KT Tunstall is set to visit Colston Hall Bristol this winter to promote her new album Invisible Empire // Crescent Moon.

KT Tunstall has announced she will roll into towns across the UK and Ireland this October and November.

This new tour will give fans a chance to hear new material from her much-anticipated new album, Invisible Empire // Crescent Moon, which is released on June 10.

The new record is made up from two sessions, recorded with a season in between them, so KT saw the work as naturally separated into two distinct parts – an ‘A’ side and a ‘B’ side.

The first batch sees songs focusing on the themes of mortality, a subject close to her heart following the passing away of her father last year.

The second batch, which includes first single Feel It All, evokes an ethereal mood, more reflective of deeply felt changes in outlook and shifts in her personal life.

KT Tunstall broke into the public eye with a 2004 live solo performance of her song Black Horse And The Cherry Tree on Later… with Jools Holland.

She has enjoyed commercial and critical success since, picking up three nominations before winning a Brit Award, and a Grammy Award nomination.

KT Tunstall hits Colston Hall Bristol on November 9, 2013. Tickets go on sale at 9am on May 24, 2013.

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Only Men Aloud are set to visit Colston Hall Bristol this winter as part of their first tour in two years.

Only Men Aloud will be embarking on a UK tour at the end of the year, culminating with a massive homecoming show at Cardiff Motorpoint Arena.

This will be the guys’ first tour in two years and marks a complete reinvention of Only Men Aloud – honed and toned to now become an eight-piece choir.

Tim Rhys-Evans, leader of the male voice collective which initially found fame on the BBC talent show Last Choir Standing in 2008, explained that the decision had to be made for logistical reasons as the group look ahead at touring on a global scale.

“This is something which has been on the horizon since the beginning of the year and now is the time to announce our radical restructuring.

“We are becoming an eight-piece ensemble, plus me. It has been five years since Last Choir Standing and there have been so many highlights and unforgettable experiences since then.

“But we have always investigated new possibilities and tried not to stand still and we see this move as the beginning of a new chapter.”

Speaking about the upcoming tour Tim said: “Changing the way people perceive choral music has always been central to us in Only Men Aloud and our latest reincarnation is the next step in our development as a group.

“We’re so excited about getting back out on the road and sharing our new look and sound with audiences across the UK.”

Only Men Aloud hit Colston Hall Bristol on December 20, 2013. Tickets are on sale now.

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Prom Concerts can be somewhat predictable affairs, where the only variety often comes in merely shuffling the pack of traditional sing-alongs and other mandatory items.

Not so conductor Simon Ible, however, whose consummate expertise in programme-planning always ensures there’s sufficient variety and interest, while still leaving his listeners wanting more – especially important with vocal music, where length simply isn’t everything.

England’s Green and Pleasant Land it definitely was, with the Ten Tors Orchestra, led by Malcolm Latchem, on fine form throughout, and the ever-enthusiastic University of Plymouth Choral Society singers giving their all, in both accompanied, and unaccompanied settings, after coming together initially for an exuberant reading of Handel’s ever-popular Zadok the Priest.

Particular highlights included a stirring and highly-relevant rendition of The Dam Busters March, and some delightful snippets from HMS Pinafore, featuring soloists Sally Harrison, Nathan Vale and Alexander Robin Baker.

But the wonderfully rich and expressive voice of mezzo-soprano Marie Elliott, pictured top, as Merrie England’s first Queen Elizabeth, and later when suitably attired as Britannia, contributed the real crown jewels to this royal event.

With the usual opportunities for some communal singing and patriotic flag-waving, the large audience clearly savoured this light musical souffle, so ideally suited to the hopefully imminent arrival of some true summer weather.

PHILIP R BUTTALL

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Indie-rockers Suede are back together and set to visit O2 Academy Bristol this autumn to promote new album Bloodsports.

Following triumphant shows at London’s Alexandra Palace and Nottingham’s Rock City earlier this year, Suede have added further dates to their October UK tour.

Suede are set to release new single, Hit Me, on May 27. It’s the second single to come from their critically-acclaimed new album, Bloodsports.

Singer Brett Anderson said: “I think Hit Me sounds the most like something off Coming Up. It’s got that kind of sort of fizzy, sort of pop-y thing going on.”

Described as ‘The Best New Band in Britain’ back in 1992, Suede‘s eponymous debut album went to the top of the charts the following year – becoming the fastest-selling debut album in a decade.

The years since then have seen various changes to the lineup (most notably, the departure of songwriter and guitarist Bernard Butler) but continuing commercial success.

The Coming Up album, released in 1996, reached number one in the UK, producing five top-ten singles and became Suede’s biggest-selling album worldwide.

The group disbanded in 2003 but reformed in 2010 for a series of concerts. Three years on from that reunion gig, Suede released their sixth album, Bloodsports, last March.

Suede hit O2 Academy Bristol on October 24, 2013. Tickets go on sale at 9am on May 17, 2013.

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Disney’s hit musical The Lion King is set to visit Theatre Royal Plymouth in 2014 as part of a record-breaking nationwide tour.

Four years in the making, this truly international production brings together a cast of over 50 actors, singers and dancers, from 17 different countries, supported by a backstage team of over 100 people.

With hundreds of masks, puppets and more than 700 elaborate costumes representing 26 different types of animal, 21 giant trucks are used to transport everything across the country.

In total, the touring production will visit 10 cities across the UK & Ireland over two-and-a-half years, with further dates and locations to be announced.

Disney’s The Lion King is based on the beloved Academy Award-winning animated film which was entrusted to director and co-designer Julie Taymor to adapt for the stage.

The Lion King draws upon Taymor’s immeasurable experience of various theatrical styles and cultures to tell the compelling tale of Simba, the young lion cub, as he journeys through life and struggles to accept the responsibilities of adulthood and his destined role of King.

The acclaimed stage adaptation of Disney’s 1994 film was first seen on Broadway in 1997, where it recently became the highest-grossing show in Broadway history.

The production has now been seen by over 68 million people across six continents and the acclaimed West End production continues to sell out at London’s Lyceum Theatre in its 14th triumphant year.

To date, this new touring production has enjoyed sell-out, record-breaking seasons in Bristol, Manchester and Dublin.

The Lion King is at Theatre Royal Plymouth from January 31 to March 15, 2014. Tickets go on sale at 10am on June 3, 2013.

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Pop-rockers Texas will celebrate their 25th anniversary at Colston Hall Bristol and Plymouth Pavilions this winter.

In their 25th anniversary year Texas release their new studio album, The Conversation, on May 20.

It’s their first in eight years and the latest in a career that has seen the band sell over 30 million albums worldwide with a succession of multi-platinum albums, like White On Blonde, The Hush and Greatest Hits.

This year’s overdue return clearly redefines and confidently re-introduces the band afresh with tracks written and produced by singer/guitarist Sharleen Spiteri and bassist Johnny McElhone and featuring collaborations with singer-songwriter Richard Hawley and Bernard Butler.

The Conversation is an album splitting its seams with the joy of a long-proven pop force creating a collection of songs rich enough in melody and emotion to deserve filing beside the best of the band’s previous million-selling hits.

The album was recorded in Glasgow, London and at Richard Hawley’s studio in Sheffield, where the seven tracks he worked on went on to form the backbone of the record – a perfect marriage of Hawley’s Fifties rock’n’roll frills and Texas‘s timeless cast-iron melodies.

Texas hit Colston Hall Bristol on November 13, 2013, and Plymouth Pavilions on November 15, 2013. Tickets go on sale at 9am on May 17, 2013.

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Colours Of India, Sculptures From Devon, with work by Diane Hemingway and Jean Lock, is at Harbour House in Kingsbridge this summer.

Diane Hemingway‘s acrylic paintings of architectural themes and still life arrangements, pictured, are a direct response to the light and colour that she experiences at her home in France, and on her travels in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Spain.

After a career teaching, lecturing and psychiatric social work Diane was able to concentrate on painting.

She told SouthWestShows: “I spent the winters travelling through Sri Lanka, Nepal and India.

“Rajasthan is my particular favourite. Even the smallest town boasts a palace or a temple, some of which are stunningly beautiful.

“I painted in watercolours, partly because that’s the lightest equipment to carry around, but also because it’s a medium that can give a quick and spontaneous response to the environment.”

These paintings form the inspiration for Diane’s work in the studio, where she works in acrylic paint on a larger scale, “loosening up the image to create impressionistic or semi-abstract paintings. I always try to maintain the essence of the original image, to recreate whatever interested me initially in the subject.

“My other joy and inspiration in life are flowers and trees. I love to make carefully observed watercolours, noting the transparency of a petal, the curve of branch and leaf. Later I will use what I’ve discovered in the subjects to make freer compositions in acrylics.

“My paintings are also influenced by the vibrancy of colors in Spain,where I lived for ten years – the reds of the earth, the orange and yellows of the fruit trees, the green and purple olives.”

Diane now paints in France, and has exhibited her work at galleries in the UK, Nepal, Sri Lanka, India, Spain and France.

Following a career in teaching, Jean Lock has embarked on a new career which has allowed her to experiment with clay, papier mache, printmaking and painting.

She is passionate about life drawing, and the human form is a constant theme in her work, whether as a graceful sculpture, a colourful collagraph print, or a playful papier mache sculpture inspired by poetry or music and incorporating fragments of text or manuscript.

Jean is a member of the South West Sculptors Association, and exhibits her work at the D’Art Gallery in Dartmouth and the Brownston Gallery in Modbury.

As a printmaker, she exhibits annually with Press Gang, the Salcombe Printmakers.

Colours Of India, Sculptures From Devon is at Harbour House from June 4 to 16, 2013. Admisison is free – see the Harbour House website for details.

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Nineties boyband Blue are set to visit O2 Academy Bristol and Plymouth Pavilions this autumn as part of a new UK tour.

The One Love hitmakers – Antony Costa, Simon Webbe, Duncan James and Lee Ryan – have reunited for their first album in ten years, Roulette – the first since 2003′s Guilty, which preceded their split.

For the record Blue teamed up with producer RedOne – who has worked with the likes of Lady Gaga and Jennifer Lopez – and think the finished product boasts a more mature sound.

The boys officially reformed in 2009 but admit they are nervous about making a big comeback.

Asked whether they could compete with the younger generation of boybands, Simon said: “I think there’s enough room for both. I mean it’s all about the music at the end of the day. You shouldn’t really be watching anybody else.

“We’re an international band, it’s not just about the UK for us. You know, we’ve sold out in Italy, sold out in Germany, Scandinavia, but not really much on home soil. And this is what makes it really nerve-racking about this album.”

With over 15 million album sales under their belt, over ten top-ten singles and a new single, Hurt Lovers, out last week, the group is showing that 13 years on they are still on top form.

Blue hit O2 Academy Bristol on October 23, 2013, and Plymouth Pavilions on October 31, 2013. Tickets for Bristol are on sale now. Tickets for Plymouth go on sale at 9am on May 17, 2013.

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Eighties stars Kim Wilde and Nik Kershaw will join forces for a special Christmas Party at O2 Academy Bristol this winter.

Girl next door Kim Wilde and singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw have unveiled dates for a Christmas Party UK tour together in December.

Kim Wilde became an instant new wave phenomenon in the Eighties and was ever present in the charts with smashes like You Came, You Keep Me Hangin’ On and, of course, Kids In America.

Alongside rejuvenating her singing career, Kim has developed green fingers and is a presenter on the BBC’s Garden Invaders.

Nik Kershaw had a handful of Top 10 singles in the Eighties, including Wouldn’t It Be Good, I Won’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me, Wide Boy and The Riddle.

More recently he has successful re-launched his career as a ‘serious’ musician.

Kim and Nik will be performing their greatest hits in Bristol, as well as some festive favourites.

Kim Wilde and Nik Kershaw hit O2 Academy Bristol on December 18, 2013. Tickets go on sale at 9am on May 10, 2013.

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Take That star Mark Owen will visit O2 Academy Bristol this summer to promote his new album The Art Of Doing Nothing.

Mark Owen recently premiered the video for his new solo single Stars, the first track to be taken from his new album The Art Of Doing Nothing.

Mark recorded much of new record in The Rabbit Hutch – basically, a studio at the end of his garden!

The accompanying music video for Stars was filmed in Berlin and inspired by the French street artist Victor Ash.

The Art Of Doing Nothing is Mark’s fourth studio album. Set for release in June, the record comes eight years after the release of his third LP How The Mighty Fall.

A source said: “Mark is really excited about the new album – he sees it more as a collaborative work than a solo album, something he made with a collection of his friends.

“He’s worked with some really interesting people on it including singer-songwriter Ren Harvieu and Charlie Russell, the producer who has worked with Alt-J, as well as some brilliant illustrators, photographers and filmmakers.

“People will be surprised by the results – it’s not what fans will expect.”

As a solo artist, Mark Owen has sold over 400,000 records worldwide, with hits including Child, Clementine and Four Minute Warning.

Mark Owen hits O2 Academy Bristol on June 11, 2013. Tickets go on sale at 9am on May 10, 2013.

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