Brats, Beer And Beats

The world’s largest Brat Fest opens its gates once again, at the beautiful Willow Island in Madison, Wisconsin. The first experience I had with this iconic Wisconsin festival was seeing an unusual bright yellow t-shirt hung up in my wife’s closet, on it was the now recognisable cartoon brat. Ever since then I have been waiting with anticipation to check out the festival full of brats, beer and musical beats.

The smiling brat face is very striking and could even described as timeless in its appearance, as it appeals to the whole family but this is just one of the many reasons why hundreds of thousands of visitors flock to the states capitol every year since 1983. The obvious initial attraction for the festival is the food, the famous brat cook out rustles up millions of tasty treats for the masses, including hog and vegan brats. What better way to wash down a brat on a summer’s day, than with a beer, my choice being a local brew from Capitol Brewery. The sweet taste of the golden amber nectar complimented the delicious brat from the first bite.

While chomping down on food and drink, there was plenty of music to sit back and enjoy for free! There were four stages to check out from a verity of artists, from rap to rock. As well as music, there was a grand car show, carnival ground and plenty of activities for the children. After hitting the festival with the in laws on the Saturday I and the wife decided to go back for a second day on Sunday... Mainly because of the free firework show but also more brats and music, how could we resist. Also with it being Memorial weekend it is a good way to bring people together to remember those we may have lost.

If you haven’t been to Brat Fest before or want to experience a taste of real American culture, then this festival should be on your summer to do list. I certainly cannot wait until it rolls around again, however I am hoping for some little improvements in the festival for the future. It would be nice to see more things to do at the festival, more staggered stage times, more food types at better prices such as Brat flavours. With that said this festival is home grown and free, helped along by an army of volunteers and some generous charities.

So next year start the summer right with some beer, brats and beats in the summer solstice.

The Man With Stars On His Knees

Aaron Buchanan And The Cult Classics – The Man With Stars On His Knees album review.

‘Aaron Buchanan’ has stars on his knees and superstar status in his mind with this debut album shooting him skywards. The album entitled "The Man With Stars On His Knees" is fuelled by explosive and melodic rock from start to finish, with the help of Aarons’ band, ‘The Cult Classics’.

Aaron is no stranger to the rock scene being in various projects and bands including, the ever changing, Heavens Basement. The experiences he has had and the background growing up in the music scene shine through his debut solo work as it pays homage to late generations of rock n roll. After listening to the album in full one can truly appreciate the eclectic and brilliant sound that has been crafted. Tracks like ‘All The Things You Have Said And Done’ and ‘Dancin’ Down Below’ are made for anyone to shake out their vocal cords, while title track ‘The Man With Stars On His Knees’ will get everyone reaching for their air guitars.

The pinnacle track would be ‘Journey Out Of Here’ as it combines all the best aspects of the artist and band. The track starts as an angelic poetic love affair with Aaron’s unique voice and lyrics before being treated to a heavy grinding riff. All the tracks from this debut solo project are worth having on repeat and certainly will be an experience when transformed into a live format.

A perfect comparison of this music to any others would be the love child of ‘Rise Against’ and ‘Queen’.  ‘The Man With Stars On His Knees’ drops to earth at the end of May so sit down, pick up the album and prepare for an intergalactic thrill ride from the next generation of rock star.

Feel The Love This Summer

Clean Cut Kid – Felt album review

Feel the love this summer. After working relentlessly for almost two years, hoping on tours and teasing us with singles, ‘Clean Cut Kid’ has finally released a debut album, ‘Felt’.  Just like the name suggests it is a feel good album bursting with life and colour for people of all ages.

The passion these four “Liverpodlian” musicians have for music can be ‘Felt’ throughout this exciting body of work, as they prove they are more than capable of writing more than one hit. After picking up the album you will realise that ‘Felt’ is a collection of sing-along singles that you have constantly been humming to over the last year, all produced by the same band.  From ‘Vitamin C’ to ‘Runaway’, ‘Make Believe’ to ‘Pick Me Up’ these songs just leave you filled with joy and will certainly put a smile on your face. Just like their live shows, the album never has a dull moment. Even when the tempo drops to the slower ballads of ‘Evelyn’ and ‘Brother Of Mine’, your audio senses are captured into the tracks narratives.  

A stand out track is really hard on this solid piece of work, but the title track of, ‘Felt’ would be up there. Due to it being a master piece of a pop song, showing depth and love backed up by a catchy chorus, as per. If you want to impress a significant other, make sure to check out this super charged debut album as it will help cement anyone’s coolness as “I heard them first”. For fans of ‘The 1975’, ‘Michael Jackson’ &  huge sing-alongs’.  ‘Felt’ is an album full of intertwining musical gems resulting in a smooth standout album, which will be THE debut of the year. 

Hear The Love Lion Roar

Uncle Frank – Love Lion album review.

Hear the Love Lion roar as the quartet rockers, ‘Uncle Frank’ triumphantly return with their second album, ‘Love Lion’. Full of groove and swagger, this album is a perfect fit for THE soundtrack to 2017 and beyond.

Love Lion, is destined to make anyone with a soul move, from the initial opening of ‘Love Lion’ to closer of ‘North Shore’ it is clear that ‘Uncle Frank’ have developed their sound on from the first record. They have done this by taking their core scar punk music sound and bringing it into the 21^st century with added production.  This sound is not a hundred percent unique with the amount of revivals and nostalgia floating around, but it is original and exciting for ‘Uncle Frank’ to step into this new territory. As they have proven before they are more than capable of crafting their own musical treasures, which can get the listeners/audience moving.

Alongside the wilder funk tracks are some delicate love songs such as, ‘Your Man’ which will suit all audiences. Stand out track is be ‘Ku Ku Nu’, which has a perfect summer vibe, certainly one for the festivals or club nights, responsibly knocking back a bottle of beer. For fans of ‘Kasabian’,  ‘Blondie’ & good old soul/funk.  ‘Uncle Frank’ has already released ‘Love Lion’ upon to the world so if you want to excite your soul, go capture this wild and evocative album now.