It’s not just bands that I’ve seen before that I’m looking forward to at Latitude. I Am Kloot were behind the best album of 2010 – by a country mile. I’ve seen them play a few times, and they’re good enough for me to forgive one truly shocking gig where they were clearly off their […]
Author: James Poole
So, come on then, time to own up. Raise your hand in the air if you’ve been checking out Jez Kerr’s solo material. No? Shame on you, if you haven’t. You’ve missed out on a couple of peaches – two singles to give a taster of what’s in store on Jez’s debut album. At the […]
Now, don’t take the piss. It may not be Glastonbury, Bestival, Reading/Leeds – or even the V Festival – but I am looking forward to Latitude with all the anticipation of an alcoholic waiting for the shutters to be raised outside the Crown & Cushion. Call me old fashioned, but the relative tranquillity and calm […]
People of the UK: I applaud you. While you may be responsible for all manner of horrors, such as Britain’s Got Talent and the unintentional election of a sham of a coalition government, sometimes you’re bang on… Last September, I put forward a simple point: that people like good music – given the chance. While […]
May 27, 2011. The day that a true freethinker left the building. We’re all poorer for it. My words just won’t hit the mark, here. When someone of the importance and stature of Gil Scott-Heron passes, you want to look to people with the intelligence, heart and insight of the man himself to capture the […]
Is it wrong that an album that is 40 years old has sideswiped me this week? In short, yes. Yes, it’s bang out of order. It’s not that ‘new music’ should be the only material to impress, but I do feel that this is an album which I should have been deeply familiar with already. […]
For the first movement of 2011, I thought I’d throw together a proper freethinking mix. As ever, it’s raw, with no edits, and as a result you’re getting an idea as to what freethinking nyc is all about. It’s not perfect, it’s not polished – it’s a celebration of some top new music, as well […]
My previous post referred to last week being a ‘two gig week’. First up was The Go! Team. The second gig couldn’t have been more different, on just about every dimension. The Mercury Lounge is a tiny venue. Properly tiny. You know it’s small when you feel that you have to be quiet between songs […]
Last week was a ‘two gig week’ for me. In keeping with the freethinking vibe, the concerts couldn’t have been more stylistically different. First up was the infectious Labrador-like charm of The Go! Team. I’ll save the second gig for my next post… The first time I properly came across The Go! Team (bar hearing […]
There are a few differences between the UK & the US in the consumption of music which never fail to surprise me. Actually, scratch that – it’s more ‘New York’ than ‘the US’ that I feel qualified to make reference to. It’s partially just seeing what music goes down when you’re DJing – there’s just […]
Wow. Seriously. James Brown is an artist at the very heart of the freethinking movement. On any given freethinking nyc night, you’ll be guaranteed to hear him, and there’s a fighting chance that you’ll also hear Fred Wesley, Bobby Byrd and Maceo Parker. James Brown changed music. I never saw James Brown play live. The […]
I may be talking out of turn, here. I realise that I’m from Stoke, and that it’s about 3,000 miles – figuratively and literally – from the place I chose to live. That said, I love the city that I chose to call home. I thrive on the beat of the city, the buzz, the […]