La Belle Angele Archives - North West End UK

28Sep

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Dirty Harry – La Belle Angele

There are tribute bands, and then there are those which, for a couple of hours at least, manage to transport you somewhere else entirely. Tonight, Dirty Harry took me straight back to the late 1970s and early 80s, when Blondie were in their prime and Debbie Harry was quite simply one of the coolest people on the planet. First up are The Postcards, who provide an enjoyable warm-up with a slightly more adventurous trawl through the alternative end of the 80s than your average covers band. Orange Juice’s Rip It Up, Simple Minds’ Don’t You (Forget About Me) and a welcome excursion into Echo & the Bunnymen territory all hit the spot. Their venture into The Smiths is perhaps less successful — Morrissey’s voice is a particularly dangerous one to borrow — but you can’t win th...

Alexis Dubus 3 Star Show – Edinburgh La Belle Angele

What a pleasure. What a lovely hour. But it’ll only garner three stars. ‘Be under no illusion,’ began Alexis, ‘this will not be five-star. Despite how good the beginning’s been…’ This show refreshingly addressed the elephant(s) in the room; reviews and reviewers. Currently it’s estimated anyone who’s lodged an e-mither address (I do confess) with the Fringe as a reviewer has well over 150 offers of free tickets in return for roughly 300 words and a star rating. The maxim ‘don’t read your press, weigh it,’ has never been more appropriate. And which reviewer’s going to murder a show by anyone who, however bad, has still put in a massive amount of time and effort to attend the Fringe, will depart with a small mountain of debt, showbiz ambitions in tatters? The fact that many of these reviews ...

Better Days – Just The Tonic at La Belle Angele

A small tired-looking man pushes a brightly coloured piano down the street. A giant with the mean-eyed look of a pro linebacker dressed all in white with enormous fluffy angle wings negotiates his way carefully past a bus stop. It’s raining. Fish and chip from a posh van costs £15 and a small cup of watery cider £8. Yes folks its Fringe time again in Edinburgh. And kicking it off (for me) is this hedonistic fever dream lyric poem of the early nineties. This is Dylan Thomas, meets Trainspotting set in The Hacienda. Where ‘Better Days’ is actually set is a subterranean nightclub in the depths of Edinburgh’s Cowgate, at the slightly odd showtime of 13:30. It’s an interesting venue, maze-like and vast. Note to self to come back at 01.30! Ben Tagoe’s poetic story introduces us to Danny...