Month: October 2021

GIG REVIEW: Little Boots at Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club

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WORTH A LOOK?: ****1/2

WHEN?: Thursday 28 October 2021

SETLIST: Love The Beginning; Silver Balloons; Mathematics; Motorway; Working Girl; Landline; Crying On The Inside; Get Things Done; Every Night I Say A Prayer; Shake; Remedy; SOS/Dancing Queen/Fernando; Stuck On Repeat; Tomorrow’s Yesterdays

We’re here for Boots’ 1st London gig in 2 years because she doesn’t know when she’ll be playing live as a solo act again as she’s big boots to fill, she’s joining ABBA.

  • Read on for reasons including more about Boots’ new album and her role in the ABBA Voyage shows next year
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THEATRE REVIEW: 2:22 A Ghost Story starring Lily Allen & Hadley Fraser at the Noel Coward Theatre

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WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN?: Wednesday 6 October (matinee), production opens with new cast 4 December running to 12 February 2022 RUNTIME: 125 minutes with a 20-minute interval

This is a review we never expected to write but this production of an outstanding and truly spine-tingling new play is re-opening in London’s West End this winter.

  • Read on for reasons including how good pop star Lily Allen was in her debut West End role
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ALBUM OF THE MONTH: Magic Still Exists by Agnes (October 2021)

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WORTH A LOOK?: *****

TRACKLIST: Spiritual Awakening; XX; 24 Hours; Freedom; Here Comes The Night; Love And Appreciation; The Soul Has No Gender; Selfmade; Fingers Crossed; Free Your Mind And Free Your Body; Magic Still Exists

33-year-old Agnes Carlsson hasn’t released an album since 2012’s Veritas and that was some considerable time after her commercial peak with the international hit and breakthrough single Release Me which reached number 3 in the UK in 2009.

  • Read on for reasons including why this is an album of the year contender
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SONG OF THE WEEK: What I Want You To Do by Stine Bramsen (Week beginning 17 October 2021)

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

Last night Danish pop band Alphabeat played their final gig in Greve as lead singer Stine Bramsen relaunches her solo career with this authentic pop gem that reminds these ears of a more muscular attempt at something as stellar as Adele’s Rolling In The Deep.

  • Read on for reasons including how and where to Bramsen play her new songs live in November 2021
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9 reasons why we can’t wait for November includes Cabaret starring Jessie Buckley and Eddie Redmayne

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

  1. Cabaret starring Jessie Buckley and Eddie Redmayne

The West End’s Playhouse Theatre is being repurposed as the Kit Kat Club to stage director Rebecca Frecknall’s (Summer And Smoke, Almeida and West End) vision of this musical and movie classic with film stars Redmayne and Buckley (Romeo and Juliet, Sky Arts). Runs from 15 November 2021 and is currently booking to 16 April 2022. Tickets 1st preview review

  • Read on for reasons including new ABBA album, Dadi Freyr tour, Beverley Knight musical and Rina Sawayama gig
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THEATRE REVIEW: What If If Only starring John Heffernan & Linda Bassett at the Royal Court

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WORTH A LOOK?: ***1/2

WHEN?: Wednesday 6 October (matinee), runs to 23 October 2021 RUNTIME: 20 minutes

Bassett is 1 of our favourite actresses and we last saw her onstage in author Caryl Churchill’s considerably longer Escaped Alone at this very venue 5 years ago.

  • Read on for reasons including how we combined this play with another new piece of supernatural writing to make more of a day of our theatre experience
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SONG OF THE WEEK: The Wrecking Crew by EYJAA (week beginning 11 October 2021)

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WORTH A LOOK?: ****

Danish/Icelandic duo EYJAA – Sara and Brynja – aren’t happy but have produced a chorus that is to die for: ”5am hurt is a habit, too late for happy thoughts, feeling a day’s worth of damage and here comes The Wrecking Crew. F*ck trying to make sense of sadness before it makes sense of me, love is as simple as madness and here comes The Wrecking Crew.’

  • Read on for reasons including how to hear more of EYJAA
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GIG REVIEW: The Blow Monkeys at 229

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WORTH A LOOK?: *****

WHEN?: Friday 9 October, touring until 27 August 2022

SETLIST: Celebrate (The Day After You); OK Have It Your Way; One More Time; Crying For The Moon; More Than A Miracle; It Doesn’t Have To Be This Way; Choice; It Pays To Belong; Out With Her; Dust At Her Feet; Said Too Much; Time Storm; Digging Your Scene; Wait; The Wild River; Earthbound; Touching Distance; Superfly; Man From Russia; You Don’t Own Me

‘It doesn’t mean a thing if you can’t make it sing,’ observed the dearly departed Curtis Mayfield on tonight’s opening song and, while we’re massively missing his input, as well as Sylvia Tella’s vocals on her hit duet with the band and some of the sharpest backing vocals of the 80s, this is still a joy of a gig to behold.

  • Read on for reasons including how we would have loved the band’s iconic saxophone to have been louder tonight
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THEATRE REVIEW: Foxes starring Michael Fatogun, Anyebe Godwin and Doreene Blackstock at Theatre503

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WORTH A LOOK?: ***1/2

WHEN?: Tuesday 5 October, runs to 23 October 2021 RUNTIME: 85 minutes (no interval)

We are at the home of new writers and author Dexter Flanders gives us Daniel played by Michael Fatogun (pictured below) whose girlfriend is pregnant with their child while he is confused by his relationship with friend Leon.

  • Read on for reasons including which actor from Netflix’s Sex Education appears here
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