Soundchecks Rock and Pop Music Reviews

  • Welcome to SOUNDCHECKS.co.uk! Our current main features and reviews, covering the best in all types of music, are listed below... Subscribe to our emailing list for news about this site.
    "on the smoothest ride, there's a squeaky wheel" - BRAVEST FACE by Rush
  • Beach Boys US pop's official spokesmen for surfing, cars, and girls (perhaps not in that order?) The Beach Boys were international hit makers whose 1960s' music swept the world, and their story of summer continues today. British reviewers Andrew Darlington and J.C. Hartley comment on a couple of recent DVD releases... An American Band and Summer Dreams
  • Dave Stewart What is Platinum Weird? Who is Erin Grace? Dave Stewart has moved on from The Eurythmics - back into the past. Re-launching a band he was part of in 1973... or is he? Was he..? Like the album title, is it all Make Believe? Is Platinum Weird Dave Stewart's Gorillaz? Andrew Darlington gets some answers...
  • Heri Joensen Octavio Ramos Jr interviews Heri Joensen, vocalist and guitarist with prog Viking folk-metal band Týr, and hears about the band's fascination with Norse mythology, their musical influences, and life on the Faroe Islands. Read our reviews of Tyr's CD Eric The Red, and concept album Ragnarok, a tale about the end of the world...
  • Tall Poppies Australian twins Catherine and Susan Hay have a charismatic vibe as singer-songwriters Tall Poppies, with rich melodies and wonderfully lilting vocals, they exude beguiling charm and quiet sophistication. Christopher Geary reviews these lovely ladies' unique debut album Thursday, and we catch the Poppies' marvellous live set for Alienation, at Ryde Theatre on the Isle of Wight.
  • Andrea Tilenni Andrea Tilenni - the single member and driving force of the enigma known as Fear Of Eternity, is a man of few words. Octavio Ramos Jr attempts to gain some insight into Tilenni's official debut album, Toward The Castle, the one-man band's latest release, Spirit Of Sorrow, and the extraordinary music played mostly through a simple keyboard setup...
  • Long John Baldry Flipping through websites and obituaries, it becomes apparent that Long John Baldry is retrospectively defined by his associations - Rod Stewart and Elton John, Mick Jagger and Charlie Watts, Brian Auger and Alexis Korner - which is all true, but tends to skew his real contribution. As one of the 'fathers of British blues' Baldry's vision was always purer, more 'academic' than it was commercial. Yet, for a while, he also had massive hits... and that's where the heartaches begin. Andrew Darlington tells the full story...
  • Donovan All of a sudden - Donovan Leitch is everywhere. His long-promised long-awaited autobiography - The Hurdy-Gurdy Man was published in autumn 2005 and, in the meantime, EMI are issuing four digitally re-mastered extended editions of previously-USA-only albums, while he's launching a new series of Beat Café themed gigs, with Rat Scabies on drums! Andrew Darlington was there to get the details...


Edited by Tony Lee
for PIGASUS Press