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Capsula – Rising Mountains
Capsula
Other than selected single tracks here and there from long-dead sixties bands I don’t reckon I’ve heard much by Argentinian rock groups. For what is I think therefore justifiably classifiable as a first this, the second album from Capsula (late of Buenos Aires, now waiting to conquer the world from Bilbao), succeeded in grabbing my attention right from the start.
Stag and Dagger, Glasgow: Take Two
Selkirk's Frightened Rabbit
May 23, 2009
Following on from successful legs in London and Leeds, with better line-ups than Glasgow, some might have you believe Stag and Dagger’s final UK stop was Glasgow (another review can be found here). With acts like Wintersleep, Evan Dando and King Creosote at both Leeds and London, you’d be forgiven for thinking they had a point. But as I briskly stride uphill to collect my wristband, I decide that anything Leeds or London can do, Glasgow can do just as well. Armed with my schedule, notepad and ink-filled vessel, the saga begins.
First stop, NME Stage at the Captain’s Rest, and I indulge in some 5pm drinking, as I will do many times before my student status is cruelly rescinded in July. I catch the last song of Over the Wall, whose mix of electronic drums, keyboards and guitar has attracted a bumper crowd despite it being early in the day.
Next up is Glasgow’s very own French Wives who since I reviewed them eight days ago, leave little new to report. Stuart’s had a haircut, they still sadly don’t count Sarkozy’s missus or that one out of the Clio ad among their number- though they are still undeniably brilliant. Deliberately detaching myself from what I generally look for in their performance, I notice drummer Jonny’s exemplary bass pedal work and Stuart’s superb lyrics. The lyrics really speak as a snapshot for the city which shaped him. Each song stands as an image as iconic as the Clyde tower, The University of Glasgow or the Kelvingrove art museum, they speak for the city, almost as well as Alex Kapranos did on Franz Ferdinand’s debut. … Continue Reading
Sonic Youth – The Eternal
Sonic Youth
When it was announced that Sonic Youth, having honoured their contract with Geffen Records, had signed with much-admired independent label Matador, many of us came to the same conclusion: after the concise, streamlined accessibility of 2006’s Rather Ripped, it was time for the Youth to renew their love affair with the underground and pursue the avant-garde aesthetic that first inspired them.
Deerhunter – Rainwater Cassette Exchange EP
Deerhunter - Rainwater Cassette Exchange
Modern musicians tend to get a bit of a bad rap for not being as prolific as their counterparts of years gone by. Bradford Cox and his mates in Deerhunter, however, give massive lie to this reputation. By my reckoning, since the start of 2008, they have released four albums between them (two under the Deerhunter guise, one as Atlas Sound and one as Lotus Plaza). As well as this, dozens of songs, virtual singles and EPs have been given away for free download on Bradford’s blog.
In spite of the accusations of a lack of quality control which have been slung at the band, their prolific outlook is welcome, as is their relaxed attitude to giving their music away. It’s exciting to be able to chart an artist’s progression so readily. And, as anyone’s mother would tell you, it’s a bit churlish to turn your nose up at something that’s being handed to you for nothing
The latest ‘proper’ Deerhunter release is the Rainwater Cassette Exchange EP. It opens with the title track which is an immediate example of the impact of Bradford’s recent Animal Collective fixation. The band take the underwater production feel of some recent Animal Collective songs and enhance it with a bassline which creates a real groove, making the song both woozy and stirring at the same time.
There’s something a bit child-like and heart-warming about the way Bradford’s influences seep into his band’s music. He’s clearly as much a fan as he is an artist. Where the genius of Deerhunter lies though is in their ability to create something completely original, in spite of wearing their influences firmly on their sleeves. … Continue Reading
Eels – My Timing Is Off/Fresh Blood
Eels - My Timing Is Off/Fresh Blood
Hurrah! Eels are back! In that respect it has been a long four years since the release of the epic Blinking Lights and Other Revelations.
In the vein of the afore mentioned Blinking Lights… and Daisies Of The Galaxy rather than the more distortion heavy Souljacker period, ‘My Timing Is Off’ tells a tale of bad luck and unfulfilled love familiar to most Eels fans from tracks such as ‘If You See Natalie’ and ‘It’s A Motherf**ker’.
The clean electric guitar and soft drumming make you feel immediately welcome, and E spins his yarn as if he’s the slightly drunk man on the bar stool next to you in a quiet bar.
He is unabashed in his lament however – “My timing is off/Sometimes that’s how it all works/Believe it or not/We don’t have choices in matters of the heart” … Continue Reading
Viva Voce – Rose City
Viva Voce
The major downside to being a music lover in the digital age is that it sometimes feels like there aren’t enough listening hours in the day. You can try to cut out mundane trivialities, like work and sleep, but there will still be bands who don’t get the attention they might deserve.
Cryptacize, London Union Chapel
Cryptacize's Nedelle Torrisi
May 28, 2009
Preceding a sublime Final Fantasy set is Asthmatic Kitty’s Cryptacize, all the way from lovely Oakland. Featuring ex-Deerhoof guitarist Chris Cohen and the wistful, rueful vocals of Nedelle Torrisi, their songs somehow strike an awkward balance between too much and not enough.
The extremely comprehensive set evokes Camera Obscura circa Underacheivers Please Try Harder (particularly ‘New Spell’ – grammer-lover’s- dream), Beirut’s Balkan folk through soft focus and the rhythms of American vaudeville. So to go back to that earlier point, it’s strange that it should feel any part of ‘not enough’ – to expand on the point a little further, the problem lies with the way every component is conveyed with such a sense of sparseness, making it ever-difficult to engage with the variety.
Song structures veer between comfortable and predictable even though the rhythms and misnomer of an upbeat are far from easy; the performance just feels a tad tentative. Yet while maintaining this sense of perhaps deliberate restraint, parts also feel indulgent.
Cohen’s detuned guitar is mythical, almost, and Torrisi’s electronic interludes are disorientating, but the ordering of the set needs context or to be sped up. ‘Blue Tears’ is opened with a wonderful syncopated collaborative effort, which then eases off into something too consciously psychedelic; ‘Mythomania’ is delightful but feels like a half-baked effort at showcasing Torrisi’s vocals; ‘One Block Wonders’ is strikingly stark but lacks the drive to fully carry it off. And the staticness of the bassist and drummer simply adds to this confusing dichotomy. … Continue Reading
Final Fantasy, London Union Chapel
Final Fantasy, a.k.a. Owen Pallett
May 28, 2009
Architecturally and acoustically stunning, and with the kind of reverent atmosphere that can only come from sitting in church with a host of other believers, the Union Chapel could hardly be more fitting a setting for tonight’s performance. Over the course of the evening the light flooding through the ceiling and windows gradually fades to twilight, leaving the ornate stained glass aglow behind the stage as Owen Pallett reaches for his violin and eases into ‘The Sea’.
As a live artist Pallett’s reputation precedes him; a hugely talented composer and string arranger, he is also a violinist of considerable dexterity and a dab hand (or foot) with a loop pedal. On record his classically influenced pop songs are complex, layered and repeatedly overdubbed. As a solo performer his means of recreating that density on stage is through looping individual parts to reproduce the whole – as visually as it is musically arresting. Alongside him, a friend produces charmingly ramshackle visuals with an overhead projector and scraps of paper and plastic, which dart and flit from their screen over the walls and ceiling. … Continue Reading
Maxïmo Park, London Brixton Academy
Maxïmo Park's Paul Smith
April 27, 2009
If you’re expecting a review in the typical sense, take a deep breath and forget about it.
Yesterday I realised that this Brixton Academy show makes for the 10th time I have seen this clearly dearly beloved Teesside five-piece live. Over a five-year period starting with a Futureheads support slot, I have less-than-gradually succumbed to a point where I hoard a collection of B-sides, demos, covers… look, I’m obsessed with Pavement and other such but this is different. It’s now.
From the umlaut to the stage quirks, Maxïmo Park are the sort of band it’s natural to fall in love with. And gone now is the book prop of the early days; it’s been replaced with something far more big-scale, namely professionalism. I can recall figureheads for every single one of the nine shows: Brixton Academy in 2007, A Certain Trigger is played in order, Paul Smith almost (I think ‘almost’) cries after playing ‘Acrobat’ for one of the first times; a cover of The Go-Betweens‘ ‘I Haven’t Seen Her In Ages’ at The Forum last year, in the encore; ‘Once, A Glimpse’ at the Vinyl Factory in London with different lyrics read from a book (nameless, I think). Let’s not even get into the scissor-kick/falling-less-than-gracefully-into-a-heap-on-the-floor incident at Camden Barfly in January 2005. … Continue Reading
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