So how was your exams then? If you had exams that is. I remember everyone saying how lucky us designers are for having to do a portfolio instead of an exam. I don't know about you, but anything beats a week of stress, a total of four hours sleep, then handing in your portfolio while hallucinating from the extreme amount of caffeine and lack of sleep. Then having another week just to clean up the mess you made and letting your fingers heal (because frankly, you don't know when paper ends and your finger starts when you're trying to cut something with a scalpel at three in the morning.)
I'll stop rambling now.
Gracing the pages of Arcady 004, we've got The Chinese Stars, The Prayers, Metro Riots, The Clientele, Dungen and Tilly & The Wall and Bit By Bats. Awesome, y/n?
Onto the other matter, we need some funding. Our team at Arcady is giving up a lot of our free time to bring all this out to you. Most of us are balancing a job and school as well as Arcady, so it'll be a lot of help to us if you donate whatever spare change you have to pay our bills. And if you feel the urge to click on any form of advertising on this page, just do it.
Thank you!!
Olivia Desianti
Editor/Creative Director
MAILING LIST
SNowman - "You Are A Casino "
A song that makes you wanna dance like a crazy Japanese song everytime it comes on is always good right?
Frida Hyvönen - "I Drive My Friend"
It took me about two minutes just trying to find a shortcut to that umlaut… And despite everything, I still can't pronounce her last name. But frankly, it doesn't matter. This song is just beautiful.
Good Shoes - "Morden"
Take a dash of Maximo Park, a pinch of Arctic Monkeys, uhhh insert some other band here, and stir.
Art Brut - "Direct Hit"
New album, new single, still pretty fucking awesome.
Justice - "D.A.N.C.E"
Despite the fact that this song gets played on Chapel St a lot, this song is fucking catchy and has one of the best video clips we've seen in a long time. In fact, this song is so cool that it's getting played in Toys R Us.
Donnie Sloan - "Call You Up!"
Finally, a song about phone sex you can relate to.
“White, because it contains all other colours,” explains the one-man-band that is YACHT; Jona Bechtolt when I ask for his favourite colour
To my surprise, this answer is one of few that actually address the question. I soon realise that Bechtolt is a Q & A tease; meaningless questions are answered seriously, and serious questions are shot down with a witty response. This frivolous and light-hearted attitude seems to follow Bechtolt around, especially through his music.
The previous laptop-constructed, full-length YACHT release, Super Warren MMIV, had a wonderfully fun and unique take on electronic pop. Bechtolt's most recent release, I Believe In You. Your Magic Is Real, hadn't hit our shores at the time of the interview, and an attempt to suss out its sound resulted in a reply filled with that giddy Bechtolt charm: "OK, so what about the record? Never mind."
While this release is technically our third taste of YACHT, it is by no means the third serving of Bechtolt. This little package fits nicely into his long list of musical accomplishments which includes the likes of The Blow and MANTA, acts which Bechtolt has played in and produced, respectively. He has since split from these commitments to focus on his solo work, and such a change has impacted his recording process.
"I used to almost exclusively make most of my music on tour, so there's a little bit of that process still hanging out. This record also employed a very different and brand-new process for me…most of the new songs were recorded while I was on a 95-day Bayer-brand aspirin binge."
I Believe In You. Your Magic Is Real has received rave reviews from the press for its childish vibe and simple but effective programming. But despite his success, Bechtolt is not one of those now-common egotistical fucks. He is a fan of fans. His website fulfills the needs of all admirers and stalkers, with a personal email, postal address and text messaging facilities all available because he "loves fantasising about the 15 year old me being able to text message Nirvana".
The nautical name seems to have been good to Bechtolt so far, taking him on tour with LCD Soundsystem and most recently home-grown talents Architecture In Helsinki, dancing his way across the globe at the click of a mouse. "Somehow I have more energy than most human beings, but only during YACHT shows. You'll see. I hold audience-wide dance-offs every night!"
And see we shall. YACHT will grace our shores in July and August (returning in September for the Parklife Festival), bringing AIH home for the ride. He'll press buttons. He'll dance. He'll make you smile. He'll make you dance. He'll win you over and soon the world will be at his command.
"I'm less interested in making money on tour and more interested in making friends and turning people on to what I'm doing. PINKY AND THE BRAIN STYLE!"
Librarian by day (at a school which rhymes with Scollingwood Scollege), comedian with a penchant for indie rock by night. Josh Earl talks geek
So for those of us that don't know, what exactly is it that you do, Josh Earl? I'm a comedian/musician. Some may say "musical comedian".
Some people find it hard to believe that as well as an all-singin', all-songwritin' comedian, you're also a librarian.
All right then, POP QUIZ!
What topics are contained within these call numbers of the Dewey Decimal System?* 728 – Buildings of some sort?
421 – Phonology
862 – Spanish Drama
643 – Household Appliances
667 – Cleaning and Colour Technology
Right, so you are a librarian… childhood dream realised? No, it wasn't until I was halfway through a teaching degree that I thought being a librarian would be a good job. And then The Long Blondes come out, make it all trendy and my plan is ruined!
And a typical day in the library would consist of…? I read Questionable Content, a webcomic whose main character works in a library, but I doubt that's really a true-to-life view of it all. A typical day would be trying to explain to kids that not all TV shows and movies are books: "Yes, I know Lord of the Rings was a movie and a book but Saw 2 isn't like that?"
In between this it would be spent trying to come up with amusing library signs to indicate that we are closed, such as "The Librizzle is Clossizled Todizzle".
NME Magazine has descibed the typical "emo" fashion sense to look like "dressing like a librarian… with an edge". Flattered, or does that description make you want to cut yourself? I still don't think that I'm emo, I just think that emos are trying to be like me.
Back to the whole "musical comedian" side of things, what came first; the comedy or the music? Music. I kind of just fell into comedy because people would laugh at lines in my songs and I thought "if I tried, I could make this a lot funnier".
So who were your musical idols and influences growing up? Evan Dando, Lou Barlow, Smudge, Pavement, Magnetic Fields, Billy Bragg, Belle and Sebastian. But my all time favourite artist is Jonathan Richman (Morrissey, however, is a very close second). I just love him, that first Modern Lovers album is so good, and he just does things on his terms. I like that about performers. And listening to his songs just makes me want to write. He is amazing!
Right, you're stuck on a deserted island with Morrissey. Who dies first? (That is assuming that Morrissey doesn't off himself first or your head doesn't explode due to the constant whining.) He would as he'd get skin cancer from ripping off his shirt about 45 minutes into it. I just heard that he went through three shirts in his recent Hollywood Bowl gig. I mean don't get me wrong, when I saw him I loved that he did that, but I think three is a bit much.
Okay, so who would win a breakdance fight between you and Laurence Leung (fellow Melbourne comedian and indie music nerd, had a show this year that revolved around finding a breakdancing "how-to" guide) ? I would easily, I can throw all kinds of shapes.
And finally, we usually finish off this column with a "When are you coming to Australia?" question. Um… so, uh… right. When are you going back to Tassie to visit your parents? Not sure really, I think I'm going to be doing a gig there in October, but they usually come to Melbourne and visit me.
(Damn, that question always bombs!)
* Josh would like to inform you that, no, he did not "cheat" on the Dewey numbers, and that it was "All off the top of my head. I'm like Rain Man."
Eric Paul has always had a penchant for writing offensive songs about sexuality. "I think The Chinese Stars lyrics are still potent with sexuality. I have just gotten better at disguising it," he said, over a hot cup of coffee. "See, you didn't even know that every song on Listen To Your Left Brain was about having sex in public places." Or that, given the chance, the energetic vocalist from The Chinese Stars would spend the night with Lil Kim. "Let's just say that I learned about sex at a very, very early age."
Before The Chinese Stars, there was Arab On Radar and Six Finger Satellite. "I was in a bad place personally while in Arab On Radar and I think the music and performances reflect that. While The Chinese Stars is just about writing songs and having a good time." Their name is a reference to a 1980's Japanese fad Shuriken (a traditional Japanese concealed weapon generally used for throwing, stabbing or slashing an enemy's arteries) and the effect it had on terrified parents. "We thought it had a nice ring to it."
"I think my favourite singer is probably either Tom Smith from Live In Shave In LA or Al Johnson from U.S. Maple." Every time Eric Paul climbs on stage a schizophrenic monster seems to engulf him. "It's really not a concept, its just kind of what happens when I get onstage. It's just a mix of nervous energy and anxiety."
The Chinese Stars latest offering, Listen To Your Left Brain was released on Three One G Records in April. It follows 2004's A Rare Sensation. The rest of the year will see the band touring, but any plans to come to Australia will have to be on hold for a while. "We are trying like hell! We just can't afford the plane ticket!"
San Diego's The Prayersmay have attracted “normal people” with their sunshine-drenched jangle-pop, but on the eve of theirGod Save The Prayers EP, Brandon Welchez discusses both the pleasures and challenges of musical departure
Comprised of members of cult darlings The Plot To Blow Up The Eiffel Tower, The Prayers aren't exactly the conventional notion of a side-project. After disbanding in late-2006, much to the dismay of their relentless fans, Plot.. frontman Brandon Welchez and drummer Brian Hill wasted no time exploring unlikely avenues for their now full-time musical venture. "When the time came to do a side project, it just seemed so much more fun and challenging to try to use our influences differently," justifies Brandon, and behold, employing the guitar stylings of Andrew Miller of Gasoline Please, within 6 months the God Save The Prayers EP was born.
"The Plot attracted a lot of misfits and weirdos and I thought that was beautiful because that's exactly what we were," recollects Brandon.
An extraordinarily vast change in The Prayers fanbase now sees "straight-laced people and co-workers" attend their gigs.
You see, where The Plot To Blow Up The Eiffel Tower engaged in experimental garage and psychotic freak-punk with filthier-than-thou bass, The Prayers meddle in the type of 60s sunshine-pop which wouldn't disappoint a Belle & Sebastian fan.
Such a switch, though, doesn't come without its obvious difficulties. "Writing pop songs that aren't horrid is actually much harder than writing experimental music. It took us a long time to find our footing."
Yet with such iconic predecessors as The Beatles and Syd Barrett being obvious points of comparison, and current indie heavyweights like The Shins and The Flaming Lips claiming psychedelic pop for the present, how do The Prayers approach the difficult task of embracing influence without sounding like a cover band?
"I don't think it'd be possible to sound like one band," explains Brandon, "providing you're smart about how you apply your influence. Obviously some of our songs wear our influences heavier than others, but we try really hard to not sound like anyone else." Try they might, but there's no denying the surf-rock innocence of "USA" or "Loose Lips", in which The Stone Roses meet The Las and have adorable bastard children together.
And while Brandon asserts that "The Plot were all fans of the music The Prayers are influenced by", The Prayers' harmony-drenched acoustic ditties are about as much of a musical departure from The Plot To Blow Up The Eiffel Tower as Radiohead's infamous leap into Kid A.
With the release of the God Save The Prayers EP - a gorgeous exploration of innocence and simplicity à la Brian Wilson – under their belts, The Prayers need only the right distributor to release the two albums they have written and waiting. And once indie and pop fans alike embrace the full atmospheric effect of their harmonic sunshine-pop, it's really only a matter of time before the labels come knocking.
The floor in York's Fibbers is sticky even though the only people in the venue are the band and the bar staff. It's suitably rock and roll for Metro Riots, the self-styled “marines of rock”, who are about to take to the stage on this latest stop in their album launch tour.
They've seen a lot of stages in the last year, many of them in front of a crowd of thousands, as they've traveled Europe in support of Dirty Pretty Things, The Charlatans, and most recently Juliette and the Licks.
Tonight, Metro Riots will rock out as if they are in front of a crowd of 2000 instead of the 25 who haven't retired to the pub to watch the UEFA Cup final. They don't mind—during the last year of touring they've played to so many different crowds they are now comfortable with the flip flop between the two kinds. They own the
stage either way, incredibly tight performers, all four of them electrifying as they tear through their southern-rock-inspired heavy blues songs. The sparse crowd cheers and claps after each one, a common response to this band.
Besides the gigs in the UK and Europe, Metro Riots also performed at South by Southwest festival in Texas earlier this year. It was a success for the band; Metro Riots sound a bit like they're refugees from a 1970s blues bar that's just been crashed by Led Zeppelin. Drummer Ollie Parker describes the four black-clad Londoners as "looking like drowned rats in the Texas sun."
Nevertheless, it was a
good experience, as guitarist Danny Fury smiles, describing the landscape, and bassist Sammy Ray adds 'and they [the American crowd] really went for it.'
But all this touring was without any kind of product to sell. Their last single came out a year ago. They were getting regular gigs and touring nearly constantly, but what they really needed was an album.
Taking a break from the touring, they spent time in studios in London and Rockfield in Wales over Christmas and the first few weeks of January, they laid down tracks from part of their live set as well as new songs written in the back of their 1982 St John's ambulance - straight out of Jeepers Creepers - while touring Germany. With the help of producer Pedro [Ferrera] they recorded an album that has a much smoother sound than what they produce on stage when performing live. "We deliberately made it different than our live sound," Danny Fury explains, as lead singer Damo nods. He grins when he adds, "we want to sound more like the White Stripes than the Eagles." Fair enough.
We talk a bit more about their plans - more touring, unsurprisingly. Having played the Great Escape festival in Brighton, they are in talks with a number of "very big bands" for yet more support slots. I press for names, but Damo just grins at me and tells me we'll have to wait and see. Meanwhile, they're continuing to write, already looking to the second album, while the first is barely cool on the shelves of HMV. "We just want to impress ourselves," Danny says, so sincere I have no choice but to believe him. Beside me, Damo slides his sunglasses up onto the top of his head and tells me, just as emphatically, "I would rather shoot myself in the face than be a 'run of the mill' band."
Standing in front of the stage later that night, watching all four of them playing like they're on stage at Brixton, or maybe even Wembley, I think probably the last thing they need to worry about is being 'run of the mill.'
The Clientele have come through with another piece of work displaying some pure indie-pop beauty. Their latest album God Save The Clientele has got some audiences “disco dancing”, whilst they retain its a “pop record through and through”
The London-based band has changed over the years,
primarily consisting of Alasdair Maclean, James
Hornsey, later Mark Keen, and most recently Mel Draisey who brings violin, keyboards, percussion and
backing vocals to the band.
Upon asking Alasdair how this changed things after
bringing Mel to the band, he replied "She embellishes
and adds to the melodies, so I can play the guitar
more rhythmically, rather than playing all the hooks
myself. I think that definitely affected how the new songs were written, there's way more free-ness and
groove in terms of rhythm."
The band began at age 16 for Alasdair, where during a
history lesson at school he had sat next to James
Hornsey who had written the band "Felt" on his pencil
case. Through their mutual love of bands they began
creating music together, but "we didn't really take it
seriously until 1997 when a London record company
offered us a 7", as well as a US tour. So we got Mark
on drums cos all our other drummers were flakes."
With
a background in classical guitar he learnt at a young
age and then moving on to jazz guitar, the music to
follow was going to be an interesting combination of
styles and techniques.
God Save The Clientele being their third album to
date, has a more distinct and well-rounded sound to
their previous work, Alasdair explains what
distinguishes this from their previous albums, "It's
got a more sort of crystalline production and upbeat,
happier songs. As we were recording in Nashville, we
added some pedal steel,to try and get that lonesome
aching country thing going on". And its true the
introduction of some pedal steel here and there makes
it feel like you can hear a bit of Nashville in the
background.
Growing up, bands that influenced most heavily on Alasdair growing up were: The 13th Floor Elevators, Felt, Galaxie 500 and The Beatles. Of which you can hear bits and pieces of them put back together again in their music as a unique new sound.
Alasdair commented that the real basis to the bands overall sound is "(that) we have a concentration on creating a world through sound, an atmosphere that wraps itself around you and transports you away from reality. We also like to keep the instrumentation pretty sparse
and minimal, let the arrangements breathe. I guess there's a definite use of reverb to create depth too."
With the current tour playing out well for the band, Alasdair admitting that the "audiences have already got definite favourites," he also described their most bizarre show they have performed was," in a little Basque village up in the mountains called Elorrio, we were asked to play there, and only upon arriving did we realise it was for the 350th anniversary of the town. So we played, next to a huge cathedral, which was all decked out in the Conquistadors' gold, to an audience of 3 year olds and grannies who were just totally bemused by our music. It was extremely uncomfortable and extremely funny at the same time."
Regardless of location, whether its a tiny club or beside a giant cathedral in the mountains, The Clientele will be putting on an amazingly beautiful show.
Currently receiving incredible reviews wherever you turn, on the release of their third album, Tio Bitar, Dungen“blend different moods” to create their “special” psychedelic sounds.
Pronounced "Doon-yen", the band's name means a grove or clump of trees in Swedish, as well as referring to a place near to where frontman Gustav Ejstes was born, Dungen has become quite well known over the past few years despite the fact that the last two albums are sung entirely in Swedish. The band's current line-up also includes Reine Fiske, Mattias Gustavsson and Fredrick Bjorling.
Acclaimed for creating sounds reminiscent of the past but also displaying qualities heard in much current music, lead guitarist Reine Fiske describes how they bridge the wide gap between the old and the new. "Usually there is no thinking in what a song should or shouldn't be. Though Gustav often has a very clear vision in his mind about sounds and how the actual interaction between the instruments should be for a song. Since we listen to a lot of different stuff that we're influenced by, they all just mix together. And yes, even though I might say that I also listen to
modern music, our influences from the old days probably puts a pretty direct colour onto the production of many of the songs."
Fiske says that creating Tio Bitar "was hard work. We were pretty worn out actually, but I think a lot the energy that comes across the album
comes from the fact that we've been playing so much together." The journey that led to the completion of Tio Bitar Fiske describes as "rewarding, even though it's been one of the most difficult times of my life so far."
Growing up, Fiske explains that what influenced him the most, musically, were his mother's home-made 1960s mix-tapes, as well as the development of an understanding of music through watching his mother and stepfather sing. "I used to think it was magical, because I understood the sentimental values of a song and the force behind that. I started to listen to The Shadows when I was about 14-15. I thought that was cooler than, say, Iron Maiden, but I knew that they had listened to them as well… My uncle got me into a lot of the more progressive rock that sucked me in totally. Then I started to play with some older guys until I met Stefan Dimle that I formed Landberk with. He got me into the stuff that I'm still into basically, lots of Swedish and Scandinavian obscure records from the early 70s."
To properly describe the Dungen sound is quite difficult without putting them into undesired categories that don't quite do them justice, such as retro or prog rock.
After asking Fiske what the true description of their sound is he answered, "It's hard, of course. The blend between the different moods is what makes it special perhaps. Gustav has a very dark side to him… but there is also a bright light. I think the sound of Dungen is best heard on "En gang i ar kom det en tar", the sort of "coda" on Tio Bitar. I think what we are playing there is our lives basically. Our lives in Dungen, outside Dungen, within Dungen, but especially after Dungen. I felt like it was the funeral march of Gustav's and my ambitions about music as a whole when I started to realise what he was turning it into on the album – I insisted that it should end up on the album. Now I realise it was a phase that we had to go through, like crossing a line of some sort. I don't know where we went through, or where the whole thing is going…"
Hopefully next year the band will commence touring, as at the moment "everyone needs to do other things, to straighten things out a little bit. The "success" with the Dungen-project just got a bit out of hand and turned into something that was hard to handle mentally for some of us, so there is definitely time off right now. Gustav has moved back home to the south of Sweden again but he has already started to make some new songs…"
A couple of years ago in Adelaide a few guys got together to work on a “side-project” as a “holiday away from other bands”, little did they know that this side-project was going to become what we now know as the garage/punk rock act: Bit By Bats
The band is currently touring their new album Go Go
Go, where the band has produced a piece of work that
shows a new side to their original sound as bass
player Peter Gravestock explains. "We knew we didn't
want to limit ourselves by other people's perceptions
of our sound. So we didn't try to just re-create our
live sound – which is always changing anyway because
we usually have to borrow different equipment in
different states. We just used the studio as a blank
canvas. We also knew that we wanted the album to have
a flow. So that the progression from one song to the
next felt as natural as possible without the songs
actually overlapping."
Go Go Go also features guest vocals from Adalita of
Magic Dirt which came about "because Dean Dirt was our
producer it was fairly easy for him to call Adalita
and see if she was free to come in and record. Which
was great. A real blessing for the album. Her vocals
added an extra-dimension to the tracks she worked on."
As well as including other musicians on the new album,
it also features new sounds from some unexpected
experimental instruments. Such as on the track "Apartment" an air mattress was used, "I used the air
mattress to make an atmospheric sound - kind of like
the wind blowing – during the bass solo of Apartment.
You can barely hear it, but that's the point. It
follows a film editing technique of using room-sound
to make the audio match the vision and everything seem
as naturalistic as possible. Without the air-mattress
the bass was sounding a bit isolated."
As far as defining the sound of the band described as "organised chaos", its also chaos that you can dance to, "We've tried to keep it organic and not put any rules on it, but invariably the band members' different personalities affect what they play and that results in a "sound". It is art by committee."
After listening to some of their new tracks it was apparent that they sounded very close to that of The Cure, and after inquiring to who indeed were the bands influences as well as explaining that Robert Smith is my hero, and was I taking things a bit too far by making a small doll of the man, he responded, "Ha ha! Um. The Doors, The Smiths, The Cure, The Cramps, The Beasts of Bourbon… But they we'ren't influential enough for me to make effigies of them…"
Over touring for the last couple of years around Australia to many enthusiastic crowds I was interested to find out which show they have played was the strangest of them all, and that particular gig happened to be a show in Nowra at "a steakhouse with Youth Group, the PA never arrived and so Henry the mixer had to gaffer tape a karaoke mic to a cymbal stand and we used the food service intercom as the PA. They announced meals between sets, "Number 46, your chips are ready."
Tilly and the Wall are clearly happy with their lot in life. Their email responses are peppered with phrases ending in exclamation marks and they don't seem to have a single bad thing to say about.. well, anything, really.
Formed in 2001, Tilly and the Wall make cute indie pop music with a difference. There's tapdancing, for one; a pretty major difference in anyone's terms. "It was Jamie's idea to tap dance in Tilly. We had no drummer and needed that sweet rhythm and man does she ever have it," the band explains. "When we play a show Jamie has an elaborate system of microphones to go along with a custom built tap platform. She is mic-ed up just as good as a drum kit so it works much in the same way in a live situation!"
Asked about their history, the band tell a story about how "three Nebraskan girls met two Georgian boys and fell in love and started writing songs about it". Adorably referring to themselves in the third person, they say "They named their love child Tilly and the Wall. This happened in a city named Omaha where friends supported their new songs and encouraged they write more and record them and play shows everywhere in the world!"
The group are clearly all very close friends. Two members, tapdancer Jamie and guitarist Derek Pressnall, even got married in mid-2006. The Tillies have a brilliantly wide-eyed exuberance for the world around them that is sorely missing from so much music these days. Recently (supposedly) inspired by "Michael Jackson's Thriller and.. Ethiopique records", their music is perky and excitable, celebrating life, best friends and new loves. The band are even self-proclaimed sister bands with Of Montreal and Cansei de Ser Sexy. "There are just people you meet out there that feel like soulmates," they muse by way of explanation. "In these cases it was like six people or so at a time. They are our soulmate bands. We are always connected to them in some spiritual way. They are in our hearts every day."
Tilly and the Wall's debut album, Wild Like Children, was the first release on fellow Omaha scene fixture Conor Oberst's Team Love label. The band remain based in Omaha to this day, and unlike some of their contemporaries, seem unlikely to move any time soon: "The Omaha music community is incredibly supportive reguardless of style or genre. Everyone comes out to cheer us on just as we do for them. It's a really beautiful thing! We are still based here and always will be. God bless Omaha!!!"
The band's second album, Bottom of Barrels, while already familiar to online music fans due to its 2006 American release, has only just been released here in Australia, presumably to coincide with their forthcoming Splendour in the Grass appearance and sideshows. The band practically explode in excitement when asked if they're looking forward to coming to Australia. "Are you kidding!!!???" They exclaim. "We are freaking out about coming to play in Australia! It's a dream come true. I personally just can't wait to see the landscapes and native plants and animals!"
What, not our enthusiastic indie music fans? Oh well, maybe next time.
Tilly and the Wall play at Splendour in the Grass, Byron Bay, on August 4, and sideshows throughout Australia and New Zealand. See our Pimp section for more details.
My love for The Boggs' Forts is like a mother's love for her newborn child. While you can gently slot it - the album, not the newborn child - under the garage-rock-disco type pigeonhole that seems to be overflowing lately, it carries its own birthmarks and individual features. You could say that they're what you would get if The Rapture and the Futureheads had a love child. You could also say that they make you want to bounce up and down repeatedly time and time again, like a baby in a Bouncer.
The birthing process started on (vocalist/guitarist/bassist/keyboardist) Jason Friedman's kitchen floor in Berlin. They then went on to give birth to their healthy, glowing third album at Gigantic Studios in New York in late 2006. It fuses together post-folk, garage-punk, folk, punk, blues and disco to come up with something unique and sonically astounding.
If this is what is to come in the new-era of bands that want to sound like Gang of Four crossed with Architecture In Helsinki, then bring on the love-making post haste!
Just as new rave threatens to claim indie with the power of the glo, Wakefield's Jarman brothers are back to reclaim guitar rock for 2007 with their third, and most accomplished LP.
Undermining stadium-indie types who "impress our bovine public" by "being generic" ("Our Bovine Public"), The Cribs are wrathful and frustrated, and in Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever, they present a selection of tracks which are less "take drugs, don't sleep" and more "don't believe all you read on computer screens" ("Shoot the Poets"), angst-ridden explorations of modern life.
Gone is the loutish chanting and NME Award -induced concussions of 2005's The New Fellas, and what instead emerges is a Ryan Jarman who writes with the pensive contemplation of a rock star with intentions and - as "Be Safe" shows, featuring Sonic Youth 's Lee Ranaldo - social commentary worthy of a Bob Dylan credit.
Unlike the fists-in-the-air triumph of Oasis' "Rock n Roll Star," "I've Tried Everything" is a melancholic lament on northern life, leaving Wakefield victim to a fusillade of discontent and unfulfillment.
This is not to say that the album doesn't rock. Tracks like "Ancient History", which hints at the percussive stylings of Interpol, and the howling Nick Zinner guitar of "My Life Flashed Before My Eyes" ensure that these meditations deserve their fair share of pogoing too.
Opener "Intro", as it modestly suggests, propels us immediately into the kind of LSD-fuelled psychedelic journey which for four albums now has been at the heart of Dungen. Yet what is most immediately striking about this lush and pulsating freakout is the thought that this myriad of instruments are all being played – in majority - by one man, the uber-talented Gustav Ejstes.
Lo-fi acid jazz beats creep into "Familj", yet even as Ejstes' vocals inch in, his native Swedish tongue ensures that we are taken away by the intricate instrumentation and wafting melodies he has so meticulously crafted, incredibly enough, all on his very lonesome.
The beats which often breakdown marathon-sessions of psychedelia are very much inspired by the hip hop Ejstes claims to hold so close to heart, albeit one laced with traditional Swedish-folk flute and wailing Hendrix riffage that shrieks with the horror of a bad acid trip.
"Gör Det Nu," with Who -esque harmonies and adrenaline-fuelled drums worthy of Keith Moon himself, shows that Ejstes' talent lies in his ability to create music which teeters on, yet never ventures into, relentless instrumental drawl.
Obligatory tambourine introduces "C Visar Vägen," a traditional folk tune in which Ejstes' flute and fiddle skills are illustriously showcased, yet it's with "Så Blev Det Bestämt" that Ejstes' rich palate of orchestration reaches it's euphoric peak.
"Mon Amour" is a rumbling, 8-minute epic that not so much begs for illicit accompaniment, as acts as one, and when it's all over, we can crawl into bed and thank Dungen for making winter hibernation just a little more majestic.
In primary school we called this kid crazy because he couldn't see those hidden Magic Eye images no matter how long he stared or how cross-eyed he went. Well paint me green and let me go crazy on you, because no length of time or number of listens to Sydney four-piece Expatriate's anticipated debut LP In The Midst Of This will make me see what the fuss is all about.
First track "Get Out, Give In" is a catchy rock'n'roller sounding a bit like Jet and a lot like a Sports Tonight montage. It's a fake-out though, and on the second song Expatriate roll out their supposed sound-proper with Triple J favourite "Crazy". It's a familiar proposition: bright guitar, heady 80's synth, driving eighth-note bassline, layered wall-of-sound production and chorus-a-minute song structure. Yes, they do it well, but why labour that point for the next seven indistinguishable tracks?
Further on comes the brow furrow-inducing acoustic interlude "You Were There". Skip it and you'll arrive at the standouts, lumped together in a four song seam of brilliance. "Only Wanna Love Ya", "Deadman", "Blackbird" and "Times Like These" are Expatriate showing us that we should keep an ear out in the future.
In The Midst Of This is like a half-cooked roast chicken. The cooked bits are delicious indeed but it's just not right to serve … yet.
To think that Panther is a one-man band is an extraordinary feat in its own. With all the instruments blended together, you could've sworn that there was more than one person. Definitely at least two people, surely. But nope, Charlie is Panther and Panther is Charlie. Charlie Salas-Humara, that is.
Panther is known for his unpredictable and energetic solo performances tainted with throbbing bass, minimalistic hooks and jittery dance routines. Secret Lawns transcends that. If your album collection revolves around pop, R&B, free jazz and punk, then you'll find something you'll love right here. At times Charlie channels Prince, metamorphisising into the "Purple Rain" velvet-suit wearing singer on "How Does It Feel?", the third song on the album.
If you're one of those people who like to class bands under certain genres, you know like, classing Green Day as punk, then you'll think again after listening to Secret Lawns. This album eliminates boundaries and makes you think that a world without social and societal stature is possible.
While Panther is just Charlie, there are the occasional guest appearances from his mates in Yacht, White Rainbow, Plants, Point Line Plane and E*Rock. Get ready to rub up against the furniture to this one, as Panther purrs into your ear.
Patrick Wolf is the greatest thing to happen to music. Picking up the pieces that Kate Bush and Bjork left behind them as they settled into domesticity, Wolf is a musical troubadour whose music is the product of his background in performance art and classical composition.
His debut Lycanthropy was a cacophony of beats and howls, while his sophomore Wind In The Wires was a dark and beautiful Gothic masterpiece. He's stepped out of his own self-serious shadow on The Magic Position, crafting a joyous pop record. Although there are thoughtful moments – the sombre "Augustine" and the mournful "Magpie", which features Marianne Faithfull's ragged vocals – Wolf wants to have fun. First single "Accident & Emergency" is a dance floor triumph, densely packed with beats, bass and sirens, and "
Get Lost" is a love song channelling Architecture In Helsinki. The title track is the true gem, though, as Wolf walks us up an ascending glockenspiel and surrounds us with children's choirs and hand claps.
Singing of love and joy in his deep baritone, Wolf invites us to enjoy ourselves with him, while never sacrificing his mature and intricate production. Album of the year? More like album of the decade.
Throughout the lengthy tenure of Ryan Adams' solo career, his strongest consistency hasn't been his prolific capability, but rather his unapologetic delivery. Where he's historically lacked in refined sophistication, he's more than compensated for it by his earnestness; he may throw a quick succession of albums out there for public consumption, but there's never been an agenda behind them.
Easy Tiger comes to us as a work of delicate paradox; the serene melancholy of "Oh My God, Whatever, Etc." is in direct contrast to the nonchalance suggested by its title. The point at which it rocks out the most ("Halloweenhead") is punctuated by a tongue-in-cheek declaration of "guitar solo!" - as if Ryan is reminding us yet again that he could be serious, but he's just kidding around. Still, the destitute, resigned repetition in "Off Broadway" and the transparent introspection of "Rip Off" have never felt more straightforward. "Tears of Gold" recalls and refines the twangier moments of Jacksonville City Nights , and the flourish of the haunting, Heartbreaker-esque harmonica in "I Taught Myself How to Grow Old" brings the album to a close with hollow, perfected despair.
Collectively there's less revelation in these songs than there is unprecedented planning; they're undeniably full of what Ryan does best: vehemence without concession. The assembly, however, seems more constructed than ever before, with the production very much polished and packaged, delivered neatly to expectant ears. Unlike its predecessors, Easy Tiger is the Ryan Adams album deliberately designed to win you over. Somehow, in spite of this calculated fact, it does.
Presenting the second release from Melbourne outfit Screenings, the first peep we've heard from them since 2005's Phobia Of Sharks. "Oh Pity Me"
is agreeable enough, and instrumental track "Dark Pete" is a pleasant opener for the record.
Unfortunately, there is nothing incredible about the album. Your foot might tap along to the beat as you hear the songs, you might even be able to recognise the lead single off the album "Sunshine Pills" if you heard it on the radio often enough, but after a while, the tracks all seem to sound the same, with an unfinished quality about them. That being said, if you're into raw and unpolished sounds, it may be worth a listen.
You have to be in a certain mood to listen to Yacht 's I Believe In You, Your Magic Is Real. What mood exactly that is, I have no idea. It fills you with warmth and love, but is erratic at the same time. Even on the coldest of days, the warmth isn't enough to warm you completely.
Yacht is the full-time project for The Blow 's Jona Bechtolt. While The Blow are arguably the more popular choice, Yacht is definitely the most experimental of the two. It's a win/win situation and you wouldn't expect anything less from someone who lives and breathes music.
The more accessible of tracks, like "We're Always Waiting", are the ones that fill you with warmth and make you want to dance around the place. They hardly feature any erratic beats and bops found elsewhere on the album, and are a complete joy to listen to.
Put this on at about 3 or 4am on a weekend, straight after you've played some Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, and the whole room will erupt into a sea of wannabe aerobic instructors.
Magical, alluring and promiscuous. Jona, we believe in you, your magic is real!
Saturday 23rd of June, 2007
The Corner Hotel, Melbourne
Red Riders & Dappled Cities - November Rain
Photo by Olivia Desianti
Video by Michelle Ilosfai
The Australian indie scene has of late experienced a sonic boom, the kind of boom that is, which has produced globally-recognised local exports of the choicest indie this country has to offer. So when two of Sydney's finest, bliss-pop geniuses Dappled Cities Fly and the "new-nautical" Red Riders united to bring the Break Your Necks tour to Melbourne's legendary Corner Hotel, a good time seemed, well, inevitable really.
Openers Dances With Voices may sound so much like New Order that if you squint hard enough the Corner magically morphs into the Hacienda, but the incredible accuracy with which these Melbournians deliver their electro-pop rivals such well-established peers as Cut Copy.
As the burgeoning crowd fills the venue, an inaugural coin toss decides the fate of the evening's proceedings, and ever so inevitably, Red Riders are made headliners.
Yet not before Dappled Cities Fly drench the room in the kind of ethereal pop that lends their set the atmosphere of a children's birthday party, only with better tunes. Their uplifting jangle-pop is all the more splendid thanks to the ever-entertaining Tim Derricourt, who swoons his way through each blissfully harmonic track with the charisma of an indie deity, yet there's a little Pete 'n Carl interplay going on here, as Dave Rennick commands equal attention by – literally - commanding the audience to respond.
"Vision Bell" gives a nod to The Sleepy Jackson, yet coupled with "Granddance", we could be at a Flaming Lips gig, if only Tim were to ride the crowd in clear plastic bubble. But this multi-layered mastery is just so incredible that comparisons seem, well, odious.
The climatic coupling of the harmony-ladden "Fire Fire Fire" and the ever-witty "Holy Chord" ensure Dappled Cities Fly receive the response they deserve, despite the fact that I'm about the only person in the room who doesn't want this to end.
Two years of ceaseless gigging means Red Riders have built up such a dedicated fanbase, that any show is a sure-fire blast of jerky guitar-pop with the kind of crowd reception that other bands only dream of.
Tonight Red Riders may be in incredibly tight form, but not without the support of their barrage of loyal fans, who together with the band create such an intense atmosphere that their stomping new-wave seems to only blossom in its wake.
The angular post-punk of "Scream" showcases the unfaltering talent of each and every member of the band, who together with a steadfast stage presence seem to have taken somewhat of a heroic status tonight, within the Corner's very four walls.
"My Love Is Stronger Than Your Love", with its atmospheric industrial doom and wailing guitars, is undeniably their best track, and as that unmistakable bass line of "Slide In Next To Me" casts its filthy eye over the now rapturous crowd, it's ardently clear who everyone is really here for. It's been too long since an all-Australian indie line-up has garnered such a response. Absence does, apparently, make the heart grow fonder.
As both bands stumble on stage for a joint, nay blindingly bladdered rendition of Guns N' Roses' "November Rain", the kind of karaoke that indie dreams are made of, what's most apparent is the sincere comradeship among these Sydney compatriots, who appear to love, more than anything else, being on stage. And the utter chaos which ensues sees wine bottles fly, Tim strut around the stage pulling shapes and, er, playing guitar with his teeth, and ten men embrace their inner hair-metal rocker to share the role of a screeching Axl Rose. Well good, then.
Friday 8th of June, 2007
Roxanne's Parlour, Melbourne
Bit by Bats are a great band, in 'it' for all the right reasons, whilst a vast majority of bands in Melbourne posses some of the most fantastic and expensive equipment but don't do anything with it, Bit by Bats take their average guitars and amps and make some marvellous melodious music with it. No pretension, no fashionable prancing or posturing, just talent, tunes and exuberance.
The music ticks all the right boxes too, solid rumbling bass lines and drumming countered with fuzzy guitar lines and Owen's unique fantastic barking vocal delivery, there's even some Theremin thrown in for good measure, even if it's barely audible most of the time.
The crowd at Roxanne's are appreciative but not up for dancing, the holiday weekend doesn't seem to have encouraged that many partygoers out and those here are of the fashionable ilk that wouldn't do it anyway. Bit by Bats don't mind though, they're doing it because they love music and love playing their music, everything else is a bonus.
Friday 26th of May, 2007
East Brunswick Club, Melbourne
Operator Please tick all the right boxes, they're young, attractive and every member falls into one of several 'kooky kid' categories, something to appeal to everyone, they also appear to write very catchy songs. All of which begs the question if the band are manufactured, or at least some sort of stage school band. Their 'shtick' is very cutesy, toying with that confusing late teens state of mind where you still want sweets and concession fare on the bus, but you also want alcohol, parties and sex. The band's biography is very vague and convenient, with members just sort of coming together, new recruit Stephanie on Violin talks of getting 'The Call' to join the band, and then after some 'DIY promotion' and a trip to New York City (which of course every teenager can afford!) the band sign to EMI… Hmm, Is the smell of a Rat in the air? Or the smell of Big Management bucks? Probably, but for some reason and for once, it's hard to care because Operator Please are so much damn fun!
For such a Buzz band The East Brunswick club is not particularly busy, possibly due to being over 18, and it looks like a few minors still managed to blag and bluff their way in. The night opens with Little Red, enough has been mentioned of them elsewhere, next are Treetops, a band who apparently have quite a varied and chequered History, despite possessing an amazing and youthful drummer the rest of the band seem rather tired and lacking, both supports a peculiar choice for the pure slice of saccharin soaked Pop rock to follow. These kids know how to play, the drums may be slightly weak but Timmy's only got little arms, so forgive him for now, Ashley's bass rumbles despite never seeing his face beneath an ample fringe, Sarah's keyboard bloops and fizzes in the modern way, and as well as producing a fine sound from her Rickenbacker / Vox combo, Amandah possesses a powerful and passionate voice, with range and depth. The songs are generally bouncy, upbeat and light in content, songs to scream along and dance to, not change the world with, perhaps 'Get What You Want' showing some hints of song writing maturity bubbling under the surface. Any self-respecting street press reading music fan just shouldn't like Operator Please, they smack of contrivance, of music career by numbers, of a fashionable gimmick. However with their charm, energetic stage show, apparent talent and irritatingly catchy tunes, the band will slowly be working their way on to many serious muso's list of guilty pleasures.
See these guys playing their last Australian shows before they disappear over to Europe for the foreseeable future. It just won't be the same without you, AiH.
July 27 - Manning Bar, Sydney July 28 - Cloud City Warehouse, Melbourne
It's insane to think that Maximo Park continue to play venues this tiny. Catch them while they still are, on their second Australian tour, and just be careful not to get scissor-kicked in the face.
August 14 - The Zoo, Brisbane August 15 - Metro Theatre, Sydney August 17 - Prince of Wales, Melbourne August 18 - Fowlers, Adelaide August 19 - Capitol, Perth
There's tap dancing. Surely that's more than enough of an explanation as to why you should go see these guys?
August 2 - Powerhouse Theatre, Brisbane August 4 - Splendour in the Grass, Byron Bay August 5 - The Toff, Melbourne August 6 - The Toff, Melbourne August 7 - Annandale Hotel, Sydney August 9 - Kings Arms Tavern, Auckland
What with the first single off the album being called "Australia", we have high hopes for The Shins' second tour in as many years.
July 31 - Civic Hall, Christchurch August 1 - The Powerstation, Auckland August 3 - Metro City, Perth August 4 - Thebarton Theatre, Adelaide August 5 - Splendour in the Grass, Byron Bay August 7 - The Metro, Melbourne August 8 - The Metro, Melbourne August 9 - Enmore Theatre, Sydney August 10 - Enmore Theatre, Sydney
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Then we want you!
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