New Education

Continuing in a similar vein to the Dooley brothers' previous outfit '5th Action Shelter', the boys return with New Education, creating grandiose Indie anthems for the late-noughties. The band have recently released the single 'Today' (which sold out of its limited number of copies) on Kids records and are set to follow it up with the equally anthemic 'Another Miracle' (due to be released on May 18th) and they look set to really take on the music scene, garnering positive reviews left, right and centre and recently recieving a write up in indie kids bible NME. The article itself is perhaps a little dramatic, overly focusing on trying to make New Education sound like the next Oasis, not only musically but in terms of their off stage antics. In both cases this is a little exaggerated, the band are not as rowdy or violent as the article suggests, neither do they sound as much like, or truthfully are they quite as good as, the early Oasis records. All the same they are certainly developing a loyal and growing fanbase in the area, and are looking to expand it beyond the region, bolstered by UK tour support slots with The Rifles, The Twang and The Holloways. As for the music itself, at times it borders on the majestic, soaring, anthemic rock songs, with lyrics looking to escape the drudgery of small-town life, without condeming it. As the band themself proclaim, this is 'the sound of the Midlands calling', at times it borders on the predicatable. But when listening to the power of 'Arcane' it is hard to argue. This could well be the biggest band to come out of Stoke for a long, long time with a recent write up in TeenFirst describing them as 'one of Britain’s most promising new rock bands'.  We can't help but wish they'd write more songs like the upcoming B-side to Another Miracle, however, the track 'Bedroom Song #19', a charming, intimate acoustic number, that lets the bravado drop a shade and reveals a more interesting sound. Still, we're sure they can go far and will be waiting eagerly for the album to be released for full review on this site.


You can check out the NME article here:  www.nme.com....

Or listen to the band more here: www.myspace.com/neweducation

Aciddrops versus...

Aciddrops has recently sparked a wave of controversy regarding his blog on 'how to get big in stoke', a tongue-in-cheek Acidtongued attack on the numerous Kasabian and Oasis wannabes of the area, (I say a wave, given that Myspace is all but defunct it was more of a ripple, but it certainly seemed to rub the guys from Skinny Pigs and The Blue Collars up the wrong way, but frankly that's no bad thing as there turgid brand of unoriginal lad-rock is polluting an interesting scene). You can check out the whole blog here: http://www.myspace.com/aciddrops85/blog/473061595

Obviously all this is largely irrelevant, but the points he makes are valid if a little vitriolic and sarcastic, and after all this is a Stoke music blog, and he is directing comments on the music scene in Stoke. But back to the music. Aciddrops is a fitting name for a suitably hallucenagenic, ambient set of tracks. 'Remember' is a calm and soothing highlight, whilst 'Ecstasy' has the warm glow that you would expect from the title. It's obvious even at a glance that Aciddrops has been heavily influenced by narcotics, from the warped and colourful photography to the tropical-house stylings of the music itself, let alone the track titles and even down the artist's name. Now this is a gift and a curse, at times the music feels a little too spacey and ultimately leaves the lsitener feeling truly monged out, but at times it replicates the warm floaty buzz that can be derived from certain legal and illegal substances...or so we're told. All in all some interesting ideas are knocking around here, and hopefully there'll be more tunes, and more controversial discussions sparked about the scene, from the as yet, somewhat mysterious and anonymous creator. One to watch out for.

You can find out more here:  www.myspace.com/aciddrops85

[We Play]

Just a quick plug and shout out to the guys of [We Play] who have been hosting one of the best local music nights to grace the town in recent times over at the Old Brown Jug in Newcastle-under-Lyme, helping to transform it into one of the town's favourite venues. The intimate surroundings often creating a packed-out environment with an electric atmosphere, a charming pub with some great tunes from behind the decks aswell as on the stage. The ridiculously talented Paddy Considine even showed up recently with his lo-fi rock band 'Riding The Low', who cite Guided By Voices as a major influence, which can clearly be heard in their live set. The night has become a mainstay of the Staffordshire music scene and has created a new home for great bands, so much so that the night is regularly packed out, regardless of who is playing, as people now attend whenever it's on as they associate the We Play events with a great evening, rather than focusing on that week's particular entertainers. Having said that there is a particularly tantilising all day line-up coming up, headlined by the exceptional Andy Gower that will be a must for local music fans, with the proceeds going to charity. What else could you want.

Be sure to head in to The Old Brown Jug on Wednesday nights to truly experience the vibe.

In the meantime you can head over to their mypsace page to find out about who's coming up next: We Play on Myspace

Welcome

Hello and welcome to Curtain Call Reviews. We are based in Staffordshire and will be publishing reviews and other articles on bands and artists from the area and nearby and bands from further afield playing in the area, including live reviews and demo or LP reviews. If you want your band to be reviewed on the blog just get in touch and have material that we can download or stream online.