YEBOROBO
Yeborobo take to the stage and you wonder where you are. Behind the drums sits a man who looks like the fifth Beatle around the time when they met the Dalai Lama, the bass player is a lady wearing a dress that looks as though it was made from the curtains of an 80's primary school, the lead singer is wearing a woolen thing that looks like a cross between a poncho and a hoodie over what looks like a maroon pyjama baby-grow, and the man responsible for backing vocals and additional drums is wearing the top half of a white dog costume. There are two other members too and, with the exception of the drummer, they all have their faces painted as though they were still part of the 'free love-Woodstock-hippy' era. They look a little like Of Montreal might if they were to be part of Almost Famous. To put it simply, this has the potential to be absolutely cracking or completely crackers.
Musically this band are slapdash but somehow a little enjoyable. They are probably best described as post-punk mixed with stoner rock. The problem is that their image and their actions take centre stage. The singer seems as though he is a frustrated artist with a dangerous drug addiction. He pulsates with the music and throws himself about as though the music owns him. Adding to this, the man in the dog costume will bark vocals and throw himself about too. Together they seem like mischievous kittens looking to destroy the place, and this reaches a climax when the singer is dancing on the floor with the rest of the crowd and the half dog-half man decides to hand me his microphone before tackling the singer to the floor and wrestling with him culminating in him walking off with the singer's shoe, victorious. This all added to an unforgettable live show but I barely remember the music ahead of the insanity that occured throughout. Having listened to their myspace I feel that they're better live than recorded, but still I cannot remember enough.
I think that this band are a bit like watching a live action horror movie occurring right in front of your eyes; it's enjoyable but scary. I would like to see what they might achieve without the hi jinx, but I fear that it would detract from the occasion.
http://www.myspace.com/yeborobo
JOHNNY FOREIGNER
Johnny Foreigner were recommended to me a while back by a good friend of mine and I gave them a listen but was not too impressed. Looking back now I'm not sure how that could be possible. Johnny Foreigner are everything that I love in music. Like a British Desparecidos, they roar through their set, frantically and chaotically but managing to sound both technically gifted and also achingly uplifting. I find that I need more superlatives just to describe the way that this band make me feel.
Drawing entirely from their EP, Arcs Across The City, and their, yet to be released debut album, they manage to captivate a crowd that for the rest of the day had seemed happy to mainly stand and tap feet. Heads were bobbing now though, and opening with Champagne Girls I Have Known was always going to get people moving. The slower songs in the set seemed to lose the momentum of the set but after the ferocious pace of the upbeat songs, I feel that the band might have collapsed had they not positioned them for rest periods.
Johnny Foreigner are getting a lot of press currently and with appearances due at SXSW and Great Escape in the near future they are surely due to become a whole lot more recognised by the major press. I can't really see the band getting a great deal of mainstream attention or appealing to the masses, but to anyone who likes any of the bands that I have reviewed so far in this blog, you must go and see this band. I'd be willing to refund any costs if you don't like them I am that confident in their brilliance.
www.myspace.com/johnnyforeigner
Sunday 27 January 2008
Thursday 24 January 2008
A IS FOR AUTOMATIC WEAPONS/ FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! PHOTOGRAPHY @ NEW CROSS INN 23/01/08
A IS FOR AUTOMATIC WEAPONS
I will start by saying that this is a type of music that I find hard to determine genres with and will struggle to compare to other bands. Not the best opening sentence to a review but I’d prefer to be honest than look daft when I try to compare and categorise them. The band seem to play metal music and yet the singer seems to think that he is fronting a hardcore band. I would presume that this is what is often referred to as ‘metal-core’.
The singer chooses not to take to the stage with the rest of the band, and instead he spends the entire set running from left to right on the floor in front of the band. His energy is not matched by the band who seem happy to not utilize the additional space left by the vocalist and instead remain relatively stationary throughout the set. I find that it leaves me looking at the Duracell-esque front man and paying little to no attention to the band. When I do I find some strong guitar-work and thumping riffs.
This is not the kind of band that I can really do justice reviewing. It is hard for me to determine how good they are as I have few bands to compare them to. However, my foot was tapping throughout and if they happen to be on another bill that I’m already planning to attend then I’ll definitely give them a second watch.
http://www.myspace.com/aisforautomaticweapons
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! PHOTOGRAPHY
***SPOILER ALERT***
If you haven’t read my last review of Flash! Flash! Flash! Photography then I’d recommend reading that first. Seriously.
Tonight you can hear Michael Hemsley (lead vocalist) singing. So often riddled with sound problems that mean that you can only hear him when screaming, tonight, with their fifth gig, they seem to have sorted that issue. In its place the guitars seem a little hollow (although this does help to highlight the impressive bass work as that stands out in the mix), Rob (drums) manages to fumble beats on occasion and they have feedback problems. But their sound problems have less to do with the band and more to do with the borrowed equipment and the lack of a sound check.
The performance tonight is solid if not spectacular. For a new band ‘solid’ should be good enough. Every gig should be regarded as an opportunity to tighten your sound and the first ten gigs should be free of judgement. But 3FP don’t appear happy with that. At every gig they seem to have reworked a song and tonight’s is I Hate You. I actually think that the new version doesn’t work as well, but this may be more due to a lack of practicing it. The band though seem adamant to try new things wherever and whenever possible. I think that this deserves credit even if it is a little too ambitious currently. The band also attempts to cut the onstage banter tonight and I think that this detracts from the performance. Tonight was the first night that there were people amongst the crowd who were not friends with the band and I think that the banter would’ve helped to win them over. Instead I felt a slightly negative attitude from that part of the crowd that possibly seemed to think that 3FP aren’t punk/hardcore enough for them.
3FP are still playing predominantly playing to friends, partners, flatmates and colleagues but this can’t, and won’t, continue forever. The band features two of my best mates but I don’t watch them out of obligation. Flash! Flash! Flash! Photography are currently in that judgement-free ten-gig period but they’re not taking that for advantage. I expect to write a glowing review come their eleventh show.
http://www.myspace.com/flashflashflashphotography
I will start by saying that this is a type of music that I find hard to determine genres with and will struggle to compare to other bands. Not the best opening sentence to a review but I’d prefer to be honest than look daft when I try to compare and categorise them. The band seem to play metal music and yet the singer seems to think that he is fronting a hardcore band. I would presume that this is what is often referred to as ‘metal-core’.
The singer chooses not to take to the stage with the rest of the band, and instead he spends the entire set running from left to right on the floor in front of the band. His energy is not matched by the band who seem happy to not utilize the additional space left by the vocalist and instead remain relatively stationary throughout the set. I find that it leaves me looking at the Duracell-esque front man and paying little to no attention to the band. When I do I find some strong guitar-work and thumping riffs.
This is not the kind of band that I can really do justice reviewing. It is hard for me to determine how good they are as I have few bands to compare them to. However, my foot was tapping throughout and if they happen to be on another bill that I’m already planning to attend then I’ll definitely give them a second watch.
http://www.myspace.com/aisforautomaticweapons
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! PHOTOGRAPHY
***SPOILER ALERT***
If you haven’t read my last review of Flash! Flash! Flash! Photography then I’d recommend reading that first. Seriously.
Tonight you can hear Michael Hemsley (lead vocalist) singing. So often riddled with sound problems that mean that you can only hear him when screaming, tonight, with their fifth gig, they seem to have sorted that issue. In its place the guitars seem a little hollow (although this does help to highlight the impressive bass work as that stands out in the mix), Rob (drums) manages to fumble beats on occasion and they have feedback problems. But their sound problems have less to do with the band and more to do with the borrowed equipment and the lack of a sound check.
The performance tonight is solid if not spectacular. For a new band ‘solid’ should be good enough. Every gig should be regarded as an opportunity to tighten your sound and the first ten gigs should be free of judgement. But 3FP don’t appear happy with that. At every gig they seem to have reworked a song and tonight’s is I Hate You. I actually think that the new version doesn’t work as well, but this may be more due to a lack of practicing it. The band though seem adamant to try new things wherever and whenever possible. I think that this deserves credit even if it is a little too ambitious currently. The band also attempts to cut the onstage banter tonight and I think that this detracts from the performance. Tonight was the first night that there were people amongst the crowd who were not friends with the band and I think that the banter would’ve helped to win them over. Instead I felt a slightly negative attitude from that part of the crowd that possibly seemed to think that 3FP aren’t punk/hardcore enough for them.
3FP are still playing predominantly playing to friends, partners, flatmates and colleagues but this can’t, and won’t, continue forever. The band features two of my best mates but I don’t watch them out of obligation. Flash! Flash! Flash! Photography are currently in that judgement-free ten-gig period but they’re not taking that for advantage. I expect to write a glowing review come their eleventh show.
http://www.myspace.com/flashflashflashphotography
Wednesday 23 January 2008
DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL @ THE SCALA 20/01/08
DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL
Dashboard Confessional is the kind of band that you’re not ashamed to like even after the scene that they (he) fronted has up and left them. Producing music that is so unashamedly emo in the truest sense, tonight it was just Chris Carrabba alone with just his guitar and his voice, the way you feel that God intended him to perform.
The sound in the Scala was brilliant – as I have always found it to be – and this allowed Chris to really show the full capability of his vocal range and punctuate the songs with the most emotion possible, any over-egging that occurred can be easily forgiven due to the cheer quality of the vocal otherwise. The set list was also flawless. Particular highlights were Vindicated, Screaming Infidelities and Hands Down which brought forth sing-a-longs, the like of which I have never seen before. Drawing, surprisingly, almost entirely from his back catalogue, with only a couple of songs from the latest album and one brand new song, the crowd were unable to find any grievances with that area of the show either.
The one area that seemed to aggravate a few members of the crowd was Chris’ abundance of banter between songs. Towards the end of the set he cut this out, but I personally enjoyed the banter. Unlike other artists who are often responsible for doing the same, Chris didn’t have other band members to talk to and instead decided to strike up conversation with the audience. This allowed him to crack some incredible jokes and create a welcoming, intimate atmosphere that made me forget that there were in excess of eight hundred people here and instead made me feel as though I were in my living room surrounded by my friends, and that felt very special. It made me feel quite warm inside watching everyone, not only the kids but those who are older - the bank-tellers and insurance salesmen, singing their faces red; and it definitely felt as though I was witnessing something very special indeed.
Tonight I joined the Cult Of Carrabba for the first time, but it definitely will not be my last and I’ll be buying tickets for the April tour. I suggest those of you that used to love Dashboard Confessional buy tickets too; you won’t regret it.
http://www.myspace.com/dashboardconfessional
Dashboard Confessional is the kind of band that you’re not ashamed to like even after the scene that they (he) fronted has up and left them. Producing music that is so unashamedly emo in the truest sense, tonight it was just Chris Carrabba alone with just his guitar and his voice, the way you feel that God intended him to perform.
The sound in the Scala was brilliant – as I have always found it to be – and this allowed Chris to really show the full capability of his vocal range and punctuate the songs with the most emotion possible, any over-egging that occurred can be easily forgiven due to the cheer quality of the vocal otherwise. The set list was also flawless. Particular highlights were Vindicated, Screaming Infidelities and Hands Down which brought forth sing-a-longs, the like of which I have never seen before. Drawing, surprisingly, almost entirely from his back catalogue, with only a couple of songs from the latest album and one brand new song, the crowd were unable to find any grievances with that area of the show either.
The one area that seemed to aggravate a few members of the crowd was Chris’ abundance of banter between songs. Towards the end of the set he cut this out, but I personally enjoyed the banter. Unlike other artists who are often responsible for doing the same, Chris didn’t have other band members to talk to and instead decided to strike up conversation with the audience. This allowed him to crack some incredible jokes and create a welcoming, intimate atmosphere that made me forget that there were in excess of eight hundred people here and instead made me feel as though I were in my living room surrounded by my friends, and that felt very special. It made me feel quite warm inside watching everyone, not only the kids but those who are older - the bank-tellers and insurance salesmen, singing their faces red; and it definitely felt as though I was witnessing something very special indeed.
Tonight I joined the Cult Of Carrabba for the first time, but it definitely will not be my last and I’ll be buying tickets for the April tour. I suggest those of you that used to love Dashboard Confessional buy tickets too; you won’t regret it.
http://www.myspace.com/dashboardconfessional
Sunday 20 January 2008
LO-FI CULTURE SCENE/ THE OFFICIAL SECRETS ACT/ THE ANSWERING MACHINE/ GOOD SHOES @ ARTROCKER FESTIVAL 19/01/08
This is the final date of the five-day Artrocker Festival and the main event. Spread over the two Academies in Islington, they have seven bands playing their own brands of indie rock. I decided to get there early to see as many bands as possible for my £12 and first up were:
LO-FI CULTURE SCENE
Lo-Fi Culture Scene are fucking young. Young enough to have to be on first to make sure that they're home in time for bed. Young enough to wonder whether they actually understand the majority of what they're writing about or are writing the songs through imitating the bands that they love rather than being their artistic declaration. These questions never really leave your head the whole way through their set.
But Lo-Fi Culture Scene can play. The fact that the band consists of thirteen and fourteen year olds no longer matters as they release their Foals-esque guitar parts and the lead singer moves like a mini Steve Bays of Hot Hot Heat, hair and all. The band seem a little nervous and they have every right to be. Because the first few bands are on at the Bar Academy the place is rammed and this isn't helped by the front few rows being filled with similar aged kids which only suggests to me that their school friends have come out to see them. This means lots of pogoing and screaming girls giving the place the feel of a school disco, which is a little annoying.
Musically this band have buckets of potential and in five or so years they will be an absolute force to be reckoned with (if they can stay together with college and university probably on the agenda), but currently it is just too difficult to look beyond the age issue. If you want a solid support act in London that will really help to prove to people that age is really nothing but a number then look no further; just make sure not to book them on a school night.
http://www.myspace.com/theloficulturescene
THE OFFICIAL SECRETS ACT
The Official Secrets Act look like a Franz Ferdinand style band and they don't sound too dissimilar either. Vocals that sound like a mixture of Placebo and Of Montreal sit on top of spiky indie guitars and simple drumming, and this reeks of arthouse being used for pop measures. I can't help but think that this band have an eye on the charts and that saddens me. With the right backing they probably will be chart-bound but attempting to get there rather than getting there as a side product of merit stinks of a lack of integrity for me and this clouds my review of them.
They offer nothing new at all. Stand them against other art-rock bands and they're more fun than most, and musically they're not as bad as they are vocally. Thomas, the lead singer, goes red in the face yelping his vocals out but it sounds as though he has either a synthesiser or a sheep stuck in his throat that he desperately wants rid of. And the lyrics hardly help. The Girl From The BBC - which is where the band sound like Placebo most - has just two lines to it that are repeated over and over but these lyrics are entirely lacking in profundity or intelligence that you think that they could have been written before the gig. So Tomorrow - where the band manage to sound a little like Razorlight - has the lyrics: 'Everything is better at the weekend/ And everything is better with a car/ Everything is better with a girlfriend/ Who is ten times cooler than you are'. Lyrics like that are either written as a child, by someone who's first language isn't English or someone who is not interested in the importance of lyrics. Steve Lamacq apparently referred to the band as 'The most lyrically erudite I've heard in a while...' which prompted me to check the meaning of 'erudite' to ensure that the meaning of the word hadn't changed. It hasn't.
Passion to me isn't something measured in sweat or bulging veins but in the attention to detail that you take in your work and the pride that this shows. To me The Official Secrets Act fail to show very much of that. However you cannot fault their effort and as they finish their set they leave the stage a lake of sweat. I can only hope that it is evaporated, forms a cloud and when it rains back down to earth we're left with something slightly more authentic than The Official Secrets Act.
http://www.myspace.com/officialsecretsact
THE ANSWERING MACHINE
My second time of seeing the Answering Machine this year already and there really is little doubt surrounding their potential to be very successful. Tonight, while the band are still setting up, two girls rush onto the stage and start trying to hug and kiss Martin and Ben, lead singer/guitarist and drummer respectively, finally settling for a quick photo on their mobile before being asked to leave the stage by someone helping the band set up. The guys take it in their stride but this only brings to my attention the fact that these two guys are attractive enough to really make it as indie-boy pin-ups once the band become successful. This really only adds to the marketing package of this band though.
In my last review I mentioned that the band have the knack of sounding like a mixture of a lot of great bands and the pattern continues tonight. New song, Emergency, has a bass line reminiscent of Interpol and this leads the song through it's twists and turns with great stability. You Should've Called is the band's stab at epic-indie and, while Gemma's vocals are lower than surely is intended, it actually seems to work in favour of the song, giving it a haunting quality. And then for their penultimate song the band unleash Oklahoma, an older song, that has everyone jumping around and clapping along and the band have the crowd in the palm of their hand for three minutes.
The Answering Machine are going to be big. They seem capable of handling fast and slow songs with ease, manage to incorporate a sing-a-long chorus into almost every song, and Gemma is quite possibly a good shout for an appearance on the NME's Cool List at some point in time. This band are playing London a whole bunch in the next few weeks which, seeing that the band are from Manchester so would surely have their strongest fan base there, would suggest big things are on the horizon soon for them. Make sure that you see them before they're supporting The Pigeon Detectives or someone equally as bad.
http://www.myspace.com/theansweringmachine
GOOD SHOES
Good Shoes' debut and break-through album, Think Before You Speak, never really grabbed me until the last few days when I was repeatedly listening to it in preparation for this show. I think that the album has five or six amazing songs that really stand out and cling to your brain like a kitten with it's claws in your curtains, but the rest are good but forgettable. Live I hoped that they would manage to cement my interest in the band, but it seemed that the same problem prevailed.
Good Shoes have written some incredible single-worthy songs. Ending their set with the three-pronged onslaught of We Are Not The Same, Morden and All In My Head is enough to make most other bands jealous, while being able to pepper the rest of your set with gems like Blue Eyes, Small Town Girl and, my favourite of the lot, Never Meant To Hurt You seems almost greedy. Of course this is only more awe-inspiring when you figure into the mix that all of these songs have been drawn entirely from their debut album and are performed perfectly live. But this isn't the whole picture. While these songs get a rapturous response from the crowd, the rest of their set has the crowd standing motionless, barely even bobbing a head. Two of these songs could be excused for being new - Talk, which is one of these songs, however is another pop gem and will sit amongst the above songs as soon as it is released - but other than that they are still accountable for at least five songs that drain the room of movement and energy.
Good Shoes have their flaws. Lead singer, Rhys Jones, spends most of his time bopping around during the verses which means that his mouth is not always at the microphone when he sings and so you only get the odd lyric here and there. Some of their songs sound far too slapdash live. But when they get it right they really do get it right and I think that their second album could really say goodbye to the band playing venues of this size again.
http://www.myspace.com/goodshoes
LO-FI CULTURE SCENE
Lo-Fi Culture Scene are fucking young. Young enough to have to be on first to make sure that they're home in time for bed. Young enough to wonder whether they actually understand the majority of what they're writing about or are writing the songs through imitating the bands that they love rather than being their artistic declaration. These questions never really leave your head the whole way through their set.
But Lo-Fi Culture Scene can play. The fact that the band consists of thirteen and fourteen year olds no longer matters as they release their Foals-esque guitar parts and the lead singer moves like a mini Steve Bays of Hot Hot Heat, hair and all. The band seem a little nervous and they have every right to be. Because the first few bands are on at the Bar Academy the place is rammed and this isn't helped by the front few rows being filled with similar aged kids which only suggests to me that their school friends have come out to see them. This means lots of pogoing and screaming girls giving the place the feel of a school disco, which is a little annoying.
Musically this band have buckets of potential and in five or so years they will be an absolute force to be reckoned with (if they can stay together with college and university probably on the agenda), but currently it is just too difficult to look beyond the age issue. If you want a solid support act in London that will really help to prove to people that age is really nothing but a number then look no further; just make sure not to book them on a school night.
http://www.myspace.com/theloficulturescene
THE OFFICIAL SECRETS ACT
The Official Secrets Act look like a Franz Ferdinand style band and they don't sound too dissimilar either. Vocals that sound like a mixture of Placebo and Of Montreal sit on top of spiky indie guitars and simple drumming, and this reeks of arthouse being used for pop measures. I can't help but think that this band have an eye on the charts and that saddens me. With the right backing they probably will be chart-bound but attempting to get there rather than getting there as a side product of merit stinks of a lack of integrity for me and this clouds my review of them.
They offer nothing new at all. Stand them against other art-rock bands and they're more fun than most, and musically they're not as bad as they are vocally. Thomas, the lead singer, goes red in the face yelping his vocals out but it sounds as though he has either a synthesiser or a sheep stuck in his throat that he desperately wants rid of. And the lyrics hardly help. The Girl From The BBC - which is where the band sound like Placebo most - has just two lines to it that are repeated over and over but these lyrics are entirely lacking in profundity or intelligence that you think that they could have been written before the gig. So Tomorrow - where the band manage to sound a little like Razorlight - has the lyrics: 'Everything is better at the weekend/ And everything is better with a car/ Everything is better with a girlfriend/ Who is ten times cooler than you are'. Lyrics like that are either written as a child, by someone who's first language isn't English or someone who is not interested in the importance of lyrics. Steve Lamacq apparently referred to the band as 'The most lyrically erudite I've heard in a while...' which prompted me to check the meaning of 'erudite' to ensure that the meaning of the word hadn't changed. It hasn't.
Passion to me isn't something measured in sweat or bulging veins but in the attention to detail that you take in your work and the pride that this shows. To me The Official Secrets Act fail to show very much of that. However you cannot fault their effort and as they finish their set they leave the stage a lake of sweat. I can only hope that it is evaporated, forms a cloud and when it rains back down to earth we're left with something slightly more authentic than The Official Secrets Act.
http://www.myspace.com/officialsecretsact
THE ANSWERING MACHINE
My second time of seeing the Answering Machine this year already and there really is little doubt surrounding their potential to be very successful. Tonight, while the band are still setting up, two girls rush onto the stage and start trying to hug and kiss Martin and Ben, lead singer/guitarist and drummer respectively, finally settling for a quick photo on their mobile before being asked to leave the stage by someone helping the band set up. The guys take it in their stride but this only brings to my attention the fact that these two guys are attractive enough to really make it as indie-boy pin-ups once the band become successful. This really only adds to the marketing package of this band though.
In my last review I mentioned that the band have the knack of sounding like a mixture of a lot of great bands and the pattern continues tonight. New song, Emergency, has a bass line reminiscent of Interpol and this leads the song through it's twists and turns with great stability. You Should've Called is the band's stab at epic-indie and, while Gemma's vocals are lower than surely is intended, it actually seems to work in favour of the song, giving it a haunting quality. And then for their penultimate song the band unleash Oklahoma, an older song, that has everyone jumping around and clapping along and the band have the crowd in the palm of their hand for three minutes.
The Answering Machine are going to be big. They seem capable of handling fast and slow songs with ease, manage to incorporate a sing-a-long chorus into almost every song, and Gemma is quite possibly a good shout for an appearance on the NME's Cool List at some point in time. This band are playing London a whole bunch in the next few weeks which, seeing that the band are from Manchester so would surely have their strongest fan base there, would suggest big things are on the horizon soon for them. Make sure that you see them before they're supporting The Pigeon Detectives or someone equally as bad.
http://www.myspace.com/theansweringmachine
GOOD SHOES
Good Shoes' debut and break-through album, Think Before You Speak, never really grabbed me until the last few days when I was repeatedly listening to it in preparation for this show. I think that the album has five or six amazing songs that really stand out and cling to your brain like a kitten with it's claws in your curtains, but the rest are good but forgettable. Live I hoped that they would manage to cement my interest in the band, but it seemed that the same problem prevailed.
Good Shoes have written some incredible single-worthy songs. Ending their set with the three-pronged onslaught of We Are Not The Same, Morden and All In My Head is enough to make most other bands jealous, while being able to pepper the rest of your set with gems like Blue Eyes, Small Town Girl and, my favourite of the lot, Never Meant To Hurt You seems almost greedy. Of course this is only more awe-inspiring when you figure into the mix that all of these songs have been drawn entirely from their debut album and are performed perfectly live. But this isn't the whole picture. While these songs get a rapturous response from the crowd, the rest of their set has the crowd standing motionless, barely even bobbing a head. Two of these songs could be excused for being new - Talk, which is one of these songs, however is another pop gem and will sit amongst the above songs as soon as it is released - but other than that they are still accountable for at least five songs that drain the room of movement and energy.
Good Shoes have their flaws. Lead singer, Rhys Jones, spends most of his time bopping around during the verses which means that his mouth is not always at the microphone when he sings and so you only get the odd lyric here and there. Some of their songs sound far too slapdash live. But when they get it right they really do get it right and I think that their second album could really say goodbye to the band playing venues of this size again.
http://www.myspace.com/goodshoes
Wednesday 16 January 2008
THOMAS TANTRUM @ THE BUFFALO BAR 15/01/08
Tonight is the first of four consecutive night's gigs at the Buffalo Bar this week as part of the Artrocker Festival. I have always hated Artrocker and, having listened to the band that were headlining this gig on myspace yesterday where one of their 'songs' is just the lead singer reading the Jabberwocky section from Through The Looking Glass over some mediocre, moody music, it is hard to not just continue with this hatred by posting negative things about them on the internet whilst ignoring that this festival ever existed. But sadly I have started to like some of the bands that they have been championing and tonight's openers are one of those bands.
THOMAS TANTRUM
Thomas Tantrum sound like a bunch of indie kids who want to play modern indie music but were raised on The Pixies, Sonic Youth and Weezer. Mixing somewhat chunky, guitar riffs with unnerving, almost off-key guitar twiddles, they still manage to sound somewhat pop. I'm not a fan of The Pixies, Sonic Youth and that entire musical movement, but Thomas Tantrum manage to keep me interested and this is in no small part due to Meg Thomas' lead vocals. Managing to sound like a nine year old private school girl who can't quite hide her accent, and she's better for not hiding it. Kate Nash similarities are almost certainly going to come about if they haven't already, but these would be lazy. Speaking between songs you can hear that the dialect is entirely natural and this makes her all the more charming.
The two songs that were played that I had previously heard, Shake It Shake It and Why The English Are Rubbish, stand out from the set as obvious singles amongst the otherwise album tracks and these are where Meg's vocals are even more prominent which brings me to the band's only real fault in my eyes. While they're an entertaining and promising outfit, who seem bound to get a little more attention even if they're never likely to reach the charts, Meg's vocals are their selling point and without them they really don't stand out from the crowd. I will definitely be making sure to see them again sometime soon though, but will try to make sure that it's on a better bill free of arthouse toss.
http://www.myspace.com/thomastantrumband
THOMAS TANTRUM
Thomas Tantrum sound like a bunch of indie kids who want to play modern indie music but were raised on The Pixies, Sonic Youth and Weezer. Mixing somewhat chunky, guitar riffs with unnerving, almost off-key guitar twiddles, they still manage to sound somewhat pop. I'm not a fan of The Pixies, Sonic Youth and that entire musical movement, but Thomas Tantrum manage to keep me interested and this is in no small part due to Meg Thomas' lead vocals. Managing to sound like a nine year old private school girl who can't quite hide her accent, and she's better for not hiding it. Kate Nash similarities are almost certainly going to come about if they haven't already, but these would be lazy. Speaking between songs you can hear that the dialect is entirely natural and this makes her all the more charming.
The two songs that were played that I had previously heard, Shake It Shake It and Why The English Are Rubbish, stand out from the set as obvious singles amongst the otherwise album tracks and these are where Meg's vocals are even more prominent which brings me to the band's only real fault in my eyes. While they're an entertaining and promising outfit, who seem bound to get a little more attention even if they're never likely to reach the charts, Meg's vocals are their selling point and without them they really don't stand out from the crowd. I will definitely be making sure to see them again sometime soon though, but will try to make sure that it's on a better bill free of arthouse toss.
http://www.myspace.com/thomastantrumband
Thursday 10 January 2008
THE ANSWERING MACHINE @ THE ENTERPRISE 09/01/08
THE ANSWERING MACHINE
The Answering Machine won me over with their two singles that I picked up on itunes, Lightbulbs and Silent Hotels, where they sounded a little like a lot of bands but not a lot like any one band. Live it becomes even harder to pin them down. At times they sound like The Maccabees with their ability to write indie-pop with ease, at other points they sound like Arcade Fire, with bassist, Gemma, at one point singing her vocals through a miniature megaphone and guitarist and lead vocalist, Martin, playing an additional drum at the end of two of their songs. At other moments the two lead rhythm guitars and almost brotherly relationship between the two guitarists give the feeling of The Libertines. I could do this all day but, while you might notice the bands that have influenced them in their music, at no point would you say that it is obvious or attempted. The Answering Machine sound like The Answering Machine and that is all.
http://www.myspace.com/theansweringmachine
The Answering Machine won me over with their two singles that I picked up on itunes, Lightbulbs and Silent Hotels, where they sounded a little like a lot of bands but not a lot like any one band. Live it becomes even harder to pin them down. At times they sound like The Maccabees with their ability to write indie-pop with ease, at other points they sound like Arcade Fire, with bassist, Gemma, at one point singing her vocals through a miniature megaphone and guitarist and lead vocalist, Martin, playing an additional drum at the end of two of their songs. At other moments the two lead rhythm guitars and almost brotherly relationship between the two guitarists give the feeling of The Libertines. I could do this all day but, while you might notice the bands that have influenced them in their music, at no point would you say that it is obvious or attempted. The Answering Machine sound like The Answering Machine and that is all.
Artrocker are currently championing this band as one of their predictions for next year and I’d have to agree. Their choruses are infectious and yet the music sounds intelligent and authentic enough to stand on its own. Plus they sound big. While they hardly seem out of place at The Enterprise the same could easily be said of Brixton Academy or Alexandra Palace, and in some respects I’d really like to see the band in one of those venues. There is a certain epic kind of sound and I’m sure that it won’t be long before they’re playing the bigger venues, even if as a support act.
Throughout the set the drummer’s, Ben, kit seems to fall apart piece by piece and then the additional drum at the front of the stage falls over twice on separate occasions, at one point halfway through Lightbulbs, and yet they play on without a single break. They're like a British Meneguar in places, but I'm sick of comparing them. If you like indie music in any way then I recommend seeing this band before the NME champion them and they're playing huge venues by the end of the year.http://www.myspace.com/theansweringmachine
Wednesday 9 January 2008
LAURA GROVES/ HOT ROCKET/ TELLISON @NOTTING HILL ARTS CLUB 06/01/08
LAURA GROVES
Laura Groves is another singer-songwriter currently writing pretty little ditties with poetic lyrics and emotive musical accompaniment. Taking to the stage alone, her vocals are reminiscent of Joanna Newsom but less jarring and she starts off behind an organ before playing a few songs with an acoustic guitar and then going back to the organ. From that explanation, especially the second part, you’d be tempted to draw up Kate Nash comparisons but there are few similarities.
She manages to create an indie film ambience and, as I stop paying attention during the set and let the music wash over me, I summon up images of a boy with dark choppy hair sitting in the back seat of his car as his family drive down an American road flanked either side by trees and the boy is in his mid-teens and starring out of the window up at the sun and the light turning green as it moves through the leaves like a filter. And you can imagine the music that accompanies this. It is unassuming and sweet and soft.
But her main downfall is that she joins a long list of artists in the UK who do the same thing and an even longer one when you start adding similar acts from the US and the world. Currently I struggle to see enough in her performance to establish her as one of the leading lights in the UK, let alone further a field, but she is an enjoyable way to spend your afternoon and she has the promise to push further.
http://www.myspace.com/lauragroves
HOT ROCKET
This band are about to start when they manage to blow something up on stage and then spent an age fixing it. The fact that the majority of the people that had moved into the room were there to see Tellison, who were supposed to start before Hot Rocket had even managed to fix the problem, hardly made for an accommodating audience. By the time they fix the problem they would have had to have been an incredible live act to win the crowd over. Needless to say, they’re not.
They are polished though. They play like an act that have played together regularly for a long time. They play like the pop act that they are, but they were not particularly popular tonight. The crowd enjoy it a little but that baffles me. I’d have thought that the people of Notting Hill are relatively art school and I’d have thought that art school kids don’t particularly like The Fratellis (which is what the first song sounds like), Panic! At The Disco (which is basically the third song) and the idea of Maroon Five covering My Chemical Romance (the second song).
I never like mentioning a band’s look as I prefer to review music than fashion, but this band look like they sound; conceited. Their look is important to them as everything is fake and intentional, and it amazes me when I see a band that seems to be selling out before a label has even asked them to. They play a full set despite their problems at the beginning and yet the only person I can see dancing is wearing a suit, on a Sunday. That says it all for me.
http://www.myspace.com/wearehotrocket
TELLISON
It feels fitting for me to be reviewing the band that I saw twelve times last year as part of the first set of reviews that I do, especially seeing that this was the first venue that I ever saw them in almost two years ago to the day. I was mildly impressed that day but now I’m amazed when they manage to impress me more with every new song written or every time they rework the songs for their live performance. I’m willing to bet that I’ll end up reviewing this band at least another ten times this year and so I’ll have to start reading my thesaurus for synonyms of ‘incredible’.
Tonight they suffer from Hot Rocket’s mishap earlier which means that the band takes to the stage around 22:45, thirty minutes later than they were due to. This happening on a Sunday night means that some of the crowd have already had to leave and a fair few of those still there are gazing apprehensively at their watches. Stephen is struggling with his vocals too, popping a Strepsil before the band even start; his voice is struggling with the quieter parts and then is strained further when he screams through the pain barrier. But, while these things would be enough to put some bands off, it seems to barely hamper Tellison at all. For when Stephen’s voice falters, the crowd help him out by hollering the lyrics out, and when the band have as many handclaps as they do there is barely time in between for people to check their watches.
The late start is perfect reason for Tellison to only manage a shorter set, dropping regular songs like Ambulance, Disaster! Disaster! and Amory but they still manage to play new song, Wasps Nest and what a song it is. This shows that Tellison have a very bright future ahead of them and if any labels needed more reason to circle this band after the brilliance of Contact! Contact! then this should surely be it. Not Tellison’s finest performance but when their off days are as good as this then I can’t see how anyone could complain.
http://www.myspace.com/tellison
Laura Groves is another singer-songwriter currently writing pretty little ditties with poetic lyrics and emotive musical accompaniment. Taking to the stage alone, her vocals are reminiscent of Joanna Newsom but less jarring and she starts off behind an organ before playing a few songs with an acoustic guitar and then going back to the organ. From that explanation, especially the second part, you’d be tempted to draw up Kate Nash comparisons but there are few similarities.
She manages to create an indie film ambience and, as I stop paying attention during the set and let the music wash over me, I summon up images of a boy with dark choppy hair sitting in the back seat of his car as his family drive down an American road flanked either side by trees and the boy is in his mid-teens and starring out of the window up at the sun and the light turning green as it moves through the leaves like a filter. And you can imagine the music that accompanies this. It is unassuming and sweet and soft.
But her main downfall is that she joins a long list of artists in the UK who do the same thing and an even longer one when you start adding similar acts from the US and the world. Currently I struggle to see enough in her performance to establish her as one of the leading lights in the UK, let alone further a field, but she is an enjoyable way to spend your afternoon and she has the promise to push further.
http://www.myspace.com/lauragroves
HOT ROCKET
This band are about to start when they manage to blow something up on stage and then spent an age fixing it. The fact that the majority of the people that had moved into the room were there to see Tellison, who were supposed to start before Hot Rocket had even managed to fix the problem, hardly made for an accommodating audience. By the time they fix the problem they would have had to have been an incredible live act to win the crowd over. Needless to say, they’re not.
They are polished though. They play like an act that have played together regularly for a long time. They play like the pop act that they are, but they were not particularly popular tonight. The crowd enjoy it a little but that baffles me. I’d have thought that the people of Notting Hill are relatively art school and I’d have thought that art school kids don’t particularly like The Fratellis (which is what the first song sounds like), Panic! At The Disco (which is basically the third song) and the idea of Maroon Five covering My Chemical Romance (the second song).
I never like mentioning a band’s look as I prefer to review music than fashion, but this band look like they sound; conceited. Their look is important to them as everything is fake and intentional, and it amazes me when I see a band that seems to be selling out before a label has even asked them to. They play a full set despite their problems at the beginning and yet the only person I can see dancing is wearing a suit, on a Sunday. That says it all for me.
http://www.myspace.com/wearehotrocket
TELLISON
It feels fitting for me to be reviewing the band that I saw twelve times last year as part of the first set of reviews that I do, especially seeing that this was the first venue that I ever saw them in almost two years ago to the day. I was mildly impressed that day but now I’m amazed when they manage to impress me more with every new song written or every time they rework the songs for their live performance. I’m willing to bet that I’ll end up reviewing this band at least another ten times this year and so I’ll have to start reading my thesaurus for synonyms of ‘incredible’.
Tonight they suffer from Hot Rocket’s mishap earlier which means that the band takes to the stage around 22:45, thirty minutes later than they were due to. This happening on a Sunday night means that some of the crowd have already had to leave and a fair few of those still there are gazing apprehensively at their watches. Stephen is struggling with his vocals too, popping a Strepsil before the band even start; his voice is struggling with the quieter parts and then is strained further when he screams through the pain barrier. But, while these things would be enough to put some bands off, it seems to barely hamper Tellison at all. For when Stephen’s voice falters, the crowd help him out by hollering the lyrics out, and when the band have as many handclaps as they do there is barely time in between for people to check their watches.
The late start is perfect reason for Tellison to only manage a shorter set, dropping regular songs like Ambulance, Disaster! Disaster! and Amory but they still manage to play new song, Wasps Nest and what a song it is. This shows that Tellison have a very bright future ahead of them and if any labels needed more reason to circle this band after the brilliance of Contact! Contact! then this should surely be it. Not Tellison’s finest performance but when their off days are as good as this then I can’t see how anyone could complain.
http://www.myspace.com/tellison
ABOVE THEM/ FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! PHOTOGRAPHY/ THE ATTIKA STATE@ THE CROSS KINGS 06/01/08
ABOVE THEM
Above Them are a band based firmly in the mid-90s. They merge pop-punk from back when the production was sparse and vocals helped distinguish between bands rather than cloud the issue, and emo from a time when the genre still existed in it's intended incarnation. They also manage to confirm my belief that bands of their ilk need no more than one guitarist if that guitarist is worth his salt and no one in this band is being carried. With intricate guitar work sitting beside riffs, one of their songs opening with an excellent bass solo and top drumming throughout, this band deserve more than to fade towards the last few songs of their set. If they can manage to stay together long enough in this UK scene that seems to see good bands break up on a weekly basis to get an album made then they could well have enough songs to gain the credit that they deserve.
http://www.myspace.com/abovethem
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! PHOTOGRAPHY
This is my fourth Flash! Flash! Flash! Photography (or 3FP as they prefer it to be shortened to) gig and it is probably their worst in my opinion. The sound is a little off, you can't hear the lead vocals for a large proportion of the gig apart from when Mike Hemsley screams his throat raw, and the band doesn't quite seem as up for it as they have previously. But, in all fairness, the last point can be put down to the early start and the relatively low amount of alcohol consumed by both the crowd and them at this point. But it too is very easy to forget that this is only their fourth ever gig. So you can't hear the lead vocals? I'm sure that they'll sort out the mic levels soon. It's easy enough. The sound's a little off? Well that's not their fault.
Looking at what this band manage to achieve is a far fairer way to review them. The song that manages to get the biggest response is their cover of 'Black Or White', but this is not only down to it being the one song that people recognise, but because they've managed to make it into one of the best cover songs that I have ever heard. Plus they fucking slay it. They can write songs too though. 'Aqua man' is their potential 'hit' and it hits like Enter Shikari if they were good. It is certain to get lodged inside your brain like a pop parasite. And the reworked intro to 'Make Like A Tree And Get Out Of Here' is a massive behemoth of rock that far exceeds what should be expected of a band this early in their infancy. With breakdowns, rapping, screaming, three-way vocals, ska-like bass lines, and a whole load more, 3FP manage to avoid the pothole of wackiness and instead use these elements as a heady arsenal with which to choose where to take their songs, and that excites me.
Without having any songs recorded it is difficult to entice people that don't know the band personally to take the time to familiarise themselves with them, but they should and will once songs hit their myspace later this year. I honestly feel that 3FP have the potential to create some of the most interesting and enjoyable music you'll hear in 2008 and I recommend that you go and see them on tour. You're guaranteed to see five guys having the times of their lives and you'll leave with an unshakable smile on your face. Especially if they sort out the mic levels.
http://www.myspace.com/flashflashflashphotography
THE ATTIKA STATE
Try and place The Attika State into a genre and you'll struggle. Prog-pop-punk? Riff-heavy-indie? Post-rock-with-hooks? Their myspace says: 'Rock/ Experimental/ Indie', but don't believe them. They're all of the best bits from your favourite bands and more.
Ripping through a set that comprises of the entirety of their debut ep released last year, 'Leave Your Dignity At The Door', it feels more like a greatest hits set. The band are obviously very comfortable with their songs and this gives them a polished feel that only knowing them inside out can give you. Lead singer, Rodolfo, who set his mic-stand on the floor in front of the stage and spent the gig there rather than actually onstage, turns his back on the crowd whenever he isn't singing and dances with the crowd and you wonder if he must look like an enthusiastic punter amongst other enthusaistic punters to the rest of the band. If the songs themselves weren't good enough (they kind of sound like what The Academy Is... would sell their souls to sound like) they are thoroughly charming and funny guys between songs too, which just completes the package.
The elusive nature with regards to what genre they'd fit it into is not the main attraction. The main attraction is that whatever genres they might not fall into, they're definitely pop and as people throw their fists towards the ceiling in unison and belt the lyrics back at them with such passion it's as though the band have a fourth vocalist, I can't help but wish that I knew the lyrics too so that I could be involved in this. On the basis of this performance I'll be listening to the ep enough in the near future to be singing along next time.
http://www.myspace.com/theattikastate
Above Them are a band based firmly in the mid-90s. They merge pop-punk from back when the production was sparse and vocals helped distinguish between bands rather than cloud the issue, and emo from a time when the genre still existed in it's intended incarnation. They also manage to confirm my belief that bands of their ilk need no more than one guitarist if that guitarist is worth his salt and no one in this band is being carried. With intricate guitar work sitting beside riffs, one of their songs opening with an excellent bass solo and top drumming throughout, this band deserve more than to fade towards the last few songs of their set. If they can manage to stay together long enough in this UK scene that seems to see good bands break up on a weekly basis to get an album made then they could well have enough songs to gain the credit that they deserve.
http://www.myspace.com/abovethem
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! PHOTOGRAPHY
This is my fourth Flash! Flash! Flash! Photography (or 3FP as they prefer it to be shortened to) gig and it is probably their worst in my opinion. The sound is a little off, you can't hear the lead vocals for a large proportion of the gig apart from when Mike Hemsley screams his throat raw, and the band doesn't quite seem as up for it as they have previously. But, in all fairness, the last point can be put down to the early start and the relatively low amount of alcohol consumed by both the crowd and them at this point. But it too is very easy to forget that this is only their fourth ever gig. So you can't hear the lead vocals? I'm sure that they'll sort out the mic levels soon. It's easy enough. The sound's a little off? Well that's not their fault.
Looking at what this band manage to achieve is a far fairer way to review them. The song that manages to get the biggest response is their cover of 'Black Or White', but this is not only down to it being the one song that people recognise, but because they've managed to make it into one of the best cover songs that I have ever heard. Plus they fucking slay it. They can write songs too though. 'Aqua man' is their potential 'hit' and it hits like Enter Shikari if they were good. It is certain to get lodged inside your brain like a pop parasite. And the reworked intro to 'Make Like A Tree And Get Out Of Here' is a massive behemoth of rock that far exceeds what should be expected of a band this early in their infancy. With breakdowns, rapping, screaming, three-way vocals, ska-like bass lines, and a whole load more, 3FP manage to avoid the pothole of wackiness and instead use these elements as a heady arsenal with which to choose where to take their songs, and that excites me.
Without having any songs recorded it is difficult to entice people that don't know the band personally to take the time to familiarise themselves with them, but they should and will once songs hit their myspace later this year. I honestly feel that 3FP have the potential to create some of the most interesting and enjoyable music you'll hear in 2008 and I recommend that you go and see them on tour. You're guaranteed to see five guys having the times of their lives and you'll leave with an unshakable smile on your face. Especially if they sort out the mic levels.
http://www.myspace.com/flashflashflashphotography
THE ATTIKA STATE
Try and place The Attika State into a genre and you'll struggle. Prog-pop-punk? Riff-heavy-indie? Post-rock-with-hooks? Their myspace says: 'Rock/ Experimental/ Indie', but don't believe them. They're all of the best bits from your favourite bands and more.
Ripping through a set that comprises of the entirety of their debut ep released last year, 'Leave Your Dignity At The Door', it feels more like a greatest hits set. The band are obviously very comfortable with their songs and this gives them a polished feel that only knowing them inside out can give you. Lead singer, Rodolfo, who set his mic-stand on the floor in front of the stage and spent the gig there rather than actually onstage, turns his back on the crowd whenever he isn't singing and dances with the crowd and you wonder if he must look like an enthusiastic punter amongst other enthusaistic punters to the rest of the band. If the songs themselves weren't good enough (they kind of sound like what The Academy Is... would sell their souls to sound like) they are thoroughly charming and funny guys between songs too, which just completes the package.
The elusive nature with regards to what genre they'd fit it into is not the main attraction. The main attraction is that whatever genres they might not fall into, they're definitely pop and as people throw their fists towards the ceiling in unison and belt the lyrics back at them with such passion it's as though the band have a fourth vocalist, I can't help but wish that I knew the lyrics too so that I could be involved in this. On the basis of this performance I'll be listening to the ep enough in the near future to be singing along next time.
http://www.myspace.com/theattikastate
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