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‘The Pines’ (Album, Naim Edge) The title could’ve been swiped from a new-build cul-de-sac, but Phantom Limb’s sophomore release is anything but suburban. This is music for big skies, whisky and wide horizons. Pristine production, immaculate musicianship – lap steel, banjo, silvery organ, Yolanda Quartey’s voice a mountain of molasses, towering and tender by turns. In short, everything you’d expect from Phantom Limb. Resting on their laurels? There are no surprises here, no great leaps into the compositional unknown, but ‘The Pines’ is a heartfelt, effortlessly accomplished mood piece, drawing deep on the great traditions of soul, gospel, country and vintage R&B. Like a Zippo, a Harley or an old Rolls Royce, everything’s solid, dependable, well-built. (Mike White)
Copyright Mike White 2012
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THE BIG GIG
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Gary Numan
Mike White muses on the missing link between Kraftwerk and NIN. The same year as ‘Alien’, three years before ‘Blade Runner’, awkward, acne-ridden 21-year-old Gary Webb wrote a song called ‘Are ‘Friends’ Electric?’. It sounded…23.04.2012 READ MORE -
Philharmonia/Ashkenazy
You have to feel sorry for any young pianist braving a Chopin concerto under the baton of Vladimir Ashkenazy. Poacher turned gamekeeper, Ashkenazy’s glittering career as a pianist was kick-started by success at the Warsaw Chopin…23.05.2012 READ MORE























































































































































































































