Hot on the heels of last month’s The War on Drugs recommendation, here is December’s suggestion for the one gig you should definitely make an effort to get to, in-between all that parenting stuff. You haven’t got time to get to every gig you’d like so you need to be selective, which is where this guide comes in handy.
Being difficult to categorise as an artist is a great way to stop yourself being pigeon-holed and allows you the freedom to explore so many more avenues. It does, however, make writing about that artist a fairly difficult task. Essentially, Sweet Baboo is ace. That pithy review won’t see any job offers flowing in from the NME any time soon, but hopefully you will begin to have an idea as to why Sweet Baboo, Stephen Black to his mum, is December’s Dad Gig.
The Welshman brought out his fourth album Ships in 2013 on Moshi Moshi Records, featuring the ludicrously catchy and thrillingly dark If I Died…, which received wall-to-wall play on BBC 6Music upon its release in March of that year.
Sample lyric: “Daniel Johnston has written hundreds of great tunes and I’ve got six. So I guess that’s some catching up to do to tell you that I love you”.
You’ll see Sweet Baboo described variously around the internet as folk, country and psychedelic which isn’t not right but doesn’t really sum him up satisfactorily enough. Essentially, he knows a good tune and likes a brass section.
Intrigued? Here are his December dates:
01 December – The Lantern – Bristol
02 December – Greystones – Sheffield
03 December – Traders Club – Hebden Bridge
04 December – Purcell Room – London
05 December – South Streets Art Centre – Reading
06 December – The Duke of Clarence – Cardiff
08 December – Phoenix – Exeter
09 December – The Musician – Leicester
10 December – The Basement – York
11 December – Gullivers – Manchester
12 December – Unity Works Minor Hall, Wakefield
13 December – Portobello Town Hall, Edinburgh
14 December – The Lemon Tree – Aberdeen
Have a look at the Sweet Baboo website to have a listen to a brand new song and keep an eye on the Dad Gigs page for more suggestions of artists worth booking a babysitter for.
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