Liverpool Sound City returns for three days and nights from Thursday 2nd to Saturday 4th May 2013 and is held at multiple venues and spaces in Liverpool’s cultural quarter. In total, more than 400 acts from around the world will play to 25,000 people across 30 of Liverpool’s best venues.
It will be a frantic weekend, and there will be scores of acts to check out. To help get you started, here are our picks for the festival:
1: The Balconies
Thu 8:00PM – 8:30PM @ Brooklyn Mixer
Toronto trio ‘The Balconies’ comprising Jacquie (Guitar, Voice) backed by the rippling rhythms of Liam (drums) and Stephen (bass) play a sweaty, greasy style of Rock ‘n’ Roll. They are working hard on their first full-length album (with legendary producer Arnold Lanni.)
‘Do It In The Dark’ has streaks of silvery chopped chords and a brazen bass nosing around. The impressive vocals brim with exuberant energy. Jacquie’s voice chirrups like a grasshopper on a fun slide. Balloon crazy fun! But with a touch of lurking and secretive darkness.
Link:
http://www.facebook.com/TheBalconies
2: PINS
Thu 10:00PM – 10:45PM at The Shipping Forecast
Faith Holgate (vocals, guitar), Lois McDonald (guitar), Anna Donigan (bass), and Lara Williams (drums) from Manchester are the PINS who play a jubillant style of New York nu-gaze crystalline-based, undiluted pop.
‘Say to Me’ has a pile of collapsing drums and a riff that growls mordantly in the background. A keen, tarty guitar jangles then the woo-wooo chorus whistles in like an owl on the loose. This is an atmospheric wall-of-sound. With a twist.
Check the vid:
Link:
http://www.facebook.com/wearepins
3: Cub Scouts
Fri 6:15PM – 6:45PM Kazimier Gardens
Sat 7:00PM – 7:30PM Heebie Jeebies
Brisbane’s Cub Scouts have had a roller-coaster year in 2012, starting off with their catchy ditty “Evie” taking over the airwaves and solidifying their reputation in Australia and then book-ending the year with “Told You So” eclipsing that success and becoming a breakout hit on US college radio.
The band singles ‘Told You So’ and ‘Do You Hear’ have been dominating Australia’s cooler Radio stations and the band have just concluded their Fourth National tour of Australia after supporting a host of other acts such as: Ball Park Music, Loon Lake and Pluto Jonze.
Link: http://www.facebook.com/CubScoutsMusic
Cub Scouts are currently on tour in the UK. Check dates below:
May 4th Liverpool Sound City – Kazimier Gardens 6.15pm
May 5th Liverpool Sound City – Heebie Jeebies 7pm
May 5th Leeds -Nation of Shopkeepers
May 6th – Manchester – Thirsty Scholar
May 7th – Glasgow – Broadcast
May 9th- Exeter – Cavern
May 11th – Sheerness – The Ivy
May 13th – Eastney – Cellars
May 15th London – Waterrats (9pm),
May 17th Brighton Great Escape (Queens Bar 10pm)
May 18th Brighton St Annes Well Festival
4: The Common Tongues
Sat 4:00PM – 4:40PM Mello Mello
Brighton based 5 piece Common Tongues play a gleeful patchwork of twirling folksy sounds that evoke a sweetly harmonious world of sand castles, ice creams and making love in the hay. Their ripe vocals, languid acoustic guitars and sinuous violin, wrap around luxuriant verses and often ramble on neatly towards uplifting and luscious 5-part harmony choruses.
Link:
http://www.facebook.com/commontongues
5: Bleech
Sat 7:00PM – 7:30PM The Shipping Forecast
London-based BLEECH – sisters Jennifer (guitar and lead vocals) and Katherine (bass guitar and backing vox) plus Matt ( drums and backing vox) released their debut album ‘Nude’ – previewed with rave reviews from the critics – in June 2012 after the April launch of the single ‘Mondays’, a stand out track from the album that has already been featured on the BBC’s hit drama series ‘Waterloo Road’.
‘Mondays’ has bickering drums and a clacking back-beat. Jen’s heartfelt vocals are slinking and striking. The chorus is smooth, luxurious and radiant-poppy. The velvety lyrics “I’m happy when I’m happy – happy when I’m sad…” are about as sincere as Thatcher’s eyebrows.
Link:
http://www.facebook.com/bleechofficial
6: Arcane Roots
Fri 12:45AM – 1:15AM Screenadelica
Arcane Roots are a three-piece Alternative Rock band from Kingston Upon Thames, Surrey. Fronted by founding by guitarist & vocalist Andrew Groves together with drummer Daryl Atkin.
Watching Arcane Roots is like riding over Niagara Falls in a barrel. You get that sense of sublime grace and purity of spirit as you halt momentarily at the very edge of the precipice, but you are also very aware that in a just a few moments you will hurtle downwards, out-of-control, crashing into a destructive vortex below.
Their debut album ‘Blood & Chemistry’ is out on 6th May.
Link:
http://www.facebook.com/ArcaneRoots
7: Alex Hulme
Thu 11:00PM – 11:30PM The Brink
North Lancashire based Alex Hulme has been very busy over the last few months recording his next EP. The ‘Nick Drake inspired’ singer/songwriter is very popular on YouTube for his covers of chart songs – and has already been described by Billy Ocean as “A great voice [with] a great understanding for melody” . Source: www.bidolito.co.uk/
Link:
http://www.facebook.com/Thisisalexhulme
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All Liverpool Sound City Picks courtesy: © Neil Mach April 2013
Liverpool Sound City is on 2-4 May – Some Tickets Still Available. Click here for details: http://www.liverpoolsoundcity.co.uk/
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