Not Another Nothing Blog

New Slang!

2010-09-04T14:00:00.000-07:00

On Thursday 26th August 2010, I popped my New Slang virginity. They were playing host to one of indie’s all-time great bands; The Walkmen. Supporting were the new guys, Surfer Blood, who are Florida’s answer to some attitude-fueled surf-rock.

New Slang is currently held at The Hippodrome in Kingston-Upon-Thames and is affiliated with local independent record shop Banquet. From Vampire Weekend to Foals, Blood Red Shoes to Two Door Cinema Club, New Slang is the venue to catch big bands in small places.

Surfer Blood were fierce and fun, with one of the band members looking 12 years old and the others looking like his Uncle. They are cool!

Headliners The Walkmen drew a crowd of loyal fans; from Jarvis Cocker look-a-likes to cocky man-boys. The highlight of their set was a live version of “The Rat”, sending the crowd into a singing and dancing frenzy, like an alternative version of Flashdance!

After the live music the DJs played a fun and eclectic mix of pop, indie and electro hits, keeping the sticky dance-floor crowded and electric until the early hours of the morning.

With an exceptionally good ticket price and student friendly drink offers, the night draws people from across London and the Home Counties. It’s a yes from me.

Back Again...

2010-08-14T15:20:00.001-07:00

As I have said many times before, I have neglected my silly little blog. I know, I know, I’m rubbish. However, after re-entering the realms of single-dom, I have decided there is no reason to neglect it anymore. So here is a little taster of what is to come... I leave you with the mix-tape I made a few days after the break-up I endured a few weeks ago. It’s horrendously depressing and probably made me feel worse, but it is a corker. To quote Rob Fleming from Nick Hornby’s ‘High Fidelity’ (my favourite ever book) : “Did I listen to the music because I was miserable? Or was I miserable because of the music?”

So here it is...

The Break Up, Volume 1:

1. Sentimental Heart - She & Him

2. Make It Easy On Yourself - The Walker Brothers

3. I Don’t Blame You - Cat Power

4. I Need Some Fine Wine And You, You Need To Be Nicer - The Cardigans

5. Broken Bones - Howling Bells

6. Heart Skipped A Beat - The XX

7. I Know It’s Over - The Smiths

8. Most Of The Time - Bob Dylan

9. I Sleep Alone - Richard Hawley

10. To The End - Blur

11. Everyday I Write The Book - Elvis Costello & The Attractions

12. Graceland - Paul Simon

13. So Sorry - Feist

14. Hard Times - Plan B

15. Sorrow - The National

16. Who Loves The Sun - The Velvet Underground

17. You Bring Me Down - The Like

18. Blinding - Florence + The Machine

19. You Go YOur Way, I’ll Go Mine - Carole King

20. High And Dry - Radiohead

21. On Your Own Again - Scott Walker

Music for 2010

2010-03-27T09:58:00.000-07:00

ERLAND AND THE CARNIVAL

http://www.myspace.com/carnical

ESBEN AND THE WITCH

http://www.myspace.com/esbenandthewitch

SKY FERREIRA

http://www.myspace.com/skyferreira

I AM VEXED - We Both Got Hit (New Video)

2010-02-10T02:09:00.001-08:00

we both got hit from I Am Vexed on Vimeo.

OPERATOR PLEASE - NEW MATERIAL!

2010-01-15T05:36:00.000-08:00

COME AND LISTEN TO "LOGIC"

Operator Please have made one of their new songs available on their MySpace page and quite frankly, it's fantastic. Reaching to a grittier, grimier sound with a filthy bassline and Prince / Jackson-eque vocals, hopefully they'll get the United Kingdom welcome they deserve. First album "Yes Yes Vindictive" was a powerful debut- it was electric, full of attitude and a splendid pop masterpiece. The new sound is more mature, it hits the right notes. With a new keyboardist and sharper style they will surely get some ears twitching. If Logic is anything to go by, the new album will be exemplary.

Jay Reatard, Rest In Peace.

2010-01-15T05:01:00.001-08:00

POSTED FROM: http://www.jayreatard.com/2010/01/jay-reatard-1980-2010/

"Jimmy Lee Lindsey, Jr. died in his sleep on Wednesday morning. He was 29 years old.

He is survived by his mother Devonna May, his father Jimmy Lindsey, and his sisters Leslie Lindsey, Stephanie Duncan and Gara May. He’ll be missed by music fans all over the world.

With 22 full-length albums and over 100 releases, Jay dedicated his life to music. He played nearly one thousand shows in over 20 countries around the world. He was incredibly grateful for all the support his fans gave him over the years.

UPDATE: The memorial service will take place on Saturday, January 16 at 5:00pm at Memorial Park Funeral Home, 5668 Poplar Avenue, Memphis, TN. This will be open to the public.

If you knew, played with, or were a fan of Jay and his music, please share your thoughts, stories, memories and condolences in the comments below.

Download: Jay Reatard – Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle"

CONTRA! Vampire Weekend!

2010-01-07T10:53:00.000-08:00

Vampire Weekend have made their new album "Contra" available to stream online. It's pretty exciting.

Meeting Of Important People

2010-01-05T10:02:00.000-08:00

They made an album. They named it after themselves.

Some people would say there are too many bands like Meeting Of Important People, but I refuse to agree with them. They reek of happiness, their sunny dispositions celebrated in a lo-fi pop punk 10 track album named after themselves (Meeting Of Important People.)

The trio of uber-geek boys from Pittsburgh have made an album much more worthy of summer than of the winter blues that currently surround us all. They have Weezer’s energy and Pavement’s clever lyrics... there’s something very American teen-movie about their sound. The vocals are almost careless and the flaws are obvious but hide no emotion. Brittney Lane Don’t Care starts the album, it’s cheery and light-hearted. It is also one of the best tracks on the album.

One O’Clock is another stand-out track. Its balladic and emotional. That’s really all there is to say about the song. But it IS good song. Admittedly it is no “Candle In The Wind” but y’know, it has crescendo’s, tambourine and lots of cymbal. A little bit of me can’t help but wish Rod Stewart made a guest appearance. It’s also quite Fleet Foxey. Cute.

Dead Man isn’t the best song on the track. It acts like a time-filler. An OK b-side that you’d listen to if you forgot to turn the CD off, or a track you’d listen to on an album if you weren’t listening properly..

I Know Every Street is pretty. Sometimes it’s difficult for bands to successfully pass that difficult bump in the middle of an album however it’s strong and hearty, reaching and strong. It’s followed by a lovely song called Mothers Pay More. It’s warm and mellow, a simple melody that has been held up with dramatic instrumentation and head-turning bluesy guitar solos. The tambourine also makes a welcome guest appearance.

Down In The Hollow is the penultimate track. It’s acoustic and folky, cleverly relating to the current musical trends covering the press (Frightened Rabbit, Mumford and Sons, Bon Iver) it’s short and pleasing. More Autumnal than the rest of the album. Satisfyingly warm and comforting.

The last track is Nothing’s Going On. It’s quite slow to start. Almost sleep-inducing slow, but then it picks up around 1 minute in. It’s has that almost finale-like melody to it. It’s big, the vocals are big, the instruments are big until the last 20 seconds when it fades and fades, everything gets much calmer and eventually, almost like the motion of a train, slows to a halt.

Meeting Of Important People have made a great debut album. It has highs and lows, incorporates different sounds and is easy to listen to without losing complexity. This is a recommendation, now go and listen!

Spiffy Clyro

2009-12-06T11:28:00.000-08:00

Biffy Clyro are “da bomb” (apologies for using such a 90’s phrase). To demonstrate this statement I have a great example: Their new album, "Only Revolutions," starts with 'The Captain'. The intro sounds like it belongs in a John Williams soundtrack; think Star Wars more than E.T, although despite this, the video is more Pirates of the Caribbean. It is a fabulous, if a little cheesy, track one.

On the whole, "Only Revolutions" is great. "Puzzle" was also great and all their work before that. It's confusing how such a fantastic band are not as popular as they should be. Their videos alone should up the female audience, after all, who wouldn't want to see Simon with his top off (and if you watch the video for The Captain, he’s dancing in a cage, in a similar way to Shakira in the 'She Wolf' vid)!? Understandably the male audience aren't so bothered about the semi-naked (and obviously self indulgent) videos, however the album is a clever mix of rock and pop. The soothing Scottish vocals heavily mixed with grinding guitars, ballads and clever orchestration are enticingly spectacular, tempting you in to listen on repeat.

'Many Of Horror' is slow and sad. 'I still believe it’s you and me ‘till the end of time' leads us into the chorus. It’s pretty and longing. Although mellower than it’s sister songs, it fits perfectly with the continuity of the album. It is rumored that 'Many Of Horror' will be released as the forth single from the album.

'That Golden Rule' was the second release from "Only Revolutions." It’s exciting and energetic, with lots of shouting, prominent guitars and big drums. Hitting number 10 in the UK charts, it was a reasonable success, however it didn’t have the success of the previous single. That was 'Mountains,' which reached number 5 and was the bands biggest chart success to date. Mountains, for some strange reason, was released in August 2008 however the album wasn’t out until November 2009, with 'That Golden Rule' hitting the shops in August 2009. That is a lot of statistics to get through, but all you need to know is that they are all bloody good singles.

In short, without writing a small essay, the album is great. It has everything you want from an album - humour, emotion, excitement and melancholia. The vocals are sometimes soft, sometimes gravely, there is something to cry to and something to dance to. The videos have been made with panache and love and the album has been tweaked and perfected by three Scottish musicians who, without a doubt, are passionate and talented to the core.

Rediscovered Love

2009-11-24T17:42:00.000-08:00

Richard Hawley.

At approximately 1am this morning I decided to put on an album I haven't listened to in a while. Lady's Bridge is incredible. It's bluesy, full of soul, rock'n'roll and pop. It gained mixed reviews after it's release in 2007, after all it was the follow-up release to "Coles Corner" which was Mercury nominated and in itself, a masterpiece. Unfortunately he lost the prize to his Sheffield brothers Arctic Monkeys with their tremendously successful debut "Whatever People Say I Am That's What I Am Not".

The album is chock-a-block full of amazing tracks. For me, the key tracks are "Valentine" "Roll River Roll" and "The Sun Refused To Shine". Of course, nothing beats the best song on the album, the heart-warming and beautiful track "Tonight The Streets Are Ours", it's full of 60's charm, a mix of Scott Walker, Elvis Presley and Burt Bacharach. It's possibly one of the prettiest songs ever written.

So go on, go forth and discover him if you've never listened, go and enjoy him once again if you've forgotten.

ROXY MUSIC'S MANIFESTO

2009-11-22T15:42:00.000-08:00

Originally this blog was supposed to be about new music. However, sometimes it is easier to despair at new music rather than rejoice. Another band crowned by the NME as the “Best New Band” (blargh blargh blargh) will be the same as the one they crowned before. HELLO Razorshite, where did you go? A good example (along with Towers of London, The Others, The Kooks etc) of bands who have had huge and sudden success thrrrrrust upon them and then the trap doors have opened and they’re hung in a sad pool of unpopularity and bad “indie” music forever. A friend told me once that before Razorlight released their latest album (Wikipedia tells me it’s called Slipway Fires) in 2008, he saw Johnny Borrell at a party and Borrell was telling everyone who would listen, that this album was the best he had EVER written and was pointing out which tracks were going to be stand-alone out-right hits. I ask you this - can you remember any singles from this album, or this album being released at all? Thought not.

So, I get to my point. Roxy Music released album number 6 in 1979. It is called “Manifesto”. It was critically slaughtered (by Rolling Stone. Pfft, what do they know?!) and it’s my favourite Roxy Music album of the moment. The LP cover is a group of shop-front mannequins dressed in party clothes a la late 70’s, with streamers and confetti looking like they’re having a jolly good party. Bryan Ferry has one of the most hypnotic voices in British popular music. I saw him walking along a street in Kensington a year-or-so ago and he still dresses in a sublimely cool manner and looks every inch the pop-music darling. The album is full of tense, fun, sexy and emotive instrument solos and intros. First track “Manifesto” starts with rhythmic bass, guitar and drums, tapping away, like a distant relative of the intro to “Edge of Seventeen” by Stevie Nicks (I love that song too), it builds up, going on and on for 2 minutes and 30 seconds. On the 31st second, Ferry saunters in with the line “I am for a life around the corner that takes you by surprise”. Nice. The song sounds like anticipation feels, slowly going up key by key feeling like it’s ready to come to a head and then goes back to the original.

We then meet “Trash” starting with rocketing guitars, and feeling wholly like a song that has jumped from a Martha And The Muffins album (Metro Music) it’s jazzy and full of saxophone and the casually delectable vocals just smoothly moving along. It creates a nice predecessor for “Angel Eyes” (personal favourite)... Ferry croons “oh angel eyes, am I deceived or did you sigh?” with a soft and spine tingling vibrato end to the verse. The quick pace and major key keeps everything rolling along in a happy fashion. “Still Falls The Rain” and “Stronger Through The Years” end the first half of the album. “Still Falls the Rain” keeps upbeat, although not as much as Angel Eyes and Trash, however “Stronger Through The Years” is slower, slightly more balladic. With echoing vocals and big soaring guitars its a dense and imposing song, hypnotic. End of side A.

On to side B! First “Ain’t That So” a lightly reggae - jazz intro. Like much of the album, the smooth beginning leads up to an exciting chorus “ain’t that so, ain’t that so” sings the band, it’s moody and dark creating and imaginary bar, smoky and warm. Track 2, side B is “My Little Girl”, more of a Clash-like intro which then, very quickly transforms in to the most soppy and Wet Wet Wet-alike song of Manifesto. “Dance Away” sounds like a song that’s played at the end of a disco. Not in a bad way, however it definitely isn’t the best song of the album and the band sing “dance away the heartache, dance away the fear”, a tiny bit cheesy with a disconcertingly fast drumming in the background. “Cry, Cry, Cry” is not a Johnny Cash cover. It’s fun. Johnny Cash, by the way, is sometimes fun too! But the Roxy Music song is uplifting and quick. Ferry sounds cheeky and casual, like he wants everyone to cry for joy. Yeah! Sadly, the next song is the final from the masterpiece Roxy Music album. “Spin Me Round” is a fitting finale, Bryan Ferry emotionally sings “Now the ballroom´s empty, Everybody I have known has been and gone, With the music over here am I”. It’s a gentle and touching song, a soft end and total contrast to side A, more largo than allegro. The last few seconds of the album is the twinkly sounds of what could be a xylophone, it is like a baby toy that plays twinkle twinkle little star to get the baby to sleep.

Of course, Roxy Music had more than music, they had Bryan Ferry. An icon of cool. I find it hilarious that he changed his look every album and when the Roxy Music fans went to the live shows, they were dressed in outfits an album behind. It goes to show that they were ahead of many other bands in not only their music, but style. Inspiring people like Franz Ferdinand its obvious that Roxy Music’s work will last forever.

2009-09-11T14:56:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since my “middle-class” (see silly comment below) music views have been aired. Apologies. But I’m now back for good, better than ever. (I have never understood how my opposition to Duffy and correct use of grammar have made me sound middle class. After all, Morrissey is proudly working class but has impeccable English language skills and is vegetarian. Noone judges him because of his working class background. Since when did it become so bold-a problem to be a member of a "class"? Surely the class system died long ago.)

I AM Vexed - Did You Want My Axe? - Single Launch

2009-07-09T07:37:00.000-07:00

I AM VEXED

The Third Degree have got Duffy begging for "Mercy"

2009-06-26T07:10:00.000-07:00

After the song “Mercy” was released by Welsh singer Duffy in February 2008, it has been played repeatedly on the radio, television, in adverts and shops. It brought along claims that Duffy was the “new” Dusty Springfield. However, this has probably left Dusty turning in her grave. After all, the London- born singer, who dominated the sound of the 1960s and 70s (with 18 singles in the Billboard Hot 100 in 1964–1970), was a living legend. Duffy, although able to claim having the best selling album of 2008 with “Rockferry” a Grammy and 3 Brits, has now sold-out to Diet Coke, has a highly irritating over-use of vibrato and sounds like Adele. Oh, and Amy Winehouse. With the air of a young Lulu.

HOWEVER, The Third Degree have decided to take the top third selling single of 2008 (Mercy, written by Duffy and Steve Booker) and rework it into an Acid Jazz spectacular. Using popular jazz, blues, a little motown and a hell of a lotta funk, they’ve changed this over-played pop hit into the grooviest, smoothest northern soul style cover song of 2009.

It begins with jazz influenced drums and staccato trumpet, every other bar with a smooth helping of saxophone. The vocals are gravelly, like an old soul singer who has spent his years perfecting that “lived-in” sound, from decades of singing in smoke-filled clubs and soaking his vocal chords in bourbon whiskey. It has got dance-appeal, Mark Ronson- style production and some foot- tappingly sweet instrument arrangement. There’s a hint of carnival style beats in the background, fabulously dense brass orchestration and a heady dose of musical magnificence.

Fuck Duffy, we’ve got The Third Degree.

Glass Candy - Italians Do It Better @ Koko Camden 11 June 2009

2009-06-15T15:16:00.000-07:00

Much anticipation surrounded this gig as soon at it was announced earlier this year. Bands from the Italians Do It Better record label were hitting London for one (very special) night only. Us Brits have been waiting over a year for Glass Candy to touch the shores of our great country and boy, what a set worth waiting for. After a late start, bottle of amaretto (sneakily smuggled in, hidden in a friends bag) finished, and a hearty array of the best Italian House and electro music, the lights dimmed. Glass Candy consists of two band members: the brain box behind the big beats and sounds Johnny Jewel and the gloriously limber singer Ida No.

The set began shakily with “Beatific”, the sound was, to say the least, horrific. It was not the fault of the band; it was audibly obvious that the sound was at fault, the levels all wrong. Ida No graciously carried on, dancing in a way that was reminiscent of the 1980’s aerobics classes. On a less positive note, there was a significantly high number of twats in the audience, not even nodding their heads let alone tapping their feet. Before you say “but they may not of known who Glass Candy were”, they did. Oh yes, it was visible they were singing along when they though no one was watching.

The sound improved when the set progressed into “Candy Castle”, a sexually charged and hypnotic song, drenched in the Italian House and synthetic beats one usually only dreams of. The audience started to soak up the music and move to it.

During their delightful and seductive set, there was an air of sensual excitement, bodies moving in dance shaped ways and a strangely euphoric atmosphere. Ida No and Johnny Jewel made, moved and shaked their way to songs Beats Alive, Versicolour and Geto Boys to name but a few. Ploughing through numbers from their three albums “Love Love Love” “B/E/A/T/B/O/X” and “Iko”, they fed the crowd creative waves of movement. By the end of the show, a large proportion of the audience were dancing the aerobics way like Ida No. Salacious and seductive were the beats, too impossible not to dance.

So, for those who are having a summer of boredom on their stereo, are sick of the same old radio bullshit and depressed with the awful stock in HMV, head to Amazon or eBay. I prescribe you a good healthy dose of Italian Disco. While you’re there, buy some Lindstrøm because his music sets dance floors alight.

Metro Station... "Shake It"?!.. Pish.

2009-04-24T10:24:00.000-07:00

After the first time of seeing the video for “Shake It” there was a thousand and one things that had to be written down. Of course, we all know it’s a shit song. There’s no use in pretending that its “fun!” and a “summer tune” because it is not and never will be, either of those things.

Firstly, the image; Metro Station look like McFly meets Blink 182 (the latter had a good career whilst the former are a bunch of boring and edge-less, stage school boys). Their ‘emo’ hair, check shirts and tattoos ain’t fooling anyone, that’s unless you have impaired vision. They prance around and tell you to “shake shake, shake shake, shake it” with their LA perfected “rawwwkkkk” image, trying to be cool, but singing a song that would be more comfortably released by The Saturdays. If Ozzy was dead, he’d be turning in his grave. He’d be doing a fucking war dance.

Secondly, the song; where is a good starting point? The song is poppy and repetitive; it has guitars and the usual, nothing out of the ordinary. The band are sure to have a big teeny-bopper following, those kids trying to be edgy and cool but at the end of the day, they are not the ones at the front of the year book with dazzling smiles and perfectly tamed hair. The song is tremendously irritating, it grates on the very soul of the listeners enduring a prolonged audio or visual version of the song, so much so that they have to laugh at it or change the channel. Unfortunately, humour can only be induced when one is viewing the video.

So the conclusion is, Metro Station and their pop hit (god knows why) “Shake It” is salaciously gash.

Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career

2009-04-11T16:31:00.000-07:00

Who cares if it’s raining outside, there are riots in central London and there is a huge economic downturn that is set to ruin our lives for the next decade? If it means that bands make more albums like this sunshine filled delight then it is unfathomable how people can give two shillings.

Lead singer Tracyanne Campbell has a voice like honey, Glaswegian honey. Through her soft vocals comes through a wee taste of her Scottish lilt, a soothing blend complemented by echoing backing vocals and lullaby-like orchestration.

‘French Navy’, first single of the album (released 13 April 2009 on 4AD) and track 1 of ‘My Maudlin Career’, starts like a hit first played in the 60s. Radio Caroline would certainly have been proud to play it. “You make me go oooo/ With the things that you do” coo’s Campbell, wooing the listener. Heck, everyone will have a crush on her after hearing this album.

This LP, being their fourth, has taken Camera Obscura ever closer to the realms of The Concretes, with sounds full of flourishes of Phil Spector, Tobi Legend, Burt Bacharach and Sandi Shaw which results in something utterly delectable. The sixties are making a comeback musically, The Last Shadow Puppets being a huge hit with the old and young generations. More Scott Walker, Twiggy, northern soul and harmonious pop. Yay for the sixties!

In the press release for the record, Campbell explained that the new album is “quite dark” and “brutal” however in true Camera Obscura fashion; the heartbreakingly twee and dreamy pop songs pull out a string of emotions from happiness, to sadness through to elation and gloom. At its heart the record is soul, sprinkled with enchanting balladry and a little forlorn country. The rise and fall of relationships ending and new ones beginning…

‘James’ a sad ballad about heartbreak, which seems easy to relate to as Tracyanne softly sings “can’t you see you belong with me… oh James you broke me/ I thought I knew you well”. A heart-wrenching tear-jerker, vocals filled with despair and sadness.

‘My Maudlin Career’ cleverly reels you in thinking it's going to be all doom and gloom, however a powerful and melodic hook whacks you between your eyes and Tracyanne coos away, "My maudlin career has come to an end, I don't wanna be sad again." There’s a feeling, however, in true Camera Obscura fashion, that Tracyanne will be sad again, and that she’ll write a beautiful heartbreaking song about it.

The last song is ‘Honey In The Sun’- the perfect close to an album that feels like warm summer rain, looks like pretty girls in flowery dresses and tastes like your favourite ever cake. “I wish my heart was cold/ but it’s warmer than before/ I wish my heart was as cold as the morning dew/ but it’s as warm…. as honey in the sun for you” sings Tracyanne, in her soothing and truthful vocals.

This is definitely one of the top albums of 2009, up there with Animal Collective’s ‘Merriweather Post Pavilion’, Franz Ferdinand’s ‘Tonight’ and Bat For Lashes ‘Two Suns’. This is Camera Obscura’s most splendid album yet, so on Monday wipe away the post- Easter chocolate hangover and spend a few pennies on ‘My Maudlin Career’. It’ll be the best few quid you’ll spend this year.

WHITE LIGHT @ THE LEXINGTON 28 MARCH 2009

2009-03-29T15:02:00.000-07:00

W/ ARROWS OF LOVE, GOOD BOOKS AND YOUNG PAUL...

London is a strange city. There are so many things always going on, people constantly in a rush to get somewhere, tapping away on their blackberries and working on the train, boys wanting to be rock stars and girls wanting to be Kate Moss (or Daisy Lowe or Brody Dahl…) in light of this, there are many places to go on a Friday night but its difficult to avoid a night playing the same music with the same people in the same tedious manner. It is no wonder people are deciding to stay in or create raucous house parties to spice up the weekend!! However, after hearing about the night “White Light” a decision was made to try something new. Shoreditch has been done to death, Camden lost an inner light a couple of years ago and central London is no better. The Lexington (Pentonville Road) has recently re-opened post renovation and is filled with plush furniture, chandeliers and the longest list of bourbon whiskey you have seen in your life. It is obvious that it will soon be the new trendy hang-out for the cool kids, hot off the trail of a Hoxton nightmare.

Opening the night with a funky sound that would put quite a few new bands to shame was 6 month old London-based duo “Young Paul”. Being the first band on is a daunting prospect, however Carole and Omer didn’t shy away from the task and put on a show of pulsating synths and hypnotic vocals. Israel- born Omer looks (and sounds), like the missing link of Hot Chip, his massive afro swaying to the rhythm and newly polished shoes daintily moving across the stage. Carole has a stage presence that’s terrifically powerful and she dresses like all her clothes are purchased from a charity shop, but looks cool with it (maybe because she’s French). Their music is 80s fantasticalness meets modern day electro. If James Ford met Annie Lennox and Bon Jovi whilst at the same time was working with LCD Soundsystem and Sons & Daughters, you’d get the sound of Young Paul. As many new bands, there is still ground to find and bits of the live show are slow and dare I say it, dull. Thankfully there are highs; Young Paul are definitely worth listening out for.

The youthfully energetic Good Books were next to grace the stage with their charming sound. There was a substantial number of Good Books appreciators in the audience and they happily sang along and danced their knees into the ground. Despite a split with their record label last year, the music is better than ever (especially the cover of Yazoo’s ‘Only You’ on the myspace page- a personal favourite. A small wrench of disappointment was felt when they did not include the cover in their set). The tunes are bigger, sexier and funkier and stick to the zingy Talking Heads/ Depeche Mode meets Cure/ New Order soaked beeping-and-clicking music they are famed for creating. The new songs went down well, a sound much stronger than that of their debut album ‘Control’. The set started with a resonant version of ‘Passchendaele (KGB remix)’. It’s a rare and strange occurrence to see a band play a remix of one of their songs live, but it provided an atmosphere of euphoria with sounds uncannily alike to Sigur Rós’ ‘Hoppipolla’. ‘The Illness’, a track from their first album, was joined by an impromptu audience sing-along with at least half of the room joining in with “dancing, tripping up, falling down, bruised”, accompanied by the majority of them dancing (but not tripping up, or falling down). With the preview of new songs from their forthcoming album, there’s no questioning that Good Books LP number 2 is going to be a supersize treat!

Headliners were Arrows of Love are a grungy post-punk electro quintet of 3 girls and 2 boys. The set started with a feeling of The Fall meets Pavement. Something terribly early 90s and fantastically dark but without the narcissistic moodiness that some of the bands of said era carried with them. The audience, again, seemed enthralled by the live music and nodded their heads approvingly. Arrows of Love not only provided this deep sound, but mixed it up with some Howling Bells style vocals when the glamorous Luis took to the mic. Mixing a sound of Sonic Youth and Stereolab, there were highs and lows. The majority of the set was soaked in the bands painlessly noisy sounds; however there were a few dips when slower and less- established songs were played. Unlike the Good Books set, it was somewhat easier to get distracted during some of their songs. However, despite this problem, Arrows of Love proved themselves worthy of a musical audience. Give them a little more time and they’ll creep in to the radar when you least expect it.

After the fantastic live music, the night funked up and DJs played the latest and greatest music, hitting the roots of retro soul, motown, rockabilly and country, indie and rock and left the audience giddy from dancing like lunatics. White Light, deep in the Islington part of town, is one fabulous night to go to. There is little doubt in my mind that those with a good set of dancing shoes and a penchant for great music will enjoy their Friday night spent here.

CHEW LIPS

2009-03-16T11:00:00.000-07:00

Image by Matthew Beedle

Early 2008 saw the formation of Chew Lips, an ensemble of 3 trendy new-disco electro loving Londoners. First playing at a New Cross house party, they have developed in to a UK- touring, Howling Bells- supporting dance-fest.

There’s something of a less-screamy Crystal Castles about Chew Lips. There’s more funk, a beat that’s just too easy to groove to. Tigs, the only girl in the band, is in charge of vocals. There has been a huge rise in female lead bands and artists, a trend that has been long awaited. The aforementioned Crystal Castles, Ladyhawke, Little Boots and La Roux to name but a few. These are girls who pack a punch and are, on occasion, reminiscent of the fearless front-ladies of music; the likes of Patti Smith, PJ Harvey and the one and only chick-with-a-dick, Peaches. Tigs, like these brave lasses, does not let anything stand in her way. Her vocals are soulful and punchy, not too harsh, not too smooth. Think Karen O and Beth Ditto but with the look of a French art student.

One can tell they are still finding their Casio-shaped feet. There’s a definite sound somewhere in their music. ‘Solo’, being the future single (out March 23rd on Kitsuné), is the perfect example. It’s got a catchy chorus with Tigs singing “we don’t wanna wait, there’s no time no time” and an LCD Soundsystem- esque synth (think Losing My Edge) tapping away in the background, controlled by Will and James making casiotone beats from a drum machine and creating “a joyful racket” from as many instruments as they can acquire. Other tracks to listen out for are ‘Twin Galaxies’- think Yeah Yeah Yeahs in their ‘Fever To Tell’ era and ‘Play Together’ which is more Glass Candy- meets- Kraftwerk. These can be found on the bands MySpace page (myspace.com/chewlips).

Steve Lamacq has named the still unsigned Chew Lips as the big thing for 2009. It’s never a bad thing to have Lamacq’s blessing, as he is one of the don’s of the indie world.

They have a busy ’09 ahead of them, with performances at Camden Crawl, The Great Escape, Secret Garden Party and Bestival. If you have the chance, go and see them. If not, Steve Lamacq suggests you give them a listen.

I

7 DOLLAR TAXI

2009-03-11T13:14:00.000-07:00

What have the Swiss done for us? Cheese. Albert Einstein. And not forgetting, the Large Hadron Collider. But also, a little bit of music....

Exciting new Swiss band? Yeurgh.

Go check these muthalickers out at their beloved myspace page. Think, errr, The Wannadies?! But younger, brighter and more European.

Their live show is energetic, pogo-ing along from song to song. They have a small cult following in Lahndin, which is growing gig by gig. From trend-oo's to trend-onts, there is a punked up pop tune for everyone to shuffle along to- be it the big, almost-anthemic "Do The Robot", or the raggedly darker "Radio Monotone". There's a sprinkling of Babyshambles in their sound, which jiggles along a-kin to the indie darlings Supergrass.

They have already warmed the stage for bands like Babyshambles, Maximo Park and The Automatic.... and have headlined Proud Galleries, Inn On The Green in Ladbroke Grove and other such places. Not forgetting some impressive airplay and videoplay from XFM, BBC 6 Music, Radio 1, MTV 2 and NME TV. Lovely jubbly.

If you like something European that isn't cheese, scientists or big bang theories, then have a listen to these boys. Afterall, the Swiss are a proud bunch and wouldn't let just any rubbish beam out to the world.

BABY MONSTER

2009-02-28T09:20:00.000-08:00

This little unsigned band have just appeared on MySpace out of nowhere. Whilst on a hunt for venues to play in the UK they sent their London friends messages asking for information on venues to play whilst they do a little tour in the UK. And what a ruddy good idea this was!

Baby Monster originate from the US (Oregon to be precise) and have followed in the well trodden footsteps of the hippy-happy electro popsters also to cross the pond. Think MGMT and Animal Collective, but with some good ol’ British influence of Bowie, Happy Mondays and a bit of Eno. There are only four tracks on their MySpak page at present however they are truly great. Their grimy, energetic electro beats swoosh like Richard Branson’s private jet and the vocals have a reaching ambience that could possibly cheer up the most depressed of those suffering with the “winter blues”. It isn’t often easy to compare a band to a good dose of vitamins D and K (thank you sunshine) however these moog-tapping pretty boys could easily fit in the sun-drenched festival season, maybe somewhere before Empire Of The Sun and Depeche Mode. Fuck yes.

“Ultraviolence and Beethoven” the most-played track on their myspace page, feels like a mini- homage to the most recent Animal Collective album “Merriweather Post Pavillion” and Air’s “Moon Safari” whilst scraping back a hell-a lot of integrity and shaking it up in a big colourful ball of their unique cheeriness.

“Young Bridget Bardots” sounds more grimy and hip hop. It shows this pair of music freaks know how to press the right buttons on their computers to make big synthetic sounds, without repeating themselves over and over again. This would not sound out of place being played at Hoxton Bar & Grill or the Old Blue Last on an evening, a thousand trendy Shoreditch vamps nodding their bleach-blonde bobs whilst the boys polish their fake geek-specks, tap their brogues and have a “who has the tightest trousers” contest.

“Shopping Mall Jesus” another of the songs, is as good as the others. There is a consistency to their goodness. Not only would this band fit in the fashionista covered East-End, but also places like The End, more dancey and electro venues where there are less tight trousers and more pill-popping dance-kids.

This band are going to be big. You heard it here first! Summer 2010 will see these guys ripping the roof off the best dance tents at the festivals- and if I’m wrong I’ll chew on one of Pete Doherty’s socks.

Or not any other music blog?

2009-02-26T03:12:00.000-08:00

A place where I can rant about music I like, music I don't and other such trivial brain thoughts from the mind of this 20-something muso-nerd.

Super!