Songs on the Small Screen: The decline of music television

/ James Fenney

music tv

The celebrated program “Later… with Jools Holland” has returned. Now in it’s 46th series, it is continuing it’s longstanding tradition of being the key UK television platform for both up-and-coming artists and big name stars. It has long been in the public eye and after many years of memorable performances it has become a key part of British music culture. The problem is that the show is the last of a dying breed. Britain’s other main music shows – Top of the Pops and The Old Grey Whistle Test – are no longer with us. The former survives only in the form of an annual Christmas special and the latter is on the way to fading from the public’s memory. Continue reading →

Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame 2015

/ James Fenney

rarhof

This years new inductees into Cleveland’s world famous music museum included Ringo Starr, Lou Reed, Joan Jett, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Bill Withers, Green Day, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band and The 5 Royales. The induction ceremony included speeches from Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder, John Mayer, Miley Cyrus, Fall Out Boy, Patti Smith and of course the lucky inductees themselves. Following the ceremony’s tradition, the new members of the hall of fame performed with the stars who had introduced them, before everyone coming together to perform a big all-star jam. This years performance of The Beatles’ ‘ I Want To Be Your Man’ was one of the best of recent years.

Live Review: Seasick Steve, O2 Academy Sheffield, 16th April 2015

/ James Fenney
seasick steve

Photo Source: Kevin Wells

There are two things in music, and indeed life in general, that are hard not to love: an underdog and something that breaks away from the norm. A former hobo in his seventies that plays the blues on instruments made from junk certainly fits in both of those categories. Against all the odds Seasick Steve has been one of the leading figures in the latest blues revival and become a much-loved public figure. I caught this colourful character on his latest UK tour in support of his new album ‘Sonic Soul Surfer’. Continue reading →

New Guitar Hero game announced

/ James Fenney

guitar-hero-live

Guitar Hero, the game that introduced a whole generation to a world of music, has been scheduled for a reboot due for release this Autumn. Guitar Hero Live features a new controller layout and two new game modes. You can either play along to music videos and try to rank up on the online leaderboards or the live action first-person mode, where the ‘real’ crowd and your own band react in real time to your progress. The full setlist has yet to be announced, but it will include songs from The Black Keys, The Rolling Stones, Gary Clark Jr,  The Killers, The War On Drugs, Ed Sheeran, Green Day and more.

Vinyl charts introduced for Record Store Day

/ James Fenney

record-store-day

What with sales of vinyl records reaching their highest point in 20 years, the Official Charts Company have announced the introduction of an official vinyl chart of the top 40 best selling albums and singles. The chart will commence ahead of this year’s annual Record Store Day, which has massively helped the recent revival. Many of this year’s exclusive limited edition releases, including new music from Mumford & Sons and Florence + The Machine, are bound to make an appearance. The second coming of vinyl does present some issues though. With sales having already increased around 70% thus far this year, and set to rise further due to the new charts and Saturday’s Record Store Day, manufacturers are struggling to keep up with the high demand. Hopefully investors will be influenced by the rapid record resurgence to open new production lines.