Dramatic, emotional, evocative. Electrifying. Triumphant. That is Hamilton, as good a musical as has appeared on stage. That’s right. Nothing yet seen can or has bettered it. The story is woven into the music, often delivered at breakneck speed and we are taken on a journey of discovery. Hip hop predominates, but everything from R&B to pop, soul and…
We all know “Things Are Great” is what you say, when you don’t want to tell people that you’re really going through a challenging time. It’s the more grandiose version of “I’m fine.” And like many of the songs here by Ben Bridwell and his Band of Horses, the overall effect is uplifting and liberating,…
Once you learn that Robbie Fairchild was a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet you can understand why he glides so effortlessly across the stage in a stellar display as the centrepiece of An American in Paris. He’s a wonderful talent and he pairs that magnificently with acting and singing. Mind you, his leading lady,…
Our selection of the best new music across a range of genres from the week ending 18 March 2022. April March has quite the resume: an animator on Pee Wee’s Playhouse and for Madonna’s “Who’s That Girl” video, and collaborating with Brian Wilson, Jack White, LL Cool J, Jonathan Richman, Ronnie Spector and Bertrand Burgalat….
Our selection of the best new music across a range of genres from the week ending 11 March 2022. Norwegian musician and novelist Jenny Hval has released her new album Classic Objects on 4AD Records. Classic Objects is a map of places; past places, like the old empty Melbourne pubs Hval’s band used to play…
Our selection of the best new music across a range of genres from the week ending 4 March 2022. GRAMMY-nominated saxophonist and composer Melissa Aldana joins Blue Note Records with the release of 12 Stars, her debut album as a leader for the legendary jazz label. At 33, the Brooklyn-based tenor player from Santiago, Chile…
Our selection of the best new music across a range of genres from the week ending 25 February 2022. There’s something almost excruciating about the places in between. The feeling of falling. A reassertion of gravity as one step leads to another but just before the foot lands. The purgatory between borders, before clarity becomes…
Although Cyrano de Bergerac was a real person, most of the works that bear his name stem from Edmond Rostan’s 1897 play. Film versions of the story date back to 1900, but recent efforts include Roxanne (1987) with Steve Martin, and Cyrano de Bergerac (1990) with Gerard Depardieu. But the latest has a more circuitous…
Our selection of the best new music across a range of genres from the week ending 18 February 2022. Through the hazy daze of a smoky folk opus, Modern Studies craft rich soundtracks, stuttering Super-8 sketches from a washed-out world of melancholy, hand-tinted and tantalising. Lullaby couplets blossom into gorgeous chamber pop melodies, the drama…
On her third album, singer/songwriter Erin Rae is making an effort to Lighten Up, with help from her new producer Jonathan Wilson. After establishing herself as a songwriter in the Joni Mitchell school of folk/Americana, Rae works to stretch herself here, bringing that Laurel Canyon touch of psychedelia to give her that cosmic country vibe….
