Category: Features
The Über Rock Singles Club – January’s Jumpers ‘N Jivers
Ushering in the new year (albeit a bit belatedly) the way we know best, with yet another Singles Club feature, and it falls to DJ Astrocreep to make his selections… though he really wished that the over 500 submissions were not so competitive as to make it so hard for him! It’s time to pour yourself a large one, kick back and enjoy what our resident DJ has selected from a huge bag of tricks as the soundtrack for our virtual speakeasy on this occasion.
Read More
VIDEO OF THE WEEK – TROLLFEST
Well, we may be only a few weeks into 2021 but already it is looking as if it as going be as much of a shitstorm of a year, if not more so, than its predecessor, with the Government apparently losing the war with the pan(dem)ic and fighting back with renewed, and even more stringent, lockdowns in place the length and breadth of the Über Kingdom (and beyond). But, with seemingly no light at the end of the tunnel, despite the promises of vaccines offering some form of over-vaunted “miracle cure”, at least 2021 is sharing something more positive in common with 2020, in that it already has produced some terrific new music, with the promise of plenty more to come, if the if the inbox here at ÜRHQ is anything to go by…
Read More
VIDEO OF THE WEEK – TV PRIEST
There’s a saying about “new year, new start”. Well, it be only at the end of its first week, but to date 2021 certainly has not delivered the latter, with renewed, and even more stringent, lockdowns in place the length and breadth of the Über Kingdom (and beyond), with seemingly no light at the end of the tunnel, despite the promises of vaccines offering some form of over-vaunted “miracle cure”. But, at least we still have music… at least for the meantime…
Read More
THAT WAS THE YEAR THAT WAS: ÜBER ROCK’S TOP ALBUMS OF 2020
Over the course of a year, our Über team listens to literally hundreds of albums, and once again we set them the onerous task of selecting what they feel to have been the best new releases of the past 12 months. In total, our crack team submitted more than albums for consideration, with their lists then fed into our state-of-the-art musical abacus to calculate our final top ten albums of 2020.
Read More
THAT WAS THE YEAR THAT WAS: REMEMBERING LIVE SHOWS
To paraphrase a certain much over-played song by Led Zeppelin, “does anyone remember live shows?” Yes, we do… those occasions when we would travel the length and breadth of the Uber Kingdom, worshipping at the altar of rock ‘n’ roll and experiencing the best bands around in the environment in which they were best enjoyed – down the front in a hot and sweaty moshpit (or from the safety of the VIP area at the back of the room!)…
Read More
THAT WAS THE YEAR THAT WAS: 2020 “COVERED”
We’re not normally fans of cover versions here at ÜRHQ, but it has to be admitted that 2020 has seem a plethora of them – perhaps a hefty percentage more than in any “normal” rock ‘n’ roll year – as artists have adapted to the various global lockdowns and used modern technology to either present their takes on favourite songs or collaborate (virtually) with like-minded fellow artists to put new twists on perennial favourites.
Read More
EXTENDED PLAY: ÜBER ROCK’S FAVOURITE BITE-SIZED PIECES OF MUSICAL MAYHEM
For many years, the EP – or ‘Extended Player’, to give it its full title – was a criminally overlooked format. But, in recent years, it has made something of a deserved comeback, as bands face the challenge of continually producing new material but often not being able to commit to the cost of, or time to, recording full-length albums. During the course of the global pandemic, it has become an even more important tool for artists to get new music out there, with bands often availing of limited time between lockdowns to lay down a handful of songs, or individual members taking the opportunity either to strip things right back to their basics, or indulge in online collaborations with like-minded fellow troubadours.
Read More
THAT WAS THE YEAR THAT WAS: ÜBER ROCK’S ALBUMS OF THE YEAR (PART ONE)
There is no doubt it, but 2020 has been a truly traumatic year for the rock ‘n’ roll Überverse, with live shows all but non-existent in the vast majority of places, and income streams completely decimated for many of those involved in the music business. The latter is a feeling we know all too well here at ÜRHQ, as we ourselves have not earned a penny since the Northern Ireland entertainments industry went into lockdown on 14 March. However, one thing that has shown through is the enormous creativity of many, many hundreds of artists, and equal numbers of those working behind the scenes, in adapting to the changed global landscape – one which, in many cases, may indeed be changed forever: streamed shows, whether live or pre-recorded, have virtually (sic) become the norm, and no doubt will remain so, especially here in the Über Kingdom, for quite some time to come…
Read More
VIDEO OF THE YEAR
There is no doubt it, but 2020 has been a truly traumatic year for the rock ‘n’ roll Überverse, with live shows all but non-existent in the vast majority of places, and income streams completely decimated for many of those involved in the music business. The latter is a feeling we know all too well here at ÜRHQ, as we ourselves have not earned a penny since the Northern Ireland entertainments industry went into lockdown on 14 March. However, one thing that has shown through is the enormous creativity of many, many hundreds of artists, and equal numbers of those working behind the scenes, in adapting to the changed global landscape – one which, in many cases, may indeed be changed forever: streamed shows, whether live or pre-recorded, have virtually (sic) become the norm, and no doubt will remain so, especially here in the Über Kingdom, for quite some time to come…
Read More
The Über Rock Singles Club – A Carolling We Go…
Well, it’s that time of year, isn’t it? You know the one… when we’re supposed to be nice to people we spend the rest of the year moaning about behind their backs, stuffing our faces with over-priced party snacks and drinking far too much egg nog and rum punch… Well, we must have been at the latter already, because we’ve decided to bring you a special Christmas edition of the Singles Club, with a selection of some of the rock ‘n’ roll flavoured seasonal musical (and, in some cases, not so lustrous) gems currently doing the rounds. Put it this way: if we’ve had to endure listening to them, then we’re sure as feck gonna make sure you have to do so too…
Read More
VIDEO OF THE WEEK – SO LONG UNTIL THE SÉANCE
It’s hard to believe that it’s been seven whole days since we last awarded our coveted ‘Video Of The Week’ title, and a lot has happened in the Überverse, with many parts of the Über Kingdom once again being lockdown with the most severe of restrictions and everything that these bring with them, including yet more cancelled live shows (including livestreams) and Christmas arguably ruined for many people.
Read More
VIDEO OF THE WEEK – The HU
It’s hard to believe that it’s been seven whole days since we last awarded our coveted ‘Video Of The Week’ title, and, despite the ongoing, and some cases renewed, lockdowns in many parts of the Überverse, we are still receiving a healthy bundle of submissions for our coveted ‘Video Of The Week’ title. Many of them are produced against the background of continuing quarantine conditions in some countries, while others reflect artists being able to return and flex their creative muscles once again.
Read More