Album Reviews

Single Reviews

Amiina

One of the girls in Amiina is wife or girlfriend of a fellow Efterklang member...

Gentle string arrangements plotted with xylophone into another Colleen style spread. LP review coming as soon as I can...

Canon Blue

On Rumraket... y'know- run by those marvelous Efterklangees! I'm due for a review LP soon...

Slightly Tunng, only more experimental.

Niandra Ladies

They have a split release coming on out Static Caravan sometime in the future with Phelan Shappard (State River Widening etc).

From Japan!

Familiar Trees

Just got a request from these like, a minute ago. Give 'em a listen and you'll realise why I've thrown 'em on here!

For fans of Colleen, Juana Molina and the like... top stuff!

Happy Penguin Hungry Bear

A light Jazz ensemble from London. At first it felt a bit Tortoise, but it gradually calmed down. Easy listening in some places, Acoustic Ladyland in others.

The Social

Kinda.... Gothic/Indie rock. 80's lookin. Appealable to the masses. Sometimes reminds me of The Smiths/Morrisey.

Sephamore

Reminds me of Crash Test Dummies (Platform 9), but at times Kings Of Leon.

Theory

Whilst some of the tracks on his myspace page 'work' - like 'December' with the guitar, in a kind of Fun Lovin' Criminals kind of way, and 'Born To Lose', there are others which're missing out on structural perfection. Like 'Hell For Leather' for example. We have something Western - then he just jumps in which seems a little unprepared. Needless to say though - there are some good efforts on there... like an english Beck....

Hadouken!

They're angry, smart and a band you'll be hearing a lot more of in the coming months. Best tune 'That Boy That Girl is a savage, snarling work of genius that makes me want to smash bottles over my head. In a good way.

Gentle Friendly

My head-fuck of today (albeit, in a good way) - these fellas are doing some craaaaaaaaaaaaazy shit. Try 'Sky Burial' - for those of you who love the 'odd' stuff, it'll make you headbang till your brain finally leaves in resignation... OOPS!

"We live in a basement, We are two, We would like to play to people. We enjoy hitting things, Organs, Tape, Skip Coffee, Skip Drums."

Killer!

Vanity Press

"Nico meets Sparklehorse"

Hmm... I dunno...

Ok, maybe - but add Beth Gibbons and I think it's more accurate. Lovely stuff - soulful, haunting and atmospheric.

Dark Captain Light Captain

They've supported harpist Serefina Steer, which should be enough to get *anyone* interested. A new experimental-folk band, like a lite Tunng. Maybe. I like these a lot.

The Horrors

Cool stuff from London - Garage/Punk/Surf music with a vocalist who reminds me of Patric A from the now dismantled 'Love Drunks'. When he sings, he squeezes his words out so harshly, I'd be suprised if he can speak in the mornin' after! Have a listen to 'Sheena is a Parasite' - awesome song of fast driving bass melding witht he drums - when a spazz guitar comes in for the attack on the fx. It's. Just. Awesome.

Also with a video from Aphex Twin director Chris Cunningham - can't go wrong!

Flowers Of Hell

A 'polyphonic spree' style mix of members from British Sea Power, The Tindersticks and The Early Years, with guest involvement from members of Death In Vegas and Spacemen 3. It's dreamy drone music and guitars with orchestras, on Earworm.

Movement

Nice, subtle electronica from Birmingham, signed to the always 'first' Earworm label. Awersome!

The Happy Dog

Cool rock music from Pennsylvania - with a hint of Psych.

The Elephants

Rock/Pop music sometimes with a Von Bondies edge - would probably find its way onto the ultra cool Transgressive Records (Subways, Battle etc)...

Cansei de Ser Sexy

Power Pop/Club music that you can dance to. Uber cool. From the Sub Pop label...

Cap Pas Cap

Like a mellower Forward Russia, but just as great....

But there could be more to them - I've yet to hear...

"Cap Pas Cap make challenging experimental pop music drawing on extremely varied influences, with press making noted comparisons to The Rapture, Animal Collective, The Fall, Magazine and The Slits amongst many others."

Hell yeah!

Low In The Sky

An instrumental band - experimental/electronic/hip-hop as the name suggests - their music is just lovely. I'm so impressed I've recommended it to other labels for recognition. The music itself covers so many grounds - some parts Sigor Ros with the xylophones and chellos - sdome parts mixing steady beats with cranky bass guitars - this stuff is awesome. I'm really excited about the new album.

Radio Luxembourg

From my university town of Aberystwyth. A welsh psychedelic/indie/pop band - they're a favourite from Aber, being pushed by Huw Stevens and other radio one DJ's. Praised by Huw as one to watch.

Sunset Cinema Club

"Sunset Cinema Club is like Gang of Four fronted by Kele Okereke from Bloc Party. Fast paced guitars to fast paced drums with funky bass - it's an instant catcher taking you to the end of the a-side."

"Finishing proceedings and demanding your attention with the ear biting funk punk romp of the Steve Lamacq endorsed 'Rant', Sunset Cinema Club are a band that are hard to ignore. A whirlwind of guitars, funk bass and spat out vocals encroaching on your ear space, its all over far too soon. "

Computer Club

"Bloc Party and Editors thrown into a cooking pot - with added goodness to create a new blend of indie-pop which will surely capture all the current fans - plus the ones who got bored and turned away. Simply awesome!"

"With a hypnotic edgyness throughout the band, the Birmingham four piece displays a new generation of Indie pop. Their sound casts the dark moody atmosphere of Joy Division, the melodic rhythm of The Cure mixed with the pop tones of Bloc Party; Computer club have found a winning formula to a supergroove. "

Edmund

They've just released a track on the new Rififi records sampler. There's a review of them on the front page - highly recommended new birmingham band. Home of Editors.

Magnetophone

Magnetophone have been going for a while but are just starting to creep up. Signed to 4AD (Pixies, Cocteau Twins) they're not your average electronic group. In fact far, far more exciting - one of my favourite bands.

"Magnetophone returned in 2005 with The Man Who Ate The Man, which finds them flirting with song structure while spinning webs of dreamily captivating texture. The album runs the gamut from sprawling psychedelia to the sweetest of melancholy snippets, aided by an impressive array of collaborators. Breeders sisters Kim and Kelley Deal and alt-folk troubadour PG Six represent underground America, while the Fence collective's HMS Ginafore and King Creosote contribute skeins of Caledonian melody. "

Arkart

"Its kinda' soundin' alt-country right now. We'll see..."

Yeah it has its country element, its experimental side and its indie side. Arkart also has 3 other projects on in variying degrees of diversity. Yet I feel some of his tracks are really good in places. Maybe a light version of Six Organs Of Admittance or Sun City Girls...

Wurlitztraction

" Wurlitztraction is the latest project from multi-instrumentalist Chris Reid. Noisey wah drenched guitars mix with distorted organs and electronica over funky bass lines and lo-fi beats to form dreamy yet sinister soundscapes. "

Simon Lord - Garden

Couldn't resist putting this guy on here. He's massively talented. Check out the portfolio of who hes produced. And his new stuff - 'Garden'. Which I must say is a fantastic album.

One to watch. Definitely.

Talk

Talk - formerly 'Telex' are a "mix of inclement electronica, post rock and ephemeral indie; an established experimental avenue of the British leftfield that has recently been usurped by some innovative laptop wielding Americans in the form of Telefon Tel Aviv, Boy in Static and Styrofoam. However, don't despair Talk seem perfectly poised to reclaim some Anglo-Saxon glory.

Having dominated Radio Ones Unsigned chart for seven months and gaining airplay on ITV they caught the interest of Fortune & Glory head honcho Hendricks who released their 'Byp/Ctrl' ep almost a year ago to the day to some great acclaim."

One to watch!

Musetta

Ambient electronic with elements of trip-hop. Really nice in places - would've been really homely on Warp all those years back.

Ideal for a 2am chillout. Think Lamb at their quieter moments. Maybe Funci Porcini with a vocalist.

Try 'We will fade out' in their demo tracks...

aMute

Ambient, experimental post-rock. This solo guy was at Sónar 06 supposedly, and his music is quite nice.

Leafcutter John

Taking the folktronic genre into another level - his album blends acoustic elements with electronic samples and other field recordings - his fourth LP (although my introductary one) is fantastic to say the least. Quite possibly one of my favourite albums all year - infact a review to follow...

Check out his preview of 'Let It Begin' on myspace, which is what made me buy the LP.

The Colonies

Previously labelled 'Thread', frontman Dylan Kemlo changes the band to The Colonies. Mixing all sorts of styles together with intelligent poetic lyrics, they're a good match for anyone who wants to be challenged with their music. They've previously had releases on Victory Garden & Static Caravan. So the quality control is already set high! Judge for yourself....

A review of A Shipfull Of Shandeliers is coming in a few days...

Oki Dog

It was 'Bad Man' that got me into Oki Dog. Vey catchy poppy songs, with influences from Gang Of Four, Motley Crue, Slits, Bow Wow Wow, X-Ray Spex, B-52s and Salt n Pepper.

Simi

More experimental music, this time from Iceland. Mixing samples with deranged synth sounds and acoustic finger-picking.

"Sounding like nothing you've heard before, it's a completely new sound(almost like a mixture of Indie/Emo/Ambient/Electro/Post-Rock/Dinner Music all put together in the blender with just a pinch of Lo-Fi waves)."

Longing

Side-project from members of Let Airplanes Circle Overhead, this is experimental noises mixed with ambient drones... sometimes post-rockish. Weird and nice!

Letter and Colours

First time I head these guys on myspace all those moons ago - then unsigned, I was gripped after a few listens. Editors & Joy Division came to mind. Then their track was signed up, record released and I think Huw Stevens either had them in session or just played 'Chasing The Bull' on his show.

They're going from strength to strength...

Solitary Extraction

Ooh lovely! Just up my street! 'Brad Weber' has an album out on Crony Records called 'Tape Deck Orchestra', and it's lush acoustics, electronics and other interesting instruments. Nice!

Fruition

Fruition have been gigging round the country for a while how and have notched up some great support slots with bands such as Larrikin Love, The Modern, The Holloways, The Mardous, The Lovers and The Madelines. They take to the stage with a great energy and always entertain. All from a little village called Pirton the boys strive to bring a sense of community and passion to the procedings

Alan Titmash

Mashing tracks together like he was born with a pair of decks instead of balls, he'll have you headbanging and jumping around like the mad-person you really are, and even your grandad if you're nice enough to lend him your 'phones!

John Peel would of loved him!

The Early Years

The Early Years vision is to create washes of psychedelic guitar noises meshed in with feedback, drones, distortion and wah set against a strong metronomic beat. The Early Years admire the noises of Mogwai, Acid Mother's Temple, Spiritiualized, all Sonic Booms stuff, Neu, Can, Tortoise, 33.3, Isotope 217, Jeff Parker, Stars of the Lid, The Teardrop Explodes, 60's Garage music and psychedelia.

Seeland

New project from ex-Broadcast and ex-Plone members (Broadcast still of Warp Records fame). This is lush, gentle eletrconic pop-songs with an experimental edge, but manages not to lose it. Sometimes reminds me of the Beta Band.

Henrys Phonograph

Psychedelic / Powerpop / New Wave tracks. Highly angry in places, highly catchy - they're quite inventive with their sounds...

Three and a Quarter

Scratchy Hip-Hop/Reggae/Funk from Portugal. Easy to move to and bang yer heads to. Scratchy hip-hop I'm not usually one for reggae, but for these I'm in...

Let Airplanes Circle Overhead

Like their name might suggest - you got the quiet wooshing in of the airplanes, circling overhead, and then BANG! Their music is like the soundtrack to that. Often loud, altough when it's quiet it's usuallya buildup - they got the shoegazing crashing guitars, rushing into stormy, furious tempers taking no prisoners. If you don't know what you're in for, and your taste is quiet and mellow - then you may just shit yourself.

The sound of september the 11th all over again, only with the americans secretly knowing about it, being fully prepared and pissed off...

They sound like constellation bands - so this should give you an idea.

Goosebumps ahoy!

The Shadow Project

A mixed bag blending electronic bleeps, samples, shoegazing guitars and other fx to the likes of Sigur Ros, The Postal Service and Mogwai. Post-rock to a new level, they sometimes bring Sickoakes to mind, only a bit poppier at times.

Ambiente

Purely instrumental - they're Hope of the States without vocals, shoegazing guitars as they say - they're a quieter version of Godspeed You Black Emperor! Go check.

Copter

Copter are a five piece from Mars who came to Brummingham to bring us their blend of sci-fi garage rock 'n roll/blues music from outta space! If you're nice they might even let you speak to their robot!

Definitely ones to watch - they even earned themselves a place on the latest Capsule compilation! If you're a fan of Alive/Bomp records releases, you'll surely like these!