Music to drink tea by
Archive for year 2011
Evans the Death – Threads
011 months ago
in Videos
Well this is really bloody excellent. Evans the Death have been floating around the indiepop scene for a little while now, building themselves a great reputation in the process. I finally managed to catch them at the Odd Box Weekender last month, where they were one of the highlights of the weekend. Newly signed to Fortuna POP!, their debut single Threads is loud, fast, and messy, and really, what more could you want from a band? So good.
Threads will be released on July 4 via the mighty Fortuna POP!
Tigercats – Banned at the Troxy
0
You ain’t seen nothing yet
We’re gonna get bigger than national debt
So proclaim Tigercats toward the end of their sprawling new single, Banned at the Troxy, and it may just be true. The evolution of Tigercats has been an odd one. Forming from the ashes of the mighty Esiotrot, the band has quickly risen through the London indiepop ranks from go-to support band to a band capable of selling out gigs as headliners in their own right. Their earlier releases were focused more around three minute pop songs, but Banned ups the ante to cross the five minute barrier, and doesn’t even come close to outstaying it’s welcome. It builds, jangles, builds some more and ends in a controlled chaos of noise, all without ever losing it’s sense of fun. Which is demonstrated by the wonderfully whimsical video below:
B-side Skydiving (below) is just as interesting in itself. A much more downtrodden, sullen affair, it manages to run on for nearly four minutes with only two lyrics throughout. From most bands, I’d find this to be a rather frightful prospect, particularly given how trite those lyrics could have ended up sounding: “Where do you go when you fall apart / Into my arms and into my heart”. Yet four minutes of this somehow works and ends up being the most mature thing the band have recorded thus far.
The Banned at the Troxy 7″ picture disc is out now on the lovely WeePOP! Records. If, like me, vinyl isn’t your thing, it’s also out on download places that aren’t iTunes. If, like me, that isn’t your bag either, you’re just too damn fussy I suppose.
Website / Bandcamp / Myspace / Twitter / Soundcloud
Playlist from Moogie Wonderland
0Last night was Another Form of Relief’s first outing as a DJ, at the lovely Moogie Wonderland in Rochester. There were a lot of reasons why last night could have been a failure, from me not having a clue what I was doing to the event being moved to a new venue at a relatively late hour. I’d say it turned out rather well though, with a good number through the door, and there actually being a proper dance party through the second and third sets. Here’s what I played across the four sets:
1. Allo Darlin’ – The Polaroid Song
2. Voxtrot – The Start of Something
3. Tigercats – Banned at the Troxy
4. Betty and the Werewolves – Tu Veux Jouer
5. Cats on Fire – Your Woman
6. Math and Physics Club – Baby I’m Yours
7. The Lovely Eggs – Have You Ever Seen A Digital Accordion?
8. Oh No! Oh My! – I Have No Sister
9. Los Campesinos! – There Are Listed Buildings
10. Johnny Foreigner – Salt, Peppa and Spinderella
11. Shrag – Rabbit Kids
12. Heavenly – C is the Heavenly Option
13. Airport Girl – The Foolishness That We Create Through Love Is The Closest We Come To Greatness
14. Standard Fare – Fifteen
15. Belle and Sebastian – I’m A Cuckoo
16. Comet Gain – Love Without Lies
17. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Heart In Your Heartbreak
18. The Wave Pictures – Leave the Scene Behind
19. Kenickie – Punka
20. Help Stamp Out Loneliness – Record Shop
21. Camera Obscura – French Navy
22. The Smiths – There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
23. Moustache of Insanity – We Need More Awesome
24. The School – I Want You Back
25. Neutral Milk Hotel – Holland, 1945
26. Tullycraft – Twee
27. Los Campesinos! – Romance is Boring
28. Arab Strap – The Shy Retirer
29. Allo Darlin’ – Kiss Your Lips
30. The Postal Service – Such Great Heights
31. The Go! Team – Ladyflash
32. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – My Terrible Friend
33. The Lovely Eggs – I Like Birds (But I Like Other Animals Too)
34. Shrag – Faux-Coda
35. Art Brut – Good Weekend
36. Another Sunny Day – You Should All Be Murdered
37. Summer Camp – I Want You
38. Go Sailor – A Fine Day For Sailing
39. The Moldy Peaches – Who’s Got The Crack?
40. Standard Fare – Love Doesn’t Just Stop
41. Pulp – The Night That Minnie Temperley Died
42. Lemon Jelly feat. William Shatner – ’64 aka Go
43. The Feelies – The Boy With Perpetual Nervousness
44. This Many Boyfriends – #1
45. World Atlas – The Winter Stories
46. Destroyer – Painter In Your Pocket
47. Acid House Kings – Are We Lovers Or Are We Friends?
48. Voxtrot – Raised by Wolves
49. Pants Yell! – Your Feelings Don’t Show
50. Butcher Boy – Carve a Pattern
DJing in Rochester this Friday!
0A shameless bit of self promotion here, but I’ll be guest DJing at the delightful Moogie Wonderland indiepop clubnight this Friday in merry olde Rochester. Free entry, 8pm-2am at Oliver’s (which used to be Enigma) on the High Street. Full details available here.
Things that may or may not be on the playlist:
Help Stamp Out Loneliness – Record Shop
01 year ago
in MP3s
You know those times where you judge a band incorrectly, rigidly stick with that initial impression for ages and then end up eating humble pie about them? That’s my experience with Help Stamp Out Loneliness. The first time I encountered them was at Indietracks 2009, when they were on immediately before Art Brut and, assuming my memory is correct, I actually found them a bit boring. That opinion has stuck ever since, without any attempts to give them another chance. Over the past few months, buzz has been building for their debut album, and people whose opinions I trust have gone on and on about it. Did I listen though? Nope.
Then I heard Record Shop. Which is bloody fantastic. I can’t tell you what has really changed since my first opinion, but this is just superb. It builds and drops back at the right times, jangles appropriately, and good lord, the vocals are spectacular. Which is ironic as they were one of the things that put me off the first time around. But the depth and tone here are just completely wonderful. This deserves to be a big hit, and if anything else on the album is half as good as this one, it’s going to be one of my favourites of the year. So, so good.
The debut, self-titled album from Help Stamp Out Loneliness was released yesterday by the ever fine Where It’s At Is Where You Are. You’ll be able to see the band at Indietracks, which takes place July 29-31.
Johnny Foreigner are Cursed
01 year ago
in MP3s
If you’re a band or label faced with declining physical sales, exactly how do you buck that trend? Some will argue vinyl is answer, but those people are completely wrong about everything. Alcopop, never a label to do things by the book, have decided to release the new Johnny Foreigner EP in frisbee form. Yes, a frisbee. If this isn’t the greatest evolution among physical releases of music in, well, forever, I don’t know what is.
As for the EP itself, if you’re already a fan of Johnny Foreigner, you know exactly what to expect. If not, first of all: What the hell is wrong with you? Secondly, if you haven’t been won over so far, this isn’t going to change that. The songs bridge the gap between older JoFo, the loud, fast and shouter one, and the newer version that seems to be rather more downbeat and introspective. While I personally sway toward the older one, the newer one is bloody good too. Bring on album three.
Certain Songs are cursed will be released on May 18 via the ever brilliant Alcopop Records. The frisbee managed to sell out within 24 hours, so you’re just left with mp3s I’m afraid.
Herman Düne – Tell Me Something I Don’t Know
01 year ago
in Videos
It’s only in the last few months that I’ve got properly into Herman Düne, despite being a fan of one or two of their songs for a few years now. But I’m delighted to have discovered them just as a new album is on the way. In advance of that, we have this wonderful little video for first single Tell Me Something I Don’t Know. It’s one of those videos that could easily take away from the song, given you’ve got the band competing with both a cute blue monster and man of the moment Jon Hamm for attention. The song remains the centre here though, and with a bit of luck, this kind of video will bring a fair bit more attention to the band.
The new Herman Düne album is entitled Strange Moosic, and will be released on June 6 via Fortuna POP!. By some random crazy happenstance, the band will also play XOYO on that day. And if it’s not exactly like the gig portrayed in the video above, I’m going to be sorely disappointed.
Fishboy – Classic Creeps
0I’ve always had a soft spot for the particularly type of whimsy put out by Texas indiepop band Fishboy. They’ve always gone down the hyper-literate route in their lyrics, making songs that are closer to full blown short stories than simple pop songs. Their latest album Classic Creeps takes this to it’s logical evolution. The record is a concept album, with each song telling the story of a particular character, from Aaron the Afterthought Astronaut to Archibald Aspen to Autumn the Owl. Each song introduces the next character on the album, all of which are in alphabetical order (despite all beginning with A). Beyond the concept though, it’s just a really fun record, full of the typical Fishboy charm made up of upbeat sounding numbers that can actually be pretty grim if you look under the surface. The best part of all this? Classic Creeps is just the first in a series of such records.
Classic Creeps will be released on May 10 via Happy Happy Birthday To Me Records.
MP3 Fishboy – Autumn the Owl (Mistakes the Feelings of Being In Love with the Feelings of Being an Owl)
Art Brut – Lost Weekend
01 year ago
in Videos
Have we finally reached the Art Brut song that might actually let me down, as alluded to the last time I covered them on here? Lost Weekend may actually be my least favourite thing that they have put out, but is it particularly terrible? Not in the slightest. In fact, the past week has seen it grow on me a hell of a lot, so I’ll probably be singing the praises of it in a month.
It’s just so jarring from everything the band has put out previously that it’s difficult to know exactly how to take it. Art Brut as a band pretty much lives and dies on Eddie Argos. He is the centre of everything, and his vocals are what makes the band what it is. So a song that replaces his regular vocals with a subdued, almost whispered version is a bit of a shock. The more I listen to it, the more I start to appreciate the gentleness of lines like “I’m sorry if I embarrassed you by saying something stupid like ‘I love you’”, so I should probably be commending the band for at least trying to do something a bit different four albums in.
Lost Weekend will be released as a single on May 16. The album, Brilliant! Tragic! will follow a week later on May 23 via Cooking VInyl.
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Heart In Your Heartbreak
01 year ago
in Videos
The new Pains album came out this week, and I for one am absolutely loving it. The first album took a while to grow on me, but this one seems infinitely more immediate. Which probably means I’ll end up hating it six months from now, but no matter.
The one thing that the Pains have always been great at are their videos. Each one fit the style of the band perfectly, be it the Super 8 loveliness of Young Adult Friction or Everything With You through to the slightly more whimsical Higher Than The Stars and Say No To Love.
This though, I don’t really like at all. Which is a shame as the song is probably my favourite form the album. The video is far too mid-90s MTV2 for my liking though. Don’t get me wrong, I associate a lot of bands I love with that era, but The Pains of Being Pure at Heart absolutely aren’t one that I’d put into that category. Maybe I’m just being a snob and I’ll come round on it over time, but it seems like something of a misstep to me.
Belong is out now on PIAS (apparently) and the band will be visiting London to play the Electric Ballroom on June 8. Where they are now a £14 a ticket band. Wow.
