Album review: Chelsea Light Moving – Chelsea Light Moving (Matador Records)

A noise-rock innovator with Sonic Youth and piercingly intimate solo artist, you’d think Thurston Moore would have no musical ground left to cover. It’s surprising then that his latest band (his first since Sonic Youth announced their hiatus in 2011) is a thrillingly abrasive garage-punk act inspired by experimental novelists and tales of 60s drug-fuelled naivety. Results are hit and miss, with the prickly ‘Burroughs’ coming across like an impressive lost ‘Goo’ track and the trippy wall of sound of ‘Alighted’ proving overblown. Still, there are enough avant-garde triumphs like ‘Mohawk’ to keep Sonic Youth fans interested while Moore feeds new ideas into his gloomy, scuzzy soundscapes.

7/10

DIG IT? DIG DEEPER: PIXIES, SONIC YOUTH, DIM STARS

Published in Issue 83 of Clash magazine.

Album review: Palma Violets – 180 (Rough Trade Records)

Hailed as indie saviours and nominated for BBC Sound Of 2013, Palma Violets are no strangers to hype. Yet the psychedelia-tinged garage-rock of their debut album ‘180’ doesn’t always live up to expectations. The frenetic rush of youthful angst in ‘Best Of Friends’ and the romantic swathes of reverb on ‘Three Stars’ show promise. However, disjointed tracks like ‘Last Of The Summer Wine’ suffer from too many ideas and lead singer Sam Fryer’s howling delivery can come across slightly Nick Cave-lite. It leaves the impression that if the band stopped emulating their idols and further developed their hypnotic dreamscapes, then the high praise would be justified.

6/10

DIG IT? DIG DEEPER: THE VELVET UNDERGROUND,JOY DIVISION, THE LIBERTINES

Published in Issue 83 of Clash magazine.

Personality Clash: Austra x Herve

Katie Stelmanis is the classically trained lead singer of icy Canadian electro-pop quartet, Austra. She loaned her swirling vocals to Herve’s latest track, ‘Save Me’.

Herve is the nom-de-plume of genre-hopping producer, DJ and record label owner Josh Harvey. This week sees the release of his brooding new album, ‘The Art Of Disappearing’.

Boasting an ominous bassline and a grainy Blair Witch Project-esque video, Herve and Katie’s recent collaboration ‘Save Me’ was a boundary pushing departure for both artists. Setting the tone for Herve’s dark, trippy new album, ‘The Art Of Disappearing’ (released March 4thon Cheap Thrills), the pair reunited to talk about Austra’s recent tour with The xx, their CD collections and a new collaboration.

– – –

Herve: I heard your first album and I loved it. It made me think about the great singers that I really liked as well. So I got in touch, played you a track and you kindly took pity on me and said you would do it.

Katie: You reached out and I thought it would be really fun to do something different. I like putting vocals on tracks now. It’s one of my favourite things to do and the Herve track was pretty cool.

Herve: I wanted to represent what I was into in an album. I didn’t just want to do another dance album because I could say everything I needed to say in a single or EP with that stuff. I really wanted to show the other side of myself. So it’s through people like you and Maria Minerva and the Seasfire guys that are on there that I got to bring an element to what I do that I just can’t do myself.

Katie: Yeah and the most fun part was that I got to stay at your house for a week right before Christmas.

Herve: That was great fun. You could do a world tour, world holidays with the recording situation – just hit up some friends in Hawaii or something.

Katie: Yeah, I’m going to start making that a stipulation every time I do vocals for anybody. I have to be able to stay at their house for free for a week.

Herve: You might need to see pictures before. You know what these grubby artists are like.

Katie: You’re right. Luckily you have a very nice house. I discovered that you have a deep rooted love for Dead Can Dance and Cocteau Twins. Were you saying that your Mom used to listen to that stuff?

Herve: Yeah, that’s how I got into it. She used to play it all the time and I just really liked it from there. I like a bit of medieval music. Yeah because I was playing you CDs wasn’t I?

Katie: And then I raided your record collection and I burned a bunch of your CDs. I got like every Dead Can Dance album ever. I got every Cocteau Twins album ever. I got like three or four Aphex Twin albums.

Herve: There was a whole mix of stuff. We were sitting around just having a good old chinwag about it because I was explaining to you why I loved your voice and what it reminded me of. And then we went in the studio and it was so easy because you obviously had an idea in your head and then put it down. Then there was this great kind of swirling, amazing vocal.

Katie: I feel like we only did one take.

Herve: You nailed it so amazingly. It’s always a pleasure to sit next to somebody who can sing so well and you’re that close to them. I didn’t know whether you’d be searching out the vibe or the melody or anything, but you just came in and were like bam, “I’m doing it like this.” I was like, “Amazing.”

Katie: Yeah, that’s the best way to collaborate. It doesn’t work if you force it.

Herve: How was The xx by the way, Katie? Was it good fun?

Katie: Yeah, I love them. They’re so nice. We got along really well with The xx. I guess they’re pretty shy, but I was so impressed with how down to Earth they are for being so young and so famous. I DJed with Jamie xx a bunch of times too. We had a DJ bond.

Herve: Did you match him in the DJ stakes?

Katie: Well, he came out in New York and he was impressed, so that made me feel like I was a real DJ. And then we DJed a couple more times on the tour.

Herve: That’s wicked. How many dates did you do? Was it a gruelling one?

Katie: Three weeks, maybe a month. No, it wasn’t gruelling at all. It was actually the best tour ever. And I’m playing SXSW.

Herve: You’re going to SXSW? Wow, that’s cool. I’ve never been. I really want to go.

Katie: I’m excited. I’ve been a few times. We were only planning to do one show, but now we’re doing like five or six. SXSW is awesome, but it’s gotten a bit too much now. I don’t understand how people can actually afford to go anymore. We have a couple of gigs luckily that are headline slots, so we’re making money, but most bands don’t make any money when I’d go to Texas. And accommodations there alone now are ridiculous. Whenever I’d go to Texas, my whole band would all move into this house and we’d live there for a week and it would be like two hundred bucks a night. Now everyone’s caught onto the house thing and the average rental price for a house is a thousand dollars a night.

Herve: What? Nobody gets paid to play. Is that how it works?

Katie: Some headliners get paid I guess, but I’d say ninety percent of the bands don’t get paid. And I don’t understand where they could possibly stay because the hotels are maybe three hundred bucks a night. And for an indie band, how are people supposed to pay that? I feel like SXSW needs to make it affordable, otherwise it’s just going to die.

Herve: Well, that’s the thing. It’ll be like a situation where only the rich, therefore most likely the already successful or the major label pushed stuff will get there and it’ll just be this distorted view of what music’s going on.

Katie: I know. But it’ll still be good and luckily, when you’re there, they do give away so much free stuff that you really don’t have to pay for much. Like there’s always a barbecue somewhere. Last year, I think, someone was giving away free cellphones.

Herve: Wow, I might come now. Pick up some free shit.

Katie: Yeah.

Herve: I’m not DJing at the moment because I stopped about three months before Christmas to give it a break. I’d DJ with you though, show you a trick or too.

Katie: Yeah. That’d be cool. I’m down.

Herve: I’ll show you how to DJ on Disableton without a doubt. You can teach me to sing.

Katie: OK, sounds good. Sounds like a trade.

Herve: I would love to work with you again. You’re one of the great voices. What would be cool would be to do an actual full album, a full-on dance record – definitely do a club track of some sort. God knows how mad it would be, but it would be awesome to take your voice and put it into a club environment.

Katie: I would love that. That would be so fun. So we are going to collaborate in the future?

Herve: Yeah, let’s make a concept album and get dressed up as witches and make the album in the woods using the power of candlelight and campfires only.

Katie: No way.

Herve: But we want to try something different. So you’re going to be rapping rather than singing this time.

Katie: Yeah. And then I’m going to do a track and then you’re going to sing on it.

Herve: (laughs) Oh, good God! Yeah, under your tutelage.

Words by James Evans

– – –

‘Save Me’ is out now.

Published on ClashMusic.com.

Marques Toliver To Release Debut Album In May

Published on ClashMusic.com. Article here.

Marques Toliver has announced the release of his debut album, ‘Land Of CanAan’, for May 13th via Bella Union.

Following the joyous folk-soul of his ‘Butterflies Are Not Free’ EP (2011) and ‘Magic Look’ single in 2012, Florida-native and multi-instrumentalist Toliver has had an illuminating journey towards his long-awaited debut.

Having been discovered busking on the streets of Brooklyn by TV On The Radio’s Kyp Malone, he moved to the UK and was soon blogged by Adele as her “new favourite artist.” This led to a publishing deal with Universal and a powerful live performance on Late With Jools Holland.

Toliver’s debut album (named after a quote in slave trade abolitionist Fredrick Douglass’s book, ‘My Bondage My Freedom’) will showcase his chamber-pop take on soul music, riveting vocals and extraordinary violin talents.

Watch the video of Toliver and his band, The Sometimes, performing a sweeping version of album highlight ‘Control’.

– – –

‘Land Of CanAan’ is set to be released on May 13th.

Words by James Evans

Melody’s Echo Chamber – Crystallized

Published on ClashMusic.com. Article here.

 

Melody’s Echo Chamber have unveiled the video for ‘Crystallized’, a distorted psychedelic-pop highlight from their eponymous debut album.

Directed by Zaiba Jabbar, the trippy, Technicolor video features breathily voiced chanteuse Melody Prochet repetitively striking a match, destroying a vase of flowers and arguing with a lover.

Zaiba Jabbar said of the video: “The track has a very mellifluous syncopation to it, built from many repetitious looped sounds, so in the film I wanted to visually connect these sounds to simple actions exploring the imminent demise of love. By that I mean the beauty of the beginning and the end and the recursive behaviour that those feelings inspire in between.”

Since teaming up with Kevin Parker of Tame Impala, to produce her debut album (released in November last year), the classically trained musician’s has gained a growing cult following for her combination of glittering electronica and unpredictable sonic outbursts.

Watch it now.

– – –

Melody’s Echo Chamber will tour the UK briefly in March, visiting the following cities:

March
3 Brighton Green Door
4 Manchester Deaf Institute
5 London Scala

Click here to buy tickets for Melody’s Echo Chamber!

Words by James Evans

Peace – Follow Baby

Published on ClashMusic. com. Article here.

 

Peace have unveiled the anarchic new video for the re-release their Britpop-tinged single, ‘Follow Baby’ (released on March 24th).

Featuring a moving set with the band playing and smashing up their instruments in slow-motion, it was conceived by the band and director RobRob as the classic rock video they had wanted to make since they were fifteen. RobRob said: “Basically we wanted to make the performance as uncomfortable and messy as possible by literally screwing with the band live on set. The band themselves were so laid back, and just rolled with it all, no questions asked, and their performances were perfect from the word go.”

Showcased as Zane’s Hottest Record In The World in January, ‘Follow Baby’ follows their well-received single ‘Wraith’ and EP ‘EP Delicious’. Their debut album ‘In Love’ was helmed by Arctic Monkeys and Adele producer Jim Abliss and will be released on March 25th by Columbia Records.

The band are also set to play a lengthy UK tour in April and May on the following dates:

April

12 Manchester Club Academy
13 York Duchess
14 Newcastle Cluny
16 Glasgow The Arches
17 Edinburgh Electric Circus
18 Preston 53 Degrees
19 Sheffield Leadmill
21 Gloucester Guildhall
22 Bristol Fleece
23 Portsmouth Wedgewood Rooms
24 Brighton Concorde 2
25 Reading Sub89
26 Oxford Academy 2
27 Birmingham Academy 2
30 London Birthdays

May
1 London Birthdays
2 London Birthdays
3 London Birthdays
4 Leeds Live At Leeds

Click here to buy tickets for Peace!

Words by James Evans

Wilderness Festival Announces 2013 Line-Up

Published on ClashMusic.com. Article here.

Wilderness Festival has announced the first wave of acts for its celebration of art and nature on the 8th – 11th August this year.

Set in the striking landscapes of Cornbury Park in Oxfordshire and returning for its third year, this year’s diverse range of acts will include Empire Of The Sun, King Krule, Michael Kiwanuka, Lucy Rose and legendary Detroit troubadour, Rodriguez.

An Oscar winner in 2013 for his ‘Searching For Sugar Man’ documentary, Rodriguez said: “It is an honour and pleasure to be included to perform at this year’s Wilderness. I am told that it is at a beautiful location, so we are definitely looking forward to the scene.”

A fun, family orientated feast of seasonal cuisine, music and theatre, other attractions will include performances from Shakespeare’s Globe and Exmouth Market’s famous Moro cooking up a mouthwatering storm. Winning the award for Best New Festival in 2011 at the UK Festival awards, Wilderness will also feature performances from France’s most prolific circus and theatre collectives, Transe Express and Lespepones.

Festival organisers Dean James, Tim Harvey, Jim Whewell and Jo Vidler said: “From this year’s exquisite banqueting concepts to the epic theatrical shows we are bringing over from mainland France, it will be a weekend of both electrifying entertainments and restful escape.”

Weekend tickets cost £139 with family weekend tickets at £335 and free entry for children under ten. All tickets are available at www.wildernessfestival.com.

Words by James Evans

F.U.R.S – Striptease

Published on ClashMusic.com. Article here.

 

F.U.R.S. have unveiled the video for their sun-drenched debut single ‘Striptease’, due out on March 25th on Loose Lips Records.

A jangly and distorted wave of 60s surf-pop, the track was recorded by London siblings Liam and Ellie Wade and drummer Olly Bets at Crows Nest Studios. Taken from snippets recorded on Liam’s phone, the video is a nostalgic insight into the band’s first few months together hanging out in New York and in the studio in London.

It also includes grainy footage of the Brooklyn Bridge and the Berlin Holocaust Memorial. Fresh from supporting MS MR and Gabriel Bruce last year, the band will embark on an extensive UK tour in March, supporting Johnny Marr at cities including London, Brighton, Glasgow and Manchester.

Watch it now.

– – –

F.U.R.S. are set to play the following shows:

March
10 Oxford Academy
11 Norwich Waterfront
12 Cambridge Junction
14 Brighton Concorde
15 London Shepherd’s Bush Empire
16 Birmingham Institute
18 Sheffield Leadmill
19 Glasgow ABC
20 Liverpool Academy
22 Manchester Ritz
23 Manchester Ritz

Click here to buy tickets for F.U.R.S.

Words by James Evans

Theme Park – Album Trailer

Published on ClashMusic.com. Article here.

 

Tropical funk-rockers Theme Park have released an exciting trailer for their self-titled debut album ahead of its release on February 25th (via Transgressive Records).

The video shows footage of the band relaxing in the park, playing live, recording their album and dancing in the studio. It also features guitarist, Oscar Manthorpe, pondering animals in space: “What was the dog they flew up to Mars? What was his name? They send various things up before they send humans. I remember Laika being famous one.”

Interspersed with clips of their euphoric singles, ‘Jamaica’ and ‘Tonight’, it all bodes well for the album. The band will also play an eleven-date UK headline tour from March 11th to March 22nd, visiting cities including Brighton, Bristol and London.

Watch it now.

– – –

Theme Park are set to play the following shows:

March
11 Bristol Louisiana
12 Southampton Joiners
13 Brighton The Haunt
14 London Heaven
15 Manchester Ruby Lounge (SOLD OUT)
16 Newcastle The Cluny
18 Glasgow King Tuts
19 Sheffield The Harley
20 Norwich Waterfront Studio
21 Birmingham Temple Rooms
22 Nottingham Spankys

Click here to buy tickets for Theme Park!

Words by James Evans

OTW #477: Vondelpark

Evolving from a skittery bedroom project into an ambitious, preciously talented band, Vondelpark have avoided categorisations since releasing their debut EP ‘Sauna’ in 2010. With no MySpace page and little information about their identity, their atmospheric gloompop ditties were originally thought to be made by an enigmatic Burial-like production whizzkid.

“Were always trying to better ourselves and push ourselves,” says lead singer Lewis Rainsbury of their musical transition. Becoming interested in production after listening to one of his sister’s old Michael Jackson tapes, he and school friends Matt Law (keyboard) and Alex Bailey (bass) would shut themselves in their bedrooms as teenagers in Surrey and play with guitars and weird drum machines.

Following a short-lived incarnation as a My Bloody Valentine-esque rock band and two rough, experimental EPs (released on R&S records) influenced by the jittery, emotive electronica of UK bass, the band learned what Rainsbury describes as “space and patience” in making music.

The result is their debut album ‘Seabed’ (due out April 1st), a hypnotising blend of looped samples, slick R&B and intimate songs about coming of age. Talking about the record’s more dreamy and organic sound, Rainsbury explains, “There was a sense of returning to our roots for us.”

Stripping away the swathes of reverb and delay has also helped the band reinvent the tracks for their live shows, making them more electronic and “exciting” for crowds. While they’ve been well received by bass and dubstep fans who embraced James Blake and The xx, Rainsbury is adamant to keep the band’s music changing, citing influences from Motown artists and Timbaland to jazz-soul pioneer Robert Glasper.

“It would be nice to make a Motown record in 2013,” he ponders. It would be a departure from slow-burning album highlights like the title-track (which Bailey names as his favourite due to the John Martyn influence), but with their talent for genre-bending and a “focus on rhythm” emerging in jam sessions for record number two, the results could be striking. “This debut record is just the start,” affirms Rainsbury. “We definitely want to make people dance.”

Words by James Evans

Where: London
What: Lush, romantic bedsit electronica
Get 3 Songs: ‘Dracula’, ‘California Analog Dream’, ‘TV’
Unique fact: Vondelpark have a great love of steam rooms and saunas.

Published on ClashMusic.com. Article here.