Live music in Northampton this November

Someone clearly forgot to tell promoter Phil Moore to pause and take a breath every once in a while, and so this month The Black Prince will be groaning under the weight of SBD events he has booked in.

Still, that’s good news for us sound addicts, and things start at their heaviest with Pulse favourites, and ‘almost’ local boys, Raging Speedhorn (Nov 1). Read more about them over the page.

Support comes from a name from the early noughties newly back in play, Defenestration. Ashborn will take to the stage first.
Partners on and off stage, When Rivers Meet (Nov 2) are going back to their roots on their current Red Rum Duo tour – playing as a two-piece for the first time in five years, as that name suggests.

It means that fans can expect an intimate show from the rock-blues bringers, and provided they don’t have any on the road spats, the hotel bill will be cheaper too. Win-win.

Last year’s third album, Aces Are High, elevated their position and saw their following increase, and these fiercely independent artists are currently preparing their next elpee for release in early 2025.

The same night, SBD also inhabits The Lab, with a show from Nick Harper (Nov 2).
Nick is playing in support of his new album, Earth Day Blue, recorded at Abbey Road on, yup, Earth Day 2024.
It’s Harper’s 14th studio delivery, and John Leckie (Radiohead, Muse, Stone Roses) was at the production desk for this disc, with Tchad Blake (Tom Waits, Peter Gabriel) mixing.

‘The album is a flash mob of high calibre talent assembled for a few hours’ collaboration in a very special space,’ is how the press bumf describes it.

Recording took place in Studio 2, but it wasn’t the first time Nick and Roy had inhabited that space at the same time – in 1973, when Nick was a wee lad of eight, he recorded his first ever songs with John, while his dad Roy was recording his Lifemask opus, with Jimmy Page.
Nick delivered his first solo album three decades ago, and has sprinkled his magic on recordings by a creatively diverse number of artists; Lana Del Ray, Newton Faulkner, Steven Wilson, Dizzee Rascal and Calvin Harris among them. Heading down to the show?
‘Expect everything from the emotional to the political, from witty to virtuosic; the singular to the universal.’

East Northants fella Stevie Jones has hopped on the bill, sans his Wildfires, so be stage front nice and early to welcome him flying solo for the occasion.

60s garage punk, wild teenage trash rockabilly and primitive rock n’ roll with black metal boogie is in the musical backpack being sported by Swiss players The Monsters (Nov 13).

Giving ears good grief since back in the mid-80s, they’ve lots to choose from for the set list.
‘It’s 187% no MTV and Top 100 s*it!’ is the promise, ‘…simple one-riff-trash-rock.’
A splash of authentic ‘fampton is bill sharing, with maraca shakin’ rattle ‘n’ rollers Gogo Loco coming to play for you – Bo Diddley beats and garage rock guitar unite!

Rosalie Cunningham (Nov 15) is a regular under the SBD banner, and this time she comes bearing more gifts – tracks from her new studio album, To Shoot Another Day, which is cut loose on November 1.

‘If Kate Bush and The Beatles had a baby it would be Rosalie Cunningham,’ said Classic Rock magazine aeons ago. But we still like that sound-bite, so we’re sticking with it.

Looking Glass Alice will also play, showering barbed hooks and beats in a warped portrait of youthful dissonance.
Bobbie Dazzle will be up first. Her debut single, Back to the City, was issued in the spring, on the ultra cool Rise Above label.
Listen in and she will take you on a nostalgic trip into quintessential 70s glam rock.

The Dirt Road Band (Nov 29) has a delicious pedigree among its members, and a longevity that most muso’s can only dream of.
Steve Walwyn has spent 45 years as a member of Dr Feelgood, and spent time with the awesome Roger Chapman of Family, The Specials bassist Horace Panter is in place, and drummer Ted Duggan has done time with Badfinger, The Beat, The Selector and Desmond Dekker. We told you there was pedigree in place here, and we weren’t fibbing.

The guys issued their debut album, Righteous a couple of months back – go take a listen over on their Bandcamp page.
The Hayden Regan Band will also play for you.

Last up, The Entitled Sons (Nov 30) leave the land of cider behind and come to shoe town for a show.

This is a real family unit – siblings Billy, Charlie, Rafferty and Larrie are joined by their father, Graham on bass duties.
Their debut single, cut loose back in 2022, made the Top 10 on iTunes within days of its release, and when the band entered into a competition battling for the chance to play Glasto, they left victorious.

As you will have read on these very pages a couple of issues back, Torus have been toasting the release of their self-titled debut album, and they’ll be all fired up when they support at this show – they will be fresh back on home turf having joined stoner aces Fu Manchu for a trio of dates in London, Manchester and Bristol.

This trio has so many hooks that the local haberdashery is experiencing a drought!

Idle Palms are up first, bringing the rock and pop flavours evident on their self-titled debut album.
And that is the sum total of SBD’s work for the month of November.

We’ve heard rumours that Phil will then retreat to a darkened room for a few days to recover. And we’d not begrudge him!

> For more info and all tickets visit sbdpromotions.com