Category: Music
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Single Review: The Madding Crowd – You Give Us Hope
You have to love a band that evokes thoughts of a Thomas Hardy book in their name. While Hardy’s novel was somewhat ironic as it suggested that the rather chaotic world he created was some kind of a rural idyll, The Madding Crowd’s last EP 2016’s The 78th Bridge on…
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Single Review: Roves – All We Came To Know
roves are one of the bands I’ve been really excited about discovering this year; their music and attitude are exactly what I still enjoy searching for. I particularly admire the way roves have been fully focused on their own sound; a deliciously atmospheric, ambient, slightly sad and intelligent vibe. It…
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Single Review: The Maitlands – Daunting from Derker
Self described Oldham’s least favourite sons The Maitlands have just released their new track, Daunting From Derker, the fourth track out this year from these busy lads. For those not in the know, Derker is home to an Oldham metro tram stop sadly renowned in recent times for violent hammer…
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Guiseley band BACKSPACE to support H2N heroes Elephant Trees at Leeds Wardrobe
Young Guiseley alt-pop firecrackers, BACKSPACE are back this autumn and will be supporting fellow Guiseley born band Elephant Trees at the Leeds date of their nationwide “Uncomfortable” tour. “This will be a brilliant gig for us” said Harry Turner BACKSPACE’S drummer, “we’ve had a fantastic summer season and it’ll be…
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Single Review: ABQ – Takes So Long
Belfast but London based band ABQ (aka Albuquerque) clearly have gutsy ambition to join and succeed those behemoths in rock of the likes of Imagine Dragons, Snow Patrol and Biffy Clyro. With their debut single, Takes So Long ABQ have released a strong statement of intent for the future. Takes So…
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Live Interview: The Sherlocks at Bingley Music Live
I remember the moment I first heard The Sherlocks like it was yesterday. I was in a dodgy B&B in Ireland listening to some generic background music on YouTube getting ready for an evening out with the family and a song came on that caught me the second the first riff…
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Single Review: The Sheratons – These Kids
The first track we reviewed in 2018 was one by The Sheratons and we described it as “a solid indie-pop song that will help bring in fans before the band unleash their true musical potential”. We thought at the time Better Days was good but perhaps not as good as the band could be; last…
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Album Review: shambolic – World Torn Apart
If they are really lucky, angry young men lose nothing of their edge as time moves on and so it proves for the guys in Huddersfield based band shambolic. The band have been going strong for over 20 years with the same line up, the same punk energy and biting…
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Live: Bingley Music Live 2018
The finale of UK festival season as far as H2N is concerned, is always Bingley Music Live. Taking place the weekend after the manic Leeds Festival, BML offers a relaxed but vibrant end to the summer and this year’s festival was without doubt the best we’ve attended so far. With…
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Single Review: Freeda – Go Home
The guitar has formed an integral part of sound in popular music for decades and the importance of the instrument within the mix of a band’s particular sound always fascinates. Manchester (Mossley) five piece Freeda (Sean Rowles – Lead Vocals, Callum Hignett – Lead Guitar, Cameron Meekums-Spence (a man bringing…
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Single Review: Gently Tender – 2 Chords Good
With allegations of abuse currently swirling around one of the most energetic bands I’ve seen live, Chicago’s The Orwells and feeling desperately sad for both the alleged victims and the couple of band members who appear clean of accusation, it brought me to reflecting about happier times where your heroes…
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Live: Goa Express + Working Men’s Club – Golden Lion, Todmorden
While it’s generally all about the music sometimes the venue also gladdens the heart, and while somewhat painful for me to get to via public transport I always look out to see what’s going at the wonderful Golden Lion in Todmorden. The pub is so friendly that I don’t mind…
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Live: DZ Deathrays + Gardenback + These New South Whales – Band on the Wall, Manchester
It’s not every day you have the chance to catch top Aussie band DZ Deathrays so I cut short a work leaving do to hotfoot it over to Manchester’s Band on the Wall. As I waited for the bands I spotted my future; an elderly gentleman of about 70 with…
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Single Review: Mercury Machine – Aurora
The 80’s wasn’t just about bright bubblegum coloured clothes and dodgy fake sun dyed hair; this is an image of the decade that is about as realistic as a happy go lucky George Michael chatting up a woman on an early Wham! video. The 80’s were also about a time…
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Album Review: Cullen Omori – The Diet
A band I adored a few years back were those soft lo-fi retro Chicago rockers The Smith Westerns. While the guitar work wasn’t perfect live, the gentle but persuasive bounce of the Smith Westerns’ music shone through and they were one of the bands of Reading/Leeds for me back in…
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R&L 2018 – Artist of the Weekend, Sounds Like a Storm
This weekend marks the best three days in the British music calendar as Reading and Leeds Festivals take place. We have picked one artist, opening up the Radio 1 Stage, as our artist of the weekend who you simply cannot miss – they’re Leeds band Sounds Like a Storm. For about…
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Single Review: Melancholy Ray – Lampshade
With a name like Melancholy Ray, you’d be forgiven for assuming the music that would be produced by the Callum Fewell’s project would be laid back easy listening. Far from it though as the Leeds band have just released their fourth, energetic single Lampshade. The track is a three minute blast through all…
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Single Review: The Attic Doctors – Sauce
North-west five piece The Attic Doctors came across our radar at the start of this month when they released their third single Sauce. The track, which was one of the first to be written by the band was always going to benefit from a successful release due to already becoming a fan favourite…
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EP Review: The Goa Express – Use Your Brain
Burnley based The Goa Express have taken time out of their busy local gig schedule to release their third single; this time a four track EP Use Your Brain. Once again the boys treat us to a psych/baggy extravaganza. Opening track My Day Monday starts the EP off fairly sedately with some good…
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Single Review: Courtyards – Backseat
The first time we saw Courtyards in January 2017, we knew they were a real talent. One of the songs on a setlist on my wall still (sad I know!) has a whole host of tracks that are now sing-a-longs at any Courtyards show – but there’s been just one…
The Setlist & The Script 