Reviews

Director: John Musker, Ron Clements Starring: Anika Noni Rose, John Goodman, Keith David, Bruno Campos, Jim Cummings, Jenifer Lewis, Oprah Winfrey, Terrence Howard Disney are back doing what they do best with The Princess & The Frog. As their first hand-drawn animated musical since Mulan (1998) and the first ever Disney movie to feature an [...]

I‘ve only recently discovered this new gem on the scene. Mateo’s live performance album Get To Know Me: Live At The Swing House is a breath of fresh air and a personal unplugged album.  It’s the kind of album you play on a weekday evening, eating chocolates and sipping wine… Okay, who does that – [...]

2010 looks set to be a great year for soul music with many a welcome return to the scene by some established favourites.  The first couple of months alone have some significant comebacks in the offing, one of which is undoubtedly that of Corinne Bailey Rae.  The Yorkshire native’s follow-up project to her incredibly successful [...]

Dir: Lee Daniels Starring: Mo’Nique, Mariah Carey, Paula Patton, Lenny Kravitz and Gabourey Sidibe. Based on the book Push by Sapphire, Precious’ story is one of harrowing sadness, unwavering strength and ultimately, triumph.  She is physically and sexually abused by both of her parents and after being expelled from school for being pregnant, she finds [...]

It was somewhat of a privilege to be in attendance at acclaimed pianist and composer Robert Mitchell’s lunchtime concert held in the Southbank Centre last Friday; a privilege in the sense that an established musician of his calibre would be willing to play for an hour completely free of charge. Then again maybe it was [...]

Souls of Mischief are back with an incandescent bluster. Montezuma’s Revenge, released on Hiero and produced by sizzling mighty Prince Paul (De La Soul, Stetsasonic, Tha Gravediggas) – with cover art work by artist Steven Lopez – is shaking Hip Hop continents, from Oakland to Africa and back again. Nine years on from their last [...]

For many UK emcees, making the jump from the subterranean Grime scene to the glitzy mainstream is always done with much hesitance. But for North London’s Chipmunk, the cautious leap was replaced with a confident stroll. Embracing a daytime radio format of music led to a number one single, a debut album, a MOBO Award [...]

Argue amongst yourselves as to which part of the UK produces the best music, but it has become very obvious that the North side of London has churned out some of the best emcees. With Sway and Chipmunk collecting numerous plaudits and the Grime scene dominated by many from north of the River Thames, one [...]

The UK Soul Jam Christmas Special took place at London’s Jazz Cafe on December 6th. To tell the truth, I hadn’t heard of this event before and I was looking forward to this experience with excitement and anticipation. I really appreciate the fact that events like this, which proudly promote new and established talent, can [...]

Gretchen Parlato is a name that has popped up time and again this Autumn. Whether it is being featured and reviewed in World Music magazines or performing as part of last month’s London Jazz Festival, Miss Parlato has been a busy bee promoting her latest release, In A Dream, the follow up to her self-titled [...]