TRACKS OF THE WEEK #13

THE JAPANESE HOUSE -  CLEAN
I HAVE LOVED WHAT AMBER BAIN HAS BEEN DOING FOR AGES, SO WHEN I FINALLY GOT THE CHANCE TO SEE THE JAPANESE HOUSE LIVE (SUPPORTING THE 1975) I WAS SO EXCITED. AS I'D EXPECTED, IT'S BEAUTIFULLY CAPTIVATING TO SEE HER PLAY LIVE. CLEAN IS DEFINITELY MY FAVOURITE TRACK, BUT THEY'RE ALL WORTH A LISTEN. 

JOHNNY LLOYD - HELLO DEATH

FOR ANYONE WHO NEEDS THE TRIBES-SHAPED HOLE IN THEIR LIVES FILLING, FEAR NOT BECAUSE FRONTMAN JOHNNY LLOYD IS GOING IT ALONE, AND IT'S SOUNDING EQUALLY AS BRILLIANT AS HE AND HIS FORMER BANDMATES DID. HELLO DEATH IS THE FIRST SONG TO BE RELEASED SINCE HIS DEBUT EP PILGRIMS, AND I HAVE TO SAY ITS MY FAVOURITE OF HIS SOLO STUFF SO FAR.

PLAYFIGHTS - VERONICA

PLAYFIGHTS ARE THREE GOOD FRIENDS OF MINE, WHO ARE JUST STARTING OUT MAKING MUSIC TOGETHER. THEY'VE RECENTLY UPLOADED A DEMO EP TO SOUNDCLOUD AND ARE LOOKING TO RECORD AN ALBUM IN THE SUMMER. VERONICA IS MY FAVOURITE, NOT JUST CAUSE IT'S GOT A REALLY NICE RIFF IN THE MIDDLE THAT WOULDN'T SOUND OUT OF PLACE ON A WILD NOTHING TRACK... CIGARETTE COMES UP A CLOSE SECOND THOUGH.

WET - DEADWATER
WET ARE ANOTHER BAND I'VE LOVED FOR AGES BUT NEVER MANAGED TO CATCH LIVE. I FINALLY SAW THEM PLAY AT THE DEAF INSTITUTE ON TUESDAY AND THEY WERE REALLY BRILLIANT. THEY PLAYED PRETTY MUCH THE ENTIRETY OF THEIR DEBUT ALBUM DONT YOU, WHICH CAME OUT IN JANUARY. IT WAS REALLY HARD TO PICK ONE SONG BECAUSE ITS A REALLY GOOD ALBUM FROM START TO FINISH, BUT DEADWATER IS A DEFINITE CROWD-PLEASER.

HINDS & PUBLIC ACCESS TV @ GORILLA, MANCHESTER (20/2/16)

AS I MENTIONED IN MY UPDATE POST, HINDS ARE A FAIRLY NEW DISCOVERY OF MINE. WHOLEHEARTEDLY EMBRACING MY NEW FOUND LOVE FOR THE SPANISH QUARTET, I DECIDED TO HAVE A LOOK IF THEY WERE PLAYING IN THE UK ANYTIME SOON... ONCE I REALISED THEY WERE, AND THAT THEY'D BE BRINGING PUBLIC ACCESS T.V. ALONG FOR THE RIDE, IT WAS A DONE DEAL. 

PUBLIC ACCESS T.V. HAVE BEEN A FIRM FAVOURITE OF MINE FOR A WHILE. I'VE ONLY MANAGED TO CATCH THEM LIVE ONCE BEFORE IN LIVERPOOL LAST YEAR WHERE I WAS HIGHLY IMPRESSED. THEY ARE WHAT I IMAGINE THE STROKES WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE TO WATCH IN 2000, HAVING THE SAME SORT OF 'NO MESSING' ATTITUDE AS JULIAN CASABLANCAS AND CO; PLAY THE SONGS, SAY THANKS AND LEAVE. THE CROWD IN MANCHESTER DIDN'T SEEM QUITE AS RECEPTIVE TO THE NEW YORK BOYS AS I'D HOPED, BUT IT IS STILL EARLY DAYS FOR THEM. NONETHELESS, THEY PLAYED WHAT FELT LIKE A SHORT (BUT SWEET) SET FILLED WITH MOSTLY NEW MATERIAL - PRESUMABLY TESTING THE WATER WITH THE CONTENT FOR THE UPCOMING ALBUM.

WHAT APPEALED MOST TO ME ABOUT THIS GIG WAS THAT I WAS WATCHING TWO BANDS OF EQUAL CALIBRE PLAYING ALONGSIDE ONE ANOTHER, RATHER THAN THE LESSER-KNOWN SUPPORT BEING COMPLETELY OVERSHADOWED BY THE HEADLINER, AS IS USUALLY THE CASE. PERHAPS THIS WAS INTENTIONAL TO REFLECT THE BANDS' OWN MENTALITY AND MUTUAL RESPECT FOR EACH OTHER? HINDS SUPPORTED P.A.T.V IN AMERICA, AND VICE VERSA IN EUROPE, TO GIVE BOTH A CHANCE TO HEADLINE SHOWS ON THEIR HOME CONTINENT.

HINDS TOOK TO THE STAGE WITH JUST AS MUCH ENERGY AS I HAD EXPECTED, AND MANAGED TO SUSTAIN THE EXCITEMENT IN THE ROOM FOR THE ENTIRE HOUR THAT THEY PLAYED FOR. WITH SOME BANDS IT FEELS LIKE THEY'RE ON AUTO-PILOT WHEN PLAYING LIVE, WHICH ISN'T SURPRISING WHEN YOU'RE DOING THE SAME THING EVERY NIGHT. BUT WITH HINDS YOU COULD REALLY TELL THAT THEY ALWAYS GIVE IT THEIR ALL, AND LOVE DOING WHAT THEY DO. IT WAS CLEAR FROM THE WAY THEY INTERACTED WITH EACH OTHER, TO HOW APPRECIATIVE THEY WERE OF ALL 530 OF US WHO CAME.
THE SETLIST WAS MADE UP ALMOST ENTIRELY OF THEIR DEBUT ALBUM - 'LEAVE ME ALONE' - WHICH WAS ONLY NATURAL, BUT THEY ALSO THREW IN SOME OF THEIR EARLIER EP TRACKS SUCH AS 'BETWEEN CANS' AND OF COURSE 'DAVEY CROCKETT' AT THE CROWD'S REQUEST.

I LEFT DETERMINED TO SEE THEM AGAIN THIS YEAR..PREFERABLY IN SPAIN, AT A FESTIVAL.. WHILST FEELING QUITE SAD THAT I WASN'T PART OF THE HINDS GANG. JUST LOOK AT THAT SISTERLY LOVE RIGHT THERE ^^^^ WHO WOULDN'T WANT TO BE PART OF THAT?

HINDS ARE CURRENTLY ON TOUR IN THE UK & EUROPE.

GO TO hindsband.com FOR MORE INFORMATION.

ALL PHOTOS TAKEN BY MYSELF.

astral coast @ the floral pavillion, new brighton (19/07/2014)

Astral Coast is a 'festival' of sorts, designed to showcase the local up-and-coming talent across Merseyside. Liverpool is a city rich with musical talent - and the scousers had their fair share of names on the bill - but the Wirral is too, which was certainly proven on Saturday night. 

Holly Fletcher, the 17-year-old behind the emerging ambient music phenomenon Låpsley, was someone I was keen to see live. Often artists who rely heavily on electronically produced elements can be disappointing live, but this girl is an exception. She joined Ghostchant halfway through his set to provide vocals, and blimey, that girl can sing. Her voice is outstanding live; so much more powerful than I'd imagined from the sparse selection of tracks you can find online. 

VEYU were next; a band who paired infectiously catchy melodies with Dry The River-style vocal arrangements. They've only been together since last year's Astral Coast, but you'd never have guessed.

   By the Sea are a band I've spoken about many times, and it's for a good reason. This was actually the first time I'd seen them play live, and - unsurprisingly - the room was packed  out for their set. Opening with their latest single, 'I See A Crystal Sky', went down well. They continued to play a good stint of new stuff, which sounds a lot less dream-like than their debut, but excellent nonetheless. 'Endless Days, Crystal Sky' is released on 18th August.

The festival organisers had clearly thought about reducing delays and keeping performances constant throughout the day by having two stages at the festival. This meant that as one band finished on one stage, another began on the next so there was always something to see, and no clashes! Bird were a discovery I made due to this setup, and their music was absolutely mesmerising. Having two female vocalists added depth to their barely-there melodies, giving the sound a Warpaint feel. They occasionally erupted into something more brash and grungey -particularly around the choruses - shattering the peace and livening the pace. 

I finished off my time at Astral Coast watching Bill Ryder-Jones. He's another one that I've spoken about multiple times, and never seen live. He was joined by a full band, but made it quite clear that he is a multi-instrumentalist himself, hopping between his guitar and a little upright piano. Probably one of the most talented, honest songwriters of our time - and he doesn't even know it. I couldn't give you a highlight, because all of it was just beautiful. It's the sort of music that you'll never tire of, and there are very few who can achieve that. 

review : catfish and the bottlemen @ central station

Catfish and the Bottlemen are probably the most hard working band out there today. Hailing from a small, seaside town on the North Wales coast, where the only music you’ll find is that of an ice cream van, it’s incredibly satisfying to see their hard work finally paying off.

I saw them play Central Station around this time last year, after they had just released debut single ‘Homesick‘, and the crowd consisted of 30 people at the very most. But a year on, it’s a totally different story. Being the closest thing to a home show for them, it inevitably sold out.

Idle Frets opened the show with a short but sweet set, that included a cover of Taylor Swift’s 'Love Story', which was an interesting choice but tastefully done. They sound somewhere between The Kooks - or any of those other  early 2000s British indie rock bands - and Dog Is Dead, with upbeat, simplistic melodies.

Catfish and the Bottlemen came on promptly at 9pm to a very excitable crowd, and opened with 'Rango'. In fact most of their 40 minute set comprised of singles and b-sides, leaving room for just two new songs and two old songs. This made me wonder whether the album will be all new stuff, or a mixture of new and old like their set. Being due for release in September it’ll be a nice way for them to celebrate the end of festival season, as they are literally playing every UK festival this year.

It was clear just how humbled they are by the recent surge of support, as lead singer Van McCann continually showed his appreciation for every member of the crowd coming out to see them throughout their performance, and they made time to chat to people afterwards. It was a refreshing change from the arrogancy that seems to be the norm these days for frontmen.

Overall their performance was, of course, undeniably faultless. It’s obvious how much they’ve been gigging because it is so much more refined - less rough-around-the-edges - whilst still being adequately energetic and engaging, something some artists seem to lack the nearer they get to ending a tour. If you haven’t seen Catfish and the Bottlemen play live before, then I strongly advise you to do so sooner rather than later. They’re impossible not to like.

Written for Post Music Depression

review : childhood @ leaf

Leaf is not your average venue. Decorated with candles, fairy lights and disco balls, it’s no student union or dingy club. The cosy, living room atmosphere was the perfect setting to watch three pretty exciting new bands on a rainy Friday evening.

First up were Hooton Tennis Club; who not only had an unusual name, but an unusual setup too. Their bassist was positioned centre stage, but didn’t say a word. Instead the role of lead singer alternated between the two guitarists on each song. It had a call-and-response effect, heightened by their sing-speak vocals. In terms of sound, it’s infused with surf rock, whilst being reminiscent of something like The Shins. 'Kathleen Sat On The Arm Of Her Favourite Chair' was definitely the highlight.

Next were Moats, another local band. The first thing to be noticed was their stage presence, which is always a good sign. They paired strong vocals with well constructed melodies. This stood out particularly on ‘Toothache‘, which also consisted of some Foals-esque guitars. The crowd were also treated to a cover of Grease’s, ‘You’re The One That I Want’, which could have been horrendous but these guys know what they’re doing.

Childhood got straight into it, opening with ‘Blue Velvet’. Compared to the two previous bands they lacked stage presence and looked a bit bored throughout, playing one song after another and barely pausing for a break. However, when new single ‘Falls Away‘ came along halfway through, followed by another newer track ‘Pinballs’, the previous haze of jangly guitar music was separated by some darker, slower melodies.

They played ten songs in total; a combination of upcoming album tracks with previous singles, ending on crowd pleaser ‘Solemn Skies’. Childhood are a band that are impossible not to like. Their music is well rounded and makes easy listening, it’s just a shame they didn't interact much.

Written for PostMusicDepression

where i went : vampire weekend // manchester

On 17th November, I went to see Vampire Weekend at the Phones4u Arena in Manchester.

Noah and the Whale were opening for them, which I thought was a bit of an odd choice.

I consider Noah and the Whale to be pretty much on par with Vampire Weekend, in terms of popularity.

I was surprised that it was an arena tour, as 'Modern Vampires of the City' is only their third album.

I think it was an over-ambitious decision. Standing was full, but the seated area looked sparse.

They would have been better playing a smaller venue that was packed than a half-empty arena.

Despite the poor turn out, they played a brilliant show. 

Ezra Koenig. That man has the best sense of humour; have you seen his tweets?

His response to the half empty/half closed arena was: "I think someone vomited in the back there"

Oh Ezra..

For me, Vampire Weekend are a band that sound equally as good (if not better) live, than on record.

At times Ezra's voice was obviously auto-tuned, but let's be honest, who cares? It still sounded good.

The set list was spot-on. I was worried about it being mostly new stuff but they definitely had the right balance.

The highlight of the evening was probably Chris Baio's fantastic dance routine.

I'll leave you with this little montage of his moves. Enjoy.

where i went : leeds festival

I finally got the photos from Leeds developed! 

(most of them are blurry and awful, but I've managed to salvage a few for this post..)

Foals // Main Stage 

 Darwin Deez (doing synchronised dancing) // NME/Radio 1 Stage

 Jaws // BBC Introducing Stage

 Charlie Boyer and The Voyeurs // Festival Republic Stage

 Phoenix // NME/Radio 1 Stage

Haim // NME/Radio 1 Stage

Looking like an over-enthusiastic tourist.

Organised chaos (festival edition) featuring a very unusual hairstyle..

I had such a brilliant weekend, and saw so many amazing bands (way too many to name!)

where i went : festival no.6

Festival Number 6 is very different to your typical festival. 

Set in the idyllic, Mediterreanean-inspired town of Portmeiron on the North Wales coast - a far cry from the usual muddy landscape most festivals offer. 

Being such a small festival (and only in it's second year of running), you'd expect the lineup to be pretty average.. but it was far from it. 

This year I was lucky enough to go on the Sunday, and (despite the terrible weather) I had a fantastic time.

photo: festivalnumber6.com

 First up was Dan Croll, a singer/songwriter from Liverpool.

 I was really looking forward to seeing him, and he was just as good as I'd hoped. 

I would describe his sound as acoustic-meets-electronic.. Quite a combination, but it definitely works.

I was hoping to see Charlie Boyer and The Voyeurs next, but unfortunately the stage they were playing got closed due to the horrible weather! 

Next was Johnny Marr. 

I've never had an interest in his solo stuff, but it was actually pretty good! 

I'd heard rumours that he would be playing some Smiths songs, which was the reason I went to see him. And sure enough, he did. 

He ended with 'There Is A Light That Never Goes Out', dedicating it to "everybody in this tent, and nobody else... except Nile Rodgers". 

And then it was time for Chic.

Nile Rogers made sure the crowd knew that he'd written all the songs they would be performing (so modest), and that they weren't just a naff covers band. 

They played all the classics, as well as some Diana Ross, Sister Sledge, and even Sugarhill Gang. 

Not one person was standing still during the 45 minute set, which says it all really!

It was a shame we didn't get to see loads of bands, but the people we did see more than made up for that!
I'd definitely recommend Festival Number 6. It's small which gives it a nice atmosphere, and the lineup is bound to be fantastic.

where i went : x&y festival

Last Saturday I went to X&Y Festival at Liverpool's O2 Academy. 

With many city-based 'festivals' springing up around the country (Dot to Dot, Sound City) it's no wonder X&Y has taken off, despite only being in it's second year of running. 

The lineup was a mixed bag - bigger names, emerging bands, and bands just starting out. For £10 it was definitely worth a try. The festival took place over two days; Saturday at the O2 Academy using both stages, and Sunday at East Village Arts Club.

photo: X&Y Festival/I Love Live Events

We arrived at about 6pm, and caught the end of Run Tiger Run's set - a new contribution to the Liverpool music scene with a sound reminiscent of Dance a la Plage, and guitar riffs to rival those created by a certain Yannis Philipakkis. You can check out their Youtube channel here.  

Next up were Jaws, one of my favourite new bands, from Birmingham. Their new single 'Gold' (and every other track they've released) will be top of your summer playlist, I can guarantee it. 

Then we had to divide our time between Discopolis on stage 2, and Catfish and The Bottlemen on stage 1. Discopolis are an electronic four-piece band from Edinburgh. Their sound is hard to describe, but you can listen to their debut single 'Lofty Ambitions' on their Soundcloud page here. 

Do I even need to tell you who Catfish and the Bottlemen are? They played a fantastic set, as always. Probably my favourite of the day, but then maybe I'm just biased..? You can check out the interview I did with them back in January here, and their new single 'Homesick' (with an even catchier B-side, 'Pacifier') is available on iTunes now.

Lastly, but by no means least, The Heartbreaks who were brilliant as expected. They played mostly new material, which sounded really good! I even got to ask Matthew a few questions..

photo: louderthanwar.com

You're from a little seaside town with a pretty much non-existent music scene. Was this a reason for starting the band - to get out of Morcambe?

Certainly. I’ve been trying to escape since the first time I ran away from home; five years old, a bindle over my shoulder and a bottle of lemonade under my arm. The best pop music is all about escapism. And we make the very best pop music. 

If you weren't in the band what do you think you'd be doing? 

We’d be in the gutter. Looking at the gutter.

Your top 5 bands at the moment?

We hate everything.

Aside from a new album this autumn (?), what else is on the cards for The Heartbreaks?

Oh, I don’t know about the autumn. A single certainly, but not an album... Until then? I dunno. A little miniature golf, a little football perhaps... 

Who did you enjoy seeing at X&Y?

Catfish & The Bottlemen. They're sweet guys. They remind me of ourselves, before the cruel and shallow money trench that is the music industry sucked out any joy that we once felt for life. 

You can find The Heartbreaks on:

Twitter

Youtube

Their website

interview : lucy rose

Last night I went to see the extremely talented Lucy Rose, at Kazimier in Liverpool. It was such a lovely evening - she was superb as I expected, and I got the chance to ask her a couple of questions before the show! (I was so nervous.. I hope I didn't come across as too much of a fool!)

On numerous occasions she said she couldn't believe how many people had come out to see her, but I wasn't surprised in the slightest that the venue was jam-packed! She interacted so well with the audience, taking the time to talk to people in between songs.

I must also praise her fantastic support act Pete Roe, he was really great - if you're going to a Lucy Rose show then definitely make the effort to go along early and see him. Unfortunately, I didn't have any money on me to buy his EP which is only available at shows.

On with the questions..! 

First of all I wanted to say thankyou for having me, and congratulations on the album!

Thankyou!

I saw you open for Noah and the Whale, do you think having a support slot on that tour helped you to be recognised as a solo artist?

I think its's a combination of different things which is how people find out about your music, and Bombay Bicycle Club was a big one for me.. But when I got offered the Noah and the Whale one it felt really good like you say.

Cause normally I'd support Bombay and then sing with them, and with Noah and the Whale I'd never met them before.. it was just a call out of the blue. Normally supports go to friends or people the record company want to put on your support slot, or favours for people. It was a really big thing for me that a band like them would just come up to me.. and it was at a time when we were just starting to record the album really. 

I think it definitely helped my confidence in a big way to think that other bands wanted me to support them and that's probably one of the biggest supports we've done. You never know if people are liking it or not because they're there to see somebody else, but over the last few tours I've met people who are like 'we saw you with Noah and the Whale and then we came to another show', so then you really see the impact it can have.

Yeah that's what I love about gigs, I love watching the supports because it's such a great opportunity to discover new bands and artists.. I have to say I've been to a couple of gigs just to see the support acts!

I do that! Years ago I went to see Bon Iver supporting Iron and Wine, it was his first ever gig in London.. I left before Iron and Wine! Well, after a bit I was like 'I'm bored..'

Had you always wanted to do music as a career or was it just a hobby?

Yeah it was just a hobby, it was something I enjoyed a lot. I think when I was growing up I just didn't think that would be an option. I always enjoyed music and I always thought 'I'd absolutely love to do that' but I just didn't know how I would do it or anything. It was only when I started playing the guitar.. I taught myself the guitar when I was about 15, I bought one and taught myself, and I was really bad but that's the time I started writing little things. It was only as my writing developed and I was really enjoying the songwriting part that I felt like it was something I should try pursuing really. 

That was actually one of my questions, did you ever have any music lessons?

No I never had a singing lesson or guitar lesson. A singing teacher came to our gig the other day and he came up and bought like 3 CDs for his pupils and he asked me to sign them and I asked him what he taught and he said singing, so I was like 'I need some help!' and he was like 'no you don't!'. That was the biggest compliment! I got a gold star from this vocal coach, when I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing.

What's the most surreal moment or experience that you've had?

Reading Festival was a really surreal day as a whole. It was just  mad. I did an NME signing tent in the morning thinking no one was going to come, then I had all these kids come wanting me to sign their wellies.. it was like an hour of signing I think!

Then I did my show and there were like 2000 people or more squashed into this tent, and again I didn't think anyone was going to come! 

I hadn't sung with Bombay Bicycle Club for a few months, I'd left and then I re-joined them at Reading and sang some songs. I did that thing in the tree house at the end of the day after their set on the Main Stage, with Fearne Cotton and Greg James and I went to bed that evening thinking 'this has been the most surreal day of my entire life!'. It was really special, like the whole thing was special.

Bands and artists that you're liking at the moment?

I love Feist's album so much, Metals, it's my favourite album of the year nearly. Then there's The Maccabees 'Given to the Wild'.. um, Grizzly Bears' new album is something I'm listening to a lot. *to the band* What else do we listen to in the van? We listen to Kurt Vile.. We've been given the new Pete Roe album, he's our support, his album sounds amazing.

Lucy Rose is on tour until the end of the month. You can find dates and tickets here.