ISSUE 25
23 - 29 OCTOBER 2018
ALBUMFromREVIEWS Kurt Vile, The KVB, Haley and Jess Glynne
MUSIC NEWS From Sick Joy, Bella Union, Brighton Festival and more
SUPERORGANISM THE SUPERGROUP TALK LIVING, RECORDING AND WORKING TOGETHER
GIG LISTINGS Our recommended listings of gigs in Brighton
LIVE REVIEWS Featuring Black Honey, Glasvegas and more
ISSUE 25
CONTENTS SUPERORGANISM Producer, mixer, writer and drummer of Superorganism, Tucan, chats to Jeff Hemmings about the band’s formation, living together and their eponymous debut album
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PRODUCTION: Adam Kidd, Jonski Mason
LISTINGS
Local venue news and more from the city’s music scene
Our recommended listings and previews of this week’s gigs
3 4 Reviews from the latest album releases this week
LIVE REVIEWS
11 7 OUT OF TOWN
CEO: Frank Sansom EDITOR: Daniel White
NEWS
ALBUMS
BRINGING THE ARTISTS CLOSER TO YOU...
Black Honey, Teleman, Baloji and The Brian Jonestown Massacre all feature in our rundown of this week’s reviews on the live circuit
COVER SHOT: Steph Wilson CONTRIBUTORS: Jeff Hemmings Annie Roberts Rhys Baker Anna Claxton Iain Lauder Jamie MacMillan Liam McMillen Ben Walker Christian Middleton Kelly Westlake Paul Hill Chloe Hashemi Dan Whitehouse press@brightonsfinest.com advertising@brightonsfinest.com Copyright © 2018. All rights reserved.
BAD SOUNDS
Our favourite upcoming gigs outside of Brighton
brightonsfinest.com brightonsfinestpresents @brightonsfinest
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Ewan talks to Jeff Hemmings about the band’s debut album, Get Better, and their exciting live shows
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NEWS After releasing their debut EP, Amateurs, earlier in the year, Brighton-based grunge rockers, Sick Joy, have followed it up with the release of their new track ‘Dissolve Me’. You can see them play it for the first time at Patterns, on Saturday 20th October.
Taking place on 5th January, the Green Door Store have announced a fantastic line-up for their eighth birthday party, including Warmduscher, Italia 90, Heirloom, Guru and Public Body, for what is shaping up to be a fine way to let rip in 2019.
A Bird in the Hand is Beans on Toast’s tenth album release in as many years. This modern-day troubadour will be celebrating the record at Resident, on 5th December (all ages welcome) for an in-store performance and signing session.
Brighton Festival set Rokia Traore as Guest Director
Award-winning Malian singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Rokia Traoré has been named as the 11th Brighton Festival Guest Director, following in the footsteps of the likes of David Shrigley (2018), Kate Tempest (2017), Laurie Anderson (2016), and Brian Eno (2010). The festival will include the UK premiere of Traoré’s project Dream Mandé Djata, a tribute to the ancient art of the griots of West Africa. The festival’s full programme details will be announced on 13th February.
Bella Union’s Liela Moss and Hilang Child will be performing together at Brighton’s Unitarian Church on 14th December. Following the release of Hilang’s debut album this summer and Moss’ to come in November, it will be an occassion not to miss.
BLACK HONEY At Brightonsfinest we strive to meet all of the best musicians who travel to, or live in our vibrant city. On our YouTube channel you can listen to our archive of radio interviews from both emerging and established artists, highlighting the best in new music from Brighton and beyond. This week we look back at our interview with Izzy B Phillips from Black Honey as she discusses the band’s single ‘Bad Friends’ and the exciting shows that lay ahead for the group.
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PREVIEWS
GIG LISTINGS BRIGHTON CENTRE David Byrne Tuesday 30th October Tickets: £49.60
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Concorde 2 – Tuesday 23rd October After a summer which saw them play every prestigious festival in the world and drop their debut album Hope Downs, Australian band Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever are winding down the year with a huge worldwide tour which hits Brighton’s Concorde 2 in October. If their packedout Great Escape shows are anything to go on, tickets will fly out for their Concorde 2 show so you better get in quick!
BRIGHTON DOME Editors Tuesday 23rd October Tickets: £27.50 Presented by Goldenvoice UK Level 42 Wednesday 24th October Tickets: £32 The Proclaimers Sunday 28th October Tickets: £35 John Grant Monday 29th October Tickets: £24.50
The Prince Albert
BC Camplight – Green Door Store – Wednesday 24th October 2018 After a memorable gig at The Great Escape this year, BC Camplight makes a welcome return to Brighton to show off material from brand new album, Deportation Blues. With a set promising to be brutally honest about his recent struggles of being ordered to leave the UK and the turbulent three years that followed, audiences can expect a darker edge to Brian Christinzio’s songwriting at his first visit to the Green Door Store.
Sam Evian – The Hope & Ruin – Wednesday 24th October 2018 A relatively unknown producer/singer-songwriter from New York, Sam Evian’s smooth whispered Americana sound takes strong influences from some of the American guitar greats from the 60s/70s, holding a strong emotion retrospective edge to each track. With a stunning debut album released in 2016 and his sublime second album released this year on Saddle Creek, You, Forever, we have high hopes for his return to Brighton.
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The Homesick Tuesday 23rd October Tickets: £7.70 Presented by Love Thy Neighbour Hamell On Trial Thursday 25th October Tickets: £6.60 The Howlin’ Jaws Friday 26th October Tickets: £5.50 Presented by Weirdsville in Brighton BRNS Sunday 28th October Tickets: £9.20 Presented by One Inch Badge
Green Door Store Lafayette Regency Tuesday 23rd October Tickets: £5.50 Presented by Love Thy Neighbour Sink Ya Teeth Thursday 25th October Tickets: £6.60 Presented by Dictionary Pudding Sink Ya Teeth Thursday 25th October Tickets: £6.60 Presented by Dictionary Pudding Milk Disco Monday 29th October Tickets: FREE Presented by Green Door Store
THE HAUNT Drake White and the Big Fire Tuesday 23rd October Tickets: £18.50 Presented by C2C Will Varley Wednesday 24th October Tickets: £16.88 Presented by One Inch Badge Our Girl Friday 26th October Tickets: £8.80 Presented by Neat Neat Neat The Lovely Eggs Saturday 27th October Tickets: £12.10 Presented by Dictionary Pudding Dub FX Sunday 28th October Tickets: £13.25 Presented by Dictionary Pudding
KOMEDIA
Lucy Dacus Monday 29th October Tickets: £12.38 Presented by One Inch Badge
Tunng Tuesday 23rd October Tickets: £24.20 Presented by Melting Vinyl
Freya Ridings Wednesday 31st October Tickets: £15 Presented by One Inch Badge
Lizanne Knott / Jesse Terry / Michael Logen Tuesday 23rd October Tickets: £15 Presented by One Inch Badge
Yak Friday 2nd November Tickets: £12.10 Presented by Neat Neat Neat
Heather Peace Wednesday 24th October Tickets: £23.50 Jen Cloher Monday 29th October Tickets: £11 Presented by One Inch Badge
The BRUNSWICK Flight Brigade Thursday 25th October Tickets: £7.70 Presented by The Brunswick Live
GIG LISTINGS The Hope & Ruin
PREVIEWS Concorde 2
BlackWaters Tuesday 23rd October Tickets: £7.70 Presented by Modern Age Music
The Brian Jonestown Massacre Wednesday 24th October Tickets: £17.50 Presented by Lout Promotions
Club Kuru Thursday 25th October Tickets: £7.48 Presented by One Inch Badge
Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks Thursday 25th October Tickets: £22.50 Presented by One Inch Badge
The Ramonas Friday 26th October Tickets: £8.05 Presented by One Inch Badge
Melvins Monday 29th October Tickets: £28 Presented by Goldenvoice
She Makes War Saturday 27th October Tickets: £8.80
Lewis Capaldi Wednesday 31st October Tickets: £13 Presented by Kilimajaro
Mobius Loop Sunday 28th October Tickets: £7 Hembree Monday 29th October Tickets: £8.05 Presented by One Inch Badge Weakened Friends Wednesday 31st October Tickets: FREE Presented by Love Thy Neighbour
Rialto Theatre Robyn Hitchcock Monday 29th October Tickets: £17.50 Presented by Zaza Music
PATTERNS Eivør Tuesday 23rd October Tickets: £18 Presented by Tidal Concerts Sophie Hunger Saturday 27th October Tickets: £12 Dead Meadow Monday 29th October Tickets: £15 Tove Stryke Tuesday 30th October Tickets: £14.30
St Luke's Church Mammal Hands Sunday 28th October Tickets: £16.50 Presented by Dictionary Pudding
Girli – Patterns – Thurs 25th October London’s Girli has had one hell of a year. Dropping three dazzling singles the indie-pop starlet is capping off the year with a UK tour which includes Brighton’s Patterns. With exuberant pop beats, and lyrics that have struck a chord with the younger generation, it’s set to be an all out celebration of the musician’s already stellar back catalogue. Her live show is known to be a fiery affair too. An enthusiastic performer, expect pop-meets-indie bangers, and a whole load of passion.
Sticky Mike's Frog Bar Palace Winter Wednesday 24th October Tickets: £11.50 Presented by One Inch Badge Speedy Ortiz Wednesday 24th October Tickets: £13.50 Presented by One Inch Badge Meg Lawrenson Thursday 25th October Tickets: £3 OTD King Brothers Friday 26th October Tickets: £7.70 Presented by Acid Box Naxatras Saturday 27th October Tickets: £7.70 Presented by Acid Box
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Tom Odell – Brighton Dome – Saturday 27th October 2018 Tom Odell is set to return on record and the live stage, following up his 2016 album Wrong Crowd, with the release of his third album, Jubilee Road, which features ‘If You Wanna Love Somebody’. In October, Odell begins his new tour in support of the record, making a stop at Brighton Dome just after Jubilee Road’s release. This will be a great opportunity to hear the new material and join him in celebrating his latest record.
Jono McCleery Sunday 28th October Tickets: £11.25 Presented by One Inch Badge Snail Mail Tuesday 30th October Tickets: £11.50 Presented by One Inch Badge Soft Kill Thursday 1st November Tickets: £8.80 Presented by Slippy H
LATEST MUSIC BAR The Chats Sunday 28th October Tickets: £8 Presented by Lout Promotions
Superorganism – Concorde 2 – Sunday 28th October Superorganism’s eponymous record was an absolute delight. A short, yet perfectly finessed album with some of the finest indie-pop we’ve heard in ages, they’ve become one of our favourite artists of 2018. Which makes it all the more exciting that they’re back in Brighton to round off their album tour. Their show is sure to be a celebration of the record, before they go into hiding for album two, so it might be the last time to see them for a while.
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NIGHTLIFE Joker Wednesday 24th October The Arch 11pm – 4am
Serial Killaz Thursday 25th October Concorde 2 11pm – 3.30am
Date night with DJ Boring Friday 26th October Patterns 11pm – 4am
Bondax Friday 26th October The Arch 11pm – 5am
Holly Lester / James Joyce / Blixa Friday 26th October Komedia, 11pm – 3am
Club Africa Friday 26th October Komedia 11pm – 3am
Emanuel Satie / Nolan Friday 26th October Green Door Store 11pm – 5am
Zone33 / Erisian Crew Friday 26th October Volks 11pm – 7am
A Horse Meat Disco Halloween Saturday 27th October Patterns 11pm – 4am
Hammer / Pablo Contraband / Sami Kubu Saturday 27th October Hideout, 11pm – 5am
Redlight Saturday 27th October Concorde 2 11pm – 4am
Shy FX Saturday 27th October The Arch 11pm – 5am
CarnEvil with Sub Focus / Congo Natty / DJ Zinc / Pitch Saturday 27th October Cannon Place Warehouse
Charlotte Devaney Saturday 27th October Coalition 11pm – 5am
Bass On The Beach Charity Event Sunday 28th October Volks 11am – 4am
OUT OF TOWN Novo Amor Tuesday 23 October Union Chapel, London (Singer/songwriter) – 7pm
Ash Wednesday 24th October O2 Forum Kentish Town, London (Rock) – 7pm
Black Honey Wednesday 24th October Electric Ballroom, London (Rock) – 7pm
Her’s Wednesday 24th October The Dome, London (Pop) – 7pm
O’Connell & Love Thursday 25th October Lewes Con Club (Folk) – 7.30pm
George Fitzgerald Thursday 25th October Hackney Arts Centre, London (Electronic) – 7pm
Kristin Hersh Thursday 25th October Rough Trade East, London (Singer/songwriter) – 6pm
Egyptian Blue Thursday 25th October The Social, London (Psych-garage) – 7.30
John Fogerty, Steve Miller Band Thursday 25th October The O2 Arena, London (Blues) – 6.30pm
Rudimental Friday 26th October Alexandra Palace, London (Pop) – 7pm
FEWS Friday 26th October Boston Music Room, London (post-punk) – 7pm
Robert Plant, Van Morrison Friday 26th October The O2 Arena, London, (Blues) – 6:30pm
Daniel Wakeford Friday 26 October 2018 O2 Academy 2 Islington (Pop) – 7pm
Back To The Planet Friday 26th October New Cross Inn, New Cross (Indie) – 7pm
10CC Saturday 27th October De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill (Rock) – 7pm
Full event listings at Brightonsfinest.com/listings
LIVE REVIEWS Black Honey – Concorde 2 – Sunday 14th October “We never thought we’d get to play venues like this as an unsigned band” stated Izzy Phillips on Black Honey’s momentous, celebratory homecoming show at Concorde 2. This show was arguably the best they’ve ever been. Dramatic and cinematic, with a setlist covering early singles as well as fresh album cuts, it was, without a doubt, the most euphoric show of the year. If you were in any doubt that Black Honey were the real deal, then this show, which boasted incredible lighting and a Twin Peaks-style backdrop, would convince you in a heartbeat. From the opening notes of ‘I Only Hurt the Ones I Love’ it was a clinical and cerebral set showcasing just how many hits the band have. Quickly followed-up by 2015 single ‘Madonna’, it was clear to see that these fans have been there from very early on, and the band rewarded their loyalty with a thrilling display. With the likes of ‘Corrine’ and ‘All My Pride’ dropped mid-set for good measure, too, Black Honey obviously haven’t forgotten their musical roots. Of course, this was an album tour and, as such, the band showcased their remarkable debut in some style. There’s an iconic sense of both relatability and otherworldliness to Black Honey, as if the band are caricatures in their own stylised world. Whether this is the extreme genre mis-matches or the Americana, prom-style set design, there’s an exaggerated, postmodern feeling to their gig that you simply don’t find anywhere else. This was a beautiful moment, and frankly, it couldn’t happen to a more hard-working and talented band. As Brighton gigs go, this is going to take some beating!
Baloji – The Haunt – Monday 15th October This show was the first night of Baloji’s UK tour, I was amazed at what an incredible all round performer he is. Not being content with standing still at any given moment, he danced, jumped and ran across the stage beaming throughout the performance. Performing an extensive set of his best songs, not only was Baloji’s performance a pleasant surprise, it was also one of the best I’ve been lucky enough to experience at The Haunt.
Glasvegas – The Old Market – Saturday 13th October Ten years have passed since Glasvegas’ eponymous Mercury-nominated debut record reached number two in the UK Album Charts. Tonight, playing the entire album from beginning to end, the years were rolled back to reveal a record that still glistens with power and potency. Whatever the future holds, should they return to the studio or this marks a fond farewell, this was a night to remember for the next ten years and more.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre – Concorde –Thurs 11th Oct The band’s first show at Concorde 2 was a riotous affair, boasting an incredible performance from the band that was both lengthy and incredibly technical. This night acts as a celebration of the band, from 1995 to now, with as much focus put on Methodrone as their latest record, Something Else. It was a brilliant set, highlighting each and every record sufficiently, The Brian Jonestown Massacre are one of a kind.
Teleman – Concorde 2 – Tuesday 9th October Ridiculous fun, Teleman prove themselves to be the ultimate feel-good live band with an infectious and intoxicating show at Concorde 2. There is just not one second to be missed. ‘Song For A Seagull’ is dropped into the set, while ‘Düsseldorf’ is the huge crowd-pleaser of the night (amongst fierce competition) with its message of: “I love everyone that I meet tonight” ringing unerringly truer than ever tonight.
Read the full reviews at Brightonsfinest.com/live
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A collection of international musicians who have come together to create unique and refreshing music, Superorganism’s Tucan chats to Jeff Hemmings about the supergroup’s formation, their debut album, and living together in their East London house...
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hen I first came across Superorganism, and the fact that their ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D’ was actually being played on mainstream radio, I was suspicious. Was this some kind of manufactured band of happy-clappy optimists, devised by a scheming Svengali? How were they managing to muscle in on the auto-tuned, pop-musicby-numbers production line that pollutes our airwaves? The times they are a changing, sang someone famous, in the politically and culturally turbulent 60s. However, who would have predicted then, that a group of musicians could get it together via a virtual world of computer networks, message boards, and the internet, talking and messaging in real time, and able to send over huge amounts of information, 24/7. It was an unknowable future, where there was no need to call the operator to place that time delayed international call, or
wait patiently for the expensive package to (maybe) arrive, with that all important tape. It’s easy to forget, or to not even fathom, how far things have come along in the world of communications. Without it, there could be no group like Superorganism, a group essentially born via the internet. Yet, in most other respects it’s still the same. You still need infectious songs that have melody as their basis, you still need to be able to do it live on stage, and you still need to relate and work together with other like-minded souls. Superorganism have all the necessary ingredients, and in a very short time they have become something of a new music sensation, even if what they do is simply old fashioned indie-pop, but with a modern electronic twist. Although the gestation period was long, their impact, once they put something out there, was almost immediate. “I’m back at home in London, just back from a month in the States,” says producer, mixer, writer and drummer, Tucan (real name Tim Shann).
“I’ve got time, but not time off! We’re working on our next record, and a bunch of promo stuff. Always busy. It’s full time, and has been for a while.” The eight-piece collective consists of members from England, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, have taken on stage names, which originally helped to foster this suspicion in, er, my mind. There’s singer Orono, Emily (real name Mark Turner), Harry, B, Ruby, Soul, Robert Strange, and Tucan, all mucking in with the ideas, and the writing. “We wanted to do the whole anonymous thing, and be mysterious,” admits the New Zealand born and bred Tucan. What about your name, where does that come from? “It’s a nickname that a few people called me in high school, to do with drinking, which I wasn’t very good at. Two cans! Not rock’n’roll. We’re not a very hard partying band. “A whole bunch of us moved to London about three years ago. It’s a bit of a rite of passage when you’re from New Zealand and Australia. A lot of people do move over, get an overseas experience, travel Europe. Most of us had played in a band, and we were like, ‘Well, we’ve gained a bit of traction at home, let’s see if anyone overseas is interested. You don’t want to be ten years down the line, ‘If only we’d
“
I can’t imagine us putting out a song about Brexit, or something! It’s not really our vibe. We try and stay informed, but we try and make music that is happy and positive, and offers people some form of escape.
tried it!’ There was nothing holding us back, no kids, mortgages, so why not?” In little over a year they have made a huge impact. Their first ever release was the double AA-sided vinyl ‘It’s All Good’/’Nobody Cares’, and they played their first ever London show (and only second show ever) at the 700-capacity Village Underground last October. Sold out way in advance, it was here that faces were put to the mystery. It was all very well having those brilliantly produced and infectious indie-pop songs, but would it mean anything if they couldn’t do it live? Well, they could. In 18-year-old Japanese lead singer Orono they had found the iced gem to complete the party cake: with her easy going cool nature she delivered the lyrics in an effortlessly lethargic way, in line with her love of all things slacker rock, via the likes of Weezer and Stephen Malkmus. “We did all meet over the internet, over a long period of time,” confirms Tucan. “I first met Emily and Harry via message boards, 10, 12 years ago. Emily and I had played in several bands together, and then Harry, Robert, Emily and I have done various musical projects over time, and slowly added friends to this group of friends. We would just send these Logic project sessions around to each other.
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We eventually decided to move to the UK and involve more of our friends, decided to do a recording project, and got Orono involved, who we’d met a few years prior. We liked her voice, and look what happened.” Orono first came across them randomly on YouTube, thought it was “cool”, and went to one of their shows (pre-Superorganism) in Japan (where she was born) and they became buddies. “A few songs existed before we talked to Orono about it. We had the vibe, and the production down, but when we heard her voice, that’s when it really made sense. We’d heard some demos she had put out on the internet, so we hit her up one day, asked her to sing on this track we had made, and half an hour later she sent it back. We were like, ‘Wow, this is something special’! She’s not a professional singer by any stretch, but she has amazing pitches. Very impressive. She’s very cool,” he laughs. Orono soon joined the band proper, moving to the UK to live in their collective house, where they all live bar one. “Soul lives just around the corner.” says Tucan. “There’s just not enough space! He was the last to come over. Everyone has their own space. There’s a kitchen, which is the one communal space. Orono has the living room now. We hang out in the kitchen, and come up with ideas. We’ve just been on a tour bus, which was quite funny. They’ve got lounges on the bus, and they generally have more living space than our house,” he laughs. In early 2017 they put ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D.’ out on the internet. It was the big moment when the metaphorical phone rang off the hook. “Within a few
days we started getting our inbox flooded from all sorts of people in the industry. We talked to quite a few labels.” One of them being Domino, home of the Arctic Monkeys, and Stephen Malkmus. “We love the stuff on there, and they’re really nice people, so it seemed like the best choice. And we absolutely think that was the best choice.” ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D.’ was soon re-released, followed by a series of infectious, gleeful songs that demonstrated that this was no one-hit wonder, like ‘It’s All Good’/’Nobody Cares’, and ‘Everybody Wants To Be Famous’. These and more ended up on their self-titled debut album, released earlier this year, to great acclaim, backed up by their colourful and vibrant live show. “I think of music as an escape,” says Tucan. “All of what is going on is important, people should be engaged, but I can’t imagine us putting out a song about Brexit, or something! It’s not really our vibe. We try and stay informed, but we try and make music that is happy and positive, and offers people some form of escape.” To read the full interview visit Brightonsfinest.comSuperorganism
Superorganism Superorganism Released: 2nd March 2018
ALBUM REVIEWS Kurt Vile Bottle It In Out: 12th October 2018 Now 38, Kurt Vile is continuing on his upward trajectory, whilst documenting his fears, hopes, and dreams on this, his seventh solo album and most personal to-date. Recorded over a period of two and a half years, in various locations, and studios the free-flowing Bottle It In clocks in at a very long 80 minutes. It’s chock-full of classic rock, pop and folk sensibilities, mostly driven by his love of repetition, along with a strong undertow of lo-fi and psychedelia, and topped off by his distinctive nasal drawl, and meandering musings. For sure, he may look and sound like the archetypal slacker rocker dude, but there’s no doubting his appetite for making music, on his own terms, even if it does meander a little too much in its entirety. Yet, Bottle It In takes us on a journey, musically and thematically, documenting a barely concealed fear, whilst snuggling up close to those who matter. Those who help put the fear back in the bottle.
Jess Glynne Always In Between Out: 12th October 2018 Jess Glynne is back with her sophomore album, which kicks off with a soulful introductory track, hinting at a possible change in direction for the singer. The gospel vibe continues later with ‘123’ and it’s a refreshing and interesting extension of Glynne’s style. After the teasing ‘Intro’, we are plunged back into Glynne’s house-inspired pop, with ‘No One’. The track aspires to be a modern take on her older work, but fails to hit the spot. This continues with the repetitive ‘Thursday’ and ‘Never Let Me Go’. The album takes a more interesting turn during ‘Broken’, an emotional ballad, while ‘Hate / Love’ is another highlight from the record. Overall this album is a mixed bag. There are some definite highlights here, but Glynne fails to churn out the hits like she did with her debut. It feels like she couldn’t decide where to go with this record and the result is a compilation of takes from differently inspired recording sessions.
The KVB Only Now Forever Out: 12th October 2018 Returning for the first time since 2016, Only Now Forever feels like a new chapter for The KVB. The pair chose to produce the album themselves this time around, with that decision coinciding with a newly found liberal attitude towards instrumentation. In the past, the Berlin-based group would restrict themselves in the studio to what was possible to play live. This time around, the compositions have been given space to breathe, with the atmospherics and varying layers handed a license to expand, creating a more experimental vibe that evolves them on a songwriting level. From a lyrical standpoint, the themes all stem from modern anxieties and offer a perfect companion to the awe-inspiring sonic soundscapes. It is The KVB’s finest album of their career. One that morphs between a variety of genres, lyrical themes and sonic contrasts, which all come together to create an ambitious 45 minutes of dark wave experimentation.
Haley Pleasureland Out: 12th October 2018 To the casual follower of Haley Bonar, a fully instrumental album like Pleasureland will seem like it has come out of left field. However, in truth, the clues were there as far back as 2011’s debut Golder. This album, released as the punchier Haley, takes that inclination to its logical conclusion, offering a fascinating and atmospheric view on the world. To call a record a piece of art is an often-overused piece of hyperbole. However, here, it holds true. The two parts of the phenomenal title track surely herald a future in film soundtracks for McCallum, while the masterful ‘Lonely As A Mother’ and ‘Snake Moon’ evoke the same heightened emotions as the great Ludovico Einaudi. The context and very nature of Pleasureland means that it may not be for everyone. For those willing to sink into its warm embrace, however, the cumulative effect is one of beauty and stillness at its heart from an artist willing to take risks and embrace the new.
Read the full reviews at Brightonsfinest.com/albums
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Maybe by name, but certainly not in reality. Growing up in the West Country, brothers Callum and Ewan Merrett have been making music together since their early teens; a combination of daisy-age hip-hop swagger, big funk, and indie-soul-pop, where Beck meets Blur via the loose Madchester sounds of the 90s. They released their first songs in 2015, Annie Mac made ‘Wages’ ‘Hottest Record in the World’, and the brilliant ‘Avalanche’ was also featured heavily on BBC Radio One. The smart money was on Bad Sounds, and this summer they released their debut album Get Better. It’s lived up to expectations, throwing the band further into the spotlight, helped along by their captivating and energetic live shows, supporting Rat Boy this summer, playing loads of festivals, and about to embark on a sizeable headline tour of their own this autumn. Jeff Hemmings caught up with Ewan.
What’s happening? Callum and I are working on some demos at the minute. And it’s Sam’s, our bass player’s birthday tonight, so we’ll head over there soon. We’re in Bath at the minute which is where Callum lives. I live in Bristol. There’s five of you in the band, right? The other three have been part of what we do since the beginning, when we first started making demos. Me and Callum have always written the demos, and when we have written the track we take it to the band, and maybe adjust it a bit for live.
How did you get into making music? Me and Callum used to play guitars together in bands, from the age of 13, 14. But, we went in separate directions for a while. Cal moved to London when he was 18, and came home a couple of years later and we started doing something different again. While he was in London he worked in a studio, and got into recording, and producing classic pop music. When I say classic, people like Michael Jackson and Marvin Gaye. I got into more straight up hip-hop, and sample-based stuff at home. When we came back together we showed each other what we knew. Our dad played
guitar a bit, so that was always the thing we would do at the weekend, the three of us would play guitar together. And the band, how did you come together? Originally it was just me, Callum, and Olivia (Dimery, drums). We then decided we definitely needed a guitarist, and after using someone who didn’t work out, we found Charlie (Pitt). And then we decided we definitely needed a keys player, but just couldn’t find someone. So, we got Sam (Hunt) to play bass, and I had to learn keyboards to do some of the stuff live.
Things happened quite quickly for you once you put music out there? We wrote a load of demos, and seeked out some management (they are now with the same management company who look after the likes of Placebo and Deaf Havana). Before that we put online the demo of ‘Living Alone’, and that ended up getting on Radio 1, which got our name out a bit more when we were looking for people. So you got Radio 1 to play an unsigned band!? We always seemed to have good fortune with Radio 1. We have really good support from Annie Mac, she’s been wicked. They’ve always been up for playing our stuff. Maybe it came through BBC Introducing. Annie getting behind ‘Avalanche’ helped us to get a slot at Glastonbury (the BBC Introducing Stage, 2016). We made the video for that on no budget. There was a green screen room at our old university. There seems to be a concept behind Get Better… I think the term concept album is a bit strong! But, we’re basically big fans of albums and always have been. The album should feel like a cohesive piece of work, and not just 11 songs that we’ve written. When we were picking the demos we wanted to turn into songs on the album we had to make sure they worked together. We did have in our heads that we wanted some sort of lyrical theme that ran through. And a lot of the demos had this self-help thing, that we’ve spoken about together quite a lot. And we had a
demo which didn’t make the album, called ‘Get Better’, which became the name of the album. It feels like a prominent thing amongst our generation, something around us a lot. We wanted to have some skits that tied it together, like this opening self-help talking, and this interlude. It does seem prominent these days! There is definitely that issue with our generation. Mental health is seemingly a more prominent issue now. But for me, it was about trusting your own instincts, feeling you’re certain about the choices you’re making. I think a lot of that insecurity is what a lot of those self-help books cater for, that’s where a lot of the market is. I know Callum rips me all the time. I wouldn’t say I do self help or anything like that, but I definitely do those fad things, trying something new out. Like maybe a big change in my diet, thinking it’s going to change the ways I think about something. To be fair, it’s not something new. You had people getting into Buddhism and meditation in the 60s, and stuff. I guess it’s wanting to be a better person, and I think a lot people relate to that. You don’t take yourselves that seriously, though, certainly not on stage... I think not taking ourselves too seriously is important. I’m really looking forward to these shows. It’s the first time we have had a theme, playing on that ‘Get Better’ self-help stuff. I don’t want to go into too many details, I want it to be a surprise on the night. Like I said, when we first started I was doing more hip-hop stuff, and Cal was doing more band stuff, and I didn’t really want to do live shows. Every
live show I went to, it felt like a band being moody on stage. I found it really boring. Cal convinced me to do it, in a way that could be fun, and people would leave feeling, ‘wow, that was fun’, rather than a night where they go ‘I just heard those songs I already know, played by a bunch of moody people on stage.’ That’s my biggest fear of what a Bad Sounds show would be. We know that we’ll never be cool enough to pull that stuff off, we just try and make it a fun thing. Any particular highlights from the summer festival season? Reading was surprisingly really, really fun. There was a lot of pressure on that show, because it was the week after the album came out, and it was the last big show of the summer. There were a lot of label types down there. I had resigned myself to the fact it was going to be a shit show. I was amazed by the amount of people in the audience who seemed to know the words and stuff. Most of our experiences of playing at festivals up to that point was playing to people who had never heard you before, except maybe a few people at the front. But it felt like everyone was on our side once we walked on stage. You’ve played The Great Escape twice, so you must know Brighton? The Great Escape always lands on my girlfriend’s birthday so we always go there for the weekend and make a proper thing of it. It’s super nice. To read the full Q&A with Ewan visit Brightonsfinest.com/BadSounds
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