NOIZEMAKESENEMIES.CO.UK

INTERVIEW // SKINT AND DEMORALISED: VOICE O' THE TIMES

2009-06-29T22:11:00.005+01:00

Twenty-year-old Matt Abbott makes up one half of the Motown influenced spoken word duo, Skint and Demoralised, and despite his newly acquired acclaim and whirlwind two months – Abbott’s young feet seem pretty firmly fixed to the ground.
For those of you who haven’t heard of Skint and Demoralised (that’s anyone who works during Edith Boman’s daily Radio One stint), Matt Abbott was fresh from the monotony of education in his hometown of Wakefield, Yorkshire, when he started looking to poetry as a way of finding his footing in a dog-eat-dog music industry (“I’m not a singer and I cant play an instrument so I didn’t have any natural path music”) but before long he found his platform alongside producer MiNI dOG:

“I was really inspired by John Cooper Clarke who used to do spoken word before bands like The Fall and The Sex Pistols. I always loved words and language but as a teenager it’s not cool to say you like poetry so I started doing spoken word in pubs and clubs.

“It was just an excuse not to do college work really but I would record it on my mobile and then upload them onto MySpace so people could hear them. Then someone got in touch with me about putting my poetry over music tracks and I thought it’d be a bit of a novelty and agreed. Within a month we had five songs, without even having met, but when we did, we just clicked and after two years, we’re still trying!”

And the trying appears to be paying off with new single ‘Red Lipstick’ out 13th July and already earning the duo a place at some of the most prestigious music festivals around the country over the next few months. Their debut is a three minute ode to the girl next door revealing Abbott’s college penchant for more down to earth girls who apparently like no more than ‘red lipstick, fish and chips, orange juice and trips to the sea-side.’

Whilst this fresh pop track will likely win them some criticism from more ‘serious’ Indie-meets-spoken word fans when compared to the likes of The Streets and Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip, Matt’s words plummet to further depths than the quirky debut would perhaps lead you to believe; with one poem specifically targeting the errors of the BNP, warranting him a place on stage at Love Music Hate Racism:

“The racism issue has always been important to me and obviously the BNP were elected in Yorkshire and I’m a Yorkshire lad so hopefully I’ve put that point out there. Love Music Hate Racism is important and a good cause because kids don’t listen to politicians and need younger people. Racism is a social and moral issue. I can’t change the world but if I can help, I will do.”

Barely out of his teens, Matt seems to have had quite a impact with his profound words establishing him a firm following, something demonstrated with Skint and Demoralised playing their first headline tour in February earlier this year and all their plans to help them pass the time throughout the usually dubious weather of the English Summer:

We’re doing Bestival, Reading Festival, Wireless, Latitude and now Glastonbury and we’ve got the release of ‘Red Lipstick’. We’ve also got another single coming out in September, a tour around then and then the album will be out 15th October. We’re just taking it one step at a time though. We don’t want to disappear after one single and an album.”

Hopes are also high for their debut album, fusing a sort of 60s soul with Matt’s Mike Skinner-esque observations and his innate balls to be different and veer away from the mainstream:

“Our music is largely inspired by Motown and Northern Soul but we didn’t want to do an Amy Winehouse rip off but we used her band to get that real authentic sound and not a sort of Mark Ronson soul-by-numbers.

“Although a lot of people, like John McClure in Reverend and the Makers, don’t put their spoken word stuff on their albums - we’ve done spoken word interludes on the album. Not like Eminem, but like spoken word with sound affects. It’s a bit weird…but we quite like that it’s a bit strange because it shows people what it is that we do.”

As the interview with Matt comes to an end, three things resound; (1) he chats faster than I thought was humanly possible when his bubbly nature and excitement for his career take over his speech, (2) He does do mainstream, caving to Twitter (and confessing that he is ‘a bit sad’ and does all his updates in rhyme) and (3) Skint and Demoralised are really quite a refreshing addition to the music scene and clearly loving every minute.

By Laura Routledge

REVIEW // SONAR FESTIVAL 2009

2009-06-29T22:00:00.002+01:00

Festivals come in many shapes and sizes these days, but a commonality links them all. Location. While some languidly stretch over verdant grassy fields in the bucolic hinterland, others sit fervently upright in some city centre park.
Sonar may just stand in a class of its own, spreading its effusive fingers across an entire city for 3 days. That City is Barcelona, a paragon of modernity and traditional beauty on the gilded shores of the Mediterranean. Over 150 live acts and DJs from the world of electro combine with a whole host of art, multi-media installations, exhibitions and demonstrations by painters, sculptors and visual artists.

In its 16th year, Sonar is officially divided into day and night sections, but in reality is supported by a myriad of “Off Sonar” events spread around the city, including boat, beach and pool parties and club nights starting morning, noon and night. A whole host of DJs, producers and remix kings, including Ed Banger, Sunday Best, Red Bull Academy and Secret Sundaze book acts across the city, giving Barcelona the feel of a massive, de-facto all night, three-day rave that besets the city. The Spanish, like no others, know how to party and how to party late and long.

Sonar de Dia (day) is set in centre of Barcelona, and is a civilized affair focused upon the progressive arts and world of multi-media while ambient electro tunes drift all around in the background. You’re as likely to bump into serious arts and media lovers as clubbers looking for a daytime hop. Most notable acts this year included Micachu and the Shapes, La Roux, Ebony Bones and a whole host of DJs.

Sonar de Noche (night) couldn’t be more different, set in Fira Gran Via L'Hospitalet, a vast conference centre in an industrial wasteland on the city limits. Looking like an aircraft hanger with its 20,000 capacity, Sonar de Noche runs, unsurprisingly, all night and is akin to a giant organized futuristic rave. This is where the serious partying takes place, though the presence of a dodgem track seemed incongruous. Headliners included Animal Collective, Orbital, Crystal Castles, Grace Jones, Fever Ray and Late Of The Pier.

The revellers certainly seemed up for it, judging by the trade in Red Bull outside the main gate and the assortment of comedy hats/sunnies/facial hair and fancy dress on display. Electro loving locals, international pilgrims of dance, Festival hopping tourists, turbo charged stag do’s, dub step loving hippies, old school ravers, the gay clubbing brigade and gangs of hedonistic under 20s. Every kind of reveller filed in as the gates opened their welcoming arms and dispersed the expectant crowds across the three stages, both indoor and outdoor.

Club, looking like a vast aircraft hangar, and Lab, another smaller, more intimate indoor stage, were both predominantly reserved for DJs. In contrast, Pub was an outdoor stage that offered up a good mix of live acts. Despite the fervent 20,000 capacity crowds, the venue never seemed overly full and was relatively easy to wander around. Even the drinks were reasonably priced for a festival, getting one another matter with the ludicrous buy-a-ticket-to-buy-a-drink system and its inevitable queues.

In the vast Club arena, Grace Jones, didn’t let the female diva union down as she turned up nearly an hour late. Still, she crooned out a few good tunes, wearing a mirror ball hat and even hoola-hooping on stage, before pulling the whole front section of the crowd up on stage during Pull Up To My Bumper, for their “look a me mum” moment.

Current darling of the music press Little Boots opened with Earthquake before ripping through an electric set, determined to make converts of us all. “This is the first time we’ve played in Barcelona – it’s great to be here!” declared Ms. Boots, grinning.

Fellow Brits Late of the Pier were also in fine fettle, raging through their electro-indie rock set including perennial favourites Focker and Heartbeat, despite having to leave the stage halfway through due to technical problems.

After the Worst Mojito In The World™ – poured from an industrial sized metallic canister - it was on to catch the end of James Murphy & Pat Mahoney (LCD Soundsystem), Richie Hawtin and Sebastien. By then the hair-raising low-end bass, incredible lighting and abundant profusion of man-made stimulation available had got the serious techno heads going, lost in the waves of music, bobbing along like little islands amid a sea of noise.

Buraka Som Sistema and the UK’s Mary Ann Hobbs provided a slight change of pace with some late night dubstep action, and the crowds ebbed and flowed, increasingly subjugated in the incredible 25 degree heat. But that was to be the last variation of the early morning, and as the night sped towards its climax, the crowd transformed from early ambivalence to energetic collectiveness to daze and confusion

Finally all three stages in unison turned themselves over to a heady mix of repetitive beat and heavy distortion. Here perhaps a more accessible headliner, on a least one stage, might have been the order of the day (or night). The Chemical Brothers for example, Mylo or 2ManyDJs spring to mind.

Brodinski and Don Rimini brought the night to a shuddering climax, and left the stupified multitudes that were still going looking, wanting and needing more.

As the night stretched out it’s hand to greet the lazy sun, rising over Barcelona’s beaches, the crowds spilled out into the grey dawn, sunglasses the only bulwark against the intruding reality of the day. Many, still able, would forgo sleep and seek out the plethora of early morning beach and boat parties that carry would them through until midday and beyond. The rest, tired and befuddled, would contemplate that only 6 hours remained before they would be doing it all over again.

By Simon Owen and Derek Robertson
Photos by Will Edmond

NEW NOIZE MAKERS INTERVIEW // WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS

2009-06-29T21:57:00.001+01:00

After meeting at high school in Edinburgh with a collective interest in contemporary indie music, four young bairns by the name of Adam Thompson (guitar/vocals), Sean Smith (bass), Michael Palmer (guitar) and Darren Lackie (drums) started We Were Promised Jetpacks – Fat Cat Records’ latest acquisition from the ever-burgeoning Scottish music scene.
On one of the finest days Glasgow has witnessed in 2009, I was joined by three-quarters of WWPJ in Adam, Sean and Michael. Rather than sitting in the sun kissed Botanic Gardens only five minutes walk away, we descended on the bands local, which also happened to be the West End’s finest old person’s pub, fully equipped with horse racing on the big screen.

After three-quarters of the band relocated to Glasgow for university, WWPJ began to tear the roofs from many of Glasgow’s finest little venues, slowly developing a hype that has landed the band where they stand now – on the cusp of a debut album release and a UK headlining tour to boot. WWPJ can now sit gleefully on Fat Cat’s increasingly impressive repertoire of Scottish talent (alongside friends Frightened Rabbit and The Twilight Sad), albeit only following some friendly tip-offs and record label patience in abundance.

We Were Promised Jetpacks have a sound oh-so recognisable and is heavily influenced by a range of music dating back to bands youth. Debut album These Four Walls underpins the bands influence of late nineties Britpop, combined with the style of granduesque musicianship familiar with Mogwai and modern indie markers such as The Futureheads and Bloc Party. For an album recorded in just eight days, These Four Walls is undoubtedly something to be proud of, and looks sure to propel the band to greater heights. Recorded with Ken Thomas (Sigur Ros, David Bowie), the band conceded that the initial response to Thomas’s mixes was rather sceptical, which led to Peter Katis (Interpol, Frightened Rabbit), a close associate of Fat Cat, taking the reigns.

The concept of the debut album and the necessity to ‘nail it or else’, was something that was trailing through the inexperienced minds of the band, although they insist that the end product has been wholly worth it. “The recording of the album was both relaxing and stressful,” explains Adam. “The whole time we were there I was convinced that this was our one chance to get our first album right, and sometimes I felt we hadn’t prepared enough. Now we just can’t wait to go record the second album”

Not many bands are fortunate enough to find themselves in the position that We Were Promised Jetpacks ended up in, mainly due to the patience and commitment of Fat Cat Records. “When the deal with Fat Cat came up in April 2008, our drummer was in Germany studying for five months,” explains Adam. “The label wanted to see us live before we could go ahead with anything, which of course was impossible for a few months. We asked if it would be possible to hold it off and finish university, which the label was totally fine with.” The hype that began to develop about the band following the discussions with Fat Cat, as Sean explains, was possibly the bands best period in terms of generating a fan base. “When everybody heard about the Fat Cat thing, they couldn’t actually see us live for months,” he said. “We built up this snow-ball effect type following without really having to do any work whatsoever. It was odd, yet possibly our most successful period!”

Additionally, there are not many bands that, having yet to release any material at all, would get the chance to perform at SXSW (South by South-West Festival) in Austin, Texas with fellow Scots Primal Scream and Glasvegas, as well as a gig at New York’s infamous Bowery Ballroom. Having received praising reviews from publications such as The Fly and Vanity Fair, the band admitted that they often had to question whether everything was genuinely happening. “When I was standing tuning my guitar in New York, the thought of ‘what the hell are we doing here?’ hit me pretty hard,” explains Adam. “We had never released anything and we were playing this lovely big venue in New York. It was crazy.”

Prior to the discussions with Fat Cat and the recording of These Four Walls, the band developed a admiration and friendship with Scottish label counterparts Frightened Rabbit and The Twilight Sad. Being two highly successful bands, WWPJ may find themselves often being compared to their labelmates, although this is something that they insist does not worry them. “People who say that we are a rip-off of these two bands don’t actually realise that we were listening to their music long before Fat Cat ever became involved,” says Adam. “Frightened Rabbit and The Twilight Sad were major influences long before any of this happened. I honestly would not compare our sound to either of them.” Sean added: “Because we have so much personal respect for the two bands, had we to put an album out on any other label at any other time, we would have been aspiring to make it as good as them.”

These Four Walls is available to buy now on Fat Cat Records.

By Andrew Burns

REVIEW // KAP BAMBINO @ THE COOLER, BRISTOL

2009-06-29T21:49:00.004+01:00

If I were to say The Cooler was rammed…my hands would be wrist deep in bull-shit... This unmitigated emptiness could have been because it was a Sunday, and it would have been even easier to blame the credit crunch, but empty is empty, and The Cooler was fucking dead.
So at their 5th U.K halt, Bordeaux primary, “dance your ass off”, electro duet; Kap Bambino, were whim to the anticipation of a select and disappointing 20.

“Hello Bristol, we are Kap Bambino...” Devilishly angelic, front girl Martial’s petite beauty matches her child like spokeness, and clad in Parisian marche nuggets, her classic French aura is appearing-ly and confusing-ly innocent. However, snapped at the first kick, an instantaneous salirophilic orgy, turns representative of an exorcism as she tears through the stage in a fit of frenzy, ripping at the backdrop, and intermittently collapsing in exhaustion. With this alters wretched energy, still shockingly in-comprehendible, she croons to Neutral, centre stage, mic clenched and head between the knee’s. Her stabbing screams, carrying across the street, could sharpen the calmest of bystanders yet rearing around the Coolers dance-floor, her inviting nature is incredibly endearing. Like Karen O on K-R-A-C-K.

Bouvier the boy-half, hood up and head down (and not to be forgotten), is electrified… Mechanically dipping to the driving distortion he so mercilessly cranks, he parries on as his counter-part, dropping and spotlighting the backdrop to the pairs new amalgamation: Blacklist.

It’s hair-raisingly blunt, with barbaric synths emitting clenched, hard-house beats, matched perfectly by uncompromised bass lines; all soaked to the brim in distortion. It can only be described as “in-your-face” 8bit terror-core, and combined, Martial and Bouvier are an un-stoppable, electronic force. It’s just a shame no-one was there to witness it.

Leaving Miss Glass in a puddle of embarrassment , you can catch the original unisex-lectro couplet on the Q stage at Glasto or at one of their many dates listed on their myspace.

By Matt Riches

REVIEW // LET’S WRESTLE - IN THE COURT OF THE WRESTLING LET’S

2009-06-29T21:44:00.001+01:00

Apparently recorded in a Whitechapel basement beneath the only ukulele shop in Europe, ‘In The Court of The Wrestling Let’s’ is a fun, dynamic and catchy album with excellent musical hooks and energy-filled melodies.
The first noticeable flaw, however, is that the vocals are pretty terrible, but much like the seventies punk bands that Let’s Wrestle cite as their influences, it takes nothing at all away from the sound as a whole, and there’s something weirdly charming in their vocal quality.

The strange lyrical subject matter of each song is a source of fantastic amusement as you navigate through this very much out-of-the-ordinary release, which in places is quite bewildering but nevertheless works incredibly well as a collection of music. It mixes just the right number of cheeky, entertaining tunes such as ‘My Arms Don’t Bend That Way, Dammit!’ with heartbreaking but totally random rock ‘n’ roll ballads such as ‘My Schedule’, a song which centres on failing to make cups of tea and visiting charity shops. The ukulele-driven sound of seventh track ‘In Dreams’ alongside the strangely addictive vocals this band provides is reminiscent of folk-indie bands like Noah And The Whale and Mumford & Sons; a little different from The Clash and other well-known punk bands in terms of style.

The album, at sixteen tracks, is perhaps a little longer than any good punk rock record ought to be, but the length does provide the band an opportunity to show they are a little bit more than all the other punk and rock bands of the twenty-first century. And the album may be sixteen tracks long, but three of these are less than a minute in length, and like you’d expect from punk-infused music, only one track lasts more than three and a half minutes. The short bursts of song mean you don’t get bored at any point in the album, and the varied feel of the product as a whole is fantastic.

For this reason and for its general feel, I highly recommend this as a record to take with you if you’re going on any road trips this summer; it has all of those things necessary for driving long distances, and will provide a fantastic soundtrack for road-related antics of all kinds.

By Lauren Razavi

Rating: 7/10
Format: Album
Release Date: 29/07/09
Label: Stolen Recordings
www.myspace.com/letsfuckingwrestle

REVIEW // FANFARLO - RESERVOIR

2009-06-29T21:37:00.000+01:00

Welcome to the world of Fanfarlo. It’s a sort of understated instrumental frenzy that combines a violin, a mandolin, a glock, a sax, a trumpet, a banjo alongside, of course, the conventional instruments in a way which immediately emulates the drama and beauty of the likes of Arcade Fire and leaves the listener with no misunderstanding about how truly talented the five-piece really are.
This, underpinned with Swedish frontman Simon Balthazar’s vocals sounding like a more sedate and peaceful Win Butler (of Arcade Fire) as he cries out /Why cant they just think like us?/ in a way that is refreshingly simple yet profound. The innate beauty of Balthazar’s delicate vocals are the perfect addition to Cathy Lucas’ faultless violin playing and the lyrics which echo such honesty and a dark rawness that is reminiscent of the likes of Cold War Kids or The Maccabees.

With a headlining tour in June and having already played at SXSW and The Great Escape, Fanfarlo have already began building up a solid fanbase since forming in 2006, no doubt all equally mesmerised by the enchanting layered production of their music.

Fanfarlo has the intoxicating ability to use their charming vocals, precise lyrics and talented instrumental formation to enter the listener and accommodate their desire to be distracted and escape from reality for forty minutes; something that friends of Fanfarlo, the spine-chilling Sigur Ros and Canadian talents, Wintersleep, are similarly renowned for.

Whether it’s the Swedish romanticism, or the natural and low key dramatics, Fanfarlo have an innate beauty that is almost guaranteed to sweep you off your feet with tracks like ‘Comet’ and “Drowning Man”. Step into Fanfarlo’s world, it’s entirely worth it.

By Laura Routledge

Rating: 9/10
Format: Album
Release Date: Out Now
www.fanfarlo.com

REVIEW // TIGERS THAT TALKED - BLACK HEART, BLUE EYES

2009-06-29T21:35:00.001+01:00

It’s not often that a first EP, released on an obscure label and distributed by a company I haven’t previously heard of, manages to astound me. A lot of releases, many of them a debut, can be good but not great, and indeed every now and again one is great.
‘Black Heart, Blue Eyes’ is more than that: the first EP from the Leeds-based folk rock quartet Tigers That Talked is sophisticated, understated and musically scrumptious.

There are aspects of similarity between Tigers That Talked and the pioneers of 2008’s initial anti-folk movement, but there is also something flawless and beautiful about their songs that really sets them apart from other artists, and demonstrates that they truly are something very special. This is a band overflowing with raw talent and natural creative flair; their songs are flawless and beautiful, with an impeccable lyrical ability and violins that take your breath away. Their whole sound has a spine-tingling uniqueness and breadth to it, and each song seems polished and purposeful in what I’d call an accidental capacity.

Tigers That Talked are pure indie folk goodness, and this four-track EP leaves you aching, wishing, begging for more. This is by far the best debut I’ve heard since the beginning of 2009, and I’ll be truly surprised if the Tigers aren’t the talk of the town by year’s end.

By Lauren Razavi

Rating 10/10
Format: EP
Release Date: Out Now
Label: Bad Sneakers
www.myspace.com/tigersthattalked

REVIEW // THE MARS VOLTA - OCTAHEDRON

2009-06-29T21:31:00.001+01:00

Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler-Zavala have to be two of the most prolific creative personalities in modern music. The fact that 'Octahedron' is the fifth studio album in nearly as many years under the Mars Volta banner is impressive in itself, but throw in two live records, one EP, 12 Rodriguez-Lopez solo efforts, and a seemingly endless list of collaborations, guest appearances and production work, and it's little wonder that the pair grew frustrated with the comparitive snail-like pace of former group At The Drive-In.
Sometimes brilliant, often nonsensical, each previous Mars Volta full-length twists and turns through its narrative with a blend of textured musical effects, abstract lyrics and obsessive attention to detail, which is why it's such a surprise that the track chosen to get the ball rolling on 'Octahedron' is a slowburner that takes well over a minute to really get going. 'Since We've Been Wrong' is also one of a handful of TMV titles that requires neither an encyclopedia or a translator to decipher.

In fact, 'Octahedron' is full of surprises. Only this time round, it has nothing to do with the strange and wonderful places the music leads, but rather the places it blindly refuses to go. Of the eight tracks, 'Cotopaxi' is by far the most complex, and the only one to sustain any real energy. A trio of tunes - 'Since We've Been Wrong', 'With Twilight As My Guide' and 'Copernicus' stray even from the traditional band format, comprising mainly of just vocals and guitar. Elsewhere, 'Desperate Graves' and 'Halo of Nembutals' are actually fairly repetitive mid-paced tunes that both start to drag a little towards the end.

It's pretty obvious that the reason for all this restraint is because the band are desperate not to make the same album twice. After four albums, people have begun to build up a picture of what The Mars Volta are about, and 'Octahedron' serves well as a challenge to those expectations. There will be those that struggle to get to grips with the minimalist attitude and it's fair to say that this album doesn't demand attention in the same way that it's predecessors have done, but at the very least, it's a powerful statement about creative expression, and a chance to show that there's more to The Mars Volta than endless guitar noodling and incomprehensible lyrics.

By Rob Dand

REVIEW // RICEBOY SLEEPS – RICEBOY SLEEPS

2009-06-29T21:29:00.000+01:00

Riceboy Sleeps is the side project of the second most well known Icelandic musician in the world, Jónsi Birgisson, of Sigur Rós fame. The eponymous debut is part of a collaboration with his bowl cut adorned boyfriend, Alex Somers; a collaborative effort which also includes the production of various artworks, including a forty eight page picture book.
Somers' explanation for the origin of their name pretty much sums the band up: "When I met Jonsi, I was really, really poor and I was just living off of rice mostly and I was sleeping too much so Jonsi was writing a song while I was asleep one day and he named it Riceboy Sleeps."

Based on this naïve description of a life which sounds like the plot of Watership Down, it comes as no surprise that the music produced between the two is like a more delicate, perhaps slightly more sentimental echo of the music of Birgisson's main band; like Sigur Rós, the music is arguably somewhat pretentious, yet fantastic and worthwhile in it's own haunting, beautiful, somnambulist way. While there are pauses between most of the tracks, they are rarely perceived; like the landscape of the frozen North, the whole album gradually blankets the mind in snowy violins and stretched out falsetto vocal notes, until finally the listener drifts into a warm, pneumonia induced, eternal sleep. The only real problem is the lack of brevity; only the most hardened Birgisson fans will be able to stay awake through the album's entire length, which stretches nine songs into over an hour of hypnotism.

A beautiful album, but perhaps one for bedtime.

By Steven Garrard

REVIEW // MSTRKRFT - FIST OF GOD

2009-06-29T21:22:00.002+01:00

The first thing that struck me about this band was the fact I had absolutely no idea how to say their name. Not always an appealing or marketable aspect of an act, but certainly something to grab the listener’s attention before the music even starts.
When the music did start, I found it difficult to formulate more of an opinion beyond an eye roll. Unfortunately for this band, who have openly said that they consider themselves to be alternative and unique within their genre, their songs pretty much just sound like everything else on the dance floor and in mainstream music. I was left with a nonchalant bitter taste in my mouth, and no desire to start dancing to any one of the tracks nor to listen to them again.

There is a huge amount of musical and technical range on ‘Fist of God’, which is perhaps both the result of and robustly emphasised by the fact that the majority of tracks on the release are featuring some other artist or band (the only one of which I’d heard of was John Legend). Though collaborating in music can make great things, on this release the sheer number of partnerships made me question whether there’s actually anything to this act on its own. Certainly the strongest tracks on this album are the ones which feature another artist, which actually reflects on Mstrkrft in a very belittling way.

‘Fist of God’ is tries to be new, vibrant and different, but can only be defined as a failed attempt. Very disappointing on all levels, and a release that is definitely not worth your time.

By Lauren Razavi

Rating 3/10
Format: Album
Label: Geffen
Release Date: Out Now
www.myspace.com/mstrkrft

REVIEW // GIRLS - HELLHOLE RATRACE

2009-06-29T21:12:00.002+01:00

“I don’t want to cry my whole life through, I want to do some laughing too.” Got your attention? This is the innate attention grabbing nature of Girls, the San Fransisco duo who are as eye-catching as there are lyrically poignant.
Looking not too dissimilar to an American alternative of David Walliams and Matt Lucas, had they of entered some sort of surreal charity shopping and hair back-combing phase. Yet, Girls are inarguably very talented.

With their debut single “Hellhole Ratrace” crying out to listeners for some TLC and revealing the very human reluctance to get stuck in the monotony of a predictable life, Girls reach out to listeners and reveal a sort of vulnerability that is unavoidably endearing. Whilst, at just under seven minutes in length, the track does lean to the more self-indulgent and unnecessarily long, the eccentric nature of the band in many ways makes it seem more of a showpiece for their creativity rather than evidence of an inability to know when to shut up.

Sounding not unlike the new work of The Horrors with the similarities to Faris’ vocals, entwined with the sort of psychedelic noise rock that The Pixies enhanced endlessly, Girls appear to be the ballsy type of different that should be welcomed with open arms.

Touring with Los Campesinos! and The Pains of Being Pure at Heart throughout the Summer, keep an ear out for their debut LP later this year as if it’s as versatile and complex as this single; 2010 looks set to be a very exciting year for the eclectic duo and their fans.

By Laura Routledge

Rating:7/10
Format: Single
Release Date: 06/07/09
Label: Fantasytrashcan / Turnstile
www.myspace.com/girlssanfran

REVIEW // FLASHGUNS – MATCHING HEARTS, SIMILAR PARTS

2009-06-29T21:10:00.001+01:00

I feel strangely ambivalent about Flashguns' new EP Matching Hearts, Similar Parts. I don't think I should like them, and yet I find myself strangely taken in by opening track “I Don't Not Love You”, despite it's deliberately dumb title.
The music is hardly ground breaking, but interesting none the less; angry guitars shout the song's arrival, before being quickly subdued for the opening verse over a whispering drum roll, only to be unleashed again tenfold shortly afterwards. It's all straightforward verse/chorus/verse, but it's pretty catchy and nicely pulled off.

The following track is even more catchy, but this time to the point of irritation; clichéd jangly guitars and childish xylophone noises make for a poppy, rather dull-ish sound, which pairs badly with slightly silly lyrics like “got so close but no cigar”. The only thing that really drags them up here, and on the remaining couple of tracks, is the impassioned vocal style of singer Samuel Felix Johnston, who sounds refreshingly alive given the slightly hollow feel of the music.

Definitely worth checking out, particularly for “I Don't Not Love You”, but not a particularly dazzling band, or one likely to make huge waves on this effort.

By Steven Garrard

REVIEW // THE NEW 1920 - THE NEW 1920

2009-06-29T21:05:00.001+01:00

If you looking to write a fist in the air rock hit in the parlance of our times then you need a few key ingredients. A big riff. Angst ridden lyrics. Crashing drums. An instantly memorable chorus and a big guitar solo. Opening track of The New 1920's self titled debut EP, Come Around ticks these boxes (apart from the solo) and is a sure-fire mosh pit filler.
The rest of this EP can't quite main the same impact but there's still evidence of undoubted song writing ability with a keen grasp of dynamics that a lot of bands are oblivious to. Amber Gambler is youthful punky rock but still possesses a big sing-along chorus. Head For The Exit has a classic call and response chorus while Keep On is a pleasant but fairly throwaway acoustic number.

The New 1920 is the latest product from the production line that is the welsh rock scene. Their sound balances precariously on the edge of the generic American teen rock but there's enough passion and intelligent lyrics to hopefully propel them to make a decent album somewhere down the line.

By Alex Telfer

Rating: 6/10
Format: EP
Label: Different Smoke
Release Date: 20/07/09
www.myspace.com/thenew1920

REVIEW // NO AND THE MAYBES - PETRA PETRIFIED

2009-06-29T21:02:00.001+01:00

Having hit number one in the radio charts over in their native Denmark quirky three piece No and the Maybes are set to shine a light on the probable on coming of another austere summer.
With incredibly catchy hooks and bass lines akin to Das Pop and reminiscent of Spector era sugar coated west coast pop, featuring vocal harmonies invariably in the vain of harmony kings the Beach Boys and spontaneous hand claps and finger snaps and sparing use of choir it’s both inventive and adds to the intelligent composition of their songs. They could be likened to current bands such as My Little Pony or the more commercially successful Alphabeat. Where they differ, especially from the latter however, is they’re quirky without being irritating. Their lyrics are sometimes both meaningless and meaningful at the same time without being contrived or just plain ridiculous.

This endearing quirkiness is portrayed in the bands epitaph claiming to be “on a mission to save and reclaim catchy melody from wedding singers and the Eurovision song contest”. These ideals translate into their live and recorded performances too.

Petra Petrified is out now. Expect with its release No and the Maybes to stake their claim to the sound of summer.

By James Green

Rating: 8/10
Format: Single
Release Date: Out Now
www.myspace.com/noandthemaybes

REVIEW // AMAZING BABY - HEAD DRESS

2009-06-29T20:53:00.002+01:00

When you graduate from the same University as MGMT (Wesleyan University in Conneticut), you perhaps set the benchmark high in terms of the inevitable consequential comparisons. Luckily for Amazing Baby, their style is perhaps too different from the upbeat chants of MGMT to warrant any further contrast judgements, fortunate in the sense that it is unlikely Amazing Baby would really measure up to their Indie predecessors.
Whilst on the surface they have all the swagger and ruggedly assured nature of the likes of Kasabian or The Airborne Toxic Event, as with too many bands now, their brand of psychedelic rock fails to pack the same punches as the afore mentioned groups.

Having already played The Great Escape, perhaps it is premature to judge a band based on a single which simply lacks the charisma that a few better thought out profound lyrics would perhaps have lent the 3 minutes. The band is also only a year old and as their debut album ‘Rewild’ also out this month, it may well be worth an open mind with front man Will Roan’s vocals sounding encouragingly not dissimilar to the likes of The Last Shadow Puppets in the sense of their effortless laid back credibility.

Amazing Baby are a Brooklyn band made up of former members of at least 5 other bands; from Diamond Nights to Heavy Hands, with an additional sort of band member carousel of around 7 rotating members. Perhaps it is the lack of a real permanent group formation other than Roan and his guitarist Simon O’Connor, teamed with how little the band has been around for, but the result is that ‘Head Dress’ lacks any signs of real longevity and fails to make a lasting impression in the way you would hope for a first single. Yet, there is potential there nonetheless and a more realistic judgement call will likely to be made on the basis of this blustering transient band’s new album.

By Laura Routledge

Rating: 5/10
Format: Single
Release Date: Out Now
Label: V2 / Co-op
www.theamazingbaby.com

REVIEW // OFFICIAL SECRETS ACT – BLOODSPORT

2009-06-29T20:51:00.001+01:00

Official Secrets Act appear to be almost twenty years late releasing the Bloodsport single, epitomising everything possible from the eighties music scene whilst the track sounds like a really slow cover of Hazel Dean’s “Wherever I Go, Whatever I Do.”
Image aside, the song itself is a slow paced synth laden almost ballad of a track with a huge drum sound and prominent dynamics making the song rise and fall appropriately. The vocals are melancholic yet melodic making this one of OSA’s darker songs, leaving a lasting and haunting impact.

Listeners will either love or hate this tune and the whole lets-pretend-we’re-in-the-Wedding-Singer image. Whilst I can’t take their aesthetics seriously, I can really enjoy this track, despite the echoes of Hazel Dean.

By Josh Charig

Rating: 8/10
Format: Single
Release Date: Out Now
Label: One Little Indian
www.myspace.com/officialsecretsact

REVIEW // ASTRID WILLIAMSON - HERE COME THE VIKINGS

2009-06-29T20:48:00.001+01:00

Upon seeing the album cover of Here Come The Vikings, the 3rd album from Brighton based singer songwriter Astrid Williamson I wasn’t optimistic. You can count on one hand the amount of decent records where the artist has decided to put a picture of themselves on the cover.
Williamson deals mainly in soft upbeat rock and heartfelt ballads. As befitting a solo artist the focus is primarily on the singer and musically there isn't a lot going on. Most of the tracks sound like session musicians going through the motions however there are some notable exceptions. Slake is the highlight of the album with an intense spoken word verse, a simplistic but euphoric chorus and some explosive guitar sonics. The driving rock of opening track Store is rare in that it actually has a bit of edge about it and Pinned show’s another side with a melancholy intro blending into an uplifting finish.

She has a great voice but is let down but some shocking lyrics. See track 2, Sing the Body Electric; ‘Isambard Brunel, was a man of iron and could build a bridge very very well’. Or weak girl power track Shut Your Mouth; ‘You make me feel spiritual, and lyrical, and physical but I want to get you in my bed’. Or try Falling Down; ‘Sometimes I think I love you, sometimes I think I don’t, sometimes I can’t make up my mind’. Also there’s an over reliance on simply saying ‘yeah’ or ‘hey yeah’ which occurs on at least 3 songs.

Astrid obviously has talent but this record only shows it in patches with too many bland tracks. Also if anyone has any idea where the title of the album comes from then I'm listening...

By Alex Telfer

Rating: 3/10
Format: Album
Date: 8th June
Label: One Little Indian
www.myspace.com/astridwilliamson

REVIEW // WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS + THE TWILIGHT SAD @ HMV IN-STORE, GLASGOW

2009-06-21T16:18:00.002+01:00

Edinburgh-born four-piece We Were Promised Jetpacks play a short acoustic set at Glasgow’s strangely acoustic HMV store in support of their debut album, These Four Walls, and in preparation of the album launch party at King Tuts later in the evening.
Guitarist / vocalist Adam Thomson, with his odd vocals comprising Beirut/System of a Down influence, leads the way with solo-renditions of ‘This is My House, This is My Home’, with its Explosions in the Sky-esque musicianship and ‘Ships With Holes Will Sink’, before being joined by Michael Palmer (bassist) on glockenspiel and guest-violinist Robyn Dawson for ‘An Almighty Thud’ and ‘Keeping Warm’ – the latter of which being one of the main standout tracks on These Four Walls. Adam insists that this is quite an extraordinary experience for his band, to be playing to a host of people at an in-store gig in his adopted city, before expressing his extreme gratitude. This was little more than a mouthwatering preview of We Were Promised Jetpacks and the endless potential of the young bairns, with Adam Thomson and co proving that they don’t require the ferocity of a full-band performance to sound truly great.

After restarting their opening song, ‘Walking For Two Hours’ due to sound disagreements, The Twilight Sad deliver an acoustic set of the highest standard. Broad-accented vocalist James Graham, who posed a rather nervous figure, states that the words ‘acoustic performance’ is generally followed by extreme scepticism, although he and guitarist Andy MacFarlane run through a short set, which, similar to their predecessors this afternoon, was verging on epic. The pair performs songs taken from widely acclaimed album Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters, such as ‘And She Would Darken the Memory’ and ‘That Summer, at Home I Became the Invisible Boy’, as well as new material from the yet untitled forthcoming album, including ‘Made To Disappear ‘ and ‘I Became a Prostitute’. While banter in-between songs was extremely limited, the material on show was a welcomed and long overdue reminder of what The Twilight Sad have to offer, and the forthcoming album is undoubtedly a release that shall be highly anticipated.

By Andrew Burns

REVIEW // DATAROCK - RED

2009-06-21T16:12:00.002+01:00

The album begins with what feels like a time mix-up. 80s infused nostalgia mixed with robotic electro. Bonnie Tyler meets Robocop.
Homage is paid to Prince’s “Lets Go Crazy” lyrics as well as the internet; calling the song “The Blog” and a call “Every one must advertise, advertise, advertise” it’s an attack of internet induced information and a heavy leaning on the past makes it a time warp like no other. An explosive way to begin an album. Following with a jazz-funk fusion Howard Moon would be proud of the jittering beats and Space Invader “powpow” sounds intersperse only to lead into a more soul-electro based song in “True Stories” a true bowing-at-the-feet moment to Talking Heads. It’s impossible not to like a band who make tribute to David Byrne in such an obvious way- making up the lyrics of the songs with titles of Talking Heads songs.

It’s a collection of diverse and wandering ideas, sprawling far and wide over musical genre. The name “Datarock” sums up the band well; “Data” has all the futuristic possibilities of computer induced noise whilst “Rock” gives the ethos of the band. They do rock out. Songs like “Dance!” and “The Pretender” have an element of it for sure. Songs like “In the Red” is like The Specials in 3009, or if you put them underwater at a fairground. Better than it sounds, with an eerie undertone and a wealth of ideas behind it. “Back in the Seventies” refrains from doing the obvious Night Fever-esque accolade and instead takes a writhing guitar and places confident vocals over it with the drums setting it off nicely. Are Datarock artists, painting a layer of meaning under their dancefloor friendly dance tracks? The thinking mans Justice perhaps? Or hipster pranksters being let loose in 1981 and work their way from there? It seems more like the latter but there are hints of genius in songs like the macabre “Fear of Death”.

It seems like a fleeting album despite it’s thirteen tracks but maybe that’s due to the jittering, jumping pace which speeds along every song with. It’s not only having a poke at the eighties, this album embodies it and spits it out- the resulting package being a futuristic, power-ballad, Talking Head induced dream.

By Jade French

Rating: 8/10
Format: Album
Label: Young Aspiring Professionals
Release Date:Out Now
www.myspace.com/datarock

REVIEW // JACK PEÑATE - EVERYTHING IS NEW

2009-06-21T16:08:00.005+01:00

When I heard that Jack was back I groaned, rolled my eyes and waited with little or no enthusiasm for the inevitable Radio One homage onslaught. Imagine the surprise that occurred when on hearing “Tonight’s Today” I thought I was listening to Wild Beasts and applauding Radio One for getting some taste.
But no- it was Jack! He’s ditching the cockney-boy-guitar-in-hand persona for someone with music taste. Naming the album “Everything is New” might be a handy ploy to inform old fans that songs like “Second, Minute, Hour” are a thing of the past but it also does give an air of hope. Like Lily Allen ditched the trainers and prom dress combo for Chanel and style so Penate has shed the skin of his former musical body for Afrobeat and Krautrock. Songs like “Pull My Heart Away” involves a plaintive yowl over a slow, melodic backtrack whereas “Be the One” has trumpets and a little chant at the beginning. Some of the songs do sound a little like “Tonight’s Today” but luckily that turns out to be a good thing. The album is at it’s best though when songs like “So Near” take a departure from rolling melodies and breaks up the monotony nicely. Staccato guitar is carried by Penate’s strong vocals and there are moments when a tinge of Larrikin Love (note: a tinge) edges its way into the dynamic. There is a bit of a stodgy refrain of “Every moment passes by me” which is a little bit depressing but the hopeful up rush of feel good instruments gathers up the vocals as the call “I’m so near” gathers itself up.

A low point threatens in “Every Glance” which is a bit Daniel Merriweather/ boy band yet suddenly the next track “Give Yourself Away” explodes through the speakers with a Basement Jaxx “Bingo Bango” beginning and a soul infused, dance floor friendly beat. A guitar riff or two in the middle and a rolling, relentless drumbeat and the song is a hit. Taking the same soul infused goodness and applying it in a more laid-back way for “Body Down” there are diverse moments in this album. Some songs stick and judder along (“Every Glance” being one of them) but for the majority I think we can heave a sigh of relief that Jack has ditched the Matinee-idol, annoying gawblimy-jabber of “Torn on the Platform” but also concede that a musical rite-of-passage has occurred somewhere along the way (possibly when Paul Epworth was lugged on board the good ship Penate). This doesn’t feel like a second album, there’s no natural follow-on from the last. This feels like Jack Penate’s first album, no doubt, he’s found his feet and succeeded in making a credible album. I never thought I’d become a fan.

By Jade French

Rating: 8/10
Format: Album
Release Date:Out Now
Label: XL
www.myspace.com/jackpenate

REVIEW // KING CREOSOTE - FLICK THE VS

2009-06-21T16:07:00.001+01:00

Flick the Vs is well regarded singer / songwriter King Creosote’s millionth album according to the record company blurb. This puts him 2nd in the all time productivity lists ahead of The Fall but way behind Frank Zappa. It’s actually his fifth album and its an intriguing collection of up tempo pop and harmonious acoustic tunes.
No One Had It Better starts with a kaleidoscope of off kilter beats, reverb laced vocals and what could almost be sampled Sunday morning church bells before a driving beat kicks in propelling us into an atmospheric opening track. Two Frocks At A Wedding has a soft intro with captivating harmonies while the track builds up to what almost constitutes an anthem before a funky beatific outro comes from nowhere.

The melodic Camels Swapped For Wives has great lyrics and showcases a satisfying well placed expletive. Nothing Rings True is a beautiful arpeggio based acoustic track and Rims starts like a campfire song before exploding into a beautiful multi layered chorus.

The King is an innovative singer songwriter with a gift for a melody. This is a record that if you can’t afford to buy yourself… then claim it on expenses courtesy of the honest hardworking taxpayer.

By Alex Telfer

Rating: 7/10
Format: Album
Label: Domino
Release Date: Out Now
www.myspace.com/kingcreosote

REVIEW // JOHNNY FOREIGNER - FEELS LIKE SUMMER

2009-06-21T16:06:00.001+01:00

Johnny Foreigner are a band that like the summer. That’s why they’ve manically spat the word all over their intro, before inserting it as many times into the song as is humanly possible. However, the band are also clearly aware of clichéd songs about summer, and have opted instead to write a song about songs about summer; a meta-summer song.
If this sounds like a good way for band to drift up its own backside, then fear not; Feels Like Summer is a riotous pop-punk romp, as fun as it is frantic. One minor gripe; just like the British summer time, it’s way too short.

By Joe Barton

Rating: 7/10
Format: Single
Release Date: 22/06/09
Label: Best Before
www.myspace.com/johnnyforeigner

REVIEW // RACE HORSES - CAKE

2009-06-21T16:03:00.001+01:00

Is this the greatest Welsh song about baking? Possibly. Recorded in a Smurf-like Eco Village in North Wales, Cake is deranged midget of a song, all Beatlesque chord progressions and Dada doo-woppery.
There’s plenty of retro hooks, but the real charm of song is its absurd lyrics and deranged delivery, with Race Horses coming across like a cross between the Small Faces and the League of Gentlemen. Lyrics that take the piss out of “people who think that taking drugs makes them interesting” is made all the more funny by the fact they are delivered by Meilyr Jones, a man whose singing voice bears an uncanny resemblance to Pete Doherty.

This a song that is guaranteed to have you singing its chorus hours after you’ve heard it. Prepare to sound like an idiot.

By Joe Barton

Rating: 9/10
Format: Single
Release Date: 27/07/09
Label: Fantastic Plastic
www.myspace.com/racehorsesmusic

REVIEW // ROSE ELINOR DOUGALL - START/ STOP/ SYNCHRO

2009-06-21T15:59:00.001+01:00

Did you ever think that electronic chamber music would be your weapon of choice in a battle of music taste? Well, banish any preconceptions as Rose Elinor Dougall has created a symphony of pop which begins in such a vein. As the guitars spiral and the vocals roll over the top it’s a bit like a magic tea party with a sublime string section which is undercut by a peppy drumbeat.
Unsurprisingly Dougall has supported Chairlift on tour- the same branch of euphoric pop and overlaid melodies (as well as the fact you might also picture iPods being sold to this soundtrack) twists within the track.

Self-deprecation has never sounded so sweet with the refrain “I’ll never be her” sang with force over the saccharine chorus. This single is a bit of a surprise, but a lovely one. Think mixing Patrick Wolf’s Magic Position with Overture from the same album, and this almost the female equivalent, glitter and shiny melodies carry the song (although with none of Wolf’s underlying melancholy). It’s a hazy, folk tinged pop song with vocals as sweet as Lykke Li which (coincidently?) coincides with summer.

By Jade French

Rating:7/10
Format: Single
Release Date Out Now
Label: Elefant
www.myspace.com/roseelinordougallmusic

REVIEW // DISCOVERY – LP

2009-06-21T15:50:00.001+01:00

Bands side projects are generally something to be embraced these days; seemingly, songwriters are always moving amongst new sets of musicians, usually with positive effect (for example, Gruff Rhys, Bradford Cox and Jack White are all masters of embracing diverse genres to critical acclaim). Discovery is the collaborative electronica attempts of Ra Ra Riot’s Wes Miles and Vampire Weekend’s Rostam Batmanglij.
From the outset, this is not something to you might have expected from the pair. It's a crazy musical mashup of classic electronica, r'n'b (the modern kind, not the good kind), 80s cheese and rubbish drum machines. In fact, at some points, it is difficult to decide whether this is a serious musical project at all. Then again, they do say that the craziest of people are often the most genius and there are undoubtedly a few gems in the rough here. Discovery seem to be at their best when they remain on the quiet and refrained elctronic side of things. 'Osaka Loop Line' has a musically dream-like quality reminiscent of Crystal Castles 'Air War', couple with intelligent vocals. 'It's Not My Fault (It's My Fault)' is much the same in style terms.

On the (rather overpowering) negative side however, album opener 'Orange Shirt' sounds disturbingly like it should have been included on the latest Akon album. 'So Insane' and 'Swing Tree' both contain crazy drum machine beats which have rarely been heard, for good reason, since the 80s, and melodies which wouldn't be out of place on something as cheesy as a Phil Collins album. 'If I Want You Back (In Discovery)' is the most obvious song in support of the joke theory; a Jacksons cover sang wholly with Auto-Tune vocals, it is seriously terrible.

The 1980s weren't wholly bad in terms of electronic music, but there have been several light years of positive improvement since then. It's hard to know whether these boys are attempting to be somewhat quirky with their 'retro' approach, or whether they are even being serious at all. This is an album that almost certainly was never meant to reach anywhere near the commercial value of Vampire Weekend or Ra Ra Riot, but nor does it graze them in musical ability either. What it does do however, is baffle.

By Heather Minto

Rating: 5/10
Format: Album
Release Date: 06/07/09
Label: XL