SHAPES LIKE PEOPLE – Under The Rainbow

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A Wiltshire based dream pop duo featuring husband and wife team Carl and Kat Mann, Shapes Like People were formed as a side project to Carl’s indie band The Shop Window. Kat had already provided backing vocals on their ‘Daydream’ LP, but, if stories are to be believed, Carl hadn’t actually considered Kat for his then new project. It’s been jokingly claimed that Shapes Like People came together by accident, but like many happy accidents, the results were impressive. Their debut album ‘Ticking Haze’ played like the ultimate love letter to the 4AD label circa 1991, and although the whole record was enjoyable, between the waltzing time signatures of ‘A New Crown’, the harmony driven ‘Fireworks’ and the Johnny Marr tinged ‘Head Spun’, it offered a trilogy of tracks strong enough to place Shapes Like People among the frontrunners of retro sounding dream pop bands.

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URIAH HEEP – Return To Fantasy

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After releasing three fantastic albums in ‘Demons and Wizards’, ‘Magician’s Birthday’ and ‘Sweet Freedom’ as well as a classic live document in a little over a year between May 1972 to September 1973, it’s no wonder Uriah Heep sounded less inspired on their 1974 LP ‘Wonderworld’. Although not a document from a creatively spent band, the album included absolutely nothing memorable in the long term. Bizarrely, the best track dating from those sessions,’Stone’s Throw’, was never completed. Released in demo form on an expanded reissue of ‘Wonderworld’ in 1996, it knocks the entire album into a cocked hat. Following bassist Gary Thain being electrocuted during a show in Texas on that tour, 1974 could very much be considered the end of the band’s “imperial phase”.

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DEWEY – Summer On A Curb

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Dewey’s debut single ‘Jinx’ signified the arrival of a band with a potential greatness. On that track, the young Parisians served up a sound wholly indebted to the 90s with a massive shoegaze tone that really pushed some interesting guitar work to the fore. Right from the opening notes, though, it was clear that each of the band members had something important to offer when a solid drum part powered a fine groove, and the wall of guitars was joined by an equally solid bass.

Above all, ‘Jinx’ sounded far more melodic than a lot of the genre’s pioneers – a slither of indie melody contrasting the semi-woozy feel that the likes of My Bloody Valentine wouldn’t deem necessary made the single so much more accessible, and the way a busy and almost otherworldly keyboard line layered the main melody with something a little busier definitely gave the performance far more of an uplifting quality. Taking pride of place on Dewey’s ‘Summer On A Curb’ LP – issued almost three months later – ‘Jinx’ sounds better than ever.

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REAL GONE GOES OUT: Lande Hekt – Ramsgate Music Hall, Ramsgate, Kent 9/4/2026

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On a musical level, Lande Hekt’s solo albums provide a welcome jolt of nostalgia. The bulk of the material takes on a big, jangly approach which evokes strong memories of the early 90s, and Lande’s finest songs are an equal match for The Sundays’ best. With some superb music offset by some sometimes very personal narratives, they’re recordings that also retain a contemporary heart. In the live setting, the singer-songwriter abandons a band set-up in favour of a solo approach, which allows the lyrical elements to take centre stage. The very intimate Ramsgate Music Hall really suits the scaled back delivery with Lande reworking fan favourites and new tracks for voice, guitar and occasional loop pedal.

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