Run the Jewels | Tue 14 Nov | O2 Academy | £32.50
It’s rare to find a duo that complement and refine each other so well; rarer still for that to happen in their mid-forties. American hip-hop supergroup Run the Jewels are on course for ultimate global supremacy: El-P’s hammer-blow production, voodoo-futurist groove and typically filthy mouth on last year’s ‘RTJ3’ was only heightened by Killer Mike’s increasingly caustic and political bars. With support from Detroit motormouth Danny Brown. See our full preview here.
The Lemon Twigs | Tue 14 Nov | O2 Institute | £14.50
New York’s teenage D’Addario brothers have been baffling critics since 2015, their lo-fi brand of camp glam indie-pop getting compared to Supertramp, Wings and the Ramones. Stop analysing, close your eyes and lose yourself in the dreamy fun of their breezy eclecticism. See our full preview here.
Ulrika Spacek | Wed 15 Nov | Sunflower Lounge | £9.90
London drone-rockers Ulrika Spacek make a hell of a racket; their music rattles with guitars that graze the skin, murmuring, distant vocals coated in fuzz, and echoey, Steve-Albini drums that provide a steady march underneath all the chaos. Their celebratory and undeniably British album ‘Modern English Decoration’ has a weather-beaten aesthetic to it, impressively, enchantingly unfashionable. With support from local faves Mutes. See our full preview here.
Malka | Wed 15 Nov | Hare & Hounds | £8.80 *CANCELLED*
Scottish multi-instrumentalist Tamara Schlesinger, aka Malka, combines an inerrant attention to detail with a wild, effervescent spirit that’s part tUnE-yArDs, part My Brightest Diamond, part a bubbling concoction of Caledonian strangeness. There’s plenty to love about 2017’s ‘Ratatatat’, which pinballs from world music textures to thumping 808s and back again. skiddle.com
Trudy and the Romance | Thu 16 Nov | Sunflower Lounge | £7.70 *RESCHEDULED*
Nothing encapsulates the slanted charm of Trudy and the Romance more than the title of their latest single: ‘Twist It, Shake It. Rock & Roll’. The Liverpool band turn 50s guitar-pop tropes into a weird, mutated dirge – the bright yin to King Krule’s murky yang, you might say – playfully drunk, with that slightly threatening overtone. This gig has been rescheduled for The Castle & Falcon Fri 2 Feb 2018, original tickets remain valid. seetickets.com
Widowspeak | Fri 17 Nov | Actress & Bishop | £8
Indie-rock four-piece Widowspeak don’t sound like they come from Brooklyn at all: you’d believe they were born in the desert, with nothing but sweeping landscapes and rusted-out highway detritus to inspire them. It’s a slow burn between PJ Harvey’s rough-edged grandeur and Beach House’s blown-out melancholia. See our full preview here.
Childhood | Sun 19 Nov | Hare & Hounds | £9
To embrace a groan-worthy metaphor, Childhood have grown up this year: second album ‘Universal High’ folded classical soul and subtle rock grooves into a tasty melodic package, proudly indebted to the 70s but with enough of a modern twist to keep it their own. Besides which, a breath of easygoing, uplifting soul feels like a Godsend after this year we’re having – let your hair down and enjoy. seetickets.com
Weaves | Sun 19 Nov | Hare & Hounds | £9.90
On paper, Toronto alt-rockers Weaves simplified their formula with this year’s ‘Wide Open’, foregoing their weird and deconstructive songs for a full-on, controlled fury. It’s a gambit that paid off hugely, with Jasmyn Burke apparently channeling her inner Springsteen through state-of-the-world addresses and killer hooks. Make no mistake – Weaves are still indelibly weird, too, but now they can freak you out and charm you at the same time. seetickets.com
Words: Chris Donald - Gigs Editor
Published on: Wed 1 Nov 2017