Freaky Party

Music Reviews and more

Main menu

Skip to primary content
Skip to secondary content
  • Pop/Rock
  • Metal
  • Indie
  • Electronic
  • Folk
  • Jazz
  • Classical

Post navigation

← Older posts

The Marriage of Figaro review – Danielle de Niese’s deft direction weds finery with fun

A touring show was quite a challenge for the opera star’s first directorial gig, but dynamic singing, charismatic orchestral play and clever stage jokes pull it off brilliantly

La Traviata review – gripping and genuinely moving staging opens Garsington’s summer season

Louisa Muller’s richly detailed production of Verdi’s tragedy is elevated by Madison Leonard’s magnetic Violetta and Douglas Boyd’s musical direction that reinvigorates the familiar score

Feldman and Beckett: Words and Music review – hypnotic absurdism at Sheffield Chamber Music festival

This fascinating and bold concert featured the works of the ‘word man’ and the ‘note man’, and their absurdist radio play Words and Music

Turangalîla: Infinite Love review – RPO and 1927 Studios bring Messiaen to joyous and vibrant life

Part of the Southbank’s Multitudes festival, this pairing of silent movie and Messiaen was a feast for the eyes and ears

Multitudes festival: Echoes of Hill and Horizon review – epic light show electrifies Elgar and Vaughan Williams

With dizzying surround sound and thousands of LED baubles, this was a synaesthetic feast from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

Karol G at Coachella review – electrifying set destined for festival’s hall of fame

With dazzling choreography and head-spinning set pieces, the Colombian star delivered a victorious statement of Latin pride

Justin Bieber at Coachella review – pop’s troubled prince mostly hits right notes in low-energy set

For a reportedly record-breaking amount of money, the increasingly reclusive star proves his voice is still golden in a headliner performance light on enthusiasm

The xx at Coachella review – indie trio reunites for spellbinding, rangy set

The English band’s first festival set in eight years hypnotized with their atmospheric dance sound

Sabrina Carpenter at Coachella review – madcap maximalism from pop savant

The pop star turned the desert into an ambitious theatrical revue with elaborate sets and celebrity cameos

Golden Plains 2026 review – Basement Jaxx turn a regional farm into a surreal and heaving club

With standout sets from Cut Copy, Marlon Williams and Water From Your Eyes, the cult favourite Victorian music festival has become the hottest ticket in town

Bath BachFest review – joyous and mesmerising music making

The festival’s new artistic director Adrian Brendel presided over – and was a key part of – a day of virtuosic and adventurous performances

Harvest Rock 2025 review – the Strokes, Jelly Roll and the War on Drugs save Adelaide festival after a slippery start

MIA, the Presets, Ruel, Lauren Spencer Smith and Royel Otis also play standout sets once the storm clouds pass

End of the Road review – from industrial rackets to pristine folk, festivals don’t get more varied or vital

Full of warmth despite the rain, highs include Mexico City experimentalists Titanic and Vermont songwriter Lily Seabird’s gorgeously open-hearted voice

Norwegian Chamber Orch/ Kuusisto/Barruk review – Proms first as Ume Sámi songs take centre stage

Pekka Kuusisto and his world-class NCO brought a programme blending classical, folk and pop with Sámi vocalist Katarina Barruk, in this thoughtful Prom

Krankenhaus review – Lake District castle has the antithesis to boring corporate music festivals

Featuring steam train trips and guided walks between the bands, organisers Sea Power have made something special in this dung-scented corner of the north

Post navigation

← Older posts
  • Danish String Quartet review – captivating performance from a world-class group
  • Manchester Camerata review – mental torments build up to a royal meltdown
  • The Marriage of Figaro review – Danielle de Niese’s deft direction weds finery with fun
  • St Vincent review – majestic orchestral transformations of jagged art-pop
  • BBCNOW/Bancroft review – conductor takes final bow in imaginative programme of vivid colours and emotions
  • Krishna review – the mystery of John Tavener’s ‘mystic pantomime’ is why it has been staged
  • Taylor Swift: I Knew It, I Knew You review – giddy up! Song for Toy Story cowgirl Jessie is Swift’s best in years
  • Zoh Amba: Eyes Full review – raw, rugged country rock also has real tenderness
  • Gintė Preisaitė: Instruments of Forgetting and the Singing Bone review – atmospheric, unsettling ambience
  • Hourglass album review – Simone Dinnerstein gives Glass room to breathe
  • Lizzo: Bitch review – a spirited star who just can’t rediscover her groove
  • Beethoven: The Violin Sonatas Vol 1 album review – fresh-as-a-daisy performances from a duo with a gift for storytelling
  • Mike D review – ex-Beastie Boy’s first UK gig in two decades, in a Tyneside bingo hall, is uproarious fun
  • Saint Levant review – Palestinian pop star makes Australian debut to an ecstatic, sold-out crowd
  • Vespers review – haunting clash of cultures conjures Vivaldi’s Venice
  • Jack White review – former White Stripe’s art is like a 12-year-old visiting Tate Modern for the first time
  • Lise Davidsen and James Baillieu review – superstar soprano unleashes her inner Valkyrie
  • Orlando review – a confident romp through Handel’s flimsily plotted opera
  • Take That review – stadium redux of Circus tour has maximal razzle-dazzle
  • Hampson and Sidorova review – style over substance with a whiff of the cruise ship
  • Matías Aguayo: Anenoa review – the funkiest, freest singer in the business hits the dancefloor
  • Violet Grohl: Be Sweet to Me review – alt-rock arriviste aces the part
  • Dvořák: Symphony No 9 album review – Shani brings a natural freshness to a familiar work
  • La Traviata review – gripping and genuinely moving staging opens Garsington’s summer season
  • Colin Matthews: Seascapes album review – the songs teem with detail
  • Iceage: For Love of Grace & the Hereafter review – Danish punks ace sixth stellar album on the trot
  • La Fanciulla del West review – insightful staging reveals the power of Puccini’s maverick masterpiece
  • 125th anniversary gala concert review – back to 1901 as Wigmore celebrates birthday playing to its strengths
  • Sugar review – Bob Mould’s reunited band still in a sweet spot between noise and melody
  • Paul McCartney: The Boys of Dungeon Lane review – at 83, his gift for melody still astounds

Contact www.freakyparty.net   Terms of Use