The Gown Student Newspaper, Queen's University Belfast, QUB, Northern Ireland, College

COMPETITION: Win 2 tickets to Simon Munnery at the Black Box

Simon Munnery is going to wear a suit for his first ever major UK tour. Despite being in the business for twenty years and having won or been nominated for all the most prestigious awards going, he now finds that his chosen career is a serious commercial business and he’s going to have to knuckle down and set off to work nice and early to forty dates throughout the UK including a week at London’s Soho Theatre. Simon is now working for himself and knows that without a vast support system of agents, managers, stylists, publicists, make-up artists and dog-walkers that he’s been used to the life of a stand-up comedian can be tough.

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March 12th, 2011 | No Comments Posted by Connor Daly

ARTS: Striking a chord – An interview with Brian Robb

2010 was a busy year for local musician Brian Robb. He graduated with a 2:1 in Music, composed music for a computer game, judged a portion of Southern Ireland’s Teen Idol and travelled to Moscow for the final of the Karaoke World Championship (KWC).

BY SCOTT MCWHINNEY

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March 10th, 2011 | No Comments Posted by Connor Daly

REVIEW: Radiohead – The King of Limbs

Radiohead are one of the most difficult bands in the world to review. Since In Rainbows eschewed the traditional CD release format in 2007, there has been a tendency for contemporary writing about the Oxford outfit to focus unhealthily upon innovative business models and forward-thinking distribution methods as opposed to their music itself. In addition, you will rarely meet anyone who is ambivalent about Radiohead. Some dismiss the band as sullen, pretentious miserablists, responsible only for sub-Aphex Twin electronica. To the right-thinking majority, they are the most consistently brilliant British group of the last thirty years, but this produces its own problems. There are Radiohead fans who would hail a recording of Thom Yorke eating a bag of crisps as a masterpiece. More broadly, how is it possible to objectively consider new music made by the men responsible for both OK Computer and Kid A?

BY MATTHEW MISKIMMIN

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March 9th, 2011 | No Comments Posted by Connor Daly

REVIEW: Yuck – Yuck

Listeners may find themselves gazing at their shoes, or perhaps the ceiling, as Yuck’s self-titled debut album rings out through the speakers of Macbooks and idocks (other computers and speakers are available) everywhere. Named on the BBC’s Sound of 2011 list, the indie-pop-post-rock-five-piece based in London take inspiration from early 90s sounds: fuzz and distortion mixed with retro-modern dreamy qualities, blending together to create a solid-sounding 12 track LP.

BY JANETTE LOUGHLIN

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March 8th, 2011 | No Comments Posted by Connor Daly

REVIEW: Sleigh Bells at the Ulster Hall

As part of the indoor street arts festival, Winter Base, which took place in the Ulster Hall, New-Yorkers Sleigh Bells headlined an evening of urban/street/rap/rip-rock/noise-pop music. With the decadent and elegant Ulster Hall adorned with urban street art, a fusion of the old and new came together to create a contrasting backdrop to the music sets from the various artists.

BY JANETTE LOUGHLIN

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March 6th, 2011 | Comment (1) Posted by Connor Daly

FEATURES: Belfast to host 2011 MTV Europe awards

The Odyssey Arena will host this year’s MTV Europe Music awards. This is the first time the awards have been held in Northern Ireland and will see pop, rock and hip hop royalty grace the stage to perform, present and pick up awards.