zero core music, design, photography_______________________________________summer 2013 __ free
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Hello Welcome to issue six of Zero Core. Have we met before? IBright do hope Light so, but Bright if not, Light let me tell 06 you a bit about the Kraffhics paper you hold between your fingers, 10 or the beautiful Article PDF you’re scrolling through online. XX We formed in Article and are now split between Cardiff XX the Welsh capital, Article and whatever countryXX London, one of us might head to Article on holiday. We were a trio, butXX for this issue we welcome Article new editors Chris and George XX on board. Hi guys. And on the inside, we’re all about music and the parts that make it such an exciting passion. We want to celebrate the photographers and designers who contextualize the songs we love, as well as the artists who make them. This issue we’re delighted to have Los Campesinos! as our cover stars. The band are a huge influence on us and one of our favourite pop groups of all time, not to mention creators of the brilliant Heat Rash zine. Imagine if Heat Rash and Zero Core had babies. The publishing world would surely implode.
Made by Jen Long, Adam Chard, Marc Thomas, Chris Chadwick and George O'Brien. Contributors in order of appearance Simon Ayre, Howard Melnyczuk, Hannah Nicklin, Andrew Backhouse, William Exley, Dan Carson, Hannah J Davies, Adam Burbidge, Thomas Weller, Sam Briggs, Hannah Johnson, Suze Olbrich, Sebastien Dehesdin, Phil Stocker and Anika Mottershaw. Thank you Turnstile, the EYOE crew, Dan Monsell, all at Transgressive, Amanda, Sam and Sandra at Freeman, John Rostron and Adam Whitmore, Rich Thane, Suze and Feedy, Joe Parry, Michael and Rachel Moshi, Jo Morris and Rich Walker, Sam Phipps, Ben Coleman, Aoife Kitt, Nathan Warren, Alex Ostrowski, Ally Carter, Elin Rees, Mimi Gabino, Adam Royal, Sandra Croft, Anna Mears, Luke Jarvis and Kate Price. This issue of Zero Core was created in Cardiff and London.
If you want to get involved and write, draw or shoot for us, or recommend us an act you think we might dig, a designer we should feature, get in touch. You’ll find our contact details just there on the right. We’re pretty nice guys.
All rights reserved and stuff like that. Don’t rip us off. Enjoy. Printed by MWL Print. Issue seven due October 2013.
Have a great summer. Fingers crossed for some sun. Lots of love, The Editors x
Email us: hello@zerocore.co.uk Advertise with us: advertising@zerocore.co.uk zerocore.co.uk
IN ISSUE
6
New Bands 1. Glitches 1.
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Glitches blow our collective mind a little bit. It's not often you meet a band who have thought every aspect out. Every tiny detail worked through until it turns into something beautiful and accomplished. The band has been around for a few years, creating art and ideas and the most powerful of pop songs, but recently it’s been picking up momentum for them. Currently working towards a new single, it feels as though on 'Only Time Will Tell' they have made something deeply complex sound as simple as 1,2,3. With a chorus that quite simply falls from the speakers and a refrain that’s as relatable as night and day, it will deliver them to the beat of your heart.
For the accompanying video clip the band trekked to the midlands, creating a giant structure out of wooden crates that mirrors the single’s art and that in turn, echoes previous poster designs. And then they set it on fire. It’s dangerous, beautiful and ritualistic. A string of words you could easily attribute to Glitches, even the former – watch out for their hooks. They’re pretty sharp. Their Halcyon Nights events, a string of DIY gigs and DJ sets based in their East London warehouse, have been picking up almost as much attention as the band. However, they’ve still been able to pack out ticketed shows around the capital too, a testament to the passion with which they capture listener’s imaginations.
And how about that live set too? It’s crooning and it’s exhuberant and it’s delivered with enough modesty and self-belief that you might find yourself falling through the synths and sounds and into a deep romance with a trio of maths students from Oxford. Whoever thinks accountancy isn’t sexy needs to pay heed to these pop stars. facebook.com/glitchesmusic
2. Rainer Rainer is Nic and Rebekah from London. At first they didn’t want you to know that. They wanted remain anonymous, a distance that’s transparent in their music. Then Pitchfork wrote about them and spilled the beans, but that’s OK. False identities are sooo 2010 anyway. Rebekah Raa is the former lead singer of the incredibly underrated Stricken City. And Nic Nell forms half of Young Colossus with Orlando Weeks from The Maccabees. Together they are Rainer and now you know the backstory, let’s get on with the present day. Debuting with the track 'Silence' as a free download, they’ve created something sparse and delicate that hits with the force of twenty trucks.
3. The Adelines “I put my body through hell for her,” confides Ra with the intimacy of a final breath. “Treat me like a child.” It’s utterly personal and yet incredibly relatable – the perfect combination of confessional and accessible. The duo has recently started playing live with a first show reserved for close friends swiftly followed by a set at industryfest The Great Escape. Probably the two toughest live settings imaginable. And now they’re just playing regular gigs, although we can guarantee that watching their set won’t feel like just another band in a boozer. This is something far from anonymous. rainer.bandcamp.com
There’s something very special about The Adelines. Four youngsters from the hip dwelling of Swansea, they make songs that sound instantly nostalgic and insanely current. It’s indie in its finest form – soft and sweet lyrics, a driving rhythm section, and the kind of guitar lines that make your feet move and your heart melt. With new single 'Alleyways' out now, the band have been gaining attention from all around the UK and recently played the Great Escape Festival in Brighton to a packed out crowd of Conversed feet and lip-syncing faces.
What we love most about them is how bloody excited they look all the time, whether it’s playing in front of a packed out crowd, or to a few chatting people in a sweaty basement. Get yourself to a show and get ready to have every teenage dream turned to a reality. It will be very special indeed. theadelines.com
Live, they create a swathe of sound that builds and falls like a fragile pulse, but on record it’s a much more taught affair, the choruses following a vocal line that’s embedded in 90s Britpop and could have you drifting off into an Elastica refrain before you can say Damon Albarn. 7
Mount Kimbie
Words: Chris Chadwick Illustration: Adam Chard croatoandesign.co.uk mountkimbie.com
Mount Kimbie have taken their time with the followup to their 2010 debut Crooks & Lovers. But having seen their first LP lauded by critics, adored by fans and shamelessly mimicked by fellow musicians, you can hardly blame them for not rushing Cold Spring Fault Less Youth. When Zero Core caught up with Dom from the band it was to chat about ceaseless touring and collaborations both live and in the studio. Your debut album came out in 2010, what have you been doing since then? When Crooks came out we started touring and we toured for a good two years playing those songs and just tried to make the live show as good as possible. We didn't have any time at all during that period to write any new music, we were solely focusing on the live aspect. We sat down roughly about a year ago, took a break out of the live schedule and dedicated our time to starting to write again.
The confidence we gained gave us room to explore stuff that we weren't familiar with Do you think that having spent two years playing live has informed the sound of this record? It had a major impact. We had to start from scratch in terms of our recording methods because so much time had passed we'd almost forgotten how to write music. So we worked out a lot of our melodies using acoustic instruments. The confidence we gained through playing so much live had a massive impact on how we wanted this album to sound. We felt way more comfortable running with ideas. Crooks referred to a period of our lives and for us it would have been criminal to have gone back and done a part two.
You've added an extra member to your live band too. How's that been for you? Having Tony on board was crucial. After we got him involved we played a gig at the Southbank Centre and realised that we can achieve a lot more with Tony than we initially thought. We've always been quite attracted to the idea of having another pair of hands. Just having that base layer that we can work from just means that we have more time and energy and we can focus a lot more on what we're doing with our vocals on stage. You've also done some collaborations for the album with King Krule. How did that come about? We just had this huge respect and admiration for the guy behind the amazing voice. Not only his voice but his songwriting really attracted us. It was just great having someone who's that dynamic coming into the process at that stage. The two tracks that he appears on were simple twenty second loops until Archie came in and we finished the songs together. Would you say that you needed the challenge of having some else involved in the creative process? We're not afraid to get the right person involved. I think at that point the confidence that we'd gained through the whole time we were touring Crooks gave us the room to feel free to explore stuff that we weren't necessarily familiar with. You start to realise that finding people that you feel in tune with is exciting in itself. I think that it's something that we're going to be doing a lot more of in the future.
9
Landshapes
Words: Jen Long Photo: Howard Melnyczuk melnyczuk.tumblr.com facebook.com/landshapes
Heloise’s cheese is banned from the van. It’s a rule the other members of East London’s Landshapes stress at said bassist as they burst in to giggles while setting up pedal boards and percussion to practice in the backspace of a shoe shop near Old Street. “You get out the van and come back in again it just smells like a ripe breeze,” attests guitarist Jemma. “It’s just not the right environment to sit in for seven and a half hours on the road.” Having spent several years in each other’s company under the guise of Lulu And The Lampshades, they shed the name after a change in sound and in an effort to put distance between the new material and a previous viral clip they felt tied in to. “It had been a long time since we put anything out, and it just felt like we had baggage that we didn’t really want,” explains lead vocalist and ukulele brandishing Luisa. “It also implies a lead singer and a backing band and that’s just really not the case.”
Everything is an influence; there’s no such thing as an original thing Completed by Dan on the drums, I meet the band a few weeks before the release of debut album Rambutan, a thick and percussive journey that echoes through headphones with sentiment and elegance in abundance. However, there is a depressive nature to the lyrics, a suggestion the band isn’t too happy to take. “Dan’s the depressing one,” fronts Jemma. “He’s from up North.”
With both Dan and Luisa taking on the wordy duty I ask how confessional their songs are, and how much is simple storytelling. “I would love them to not be about me and to be about stories that I’ve made up in my head,” replies Luisa. “I think after a while you just sing them over and over again and the repetition, it becomes subjective, so what feels really exposing at first then just becomes part of a song.” Sitting with the four members of Landshapes certainly feels like you’re a stranger invading a very tight knit group used to each other’s jokes and traits. Throw in a recording device and conversation becomes nervous. “We’re really good at this,” jokes Luisa. With a debut album driven by drums and bass but explosive in vocal harmonies it’s very much feels like their personal sound. I ask how they developed this over the years, and how much has been influenced by outside artists. “I think it’s definitely a big part of our sound, harmonising, and always has been”, answers Jemma. “Everything is an influence; there’s no such thing as an original thing, so everything you’re doing and everything you’re seeing, you can’t help but it have an influence, whether you’re conscious of it or not. I think it’s a lot to do with personal taste and I think a lot of us like that sound and that’s why it comes to the surface.” Well, as long as that personal taste doesn’t sway toward the smelly cheese you’ll get on just fine.
11
Los Campesinos!
Words: Hannah Nicklin Photos: Simon Ayre simonayre.com loscampesinos.com
Fresh from individually hand-stamping hundreds of merch pre-orders after a Royal Mail business account furore (it was a thrilling story), and with a much needed beer in hand, Gareth Campesinos! took to the time to chat to us about Los Campesinos!’ freshly released live album A Good Night for a Fist Fight, as well as a bit about DIY culture, zines, Championship Manager, and beginning recording for their fourth studio album. Gareth is earnest in his answers about the motivations for Fist Fight, explaining that having gotten used to producing their records to a certain standard, the release has gone a long way to helping pay for the studio time they for the new material. But after seven years of making music, and having a reputation for being a strong live act, it also felt good to capture that sometimes messy, always brilliantly alive experience.
It’s nice to think that the poetry of pop music can exist outside of song Gareth explains: “When people go to a gig, or when people are listening to this new live album, they’re expecting to hear the songs as they are on the album. But I can’t remember the last time I listened to the songs as they are on the albums. When we’re performing, we’re not playing the songs that people hear on records, we’re playing a version of the song we played the previous night – so on a tour, and even more so over six years – it’s kind of like Chinese whispers.”
In listening back to Fist Fight Gareth describes “moments where I’m singing a slightly different melody, or I’ve had to slow things down to take a breath, and you’ve got people in the audience singing along better than I am.” Fist Fight is a way of capturing that crackling live experience, found in the electric space between band and audience. And the audience, for Los Campesinos! “is something that’s especially important – having that interaction, because we’ve never been a ‘big’ band, but we do have big fans. In the last 12 months we’ve been lucky enough to play in Singapore, North America, all over, and there are always people willing to come, willing to interact with us, during or after the gig. And I think, the richness of that relationship, that’s what comes across.” The recording also marks the departure of Ellen from the band – leaving to pursue her film work – and while the band has happily adapted to different combinations of ten members over the years (six people currently), Gareth admits that “we’re sort of old, in the indie pop business… and there’s a limit to what we can afford to do – we just make enough to go on tour, and then record a record, and we all enjoy the band and want keep doing it as long as possible but it’s a fickle business, and we all have to do other jobs as well, so with Ellen leaving we saw this opportunity, just wanted to take the opportunity to get it down on CD or MP3. So at least we could prove to our grandchildren that we did this thing, this thing all over the world in rooms full of people.”
This strong audience relationship also extends to the band’s zine Heat Rash, influenced by riot grrrl zines and the thickly layered unashamedly music geek comic series Phonogram as a way of giving the other band members a platform beyond their instruments; deepening the relationship with their fanbase; “allowing other members in the band to have a voice.” For Los Campesinos! calling themselves DIY doesn’t mean lo-fi – they still value production, it’s much more about an open, earnest and full relationship with their fans.
We’re the closest we’ve ever been to making a record that's just us Moving on to talk about the new upcoming studio album Gareth explains a little bit about his process. Whereas Tom Campesinos! has spent the last two years (since the last release) writing the music, Gareth struggles a little with what he calls an almost ‘working class guilt’ of ‘who cares what I have to say?’ when it comes to writing, so he won’t start until they’re recording – the process of being in the studio with friends is his main motivator, responding to them, rather than worrying over the worthiness of his lyrical content. “The idea of ‘I’m going to write something and I’m going to give it to the world’ – I find it really uncomfortable putting myself in that place. If I stop to think about what I’m doing it seems so ludicrous, so I try not to think about it before going into the studio.”
He also talks about separating lyrics from music, and the influence of Nick Cave’s 2007 Complete Lyrics; the perfect poetry of seeing those words on the page. “Knowing that you can approach lyrics than as a part of the music is a really liberating way to look it as a writer – because I have no musical ability it’s nice to think that the poetry of pop music can exist outside of song.” As to what the new material sounds like? “In the back of our mind we always have an idea of what people want from us. Then we’ll try and forget about that, but we’ve never quite made things as if we were making a record for just us.” But with this one, Gareth feels, “we’re the closest we’ve ever been to making a record that's just us. Our first record was this lo-fi twee pop – we could never be that now. We’re six, seven years older, we’ve changed as people, our musical interests have changed, Tom’s ability as a producer has grown incredibly. I feel like I can say with no bias – because I have nothing to do with the writing of the music – that listening to the demos, I’m just really excited to get into the studio.” And finally, I ask Gareth about his hopes for the 2014 release of Championship Manager. “Actually, the only place we promoted our first demo was on a Championship Manager forum, and some of those earliest fans then went on to work for the game. So I’ve actually been able to suggest a couple of features. If they go in, then that’s it. Forget the live album, then I really will have something to tell the grandkids”.
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Simon Ayre
Words: Andrew Backhouse simonayre.com
Never judge a book by its cover. Great philosophy in life, but they never said anything about magazines. It’s the most important part – if the cover doesn’t catch your eye, you won’t pick it up; it grabs you in the moment. Maybe you’re a faithful Zero Core reader (and we salute you!), but maybe you picked this up – from a bar or at a gig – because of our handsome cover stars, Los Campesinos!. Shot on a grim afternoon in Cardiff Bay, it’s another shoot of many for the band – yet, unusually for the six-piece who call the Welsh capital their home, none of them have ever been here. It mirrors the ever-evolving line-up and sound of the band: always discovering new places, never sitting still. Today is literally a snapshot in the band’s life.
If you’ve got an idea, go out and do it. Don’t think, just do it. (Main image) Guy Garvey, Elbow (over page) 1. Bruce Springsteen 2. The Joy Formidable 3. Africa Express: Damon Albarn with Amadou and Mariam 4. The Jim Jones Revue
The same can be said of the guy behind the camera. “I went for a bit more sombre and serious look,” Meet Simon Ayre, the photographer for this afternoon’s shoot. Being part of the same cross-pollinating music scene of Cardiff, and having photographed the band since their humble beginnings (“I was looking at the photos the other day - they’re absolutely awful”), the fact Simon’s grown up with the band makes him the perfect man for the job. “They’ve had so many good photoshoots over the years – some really colourful ones – but, I think, as the band have got older, I guess their music’s become more serious. I wanted to reflect that. Plus, it’s more my style, I think.”
Simon’s passion for photography struck him at a young age. “I’m not one of those people who says by the age of five I was walking round with a camera in my hand, like so many photographers seem to say. I always liked messing around with my Dad’s old camera, but it was a bit out of reach. I always found it a bit daunting, the scientific part of it.” But Simon was quick to overcome any obstacles. At 14, he bought an instamatic pocket camera to take to one basketball match and then another, and time went by in a flash. “I would come back with photos I actually loved.” But even today, as Simon gushes about his catchup with Los Campesinos! and the photos from the afternoon’s shoot, it’s clear he still gets a thrill out of his sport. But what made the fourteen yearold Simon pick up that camera? “It’s capturing moments,” he explains, “and especially people. With the basketball when I was a kid, I used to try and get photos of dunks and exciting things happening. My photography has always drawn me to people, more than anything. A lot of movement; a lot of facial expressions; a lot of emotion: it’s quite a fast moving sport.” Simon’s photography seems to be the perfect way of summing up life. Things move fast, and if you want something, you’ve got to act quick. Before our chat ends, and he leaves to decide on this issue’s cover, Simon parts with some great advice for any aspiring photographers, or anybody who wants to make their hobby their job. “If you’ve got an idea, go out and do it. Don’t think, just do it.”
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20 JUNE
ZOË KEATING
ST GILES-IN-THE-FIELDS CHURCH, WC2H 8LG 21 JUNE
THE PROPER ORNAMENTS
+ NOVELLA + WICKETKEEPER + SPECIAL GUEST DJs
SHACKLEWELL ARMS, E8 2EB
31 OCTOBER
FABIO FRIZZI
FRIZZI 2 FULCI HALLOWEEN SHOW
UNION CHAPEL, N1 2XD
05 JUNE
MARIAM THE BELIEVER (WILDBIRDS & PEACEDRUMS) + BENT (TEAMLOVE RECORDS) SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS, N16 8NJ 03 JULY
MOSHI MOSHI NIGHT SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS, N16 8NJ
Green Man and YCN
Words: Marc Thomas greenman.net ycnstudio.com (Main image) The revamped Green Man website (over page) 1. Woodblock printing the custom typeface 2. Finished article the festival poster in situ 3. Festival site map
Earlier this year, we were all suitably taken aback by the rebrand that appeared along with the first lineup announcement of Green Man Festival as it was replaced by a mystical looking type face and a selection of symbols and creatures. Alex Ostrowski, Director at YCN Studio who are responsible for the rebrand is explaining how the project came about. "We sat with them and worked out what they wanted first. None of us had been to the festival which is a shame because we like to know about exactly what we're doing," he explains. "They gave us loads of stuff from previous years and photos of the festival. To be big and independently run and successful is quite a challenge."
It's about being away from the city and being immersed in a primal natural state The thing that comes across most from YCN's work is the primal nature of the brand they created. It is wild and doesn't follow traditional rules of branding. In fact, there's not even a Green Man logo anymore. "Green Man's thing is about being outdoors and away from the city and away from it all being immersed in an almost primal natural state. Their icon and symbol for the festival is the Green Man. He is a nature deity from pagan times. He represents rebirth and the cycles of nature," he says. "He's represented as the lord of misrule and he encourages mischief and wildness. It's about being wild and free. He's omnipresent and if you have a little face that can be emblazoned on things as a logo, you lose the mystery."
Most notable of all the elements of the fantastic rebrand is the creation of an original typeface for the festival, which, aside from the traditional alphabet, also contains a lot of symbols without explanations. "We had a book on ancient coin art and the primitive mark making that you associate with that age of making visual marks that mean things," Ostrowski explains. "We liked the idea that the Green Man Festival could have its own indigenous language that mean things to people who are in the festival. At first glimpse, they look alien and odd and create a visual barrier so that you have to learn the language." The typeface itself, according to Ostrowski, is so individual because it is born out of a desire for 'authentic physicality.' "We developed it into a whole typeface in the computer and we got those laser cut into wood and we got them made into blocks and printed them onto newsprint." he explains. "We turned it into a typeface with Colophon Foundry. They made it into a typeface you could actually use to type‌ the symbols were part of that." As if that wasn't enough, YCN created up to three different versions of each letter to make sure that no two same letters were next to each other which might detract from the wildness. What YCN have created with their rebrand is not just a new brand but also an entirely new identity for one of Britain's best loved festivals and stayed faithful to the ideas that all of the loyal festival goers love: wildness, fun and mystery. 21
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Lemuria
Words: Jen Long Illustration: William Exley williamexley.co.uk lemuriapop.com
“Lemuria has no plans of ever stopping unless one of us is unfortunately not around or something,” laughs Sheena from down a distant phone line. “We are gonna stick around for the long haul.” We catch her mid-dog-walking on a bright afternoon in Washington DC just days after 'Brilliant Dancer', the first offering from third album The Distance Is So Big, debuts online, a release Sheena is all too relieved about. “I was counting down the days to release it,” she enthuses. “It’s really hard to record a record and then sit on it for months waiting for it to come out.” Describing the feedback as amazing, she adds, “I actually haven’t been told one bad thing, which I think is a good thing.”
It’s really hard to record a record and then sit on it for months Lemuria, a trio from Buffalo completed by Alex on drums and Max on bass, do at times conjure an image of the glass half-empty guy. Their lyrics often feel defeated and anxious, a preconception that Sheena’s prior statement does nothing but strengthen. I ask if she’s easily hurt by negative comments, especially online. “You can let the one negative thing bum you out for the day, or you can let the one negative thing motivate you,” she states. “I end up letting that one negative thing totally ruin my day.”
It’s a change Sheena attributes to the addition of Max as a songwriter, not just performer. “Making our second record was kind of terrifying, but now that we’re over that with Max joining the band, we’re really focusing on each song as a part of our album, and I do think we nailed it.” “Being a two-piece is hard and it’s challenging and it’s a lot of pressure on the members to create something that’s original. I feel like when we got Max and we saw what he could bring to the band and the music that he created with us, we became exactly what we wanted to be.” From the opening build of 'Michael and Stephen Moon' through the pop brilliance and hook driven choruses of 'Brilliant Dancer' and 'Oahu Hawaii', to the closing breath of 'Ruby', The Distance Is So Big delivers an addictive sugar high that sounds as if it were created from a truly sweet disposition. “We are a married band and I think this is a step in the positive direction,” smiles Sheena. “It’s really weird, you find your soul mates in life or love or whatever, but I feel like now, Max is kind of this weird mystical thing that came in to Lemuria’s life, and he fit so perfectly in that it’s almost like you can’t believe it. And now he has given his life to Alex and I.” Lemuria, ‘til death do us part.
However, on the new album it feels as though the band has turned a sunny corner and shown a brighter side to Lemuria. The lyrics are positive, there’s more space in the songs, and each instrument works with, not against the other. 25
Reviews 1. Disclosure Settle PMR 3 June 1.
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If there’s one thing that all the Twitter chitter-chatter and industry hubbub surrounding the new Daft Punk LP taught us, it’s that dance music empires aren’t built in a day. They take years of patient attrition, innovative brains and an unswerving commitment to creative ideals. While Reigateborn brothers Disclosure, haven’t quite crafted an album to sidle up next to Discovery or Dig Your Own Hole or Remedy, there’s plenty for UK dance fans to cheer, as the Lawrence boys take the helm on Settle.
Although the precociously talented siblings do revisit their not-sodistant past on London Grammarguesting closer, ‘Help Me Lose My Mind’, which sounds as near to a future-garage ballad as anyone is likely to get.
The duo’s bubbling brew of deep house and garage is a fairly recent creation; Guy was once a guitar playing hip-hop head, while Howard’s early forays into music were influenced by Kate Bush. Everything changed when Guy began exploring the club scene’s sticky dance-floors and the lithe, introspective beats of Joy Orbison and co.
It becomes quickly apparent though that Disclosure haven’t quite worked out how to attune the broiling pace of their live set to suit a full-length record just yet, and even with its who’s who of UK RnB highlight-reel, Settle comes over a touch hit ‘n miss.
Cold, calculated repetitions are splashed onto a gurgling backbeat of modulated synths and flickering hi-hats on ‘When A Fire Starts To Burn’, while Sam Smith cooks his caramelised verses over sloshy bass pops and trilling beats in ‘Latch.’
Euphoric moments like the pogoing, Aluna Francis-spiked ‘White Noise’, Jessie Ware’s seductive cooing on ‘Confess To Me’ and the tropically bouncing, ‘Defeated No More’, mingle with mildly inoffensive shufflers. ‘F For You’s wispy synths and ‘Stimulation’s tinny snare rattles and padded kicks offer little more than an opportunity to air-off sweat patches and douse chapped lips with extortionately priced water. Youth is very much on their side though, and they might yet pull a classic dance album from their short-sleeved tees; for now we have to be content with a record filled with all the heady highs of a fortnight’s stay in Ibiza, but with momentary lows of one of the island’s not so glamorous lodgings. Words: Dan Carson facebook.com/disclosureuk
3. Selebrities Lovely Things Cascine 25 June
2. Icky Blossoms Icky Blossoms Saddle Creek 3 June Fresh from a split 7” with indie heavyweights Black Lips, Omaha’s Icky Blossoms have created the perfect slice of summertime cool. This is the cutand-paste, self-aware electroclash complete with conceptual lyricism and references to 1995 that we used to discover on Kitsuné compilations and the MySpace profiles of the kids who wore pyjamas to school. Somewhere between a tamed Alice Glass and a doped-up Debbie Harry, vocalist Sarah Bohling takes centre-stage on ‘Cycle’ – a track which initially drew more attention for its NSFW video than the butter-smooth synth – and ‘Deep In The Throes’, where funky beats fuse with monotone musings. ‘Sex To The Devil’ makes proceedings decidedly current, with tempo changes galore and an almost deep-house crescendo.
Likewise, ‘Babes’ is a sensual, sultry slice of postmodern pop that reworks the old adage “who run the world (girls)” into a soundtrack for a fashionista montage. ‘Heat Lightning’ follows a similar formula, although it is more pulsating than droning. Although Icky Blossoms is a wholly different project for Tilly and The Wall’s Derek Pressnall – alongside Bohling, and guitarist Nik Fackler – rather ironically, they sound best when they’re in ‘sexy indie band’ mode rather than three musicians on separate arthouse icebergs. Pressnall and Bohling work well as a vocal team (‘Temporary Freakout’, ‘Stark Weather’), and even though ‘I Am’ is laden with clichéd lyrics, it is James Murphy-esque enough to warrant real praise.
Lovely Things really is that. New York four-piece Selebrities have produced an entirely charming experience, and one that leaves you floating around in an 80's dream-world throughout.
Whatever urgency there is on Lovely Things though, is channeled into expressing the naivety and emotional oscillations of youth, as heard in 'Born Killers' in particular.
Nonchalance to the point of sounding as if she’s trying to focus on her reading or as if slipping into English like her second language, Maria Usbeck’s easy-tolove, airy vocals lift-up each song into this imagined dreamscape, carried along by the synth-snare combo.
Highlights, such as the single ‘Temporary Touch’ and ‘Fell to Earth’ are the idealised mix-tape exchanges of high school sweethearts, that would feel perfectly at home on the soundtrack of any 1980's comingof-age drama; the record comes on, your favourite characters have a good cry, and it’s not clear if they're happy or sad.
Since their debut EP Ladies Man Effect, Selebrities have mellowed considerably, although the erstwhile urgency from before is echoed to some extent on this sophomore effort, through ‘Lovers’ and ‘I Could Change’.
Words: Adam Burbidge facebook.com/Selebrities
Words: Hannah J Davies ickyblossoms.com
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4. Waxahatchee Cerulean Salt Wichita 1 July At first glance, it would be all too easy to bracket Cerulean Salt into ‘easy listening’. However, give it another chance, play it through a couple more times and you’ll find something darker and altogether more intimate beneath the straightforward chord progressions and singer Katie Crutchfield’s Americana swagger. The album is exceptionally well crafted: a series of punk ballads neatly slotting together to provide a coherent insight into her frustrations ("You hold onto the past / you make yourself miserable / and I’m ruled by seasons and sadness"), aspirations ("I’ll try to embrace the lows") and flat-out despair ("I fill my jar up to the brim / I am an arid abyss").
5. A Grave With No Name Whirlpool Stare Records 1 July Moving on from the slow burning melancholy of 'American Weekend' into newly animated territories, the band evoke a bittersweet wanderlust with their capacious lyrics and distorted guitar riffs.
The germination of Alexander Shields' ostensibly bedroom based project was born from a moment of gloriously traditional teenage angst. Mum gives boy money for driving lessons, boy buys guitar.
It’s all about being young, being miserable and the fear that it might not get any better from here on out. The surging tempo of tracks such as ‘Coast to Coast’ save the album from lapsing into despair however, and at times you find yourself caught between incredibly personal, devastating lyrics and the kind of songs you wouldn’t mind driving to.
By Whirlpool – take three – Shields might be older and wiser, but still pleasantly imbued with this snotty sense of anti-establishment, twisting his well-wrought pop songs into wriggling nuggets of quirky beauty.
Waxahatchee are going from strength to strength and if you give them the time, you will be in for a surprise along the way. Words: Thomas Weller waxahatchee.bandcamp.com
From the woozy widescreen beauty of the jangly guitar lines and crystalline vocal fragility on ‘Streams’, to the fucked up pop prickle on ‘Origami’, the project's brainchild shows the diverse strength of his ever-melodic songwriting.
With an intriguing supporting cast bringing company to the serial loner leading proceedings; Echo Lake's Linda Jarvis, to Alanna McArdle of Ides and Joanna Gruesome, the album's shifting vocal presence provides numerous moments to discern distinct penetrations through the haze. It's perhaps a little small scale in its ambitions to be truly engrossing, but these small, well-formed gems function effectively as glowing embers, or frosty ice shards, harking back to the nostalgia of oldphotographs and half remembered moments, delivered by the swooning melancholy of a man with ‘Hair Wet With Sepia’; overall, a haunting success. Words: Sam Briggs soundcloud.com/agravewithnoname
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Live
Field Day Victoria Park, London, 25 May This year’s Field Day burst London’s bank holiday weekend into life, boasting an enticing line-up and weather to match, Hackney’s Victoria Park was bathed in sun. As a result, the festival highlights, predominantly an assortment of pace setting females, were allowed to shine.
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Liverpool’s Outfit proved why there is a palpable excitement surrounding their new record, with an infectious blend of electronic and guitar-lead pop early in the piece, before the delicate harmonies of Stealing Sheep took over. Nearly lost to the size of the main stage, they managed to radiate touches of joyfulness; a befitting start to the day. The trio’s set was in abrupt contrast to the powerful, reverberating force of the super-serious Savages (fig 1), who followed-on from CHVRCHES’ brilliant bubblegum blend of infectious 80s pop. The former’s sound rippled across the crowd sitting outside the tent and dragged people in with hypnotic strength. Each band member appeared to be channeling a dark, otherworldly power, filling the space with almost overwhelming noise. Languid, punk-fueled scuzz rained out across the Shacklewell Arms stage, as psychedelic hopefuls Splashh jammed through their impressively energetic set, before the almost cult-status figure of Kurt Vile (fig 2) drew a sizable crowd away from the Main Stage and a certain Miss Knowles.
With effortless nonchalance he fronts the Violators, calmly running through key tracks from his catalogue in front of a seemingly possessed drummer – ingenious juxtaposition. Daughter’s Elena Tonra (fig 3) swept everyone away with her dreamy whisper, after exclaiming at the size of the appreciative crowd. The performance gave their album added depth and soul; due to a late start their set was cut short, but ‘Youth’ provided a gleaming jewel at its centre. Natasha Kahn’s voice and outfit sparkled in playful, multi-coloured glory, as Bat For Lashes were at their haunting best. Next up, Four Tet’s functional but luscious DJ set wasn’t as anthemic as his recent live outings, but the crowd-pleasing track selection was amplified by a beautiful sunset and an array of huge, coloured balloons dancing over the crowd. The chock-a-block nature of this year’s festival, made sets seem all-too short, but the festival catered for a diverse spectrum of genres – a fast-paced musical taster session in a sunny field – what more could you want? Words: Hannah Johnson and George O’Brien Photos: Adam Chard croatoandesign.co.uk fielddayfestivals.com 30
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Primavera Sound Parc del Fòrum, Barcelona, 22–26 May Primavera is the queen of European festivals: impeccably stylish, beautifully groomed and, y’know, a lady of a certain level of experience. Her deftly curated stages ripe with exceptional artists transcending genres, ages and moods, with the ability to make you dance, jump, gawp or weep. Even one day of this year’s programme would crucify at least ninety-five percent of the UK’s weekend offerings. Savages’ blistering performance, set against the dying sun, was the first thing on the agenda; as chill-inducing as ever, it was the perfect lead-in to Metz’s deeply satisfying pulverisation of the same stage a little later on. Jessie Ware (fig 1) then breezed along to prove yet again why she has become the star she is. During the first of three epic encounters, Deerhunter (fig 2) were a truly wonderful thing to behold, with Bradford Cox on more masterful form than ever before. Next-up, the unparalleled provocateur that is Sean Nicholas Savage roused hearts and loins, before Phoenix topped the night with an exuberant, dominating performance. Jackmaster’s ‘Tweak-A-Holic’ sounds then got everyone (still capable) dancing like a loon as the new day approached.
Daughn Gibson proved quite a talking-point early on the Friday. His music receiving slightly mixed reviews, but the pink shirted figure unilaterally winning fans nonetheless. Solange’s show was a sophisticated, groovy affair, and although The Knife's lack of live playing remains a little contentious to some, their set was still thoroughly enjoyable. The Babies stood out as a real favourite on Saturday evening, drawing a surprisingly large crowd for their awesome, ramshackle indie. A strong, hits-heavy set from Nick Cave was followed by a somewhat disappointingly lackluster outing from pioneering shoegazers My Bloody Valentine. The final day off of the concrete playground festival site brought the opportunity to see the brilliant Mac De Marco (fig 3) performing in a sunny park, before Merchandise and Deerhunter blew yet more minds, wrapping-up a blissful few days in Barcelona. Words: Suze Olbrich Photo: Sebastien Dehesdin sebastiendehesdin.com primaverasound.com
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PHIL STOCKER: Don't believe your hype Every week I have the greatest privilege in the world: programming a new music show on Radio 1. It’s not a bad life really. Comes with the job. As does meeting the great & good of the International Indie circuit. Between my presenters (Phil Taggart & Alice Levine, Mon – Thurs 10pm til midnight since you ask) and myself, our favourite band changes on an almost daily basis. Current likes include Action Bronson, MT, Maromozets, Braids, Waxahatchee, Close, Banks, Alizz, Apes, FTSE, Charlie Boyer & The Voyeurs, Lunice, Petite Noir, and Romare.
But there's a temptation as a radio producer or DJ when you 'discover' a truly great band, and only the unrealistic try to do this, to 'own' the band for yourselves. By this I mean, you might play them on the radio and book them in session. You might blog or tweet about them. And by doing so, 'own' them. Or at least your own vanity lets you believe that you have somehow 'made' them or played them first, which may well be the case, and therefore have a vested interest and indeed a seminal role in the band's hype and resulting success.
It’s all very exciting when you, the show, a friend, or friend of friend who has friends passes on a tip of the next band 'to get on'. And we do, after a thorough listen in the office and if we're all agreed it’s a goer. If you're not careful though, the love affair can burn as bright as it does brief. And here's the thing: if a band is amazing you've got to let them go. Once that track from Ian John & The Johns* (*not real band name) appears on your show and your track listings, it comes with the territory that listeners, labels, and other DJs or producers shows will all take a passing interest in what you've played.
No matter how tempting it might be, no matter how polite the band were during the interview or even afterwards, or how flattering the radio promotions PR people are, do yourself a favour; don't believe it has happened because of you. It hasn't. It’s because the music is amazing and when given a platform like national radio, a label, or a prolific blog, the music connects in a way like nothing else. We are but messengers of new music, not the gatekeepers. Hopefully, more often than not it’s worth listening to. Unless its Ian John & The Johns** ** Still not a real band. To my knowledge.
Which is great. It’s the whole point of a new music show. We play some of the best music we can find, and upon hearing about it or them you dig around online to find out more about them and hopefully buy their music along the way thus funding the next single/EP/petrol money for the next gig…
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