Miles Kane Interview 2022

Miles Kane Interview

A great album cover tells a great deal about its artist. Miles Kane’s latest is no exception – one of a classic, direct and cool personality. Previously a member of the groups The Rascals and The Last Shadow Puppets, he took lockdown as an opportunity to dig deep into his musical psyche; the result was Change The Show. Released earlier this year in January, it’s an excellent record, balancing rock, mod, soul, glam and a whole lot more and glittering with style and enthusiasm, a closer look into the world of Miles Kane than ever before. Quench, then, were delighted to have the chance to talk with the indie supremo halfway between the release of the record and his tour ahead across Europe – including a stop at Cardiff. Brimming with answers to our probing questions, Miles tells us of how the record was conceived, his varied toybox of influences, and his irrepressible excitement to be back performing on stage. 

La Boheme - Welsh National Opera - Review

Originally printed in Quench 

I was at first nervous about seeing La Boheme because of it’s very nature as an opera. Though I had never seen one before, you could forgive me for feeling nervous about it. The public perception of the form signifies a certain stuffiness, held only in esteem by the oldest generations and – daresay – consisting of long, boring productions with overly melodramatic singing. However, I was certainly inquisitive and eager to be proved wrong, and so looked forward to seeing La Boheme immensely.  

 

Amsterdam (2022) Film Review

Originally printed in Gair Rhydd

Never before has such a cast amounted to so little. Amsterdam is the latest film from Oscar-nominated and subsequently-Oscar-chasing director David O. Russell. It features three friends: a doctor, a lawyer, and a nurse, all linked by the First World War, who find themselves caught up in “the Business Plot”, a real 1933 political conspiracy in the States, after a mysterious murder of a retired US general. Sound good? It’s lost 20th Century Studios $97 million. Whoops. Its box office failure has done nothing to stifle industry fears that the pandemic has done irreversible, catastrophic damage to the cinema-going habit, and Disney’s apprehensions on how to market films under its latest studio acquisition.  

Back To The Future - The Musical Review

Originally printed in Gair Rhydd 

Back To The Future: The Musical at London’s Adelphi Theatre is another instalment in the series of unusual pairing with theatre of beloved cultural institutions. Just down the road is Great British Bake Off The Musical, not far off is Only Fools And Horses, and Peaky Blinders, though only all-dancing and not so much all-singing, came to Cardiff in March. Yet this adaption of an outright classic film pays dividends to its magic.  

Act One Society Pantomime 2022 Review

The Act One Society panto has become a mainstay of the run-up to Christmas in Cardiff. Laden with crude jokes and innuendo, it’s for adults only, and this year it is entitled ‘Jungle Juice’, a hint towards it’s reworking of the Jungle Book - I was very excited for the pantomime having already enjoyed the Wizard of Oz panto put on by Act One in the same venue the previous year. This time the script is written by Joe McCartney and Austin Hampshire, the former of which also co-directs the proceedings with Sian Howells. It all took place in Pulse, and with its free-flowing bar, the audience settled in their seats for a night of gaudy entertainment. 

Review – De La Soul’s 3 Feet High and Rising - Classic reissued and finally available to stream

Originally printed in Gair Rhydd

At the approach of the 20th century’s conclusion, America’s anxieties were reflected within hip-hop. 1988 had seen the genre firmly enter the mainstream with stunning, no-holds-barred records, notably Straight Outta Compton by N.W.A and It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back by Public Enemy, yet a New York fringe movement was quickly gathering pace. It prioritised the optimism in Afrocentrism over violent imagery of guns, drugs, and crime. This positive self-expression style would be coined by De La Soul as “The Daisy Age” and perfectly encapsulated in their masterpiece LP, 3 Feet High and Rising, now finally reissued and available to stream.  

"Moonage Daydream" Film Review

A cinematic David Bowie experience that proved he was more than just a rockstar. As a big Bowie fan, I had high hopes for Moonage Daydream, a documentary-slash-art-piece directed by Brett Morgan. This isn’t a simple picture-show of music videos and talking heads: it’s a constant cacophony of sight, colour, and sound, a dramatic representation of his influences, his work, and his inspirations, punctuated only by his voice: all Bowie, all the time.