Bingley Music Live - Day 1 Playlist

We'll be down this year to enjoy all three days of Bingley Music Live. Here are our favourite songs from the acts on today to get you into the mood!

Manic Street Preachers - The Love of Richard Nixon

Not one of their most famous hits but certainly one of their catchiest!

Twin Atlantic - Heart and Soul

A great song we can't believe is three years old now!

Maxïmo Park - Our Velocity

The band's best song in our opinion; brilliantly singable and full of hooks!

Tom Grennan - Praying

With hints of Imagine Dragons this is a dramatic indie number with rocky hints.

Maxïmo Park - Leave This Island

A more recent entry into the band's discography and slightly slower, this is beautifully written and performed.

Manic Street Preachers - Your Love Alone Is Not Enough ft. Nina Persson

It's perhaps unlikely that Nina will join them on stage today but you can still enjoy this pop stomper on YouTube!

New Music Review #87

Ten more songs that you need to hear today!

CNCO feat. Little Mix - Reggaeton Lento

Little Mix jumps on the Despacito bandwagon with this CNCO collaboration, creating one of their most fun and accomplished singles in a while, even if it's pretty much an Enrique Iglesias track in disguise. (7/10)

Dusky Grey - Call Me Over

With a strong mix of the two vocals this is a perky electronic-influenced pop song with a catchy foot-tapping lilt and a sunny feel. Nice. (7/10)

Gabrielle Aplin - Waking Up Slow

Give this song a chance as though the beginning may be quite slow and run of the mill it soon picks up the pace and bursts into a joyous chorus with great lyrics tied with a great poppy vibe. Love it! (7.5/10)

Jack Johnson - My Mind Is For Sale

'My Mind is for Sale' finds Johnson on familiar form with a gentle ballad. It's not his most dynamic work but will keep his fans happy. (6/10)

Jack Savoretti - Whiskey Tango

With his distinctive vocals, it's difficult to not recognise a Jack Savoretti song, and he's on fun form here with this building pop number. Fun. (6.5/10)

James Blunt - Don't Give Me Those Eyes 

You could quite possibly throw strong accusations at this song about it being cheesy but with its Aerosmith 'Don't Want to Miss A Thing'-esque soaring moments and harmonies it really pulls at the emotions. One of my favourites of his new album. (7.5/10)

Jessie Ware - Midnight

Another soulful number from Ware that packs a punch through her vocals and the smooth music. (6.5/10)

The Sherlocks - Live For The Moment

'Live for the Moment' is a great Arctic Monkeys-like song from the promising new indie band. With a great driving rhythm and a fast-paced lyrical delivery, this is a really strong breakthrough from the band. (7/10)

Steps - Neon Blue

The Steps comeback continues and 'Neon Blue' sees them on recognisable pop-dance form, and finally even sees the lads contribute to the song. If you are a fan of the band then this will please you. Pop fun! (7/10)

The Strypes - Great Expectations

With it's 'Old Rosie' hook, 'Great Expectations' is a gentle little summer ditty that, though quite low key, will have you humming along during it. (6.5/10)

New Music Review #86

Ten more songs you need to hear!

Callum Beattie - Man Behind The Sun

Another great single release from Beattie, a poppy, sunny and catchy number with enough vocal call-outs and a fun enough beat to keep your feet tapping. Brilliant! (7.5/10)

Dua Lipa - New Rules

Another strong single from Dua Lipa that has hit the top spot. Though not as great as her last couple it has a distinctive enough chorus and production work to hook people in, it just lacks that big spark of 'Blow Your Mind (Mwah)'. (6.5/10)

JP Cooper - She's On My Mind

Built around a quirky vocal hook, this is another strong record from JP Cooper that will nest in your head pretty quickly. Very catchy. (7.5/10)

Liam Gallagher - For What It's Worth

Showing a maturity you don't get on his Twitter account (!) that has shades of older Oasis with a strong 90s indie-rock vibe. It's not as huge as his brilliant previous single 'Wall of Glass' but it's still a song in the right direction and the Beatles-vibe the band have gone for in the past is present here. (6.5/10)

London Grammar - Non Believer

Though not the most bombastic of tracks, the harmonies, electronic vibes and heartfelt delivery make for a strong indie ballad that will wash over you in a gentle wave. (6.5/10)

Lucy Rose - Second Chance

'Second Chance' is another gentle ballad from the singer with the great voice. It's not her most memorable song but whilst it's on proves to be a joyful little number. (6.5/10)

Simon Webbe - Nothing Without You

Returning after a bit of a break, former Blue boyband member Simon Webbe once more showcases his soulful voice on this sentimental ballad with a radio-friendly chorus. Another good one from Webbe. (7/10)

The Wandering Hearts - Devil

'Devil' is a fun country-crossover with a great duel between vocals and a folky-throwback sound. With a strong beat, distinctive vocals and a catchy vibe from the first moment, this is a must listen. (7.5/10)

Wildwood Kin - Taking a Hold

With occasional subtle nods towards T-Rex, this stripped back harmonised country-pop song isn't as sparky as some of their earlier songs but has enough heart to keep you listening. (6.5/10)

Wolf Alice - Beautifully Unconventional

The band's best release since 'Freazy', this mid-indie song channels Tenacious D's 'Tribute' at moments but elsewhere ticks the indie-rock boxes well. (6/10)

New Music Review #85

Ten more tracks you must hear!

Ben Haenow - Alive 

Another strong pop song from the talent show winner. It's not the most memorable of songs after it finishes but its Biffy Clyro-lite vibe works well. (6/10)

Callaghan - Broken

Another beautifully written and performed track from the incredible voice of Callaghan. If this doesn't touch your heart strings not much else will! (7.5/10)

Carol Laula - 2nd Hand Joy

With folky undertones and the weaving in of a choir, there's an innocent and simple joy in this record with a bigger, catchy chorus. Delightfully different. (6.5/10)

Everything Everything - Desire

One of the most reliable bands around at the moment, 'Everything Everything' go a little bit Muse on this new release, a dramatically operatic falsetto-led number. (7/10)

Jack Found - Sundown

One of my favourite songs of the moment, this bouncy brass-hefty pop song sounds like Mark Owen with more energy and is a great catchy radio-friendly number. A must listen. (7.5/10)

Kele Okereke feat. Olly Alexander - Grounds for Resentment

The lead singer of Bloc Party shifts gear quite considerably on this slower ballad that has big echoes of the Feeling. Gentle yet touching this is a cool, chill-out number with strong lyrics and delivery. (6.5/10)

Lorde - Perfect Places

After the slightly off-the-wall 'Green Light' we get something more straight forward in 'Perfect Places' but the lyrics, delivery and driving pace all work well in creating a great little pop song. (7/10)

Pink - What About Us

Pink can often be relied upon to produce a great pop song and she does it again on this mid-tempo ballad. It's not a huge departure from some of her earlier material but it has enough heart and a strong enough chorus to win you over, and mixes in some nice dance elements too. (7/10)

Sea Girls - Call Me Out 

'Call Me Out' is a gentle slice of pop-indie that comes across as somewhere between the Killers and the similarly sounding Seafret. With a distinctive, foot-tapping chorus, this is a grower. (7/10)

Toddla T feat. Andrea Martin - Magnet

Keeping the backing track gentler lifts up the sweet and smooth vocals of Andrea Martin that gives this single its central emotional core. Chilled out and thoughtful. (6.5/10)

New Music Review #84

Ten more great songs you need to hear!

Anastacia - Caught In The Middle

Back with a new clutch of singles, 'Caught in the Middle' sees Anastacia back with a mid-tempo power ballad with another hooky radio-friendly chorus and a strong rhythm. Welcome back! (7/10)

Camila Cabello feat. Young Thug - Havana

Proving that leaving Fifth Harmony was her best move, Cabello brings out this funky spanish-influenced number that mixes up her smooth vocals, catchy chorus and even Young Thug fitting in better than usual. Cool. (7/10)

Chase & Status feat. Emeli Sandé - Love Me More

From a Chase and Status point of view it's pretty much business as usual with a rather generic music track, but it's saved by the delicious vocals of Sandé and the heartfelt lyrics. (6.5/10)

Christine McVie & Lindsey Buckingham - Feel About You

With hints of early Calvin Harris in its synth work this is a smooth and silky catchy little pop song that is the best of their collaborations yet. A sunny slice of optimistic pop. (7/10)

Enter Shikari - Live Outside

Built around a hook-filled chorus, this is both a great song and video with an array of styles and a crisp sound, plus some rather timely lyrics and thoughts. (7.5/10)

Kila - Raise The Road (Live)

'Raise the Road' is a stripped back folk song, performed live, with a great mix of instruments, harmonised vocals and a clap-along rhythm. Great. (6.5/10)

The Kooks - Broken Vow

Taken from their current greatest hits album, this is classic Kooks in the vein of their big period with a huge singable chorus and a really fun upbeat vibe. Great. (7.5/10)

Michael Malarkey - Mongrels 

Sounding like a slower take on Billy Joel's Piano Man performed by Chris Rea, the gruff-voiced Malarkey tackles this gentle, swaying number that balances a distinctive vocal style, smooth lyrics and a gentle lilt with aplomb. (6.5/10)

The Moods - P.O.P (Profit Over People)

Mixing up the sound of Wiley with Chase and Status and John Newman, this is a really upbeat catchy politically-charged dance track. Gets you moving and nodding in agreement. (7.5/10)

Red Ray & The Reprobates - Giant Song (Radio Edit)

Yee-hah! If you like your country music very quick and quirky then this fast-paced hoedown of a song will get you shimmying over to our nearest line dance. Or something like that. (6.5/10)

[Review] Elles Bailey - The Grove Inn, Leeds

Bristol-based country singer Elles Bailey arrived in Leeds ahead of her appearance in Colne and the Great British R&B Fest to perform a two-part set to an eager crowd in the intimate back room of the Grove Inn.

Greeting the crowd with a friendly smile she asked about whether she should wear her red or black hat - bought for just £1 from H&M in Leeds a while back and now accumulating "three tours of sweat!" - to complete her spot-on country look of ripped jeans and checkered shirt tied carefully at the front. Accompanied by a band of guitarist, bassist and drummer, packed tightly into the room decorated with photos of musicians great and small, as a four-piece they proceeded to lift the roof off the pub through a combination of throbbing bass, passionate drums and Bailey's pitch-perfect powerful voice that sounded mature beyond her youthful years.

The first part of the set began with her big hitter 'Same Flame' which was belted out with such energy it was difficult not to be entranced by the tight performance from the band. Bailey, who alternated between standing, and performing at the keys, switched it up through many songs from her upcoming album 'Wildfire', including the mid-tempo swagger of 'Barrel of Your Gun', ballad 'Perfect Storm' and the emotive 'What If I'. A delightful cover of Howlin' Wolf's 'Spoonful' fleshed out the first set, the acapella breakdown just one highlight of this strong cover.

Further songs filled out the first eight with plenty of breakdowns and solos packed with enthusiasm and energy and the four piece both captured the music and atmosphere well, alongside looking like they were having great fun. A passionate drum solo near the end was one of the best performances I've seen on percussion that close up, and the energy sent the vinyls on the merch stand tumbling to the floor, an act resembling the 'fall of capitalism' according to the drummer, adding to the fun banter between songs.

After a brief break they returned to the room to bring more great songs to the receptive crowd, alongside some nicely pitched anecdotes about pronouncing local town Keighley like the the irish dance. The second set included 'Waiting Game', 'Time's A Healer', 'Wildfire' and a song about Janis Joplin entitled 'Girl Who Owned the Blues', the latter four taken from the album out next week, also including a more traditional country-sounding cover of Taylor Swift's 'Shake It Off' which was also performed live in this section.

Though the room might have been intimate and the crowd not as big as at their recent festival appearances, Elles Bailey and her band gave the show everything they had and the excellent musicianship and her powerful voice full of energy filled the room. If you like your country music with heart and energy then you need to check out Elles Bailey on future dates. If this gig is a taste of what's to come, she's got a very promising rest of 2017. (8/10)

Album Reviews #5

Ten more albums and EPs reviewed by us!

American Anymen - Flag Burner (EP)


Made up of three politically charged songs starting with the titular song, this collection aimed squarely at Trump and everything he stands for, feels a bit like a collection of political tweets put to music. The opener mixes the theme with a catchy 'right, right, right, we say left' hook and though a five minute run time feels far too long has enough to be interesting. 'Late to the Party' is pretty much a political essay or angry Facebook post set to music that feels like an afterthought and is too much of an onslaught for the senses. Even when you think it's getting more song-like it descends back into a continuous stream of anger and point-scoring, though the subtle Russian influences, following use of 'comrade' in the first track, feels well put. Six minutes is too much. Final number 'President 2' is very much in the same vain: too many lyrics, muddy production and an onslaught of too much. Many will agree with the lyrics and what is being said but musically, not for me. (3/10)

The Black Watch - The Gospel According To John

A sprightly eight tracks pushes this album to over thirty-six minutes of darkly produced indie-rock songs that create a Smiths-like musical style that pushes a range of tempos from the slow to the faster of the cleverly titled 'The All-Right Side Of Just OK' which has my favourite guitar lick of the set and a nod towards Franz Ferdinand. Overal the album is a bit too gloomy and downbeat for my tastes and the production a little muddy, but it holds together as a good indie-rock package, but without any really big stand out song. (5.5/10)

A Blue Flame - When Your Whole World Turns To Dust

'When Your Whole World Turns To Dust' is made up of a dozen Divine Comedy-esque gentle mid-tempo ballads, set against a retro-sounding jazzy backing. Perhaps a little free-form and semi-improvisational for my tastes, it's still a really ear-pleasing listen, the gentle tones of the lead singer complimenting the music perfectly on songs like 'Back to the Stars' and 'We Feel Like We Feel', the crisp production and clear instrumentation a delight. At times it's so gentle it can disappear into the background, but that's no real slight on it as it's that sort of calming, pleasing music, though it does know when to kick up the beat a little, like on song '21st Century Blues' or the jaunty 'Everything's A Lie' and 'Empty Head', one of my favourites on the album, thanks to its funky bass and incredibly catchy chorus. In fact the album becomes much sprightly in its second half, numbers like 'See What Tomorrow Brings' bursting with energy, boasting a very poppy and memorable chorus. More of an album for Winter rather than August, this is a must hear. (7.5/10)

Danny & the Champions of the World - Brilliant Light

Spreading eighteen tracks that would fit onto one CD onto two seems like an artistic decision that doesn't really pay off in this collection of fun and upbeat, but ultimately, similar songs that, like many LPs that come spread over two discs could do with an editor. That said 'Brilliant Light' is a solid collection of traditional country-sounding tracks, many embracing mid-tempo, strong instrumentation and crisp production flowing through the tracks, from the harmonised 'Bring Me To My Knees' to the Caribbean swagger of 'It Hit Me'. 'Consider Me', with its chunkier delivery, is a highlight but many numbers flow too easily into one another. Overlong but entertaining enough with a solid outlook. (5.5/10)

Darto - Human Giving

With twelve tracks coming in at just over half-an-hour, this is an album that isn't a showcase for individual tracks (though 'Omniscient' and 'Fall Ill' stick their heads above the parapet) but the atmosphere created by a series of flowing, trippy instrumental-electronic pieces with vocals woven into a series of experimental soundscapes. The perfect background material for a chill-out season this flows well and builds a great electronic atmosphere, anchored by its dual vocals at times, that makes the 33-minutes pass quickly. (6.5/10)

The Heavy Blinkers - The Night and I Are Still So Young

Coming in at just over forty minutes long, this is a Beatles and Beach Boy mixed gentle exploration of hypnotic pop that starts with the gentle and floaty 'Filtered Light' that is like a warming day at the beach in musical form, delivered with delightful warm harmonies and musically intriguing backings. 'In The Morning' continues the chill-out vibe with crisp, interesting production and the throw-back sounds continue with songs the Carpenters and Motown-tinged 'Try Telling That To My Baby'. The title track employs a similar gentle sway to its style and the harmonies continue through songs like 'He Heard His Song' which employs a few hints towards a modern take on ELO. Overall the album is a well produced, cool and hippy piece with strong harmonies, interesting instrumentation and a strong relaxing vibe that flows all the way through. (6.5/10)

Lena Laki - Take Me With (EP)

Made up of five tracks, 'Take Me With' is a gentle, if not a little samey, collection of gentle Winehouse-light ballads, stripped back in terms of production with the sweet, artistic voice of Lena Laki woven in and out. Each song is a pleasing listen but all tend to merge into each other, except for second track 'Craving' which matches the EP's prevalent strings with more passion, emotion and soaring vocals, and the closest the mini-album gets to a memorable chorus, its musical jewelry box feel worth hearing. The 'Take Me With' EP is a sweet, smooth listen that whispers relaxation in its gentle flows, but it doesn't have any huge distinctive moments. (6/10)

Pattern Language - Total Squaresville

Coming in at six tracks, this 25-minute long instrumental electronic EP has enough interesting riffs and takes on the formula and genre to keep you listening, the synthesized music chunky and tangible and though the lack of lyrics and distinguishable riffs make it difficult to really hook onto a particular track, as a whole composition it works well even if at times it feels like it's perhaps running a bit out of steam. 'Deeply Recessed Windows' scores both as a great title and a noteable track though. (6/10)

Steve Earle & the Dukes - So You Wannabe an Outlaw

If you like your country music traditional and gruffly sung then you'll enjoy this collection of a dozen songs that begins with the title track headed up by a determined beat, harmonies, classic sound, catchy hook and country guitar and continues in a fun vein through to the slower and more introspective 'Goodbye Michelangelo'. Along the way we also get the perky 'Lookin' for a Woman', the speedy Cash-esque 'The Firebreak Line' and the slowed down story song with strings of 'News From Colorado'. Keeping the tempo and energy up through most of the tracks there's even chance for a cameo from Miranda Lambert, channeling Dolly Parton, on the best song on the album called 'This is How It Ends'. The brush drum on 'You Broke My Heart' lifts up an otherwise slightly maudlin track, whilst 'Sunset Highway' returns the album to its roots. At its best when it's upbeat, this is a strong collection of traditional sounding country tunes that, although lacking and big stand out singles, works as a flowing album of interesting mixes of harmonies, instruments and production vibes. (6.5/10)

Summer Heart - 101

With hints of electronic samples amongst its sweeping soundscapes, this album is a sweet and smooth collection of songs with hints of ethereal undertones, including in the opening titular song. 'Milano' has hints at the Pet Shop Boys if Neal Tennant's vocals got hidden a bit more in the production, the electronic sweeps merging together into a surging sea of audio. Single 'Follow' is the star of the show, with a crisper vocal line above the production, which excels as on other tracks. 'Follow' merges more heartfelt lyrics with a catchy chorus and some neat tricks on the layers. 'Hotel Beds', with its Moby-influence is another joy of a track, capturing the spirit of the overall summery happiness of the LP. Fifth track 'Love Affairs' is a more sultry offering with some strong electronic vibes and a clearer sound, tying in the memorability of 'Follow' over the earlier tracks.

Though we don't know the name of the final five tracks due to a fault on the streaming service, they continue in a similar uptempo poppy vibe. Track six is another chunky electro-pop number with some jerky breakdowns and vocal samples that work really well when mixed together. Track seven boasts another hooky memorable chorus and great electronic sound. Track eight is nice but not as eventful whereas the vocoder-hefty follow-up is a refreshing shift in style whilst keeping the same overall vibe. '101' wraps up with an even heftier distorted vocal track that goes much more Daft Punk, and though not a personal highlight wraps up a great sounding and entertaining album. (7/10)