Bingley Music Live 2018: Our Tips

As we write this it's the eve of this year's Bingley Music Live, an incredible little festival just outside Bradford that delivers some incredible famous and lesser known acts to the people of Bradford. Though it's tough for the festival to beat last year's triple whammy of Kaiser Chiefs, Maximo Park and the Wombats that certainly made it my favourite BML ever, there are many acts to enjoy this year, and as it tradition here is our pick of the ten artists not to miss over the three-day festival. Who else should people make a bee-line to see? Put your thoughts in the comments!

Click here to listen to our playlist of our favourite jams from these acts as a warm-up!

10. Peace
Hailing from Worcester this indie band kicked off in 2009 and have a clutch of great tracks from their three albums.
Must hear: Wraith

9. Jake Bugg
Having released his debut album five years ago and now with four LPs under his belt, the singer is famous locally for donating his debut track to gloom-fest TV show 'Happy Valley' before entertaining us with many great singles in a surprisingly chunky back-catalogue.
Must hear: Lightning Bolt; Messed Up Kids

8. Rat Boy
Born in Essex Rat Boy's energetic 'Move' has been on my running playlist since it was released. Looking forward to his slice of punky-pop.
Must hear: Move

7. Marmozets
Coming from Bingley themselves I suppose it was natural this band would come home to play. Full of energy and angst, looking forward to them creating one of the biggest mosh-pits of the weekend.
Must hear: Major System Error

6. Pale Waves
Forming four years ago in Manchester this goth-pop band led by the distinctive vocals of Heather Baron-Gracie are one of my favourite discoveries of the past twelve months. I just hope they don't think it's the wrong time of year for them to play my favourite song by them.
Must hear: New Years' Eve

5. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
This year's major headliner, Noel Gallagher proved to be the most musically interesting of the two brothers and has created three great albums including the most recent lo-fi number 'Who Built the Moon?' With a collection of songs almost enough to ensure he doesn't really need to dip into his Oasis back catalogue, I'm really looking forward to this set, scissors-girl and all.
Must hear: The Death of You and Me; AKA... What A Life; In the Heat of the Moment; Holy Mountain

4. Melanie C
By far the most credible and interesting of the five girls post-Spice Girls, Melanie C has seven solo albums to dip into with many great tracks to really get the crowd going.
Must hear: Never Be The Same Again; I Turn To You; When You're Gone; Northern Star

3. The Lafontaines
I had the pleasure of seeing this band on stage in Bradford several years ago and they have some incredible energy and sing-a-long songs. To my shame I only have their first album so I'm looking forward to catching up with them!
Must hear: Under the Storm; Shark in the Water

2. Nerina Pallot
With five albums to her name and some very impressive singles, I've always wanted to see Pallot live and now is my chance. Sparky, punky and a great songwriter, I'll be definitely heading to see her on stage.
Must hear: Put Your Hands Up; Roussea; Real Late Starter;  I Don't Want to Go Out; Everything's Illuminated

1. Spector
A 5-piece band from London, their song 'Celestine' with its high-energy grabbed me the first time I heard it. Having seen them live once in York, I'm eager to see them again.
Must hear: Celestine; Chevy Thunder; Friday Night, Don't Ever Let It End; Stay High; Never Fade Away

KBPS Hall of Fame #1: The Communards - Don't Leave Me This Way

Our regular column charting my favourite songs of all time.

#1: The Communards - Don't Leave Me This Way

I can't say I've DJ'd live more than half-a-dozen times but whenever I have there are only a handful of songs that I can guarantee will fill the dancefloor, and one of these is this 1986 cover from the Communards. Literally as the first drum sound hits and the choir-esque humming opening kicks in you can see the feet of those sitting down starting to tap and by the time Jimmy Somerville's falsetto vocals begin at the 30-second mark they're up dancing and singing along, seemingly discovering the dance moves for the song from some deep recess of their memory bank.

The song was originally released back in November 1975 by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. With Teddy Pendergrass on vocals this is a slower, much more soulful and sexy version of the song, the vocals breathy and delivered in a much sultry manner, the dark shades of the brass lending it a cooler but ultimately less bombastic tone before it bursts two-minutes in to the larger sound that is familiar from the more famous cover.

Only a year later it was covered by Thelma Houston and given a more disco beat, edging it closer to the Communards take, but it was still a slower paced song than my favourite version, the vocals still a little ethereal and the production subdued.

It would be another ten years before we'd get to the definitive version with its stronger, more focused, production. It would later be covered by many people and even twisted into Bakermat's 'Baby' in 2017, but this rips up the joy of the original and tries to squeeze it into the typical electro-dance sound of the era, destroying the magic, even if the saxophone solo on it is a cool addition.

For me there is only one definitive version: the funky, disco take by the Communards with the video that features both Battersea Power Station and a pre-Strictly Come Dancing and pre-frocked Rev. Coles on the piano. Reaching number one in the UK and staying there for four weeks, this is one of the definitive hits of the decade.

There's just something so powerful about the song, whether it's the soaring vocals that lead into the chantable chorus, the brass line, the piano-solo and the sing-a-long vibe, and you can quite easily see how it has become such a favourite at wedding parties. Plus the dystopian theme that runs through the video ending on the creepy shot of the man in glasses is an intriguing juxtaposition to the more joyful performance.

So next time you're at a party and you think the dancefloor could do with a kick up the bum, then you could do much worse than requesting this. If I'm DJing there, I'll more than happily accept your suggestion!