further everyday and I never stand defeated. But when we were asked to get involved with National Album Day 2019 and write about one album we don't skip and enjoy from start to finish, I started...
National Album Day 2019: There Is Nothing Left To Lose by Foo Fighters
For this year’s National Album Day, I’m travelling back to 1999 and pulling There Is Nothing Left to Lose by Foo Fighters from the vaults. Dusting off a collection of music that I will always play in its entirety without skipping a track. The late ‘90s heralded change...
A Child’s-Eye View Of Glastonbury Festival
When I tell people that my wife and I are going to Glastonbury Festival this year, there is a generally positive response. Questions such as “are you camping?” and “who is on this year?” are forthcoming. There is also the question: “who’ll be looking after the little...
Vintage Hot Rods On Pendine Sands June 2019
Le Mans 24 Hours, Indy 500, Monaco Grand Prix, Bonneville Salt Flats, Pendine Sands. Some of those names roll off the tongue with ease and are synonymous with great deeds in motor racing. But Pendine Sands in South Wales? Well, yes!. In the 1920s it was the place to...
London Pride 2019 – Bi Pandas Unite Against Capitalism
50 years after the Stonewall uprising in New York, it would have been difficult for some to find the revolution amongst the big corporation sponsored floats at London Pride 2019. They were all here, about 200 private companies, but they shall remain unnamed because we...
A Photography Experience Out On The Road With Buck & Evans
Buck & Evans are the best Welsh band that not enough people know about. Scrub that. Buck & Evans are simply the best band that not enough people know about. I know about them because I've seen them quite a bit and photographed them quite a bit. I've also just...
Frankie Lee Follows Up American Dreamer With New Album Stillwater
Way back in January 2016 RockShot Magazine interviewed Frankie Lee and discussed critically acclaimed debut, American Dreamer, which Rolling Stone called the debut album of the year. Off the back of a recent tour, where he appeared in the UK and Ireland at London,...