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AWOLNATION

The Arches, Glasgow

Review by Gary Ogilvie

 

AWOLNATION runs on the stage “How you doing tonight… this is AWOLNATION”

In the first few bars guys are clambering onto each other shoulders. Is this a coincidence or did they know that the first song is ‘Jump On My Shoulders’…. The screams and shouts are deafening but soon change to the singing as they singalong – jump, jump jump on my shoulders.

AWOLNATION thanks everyone again and asks everyone to come closer -“You are all so far away,” says AWOL’s frontman Aaron Bruno. The crowd were nearly on the stage by this point as AWOL went into the next track ‘People’

“This is the first time playing in Glasgow” Mass of cheers as the Glasgow audience greets AWOL and his band with open arms. He breaks into the next track ‘Guilty Filthy Soul’ – a more grungy, raspy tune reminding me of the dark side of Chilli Peppers. With a lengthy guitar solo by the David Amezcua who can only be described as the guitar playing Bjorn Borg.

“Dance how you feel,” says Aaron, then after setting the scene of a 7th Grade dance and not having the confidence to speak to that significant other, AWOL says “I’m gonna talk for you for a second”

‘Not Your Fault‘ is set for release on 20th February in the UK and I feel like this is already a crowd favourite. The crowd go crazy, everyone jumping and fist pumping. AWOL and the band are obviously feeling the energy as they start to head bang and Aaron is swinging around the mic stand. THIS PLACE IS ON FIRE.

‘Kill Your Heroes’ up next with a heavy and sinister undertone but the lyrics are not as bad the title would suggest. Definitely one of my favourites.

AWOL now wants the audience to put their hands around each other for the next song ‘All I Need’ – The Arches now becomes one big love in as the tune bellows through while the crowd sway from side to side.

AWOL is showing a different side to his musical influences with this tune.

The mellow doesn’t last for long as AWOL picks up a guitar and joins for a jam. “Glasgow Scotland!!”

The song that everyone came to hear live is next – ‘Sail’ – Obviously a lot heavier than the studio version, AWOL cuddles the mic while he sings/shouts the now famous lines “Blame it on my ADD baby”. He really doesn’t need to sing at all as the crowdknow every single word. The tune is topped off with a five minute guitar solo that isdefinitely the icing on the cake “Sail!!”

‘Burn It Down’ AWOL goes hell for leather with quick pace lyrics before the heavy guitar and drums come into play. AWOL wants everyone to clap.

‘Dance like the world is ending’ a happy melodic tune. Keyboards involved. Guitars rocking, then AWOL gets into the groove with a mixture of falsetto singing and rapping. Is there anything this guy cant do?

We have witnessed many different genres and various styles of singing tonight. From mellow tunes to heavy hard rock. The crowd has certainly been entertained and couldn’t ask for more.

AWOLNATION has surprised us with his range and versatility. Is he done? No, he has mentioned that he is not doing an encore so whenwe think its all over when he walks off the stage and the band play on, imagine the surprise that he continues to sing while he is off stage. I bet nobody expected that.

“Thank you very much for listening this was AWOLNATION”

 

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Will Young – Come On

Out 20 Nov
Will Young doing what Will Young does best. Wills mellow tones holds this tune together. Could see this being performed with a live band or an acoustic session but will Will need to remix a dance version to catch a wider audience.

 

Britney Spears – Criminal

Out 20 Nov
As the Britney Spears carnival rolls on. Cracking out another poptastic tune. Confessing to be in love with a criminal (just another day in Britneys crazy world). Starting of with some flutes to throw you of the scent of where this tune is going then dropping a heavy beat (kinda timberland-esque). Then comes Britneys childish voice which is so unique I think she should trademark it. This is the same voice that seemed out of its depth singing about S&M, but she is move convincing this time round.

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JLS – Jukebox    ALBUM REVIEW

Out 14 Nov

A handful of number one singles, a string of sold-out tours and a third album .. JLS are the success story from The X Factor all contestants want, but with big expectations to live up to and even bigger competition in the form of The Wanted and One Direction, the boys had to hit it out the park with their latest album, Jukebox.

Summer club tune ‘She Makes Me Wanna’ heads up the set with RedOne-helmed Euro-club beats, while seasonal follow-up ‘Take A Chance On Me’ is a heart-warming slice of R&B sweet-nothings.

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Flo Rida – Good Feeling

Out 13 Nov
I get a good feeling about this track! Yet another urban track with rappers over dance tracks but this kinda works cause the guitars feature well before the heavy dance beats come in. There was a little tease of dubstep in the middle as well and I think a dubstep remix would go down well with the kids.

 

Westlife – Lighthouse

Out 13 Nov
Not alot of people know this but I have had the privilege of seeing Westlife in concert….twice and to be honest. This balled churning machine is still marching on. If I am honest it sounds like every slow song that they have ever done. Best way to describe I suppose is “cut & paste”. They have ran out of analogies that they are using Lighthouses. Ladies wait for the next tune where they will be comparing you to a famous breakdown company.

 

The Collective – Teardrop

Out 13 Nov
Good mix of a classic track with a heavy baseline to give it an urban feel. Seeing that it’s a charity single I hope it does well but if I’m going to be critical about anything there was no need to get more than two people to sing this tune. One established singer one established rapper. I suppose you have to have the “Do They Know It’s Christmas/Heal The World” who’s who on the track to make sure it’s different.

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Twilight Breaking Dawn Pt 1 Soundtrack – ALBUM REVIEW

Out 8 Nov

Avoid it all you like, but there are few people today who aren’t familiar with the tale of romantic woe between Twilight‘s Edward and Bella. We all know it’s not been the easiest of paths, and its impressive soundtracking from the off – which has previously featured cuts from emo-pop acts Muse, Paramore and Linkin Park – has always served as handy punctuation to help us untangle what’s beneath the teen angst and head-spinning love triangles.

The latest follows a similar template, but the effect isn’t as predictable as you’d expect. Topping the bill is Bruno Mars with brand new track ‘It Will Rain’; a stormy, love-sick ballad loaded with coming-of-age torment – even if it does sound suspiciously like it was written for purpose. Meanwhile, rising star Christina Perri‘s torch-waving ‘A Thousand Years’ will have fans begging the pair to walk the aisle should the actors themselves fail to convince.

Elsewhere, the Noisettes and Joy Formidable provide the much-needed upshots against the LP’s sludgier moments towards the back-end; Iron & Wine‘s ‘Flightless Bird, American Mouth’ is relegated to wedding party room-clearer, while Aqualung and Lucy Schwartz‘s ‘Cold’ sits in a confusing spot between haunting and sensual. In fact, if there’s one thing this collection lacks, it’s a song to define that moment we’ve all been waiting for.

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The Wanted: ‘Lightning’ – Single

out 30 oct

It’s hard to believe that just 18 months ago ‘The Wanted’ burst onto the scene with their debut single ‘All Time Low,’ but  fast forward and they’ve firmly established themselves as one of the UK’s top boybands.

“I know that it’s a little bit frightening/ We might as well be playing with lightning,” the boys belt out over a cool ‘n’ catchy melody. With performances on the X Factor, Strictly Come Dancing and being flown to the dark deserts of LA to film the video, The Wanted certainly plan on striking it lucky and making an impact with their latest release.

‘Lightening’ is a definite ‘get the party started’ tune, guaranteed to have you dancing all night.

 

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Cher Lloyd ft. Mike Posner: ‘With Ur Love’ – Single

out 30 oct

“I used to always think I was bulletproof/ But you got an AK and you’re blowing through,” Cher Lloyd admits on her new single. Given the Marmite response to her on The X Factor and the in-yer-face debut ‘Swagger Jagger’, we always knew she would be a tough nut to crack, but it turns out that given the right man (and gas-operated assault rifle) she can be just as gooey and sentimental on the inside as the rest of us.

Best of all is that she is wholly unashamed to show it. “I feel like I’m on top of the world with ur love,” she announces over beats bouncier than a space-hopper whilst acting more smitten than a 5-year-old with a full bag of pick ‘n’ mix in hand; before newbie rap-singer Mike Posner divulges the juicy deets on each of their hook-ups to date. Like a bag of Haribo Tangfastics, it’s sweet and sugary with an addictively sharp edge.

 

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Professor Green ft. Emeli Sandé: ‘Read All About It’ – Single

out 23 oct

When Stephen Manderson aka Professor Green burst on to the scene last year, he was touted as the UK’s answer to Eminem; an expert in wordsmithery with connections to the coolest kids in music who managed to work in a humourous spin on the rap scene despite a troubled history. It was, in many ways, a fairly accurate description – but has he managed to step out of Marshall’s shadow on the trailer for his second album?

If we were to liken it to the US rapper, we’d suggest ‘Read All About It’ was his ‘Cleanin’ Out My Closet’ moment; but in truth its lyrical content is too personal to be compared to his peers. “I wasn’t even 5/ Life’s a journey and mine wasn’t an easy ride,” he says of the tense relationship with his family after his father committed suicide, before a stadium-sized chorus courtesy of R&B-soul singer Emeli Sandé ensues. It may doff its cap to the rapping greats, but few can deny this is all Pro Green.

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Labrinth ft. Tinie Tempah: ‘Earthquake’ – Single

out 23 oct

Timothy McKenzie aka Labrinth is one of the busiest act in music today. Not only did he helm this year’s Children In Need single under the watchful eye of Gary Barlow, but he put his solo ambitions on hold for a full 12 months to kickstart the careers of Yasmin, Loick Essien and Ms Dynamite. With both now released from captivity, we’re pleased to see label boss Simon Cowell has allowed him some time in the studio to record a new single.

And what a single Earthquake is… With line like “Ladies and gentlemen/ This is something they call a ground-breaker,” he announces on the intro over hi-wired synthesizer, before a mosh-athon of squelchy D&B beats shower down on a speaker-splitting chorus. “Hey Simon, we’re f**king them up/ Turning them Syco,” he boldly claims, before Tinie Tempah promises to “set the place on fire”.

 

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