LIVE: The Hoosiers at The Bodega, Nottingham (29/9/17)

Rewind ten years and you'll find The Hoosiers gearing up to release their debut album The Trick To Life, which quickly became a cult classic, reaching number one in the album chart and propelling them into the spotlight. If you can't recall the band by their name, you'll almost certainly know the hits Goodbye Mr A, Worried About Ray and Cops and Robbers (and most likely remember all of the lyrics!) Return to the current day and a lot has changed for the band, with the departure from their major label a few years back, line-up changes, and three further records under their belt (listen to them all on Spotify.) Ten years on from the first record in 2007, they've just kicked off a tour to celebrate it's anniversary, and I was lucky to head to the first night of the tour last Friday at The Bodega in Nottingham!

Having been a huge fan since the first album was released, I first saw the band live in May 2011 when they toured to promote their second album. I'd been to a couple of open air concerts in my hometown before but this was the first gig that I begged my parents to take me to so it was a pretty big deal! Since then the band have been super important in my life... looking back I honestly believe that getting to see them play and meeting them back then had a huge impact on how much I love music, which means an awful lot as its the industry I work in and have so much passion for now (and that love is what kicked off the blog!) I've made lifelong friends through the band, been to lots more shows (Friday's was the fifteenth) and made some beautiful memories at those, not to mention writing my final year dissertation in part about the band and interviewing them and some of their fans for it. 

Friday's gig was kicked off by local artist Joseph Knight playing some sad acoustic tunes (who doesn't love sad songs?!) - check out his tune Minutes. After a quick turnaround, the stage was ready for The Hoosiers, but first they gave us an unusual warm-up, inviting two fans up to the stage to do a spot of karaoke. It's a first for me but I found myself thinking at the time that every gig should start that way, as the tunes (Here It Goes Again and Naive) lightened up the crowd and got everybody singing along.

The Hoosiers soon took to the stage, performing a set of two halves, first performing The Trick To Life in full. TTTL is such a poignant album from my youth and is really special to me so getting to hear it played live among a sold out crowd of people who clearly loved the record just as much and sang along to all the words was an incredible experience. Despite Worried About Ray and Goodbye Mr A coming early in the set (a little disorienting as they've finished with GMA at possibly every show I've seen them play) the band and audience maintained as much energy for the rest of the tracks from the album. It blew my mind just how well the rest of the crowd knew the lyrics to each song from the album, including the quiter, slower numbers like Clinging On For Life which I recorded and you can watch below and my personal favourite Everything Goes Dark. The first half of the set was topped off with Irwin inviting a fan onstage to sing the album's last track Money To Be Made with him - I almost wish I'd been brave at the time as I know the track inside out and reckon it'd be pretty unforgettable, but the chap who put himself forward did a great job and wasn't actually a bad singer!

After a quick departure from the stage the band returned to play the second half of the set, kicking off with a tune from their latest record, Pristine, followed up by first album B-side Rules, which I can't say I ever expected to hear live! Somewhere In The Distance and Up To No Good, which feature mini Teardrops and I Can't Feel My Face covers followed and went down really well with the crowd, carrying on the big singalongs, before they finished up with second album single Choices. Despite being the first show of the tour the show was just as awesome as the first time I saw them live, and I especially need to give a shoutout to Paul Frith and Leighton Allen who have joined the band recently for live shows on keys and bass respectively - both doing a cracking job!! The night was topped off by bumping into Irwin and Paul outside the venue afterwards, it's always lovely to catch up, especially as it was my Mum's first time seeing the band since Summer 2015 - cue a reunion selfie!

If you made it this far in the post and want to relive a slice of 2007 for yourself, check out the rest of the tour dates, including a show at London's famous Scala next Friday (13th Oct) on the band's website here, but be quick as many of the shows are selling out!

TOUR NEWS: The Hoosiers 10th anniversary tour (Nov 2017)

What a way to kick off the week - my favourite band The Hoosiers are celebrating the tenth (!!) anniversary of their hit debut album The Trick To Life with their biggest tour for several years, taking in 27 shows around the UK in October and November. They'll be releasing the album on vinyl for the first time for a limited run as well as a 2CD edition with extra tracks. All the dates are here, with tickets going on pre-sale at 10am this Wednesday.

Full dates:

Fri 29th Sep: The Bodega, Nottingham
Sun 1st Oct: MK11, Milton Keynes
Tues 3rd: The Lounge, Canterbury
Weds 4th: Old Fire Station, Bournemouth
Thurs 5th: The Boileroom, Guildford
Fri 6th: The Sugarmill, Stoke
Sat 7th: Kasbah, Coventry
Tues 10th: Waterfront, Norwich
Weds 11th: O2 Academy 2, Leicester
Thurs 12th: O2 Academy 2, Oxford
Fri 13th: Scala, London
Sat 14th: The Venue, Derby
Weds 18th: Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff
Thurs 19th: Subscription Rooms, Stroud
Fri 20th: Komedia, Bath
Sat 21st: Phoenix, Exeter
Sun 22nd: Fleece, Bristol
Weds 25th: Academy 3, Manchester
Thurs 26th: O2 Academy 2, Sheffield
Fri 27th: The Live Rooms, Chester
Tues 31st: Lincoln Imp, Scunthorpe
Weds 1st Nov: O2 Academy 2, Newcastle
Thurs 2nd: Potterrow, Edinburgh
Fri 3rd: King Tuts, Glasgow
Sat 4th: Diamond Lounge, Doncaster
Sun 5th: Engine Shed, Lincoln
Mon 6th: The Horn, St Albans

GIG NEWS: Music for Grenfell at St Stephen's Church (27th July)

Since the fire at Grenfell Tower in North Kensington just over three weeks ago the resilience and unity shown by local residents and those further afield has been astounding. The music world too has done its bit to help with various benefit concerts and a huge charity single, and there's some more exciting news to come from this awful tragedy as Sam Swallow (ex keys player, backing vocalist and all round legend for The Hoosiers) and friends have organised what they promise to be "an evening of fantastic music to lift everyone's spirits in this difficult time and bring our community together". The concert will take place in the stunning surroundings of St Stephen's Church in Shepherd's Bush, where Sam, The Hoosiers, Alessi's Ark and more will be performing, all for the total bargain price of £10, with donations and money raise through the bar being donated to the tower fund. Join the Facebook event for the show here and grab your tickets here for what is sure to be a special night of wonderful live music! To whet your appetites, here are The Hoosiers performing the beautiful Don't Say What Nobody Wants to Hear in the church a few years ago!

LIVE: The Hoosiers at O2 Academy Islington (3/9/16)

Last weekend I caught my first proper gig in a few weeks, seeing my absolute favourite guys The Hoosiers play their last headline show for a while, a big London gig. I've seen them play in various places and to much bigger crowds at a couple of small festivals, but this was my first time seeing them play a London show so it was a pretty special one for me. As the first band whose music really stuck with me since the first record back in 2007 when I was starting secondary school, the first proper gig I went to and a band through which I've made a lot of friends, I think of them as the root of a lot of my current passion for music. I definitely think it goes without saying that my love of the band and their music has been pretty formative in my life so they'll always hold a really special place in my heart (not to mention the fact that they're some of the loveliest guys I've had the pleasure of meeting at various shows) and it's always great to catch them live. 

The show was also pretty exciting as I'm interviewing people about it for my dissertation, for which I've chosen to study live music, looking at the motivations of people attending live music events. I love going to gigs and have had some of my best experiences at them, and generally, I'm interested in finding out why other people go to shows. Specifically, I think it can be pretty heartbreaking to see a great band play to a non-capacity crowd, and with revenue from live music being of increasing importance to artists, I think it's important for promoters to understand why people go to shows (as well as the various types of people that go to their shows). This is in the hope that they can more successfully promote their shows to these various audiences, benefitting both the promoter and the artists, and helping more people to have a great time. I'm planning to focus upon a Sofar Sounds show too so that I can compare the two (quite different) gigs and the different reasons people have for attending them. I'm currently interviewing some people who attended the show last weekend, which I'm loving as it's always great to discuss a mutual interest, and I love hearing the lovely things people have to say about the guys.

As there were four support acts (four?!) it felt quite a long night and it meant that the guys' set was a little shorter than it probably should've been considering it was their headline show, but it was one of my favourite times seeing the band play... perhaps it's the fact it was a London show and a London crowd, but it felt extra fun, and Irwin's falsettos (often one of the highlights of their live shows) were on a completely different level.. I loved that every time his voice went high, the guys stood in front of me looked at each other in complete amazement. As if the show itself weren't great enough, Irwin and Al were sweet enough to allow me into their dressing room to ask them some questions for my project. My first face-to-face interview and it's with my favourite band... not bad going! It's crazy to think what 11/12 year old me would've thought, faced with the idea of being backstage with the guys and chatting to them!

It's pretty bizarre to think that with the first record being released in 2007, I've been a fan for almost half of my life, and at the show on Saturday, Al properly announced that they'll be returning in 2017 for a ten year anniversary tour, playing the record in its entirety for the first time. Huge sadness however as Sam, who has played keys and sang backing vocals with they guys for a long time, is leaving the band and Saturday was his last show... he's off to release his solo music and work on some other projects and I'm excited for him but it's always terribly sad when a member of your favourite band leaves! Of course we're all holding out a tiny hope that they'll reunite with Martin as part of the anniversary tour but who knows?! For now, Irwin's off to star in Big the Musical with an all-star cast, which runs in Portsmouth and Dublin over November and December, hopefully being followed by a run in the West End! Seems a right time to put some music in this post... a video of the guys performing probably my favourite track of theirs, Everything Goes Dark, acoustically in Worcester last November.

In the meantime, if you've made it this far through the post and you're wondering how the guys are still gigging off the back of the first album - they've since released three more records including last October's The Secret Service. Details of all the releases is on their site here where you'll also find news about live shows as and when they happen!

LISTEN: July 2016 playlist

Compared to the last couple of months, July has been pretty busy, with gigs from King Charles, Twin Atlantic, Jack Savoretti, Harry Pane, The Hoosiers, Bear's Den (as well as attending a TV recording and seeing a play a couple of times). The playlist reflects the music I've been listening to live at those shows, as well as some great new releases, and I've explained why I've added each track/artist below - check it out and let me know here or on Facebook if you enjoy the tracks! Spread the word... 

1. Viola Beach Swings And Waterslides - with their album released posthumously on Friday, it feels only right to start the playlist with this track. Back in February I went along to a Blossoms show on the tour where Viola Beach were due to be playing as support, and out of respect they played a live recording of their set from an earlier show of the tour. I can't wait to take a proper listen to the record once I get some time to sit and give it my full attention.

2. Bear's Den Emeralds - I'm loving Red Earth & Pouring Rain, the new record from these guys a lot, and apparently so are lots of people as it reached number 6 in the album chart on Friday (YES!). While it's difficult to pick a favourite track as the whole thing is pretty incredible, this is a stand out track for me!

3. Biffy Clyro Animal Style - these guys released their latest record Ellipsis this month, and I'm very excited to have grabbed a ticket to see them play an acoustic show for Banquet Records in October. 

4. Leo Stannard In My Blood - Leo's pretty close to announcing news of his debut album (I hope) and I was very excited to listen to the studio version of this track, released this month. I loved hearing the track when he played it live for the first time back in February.

5. Tempesst Broke Down Blues - this track was debuted online just before I saw these guys play at the Reach Out charity gig, and it went down really well with the crowd as did the rest of the set. They were really fun live, and they've got a headline London show coming up in September through Communion, tickets here.

6. Twin Atlantic Crash Land - this month I finally got to see these guys play live, in the pretty intimate Scala. While the rest of the show was loud and energetic, a highlight for me (probably as a big fan of acoustic music) was that they performed this track, accompanied by some pretty loud singing by the crowd.

7. Jack Savoretti Sweet Hurt - I was really lucky to get into Jack's sold out Somerset House show this month, and while all of his music is pretty special to me, there's something extra lovely about this non-album track. An added bonus for Bella Italia to play the track when I was grabbing some food there before heading to the show!

8. All Tvvins Darkest Ocean - these guys, a duo from Dublin, supported Twin Atlantic on their recent tour and their set was a whole lot of fun to kick the night off with. I was particularly fond of how much fun it seemed the guitarist was having (and the fact that the bassist was the lead vocalist - hooray for changing up the normal dynamic!) Their debut album IIVV is released in a couple of weeks (iTunes pre-order) and they're playing a UK tour in October (dates on their site here.)

9. The Hoosiers Up To No Good - a highlight of the month was definitely catching these guys (for the 11th time) headlining a new festival in Rescue Rooms in Nottingham where I first saw them live over 5 years ago. They play a huge London headline in September, tickets available here.

10. Geowulf Saltwater - a really lovely summer tune, this is the debut track from Geowulf, a new duo who opened up the Reach Out Charity gig this month. 

11. Tom Lowman Blue State - this pretty cynical and relevant track ("the country's going mad, perhaps it always was") is taken from Tom's debut album Tales from the Wrong Side of History (available on iTunes here.)

12. Harry Pane Cold Light of Day - this is from Harry's Changing EP, the title track of which featured in last month's playlist as I loved the EP so much. I was really glad to catch Harry playing a short set in Shoreditch this month as part of the Coffee House Tour.

13. Gizmo Varillas Give a Little Love - Gizmo played a fun support set when I saw Jack Savoretti this month - his debut album El Dorado is out later in the year!

14. Twin Atlantic Gold Elephant: Cherry Alligator - while the other track by these guys in the playlist is from their 2012 record, this is a new track from their upcoming release GLA (a nod to their Glaswegian roots) which is out in September (pre-order on their site here and get three tracks  including this one instantly.)

15. Jack Savoretti The Proposal - while Jack's huge success over the last couple of years has coincided with the release of his latest record Written In Scars and its subsequent re-release, I'm a huge fan of his third record Before The Storm and it was great to hear tracks like this one in the Somerset House setlist! Check out a video of the track being performed at the show, filmed by Martin who I met in the queue with whom it turns out I have a few mutual friends and musical interests!

16. King Charles Love Lust - while I'd definitely have considered going along to the Reach Out charity gig if Charles hadn't been on the line-up (cake, charity, other great acts and a whole host of lovely people!), it was definitely a bonus. Playing as a stripped back 3-piece band, with a temperamental guitar and scheduled after the Euro 2016 final (meaning the set was cut short a little) the night was pretty fun and it was a pleasure to see Charles & co play as always! 

17. Tom Figgins Rain On Me - I'll stop rambling about the charity gig soon (did I mention it raised around £1650?!) but one last thing... it was great to see Tom play again, with a highlight of the night being an impromptu performance of his stunning track Crave (not on Spotify but a demo on Soundcloud) to 5 or 6 of us as he tested his guitar after it fell from his case as he tried to leave. 

18. Bear's Den Gabriel - to celebrate the release of their record, Bear's Den played a mini tour of record stores, including Rough Trade in Nottingham (read my post about the show here.) With the band finishing off their beautiful, full and fairly warm set with an unplugged performance of this track within the crowd (like this performance in The Netherlands), it feels like a nice place to finish the playlist at!

LIVE: The Hoosiers at Sweetnotes Festival, Rescue Rooms (16/7/16)

Another day, another gig, and I rounded off another great week in July seeing my favourite guys, The Hoosiers on Saturday night. It was a homecoming of sorts, seeing them headline a new festival, Sweetnotes, in Rescue Rooms in Nottingham, the venue where I first saw them on a tour over five years ago. It's actually pretty nostalgic to be back there, as it's the only place where I've seen all three of my favourite artists (TH, Sam Beeton who was supporting them, and King Charles in 2013.) That show back in 2011 was also the first proper gig I went to, so it's really the place where it all started, in a way! Following a day of shopping/grabbing food, we headed to the venue, and caught a couple of the sets before The Hoosiers were on, including local band The Mocking Jays who were quite fun! 

Though having four albums means that favourite tracks are always going to be missed out of setlists (miss you, Giddy Up), I'm chuffed that they're playing a couple of tracks from the first record The Trick To Life that haven't always been in the set, including Run Rabbit Run. And although the crowd was nowhere near as big as the show all those years ago, I had a brilliant time, and it was great to see the guys for the first time since the tour in October, and an acoustic show in November. They even smuggled a couple of little covers into the set, The Weeknd's Can't Feel My Face and Womack & Womack's Teardrops. Sad not to get to chat afterwards (but some lovely tweets from the gigs fixed that), but very much looking forward to the start of September, when I'll hopefully see the guys play their huge O2 Islington show (tickets here for 3rd Sep) and maybe even the Milton Keynes show they've just added for the day before.

FESTIVAL NEWS: Sweetnotes Festival (16th July)

From the team organising Macmillan Fest, there's a new one-day festival in Nottingham next month giving local indie artists the opportunity and the platform to support larger artists, with The Hoosiers headlining. The festival is taking place at The Rescue Rooms and the venue's smaller upstairs space, Red Rooms. There will be thirteen acts performing from 2 til 10pm, with no clashes at all (if you want to go up and down stairs several times during the day to really get your money's worth!) Headlining the second stage is local rising artist Richard Jenkins - check out his first music video here. Looking forward to hopefully getting along to the show to see The Hoosiers in the venue where I saw them for the first time back in May 2011!

Tickets for the day are £15 in advance and available here, and join the Facebook event here.

GIG NEWS: The Hoosiers (3rd September)

The Hoosiers have announced a London show at the O2 Islington on 3rd September (tickets are available now through Ticketweb here.) The show comes before the ten year anniversary of their debut album The Trick To Life next year and follows a summer of festival and university ball appearances.

While I've seen lead singer Irwin's other band, The Sea & I, in London several times, I've never been able to catch TH in London, so this should be pretty exciting. First up I'll hopefully be seeing them in Nottingham next month at the Sweet Notes Festival (info for that here), in the venue where I saw them live for the first time over five years ago. 

LISTEN: May 2016 playlist

With deadlines, and moving back home (and away from Oxford and it's wonderful music scene) I've only been to a couple of gigs this month, so when it came to making a playlist of what I've been listening to this month, I couldn't just rely on artists I've seen live... One of the shows I have been to is childhood favourites Busted, so they feature, alongside current (teen?) favourites The Hoosiers, so this month's playlist is pretty nostalgic. Here's the playlist, and I'll write a little to explain why I've included the tracks below. 

1. Busted Meet You There - loved seeing this track performed live from the B stage at their arena show in Nottingham, one of my favourite tracks by them! 
2. Tom Odell Magnetised - new track from Tom's upcoming album Wrong Crowd which is released on June 10th! Wish I'd nabbed a HMV priority ticket to his London instore album launch/signing... still tempted by Brixton later in the year! 
3. Leo Stannard Lost (acoustic) - can't get enough of Leo at the moment, excited to see he's done an album cover shoot this month so hopefully some album news is on the way!
4. The Hoosiers Cops and Robbers - my favourite band, featuring three times on this month's playlist (deserved!) because on Saturday (28th) it was 5 years since I saw them live for the first time, which was my first proper gig too! SO many great times since then.
5. Grace Lightman Faultless - I saw Grace supporting Liu Bei last October, her vocals on this new track are pretty stunning.
6. Sam Beeton Moving Out - what makes being a fan of The Hoosiers even more special for me is that at that first show 5 years ago, Sam was supporting and I quickly became a huge fan of his music. 
7. Neverlnd Someone - my favourite local Oxford band, sad to miss these guys playing both the recent BBC Introducing show at O2 Academy and at the first Common People Festival this weekend which I'm sure they smashed! This is the latest in their monthly free tracks, and is avaialble to download here.
8. Robot Swans Pricks of the Trade - alongside Busted, these guys were my only other gig this month, running the door for their Tigmus album launch at Modern Art Oxford. Listening to them beforehand and at the show this is the track that stuck with me.
9. James Blake (ft. Bon Iver) I Need A Forest Fire - James Blake made a return this month, and while I struggled to choose which track of his to include, I couldn't really steer away from his collaboration with Bon Iver. Those beautiful vocals!
10. Jake Houlsby Carousel - recommendations always come from wonderful places and I was pointed towards this track by my secondary school Media Studies teacher - love it!
11. Fyfe Stronger - after seeing him on the Communion New Faces tour back at the end of 2014, I'm glad to hear that Fyfe is returning with an EP, of which this is the title track.
12. The Hoosiers Don't Say What Nobody Wants To Hear - another track from these guys, my favourite from their acoustic album, recorded in a church in London (video of this track here, and some more videos of tracks from that album here.) 
13. Busted Sleeping With The Light On - with the house lights down and everyone's phone torches on, and everyone singing to their heart's content, this track was pretty special at the show a couple of weeks ago!
14. Wheatus Teenage Dirtbag - this will probably make me lose my music cred faster than Busted, but it was pretty fun to hear this performed live as they're supporting Busted on the tour!
15. Sam Beeton Can You See The Light - album version of one of my favourite tracks of Sam's, taken from his record In The Yard which was released early last year. It was great to meet up with him and catch up after not seeing him for over two and a half years this month!
16. The Hoosiers Everything Goes Dark - there is no better way to finish off the playlist than with another Hoosiers track (especially as, being pretty nostalgic, what I've been listening to this month includes a LOT of their music.) EGD is certainly my favourite track from their debut record, and probably my absolute favourite. I adore this acoustic version filmed in Arizona which is on the DVD that accompanies the re-release of their second record.

WATCH: Sam Swallow - 'I Lost You That Night'

I'm partial to a stripped back song showcasing the vocals and songwriting of the artist, and who better to deliver this than Sam Swallow, one third of a favourite band of mine, The Hoosiers. A long serving touring member of the band, Sam was announced as a 'proper' member of the band just over a year ago and is a hugely talented vocalist and pianist. Above is a performance on Irish TV's Ayala Show, with Sam performing a fairly gripping and emotive love song, I Lost You That Night. There aren't any specific details online as of yet, but he's working on a solo record which is a pretty exciting prospect!

Sam's certainly been a busy chap with The Hoosiers recently releasing their fourth studio record, The Secret Service - read my recommendation of the album here. 

LIVE: The Hoosiers at Huntingdon Hall, Worcester (14/11/15)

Saturday night saw me go to my 57th gig of the year (crikey), seeing my favourite band, The Hoosiers, for the 10th time, at Huntingdon Hall in Worcester. The show was particularly special as it was an acoustic gig, with a really respectful, quiet crowd, meaning the sound of the performance carried so well around the venue. I've been wanting to see the guys play an acoustic show for years now, and I saw about it a few months back and noted it was close to Oxford, where I'm at university, and recently decided fairly spontaneously to book a hotel and train tickets (which turned out to be a pretty great decision!)

As the venue was like a theatre, they had a no phones/photos rule, but the band had told the venue that I was coming to take photos, and I was told I could go in the balcony by myself (rather than lingering near the front, as if people saw me taking photos that would encourage them to take photos too). Sadly, I didn't have a lens that was cut out for shooting at that distance but got a few decent, if a tad unclear, photos - I've put some of the best up on my Flickr here.

As the seat I'd been allocated originally was 13 rows back, I was grateful for the superb and clear view that I got of the guys from the balcony, as well as the fact I was up there by myself for most of the set and could sing along to my heart's content! The set itself was stunning, it was certainly worth the wait to see them play acoustically, with them performing a 15 track set including all the hits alongside a few tracks from their latest album, The Secret Service, which they released independently just over a month ago. 

Being in the balcony also meant I could film some of the set - but of course I made an effort to look beyond my phone and enjoy the performance in the moment, simply filming so I'd have the footage to watch back as tokens of the night. The set was actually fairly emotional, with me really happy to finally be seeing the guys play acoustic coupled with the fact I was surprised with a few tracks I hadn't expected to hear, a few of which made me cry quite a bit... but happy tears! The setlist was a little different to usual shows, with the band playing some tracks that they barely get to in the full band, electric set up. A highlight of the new tracks, for me, was (Don't Make) Eye Contact, the first ever live performance of this acoustic track. This was performed just after first album track, A Sadness Runs Through Him, the first time I've seen them perform this track live, and once again - worth the wait entirely. 

A little later in the set, they played another first album track which rarely makes it onto the setlist, Money To Be Made, with Irwin unplugging his guitar and stepping in front of the microphone - a truly live, acoustic, and stunning performance. Returning to the stage following a foot stomping demand for an encore from the audience, Irwin took to the stage alone and began to play my favourite song of the band's, Everything Goes Dark. I'd heard the track a couple of years ago performed electrically, then last month on the band's tour, performed acoustic (but naturally there's a difference between a show of this sort and a show where the crowd are rowdy and anxious for the band to play Goodbye Mr A...) With Sam and Al each joining Irwin on stage separately, the performance gradually built up and was, in short, as superb as I could've hoped for.

Overall (if you haven't guessed so far!) I had such a brilliant night and I'm feeling really lucky to have been there for this really special evening. As always it was lovely to chat to the guys afterwards, they're genuinely some of the nicest guys I know and I can't encourage you enough to go and take a listen of the latest record, and then buy it, of course, to support independent music. And for the record - it wasn't all doom and gloom with me weeping in the balcony... here's a snippet of the outro to Unlikely Hero, with the audience all clapping along, a lot of fun!

For more info on the latest album, The Secret Service, and to purchase it on various formats, look at The Hoosiers official website here. 

LISTEN: The Hoosiers - 'The Secret Service'

As someone without musical talents, I feel far more comfortable writing posts that I can refer to as recommendations, as I feel I've little right to explicitly review and criticise music. I mostly write about the music I have discovered myself and as such my posts are usually particularly personal, perhaps none more so than this, about a band who I am particularly passionate about!

Last night I had the fantastic opportunity to see The Hoosiers play a small, free show in Banbury, just a £4 return train trip away from Oxford! Train delays on the way there and the fact that the set was a pretty late one (so I had to rush to catch the last train after) aside, I had such a great night (and can't wait to see them again tomorrow night in Southampton at Engine Rooms.)

The band are a few dates into a UK tour in support of their recently released fourth album, The Secret Service. Featuring four tracks already released through recent EPs, the album is in my opinion a huge triumph. It showcases a really refreshing and broad range of tracks, from the fun The Wheels Fell Off and The Most Peculiar Day Of Your Life, the chilling Dancers In The Dark and (Don't Make) Eye Contact, to a particular favourite of mine, the incredibly catchy I Will Be King. 

Album art for The Secret Service

Starting with a fairly upbeat track reflective of their hit singles, Pristine, the album contrastingly finishes with a beautiful acoustic song (My) Secret Service, with drummer Alphonso Sharland on some cracking lead vocals. Much of the record reflects this stripped back track, as a lot of the album was recorded live. Unlike so many albums that you hear, where you can't help but be skeptical of how far the production process has taken the track, and whether the band could ever reach that level of perfection in a live performance - these songs feel authentic and this gives them quite passionate, heartfelt roots, which also comes across in the lyrics.

Releasing the record independently allowed the band creative freedom to produce music that they enjoy writing and performing - which comes across in the tracks, but also as a fan is reaffirming in that they'll carry on playing while they're enjoying it! Often the pressures that come in hand with a major record deal to produce commercial music can hinder the creative process and, I imagine, make it far less fun! 

Personally I'm really proud of the band for this record, it feels fairly grown up (they've even, funnily, got an explicit track on the record) whilst simultaneously sticking with the fun and catchy nature of the tracks that shot the band to fame all those years ago (the likes of Worried About Ray and Goodbye Mr. A). I'd hugely recommend giving it a listen! You can find out more about the record and order a copy on CD/Vinyl (releasing 30th October), and look at the band's remaining tour dates including London's The Borderline this Wednesday 21st October (sadly a gig clash for me but very much looking forward to seeing Jack Savoretti that evening!) here on the band's website.

WATCH: The Hoosiers 'Up To No Good for SPG TV

October is looking fairly busy for me and this week is no exception with 4 or 5 gigs in the pipeline. Two of those are my favourite band The Hoosiers (of Goodbye Mr A fame) at a local Oxfordshire show in Banbury on Friday and Southampton on Sunday. The band just released their latest album, The Secret Service, on Friday, following the release of two EPs which featured a few of the album tracks. A particular favourite track of mine is the title track of the second EP, Up To No Good, which in my opinion is one of the band's best tracks - loving this new acoustic session of the track for Student Pocket Guide. 

The Hoosiers have just started their UK tour, dates and tickets here including a show at London's intimate The Borderline.

LISTEN: The Hoosiers release 'Up To No Good' EP

Released yesterday, the new Up To No Good EP from The Hoosiers features this stunning acoustic session of track Dancer's In The Dark. The band are set to release their fourth studio album, The Secret Service, in October, with this EP and the previously released The Wheels Fell Off signalling a compromise between the band and fans regarding whether they should release a record or a series of EPs.

The new EP features two completely new tracks, both showcasing the typical catchy lyrics and charming riffs that the band are known for. The title track is a particular highlight for me, and one that I can see being a great live track when the band take the album on tour across the UK in October (see my post about the tour here.)

As with the first EP, this too features two live tracks from a show on the band's last tour, this time the fun and crowd pleasing Unlikely Hero and third-album track Somewhere In The Distance. All in all the EPs both give a sign of great things to come from the upcoming record, but for me the acoustic session tracks steal the show on both and make me desperate to see the band play an acoustic set in the near future!

Source: www.thehoosiers.com

You can get the EP from iTunes or listen on Spotify now, or if you pre-order the new record through the band's website you'll receive both EPs instantly.

TOUR NEWS: The Hoosiers (October 2015)

Source: www.thehoosiers.com

The Hoosiers today announced a UK tour across October, taking in some fairly unusual locations, as well as Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester and an intimate slot at London's The Borderline. The tour is to promote the band's upcoming fourth studio album, The Secret Service. The album is out on the 9th October, with a second EP, entitled Up To No Good, being released a week today (pre-order it on iTunes here.) 

Tickets for the tour are on sale now from the band's website here.

ALBUM NEWS: The Hoosiers - 'The Secret Service'

The exciting news of the day is that (my favourites) The Hoosiers yesterday announced details of their fourth studio album, The Secret Service, which is to be released on 9th October. After asking fans whether they wanted to wait for a full album or for multiple EPs, the band compromised and are releasing two EPs prior to the album release, the first of which was released yesterday. Both EPs feature two new tracks from the album, two live recordings from the last tour and an acoustic version of an unreleased track. 

The first EP, The Wheels Fell Off, features two new tracks - The Wheels Fell Off and Pristine, as well as live recordings of Fidget Brain and Worried About Ray, and this beautiful acoustic session. 

You can find out more info and pre-order the album in several formats (download, CD or vinyl) and with various bundles, on the band's website here, and with any of the pre-orders you'll receive the first EP immediately and the second EP, Up To No Good when it is released on 28th August. 

LIVE: The Hoosiers at MK11 (4/6/15)

A few days ago I went to my first gig since being home from university - and who better than my favourite band, The Hoosiers, in a bar seemingly in the middle of nowhere just outside the centre of Milton Keynes. If you're not familiar with the band's new music then you'll probably know of their hits Goodbye Mr A, Cops & Robbers and Worried About Ray. They've been my favourite band for a while now, and they were my first proper gig just over 4 years ago. I've been thinking lately about how much the band has had an impact on my life, it's pretty cliché but true.. I've made a lot of friends and connections through the band, and at that first gig of theirs that I went to, Sam Beeton was supporting, through whom I've had many great experiences and met a bunch of great people. As the first band that I was ever really passionate about, they've probably had an effect on my aspirations to work in music too, which is pretty cool to think about. 

One member down, the band put on a great performance regardless, with the keys player Sam Swallow playing the bass parts through his keyboard. Naturally the dynamic of the band felt lacking to an extent as Irwin Sparkes (lead vocals and guitar) and Martin Skarendahl (bass) often play and bounce off one another, but the performance certainly wasn't lacking in energy, with Irwin getting into the crowd for the end of track Made To Measure (video.) Being just over a year since I'd last saw the band, when they were touring their latest, self-released record, The News From Nowhere, it was interesting to see how some of the newer tracks had developed live. Sadly though, the set was incredibly short and thus mostly featured the hit tracks from the band's first record. Nevertheless it was a great night and it was fantastic to chat to the band afterwards, and with a new album supposedly in the pipeline for later in the year, hopefully it won't be too long before I get to see the band again - and to post about new music on here!

As I'm getting into photography again and trying to gain experience taking photos at gigs, I snapped up the opportunity to take my camera along to the gig and shoot my favourite band, a couple of the shots, including one of the support band, The Sons, are below, with some more on my Flickr account here. 

Source: Megan Seekings

Source: Megan Seekings

TOUR NEWS: The Hoosiers (May 2014)

Source: https://www.facebook.com/thehoosiers

The Hoosiers release their third studio album The News From Nowhere officially on 14th April, and you can catch them live on 'The Tour From Nowhere' during May.

Ticket info: http://www.thehoosiers.com/live/

WATCH: The Hoosiers - 'Make Or Break (You Gotta Know)'

One of my favourites, The Hoosiers, are releasing their third studio album The News From Nowhere on 14th April (more info here.)

Check out this new video for the second single from the album Make Or Break (You Gotta Know).

WATCH: The Hoosiers perform 'Worried About Ray' for Nobu Unplugged

One of my favourite bands, The Hoosiers, are back after a couple of years of doing the odd gig and trying out new things, and they're releasing their third studio album The News From Nowhere on 3rd March. You can pre-order the album in a sort of Kickstarter-esque manner, with the band using the money from preorders and putting it straight back into the record, towards actually releasing the album (including promotion etc.) For more info on that and the different packages available go here.

But for now.. take a listen to this wonderful live version of Worried About Ray from Nobu Unplugged!