So, I'm not dead...

...just lazy. And slightly apathetic.

Yeh.

Since i've been away, the right honourable Sufjan Stevens has released what may prove to be my favourite album of the year 'The Age of Adz' (pronounced Odz, apparently) is nothing short of brilliant, and gets better with every listen.  Especially 'Impossible Soul' the 25 minute closing track, the word epic doesn't even begin to describe it, and of course there was the "ep" 'All Delighted People' (over an hour long, not an ep Suffy) which is well worth investing in via the man's bandcamp (where you can also stream '...Adz') page if you haven't already.  Only a couple of quid too.

Other stuff engaging my ears recently, has included Janelle Monae, whose 'ArchAndroid' (concept - see wikipedia's description after the jump) album, is eclectic to say the least, taking in Funk, Soul, RnB, Folk and Grindcore, it's an absolute blast, and in 'Tightrope' has the best James Brown song James Brown didn't record, as you can see below.

And Finally Warpaint, the LA quartet have been together around 6 years and whose début LP 'The Fool' is due out this Monday, it's all kinds of ace, and has just the right amount of scuzz and weirdness for me, you can stream it at HypeMachine until it's release, and here's a little freebie courtesy of Rough Trade Records, in the shape of lead single 'Undertow'.
Before you ask, it reminds of of 'Polly' by Nirvana

Apologies for how crap this post looks! I'm not clever enough to change the size of the video!

"a tattoo of a flower on a broken wrist" Iron & Wine, Howard Assembly Rooms, Leeds 12.9.10

It’s only in the past month or two that I’ve really dived into Iron & Wine’s (or Sam Beam, as his mum knows him) back catalogue, having purchased the rather wonderful and eclectic ‘The Shepherd’s Dog’ last year, I noticed that he was playing a couple of dates in the UK and thought some further investigation was called for. In those two months, two EP’s, two albums and one two disc collection of B-Sides, Demos etc. have been purchased (all though eBay, still with change from a tenner!). Listening through each of the records, there certainly is a notable progression, an increase in fidelity from ‘The Creek Drank The Cradle’ to ‘Our Endless Numbered Days’, the introduction of a full band set up from that to ‘Woman King’ and ‘In The Reins’ (the latter being a split with Calexico) EP’s, then the expansion of that sound on ‘The Shepherds Dog’.

The set drew largely from ‘…Endless…’ and ‘…Dog’ a virtually a capella ‘Flightless Bird, American Mouth’, and a plaintive ‘Each Coming Night’ (opening and closing the set, respectively) left me somewhat dumbfounded, as did the 9 minute epic that is ‘The Trapeze Swinger’.


Iron & Wine - The Trapeze Swinger

Unfortunately, it’s not yet possible to judge the progression from ‘...Dog’ to any of the new material from the forthcoming ‘Kiss Each Other Clean’, as the current set up is incredibly stripped back; an acoustic guitar, and accompaniment from, by turns, piano, accordion and some superb slide guitar. During one of the three new songs that is aired, Beam forgets the lyrics (and the title), as he does during ‘Love Song of the Buzzard’ which does, as his says himself “have a lot of words in it…” these are the only points during a set which flies by, where he falters, and even then, it’s rather endearing. Hopefully he’ll come back around early next year, when ‘Kiss Each Other Clean’ is released, and if he does, I’ll be there.

Tremendous!

On a more personal note, it was nice to finally go to The Grand in Leeds, which Howard Assembly Rooms is part of, we had planned to go and see The Mighty Boosh there on 8th December 2008, but were sadly, otherwise engaged.

" Are they American Pants?" Megafaun & Caitlin Rose, The Band Room, Farndale 29.8.10

Megafaun at the Band Room. Picture courtesy of the band's tumblr page

In the months since tickets were bought (largely on the insistence of the Mrs) for this, I had become less and less bothered by my impending third visit to the band room (and the second to see Megafaun there), largely due to the fact that, as good as Megafaun’s ‘Gather, Form and Fly’ is, it just doesn’t pull me in, it’s not a record I’ve been back to very often since I first happened across it last year. But then, to my surprise it was announced that a certain Caitlin Rose would, for one night only, be playing with them, which made me very bothered about it indeed.


Her (drummerless) band’s set draws chiefly from her debut LP ‘Own Side Now’. , ‘For the Rabbits’, ‘Spare Me’ and the title track shining particularly brightly. At the tender age of 23, the fact that she’s already penned songs as well crafted as these suggests she could be capable of breaking through, perhaps not into the mainstream, but certainly to a much larger audience than tonight’s.

I had clearly forgotten just how much I had enjoyed seeing Megafaun here back in December, and once again, they did not disappoint. Addressing the crowd like old friends, and clearly feeling at home, their set was comparatively lacking in the segues of ‘Gather, Form & Fly’ and the last time they played here. ‘The Longest Day’ had me, once again, on the brink of tears, and, as it did 9 months ago ‘Worried Mind’ provokes a mass sing-along. And then another, as the band come back on stage for their encore, the crowd sings refrain back at them, and you can tell, you can just tell, they’ll be back here again soon.

"...it's biological..." The Low Anthem, Pocklington Arts Centre 27.8.10

Mountain Man, tonight’s support, are a female three piece from disparate corners of the States, all of which, we’re assured are (adopts barely audible voice) “really nice places, yeh”. From the moment they take the stage, approach the three mics and join hands, it is clear that I am not going to enjoy this. Technically, their a capella folk songs are very good, but they’re just a little too fey, a bit too folksy for my tastes, a fact which only becomes clearer by the fact that one of their songs features the line “two fair maidens”. Really?

The Low Anthem’s second album, last year’s magnificently titled ‘Oh My God. Charlie Darwin.’ is at times rather disjointed, moving from americana to blues to folk, live, that variety is still present but seems somehow more coherent. Part of what first attracted me to The Low Anthem was how atmospheric their recent work is, and seeing just how that was done, particularly the use of a singing saw, is fascinating. According to a press release, a total of 27 instruments were used on ‘OMGCD’, and many of them grace the rather small Pocklington Arts Centre stage, it becomes, at times, rather hard to keep track of what’s going on, instruments are swapped, and swapped again, the stage becomes a veritable log jam.

Before launching into ‘This Goddamn House’ from 2007’s ‘What the Crow Brings’, Ben Knox Miller makes a rather bizarre request, that someone phone their neighbours mobile, and put both on speaker phone, then give them to him (slightly convoluted way to steal someone’s phone?), he then whistled into the mic, moving the phones about, a strange, slightly ethereal cricket-like chirping/sound of the sea rings throughout the room, leaving my jaw firmly planted on the floor.

One thing I was not prepared for, considering who we were watching, was just how loud they were, ‘The Horizon is a Beltway’ and the Kerouac/Waits (two men whose works have clearly heavily influenced the band) penned ‘Home I’ll Never Be’ are amped up to buggery, pushing both Miller’s and multi instrumentalist Jocie Adams’ voices to their very limit. ‘To Ohio’ and ‘(Don’t) Tremble’ give them time to recover (and are even more beautiful than on record) before a barnstorming, and rather daft rendition of ‘There’s a Hole in My Bucket’. As we file out onto the mean streets of Pocklington, I had a realisation, The Low Anthem are one of the best live bands I have seen, and then I had another… They do this shit every night!

The only low point ; Everything Everthing playing York Stereo on the same day. Pfft

Eels - Tomorrow Morning

Eels have released four studio albums in the past five years, which is fairly prolific, by anybody’s standards. Take into account though, that there was a four year gap between the first and second of these (during which E wrote his autobiography ‘Things the Grandchildren Should Know’ and made a documentary about his physicist father – Hugh Everett III – ‘Parallel Worlds; Parallel Lives’, both worth investigating.) and that fact appears all the more impressive.

‘Tomorrow Morning’ though, suggests that Mark Oliver Everett has been spreading himself a little too thin.

The last in a trilogy of sorts (which also includes with ‘Hombre Lobo; 12 Songs of Desire’, released in June 2009, and January’s ‘End Times’) it is a distinctly more optimistic record than it’s predecessors, as the title suggests.

Eels have done this kind of thing very well before, particularly on their first three records. The samples, swirling strings and chuggy baselines that graced those records are all here, but it all feels a little inconsequential.  Both ‘Spectacular Girl’ and ‘What I Have to Offer’ fall somewhere between being quintessentially Eels, and Eels by numbers, the latter is particualary anodyne. As is 'Oh So Lovely’, with it’s cod tudor (??) keys and strings, has fast become my least favourite Eels song, it’s incredibly trite, and try as I might, I cannot fathom it’s inclusion on this record.

If ‘Hombre Lobo’ was the scuzzy rock record, ‘End Times’ the acoustic confessional, then ‘Tomorrow Morning’ is surely the electronica album. Mixing indie and electronica is nothing new, Eels have tinkered with it in the past, as has Beck, and Jimmy Tomborello of Dntel and The Postal Service (whose string arrangements appear to have heavily influenced E) has, to my mind, pretty much perfected the art. The little flourishes on ‘Tomorrow Morning’ are all rather pleasant, but the use of drum machines, especially on ‘The Man’ is so basic, so rudimentary, it’s dull. The simple beat of the hazy ‘That’s Not Her Way, however, works a treat, as does the ‘Little Bird’ – esque simplicity of the rather sweet ‘I Like the Way this is Going’.

My main issue with ‘Tomorrow Morning’ is it’s lack of direction, the songs don’t seem to go anywhere, or do anything.  It’s obvious that the past few years haven’t been easy for Mr Everett, what he needs to do now, or what I hope he does now, is to take some time out, recharge, and come back with something, and I can’t think of a simpler way to say this, something more.

"...tryin' to quit'll make you wish you didn't start..." Caitlin Rose - Own Side Now

Dear Reader,

I realise now that a comment I made in a previous review (namely, that of She & Him’s ‘Volume 2’) was somewhat flippant and misinformed. The comment in question came at the end of said review and read “I’ll be very surprised if I hear a pop album quite this perfect for some time.” *

Well, colour me surprised (kind of off white, with a hint of mauve perhaps. I like that word. Mauve). ‘Volume 2’, is indeed a cracking little pop record, but it has nothing on Caitlin Rose’s debut full length (her debut e.p. ‘Dead Flowers’ was released here earlier this year, the US have had it since 2008) ‘Own Side Now’,

If that title sounds vaguely familiar, it may well bring to mind the Joni Mitchell song ‘Both Sides Now’, which isn’t where the similarities between the two end. Rose’s songs, much like Mitchell’s are incredibly well crafted, their beauty often lying in their simplicity. Take the title track, which by Rose’s own admission is one the most simple and honest things she has written. The delivery of the line “who’s gonna want me when I’m just somewhere you’ve been” is so simple, so restrained, yet so full of emotion, that it never fails to bring a lump to my throat.

Caitlin Rose - Own Side Now 

Some of these songs were written, staggeringly, when she was 16/17 years of age (she’s now 23, which makes me feel very old indeed), one such song, a particular highlight, is ‘For the Rabbits’, about two high school friends and their on again/off again relationship, it has been stuck firmly in my head since the moment I heard it, as has ‘Shanghai Cigarettes’, which wouldn’t have sounded out of place on Conor Oberst’s solo, or …and the Mystic Valley Band L.P’s.

Caitlin Rose - For The Rabbits

This is not one of those records, I think, that will be listened to intensely for a month or so, only to be neglected there after, of course, only time will tell, but in the small amount of time since it popped through my letter box, it’s been there, in my noggin’ nagging at me “go on, put me on again, go on, you will” like a Nashville born Mrs Doyle (should I be worried about that, do you think? The voices, in my head?)

To pre-emptively answer your question, I’m not quite sure why I wrote this review in the form of a letter, perhaps so they don’t becoming incredibly samey. Either way, it’s a rather irritating affectation which I won’t be employing again.

Anyway, how are things with you?

Joe.

P.S. She’s supporting Megafaun at the Bandroom in Farndale at the end of the month, which will, I’d expect, own.

P.P.S  Thought I'd try using soundcloud in reviews, hopefully, it's worked!

*(I do understand there can be, by definition, no varying level of perfection, I don’t understand why I wrote that.)

"...you're going to get what you deserve..."

Due to the lack of me being on twitter of the facebook....
I'm made no secret of my love for 6music on this blog, and i had one of those moments earlier, which reminded me why.
6.45am, toasting a bagel, turn the radio, switch from Radio 2 to the aforementioned station.
"...god, money..."
eh....
"...bow down before the one you serve..."
nah...
"...HEAD LIKE A HOLE, BLACK AS YOUR SOUL..."
Nine Inch Nails at quater to seven in the morning is exactly why the staion is a national fucking treasure.
Oh yes.

This place feels like home...

like the song...get it?

The first week back at work always sucks doesn't it?
T'was quite an eventful holiday...

The day before we left for Seahouses, on the way home from watching my mother and sister perform in a show with their Bollywood group, smoke started pouring from the bonnet of my dad's car.  As neither myself or H drive, my mum's car holds 5 and 6 of us would be going on holiday, it looked like ol' pappy would be going on his Ducati (which, the last time we went on holiday, 3 years ago, packed in shortly before said holiday...spotting a trend yet?)  Lo, and indeed, behold, three days in, on the way to Alnwick, a warning light came on on his dashboard, he turned around and made it back to the house we were staying in, but the bike remained resolutley unridden for the rest of the week.

 

Less than an hour later, and just into Alnwick gardens, H's left knee and hand made very good friends with the gravel by the massive cascade fountain (I wanted to take a picture - of her hand and knee, not of the foutain, there's one of those just there ->;  but she wouldn't let me...it was pretty bad, all puss and goo and crap - well, not crap). Like the trooper she is though (this is the woman who walked from the pit lane at Donnington, all the way to the main stage at Download - despite fucking her ankle up...again - so i could see Tool), she was soon back on her feet and hobbling round the gardens (including the Mahoosive tree house above)

On Thursday, we took a somewhat scenic route to Heatherslaw in order to take the one and a half mile trip to Etal (essentially a street, with a castle at the end) and back, then on to Flodden Field.

Choo Choo!

The day, as you can see, had been fairly overcast, but by the time we had returned to Seahouses, the sun had come out, and it was decided that a second trip of the week to St. Aiden's beach was called for (happy now MOTHER? pedant....must be where I get it from.) Getting into the car that day, on a couple of occasions, I had felt a slight twinge in my leg, it soon wore off, and I put it down to cramp and thought nothing more of it. Foolish. When we got to the beach, I attempted to flick the ball, from a starting position behind me, over my head (something incidentally, that I've not been able to do since I was in my mid teens, and even then, only sporadically). And then I couldn't walk. The pain was such that, as when I had my tattoo, adrenaline was rushing to my head so quickly that I almost passed out. Like the wuss I clearly am. Luckily, despite initially thinking it was quite a severe injury, I was able to move fairly freely by Saturday, so you needn't worry.

An average photo of a wonderful view.

Despite all the trauma, this was far from a bad holiday, the first trip to the beach was much fun, as was the walk to Bamburgh via some rockpooling. Lindesfarne was as brilliant as ever, and occasional walks (when legs allowed) were rewarded with some lovely views. The running 'joke' that the bathroom (which sported a sign reading, shockingly, 'bathroom') was in fact a bedroom was still going by the end of the week, much to my suprise, as, well, it just wasn't funny after the first day, and even then funny's going a bit far...rambling... I had a pint of Auld Hemp ale -with me pa on his birthday - which tastes almost exactly how pot resin smells, the fish and chips were as good as they always are, as was the ice cream.  And the Kippers, sweet fishy baby jesus those Kippers!

The house, which backed onto the local Co-op, handy, but a pain in the arse at 7 o'clock every morning, was in equal measure ok and pretty shit.

We've already managed to book a holiday during May of next year, in 'Farne View', where we stayed three years ago, which was bloody marvelous. I can't flippin wait.

Smoke me a Kipper

I’ll be back in time for………August?
Off on holiday on Saturday, a week away in the gorgeous little coastal town of Seahouses in Northumbria, I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve been on holiday there, yet it never seems to loose it’s charms.
This may be in no small part to the utterly *legendary* smoke house that is Swallows. When I return, no doubt I will do so reeking of fish.
And with photo’s! on this blog! If I can be arsed!
KILOVEYOUBYE!

Oh, also, Christopher Nolan’s Inception made me do this face :O
Bloody emoticons, what have I turned into.

STEPHEN?! JUST COMING!

This is Michael Lyons. He is a beautiful, beautiful man. If I ever met him, I would kiss him on the mouth. In your fuzzy ginger-bearded git-face Mark Thompson. HA.

If you hadn't heard, 6music isn't closing.

Midlake & John Grant. Leadmill, Sheffield. 29.6.10

Mere miles out of York, and I had already resigned myself to missing this gig. In the sweltering early evening sun, heading towards Tadcaster, cars had stopped, their drivers and passengers hopping out to stretch their legs and avoid baking, meanwhile, no cars had driven past on the other side of the carriageway in quite some time. We were in this for the long haul. Or so I thought. Within an hour, we were moving again and soon passed the reason for our delay, a car had left the road, mounted the grassed embankment and thundered into a tree (luckily, according to York Press, the driver wasn't seriously injured).

After some fruitless searching for a particular car park, and taking a very not-short cut (despite the fact that one of our number had lived in Sheffield for 19 years) we eventually made it to the Leadmill, as we entered we were greeted by the rather powerful lungs of Mr John Grant (not literally though, which was rather rude, “oh, hello” it’s not that difficult. “Hi John” I’d reply. Tuh.) who really was the ideal support for Midlake (his label-mates, who, incidentally played on the debut solo album ‘ The Queen of Denmark’ released earlier this year) Equally Moving and funny, with a voice like a pissed off Tim Buckley and lyrics like:
"And I feel just like Sigourney Weaver. When she had to kill those aliens. And one guy tried to get them back to the earth. And she couldn't believe her ears"
(from 'Sigourney Weaver') how could I not be impressed?

A prolonged bar visit later, on to the stage ambled one drummer, one keyboardist/flutist, one bassist, and four guitarists and many beards, it’s a good thing that the Leadmill stage is as wide as it is (which is quite wide).

Whilst Midlake’s two most recent records, 2006’s ‘The Trials of Van Occupanther’ and this years ‘The Courage of Others’ are on the surface, very different, the former referencing 1970’s American rock, and the later, English folk, they are both resolutely mid temp records. Which would have not been a problem if they had perhaps played something from the considerably livelier; The Flaming Lips influenced ‘Bamnan & Silvercork’. But they didn’t. So it was.

All seven of them are clearly incredibly accomplished musicians, and are very tight as a unit, but their set landed just on the wrong side of monotony. When they did let rip, such as the extended jam prior to the utterly brilliant ‘Roscoe’, and on the similarly magnificent ‘Head Home’ (which I just mistyped as ‘Head Gnome’ hehe.) they are simply captivating.

I’m under no illusions that the fact I didn’t enjoy the gig as much as I’d expected was in no small part down to my mood. I’d been on edge since we passed that car. A weird night.

Deftones - Diamond Eyes

A month later than planned…

I have an incredibly soft spot for Deftones, their third, career defining album ‘White Pony’ soundtracked the summer I sat my GCSEs, contained the heaviest thing I had ever heard at that point (‘Elite’) and introduced me to the band of a certain Maynard James Keenan, a band for whom my love can only be described (much like Jesus) as ‘a bit gay’.

'White Pony’ set them apart from the nu-metal bands they were lumped in with following their debut ‘Adrenaline’ (and the dreadful ‘Back to School (Mini Maggit)’ which butchered the beautiful, epic ‘Pink Maggit’), to me, they always seemed to have much more in common with Sacramento cohorts Far and Will Haven than Limp Bizkit or Korn.
In the intervening decade (!!!) the Deftones’ output has been solid, but not spectacular, their self titled album, released in 2003 and 2006’s ‘Saturday Night Wrist’ followed the blueprint set out by ‘White Pony’ vaguely experimental at times, crushingly heavy one minute, hauntingly quiet the next.

The follow up to ‘Saturday Night Wrist’ was initially planned not to be ‘Diamond Eyes’, but ‘Eros’, but this (partially recorded) was put to one side in late 2008 when bassist Chi Cheng was involved in a car crash, which put him in a semi-conscious state(which he remains in). Instead, the band went back into the studio with former Quicksand bassist Sergio Vega and recorded ‘Diamond Eyes’ in just two months.

‘Eros’ was/is according to front man Chino Moreno weird, atmospheric and very very heavy, three things which partially to it’s detriment, ‘Diamond Eyes’ is not.

Despite the fact it was recorded in such a short period of time, and without pro-tools (which they started using after 1997’s ‘Around the Fur’), ‘Diamond Eyes’ sounds a little flat in places, a touch MOR metal.

Perhaps as they reportedly “practised [the songs] a million times ‘til they were perfect”. The songs do almost sound too…arranged…lacking, at times, much of a spark. Take the breakdown at the end of the opening title track, done properly, this kind of thing can feel akin to an earthquake, here though, something’s missing, it just sounds a bit…wet.

After giving a month or so to settle in, I still couldn’t tell you how many of the songs go, that lack of spark, making them to my ears and brain, rather forgettable, and at times, a little dull.

Two songs that don’t fit that description, arrive just after the halfway mark, as I usually start to lag, I’m hit with round the chops with ‘Rocket Skates’ and Chino screaming “GUNSRAZORSKNIVES” over a beast of a riff, this is followed by the most serene and beautiful moment on this record, ‘Sextape’ is simply gorgeous, a hint of the band’s electronica leanings, and Chino’s voice at it’s softest, it’s just about perfect.

Moreno’s voice is used to staggering effect throughout, just look to ‘Royal’, where he’s given the opportunity to show what he can do, velvety smooth croon to trademark squeal (like a pig when you big f*cking big f*cking argh. Eh? Eh?)

The problem with ‘Diamond Eyes’ isn’t that it’s a poor album, but in fact something that’s more difficult to pinpoint, it seems almost too tight, I’ve always heard a lot of space in Deftones’ previous work, but can’t find it here, it is what it is what it is. Deftones by numbers.

I’ve read an awful lot of very positive reviews of ‘Diamond Eyes’, I hope eventually, it’ll win me round too.

Pathetic, Indulgent, Self Pitying Blog Post #1

Warning: this blog post may make you want to slap me in my face.

So, last Friday I turned 26. And?

Not a particularly significant age, 25 possibly, 26, no. But it seems that all the guff that comes with hitting one of those milestones deferred itself for a year, probably in no small part to something that happened when I was a mere spring chicken at 24 ½ (what? If kids can use half years, so can I).

The day before my birthday, I got stuck in a rut of going through all the crap stuff… 2 years after starting a (intended) stop gap job, I’m still doing it (not for lack of trying), it’s incredibly unfulfilling, not to mention the pay. Shouldn’t I be starting to develop a career by now? Why didn’t I take more productive A-Levels? Should I have gone to uni? I’ve begun questioning my ability write (hence the lack of recent posts), something very important to me. Why, at 26, as close to 40 as to 12, do I still feel like a flupping man-child, surely I should be firmly in the territory of the former? Not reading comics and thinking about buying an Xbox 360.

My son would have been 15 months old had he arrived on his due date, with no complications. That, particularly, sucks.

Thankfully though, the lovely H (who, if I had gone to uni, I would probably not have met, thus negating that problem entirely) managed to talk me down, (although not able to convince me that I not more stupider than I are a couple years ago) and I went on to have a very enjoyable, if uneventful birthday. Thank you Missus.

This post, as I’m sure you’re aware by now, is something of a mess, I’ve heard it said that writing stuff down can help you gain some perspective. And that’s what this was for.

I’ve got such white middle class ‘problems’.

I refer you to the warning at the beginning of this post, having read this through, I actively encourage it.

Minus the Bear - Omni

There was a period during 2007 when, virtually all day, every day, I got to listen to what ever music I wanted to. I was working in a job I hated, but the freedom to listen to the music I love made it considerably easier.

Minus the Bear’s third album, ‘Planet of Ice’ released that year, was on the very heaviest of rotations. For two and a half months, I listened to that record every day, somehow, never becoming remotely bored of it. Now, two and a half years later, it easily places in my favourite 3 albums.

So to say that ‘Omni’ arrived bearing the weight of my expectations would, indeed, be putting it mildly.

It is worth noting that this is the first Minus the Bear full length not to be produced by former member Matt Bayles (Mastodon, Isis) but by Joe Chicarelli (Radiohead, The Shins, err.. Kajagoogoo) as this change, in hindsight at least, appears to have been a signal of intent

Judging by the two pre-release singles; ‘Into the Mirror’ (and it’s b-side ‘Broken China’) and ‘My Time’ it was clear that ‘Omni’ was going to be much lighter in tone, and perhaps depth, than it’s predecessor, the opening salvo of the aforementioned ‘My Time’, ‘Summer Angel’ and ‘Secret Country’ (the latter featuring a little cod-reggae guitar work) are three of the sunniest, barbeque-and-beer inducing songs you are likely to hear all year.

This, is, without question, a big Pop album, much slicker (in a kind of 80’s Miami Vice kind of way – when they tour I wouldn’t be shocked to see them in white suits, no socks, sleeves rolled up) and more accessible than it’s predecessors , it’s also very synth heavy affair, and drum machines play a much larger part than ever before (not to say that the live drumming isn’t still skattishly exemplary, at times, reminiscent of The Police’s Stuart Copeland, which is no bad thing).

‘Omni’ is short of, amongst other things, any real lyrical variety. Minus the Bear have always written, what are essentially, fundamental inconsequential songs about the fairer sex, but previous records have strayed from that subject, this record does not. This habit becomes particularly cringe worthy during the otherwise enjoyable ‘Excuses’ when front man Jake Snider sings ‘I’m into you…when you hear this song, you’ll say…you’re into me too”. It may just be me, but I cannot stand songs that refer to themselves as such in anything but title.

The two tracks that close the album, Minus the Bear at their laid back best, ‘Dayglow Vista Rd.’, and ‘Fooled by the Night’ floating over you, the perfect soundtrack to a long summer night.

Ultimately though, Omni is the weakest Minus the Bear album to date; it lacks the urgency of ‘Highly Refined Pirates’, the warmth of ‘Menos el Oso’ and the intricacy of ‘Planet of Ice’, and any real defining qualities of it’s own. Which is a damn shame. Having said that, it is still a Minus the Bear record, so I will be listening to it. All. Bloody. Summer.

It’s worth having a listen to the instrumental version in the download section of minusthebear.net, to hear Secret Country in all it’s awesomeness well, if you’re a raging fan boy that is.

How To Destroy Angels

Like, totally OMFG!!!!!!!!!1
Sorry, not quite sure what just came over me....
Sir Trent Reznor of Nine of Nails, had previously hinted at some non-NIN material this year, How to Destroy Angels (hmmm) is a collaboration with his wife, and former West Indian Girl front woman, Mariqueen Maandig. The snooty bastards over a Pitchfork have a stream of the first fruits of the EP which will be released this summer. It's called "A Drowning", and it's really quite wonderful, the music is unmistakably the work of Reznor, the haunting piano, coupled with the glitchy synthesised drums would not have seemed out of place on NIN's 'Year Zero'. Mrs Reznor's vocals fit it so well, it's a wonder they've not worked together before.
It's produced by Alan Moulder, who has previously worked with NIN, A Perfect Circle, Puscifer, The Smashing Pumpkins and..er...Arctic Monkeys.
After feeling rather disappointed by Massive Attack's 'Heligoland' earlier this year, this might just give me my fix of broodingly beautiful darkness that I was after. hehe..

She & Him - Volume 2

Jared Leto’s 30 Seconds to Mars, Keanu Reeves’ Dogstar, Russell Crowe’s…and The Ordinary Fear of God.
Actor’s bands, as you can see, have somewhat of a chequered past.

I mention this as She & Him are actress Zooey Deschanel (Elf, (500) Days of Summer) and sometime Monster of Folk; M.Ward.
“Sometimes lonely isn’t sad” sings Deschanel on ‘Thieves’ which opens ‘Volume 2’ (shockingly, their second album), this sets the mood for the rest of the album, lyrically rather melancholic, but musically, irresistibly cheerful.
Her “mmm-hmm’s” and “uh-huh’s” make the cover of Skeeter Thompson’s ‘Gonna Get Along Without You Now’ more infectious, and downright joyous than it has any right to be. Ward’s role is a subtle one, so much so that when his vocals arrive on ‘Ridin’ In My Car’ (another cover) it comes as somewhat as a surprise, like bumping into an old friend that you haven’t seen in years. His guitar playing and arrangements compliment Dechanel’s voice (not the strongest, but used to great effect throughout) incredibly well, and the bridge of ‘Home’, when the song delicately and majestically changes direction, is just gorgeous.
Mike Mogis (another Monster of Folk and member of Bright Eyes) has done a sterling job with the production on this record, restrained, but effective. For much of the album Deschanel’s vocals are backed up by a trio of Deschanels, giving them somewhat of a Supreme’s-esque quality.
‘Volume 2’ is an absolute triumph, unashamedly nostalgic (they wouldn’t have looked out of place performing at the Enchantment Under the Sea dance at Hill Valley High School in 1955) more than a little twee (as fuck), it combines Deschanel’s love of country music and Ward’s alt.folk credentials to great effect. I’ll be very surprised if I hear a pop album quite this perfect for some time.
Roll on Volume 3!

Freelance Whales - weathervanes

As far as buskers are concerned, York is somewhat of a mixed bag, on the one hand, there’s the guy with the beard, yeh, that one, but on the other there’s that other guy, you know, the one that plays ‘Comfortably Numb’ over and over and over and over and over. There are a couple of chaps with Pianos, but then there’s the guy with the violin, and the devil puppet attached to his crotch.

York’s more recent namesake, I’m sure, is a similarly diverse city in this respect, Freelance Whales (I know, awful, isn’t it?) thankfully, are five of the good-uns. Forming in late 2008, rather than just playing New York’s bars and clubs, they took to it’s street corners and subway stations, rather quickly building up a reputation.

The record company blurb would have you believe that ‘weathervanes’ is a ramshackle, clunking and clattering piece of work, and at times, it is, it is also, however, for the debut of a band who formed less than a year before recording it, incredibly accomplished. Initially released last year whilst the band were still unsigned – hard to believe, considering the production quality – it, and they have now found a home at Frenchkiss Records (also home to Local Natives, The Antlers, and The Hold Steady).

Freelance Whales certainly wear their influences on their (stripy jumper) sleeves, most notably Sufjan Stevens and The Postal Service. Ben Gibbard, one half of the latter, has clearly also influenced them lyrically, charmingly awkward and naïve lines such as “I’ve arranged for your phobias to be performed by a string quartet” from the rather jaunty ‘kilojoules’ and “as you pull me from the bed, tell me I look stunning and cadaverous” from ‘Generator ^2nd Floor’ are two of the more particularly wonderful examples.

However, these influences are also the biggest problem with this record, ‘Hannah’ being a case in point, a harmless little ditty initially, the more I hear it, the more it bugs me. It manages to sound, simultaneously, like The Postal Service and The Moldy Peaches, and the phrasing in the verses is so similar to ‘Decatur, or a round of applause for your stepmother’ by Mr Stevens, it verges on plagiarism. ‘We could be friends’ is easily the most irritating song I have heard in a long time. I mean, is stretching the word “common” to a bajillion syllables really necessary?. It is on this track that the often saccharine vocals reach their diabetes inducing peak, and I find myself struggling not to skip past it on each and every listen.

Freelance Whales certainly have a lot of potential, it is, at times, astonishing that this record is the product of a band that was less than a year old. If they can find a little depth, and a bit more individuality, they could be on to something.

Bitter, Ignorance & Haggis

As far as ways to make people believe you're not racist, starting a sentence with the words "I'm not racist or anything but..." is not the best.
And so it was, sat at a desk doing the most mind numbingly dull work imaginable, that one of my colleagues began talking to the person next to her...great...i thought, another "they took our jobs" (see south park season 8, episode 6.) rant. Not so. A list of moderately offensive, not massively so, but still, a bit racist jokes, that either a) she was looking at on the internet or b) had been emailed...at work. And now I think that perhaps I'm not one to preach, as I didn't, as politely as possible, turn around and ask her to "please shut the f**k up" (at work, so having to censor slightly!).
Moving on, or rather, back, Wednesday night was a busy busy one. Almost a full three months after being given a home-brew kit, and after much procrastination (which, as a wise ladyonces told me "is the mother of all f**kups") I finally got round to bottling the stuff up, which took a fair old while, I tasted a bit, and it tasted like, well, bitter that isn't quite ready, which bodes well. Only two weeks and I can start drinking the stuff properly!
Haggis? Haggis. I had some in the fridge that need using that very night, and as I'd been making pizza bases before bottling my beer up, I thought, why not? As it turns out, haggis pizza is very very tasty indeed, not one for the purists in either camp, but I don't care, it made my mouth and belly rather happy.

Hopefully within the next week or so I'll have another couple of reviews up, one of which I've been meaning to do for 6 weeks...talk about procrastinating!

Finally, Shutter Island, that was a bit good.

Broken Bells - Broken Bells

For a summation of the pairing of The Shins’ James Mercer, and one half of Gnarls Barkley and uber producer Dangermouse, you need look no further than the latter’s sophomore effort “The Odd Couple”.

Since lead single “The High Road” was made available online just before Christmas, I’ve been itching to wrap my lugholes around this, the duo’s eponymous debut.“The High Road”, much like Mercer’s work with The Shins’ has a late 60’s/early 70’s Californian feel to it, this, mixed with Dangermouse languid beats opens the album in a suitably captivating manner, and the last minute or so, as Mercer laments “it’s too late to change your mind” over and over is one of the most life affirming moments of music I’ve heard this year.

Both “The Ghost Inside” replete with Mercer’s (much unexpected) falsetto, and the robot-waltz of “Sailing to Nowhere” are equally brilliant, as is, for that matter, every song before, between, and after.It’s an incredibly laid-back affair, and a record that would be very easy to fall asleep to (which I have, and mean that in the nicest possible way!).

Dangermouse’s production is sparse, yet warm, and at no point does this start to sound like an album by The Shins that happens to be produced by Dangermouse, or a Dangermouse record with vocals by some indie kid-man, it really is a true collaboration, and all the better for it. The only criticism I can level at “Broken Bells” is that when “The Mall & Misery” fades out, I was left wanting more, at 37 minutes, it’s a good 10 minutes short. But when that’s the worst you can say about an album, it must be a bit special.

Save 6music

Two days ago BBC director general Mark Thompson, (herein, referred to as “Cameron’s (herein referred to as “Murdoch’s bitch”) bitch”, still with me? I’m not), as part of the corporation’s ‘Strategic review’, announced the proposed closure of the digital radio station 6music, but you probably already knew that.
Supposedly, some of 6music’s more “distinctive” programs may be transfer to other BBC radio stations, no doubt into ‘specialist’ 2am time slots.
I’m a relative newcomer to 6music, I only really discovered it last November, when I wasn’t particularly well, and it played no small part in keeping me sane when stuck in the house for day after day, it truly is a music lover’s radio station and caters for a wide range of tastes, from folk to funk to metal to dance, lashings of comedy, and in Stuart Maconie’s ‘Freak Zone’ a singular look at weird and wonderful stuff that wouldn’t otherwise get a look in.

6music, and in particular Lauren Laverne’s mid-morning show have now become such a part of my daily routine, that I feel slightly aggrieved if I miss it.

Roughly a fortnight prior to this, the BBC Trust published a report into Radio 2 and 6music, stating that the latter needed to increase it’s 695,000 strong weekly audience without an increase of it’s £9 million budget, there were rumours flying around before this report was published, that 6music may be chopped, but, for a few days, this seemed to suggest otherwise. Surely the Trust had some idea that Cameron’s Bitch was planning something, so why the false hope?

There simply are no other radio stations quite like 6music, no other station gives unsigned and underground bands nearly as much airplay, and loosing it would be a massive blow to not only the audience and staff, but these bands.

Radio’s 1 & 2 however cannot make such a claim, there are countless commercial stations the churn out the kind of drivel, spoken or sung, that these two do during the day, and as for Radio 1’s sister station 1xtra…christ…is this really necessary, Tim ‘my dad was a priest, but I’m super-fly’ Westwood even said, live on air:“I've been broadcasting to absolutely nobody for the last three hours. Didn't you see the figures? No one listens to Westwood in the afternoon. It's soul-destroying." Aight! 1xtra costs more to run than 6music, and has fewer listeners. Where’s the sense in that? BBC Three, which costs over £100 million a year, has produced very little in the way of worthy original content, with perhaps the exception of The Mighty Boosh (pictured above-which was a radio show first, so not original then, quiet Joe!) and Being Human. A quick look over this weeks listings for said channel brought up un-missable broadcasts such as ‘Snog, Marry, Avoid’, ‘Hotter than my Daughter’, ‘Dancing on Wheels’ and ‘Coming of Age’ which looks like ‘Two Pints of Lager…’ Jr. which, to be frank, is not really what the world needs!

True, 6music is by no means perfect; George Lamb is a first class douche bag who seems to know next to nothing about music. His interviewing style is hardly probing either, he asked Ray Davies from the Kinks whether he was bald, and what his favourite vowel was, understandably, Davies hung up on him
After an online campaign to get Lamb off the air, he was shifted across to a weekly show on Saturday mornings, a small victory, but a victory never the less, and one that perhaps gives the 6music audience a tiny glimmer of hope that it could be saved.

Since CB’s report was published, the Trust have indicated that they will take public opinion into consideration during the two and a bit month long consultation period, so please, if you have even a passing interest in independent and innovative music of any kind, go here, and tell the Trust why you think 6music should be saved (that is, if you do, if you don’t, go away please, they gone? Good), if you’ve never listened, I whole heartedly suggest you do,(especially on a Saturday, post-Lamb for some jollity with Richard Herring & Andrew Collings). There’s a group on facebook, shizz going down on Twitter, and a number of online petitions. Ask any likeminded colleagues, friends, family to do the same, if there’s enough of a groundswell of support, the Trust may just reverse the decision.

If not, as Phil Jupitus wrote in The Guardian last week, it would be “an affront to the memory of John Peel and a slap in face to thousands of licence-payers”.
Here’s hoping our faces remain resolutely unslapped.

Why, Peter? Why

I recently re-read Alice Sebold’s The Lovely Bones, by no means a work of ground breaking literary genius, but certainly a very enjoyable novel. Curious what Peter Jackson made of the source material, me and the Mrs went to see it last Wednesday.
Big Mistake.
Peter Jackson certainly has a proven track record of adapting novels to the big screen, and in Heavenly Creatures, he created another world, apart from reality, much like the ‘in-between’ featured in The Lovely Bones, so understandably, I had not prepared myself for just how awful this film was.

The most fundamental problem here is a complete and utter misunderstanding of the book, which is about the effect that the death of a 14 year old girl has on her family and friends, and their relationships with each other, something that is barely touched on in the film.

“These were the lovely bones that had grown around my absence” narrates Susie Salmon, the murdered girl, towards the end of the film (as she does in the book), but here, it makes little sense.

The film instead, focuses on Susie’s father trying to find proof her murderer is a man living just down the road from them. As, from the moment of her death, you are made fully aware of the identity of Susie’s killer, there is no tension, or surprise.

The film was given a 12A certificate, and was obviously written, filmed and edited in order the get it’s largest possibly audience, turning it into a family film, a detective story, neither of which it should have been, the rape and murder of a young girl is hardly family film material, so much so, that the rape is never mentioned.

Susie’s ‘in-between’ is so overly stylised that it hurt my eyes, all fluffy CGI nonsense. There’s a cloying sentimentality running throughout, you know, the kind that makes you wretch.

Peter Jackson, what happened?

Pot? Kettle?

News International, the parent company of News of the World and The Sun yesterday accused the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, who are investigating the NOTW phone tapping scandal of "innuendo, unwanted inference and exaggeration". Oh, the irony!
It's worrying that Andy Coulson ("I don't know"), the editor of NOTW when all this was happening, is now the Director of Communications & Planning for the Tories. Cameron's obviously not too bothered by invasions of privacy then.

A whole load of stuff II

So, I was planning on reviewing the new Massive Attack record 'Heligoland', but after listening to it over and over again,Ii think the review would of consisted of one, not even a word really 'meh' it's alright, a few good songs on there but...well...meh...it's a bit dull. I'm not angry, I'm just disappointed.

Further music related stuff...off to see the Grizz at the Sage in Gateshead on 8th March, which will be nothing short of spectacular, then Idlewild at Fibbers on 16th April (12 years since their last gig there!) which I'm rather excited about, then the day after is Record Store Day which I'm also rather looking forward to, a number of yet unconfirmed acts are recording/releasing limited edition singles and/or ep's, which are only available in certain indie record shops, so...we're off to Leeds to visit Crash and Jumbo, and well, have a jolly nice day really. The following Sunday will no doubt have me indulging my burgeoning love for Vinyl further, as the Duchess is holding a record fair, and then, to top it all off, a week later, Minus The Bear's new album 'OMNI' is released, excited doesn't even come close! A new Deftones album two weeks later and judging from yesterdays free download 'Rocket Skates' we're in for a treat.

2010 has been a pretty good year so far, TV wise, new, improved Heroes, the second, much darker series of Being Human, which, unfortunately, comes to an end next week. And Glee. Hmmm...Glee, the name's a bit misleading, well, a lot misleading, there's very little a cappella stuff, (and that 'very little' amounts entirely to the programs score, not the actually songs being performed) which is what glee clubs do, the production on the vast majority of the songs is so overdone it makes the new Biffy Clyro album sound like a Moldy Peaches record, the lip syncing, oh, christ the lip syncing....

And Matthew Morrison, is there a whiter man on the planet? Every time he performs one of those modern hipperty-hop numbers, i find myself hiding behind my hands, occasionally fanning out my fingers to see if it's finished, much like an England game which has gone to penalties. But I don't seem to be able to stop watching it, thanks, almost entirely to Jane Lynch, who plays coach Sue Sylvester. Evil to her very core, she softened a little in the last episode, thankfully though, by the end of the episode normal service was resumed, as she threatened to buy Morrison's character a kitten, and then punch him in the face. Nice.

And that's that. For now.

Can you get drunk by eating waffles?

MICMACS is a strange little film, but then what else would you expect from the director of Amélie, and uh, Alien Resurrection (understandable that they left that off the posters).
Bazil (played by French comic Dany Boon) is a young boy when his father is killed by a landmine in the Sahara. 20 or so years later working in a video store, a stray bullet from a gun fight outside the shop lodges itself in his brain. Doctors decide (with the aid of a coin toss) not to operate, as this would have left him in a vegetative state. Doing so however, means that Bazil could drop dead at any moment. After leaving the hospital, Bazil finds himself both homeless and jobless.
He eventually falls in with a group of scrap-merchants, who include a human-cannonball, a contortionist and a man who rarely talks in anything but clichés. When collecting scrap metal, Bazil happens across the offices of two arms manufacturers, one of whom made the landmine that killed his father, and the other, the bullet lodged in his brain. With the help of his new family, he decides to take them both down.
It’s rare that I find myself out of bed, let alone out of the house at 10am on a Sunday, but the preview screening of this managed to get me out of both, despite the rather inclement weather and a stonking headache. It’s an immensely enjoyable, inventive and beautifully shot film, not quite as good as Amélie, but then Jean-Pierre Jeunet set the bar pretty high with that film. I think I may well be casting my eye over his previous work again soon.

Midlake – The Courage of Others

Four years and an albums worth of scrapped material after ‘The Trials of Van Occupanther’, Midlake return with their third album ‘The Courage of Others’.

After hearing that the band had been brushing up on British folk during the intervening years I approached this record with some trepidation, as I have somewhat of an aversion to traditional British folk, and after all, would another album of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young/Fleetwood Mac informed rock have been such a bad thing?

As it turns out, such trepidation was misplaced, rather than traditional folk, ‘The Courage of Others’ recalls bands such as Fairport Convention, and at times Jethro Tull. A kind of transatlantic cousin to its predecessor.

The first thing that struck me about this record, was how utterly morose it is, almost exclusively a minor key affair, it’s a grey cloud that never lifts, to quote guitarist Eric Pulido; “If someone thought that Van Occupanther was melancholy, than they’re gonna think this is the saddest record ever”.

There’s something about that sadness that brings to mind Radiohead, front man Tim Smith’s vocals play no small part in this, and without exception, when I hear ‘Bring Down’ I cannot help but think of ‘Exit Music (For a Film)’ from ‘Ok Computer’.

It’s only after a few listens that this record really begins to reveal itself, ‘…Van Occupanther’ was far from instantly accessible, ‘The Courage of Others’ even less so. It’s an album that begs to be listened to as just that, an album. When listened to individually, the majority of tracks here seem to lack some substance, but when put in context, they flow in and out of each other perfectly.

‘The Courage of Others’ is certainly a grower, I’ve been listening to it incessantly since it’s release, and am still discovering it, a sign of an excellent record if ever there was one.

Eels - End Times

“I’ve been through some stuff” (an early contender for understatement of the year?) sings Mark Oliver Everett, perhaps better and certainly more succinctly known as ‘E’, on ‘In My Younger Days’ and he’s not kidding.

The death of both of his parents, and his sister were well chronicled on ‘Electro-Shock Blues’ considered by many to be Eels defining record. Both musically and lyrically, ‘End Times’ is closer to this record than any other their others. This, Eels eighth studio album, follows a mere six months after ‘Hombre Lobo’ and is centered on Everett’s divorce.

This record was largely recorded by ‘E’, alone in his basement, and it shows. Not just in terms of production, but also the disarming honesty and fragility in his voice throughout.

‘In My Younger Days’ is one of the most open and revealing songs Eels have recorded;

“I’m not going to be ruled by hate, but it’s strong, and it’s filling up my days”

“I don’t need anymore misery to teach me what I should be, I just need you back.”

Conversely, on ‘Paradise Blues’, ‘E’ muses “at least I’m not dead”, well, that’s something to hold onto I suppose. ‘Paradise Blues’ is one of the less morose songs here, during which Mr Everett takes it upon himself to give…himself a good talking to;

“Your contempt and your sarcasm, it’s all so transparent, why don’t you give up the act now kid, and let some love in”.

The few moments of humour on ‘End Times’ are typically wry, and as you’d expect, tinged with sadness;

“She’s locked herself in the bathroom again” sings ‘E’ on ‘Line in the Dirt’ “so I am pissing in the yard”

During the title track there’s something of a disagreement with a feline neighbour;

“Outside my window there’s a cat in heat, shut up cat, and leave me alone, there ain’t no heat ‘round here”

Musically, ‘End Times’ is rather a simple affair, and to a certain extent, that’s what makes it such a devastating listen, at least first time round (listening to it fairly heavily since it came out has somewhat diminished this, I think it’s an album that is best listened to fairly occasionally). There is little to detract from the sound of a man bearing his soul for all to see (or hear, more accurately).

‘Little Bird’, the album’s first single has already become one of my favourite Eels songs, unmistakably Eels, more so than anything else here, and just as sad;

“Little bird…right now you’re the only friend I have in the world, and…goddamn I miss that girl.”

‘On My Feet’ ends things neither on a positive note nor a negative one, but with a thought that things might just get better;

“I’m pretty sure I’ve been through worse…I’ve Just got to get back on my feet”.

Here’s hoping he does.

Gigs what i saw in 2009

This year saw somewhat of a dip in the number of gigs I went to, but the one’s I did, they weren’t too bad I suppose…

Mastodon’s ‘Crack the Skye’ was one of my favourite albums of last year, so understandably, on hearing that they would be playing it in it’s entirety , I was filled with girlish glee., getting the tickets as a birthday present (which was the day before) was the icing on the cake. Stood outside Sheffield Corporation in the pouring rain (Sheffield, in June, of course it was going to rain…), I could still feel the skin round my first tattoo (which was done on the aforementioned birthday) burning from being shaved, I was eager to get inside, get me coat off have a couple of bottles of Newky Brown and let my ear drums be pummelled. Mastodon did indeed play all of ‘Crack the Skye’ along with another ten or so tracks from their back catalogue. I left, however, feeling a tad deflated, they were good, but by their high standards, slightly disappointing. The new material lacked the bite, live, of their older stuff, and didn’t come across as well as I’d hoped. I don’t think the sound did them any favours either, from where we were at least, everything was mixed into a big muddy mess, lacking any real clarity. A shame, but at least I got an awesome poster!

Clutch at Leeds Cockpit provided me with some short lived tinnitus…which has to be a good thing… supported by the dreadfully named, but actually pretty damn good And So I Watch You From Afar, and, well, themselves essentially (in the form of The Bakerton Group, an instrumental side project), the headliners certainly did not disappoint, riff after riff, they just kept on giving. It’s a wonder how, returning for the encore, they managed to play at all, looking thoroughly mashed!

August 8th was my first trip to Farndale since I was a nipper, my grandparents would often rent the cottage directly opposite The Band Room during the summer, and I have a lot of fond memories of visiting them there. The trip there was great, taking the scenic route, we stopped a few times just to take in the views. We stopped by a couple of pubs, where my dad had a conversation with a chicken, and then headed on to the venue. It was rather a low key affair, matching Woodpigeon’s music, a kind of wistful Canadicana. Despite having already having released two albums, and having another two almost in the bag, they seemed to struggle for material. Any feeling of an anticlimax was dispelled by the trip there though. I’ve not listened to them much since, in hindsight I think they’re probably just a bit too fey, even for me.

I got to go to my favourite venue twice this year, Manchester Apollo, to me, is the perfect place to experience live music, I’ve seen many of my favourite bands there, and if I were to compile a list the best gigs I’ve been too, the Apollo would feature heavily. (you’re welcome, Carling.)
First up (more on my second visit later) was Fleet Foxes, supported by Blitzen Trapper. Have not heard much of the Trapper’s material beforehand, I was pleasantly surprised by their Neil Young inspired folk-rock (with added synth…surprisingly, it works), the guys from Fleet Foxes joined them on stage, their drummer Josh Tillman (who’s album Vacilando Territory Blues was one of my favourite’s of last year, incidentally, I bought it the day of this gig… fascinating, I know!) playing some stealth cowbell.
I was a little unsure of how Fleet Foxes’ trademark harmonies would sound live, as it turned out, I had no need to be, they were just as gorgeous as on record. The snippets of new material that were played sounded very interesting, the only downside of this gig was that, despite joking about and starting to play it, there was no full version of ‘Free Bird’, ah well.
We stayed in a budget hotel in the city centre, just off of Oldham Street, which is, for want of two better words; freakin’ awesome, a few indie record shops, comic book shops and the rather wonderful Night and Day café/venue always make gigs in Manchester with Miss Mac something to really look forward to.

My second visit to Manchester Apollo was to see Massive Attack, as my mum and dad had originally planned to go together, but the former was nursing a migraine. It’s a bloody good thing she decided to stay at home too, as from the get go Massive were crushingly heavy. The LED wall behind them just added to the atmosphere, projecting various quotes, and News footage amongst other things, at times it made it hard to concentrate on the music. And we only got a little bit lost on the way there!

The only gig I went to in York this year was And So I Watch You From Afar at the revamped, and now slightly dull, Fibbers. Impressive during their support slot for Clutch, I thought it would be rude not to. Intricate and heavy in equal measure, think early Pelican, this is a band deserving of a much bigger audience. Go here to read my good friend Paul’s review.

Grizzly Bear at Leeds. See review. Best.Gig.Ever (well this year anyway)

Megafaun. Here’s me review So much fun!

Films what I seen last year

No More lists, one’s enough methinks, however, over the next week or so I’ll be posting a fair bit about the past year and a little about the year to come…first, as the title of this post may have suggested…films.
Ah, Orange Wednesdays, Ah, City Screen Membership, how I love you so.
We’ve seen some absolutely wonderful films this year, where to begin….

‘(500) Days Of Summer’ is probably as good a place as any…starring Joseph Gordon Levitt as Tom and Zooey Deschanel as the eponymous Summer, it’s a rom-com Jim, but not as we know it. The narrative jumps back and forth before, during and after the couple’s relationship. It even features a choreographed dance to Halls & Oates' ‘You Make My Dreams' . It’s sweet, tender and very very funny in places.

I’ve already written a little about ‘An Education’, so I won’t repeat myself. I’m very much looking forward to getting this little gem on DVD; hopefully it’ll be as good the second time.

Sam Mendes’ ‘Away We Go’, is a rather lovely film. Burt (hehe) and Verona (who is heavily pregnant) are moving so they can raise their child near Burt’s parents. Who, oh dear, are moving to Antwerp for two years. So begins a road trip, the couple trying to find the perfect place to bring up their unborn child. Suffice to say, after visiting various friends and ex work colleagues, they do find that perfect place and a very happy, but not at all mawkish ending.
I laughed quite a lot, and very nearly cried…

‘District 9’ is set in Jo’burg, South Africa where an alien ship hangs ominously in the skyline, it follows the plan to move the aliens, referred to as ‘Prawns’ from District 9, a shanty town for all intents and purposes, to District 10, essentially a concentration camp. This film could have only been set in South Africa. I’ll leave it at that, no spoilers. I don’t like spoilers. It was nice to see a non-hollywood Sci-Fi film seemingly come out of nowhere and achieve such success. Despite how much I enjoyed it, I do hope there’s no sequel.
What did I learn from this film? That saying “F*ck” over and ever again in a South African accent is very very funny indeed.

Based on a novel, by Swedish author John Ajvide Lindqvist, ‘Let the Right One In’ is a story of friendship first, a story about vampires second, which is perhaps why it was so utterly engrossing, and probably the best film I saw last year. An American remake is due out later in 2010, which doesn’t bode well, but considering who’s directing it (Matt Reeves, Cloverfield) and who is playing the young boy (Kodi Smit-McPhee, 'The Road') and girl (Chloe Mortez '(500) Days of Summer' ) it might not be complete and utter horse sh*t

I only watched the original ‘Star Trek’ series occasionally as a child (I don’t think, prior to seeing the film, I’d seen an episode in 10-15 years), and thought the more recent incarnations of the franchise were a bit….meh. It was the involvement of JJ Abrahams, Zachary Quinto and Simon Pegg that got me interested…thank a fictional deity they did. From start to finish, ‘Star Trek’ is an absolute blast, Quinto and Chris Pine getting the young Spock and Kirk spot on, Leonard Nimoy looking surprisingly sprightly for his age, Pegg and Anton Yelchin as Scotty and Chekov offering light relief, and Eric Bana as a pesky womulan, there’s not a weak performance amongst them.
It’s made me reassess my position on ‘Star Trek’ all together, and now I cannot wait for no.2

I Didn’t see ‘Avatar’ until the third day of this year, but it came out last year, so what the hell. I enjoyed it, Sam Worthington is incredibly wooden, the story was a little…predictable, a harmless enough piece of Sci-Fi fluff…BUT MY GOD… James Cameron’s many years working on his 3D technology has really paid off, I found myself ducking and flinching time and time again. Even in the scenes where nothing really happens, it almost feels like you’re there. I can only imagine how stunning this would look on an IMAX screen. This is a film that HAS to be seen in a cinema.

A real life Spinal Tap. The drummer’s called Rob Reiner for crying out loud. ‘Anvil! The Story of Anvil’ is a feel-good film if ever I saw one…just watch it…for the love of all things metal…just watch it.