As you may remember, I thought the last Super Furry Animals album 'Hey Venus!' was pretty good, but all-too-often lapsed into what I called "pretty-but-slow" territory. So, when they announced that for this album they'd be leaving the slower songs behind, I was over the moon. So one 204MB download later, let's do this thing...
Crazy Naked Girls: Reminds me of that Beck album where he went all Prince. Midnite Vultures? But far more weird. Not a bad start at all. Mad, psychedelic, falsetto, with some crowd noise, chunky guitars. Welcome home, SFA.
Mt: They already have a show-stopping song about mountains, but this one is worthy addition to the canon. Sounds like Bunf on lead vocals - strings, simple melody. And welcome, profanity!
Moped Eyes: A little more gentle. Didn't do too much on first listen, but that's okay.
Inaugural Trams: Heard this one before, features a rap in German from one of Franz Ferdinand. Upbeat, light and very fun. "They say the future of cement is set in stone". [listen]
Inconvenience: Yes! Finally, a heads-down, no-bullshit rocker. "Tory scum / Stole my fun". Something about "holy wars". Starts and stops. Singalong chorus. SFA of old peeking through for the first time.
Cardiff in the Sun: Lots of filters over the vocals, Krautrock drums, echo chambers. Can't make out a single lyric, but the crescendos are kickin'.
The Very Best of Neil Diamond: First ten seconds - Sounds like a sitar? This is terrific! A mention of a "crystal skull". Song goes in a few different directions, but I like them chaotic.
Helium Hearts: If this was a band that cared about singles, this song would be one. Does the guy from High Llamas still do their string arrangements, because these are outstanding. I'm sure Gruff just sang "Get drunk and taste the Vegemite". Another great song: short and catchy.
White Socks/Flip Flops: Most assuredly not channeling the Velvet Underground. Bunf singing again: "I look like a loser coming from the gutter". Actually, this does sound very 70s. Chuggin'. Some nice hey-hey-heys.
Where Do You Wanna Go?: This one is okay. A little lightweight. But pleasant enough.
Lliwiau Llachar: Even though this song is in Welsh, I'm sure I picked out the phrase "Howard Devoto" in there. Maybe I'm wrong. Good song, though.
Pric: Mostly instrumental, very layered. Definitely a head-shaker. Loads of sounds on top of each other. Recalls 'Shoot Speed/Kill Light' as a great album closer. Cian brings out all his electronic toys towards the end.
--
All in all, it's solid, more upbeat and will almost certainly be played to death by me. Hooray!
First impressions of 'Dark Days/Light Years'
On Mat Horne
See that guy there? His name is Mat Horne. My American readers would be forgiven for not knowing who he is. Those of you in the UK, however, and particularly London, where I was for the last week, may be very familiar with him, because, you see, like commas in this sentence, Mat Horne is fucking everywhere.
He's become famous through the sitcom Gavin and Stacey, which I confess I've never seen, though I've heard good things. All I knew about Mat Horne prior to last week was that he recently shared a "look of despondency" with Martin Freeman on Nevermind the Buzzcocks. But apparently, he's now all over the place. Not that long ago, he co-hosted the Brit Awards with Kylie Minogue (!!!) and his TV co-star James Corden. With Corden, he has a new sketch show that just began and is advertised on many double-decker buses currently doing the rounds in London, so we saw a series of his faces whizzing around at all times. If you believe Mark Kermode, the sheer fact that it's being plugged on buses suggests that it must be rubbish. What's more, Horne and Corden appear in a film that's coming out soon, which you might have heard of, called Lesbian Vampire Killers, the poster for which appears on every single phonebox in central London. Finally, he's currently appearing in Entertaining Mr. Sloane, opposite Dolores Umbridge Imelda Staunton, so there are posters with his face up all over the Underground. So on escalators, buses, phone boxes and train platforms, Mat Horne's face is there to behold.
As if that all wasn't enough, we got to see him in person. Kele Okerele and the Mystery Jets all pulled out last-minute from DJing at Propaganda in Camden - cheeky bastards - and guess who the organizers brought in, on very short notice, to replace them. Not an arbitrary decision: in addition to all aforementioned pies, Mat also runs a club night in London's trendy Shoreditch every Thursday night. So there he was, onstage in front of us, giving it some Strokes, Killers, Cribs, etc.
Like a good episode of 30 Rock, everything seemed to really come together in the end. I would say "Keep an eye out for him", but if you live in London, you don't need to even do that.
Lust and sin are all that I want
There are some who might argue that, since The Phantom Band are from Glasgow, are signed to Chemikal Underground Records, and had the delgados' Paul Savage produce their debut album, all they really needed to do was record a dog taking a shit into a trombone, and I'd give it a fawning review. This would be entirely justified, so I'll try to be objective here.
'Checkmate Savage' is a little uneven - there are a couple of songs that don't quite do it, like 'Crocodile' which is noisy but in mitigation, involves bagpipes. Not shockingly for a band that describes itself as "Proto Robofolk," it’s an eclectic affair, with consecutive songs, and often parts of the same songs, veering off into different directions, sometimes more jarringly than others. This makes 'Checkmate Savage' a difficult album to fall for, but it's worth the effort.
'Folk Song Oblivion' is ace and sounds like Kraftwerk and at the end it sounds like Michael York is singing. New single 'The Howling' is equally epic and driven by a killer beat, which is sustained throughout the record. 'Island' calms things down a little and is very pretty. 'Checkmate Savage' is not for everyone, but if you're up for it, you'll get something out of it.
Assorted on Tuesday
List.
- Put on a conference about Music Law and gig this past weekend. Both were very well attended and went down very well. Don't believe me? Read this, cynic!
- Had to leave that early to go to a wedding, where I got into a fight with a dude much bigger than me. (I didn't really)
- After THAT, back for the Annual Oscars party: My predictions were terrible, I'm the 'Revolutionary Road' of the gathering. Great initial performance, ended up empty handed and terribly depressing. Happy with most of the wins - especially Danny Boy(le) and Rahman. And whatever you think of Slumdog, there's no way this isn't adorable.
- I'm going to miss Conan on Late Night. Really hope he can still get away with stuff like this on the Tonight Show.
- Been enjoying the two eps each so far of Delocated and Eastbound and Down. Only one featured a Ska-Mitvah, though.
- So you know how I'm always talking about the Best Show on WFMU? Now it's easier than ever to get into, and I hope that at least four of you will do so. There's a new podcast, Best Show Gems, which'll send you one bit every other Monday. Perfect! Also, Matt from Fluxblog has posted a few of their greatest hits. Listen to it, then I'll leave you alone.
- If THAT wasn't incentive enough... tonight is going to be a big show: General Patton, the Wizard of Oswalt in-studio! And Robert Popper and Pete Serafinowicz from Look Around You on the phone? Unmissable. What more do you want? Blood?
- I guess I should include some music? New Rakes!
RIP Kirk Lawrence
In the last few days, I've been thinking a lot of the Grandaddy song 'Jed the Humanoid', mostly because of its no-bullshit opening lyric: "Last night something pretty bad happened, we lost a friend..." Admittedly, last week we lost a close friend and not a robot that found the booze and fizzled out, but those that knew Kirk Lawrence will appreciate the parallels.
Don't!
I posted in here a while back about Scotland's How to Swim, a ten-piece whose rollocking 'Genesis P and Me' continues to make me smile, dance and scratch my head in plain ol' confusion. Well, it turns out that members of HTS, as well as personnel from many, many other Scottish bands like Dananananaykroyd and Q without U, also form The Second Hand Marching Band. Fittingly for an outfit whose numbers are on the north side of twenty, their sound is massive and rich. Their press notes say that they practice in car parks or in fields, so if you’re ever in Glasgow, keep an eye and two ears out for them. Chaffinch Records just put out their EP 'A Dance to Half Death', and here's a couple of songs for you to enjoy from same. One day I'll post something in here that doesn't - directly or indirectly - concern Glasgow, but don't hold your breath.
[download The Second Hand Marching Band - A Dance to Half Death]
Look to the sun
It's a new year, new administration, new challenges, and here's some new music from old pals Animate Objects. For the price of your email address, you can get their new EP 'Dubs, Grunts and Things' for zero money. This most credit-crunch-friendly of mini-albums features five new tracks, all of which continue AO's brand of laid-back hip hop with lyrics that matter. Check out '4Love' to see why they do all this ish. And below, get yo' hands on the most upbeat track from the EP.
Grammys and miscellany
I'm writing this while watching the Grammys, so it'll be even more disjointed than the list format already provides. Sorry, people! Also, I've been using twitter a lot more than this blog lately, because most of my thoughts very conveniently occupy less-than-or-equal-to 140 characters. Follow me on there if you so choose.
- I began and then finished 'More Information than you Require' by John Hodgman - or should that be @hodgman? - and rather enjoyed it.
- Saw 'Vicky Christina Barcelona' and thought it was pretty and sweet, but couldn't get over the first act being set in Oviedo, since it also happens to be the city in which my girlfriend lives. Not the same one, sadly.
- Mentioned my love for Blizzy B previously on here, and so it's no surprise that the next collab between T-Pain and Andy Samberg is also ace. 'Incredibad' drops this week, and I've got high hopes.
- Bloc Party covered Girls Aloud. Listen here. They didn't do 'Sexy No No No' for some reason.
- Robert Plant just won a Grammy. What year is this again?
- Charlie Brooker doesn't like Twitter, but I still like Charlie Brooker.
- Like the last two posts here, gotta mention Aidan Moffat - the board game is now live. Play it, with his dulcet tones guiding you the whole way, and get a free download at the end.
- Went to the local indie club for my birthday a few days ago, and gotta admit: when 'Kids' came on, it slaaaaayed.
- Have you heard the band brokeNCYDE? Happy birthday, everyone.
- Valentine's day next week - here's where I'll be.
Like watching a straw eat a melon
Two in a row! I wrote about Aidan last time, and now here's some more Chemikal news for your bottoms. Stewart and Alun, former delgados both, have put out the label's first ever podcast. It's great fun to hear them swearing, laughing at their own lack of consummate professionalism, and playing songs from The Phantom Band, whose album I ought to write about soon 'cos it's ace, and Angil and the Hiddntracks. And best of all, they phone up Aidan to get some comments from him - mostly involving more swearing. And you can hear the song 'Oh Men!' from his new album.
All this for free! World's greatest label! Here's some more info, or you can just download it below.
[download Chemikal Underground - Podsketch #1]
How to get to heaven from Scotland
From bad things come good things. Arab Strap called it a day, it was sad. Malcolm put out an album that was very good, it was happy. Now, Aidan Moffat and the Best-Ofs have an album too! It's called 'How to Get to Heaven from Scotland' and is due soon. All manner of activity at Aidan's web HQ, too - go to his Gifts page for a live version of album track 'Living With You Now', and a Katie Melua cover (?) with Alun Woodward (!) and some other goodies.
4play: So Long, Astoria
The London Astoria is closing its doors tomorrow, to make way for Crossrail, some sort of bullshit train station. This is incredibly sad news, because it has been one of London's best venues for decades. I've been to many, many, many gigs there, and have struggled to narrow it down to four unforgettable highlights.
And the Oscar goes to...
As has happened before, my end of year wrap up sort of ran out of steam because I was pretty busy over the break. At least two artists still to write about, so look out for that sometime in the near-to-mid. Today, I thought I'd write a little bit about some of the films being bandied about as the Awards Buzz picks up.
They can't all be 'Man on Wire'
Dumbest Documentary of the Year: Another three way tie? What are the chances?!
This one is tricky to choose. I wrote about Morgan Spurlock's horrid 'Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden' over the summer, so refer back to that one.
More recently, I caught 'Heckler', a documentary by Jamie Kennedy with as redundant a thesis as Spurlock's film. People that heckle at stand up comedy shows are annoying? No shit! It's nice to see some comedians I like (Mirman, Oswalt, Cross, Tompkins) offering their experiences, and some of the stories are pretty funny, but really, who cares? Just as nobody (nobody rational) really believes that ALL Muslims are terrorists - you don't need to see '...Bin Laden' to know that, nobody is standing up for the rights of hecklers, claiming that it's a valid art. So that whole thing was a little redundant. But after about half an hour, it takes a sudden turn, and becomes a film that ought to be subtitled: "Jamie Kennedy: Why didn't people like Son of the Mask?", a rant about movie critics, online and in print. Now, I'm aware of the irony inherent in me writing about this movie, but come on. Everyone gets bad reviews, not everyone goes crying to the reviewers about it. He talks to some internet guys and Richard Roeper and ends up looking kind of silly and thin-skinned. I felt bad for the critics having to explain their reasons to the man face-to-face. Only one of them was ballsy/confident enough to say "Your movies all fucking suck" directly to Kennedy. Even though I found the documentary almost entirely unnecessary, I agree that one particular critic should be stopped.
Finally, a few nights ago (not on Xmas Day) my parents and I watched Bill Maher's 'Religulous', an extended stand up routine interspersed with Maher yelling at people, many of whom didn't really deserve it. Sure, he interviewed plenty of kooks, but you can't only talk to people on the fringes and then say that they're representative of religion as a whole. One guy has his own business, where he makes devices to help orthodox Jews to use certain appliances, while still observing the Sabbath. Fair observation: "What, are they trying to cheat God?". Too often though, it's smug (imagine that), uses silly sound effects, and overbroad. No doubt, religion is at the root of a lot of problems, and there are plenty of people out there who use religion to line their own pockets, but Maher's approach is just to say "If you believe in any religion, you're a moron" and that's pretty hard to take.
A drink and some palaver
Fastest Workers - Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
They wrote a song, based on radio listeners' lyrics, in like three hours! And it was a kickass song. And Stereogum linked to me for writing about it. That was nice of them. As if that wasn't enough, young Ted also took a stand against police brutality at the RNC and wrote a song in like two days, sending all proceeds to Foods Not Bombs and Democracy Now! I'm not going to put the song up here - buy it from Touch And Go, ya bums - but here's a live video. Jimmy, Steve, Violence and Ted: you slags are alright.
[download Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - The World Is In the Turlet]
You were a champion in their eyes
Gig of the year: Kanye West
Sometimes actresses get slapped
The "Oh, I Get It!" Award: The Hold Steady
It's not that I ever disliked this band. I just... There's only so many bands you can listen to, y'know? And there's a lot of bands that get bigged up online. Every week there's a new one. So The Hold Steady I always lumped in as "one of those bands that a lot of people seem to love, but I probably won't get". Then I heard 'Chips Ahoy!' last year and thought "This isn't so bad" but didn't give them a second thought.
This June, there was a lot going on, and 'Constructive Summer' came out, and blew me away. Musically and lyrically and thematically and grammatically. Even though 'Stay Positive' - the album as a whole - didn't really sink in for a while, by November it was a mainstay. My lastfm page will verify this. By now, 'Stay Positive' is a staple for long drives. Woah-woah-woah! I like the horns and legal-jargon riffing on 'Sequestered in Memphis', the straightforward rocking of 'Magazines' and 'Yeah Sapphire', and especially the title track. And there's something about the Cassavetes tribute 'Slapped Actress' that always gets me. I guess they're really that good.
Christmas in adventure parks
Who Are You,You Are Awesome Awards (Three-way tie)
Here are three albums that came out this year which I liked, from acts about whom I knew very little at the time, and still barely know anything about. Other than that I like them. Obviously.
1. Surrounded - The Nautilus Years
These guys are from Sweden, and a solid review from DiS made me seek them out. They sound like Grandaddy with richer strings, fewer robots, and almost as many moments of heart-stoppage caused by sheer prettiness. There's a song towards the end that's like ten minutes long and just spends eight of those minutes slowly shuffling away, hands in pockets, as if after a great conversation with a long lost friend.
[download Surrounded - Safe Tomorrow Sun]
[Surrounded official / myspace]
2. Paris Motel - In the Salpêtrière
The internet tells me this one was actually released in October 2007, but I certainly didn't hear them til this year. I've believed for years that women's vocals + strings = perfection. And Paris Motel, who as the name implies are from London, get it just right. It's music that you'd want to see performed at the kind of place you have to dress up to go to. And you'd be seated. And it'd be magical.
[download Paris Motel - Three Steps]
[Paris Motel official / myspace]
3. Get Well Soon - Rest Now! Weary Head, You Will Get Well Soon
This is the only album of these three that I actually wrote about already. Konstantin Gropper nails a lot of styles on this album - all manner of instruments swell, and he's got a way with words too. Also, cover of 'Born Slippy'!
[download Get Well Soon - If This Hat Is Missing, I Have Gone Hunting]
[BONUS download Get Well Soon - It Must Have Been Love (Roxette Cover)]
[Get Well Soon official / myspace]
Fortunately for whining snotface...
Person I wish I was more like: Charlie Brooker
His show 'Screenwipe' is unmissable television - like 'The Soup' if Joel McHale was a trillion times more angry, his Guardian column is top-notch entertainment that makes me incredibly jealous of his writing abilities, and this year he even wrote a zombie series which I'm yet to see, but am promised is excellent. In the off chance that you don't know who Charlie is, here's what he had to say in his own end of year post, about Hole in the Wall, a television show that defies reason.
The WTF? prize goes BBC1's Hole In The Wall, the least dignified, most unashamedly imbecilic gameshow in living memory. Apparently conceived by a three-year-old, it consisted of K-list celebrities in spandex contorting themselves into puzzle shapes in order to avoid being dunked in a pool of water. They failed 95% of the time, but the show carried on and on regardless, like a Super Mario cutscene stuck in a loop.
You never asked for an audience
Most unfortunately slept-on album of the year: Sons & Daughters - This Gift
Things that we all need to navigate
Since I have real trouble with putting a ranking on stuff I've liked this year - what does it mean to be the 7th best album, etc? - for the last couple of years, I've elected to come up with arbitrary awards to honour stuff that I've liked. And thus begins the AYGH 2008 retrospective!
The "Where the fuck did THAT come from?" Award: British Sea Power
Stay away from fleeting favour
Coming soon, the AYGH awards (?) for this year, and Ms. Marling is sure to be recognised with some glory. In the interim, though, he's an unreleased song that she played on the Marc Riley show last week. It's got a sense of menace previously seen on 'Night Terror' and a fair sense of bleakness. This version is very stripped down, and that suits it just fine.
No lyrics to adapt into post title
Like Robert Louis Stevenson, Trainspotting and yesterday's hot new band How to Swim, Popolo are from Scotland - Dundee, to be precise. They've only got a couple of songs at the moment, and here's one of them now. For an instrumental band, they cram a lot into a short song - it sets a mood and then builds. It's a pity the song is so brief - I'd have liked to hear it unfold slowly like a Mamet play. They've played with Errors and 65daysofstatic, and you can see the family resemblance. As someone that doesn't exercise much, I see myself putting this on the iPod and going for a run, because it's nice and upbeat, and my run will last exactly three minutes - the ideal length for me. See what you think.
I've had too many Christmas drinks
In the scheme of things that I hate, Christmas music is less offensive than Hitler, but less fun than getting caught in rainstorms. Yes, I understand that it's completely seasonal, but since it's that season at the moment, and since both my sister and my girlfriend LOVE that shit, I feel justified in ranting. Every year, I hear 'Feliz Navidad' earlier and earlier, and it makes me want to draw blood and kick strangers. Also, I live in Florida and ten days before Christmas, it's still t-shirt weather, so anything about snow is entirely redundant. Humbug.
Thankfully, there are some great exceptions. 'Fairytale of New York' is one (original or Ted's). Others? I'll get back to you. London-based label Tough Love Records has made available a free 6-track EP of seasonal original songs from a handful of London bands. Gotta admit, I hadn't heard of any of them before, but I listened to the song by Favours for Sailors, and that's enough for me to want to hear the rest. It's upbeat, spiky and there aren't any sleigh-bells. Instead, there's a line about hanging one's self from the Christmas tree, and the imagery of such macabre ornaments over some nice old-fashioned indie rock gets a thumbs up from me.
Download the whole Listen, The Snow is Failing EP here.
Put a you-shaped hole in me
As promised, I can write about music again! Rejoice, Rejoice, Ring the Bells!
First up are How To Swim, a band who get an instant look-see because they're from Glasgow, there are a hundred of them (well, ten), they wrote a song about body-changing, and look incredibly young. This song is warm with brass, singalong refrains, some pretty kickin' guitars and noises that are a bit like lasers. Also: rickety piano! And a nice, My Latest Novel style finale. There's a lot going on in this here song so you'll probably have to hear it about three times before you come to love it. Did I mention that it's about surgery?
More on their myspace. Recommended.
[download How To Swim - Genesis P and Me]
If your boyfriend's got beef
Over the last few weeks, I've been rather obsessed with Blizzard Man. Couldn't tell you why - it's just the right balance between dumb and goofy to still be hilarious to me. Laughing at Andy Samberg looking like the dude from Color Me Badd while singing "I wear very nice duds" was a great antidote to the joyless pressure cooker that law school becomes at the end of each term.
- The band name is formatted "Number/Word/Exclamation Point/Number"
- They're named after their telephone area code. There is no way that is ever cool.
- The video tries to set itself up as having a plot. Sort of Cloverfield meets 28 Days Later/Blade Runner?
- Mitigation (or possibly aggravation): The set up has nothing to do with what actually happens in the video, which doesn't really make a lick of sense.
- Abundant male semi-nudity.
- The long haired guy's job description: "Repeat certain words, make actions"
- At one stage, the line is something "Back east", and that guy points to the left, with nary a glance at a compass. Or the sun's trajectory. Geographically misleading!
- Something about two white guys singing "Don't trust a ho" is just weird to me.
- In the future, models will be called to wrestle each other, incorporating some sort of modified Boston Crab.
- ...something about tribes?
- Simulated sex with a giant ram
- "Do the Helen Keller and talk with your hips" is tasteless enough, but add the actions/dance routine, and it's golden.
- Everything is smashed up at the end for what should be obvious reasons.
- Like the year's best TV advertisement, it ends with a giant explosion.
- The band also has a song called Holler Till You Pass Out.
- "Crunk hop" has been used to describe the sound.
- Two songs were played on 'The Hills'.
Something happens that's relevant to previous AYGH updates
Just a heads up - the Soulwax documentary which I wrote about not long ago is now up on Pitchfork.tv, so if you'd to see it, do that. For the next week.
Part of the Weekend Never Dies.
Back from the brink
Hey everyone!
I'm back, after a grueling end-of-the-semester slog that involved exams, presentations, revision, seminar essays, and one Championship game. Now I have free time again, so I can read some of the books that have been piling up, and I can write in here a little more. So, I guess it's time to talk about some good films I've seen lately, the world's greatest music video, do as I did the last two years and start some sort of arbitrary end of year hoopla, and possibly work my way through the hundred-plus band-promotin' emails that are waiting to be looked at.
This song says it all. (I'm still a little bitter about it beating 'A Design for Life' to number one, twelve years later).
Make someone's day
Hey guys,
Quick note asking you to do something nice.
Send a lady with cancer a postcard. Wish her well. Make it funny.
Here are the details:
http://www.tibbysbowl.com/bowl/2008/11/18/a-small-request/
Thanks!
Video of the Day (Follow Up?)
I'm amazed that my post from Friday about B4-4 generated as much interest as it did. Far more than most of my posts do. So, of course, I had to investigate the band a little more. Here are some nuggets.
- The band were around in the 90s, and are (were?) from Toronto.
- There were three of them in the group, and since three comes before four, the name was B4-4
- They really appreciated their fans.
- The little kid from the video is now in a fraternity with my friend Tom's friend Logan. So I'm three degrees from him, and therefore four degrees from B4-4.
- Since the group broke up, one guy is now a model.
- The other two, the twins, now record together as RyanDan.
- Their album (RyanDan) went top ten in the U.K.
- RyanDan's new sound is far from the "LFO-from-Canada" vibe of B4.
Video of the Day
I saw this music video posted over at Videogum today, and I can't quite find the words. There's a number of things to focus on, but I don't know where to begin. Fortunately, my friend Tom summed it best when he said "Is this, like, supposed to be an inverse of the Stepford Wives?"
Watch and enjoy
