Art Craft and Leisure news

In recent years, few musical descriptors have suffered from definitional creep as badly as ‘psychedelic’. Cardiff’s own Gene Madoc calls himself a “psychedelic folk artist”, but there’s next to nothing in the earnest acoustic troubadour’s trad-leaning repertoire that truly fits the bill. One track is titled Tethered To Expectation – somewhat unfortunately, as it underlines the disappointment that follows the anticipation his self-branding has built up.

Still, Madoc offers a reasonable take on the Young Marble Giants classic Brand – New – Life, apparently given the personal seal of approval by its author Stuart Moxham, who performed it himself at Wales Goes Pop! mere streets away at the Gate earlier this month. And closer I Feel Disdain – which Madoc accurately labels “a tirade” – quickens the pulse like a hit of caffeine, though not of anything stronger. 

By contrast, Edwin R Stevens is a true original: the sort of musician who can floor you with nothing more than a naked guitar line and a few words. (It comes as little surprise to subsequently learn that he’s also a published author.) The veteran of projects such as Irma Vep and Yerba Mansa ventured out under his own name with 2023’s God On All Fours, and its successor A Plague Of Gimps is by turns absorbing, disturbing and pitch-black funny.

Stevens’ origins in Llanfairfechan and current residence in Glasgow have left an indelible imprint on his music – imagine Gruff Rhys transplanted from North Wales up the M6 to a scuzzy squat in Scotland’s second city. His winding David Berman-esque narratives are filtered through Aidan Moffat’s filthy mind, peppered with “Did he really just say that?” phrases like “Aryan bum disease” and “You made me Norman Bates’ mother” (Ugly Thing) and populated by characters who are compelled to collect their errant offspring from Thai jails (Blood In The Dumb Room) or who interrupt the performance of oral sex to declare that Germans should “apologise for their country” (The Bunker). Leftfield references – to Thomas The Tank Engine, to old copies of Kerrang! – abound, and a delicate instrumental is subverted by Stevens’ revelation that it was written to the sounds of his four-old-son straining to have a shit.

A set that begins with Stevens urging the audience to come forward while admitting “there’s nothing to see” ends with the refreshed maverick thanking us “for being so kind to this motherfucker who can’t even play his own songs”. “Neither can we”, comes the response. He expresses gratitude to Cardiff for coming out, before quickly correcting himself: “A proportion of Cardiff.” He may be a niche artist, an acquired taste, but those of us present are sold on his beautiful dark twisted fantasies.

Edwin R Stevens + Gene Madoc, Paradise Garden, Cardiff, Sat 11 Apr

words BEN WOOLHEAD photos NOEL GARDNER

Former Chelsea and Arsenal player Jorginho has issued a statement saying pop singer Chappell Roan was not involved in an incident in which a security guard reduced his daughter to tears.

The 34-year-old Italy international claimed in a post on Instagram last month that an employee of Roan’s had confronted his wife Catherine Harding and their daughter Ada over breakfast at a hotel in Sao Paulo, Brazil, after the 11-year-old recognised the singer.

Roan responded to Jorginho’s claims saying that she felt “sad for the mother and child” who “did not deserve that”, but added that she had not been aware of the incident and it did not involve her “own personal security”.

Jorginho has now confirmed the security guard involved was not employed by Roan and that the “matter is now closed”.

The midfielder, who has dual Brazilian citizenship and now plays for Flamengo in Rio de Janeiro, stated in a new Instagram post, external that “the situation did occur as described” and that “we acted on information that was available to us”.

He added that the security guard involved in the incident has “confirmed publicly that he was representing another artist at the hotel at the time”.

“Chappell Roan made a public statement, reached out private to Catherine, and our teams also spoke directly,” said Jorginho.

“It became clear that she had no knowledge of what took place at breakfast and had not asked anyone to approach them. She was understanding and sympathetic to what happened to our child.

“While we still do not know what prompted him [the security guard] to approach them, and do not believe an 11-year-old could reasonably be seen as any kind of security threat, it is now clear he was not acting on behalf of Chappell.

“It was, ultimately, a misunderstanding in that respect, and I am glad to set the record straight. It is important to me that this is clarified fairly and accurately. I regret the impact that this situation has had on Chappell Roan, Catherine, Ada and our family.

“I will always stand up for my family. But I also know how to recognise when things were not quite what they seemed at first.”

The incident drew significant media attention both in Brazil, where Rio de Janeiro’s mayor Eduardo Cavaliere wrote that he intended to ban Roan from performing in his city, and on social media.

Jorginho went on to state that he does not “support or encourage hate speech or online attacks from any side”.

Paramount Skydance reached a deal to acquire Warner Bros Discovery in late February after Netflix dropped its months-long bid for the company, which houses brands including Looney Tunes, Harry Potter, Friends, the HBO hits Succession, Sex and the City and Game of Thrones, as well as CNN.