Mai 21st, 2008 by admin
After an improbable rise to superstardom in his adopted home of Australia over the past few years, Gotye finally made his UK debut last week in London. Monday things went down at the Metro, but as I was still dealing with the maelstrom of shit that was finals week, I had to postpone my gratification until his Hoxton Bar & Grill show Wednesday. Absolutely worth it though, as his Hoxton show was by all accounts the better gig, with a sold out crowd and amazing support in the form of the lovely Marina & The Diamonds and the afrocentric fingerpicking of Nick Mulvey. There were also some extremely hot jams dropped by Fresh Prints in between sets and after the show. I read somewhere they’re gonna be the next Justice or something. Read the rest of this entry »
Mai 19th, 2008 by admin
All Tomorrow’s Parties is exactly that: a fucking party. It feels unlike any festival I’d ever been to – everyone seems to know each other, and it’s one of the few large-scale music events I’ve ever attended where it seems as if the majority of punters are with the band, both of which add up to create an atmosphere of familiarity and makes for one hell of a three-day bender. The venue is ridiculous – there’s really no American equivalent to Pontin Sands Holiday Centre, the best I can do is to describe the rundown middle-class family resort as a supersized Chuck E. Cheese. There are mascots painted all over the walls, a shitty arcade, go karts (sadly not in service during the festival) and lots of cheesy restaurants and too much wordplay. Suffice it to say, taking in some of the world’s most rocking bands in this environment is considerably strange. Regardless, we had an awesome time. Read the rest of this entry »
Mai 12th, 2008 by admin
Post War Years live in an abandoned hairdresser/Russian social club (obviously the two go hand in hand) in Leamington Spa, England, a place I’ve never heard of that probably isn’t quite as relaxing as it sounds. Having cruised into the new year on a wave of significant buzz, they’re debut single sees release today on shit-hot London imprint Chess Club, fresh off the release of last months’ mega-hyped White Lies single. “The Black Morning”, as it’s called, bounces along on a repetitious piano riff that borders on experimental ambiance, but quickly establishes itself as decidedly livelier fare on the strength of an animated drumbeat and a chorus of cascading synths and handclaps that goes down as one of the best in recent memory. Produced by fellow Leamington Spa up-and-comers Mysterons, the whole affair is highly reminiscent of Tom Vek’s eclectic sonic tapestries, but B-side “You And Me Both” could straight-up be a lost cut off Vek’s We Have Sound and those eagerly awaiting news of the reclusive multi-instrumentalist’s still-unannounced sophomore album would do well to get all up into this Post War Years’ single in the meantime. Read the rest of this entry »
Mai 2nd, 2008 by admin
Upon the original release of “Space and the Woods” as Late of the Pier’s debut single in early 2007, I passed it off as nothing more than a directionless mess from a band making a last-ditch effort to throw their hat into the ring of the rapidly-fading “new rave” craze. It was too schizophrenic, too derivative – Klaxons already did the whole science-fiction thing and I’m pretty sure Gary Numan’s got a copyright on those synths – and too cloying, that glorious 80’s synth riff the only thing worth even considering writing home about. But here we are one year on, with new rave six feet under and Late of the Pier’s Erol Alkan-produced debut album the subject of white-hot anticipation around town. On the strength of subsequent singles “Bathroom Gurgle” and “Bears Are Coming” and an epic performance opening for Justice last Valentine’s Day, it seems Late of the Pier have actually made a believer in me. Their schizophrenic song structures have actually become one of their major selling points, setting them apart from their by-the-book contemporaries, and between his work with Late of the Pier and his LA Priest side project, frontman Sam Prest is slowly establishing himself as one of brightest talents in all of England. Read the rest of this entry »
