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Mumford & Sons @ The Sound Academy
Tuesday, November 16th, 2010
This past weekend English folk rockers Mumford & Sons ripped the roof off The Sound Academy with a stellar show. From the opening strings of Sigh No More to the massive sing-along of The Cave the energy of the crowd did not die out once and the guys in Mumford seemed to feed off the energy. No matter if what they were playing was a single or a new track the crowd ate it up with everyone jumping, dancing or bopping their heads.
Heading into the show I knew that Mumford & Sons had a good size fan base but didn’t think they have the fan base they have. The Sound Academy was packed from the front of the floor right to the back where the merch stand was and was nearly impossible to move once the show started. I believe the show was sold out but I have a feeling that they may have oversold the show, but that didn’t matter because the lads from London, England put on one hell of a show.
It all started with the lead track off the album Sigh No More. Although it is not a single the crowd showed that it didn’t matter because they sang along just as if it were on the radio three times a day. After playing a few more tracks they slowly started to play Little Lion Man at which point the crowd kicked it into a higher gear. I can honestly say that I haven’t seen a crowd over power the band during the chorus singing but it was not your fault but mine, and it was your heart on the line, I really f**ked it up this time, didn’t I, my dear? didn’t I, my…. It was amazing to see how involved everyone was and I couldn’t get enough of this. However that was nothing compared to how they ended the show.
After performing for over an hour and starting the encore with members of the opening acts Cadillac Sky & King Charles, Mumford & Sons started The Cave. At this point the crowd went nuts! Throughout the whole song everyone was singing along while jumping with their hands in the air! What a way to end an amazing show. This was definitely one of the best shows I’ve been to this year and for once The Sound Academy sounded good!!
If you haven’t checked them out yet please do and you’ll see why these guys are good.
Links:
Official Site: Mumford & Sons
MySpace: Mumford & Sons
Facebook: Mumford & Sons
Tags: cadillac sky, Concert Review, concert reviews, king charles, little lion man, Mumford and Sons, sigh no more, sound academy, the cave
Posted in Concerts, Reviews | 3 Comments »
Warpaint: The Real Deal
Tuesday, October 19th, 2010
With a similar sound to The XX it is only fair to compare Warpaint with The XX. The female quartet originates from Los Angeles and is set to release their debut album The Fool on October 25th. Having a little of a darker side may be the biggest difference between the two groups. You can listen to their full album on Hype Machine as they are streaming it before the release, listen here.
After a few listens of The Fool it is clear that they are a band that should be on everyone’s radar. With tracks like Warpaint, Undertow, Baby and Composure it’s clear that these ladies have spent a lot of time working on their music. With The XX becoming a successful band with their sound, Warpaint should follow in their footsteps and will see their time in the spotlight as well.
Along with listening to their debut album, check out the music video for the track Undertow here.
LINKS:
Official Site: Warpaint
MySpace: Warpaint
Facebook: Warpaint
Tags: the xx, Warpaint
Posted in Earworm, The New Music | No Comments »
The Gaslight Anthem @ Sound Academy
Tuesday, July 20th, 2010
New Jersey rockers The Gaslight Anthem kicked off their tour last week at a packed Sound Academy. The guys are touring in support of their latest album ‘American Slang’ which was released last month.
With Jay-Z’s Empire State Of Mind playing as the back drop music the guys walked on stage and opened the show with their single American Slang. From then on Brian, Alex R, Alex L and Benny put on an amazing show.
They played the majority of ‘American Slang’ including Boxer, Stay Lucky and Bring It On. They also play a bunch of tracks off their sophomore album ‘The 59′ Sound’.
From the start of the show the whole crowd was really energized and into the show. But when they busted out their classic’s Old White Lincoln, The 59′ Sound, Here’s Looking At You Kid and Blue Jeans & White T-Shirts the energy level rose and had every one bobbing their heads or jumping on the spot.
Besides hearing my favourite Gaslight song, Great Expectations the highlight of the night came during the encore when they covered a rare Pearl Jam track State of Love and Trust. Not only did it sound amazing it is amazingly similar to how Eddie Vedder and the guys in Pearl Jam recorded it!
Not only did their six song encore include a cover, Brian Fallon started the encore by performing a solo version of She Loves You, which sounded amazing! All in all it was a great show for a venue that has had some mixed reviews but Gaslight silenced those reviews since they were great!
Check out the set list below!
Setlist:
American Slang
Casanova Baby!
Old White Lincoln
Stay Lucky
Even Cowgirls Get the Blues
Bring It On
Boxer
Angry Johnny And The Radio
The Spirit Of Jazz
The Queen of Lower Chelsea
The ‘59 Sound
Boomboxes and Dictionaries
Old Haunts
Blue Jeans & White T-Shirts
Great Expectations
Encore:
She Loves You
The Diamond Church Street Choir
We Came To Dance
State of Love and Trust (Pearl Jam cover)
Here’s Looking At You, Kid
The Backseat
Tags: sound academy, the gaslight anthem
Posted in Concerts, Reviews | 1 Comment »
Review: The Gaslight Anthem - American Slang
Thursday, June 17th, 2010
Over the years since The Gaslight Anthem’s first album ‘Sink or Swim’, Brian Fallon and the boys from New Jersey have grown into a classic good ol’ rock n’ roll band. Any band who lists Bruce Springsteen as an influence is sure to create good music and The Gaslight Anthem are no exception.
‘American Slang’, their third studio album, is a good indication of how the band has grown and matured since their first release back in 2007. Their lead single titled ‘American Slang’ is a good indication of how the band has grown since their 2008 release ‘The 59′ Sound’. Similar to their previous albums there are a number of stand outs on this album and they include ‘Boxer’, ‘Orphans’, ‘Bring It On’ and the ballad ‘We Did It When We Were Young’.
Cover to cover this album is definitely worth a listen and if you get a chance go see them live because they put on an awesome rock and roll show. They are playing The Sound Academy July 14th and will not be a show to miss if you’re a fan of The Gaslight Anthem.
LINKS:
Official Site: The Gaslight Anthem
MySpace: The Gaslight Anthem
Facebook: The Gaslight Anthem
Twitter: The Gaslight Anthem
Tags: Reviews, the gaslight anthem
Posted in Reviews | No Comments »
NewMusic First Spin: An Horse
Monday, December 14th, 2009
Brisbane, Australia’s An Horse sure have a way of ensuring they reflect the current state of music. First off, they’re a duo, and right now it doesn’t get any trendier being in a twosome (see No Age, Japandroids, Matt and Kim, etc.). Secondly, their music evokes that undeniable spirit of the ‘90s, when the term “alternative” found its legs. And well, touring with the likes of chart-topping alt-rockers like Tegan and Sara and Silversun Pickups certainly helps things.
Selecting Vancouver-based producer Howard Redekopp for their debut full-length then certainly made sense. Having previously recorded acts like Tegan and Sara, The New Pornographers and The Organ, An Horse positively make the most of his skills. Rearrange Beds comes alive with an effervescent spark, as if members Kate Cooper (vocals/guitars) and Damon Cox (drums/vocals) know they need to give it more than a band twice their size.
But the songs are efficient and electric, relying on bursting fuzz and boy-girl harmonies to fill the sorts of holes that come with such a meagre line-up. They get scrappy with their distortion on tracks like “Postcards” and “Little Little Little,” but Cooper’s voice, stays rich and clean for her pensive prose, recalling an inflection like a younger, Aussie Neko Case.
Is it a coincidence that they drop a line as enticing as “Like that good Hole album, I can live through this”? Likely not. An Horse seem unabashed about looking back a decade. And with songs as anthemic and tightly knit as these, more power to them for picking up on a good thing.
Artist: An Horse
Album: Rearrange Beds
Genre: Indie Rock
Author: Cam Lindsay
First Spin Live Until: December 28, 09
Tracklisting:
Tags: an horse, first spin
Posted in Reviews | No Comments »
NewMusic First Spin: The Zolas
Friday, November 13th, 2009
Vancouver’s always played third fiddle to Toronto and Montreal as Canada’s most fertile city for music, but it felt like there was a radical shift in 2009. If anything the city can boast diversity, with disparate bands such as Japandroids, Bend Sinister, No Gold, Twin Crystals, You Say Party! We Say Die!, Brasstronaut and Pink Mountaintops, all leaving their mark on the year. Add The Zolas to that list.
Zach Gray and Tom Dobrzanski are a true anomaly: a duo that incorporates guitar, drums, piano, trumpet and vocals despite only having four arms between them. But the demand pays off on their debut album for Lotus Child Music Inc. / Universal.
Produced by local vet Howard Redekopp (Tegan & Sara, New Pornographers), The Zolas come off as cordial and straightforward, but Tic Toc Tic is full of abrupt left turns and zany arrangements.
A good example is “Pyramid Scheme,” a sneaky little gem that begins with a brooding mid-tempo crawl and at the halfway mark flips its wig, with gang chants, a Jack and the Beanstalk citation and a passionate tangent that doesn’t let up till the dying seconds.
“Marlaina Kamikaze” is more leftfield fun wrapped in a perky pop package. Using tinges of cabaret and big band – the horns, the rimshots, the swinging groove – The Zolas certainly inject an element of effortlessness and amusement into their compositions that’s hard to come by these days.
“You’re Too Cool,” meanwhile, gets local, name-dropping Vancouver venue the Biltmore to depict a story where the band can’t quite live up to the pretentious hipster chick they have an eye on.
The Zolas are progressive yet pleasurable, taking chances that almost always pay off and proving rock music doesn’t always have to be so formulaic.
Artist: The Zolas
Album: Tic Toc Tic
Genre: Indie Rock
Author: Cam Lindsay
First Spin Live Until: November 24, 09
Tags: zolas
Posted in Reviews | 1 Comment »
The NewMusic First Spin: Dead Man’s Bones
Wednesday, September 30th, 2009
Is there any way to approach Dead Man’s Bones without addressing the fact that actor Ryan Gosling is one-half of the duo? While he’s done well in obscuring his celebrity in the murky promo shots, there’s no denying fans of his will approach his music the same way they do his movies and be taken aback.
However, if you take a close look at Gosling’s résumé beyond The Notebook – he played a loner in love with a blow-up doll, a high school teacher addicted to crack, a Jewish neo-Nazi, er, Young Hercules – and the eerie sounds creeping out of Dead Man’s Bones makes quite a bit of sense.
This isn’t a vanity project. Gosling met Zach Shields in Toronto, and after learning they shared a taste for the macabre (”ghosts, monsters, graveyards, zombies or anything deathly”) and especially the Haunted Mansion ride at the Disney theme parks they began writing a monster-driven stage show and then music, even though neither of them were professional musicians.
Taking a cue from the Langley Schools Music Project, the two brought in a children’s singing group, named the Silverlake Conservatory of Music Children’s Choir, to help them bring their music to life.
According to the band, their self-titled album is “doo-wop songs about werewolves, haunting melodies telling tales of zombies with broken hearts, and children singing the joys and pains of being alive or being dead.”
Produced by Imarobot’s Tim Anderson, the album is full of rickety instrumentation, ghoulish whispers, spooky choral verses, erratic arrangements and echo-drenched, yet rustic production, Dead Man’s Bones lives up to its intentions. Although it’s undeniably a concept album, Gosling and Shields are careful to not only see that it inhabits the projected creepiness, but also guarantee that there are some songs to take away from it.
“My Body’s A Zombie For You” has the ascending uplift of a standard Arcade Fire anthem, and “Werewolf Heart” sounds like it could have been recorded with the goofy phantoms inside the Haunted Mansion living room.
“Young and Tragic” puts the Langley Schools influence to work best, as the Choir sing over an imposing oscillating synthesizer, while “Paper Ships” blends doo-wop with sparse Southern gothic folk and maybe, if my ears don’t deceive me a Theremin.
They even have their own self-titled theme song, which sounds as if they hired zombies, chain gangs and gravediggers to sit in as session musicians.
Why Gosling hasn’t tested his acting chops with horror is a mystery, but if he ever decides to he’s got the right band to compose the score.
Artist: Dead Man’s Bones
Album: Dead Man’s Bones
Release Date: October 6, 2009
Label: Anti (Epitaph)
Author: Cam Lindsay
First Spin Live Until: October 13, 2009
Track Listing:
Tags: dead man's bones, first spin
Posted in Reviews | No Comments »
The NewMusic First Spin: The xx
Wednesday, September 30th, 2009
“Album of the year” is a term that should never be used lightly, but I have this hunch that London foursome The xx will be the repeated recipients of such an honour come December. (I pretty much solidified my decision back in August.)
Though major hype has been hanging over them for quite some time, it wasn’t until their debut album, xx, dropped in the UK late this summer when everyone could hear for themselves that this is a band with unlimited scope and potential.
The four members all met at the same school that boasted alumni such as Hot Chip, Four Tet and Burial, which is one hell of an academic pedigree. There must be something in the Elliott School’s curricular, because The xx are as innovative as their peers.
With a penchant for undertones, The xx integrate ambient’s minimalism, shoegaze’s ethereal, droning textures, post-punk’s angular guitar lines and R&B’s crisp, snapping rhythms. This is all on top of the gorgeously congregated vocals of Romy Madley Croft and Oliver Sim that obsess over sex and regret. Think the slight arrangements of Young Marble Giants, blended with The Kills’ sexuality, filtered through some discarded beats Timbaland never gave Aaliyah.
“Intro” doesn’t follow the usual role of a song with such a title, jumping right into staccato notes and a looped drumbeat. It’s also one of the more pronounced tracks on the album.
“VCR” uses some tremolo guitar tones akin to The Cure and clapping to conduct the first duet between Croft and Sim. “Crystalised” is probably the most unlikely single you’ll hear all year, because it’s essentially just Sim’s floating voice over top extended, amorphous droning and eventually some guitar reverberations. It’s also one of most arresting songs you’ll hear in 2009.
“Islands” helps make a convincing argument that The xx are really a soul band in the body of hip art school grads, with Croft’s spilling her heart over a ghostly bed of tenuous noise. “Heart Skipped A Beat”, on the other hand, uses its title to kick-start the tempo a little, demonstrating more of those futuristic R&B beats that will make this band the next big producers in demand.
“Basic Space” is another inconspicuous single that uses the passionately deep and dozy vocal turns by the two singers to provide depth to the minimalistic, yet devotional instrumentation (i.e. some deep sub-bass) that drops in and out of the song. Infinity” follows it with a complete 180, using the instruments – a clobbering drum, echo-laden guitar scaling - to build the emotion while the two singers merely hum their parts.
What’s so remarkable about xx is that it never loses its mojo or desire to remain diverse while sticking to a formula. Even in its final moments it keeps the momentum alive: Night Time uses a childlike music-box to accentuate the seductive melodies, while “Stars” appears like a defibrillator to escalate the pulse to end things with an abrupt rush.
Like I said, album of the year, without a doubt.
Artist: The xx
Album: xx
Release Date: October 6, 2009
Label: XL Recordings
Author: Cam Lindsay
First Spin Live Until: October 13, 2009
Track Listing:
Tags: first spin, the xx
Posted in Reviews | No Comments »
The NewMusic First Spin: Kurt Vile
Tuesday, September 29th, 2009
Last year I stumbled upon an album of home recordings called Constant Hitmaker by some long hair from Philly named Kurt Vile. Up until just recently he was also a guitarist in the droning folk band The War On Drugs, but then left after his solo thing (which often features his backing band The Violators, which consists of members from The War On Drugs, oddly enough) began to overshadow the band.
Releasing the limited vinyl-only God Is Saying This to You LP back in the spring on Mexican Summer, Vile has now signed to Matador and readied his first proper album amusingly titled Childish Prodigy.
Where his prior records used more of a shoestring budget, Vile’s Matador debut almost sounds opulent by comparison. Fortunately, it doesn’t stray from the psychedelic and bluesy garage that helped him get this far, but at the same time Vile pushes himself to take the songs even further out there.
“Hunchback” is a fuzzy, narcotic-driven garage tune that swings like it was written for The Warlocks, and then transitions into the much more natural vibe of “Dead Alive”, which has Vile spewing a Dylanesque rant flooded in reverb.
With its pounding drum machine pattern and the passionate declaration of Americana, “Freak Train” goes off the rails and somehow finds middle ground between Springsteen and Suicide, only to have its edge curbed by the sublime “Blackberry Song”, a gorgeously textured folk song.
“Heart Attack” cooks up the same kind of hallucinatory tricks as Animal Collective with some heavy yet controlled use of echo and delay. “Inside Lookin’ Out” builds a wall of harmonica-laden noise that uses backwards masking to complement Vile’s lyrical tirade.
Childish Prodigy is a drifter, an album floating in and out of dreamlike jams and classic-rockin’ barnburners that engrosses you with such an inimitable, singular vision.
Artist: Kurt Vile
Album: Childish Prodigy
Release Date: October 6, 2009
Label: Matador Records
Author: Cam Lindsay
First Spin Live Until: October 13, 2009
Track Listing:
Tags: first spin, kurt vile
Posted in Reviews | No Comments »
The NewMusic First Spin: Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions
Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009
Hope Sandoval seems to work in donkey’s years. As the singer of Mazzy Star, Sandoval and partner David Roback were much more productive, averaging a new album every three years from 1990 to 1996 and then imploding without much warning. But since then, the velvet-voiced chanteuse has released her music sparingly.
In 2001 she put out Bavarian Fruit Bread with The Warm Inventions, a supporting band that featured My Bloody Valentine’s Colm Ó Cíosóig. Like with Mazzy Star, Sandoval continued to explore a dazed kind of blues with The Warm Inventions that made the silky songstress a minor alt-rock star a decade and a half ago.
Through the Devil Softly is eight years in the waiting and despite all that time Sandoval and her collaborators haven’t changed a thing. Still keeping things to the quietest hush possible, it’s her voice that always conducts the arrangements.
“Blanchard” is the official single, but it doesn’t have “hit” written all over it. But there is a nice swinging lilt to it that makes it more of a stand out, especially once Hope joins the swelling slide guitar for the abrupt chorus.
Like the early Verve EPs, “For The Rest Of Your Life” begins with a sliding bass line, chiming vibes and drifting guitar scapes, setting up a real euphoric setting for Hope to get bluesy.
“Baby Sam” best exhibits how well Hope’s voice has held up over the years, as she’s accompanied by a lone acoustic guitar that weaves a web around her waning vocals.
While the album favours the five-minute mark, it doesn’t drag, and when the lo-fi music box motif of “Satellite” brings it to a finish, Hope and her Warm Inventions will have you wrapped up nice and warm, dozing off and feeling just right.
Artist: Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions
Album: Through The Devil Softly
Release Date: September 29, 2009
Label: Nettwerk
Author: Cam Lindsay
First Spin Live Until: October 6, 2009
Track Listing:
Tags: first spin, Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions
Posted in Reviews, The New Music | No Comments »
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