Iron & Wine

Beautiful and pure. I am a huge fan of this artist.

Iron & Wine (Samuel Beam) is an American folk singer and songwriter, who to date has released five albums and several EPs.

In 2002 Iron & Wine released his debut album "The Creek Drank the Cradle." What makes me enjoy the music written, performed, recorded and produced by Samuel Beam is the accompaniment of guitars and banjos that features heavily in his music.

Following the success of his debut album, Iron & Wine released four more albums; "Our Endless Numbered Days," "The Shepherd's Dog," "Kiss Each Other Clean," and "Ghost on Ghost."

As well as five albums, Iron & Wine has released a number of great EPs including "The Sea & The Rhythm," "Woman King," and "In the Reins."

If singers such as Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes and Tallest Man On Earth are your thing, than this is a man for you! An insanely talented singer, Samuel Beam is able to seduce the audience with his gut wrenching, softly sung, and highly emotive tracks. Check him out - he is certainly worth the effort.

Tour dates: 
June 21st. Smith Opera House - Geneva, NY

For further details check out: http://www.ironandwine.com/tour

Bon Iver Review

I absolutely love this band.

Bon Iver is an indie folk band who first formed back in 2007. The bands debut album "For Emma, Forever Ago" was released in 2007 and includes the tracks "Flumes," "The Wolves (Act 1 and 11)," "Skinny Love" and "Lump Sun." In June 2011 Bon Iver released their second album "Bon Iver." This album proved to be equally as successful as their first, with over 100,000 copies sold during its first week in the US alone.

If you like bands such as Fleet Foxes, Tallest Man On Earth, and Iron & Wine, than this is a band for you.

I have been hoping to see Bon Iver live for a number of years now, so when I was fortunate to get tickets to their Manchester gig I was ecstatic. Having got there early enough, I was able to get prime standing position (3 people from the very front) and boy was it amazing.

I can say without any doubt that this is by far one of the best live performances I have ever seen. The vocal and musical ability demonstrated by the band was breathtaking. The set list for their manchester performance was; Perth, Minnesota (WI), Brackett (WI), Towers, Flume, Creature Fear, Hinnom (TX), Wash, Woods, Calgary, Blood Bank, Holocene, Lisbon (OH), Beth/rest. For the encore, they performed; Skinny Love, and For Emma. (I was a little disappointed they didn't perform their hit single "Wolves").

With all nine members in their positions, this hour and half gig was everything I hoped. True to their album, the sounds created by the band were intense and highly emotional. Justin Vernon was fabulous - a great character who had the entire arena crowd eating from the palm of his hand. He put everything into each song, and created awesome banter between tracks,

I can't stress how truly magnificent this show was. If you have the chance please check them out - they are definitely worth it. For me the highlight of the show was Bon Iver performing skinny Love and Flume - two great singles, and personal favourites of my mine.

First Aid Kit

A duo worth looking out for.

First Aid Kit is a Swedish folk band made up of sisters Klara and Johanna. This pair first got noticed in 2008 with their cover of "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song"by the Fleet Foxes. As well as scoring an invite to appear with the Fleet Foxes in the Netherlands, First Aid Kit was able to spread their name and music around the world.

To date the girls have released two albums; "The Big Black & the Blue," and "The Lion's Roar," and collaborated with great artists such as Jack White, and Bright Eyes.

In terms of their live performances, one thing is certain from the reviews - the girls have powerful voices that can be soft and emotive one moment and, loud and raw the next. It is this vocal versatility that has resulted in the girls creating songs that range from the soft predictable harmonic folk songs to soft rock acoustic performances.

Check em out, you will be left pleasantly surprised.

Tour dates: 
31st August - 2nd Sept. End Of The Road Festival - Salisbury
6th Sept. The Boileroom - Guildford
6th Sept - 9th Sept. Bestival 2012 - Newport
20th Nov. O2 Shepherds Bush Empire - London
21st Nov. 02 Shepherds Bush Empire - London
22nd Nov. HMV Ritz - Manchester
27th Nov. O2 Academy - Bristol

For more information regarding tickets and tour dates check out: http://www.ents24.com/web/artist/128504/First_Aid_Kit.html

Bon Iver Music Gig

Bon Iver is an indie folk band who first formed together in 2007. The bands debut album "For Emma, Forever Ago" was released in 2007 and includes the tracks; Flumes, The Wolves (Act 1 and 11),  Skinny Love, and Lump Sum. Bon Iver's highly anticipated second album, which is due to be released sometime around June, is reported to have gone down a new musical direction to that of their previous work.

If you like bands such as Fleet Foxes, The Tallest Man On Earth, and Iron & Wine, than this is a band for you.

This humble bands' live performances will certainly make the hairs on your arm stand up. The level of emotion and intensity that Justin Vernon pours into his songs not only captivates the audience but moves them also. If you are looking for a night of exceptional singing that will have the singers giving you their heart and soul, than you really can't miss this gig.

Tour dates
10th August. Prospect Park Bandshell - Brooklyn, NY

For more information about their tour or for tickets check out: bon iver tickets