Latest Reviews

Alabama Shakes are finally back with new music! "Tea Time" opens their first album in more than a decade, I Must Be Dreaming, and it is quite an interesting way to reintroduce yourself. Instead of immediately coming out with an enormous blues-rock song, the band gives us something much dreamier.

Queens of the Stone Age have released a new song called "Insignificant Other", taken from their upcoming album Perfecth. This song sounds like somebody put a rock band inside a smoky hotel bar at two in the morning and told them to keep playing until everybody went home. I absolutely love the atmosphere.

Blossoms have teamed up with Declan McKenna for a new song called "Additional Driver". Apparently, the inspiration for this song came from Blossoms frontman Tom Ogden getting into a minor car accident outside the Manchester Apollo. I love the fact that somebody can experience something as boring as exchanging insurance details and somehow turn it into a five-minute indie disco song.

Olivia Rodrigo has released a new song called "serena joy", and the first thing that strikes me is the bass. It has this dark, almost new-wave quality to it that I absolutely love. It kind of reminds me of something you might hear from New Order, but filtered through Olivia's pop-rock world. The bassline almost feels too gloomy for how catchy the song actually is, and I mean that in the best way possible.

OneRepublic have returned with a new track, 'Pay That Toll', delivering the kind of upbeat, driving sound that feels made for a summer road trip, while hiding a more cautionary message beneath its anthemic production.

Willow Avalon has given Carly Simon’s iconic “You’re So Vain” a very different identity, turning the classic into a lively country-laced performance for Spotify Singles.

There is something fitting about Bryan Adams telling the story of Terry Fox through a guitar-led rock song.

This was my first time in the Olympia Hall at the Winter Gardens. It’s not quite as refined as some of the other rooms within the complex, but it worked well for the gig and suited it nicely. It was easy to enter and exit, had a friendly atmosphere, and the bars and other facilities were all conveniently located.

Dan + Shay have spent more than a decade perfecting the art of the country love song. They know how to build a chorus, how to turn a love song into a wedding staple, and how to turn a few simple words into a stadium singalong. That success has also given them a problem: when you become that good at sounding like yourself, how do you make yourself sound new?

Nickelback have never been afraid of going big. Big guitars, big choruses, big emotions and, naturally, big arenas. But “Leave Me Behind” shows the band taking a more reflective approach.