Band of Skulls @ The Brudenell Social Club 27/11/19

Toni Stephenson on 1 December 2019

This year marked indie rock group Band of Skulls reaching their 15th year and tonight at the Brudenell they celebrate the tenth anniversary since the release of their debut album Baby Darling Doll Face Honey. Featuring some of their most iconic songs including ‘I know what I am’ and ‘Cold Fame’, the album’s success saw tracks selected to feature in Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock and the soundtracks of Friday Night Lights and the Twilight Saga (unashamedly the latter is how I discovered them).

Supporting them throughout the anniversary tour are Higher Peaks, a band who just last week released their song ‘Sick’n’Tired’ featuring Band of Skulls. Though the differing styles of each song make their genre difficult to pin point, the atmosphere created through their use of synthesised piano organs and harmonising vocals mixed with their occasional heavy riffs feels new and fresh.https://www.youtube.com/embed/w-luMmez2UI?feature=oembed

As the room fills up for the sold out night, the lights dim. Shirley Bassey’s ‘Diamonds are Forever’ exudes and the room begins to sparkle as light refracts from the disco ball above the stage. Russell Marsden (vocals and guitar), Emma Richardson (bass and guitar) and Julian Dorio (drums) enter the stage as crowd anticipation peaks. The band open with the heavy riffs of ‘Love is all you Love’, the titular track from their latest album released earlier this year and after two songs Marsden declares, “Happy birthday!” to Baby Darling Doll Face Honey, kick starting the anniversary celebrations before playing the album start to finish.

Hyde Park’s gem, the Brudenell, has been home to some of Leeds’ most iconic gigs. It’s the ideal venue for both immensity and intimacy and nowhere does this show more than when Marsden and Richardson ditch their electrics for acoustics and share a microphone. The crowd, full of fans, simmers down from their excitable sing-along state to listen to the delicate melodies and harmonies of ‘Hometowns’ and ‘Honest’ before the room roars back into movement.https://www.youtube.com/embed/5te1t-3DiVI?feature=oembed

This tour is homage to the fans, a thank you for supporting them over the last decade and the crowd certainly revel in it; as do the band. The night ends with an encore that sees Marsden and Richardson engulfed into a circle of jumping fans, all singing into the microphones; band and fans as one.

Theatre Review: Handel’s Giulio Cesare in Egitto by Opera North.

Emma Rivers on 26 October 2019

Emma Rivers reviews the dazzling Giulio Cesare in Egitto by Opera North at the Leeds Grand Theatre.

George Handel’s Giulio Cesare in Egitto (Julius Caesar in Egypt), is an Italian opera first performed in 1724 in London. This opera intertwines themes of political ambition, dangerous love, and survival, all set to an innovative baroque orchestral score. Set in Egypt after the Roman Civil War, the production opens with Tolomeo, the dangerously sadistic ruler of Egypt, murdering Caesar’s rival Pompeo. When Caesar arrives in Egypt to confront Tolomeo, Cleopatra senses an opportunity to overthrow her brother and take the throne for herself by seducing the Roman Emperor. 

Director Tim Albery’s revival of Giulio Cesare, first performed by Opera North in 2012, presents us with a stunning combination of set design, costume and lighting. These aspects work together to blend the traditional and modern, sweeping the audience along with the timeless, character-driven story. 

The set design is striking in its simplicity. When the curtain first lifts the audience is presented with an overbearing edifice of stark grey concrete. The blasted, bullet-pocked structure conjures up thoughts of a war-torn bunker and serves as a perfect introduction for the militaristic Caesar. However, as the story progresses the two-piece set unfolds like a jewellery box, revealing a stunning golden interior that serves as the setting for the intimate Egyptian scenes. Likewise, the lighting created by Thomas Hase is cleverly used to contrast the two opposing cultures of the Romans and Egyptians. Caesar’s scenes feature a harsh white light shining from above severely on to the concrete set. In contrast, the Egyptian scenes have warm low-level candlelight glowing upon the characters, creating an intimate and rich scene against the gold backdrop of the pyramid set. Both lighting and set work to further emphasise the cultural and political divide between the two societies, creating a tangible tension across the stage.

Albery’s influence is further demonstrated through the choice to cast the roles of Caesar and Sesto to women. While these roles could have been cast as countertenors (high male voice), Albery chose to maintain the spirit of the original production’s use of Castrati (yes, that means what you think) while updating it to the modern era by casting contralto Maria Sanner (Caesar), and mezzo-soprano Heather Lowe (Sesto) in traditionally male roles. Both Sanner and Lowe give exceptional performances, Sanner has a commanding and strong presence on stage, and Lowe powerfully portrays the pain and emotion of Sesto throughout the opera.  

The only criticism to put forward of this brilliant production is that, despite the story featuring Egyptian and Roman characters, there are no people of colour in the cast. This inclusion of diversity would have added depth and realism to an otherwise flawless production.

Whether you’re an opera newbie or seasoned veteran, there’s something for everyone in this production. If you’re tempted to explore the world of Caesar and Cleopatra for yourself, Opera North runs an Under 30s Scheme where you can gain access to great tickets for only ten pounds.

Image Credit: Opera North

Gendered Award Categories: Outdated or Unrepresentative?

Anushka Searle on 11 October 2019

Anushka Searle writes in response to the announcement that the “Brit Awards ‘will review’ male and female categories”

The Brit award categories ‘British female solo artist’ and ‘British male solo artist’ appear outdated, as they reference the sex of the individual consequently isolating protentional nominees of other gender identities. In the light of Sam Smith’s recent announcement, that they identify as non-binary, it seems that award categories will need to adjust accordingly. Though, an issue arises when we consider how this could affect another minority representation. If the categories (mentioned above) were combined to form the non-gendered category ‘British solo artist’, would this mean that fewer individuals are nominated, leading to many minority groups being underrepresented? One must consider that we don’t live in an ideal world and that the music industry, and the media in general, are polluted with racism, sexism, and homophobia. Therefore, the solution cannot be to decrease the representation of some to increase the representation of others. Award shows must adjust to modern identity, however, everyone must be equally represented and purely judged on their talent. Most artists, especially smaller artists, are overjoyed just to be nominated. Therefore, we can’t decrease the nominees of two categories into just one, as smaller, struggling artists will be overshadowed.

Even though eradicating gendered categories does seem to be the best solution to include those of every gender identity, as a woman I find all female categories empowering. It’s exciting to simply focus on female creatives, and to allow them the opportunity to not be overshadowed, and to win purely on talent. Though it was empowering to witness Emma Watson become the first recipient of the MTV Movie and Television Awards’ category ‘Best movie performance’-as it has recently become gender neutral- I can’t help but be sceptical. If they had given the award to a male actor after changing the category to be gender neutral then there would have been outrage in the media, however, because it was awarded to a woman the MTV Awards were applauded. This suggests in my view that award shows are tampered with in order to be politically correct, whether there is a “public” vote or not. Combined categories therefore seem more iniquitous than separate gendered categories.

In the past, gendered award categories have been targeted as being ‘archaic and unnecessary’. However, “non-binary” is new terminology that has just begun to enter vernacular and therefore, it is unfair to use the word ‘archaic’, as the world has only just begun to understand what non-binary entails. It is also unfair to suggest that gendered categories are ‘unnecessary’, when in fact they have been necessary in order to increase the representation and support of female creatives. In conclusion, award shows need to be more representative of everybody. However, one must make sure that equality is always considered, and that changes made to represent one social group don’t diminish another grouping in the process.

Header image credit: Pink News

Tackling University: How to Survive as a Vegetarian

Anushka Searle on 13 September 2019

Most students arrive at university with a lack of cooking skills, and a longing for “mum’s cooking.” Cooking for yourself can seem daunting, especially if you follow a stricter diet such as vegetarianism. I’m here to tell you that you shouldn’t be at all worried.

Most of your concerns will probably be based on myths. The myths that vegetarian food is more expensive, more difficult to cook, and it’s more difficult to source protein and iron.

However, if you aren’t surviving just on pot noodles and can boil water you will be just fine. In fact, cooking as a veggie is much easier. You will never need to worry about defrosting meat, or if you’ve cooked your meat long enough to not give yourself food poisoning. 

I’ve been vegetarian for five years now, but during my first year of university I learnt a lot about my own diet, how to cook well, and how to cook flavoursome vegetarian food on a budget.

My first piece of advice for anyone tackling a vegetarian or vegan diet, is to choose 3-4 veggies that you love, and use them for every dish.

If you did this, you’ll cut down the amount you spend on food, and decrease your fresh food waste. There’s no point in having a whole head cauliflower in your fridge that you’re never going to use! Personally, I am always stocked up on red peppers, carrots, broccoli, and of course onions and garlic, as they add flavour and nutrients to any dish. I would also recommend having frozen veg in the freezer ready for those busy weeks, when you don’t have time to pop to Aldi. Additionally, if you aren’t too big on vegetables then buy a bag of spinach; spinach wilts into your food, so you’ll barely notice that you’re eating greens!

Of course, vegetarian and vegan diets aren’t always healthy. Probably one of the biggest challenges at university will be finding veggie drunk food and trust me you’re going to need it!

While your meat-eating friends are stuffing their faces with kebabs and burgers, you don’t want to be missing out when your only options are limp French fries. Luckily, Leeds has a breadth of veggie and vegan drunk food options. My go to drunk food stops includes: Crispys, Milanos, Chicko’s, and of course good ol’maccies. From a wide range of pizzas, to wraps, to burgers you won’t be subjected to limp French fries. Though, a few of my vegetarian friends have fallen victim to the temptation of a chicken burger! However, there’s no need to put lots of pressure on yourself to get it right all the time, we’re all trying our best.

My final advice is to try your hardest to not just live off Quorn and Linda McCartney sausages, because unfortunately you won’t be able to afford that in the long run. Learn how to make your favourite dishes, and to nail the perfect fluffy rice (a staple of my diet). Experiment with your food and try different spices and combinations.

Finally, just practice cooking, because in actuality it’s therapeutic, fun, and a lot more rewarding than sticking a frozen lasagne in the oven!

Header image credit: Healthline