It’s dark, it’s wet, it’s freezing – but you can fight those winter blues, and we can help you. Behold – Birmingham’s array of musical salvation, from intimate acoustic sets to steaming mosh pits to brightly lit raves, check out what’s on offer this week:
Pick Of The Week
Django Django – 02 Institute
Monday, Dec 7, | Tickets £18.50 + fees, available from Ticketmaster
London based neo-psychedelic quartet Django Django arrive in Birmingham following the release of their critically acclaimed 2015 album, Born Under Saturn, which reached 15 in the UK charts. For synth-laden guitar grooves, tripped-out-vocals and lots of pretty lights to gaze into, Django Django are your guys. Born Under Saturn is out now via Because Music.
Also this week
Quartz Burial + Kode9 – Hare & Hounds
Friday, Dec 11 | Tickets £12.50 + fees, available from Skiddle
Dubstep, electronic, grime, Jungle, UK garage – expect awesome crossovers from this duo DJ set at the Hare & Hounds. This show signifies Hyperdub label founder Kode9’s debut Birmingham performance, and follows his November 2015 album release entitled Nothing. For insight into the work of two of the most influential producers of this century, this is the place to be.
Vault Of Eagles – Sunflower Lounge
Saturday, Dec 12 | Tickets £5, available from Birmingham Promoters
They’re an amalgam of blues, psychedelia, grunge, alternative rock and straight-up-ultra-fuzz. Midlands dual-fronted three-piece Vault Of Eagles make it their mission to be the antithesis of over-produced, over-processed and over-commercialised pop and rock music. For a fiercely independent band with an unapologetic attitude, check out Vault Of Eagles now.
SikTh – 02 Academy
Friday, Dec 11 | Tickets £16.87 + fees, available from Ticketweb
Down tuned, hellish, technical – British progressive metal veterans SikTh arrive on the heels of their December 2015 EP Opacities, their first release in eight years. Along with Swedish heavy weights Meshuggah, the band are considered progenitors of the now popular metal movement Djent, on behalf of their near-impossible to follow guitar rhythms and brutal breakdowns. You can listen to Opacities in full here.
The Bank Accounts – The Dark Horse, Moseley
Saturday, Dec 12 | Tickets £5 available OTD
The Banks Accounts, fronted by Benjamin Kane (Dorcha, Bad Girlfriend), are good fun. Their recorded tracks are delicate, charming and almost nursery rhyme like (I Like You, Dealing With This Feeling, I Wait For You). Apparently they’ve even got a tune called He’s Got Gigs And People Like Him And His Name Is Connor Hemming, which seems to be true, check out our interview with Bad Girlfriend. The Banks Account play with support from home-grown psychedelic shoegaze troupe Cut Glass Kids and indie-pop quartet Breeze.
Gnarwolves – The Rainbow
Wednesday, Dec 9 | Tickets £10 + fees available from See Tickets
Brighton punk three-piece head to Digbeth in promotion of their November four-track EP entitled Adolescence. Support comes from American melodic hardcore bands Spraynard and Such Gold. For stage invasions, crowd surfing, huge sing-along choruses and the chance to mosh your bleeding heart out, head to the Rainbow on December 9.
Celebrating Sanctuary, Afro Mio – Ort Cafe, Balsall Heath
Sunday, Dec 12 | Tickets £5 available OTD
Afro Mio, which means “My Africa”, was founded by Angola-born singer, author and composer Ben Pathy. He specialises in traditional African music – Rubma, Soukous, Kizomba and Salsa and has performed extensively across the Midlands at such venues as MAC, Symphony Hall, and Four Squares Festival in the city centre. Past collaborations include working with Kora player Dan Wilkins (The Destroyers), who also plays regularly with Afro Mio. Charming, engaging and beautiful – this music is guaranteed to warm your cockles on a wintry Sunday.
