City of Patience album review from Joe's Big Toe
http://www.joesbigtoe.co.uk/reviews/shoshin-city-of-patience/
"The streets are back in the sound and that is what they have always been about.
When talking about English music it is often a cliché to speak about the grit and growling,
the scratches and imperfections, the accents and the idiosyncrasies, but they are what has made
English music a worldwide phenomenon, so why give up what makes us great? Highly lauded
in The Netherlands, Shoshin are hitting the road in February to take their powerhouse
tunes on a European tour because the guys over there discovered the glory of
Manchester’s finest long before us. And isn’t that a bit embarrassing?"
“You have to be good at Guerrilla gigging, or not do it at all. The members of Shoshin must have
realised this, as an average band would only have lasted half an hour or so in this cold, but
Shoshin managed two and a half hours. It might even have been longer as they were already well
on their way when I arrived the first time. They have remarkably good songs to listen to. So good that
the question arises as to why they are not programmed to play in a warm hall with beautiful
lamps and “consumptiebonnen”. They had to make do with small amplifiers and even
with those they still managed to produce good sound.” – Translated from:
http://www.musicfrom.nl/blogs/2562/EuroSonic+-+Shoshin+doet+het+op+straat+~S3~esns10.html
“A band from Manchester stole my heart over the last weekend. You may well have seen them,
outside the “Grote Markt” between Vindicat and the Grand Theatre? This band grabbed my
attention when I was unable to enter the festival due to the crowds. The band is called Shoshin
and entertains with nice catchy songs with a mix of hip-hop, rock and reggae. A short interview
was quickly arranged, the band were not invited to play at Eurosonic. They still came to
Groningen to play for two evenings, blue of the cold, in front of an enthusiastic audience on the
street. What a band spirit. If I was able to present an extra Pop prize/award, then I would give it to
them.” – Translated from:
http://www.livexs.nl/2010/12977/live-recensies/festivalverslag-eurosonic-2010/
“As the crowds rolled out of the Academy, they were greeted with some pretty ballsy buskers from
Manchester called Shoshin, who pulled off a 20 minute set in the street even after being
threatened with getting arrested.” Taken from -
http://www.the- fly.co.uk/words/blogs/7756/liverpool-sound-city-day-one
“Finally one of the best bands of the weekend: Shoshin. An English band not in the
Eurosonic/Noorderslag line-up and who therefore decided to make their own way to Groningen.
Two nights long the trio stood playing on the streets of Groningen, for hours on end and in the
freezing cold. For this reason and due to the strategic place they chose to play opposite the Febo
– almost each visitor to the Eurosonic heard Shoshin. Hopefully next year they will have a real
place at the festival.” – translated from:
http://www.nrcnext.nl/blog/2010/01/18/een-weekendje- bands-kijken-in-groningen
“The British rock trio Shoshin come Saturday 10 September 2011 to Appelpop in Tiel to perform
so-called “Guerrilla Gigs”. The band will not be on stage but will play among the people on the
festival site. The band is on tour since July through Europe and played amazing shows on the
street where they are regularly asked for performances in halls or festivals. In the Netherlands,
Shoshin is known for not making it to the line-up for the Eurosonic-Noorderslag festival in
Groningen but armed with their instruments; they still came to the festival to play. Roderick Udo:
“There is no better place to see Shoshin than in the street. Spontaneous parties arise” – Translated from:
“Rolling out of the O2 Academy, the Delphic and The Fall crowd found an impromptu gig from
Manchester's Shoshin. Having supposedly being promised a support slot and then later got turned
down, they began just as the venue emptied and played their tight, infectious rap rock tunes.
Their efforts weren't in vain either as they amassed a crowd of nearly 200 people, some who were
filming on their phones and recording the sound on their iPods. They quickly ran out of their demo
CDs and made about £50 in change. Today's conferences were all about how young bands can
make money from their music - none of them mentioned this. Good luck to them.” - Taken from:
http://www.peterguy.merseyblogs.co.uk/2010/05/liverpool-sound-city-shoshin-h.html
“Shoshin’s music sounds different to most bands that are currently on the British music scene.
Singer-guitarist Pete Haley is being influenced by the diversity of Manchester City when writing
their songs. Shoshin’s music has a unique style and wherever they play they manage to get the
crowd/audience moving. One could describe it as funky guitar pop with intense rhythms taking
you back to the impacts of urban music which provides a solid base for infectious melodies with
influence of soul, blues and reggae.” – Translated from:
http://www.culemborgsecourant.nl/lokaal/britse_band_shoshin_op_appelpop_16287341.html
