Live Reviews

Horns Up Ya Shitters! Toby Cook Goes To Bloodstock

Quietus Man of Metal Toby Cook goes to Bloodstock and does battle with the likes of Motorhead, W.A.S.P. and Exodus

Some Thoughts On ATP I’ll Be Your Mirror In Asbury Park New Jersey

Luke went to New Jersey for ATP and was once again melted by Swans. But America, why you not dancing? Images thanks to Abby Braden

Cross-Genre Delights: Incubate Festival 2011

Frances Morgan travels to the Incubate Festival in Tilburg to take part in a panel discussion about DIY culture, and gets lost in a weekend's worth of musical intrigue

Songs Not Learned Or Sung: Echo And The Bunnymen Bomb In Glasgow

Our man in Glasgow Neil Cooper was looking forward to Ocean Rain live on Wednesday night. What he got was a very public meltdown from Ian McCulloch

“Like, Totally Jokes, Yeah?”: Croatia’s Outlook Festival

Joe Muggs travels to the hot, dusty surrounds of a Croatian beachside fort for the Outlook Festival, based around 'music and soundsystem culture', and muses on its ascent to increasingly mainstream concern

Sex & Trainers In Berlin: Xaver Von Treyer’s The Torino Scale

Kevin E.G. Perry travels to Berlin to see a showcase performance of Xaver Von Treyer's new audiovisual project in the slightly bizarre setting of an Adidas shop, and takes the opportunity to further explore the city's relationship with music

Future Perfect? Wroclaw’s European Culture Congress

Rory Gibb visits the European Culture Congress in Wroclaw, Poland, to find out how its aims on a wider scale dovetail with its underground arts and music scheduling

Among the Rocks and Roots: Wolves In The Throne Room Live

As Wolves In The Throne Room ready new album Celestial Lineage, Brad Sanders has a celestial experience when he sees them live in Louisville

FWD>>, Backward, Outward: Dubstep Night’s 10th Birthday

Angus Finlayson takes London dubstep/grime institution's 10th birthday party as an opportunity to think about the pasts and potential futures of UK bass music. Photo by Will Bankhead

A Scenic Highway To Hell: Ppartying At Norway’s Pstereo Festival

Wyndham ‘Dirty’ Wallace checks out the Pstereo Festival in Trondheim, Norway and emerges with an unexpectedly devilish grin…

In Search Of Darkness On The Edinburgh Fringe

"Gang-raped by Crosby, Stills and Nash": while searching for the dark, dirty heart of the Edinburgh Fringe Stephen Dalton encounters Stewart Lee and a new theatrical collaboration between Marc Almond and Mark Ravenhill

This Festival Kills Fascists: The Quietus At Hungary’s Sziget

Kevin E.G. Perry goes to Hungary's Sziget festival for a dish of rooster testicle stew and an exploration of Roma culture against a backdrop of the rise of the far right. Photographs by Veronika Moore

Poland On The Page: Off Festival Moves Beyond Music

What happens when Eastern Europe throws in a mix of art and literature to its upcoming music festival scene? Alexander James went to OFF, Katowice, Poland, to find out.

Field Day 2011: The Quietus Review

And so The Quietus looked after the Village Mentality Stage at last weekend's Field Day Festival. Here is what we got up to.

In Search Of Hyggelig: Copenhagen’s Trailerpark Festival & Christiania

Chris Roberts attends a mostly-rave festival in Copenhagen in search of "hyggelig" and finds people spinning in the sky, drunk acrobats, Peaches singing ‘Total Eclipse Of The Heart’, a hippie paradise and daredevil cyclists.

Of Tome & Tide: Port Eliot Literary Festival Reviewed

Luke Turner goes to the frightfully nice Port Eliot literary festival for a weekend of words and song. Photographs thanks to Neil Thomson, visit his website here

All Tomorrow’s Parties I’ll Be Your Mirror Review

Tim Burrows muses on All Tomorrow's Parties I'll Be Your Mirror event, and explains why Swans are currently the greatest rock band on the planet. Photographs by Hayley Hatton

Nostalgia Buffed: The Horrors Live

While witnessing The Horrors at the 100 Club, Tim Burrows argues that new album Skying shows a band greater than the sum of their influences. Image by Nick Gough Photos

An Abyss Spits Out Another Abyss: Liturgy Live

Seeing them live in a Bloomington basement, Brad Sanders gets to the bottom of the never-ending Liturgy / black metal controversy. Photographs (including embedded gallery) by Chet Strange

“Still A Deeply Political Act Of Listening & Love”: Pulp Live

Neil Kulkarni breaks his no-festival rule and braves the corporate overkill of Wireless to see his Pulp. His verdict? They "now stand mighty amidst the dwarfed mediocrity of modern indie" and, crucially, they're a band we need so much, right now. Photograph by Hayley Hatton

Dr Dee: Damon Albarn’s Magickal Mystery Tour Fails To Become Gold

Stephen Dalton at the Manchester International Festival finds Damon "the Martin Amis of Britpop" Albarn's musical about the life of Dr John Dee to be a flawed production. Perhaps he should call intended collaborator Alan Moore to help him fix it?

An Unnerving & Profound Beauty: Bjork’s Biophilia Live

John Tatlock is wowed by the debut of Bjork's Biophilia in Manchester, deeming it "a joyful trumpet blast for rationalism"

Just Not The Same Band Any More: Battles Live

Why In With The New Is The Best Policy: Sonar Festival 2011 Review

Melissa Bradshaw heads back to Sonar in search of fresh experiences - and finds that it's the newer sounds, rather than familiar faces, that are the festival's lifeblood. Photos by Pere Masramon for Red Bull Music Academy

Knack For An Earworm: Ford & Lopatin Live

Ford & Lopatin head to the Shacklewell Arms in East London, where Charlie Frame sees the formerly-known-as-Games duo deliver a fantastic set of electronic pop. Photo thanks to Nickie Divine

An Explorer Of The Northern Gothic: Shackleton Live

After a night at the Highlife 1st Birthday Apocalypse in Glasgow, Daniel Baker muses on the mysterious experience of seeing Shackleton live. Picture by Tjeerd van Erve/Gonzo (Circus)

‘Cos Everybody Hates A Tourist: Pulp, Politics & Power At Primavera 2011

The Quietus heads to a Primavera Festival that takes place against the backdrop of an ugly police crackdown on Barcelona protesters. Tim Burrows explains why now is the perfect time for the return of Pulp, plus reviews of Factory Floor & Chris Carter, Einsturzende Neubauten, PJ Harvey, Odd Future, Swans and more. Pictures by Hayley Hatton

I’ll Tell You Now & I’ll Tell You Firmly: John Cooper Clarke Live

"For all we've heard of John Cooper Clarke, we've not really been listening to him." Catherine Thomas argues its time to re-asses the Bard Of Salford. Picture thanks to Shot2bits.net

Action Over Information: Peter Bröztmann Live

Frances Morgan takes in Peter Bröztmann live at Café Oto, and forgets about all the ephemera to focus on just the music. Photo thanks to Andy Newcombe

Weather Becomes Music: Variable 4 At Faster Than Sound

This weekend, the Variable 4 weather-operated sound installation is at the Snape Maltings for the Faster Than Sound Festival. The Quietus finds out more

Electric Kool-Aid Catharsis: Sufjan Stevens Live

Sufjan Stevens brings his grandiose live show to the UK stage, and Ben Gilbert goes along to witness the spectacular and unhinged evolution of one of America's finest artists. Photograph by Burak Cingi

Electricity Is Love: Mute & Raster-Noton’s Short Circuit Triumph

This weekend Mute and Raster-Noton joined forces for Short Circuit at the London Roundhouse. Luke Turner was on hand to witness a very special Festival