Mama Roux

Ralph's always on the lookout for something a bit different musically and was more than pleasantly surprised when he stumbled across new Manchester band Mama Roux.  They're a sublime soul/jazz/blues fusion comprised of.....
  
Tallulah Anton on vocals, Jack Delaney - Guitar, John Bergin - Guitar, M.Alexander Robinson - Bass and Nicolas Williams on Drums/Percussion.




There's the obvious comparisons to be draw vocally between Tallulah's vocals and Amy Winehouse ('You Know I'm No Good especially) and I find Tallulah to be smoother and just as listenable.  'Reach Out is a fine example of her vocal benefiting from the twin guitar sound Mama Roux enjoy.









'Fire' sticks in your head with some more classy guitar work giving a bit of a rock edge to the track.  This'll be a firm favourite at gigs and with the chance to see Mama Roux live at Kraak in Manchester looming on the 25th of January with The Velocets it's one I'll be paying particular attention to.










'Pointless' is an altogether smoother, sexier track, well suited for radio play.  Laid back acoustic guitar and percussion with some Sade-esque vocalising...one for sitting with a beer, headphones on listening to them on BBC Introducing in the summer sunshine on a lazy Sunday afternoon.










They're on the line-up for Nottingham's Deerstock Festival in July and the Headlander Festival  Friday 21st and Saturday 22nd of June at the Stockport RUFC ground and hopefully news of more gigs to follow soon.....watch this space.  In the meantime they feature on the playlist of A Little Bit Louder and their track 'Fire' has been included on the onlinefestival.com album 'Indie-vidual' due to be released soon.

Seriously?

One allegedly knowledgeable 'muso' with a working class chip on his shoulder and an upper-middle class existence seemed to think they were less 'Authentic Manchester Soul' than Misha B (yeah I had to think for a minute before remembering she was lucky enough to get a break on the X Factor) but on having a look at Misha B's latest release she's more poptastic than soulful nowadays and supported the dreadful Nikki Minage on a tour last year.....I rest my case.

The Velocets

Despite Manchester band Velocets describing themselves as being 'relatively new to the scene', 2012 proved to be a very promising year.  After the BBC Introducing picking up on their debut track 'Sophie', the band were constantly gigging throughout the year and went on to play a number of summer festivals including Big Bear, Farmer Phils & ROTR Festival.

They've followed that up throughout 2013 with some prolific gigging, not only on the festival circuit again, but establishing themselves as a major force in many of the pubs and clubs in Manchester.  For such a young band their work ethic is exemplary.











'Naked' is an example of their lyric writing ability belying their tender years.  It's a low tempo, plaintive track full of sweet strings and strong vocals that tear at your heartstrings and stick in your head.

Cheers to Trust A Fox Photography

After headlining a hometown gig at Kraak Gallery in Manchester, they were invited into Blueprint Studios (Home of Elbow etc) to lay down two new tracks so 2013 is shaping up well. It will see Velocets return to Big Bear Festival, as well as playing a very special gig at the National Tattoo Convention (Liverpool) in the Lifestyle Lounge.  In January they returned to Kraak for a headline MPTV showcase gig with support from the excellent Mama Roux and The Gullwings.


Don't miss their headline slot at the Mr Peeps Presents gig in The Castle Hotel, Manchester on the 16th August andThe Bay Horse, manchester on the 23 August with Hull's Just Mammals, they'll be stormers.









'Tell It To Your Kids' is a punchier, punkier drum driven track and looking like a fans favourite at gigs.  Guaranteed to get the 'joint jumping'.

Thanks to Raw Lens for the photos

Velocets are.....

Dominic Allen drums 
Adam Walsh guitar/vocals  
Elliott Berriman bass/vocals.  

They're playing honest in your face rock 'n' roll with just a hint of The Fall sprinkled through it. With tunes like 'Sophie' they're bringing a fresh, clean sound, strong lyrics with anthemic potential.