Beach House, On tour
Dream pop – which is to say frosty and romantic indie – is an interestingly universal language. Peddled by Beach House, with references to MBV and Cocteau Twins, it sounds like a product of post-Twin Peaks suburban America: both ordinary and otherworldly. Beach House’s recent LP Depression Cherry is a quietly dramatic collection that suggests the Baltimore duo work to a meticulous plan. But they have the capacity to surprise: another album, Thank Your Lucky Stars, appeared unexpectedly only two months later, with a fractionally stronger groove.
JR
Randy Newman, On tour
Clearly not a man with a fragile ego, Randy Newman seems as happy out of the spotlight as under it. In the 1960s, he developed a reputation for writing many-layered but strangely accessible songs for others (a high point is 1970’s terrific album with Harry Nilsson, Nilsson Sings Newman). Later in the 70s, he joined that decade’s movement towards writer-performers, fronting his own wry and melodic compositions and becoming the Elton John for people who like to read. These days, Newman manages both positions in tandem, not only making his customarily succinct LPs for a grateful but selective audience, but also operating as a film soundtrack artist, most successfully for the Toy Story franchise. Satisfying both Newman’s urge to experiment and his benign classicism, his situation is a lesson in having the best of both worlds.
JR
Fraser A Gorman, On tour
Imagine a persona more asleep than awake, whose songs feature details of life in Australia, with some wry asides, and are released on the independent Milk! records. This could be the music of Courtney Barnett, but these qualities apply to Fraser A Gorman, too, a young man from Torquay, a Melbourne satellite town, who dresses like Bob Dylan circa 1965 but moves at a more considered pace. The association with Barnett is a complementary one (she appeared in Gorman’s Shiny Gun video) but while Barnett’s indie thrash feels like a delivery system for her sideways observations, Gorman’s debut is a different beast: indie in attitude, but also nodding to Dylan, the Velvets, Springsteen and Matthew E White. It’s not without novelty and initiative but is more mindful and observant of a long tradition of classic record-making.
Castle Hotel, Manchester, Tue; Sebright Arms, E2, Wed; Broadcast, Glasgow, Fri
JR
Okkyung Lee, London
Taking over the now-hallowed spaces of Cafe Oto for a four-night residency, Okkyung Lee has curated a sort of mini-festival, where there will be much brutality against various stringed instruments. Originally from Korea and now living in Brooklyn, Lee is a forceful cellist who pushes her instrument into new and alternative territories. The collaborations of this run are terrifically chosen, promising to bring disparate styles together into claustrophobic sound swarms over shared ground. She plays as a duo with Sunn O)))’s Stephen O’Malley (Thu) and Sheffield laptop musician Mark Fell (Fri); also as a trio with regular collaborator and Norwegian noise musician Lasse Marhaug and improvising harpist Rhodri Davies (Thu). On 31 Oct, she’ll be joined by New York video and noise artist Christian Marclay, while on 1 Nov she’ll be breaking strings with guitar abuser Bill Orcutt, among others.
JA
Leroy Jones Quintet, On tour
Jazz lovers fearing the disappearance of the music’s roots in its contemporary forms should check out New Orleans trumpet star and vocalist Leroy Jones, a mainstay of singer Harry Connick’s bands and a gifted defender of some of jazz’s earliest qualities. Jones arrives for his first extended UK tour this week, with an excitingly updated version of New Orleans dance music, tweaked by all manner of jazz-brass subtleties invented over the past century since Louis Armstrong blew his way through the Louisiana streets. Jones was one of the most talented young performers to emerge from under the wing of the great Danny Barker, was playing big gigs as “Little Louis Armstrong” by his early teens, and quickly became a key figure in the city’s most famous legacy bands. Accompanied by a local group, Jones will also be joined by guest vocalists Ian Shaw and Joe Stilgoe.
Pizza Express Jazz Club, W1, Sat to Tue; Alban Arena, St Albans, Thu; touring to 11 Nov
JF
NI Opera: Turandot, Belfast
NI Opera’s scope has grown steadily over the last five years with a series of strikingly effective homegrown productions. But its latest venture is a bit different: a co-production of Puccini’s last, unfinished opera, Turandot, staged by Calixto Bieito. The Catalan director transplants Puccini’s fairytale Chinese tragedy to a modern totalitarian-state doll factory, the employees of which are cruelly controlled by Turandot. Featuring the Ulster Orchestra conducted by David Brophy, instead of using the completions of the score that are regularly performed, Bieito’s production ends where Puccini’s music breaks off – with the death of Liu.
Grand Opera House, Fri to 1 Nov
AC
