JUNE 2017 // ISSUE 49 // FREE
YOUNG M.A
P R E S E N T S
04 | 06 | 17
T | 17 SO|LD 28 | 09 | 17 - 29 09OU
- ROUNDHOUSE -
- 02 ACADEMY BRIXTON -
AGNES OBEL 07 | 06 | 17
JUSTICE T OU | 17 30 09 SO|LD
FRANKIE OLIVER
NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS
T OU | 17 09 06 SO|LD
03 | 10 | 17
- THE O2 -
- 100 CLUB -
BUFFALO TOM
DARLIA
14 | 06 | 17
10 | 10 | 17
- SCALA -
- ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL -
EARL
- COURTYARD THEATRE HOXTON T OU | 17 30 06 SO|LD
THE WOMBATS
JOLIE HOLLAND + SAMANTHA PARTON
- UNION CHAPEL, ISLINGTON -
13 | 10 | 17
- 02 ACADEMY, BRIXTON -
29 | 07 | 17 - 30 | 07 | 17
INDIGO GIRLS
LAMB
- O2 SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE –
16 | 10 | 17
- ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL -
ÁSGEIR
12 | 09 | 17
- ROUNDHOUSE -
DISPATCH
- ELECTRIC BALLROOM T - 21 |LD T OU OU | 17 | 17 20 09 SO|LD SO 09 22 | 09 | 17
SIGUR RÓS
- EVENTIM APOLLO HAMMERSMITH
27 | 10 | 17
STEVEN PAGE - BUSH HALL -
01 | 12 | 17
JESCA HOOP
- UNION CHAPEL, ISLINGTON -
09 - 10 SEPTEMBER 2017
ON BLACKHEATH - BLACKHEATH, LONDON SE3 QUA In partnership with John Lewis A L L T I C K E T S AVA I L A B L E F R O M
TICKETMASTER.CO.UK - SEETICKETS.COM - SONGKICK.COM - GIGANTIC.COM STARGREEN.COM - ROUNDHOUSE.ORG.UK - EVENTIM.CO.UK
P R E S E N T S
KIEFER
PLUS
Live at Tuesday 13 June 2017
ROUNDHOUSE LONDON
KIEFER SUTHERLAND THURSDAY 22 JUNE 2017
ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL LONDON
IN ASSOCIATION WITH ATC LIVE
and his banD friday 18 august 2017
london o2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire
BY ARRANGEMENT WITH PRIMARY TALENT INTERNATIONAL
PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS BY A R R A N G E M E N T W I T H X- r ay
NEW ALBUM ‘TI AMO’ OUT JUNE 09 T I C K E T S AVA I L A B L E F R O M
SONGKICK.COM - GIGANTIC.COM - SEETICKETS.COM ROUNDHOUSE.ORG.UK - TICKETMASTER.CO.UK - STARGREEN.COM
MAMA, TIME OUT & COMMUNION PRESENT
THE ULTIMATE SUMMER SUNDAY
FOALS
BONOBOLIVE
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WILD BEASTS LAURA MARLING MICHAEL KIWANUKA A BLAZE OF FEATHER
-
VERY SPECIAL GUEST
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RY X MAGGIE ROGERS SYLVAN ESSO OUMOU SANGARÉ HUDSON TAYLOR DAN CROLL TWIN PEAKS MARGARET GLASPY NADINE SHAH ALDOUS HARDING PICTURE THIS HOUSE GOSPEL CHOIR COSMIC STRIP
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- ARTS & IDEAS -
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SUNDAY PAPERS LIVE FRONTLINE CLUB & SOFAR SOUNDS THE SCIENCE CAMP SCIENCE MUSEUM, OPEN SENSES FUTUREPLAY & GUERILLA SCIENCE THE ART STUDIO THE INDYTUTE
- FUN & FITNESS -
REGGAE ROAST BBQ AT THE BANDSTAND THE SPANDEX STAGE FRAME & HOUSE OF VOGA ROLLER HOEDOWN MASS YOGA STRETCH
- LONDON’S FINEST FOOD & DRINK -
ALE EPIPHANIES FROM SHARP’S BREWERY SPICY SMIRNOFF BLOODY MARYS FEVER TREE’S ULTIMATE GIN & TONIC BAR MR PROSECCO THE RIOJA TERRACE PATTY & BUN BUBBLEDOGS ANNA MAE’S MAC TO THE FUTURE JERK & TWERK WHOLEFOOD HEAVEN
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& A GALAXY OF PROGRAMMING TO DISCOVER...
FROM £49.50+ BF
WELCOME YOUNG M.A (interview, pg: 24)
Before we launch into our fresh new issue, we just want to say how upsetting and surprising the allegations that came to light against Ben Hopkins of PWR BTTM were, and remain to be. We're committed to standing by survivors of abuse, and offer our apologies to anyone who may have been triggered by the cover of our May issue. Please visit thesurviorstrust.org if you need support. Moving forward... we're really excited to have Young M.A gracing our June cover, as she heads our way for her first UK show at M.I.A.’s Meltdown Festival. We can't take her new EP Herstory off the stereo - if you haven't already, stick it on. We're also giving away 3 pairs of golden tickets for Visions Festival in this month’s magazine! You'll already know if you're a winner, but keep an eye out for those edges of gold foil stuck just inside another issue, they’re out there.
STAFF ON REPEAT the tracks we can’t stop listening to this month JESS: Indian Wells - Cascades DAVE: Cornelius - If You’re Here LOKI: Oro Swimming Hour - Overthrown DANNY: The National - The System Only Dreams... GEMMA: Swet Shop Boys - Thas My Girl JACK: LCD Soundsystem - American Dream THE NATIONAL
RACHEL: LCD Soundsystem - Call The Police
(photo Graham MacIndoe)
LiS 05
SNAKEHIPS
TIGERCUB
GOLDLINK
KALI UCHIS
FRI 02 JUNE
TUE 06 JUNE
WED 07 TJUNE LD OU
MON 12 JUNE OUT
JMSN
SMINO
+ SG LEWIS (DJ SET) + ROMDERFUL
O2 FORUM KENTISH TOWN
JON STEVENS 14 JUNE
16 JUNE
17 JUNE
18 JUNE
100 CLUB
229 THE VENUE
BORDERLINE CAMDEN ASSEMBLY
+ PUPPY + SHIT GIRLFRIEND
DINGWALLS
WILDWOOD KIN 15 JUNE, 06 JULY, 02 AUGUST
THE ISLINGTON
+ HARE SQUEAD
JAZZ CAFE
HEAVEN
SOLD
SO
FRI 07 JULY
TUE 27 JUNE
JAZZ CAFE VILLAGE UNDERGROUND JUNE TUESDAY 27 D DERGROUN VILLAGE UN l Hap py. 28 Apri teve r Mak es U ational New Albu m. Wha Primary Talent Intern By arrangement
with
MICHELLE BRANCH
MUTEMATH
THE MARCUS KING BAND
TOM GRENNAN
WED 23 AUGUST
WED 20 SEPTEMBER
WED 27 SEPTEMBER
MURA MASA
IBIBIO SOUND MACHINE
LITTLE DRAGON
GOLDIE
SOLD FRI 27OUOCTOBER SAT 28 OCTOBER
SUN 19 NOVEMBER
O2 ACADEMY ISLINGTON
DINGWALLS
THU 19 OCTOBER
MON 23 OCTOBER
JMSN KLANGSTOF
NEWTON FAULKNER
O2 ACADEMY BRIXTON
TUE 27 JUNE TUE 21 NOVEMBER VILLAGE
THE LEXINGTON UNDERGROUND
SCALA
THU 23 NOVEMBER FRI 24 NOVEMBER
ULU
KOKO
FRI 29 SEPTEMBER
O2 SHEPHERDS BUSH EMPIRE
& THE HERITAGE ORCHESTRA
T
ROUNDHOUSE
ROUNDHOUSE
EIVØR
THE DIVINE COMEDY
TUE 28 NOVEMBER
WED 29 NOVEMBER
BUSH HALL
EVENTIM APOLLO
TICKETS AVAILABLE FROM TICKETMASTER.CO.UK & VENUE BOX OFFICES
CONTENTS 10
NEW SOUNDS
LONDON IN STEREO IS:
Drahla, Pom Poko & more 14
Editor: Jess Partridge jess@londoninstereo.co.uk
INTERVIEW Marika Hackman
17
Deputy Editor: Dave Rowlinson dave@londoninstereo.co.uk
TALES FROM THE CITY
Online Editor: Rachel Finn rachel@londoninstereo.co.uk
by Amber Arcades 20
JUNE EVENTS
Sub-Editor : Loki Lillistone loki@londoninstereo.co.uk
What’s going on in London this month
Advertising sales@londoninstereo.co.uk
24 COVER STORY LiS meets Young M.A 30
New Sounds Editor: Gemma Samways Staff Writers: Danny Wright, Jack Urwin
ON THE STEREO
with Afropunk 34
Photography: Young M.A cover story: Ebru Yildiz (ebruyildiz.net)
INTERVIEW Jamila Woods
37
All In A Day’s Work Illustration: Liyv (liyv.co)
IN A DAY’S WORK
Contributors: Andrew Hannah, Rhian Daly, Rachel Grace Almeida, Kate Solomon, Geoff Cowart, Simone Scott Warren, Lee Wakefield, Thomas Hannan, George O’Brien, Katie Thomas, Charlie Mock, Grant Bailey, Nick Mee, Jake May.
A day in the life of...a tour manager 40
ALBUM REVIEWS
TOPS, Floating Points, Shit Kid, Noga Erez, Chastity Belt & more 48
GIGS OF THE MONTH
Our pick of the best shows this June 52
FULL LISTINGS
Your full guide to all the month’s gigs 69
IN LONDON
with Ulrika Spacek 70
LIVE REVIEWS
MARIKA HACKMAN
The thrills and spills of The Great Escape. 73
(interview, pg: 14)
PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS
by Jake May LiS 07
londoninstereo.com @londoninstereo
Academy Events present
CLUB.THE.MAMMOTH. PRESENTS AT KAMIO - 01.07.2017 - 8PM
ACADEMY EVENTS and LIVE NATION by arrangement with X-RAY TOURING present
Hunter & The Bear The Paper Heart Tour plus special guests
+ SPECTRES + IS BLISS
Wednesday 14th June LONDON THE BORDERLINE
+ SONIC CATHEDRAL DJ SET
hunterandthebear.co.uk
CLUB.THE.MAMMOTH. BY ARRANGEMENT WITH ATC LIVE PRESENT
Tuesday 27th June
+ SPECIAL GUESTS
O2 Academy2 Islington London
THE LEXINGTON 5th JULY 2017 CLUBTHEMAMMOTH.COM presents
Academy Events by arrangement with Sedate Bookings presents
Langhorne
Slim plus special guests
PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS
WED 20th SEPT O2 FORUM KENTISH TOWN LONDON
THE DAMAGE AND JOY TOUR C L U B . T H E . M A M M O T H .
THEJESUSANDMARYCHAIN.UK.COM &
A c a d e m y
E v e n t s
p r e s e n t S
Thursday 31st August 2017 O2 Academy2 Islington London langhorneslim.com ACADEMY EVENTS by arrangement with AGMP presents
T HE FA M ILY S ILVER plus special guests
Friday 24th November
PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS + CLUB.THE.MAMMOTH. DJs
THURSDAY 9TH NOVEMBER 2017 O2 ACADEMY ISLINGTON LONDON FACEBOOK.COM/PSYCHICTVTVP3
Featuring
MATT DEIGHTON
(Mother Earth, Paul Weller, Oasis and Bill Fay)
DAMON MINCHELLA
O 2 ACADEMY ISLINGTON LONDON
(Ocean Colour Scene, Richard Ashcroft, The Who)
STEVE WHITE
(Style Council, Paul Weller, Ian Dury and Jon Lord)
thefamilysilver.co.uk
TICKETMASTER.CO.UK · TICKETWEB.CO.UK & ALL USUAL AGENTS
MISSIO
NOLAY
SOURCE
JUNE 06 THE CAMDEN ASSEMBLY
JUNE 07 BIRTHDAYS
JUNE 14 LOCK TAVERN
DAM
SHOGUN
GROUPLOVE
JUNE 20 KAMIO
JUNE 30 QUEEN OF HOXTON
AUG 23 KOKO
MUNA
SIGRID
THE VEILS
AUG 30 HEAVEN
SEP 13 SCALA
SEP 19 ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL
THE NAKED AND FAMOUS
MARIAN HILL
BECKY HILL
OCT 03 ELECTRIC BRIXTON
OCT 19 KOKO
OCT 09 XOYO
THE BEST IN NEW LIVE MUSIC L O
N
E TH OR M S R IA UE KE ILL NQ OO W O CR C Y JO
D
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@LNSOURCE LIVENATION.CO.UK/SOURCE
NEW SOUNDS DRAHLA
by Gemma Samways
From Martha to Menace Beach, trust fund to Traams, Hookworms-frontman Matthew Johnson has engineered so much brilliant music at his Suburban Home Studio that an MJ production credit has become the indie-rock equivalent of a Kitemark. So when you see him praising latest alumni Drahla as his favourite new discovery, you know they’re almost certainly worth a listen. Based in Leeds and Wakefield, Drahla is the work of Luciel Brown, Rob Riggs and Mike Ainsley. Citing Magazine and The Monochrome Set as key influences, the trio teeter between art-rock and post-punk with songs that are at once compellingly minimal,
deceptively aggressive and thrillingly nonchalant. Their debut track ‘Fictional Decision’ sounds like some doomy hybrid of Ought, Swell Maps and Ikara Colt, combining sharp dynamics with deadpan vocal delivery and existential subject matter. Meanwhile, recent Too Pure Singles Club effort, ‘Faux Text’, nods to New York No Wave, with squalling saxophone and a jittery rhythm reminiscent of James Chance and the Contortions. With only four songs officially released, it’s probably a bit early to start making bold statements about their brilliance. But, you know what, screw that, because Drahla are one of the most exciting British bands I’ve heard in a long time.
IN TEN: NEW SOUNDS WIFISFUNERAL RUN IT UP
LØD
FOLDER
TRACE
AMON
ODDCOUPLE
TRACE
SUPERORGANISM
BIG THIEF
DADDY ISSUES
MIYA FOLICK
KÁRYYN
NEW BOO
OH MY MY
SHARK SMILE
TROUBLE ADJUSTING
SEE THE SUN
IT'S ALL GOOD
LOCKED OUT
PURGATORY
FOLLOW OUR NEW MUSIC PLAYLISTS ON LONDONINSTEREO.COM, EVERY WEEK
DRAHLA
LISTEN TO: Fictional Decision @drahlamusic
/drahla
POM POKO by Jess Partridge Pom Poko have been snatching our attention here and there for almost a year now, bubbling under with pop gems, wildly fun live performances and catching our ears with lively choruses. They’re Norwegian pop with a grunge twist, their tracks bursting with energy of every kind: frustration, happiness, excitement... it weighs heavy in every word and all comes across in their unusual rhythms, fragmented phrasing and joyful delivery. One of the most exciting acts to play approx. 15 shows at The Great Escape this year, there’s nothing left to do other than embrace the fun of it all.
LISTEN TO: Jazz Baby @pompokotheband
@pompokounofficial
LiS 11
Marika Hackman words: Rhian Daly
was obsessed with the Spice Girls when they were massive,” Marika Hackman laughs down the phone, her voice growing in excitement as she continues. “I actually went to a friend’s party that was Spice Girls themed and we all pretended to be them and learnt a dance routine, but I wet myself. I was Sporty Spice in this instance so luckily I was wearing tracksuit bottoms, but I kind of ruined the night.” She’s talking about “one of the most influential bands of [her] childhood” because her new album, I’m Not Your Man, pays homage to the girl group. There are no “zigahzig ahs”, no Mother’s Day ballads, but at the end of ‘BlahBlahBlah’ - a track not worlds away from Warpaint’s moodier, more atmospheric cuts - there’s a big reference to ‘Say You’ll Be There’. “Straight away I was like ‘Oh shit, that sounds like the Spice Girls doesn’t it?’” Marika recalls. Ultimately, she decided to keep it in as way to show her respect to “one of the finest girl bands ever”. Much as the Spice Girls preached girl power in the ’90s, the follow-up to Marika’s 2015 debut We Slept At Last is from a similar school of thought. I’m Not Your Man finds her changing tact from poetic enigma to a straight-talking boss who’s not afraid to put herself out there and showcases a more “empowered and brave” person singing about sex and the
ideas of femininity and sexual identity as openly as you would with your closest friend. On opener and lead single ‘Boyfriend’, she details hooking up with a woman who’s in a relationship with a man, observing that “it doesn’t count” because of her gender with sarcasm heavy lines like “He knows a woman needs a man to make her shout”. ‘My Lover Cindy’,
LiS 14
“I was like ‘No, fuck it’ because it is actually really important to have these conversations”
interview
personal thing to me and I am a woman and a sexual being and I’m in relationships with women. I’m happy that I had the confidence to do that.” Musically, things have taken a shift too. Frustrated at not being able to let rip on stage with her folky gems, she took a leaf out of some of her friends’ bands’ books and decided now was the time to have fun with her music and her audiences. One such band was The Big Moon, who Marika “fangirled” after a show and ended up becoming great friends with. It makes sense, then, that the 25-year-old would invite the band to play on her record with her. Their shared connection and friendship can be heard throughout, screams, laughs and chants littered across the album. As a five-piece playing live, they lift Marika’s songwriting up with the euphoric, ecstatic energy it deserves, but might have been harder to find if she’d recorded it in the same way as her debut - painstakingly layering instruments up in the studio.
meanwhile, finds her smashing the stereotype of women as romantic and proper with a chorus that declare her a “greedy pig” wanting to “suck you dry”. “When it was first coming out, I was a bit tense as to whether it would have a huge impact on my personal life,” she says. “But then I was like ‘No, fuck it’ because it is actually really important to have these conversations. Obviously it’s a
“I loved making that first record,” Marika says. “It was really enjoyable to me, but this time around it was just more fun. I didn’t necessarily feel like I was in the studio. It felt like hanging out with your friends.” As its June 2nd release approaches, she’s feeling “excited and intrigued” to see what people make of it, while her only goal is to bring people “a sense of empowerment and fun”. With such bold, confident songwriting and honest lyrics, she shouldn’t be disappointed. LiS
LiS 15
Marika releases I’m Not Your Man June 2nd via AMF Records. LIVE: Heaven: June 1st End of the Road Festival: Sept’ 3rd. @MarikaHackman
BIRD ON THE WIRE PRESENTS
Sean Nicholas Savage TUE 13TH JUN MOTH CLUB
Ulrika Spacek WED 14TH JUN THE LEXINGTON
Mac DeMarco TUE 30TH MAY T O2 ACADEMY UBRIXTON DO WED 31ST SOL MAY O2 ACADEMY BRIXTON
Lydia Ainsworth
WED 31ST MAY LONDON FIELDS BREWHOUSE
Molly Burch THU 1ST JUN SEBRIGHT ARMS
Kirin J Callinan FRI 2ND JUN SEBRIGHT ARMS
Tops + The Goon Sax TUE 6TH JUN THE DOME TUFNELL PARK
Shugo Tokumaru WED 7TH JUN OSLO
Mannequin Pussy
THU 8TH JUN THE SHACKLEWELL ARMS
Bleached TUE 20TH JUN THE VICTORIA
Pile
WED 21ST JUN CORSICA STUDIOS
Public Access T.V. THU 29TH JUN THE LEXINGTON
The Gories FRI 14TH JUL THE GARAGE
Visions Festival SAT 5TH AUG HACKNEY / LONDON FIELDS
Karl Blau & Laura Gibson WED 16TH AUG OSLO
Allah-Las
WED 16TH AUG ELECTRIC BALLROOM
Nadia Reid THU 24TH AUG BUSH HALL
Jens Lekman TUE 29TH AUG KOKO
Ty Segall FRI 1ST SEP THE CORONET
Michael Nau TUE 26TH SEP THE LEXINGTON
Hurray For The Riff Raff TUE 17TH OCT KOKO
Chad Vangaalen TUE 17TH OCT OSLO
Japanese Breakfast
TUE 7TH NOV THE DOME TUFNELL PARK
Com Truise WED 8TH NOV OVAL SPACE
Girl Ray THU 9TH NOV SCALA
The War On Drugs
TUE 14TH NOV ALEXANDRA PALACE MORE INFO & TICKETS BIRDONTHEWIRE.NET
We ask artists to tell us stories of times spent in London...
by AMBER ARCADES photo: Nick Helderman
My memory works in a funny way… I always have a hard time stringing memories together and remembering in which order they took place, or which one is connected to which. It’s more or like a memory collage. So here’s my memory collage of times spent in London. I remember my very first show in London at The Social and they had a lovely sound guy who looked like Gandalf and was impossibly tall. I remember one time we agreed to sleep at my brother’s house. He lived in a
warehouse with 15 other people in Hackney Wick. We only got to his house at 4am and fell asleep in his kitchen where it was literally freezing on the sticky floor. I remember the next night we put cardboard on the floor to make it more homely. I remember playing Moth Club one time when our drummer Jaap was really sick and we took him to get cold medicine in the supermarket and he accidentally made the impression to the counter guy that he was having a heart attack (“I have a pain in my chest and my arm”) who freaked out. I remember Jaap’s friends Jillis’ housemate who may have been on drugs hitting on our bass player Ronald one time when we were sleeping at their house. I remember eating really tasty veggie hotdogs. I remember being stuck in traffic a lot. I remember being picked up from London City airport by a driver with a little sign with my name on it and feeling like a proper rock star. I remember playing in a German schnitzel house in London where we were the only non-metal/hardrock band on the line-up and we had to close off the evening with our jingle jangle for an industry crowd drunk on German beer. I remember walking into the office of Heavenly Recordings for the first time when I was picking up keys from a friend and I didn’t know yet they would release my record later. I didn’t even make a record yet. Now I have and it’s given me all of these memories in London and so many other cities.
LiS 17
Amber Arcades release the Cannonball EP, June 2nd via Heavenly Records. LIVE: Visions Festival, August 5th @AmberArcades
photo: Kain Balzary
TALES FROM THE CITY
EVENTS a selection of upcoming London stuff we’re real excited about
A SANDWICH THING
MAX’S SANDWICH SHOP COMES TO BIRTHDAYS Important as it is to not get overly jealous of things happening in parts of London you’d not normally end up in, what we’ve seen from Crouch Hill institution Max’s Sandwich Shop has made swapping postcodes a serious option. Put simply, these are some of the most astonishing sandwich creations happening right now and, amazingly, they’re setting up in Birthdays from May 25th. So the incredible sounding ham, egg‘n’chips (amongst many epic creations) sarnie will soon be ours. WHEN: OPEN NOW WHERE: BIRTHDAYS, DALSTON, E8. INFO: maxssandwichshop.com // @lunchluncheon
A SCI-FI THING
INTO THE UNKNOWN - A JOURNEY THROUGH SCIENCE FICTION The wide-eyed wonder of Doc Brown in the third Back To The Future, as he eulogised about Jules Verne, pretty much encapsulates how you’ll feel at this celebration of all things science fiction through the ages. From the possibilities of Verne to the dystopia of Atwood, from Jurassic Park to Star Wars, from Soviet visions of space exploration to new interactive commissions - art, film, literature and design come together to create an event that’ll see you questioning the future, the past, the present and your place in it, and having one hell of a time in the process. There’s also props from Godzilla and zero mention of The Big Bang Theory.
Postcard On The First Lunar Cosmodrome Andrew Sokolov and Aleksey Leonov. 1968, Moscow Design Museum
WHEN: JUNE 3RD-SEPTMBER 1ST WHERE: BARBICAN CENTRE, EC2Y 8DS INFO: barbican.org.uk/intotheunknown // @BarbicanCentre
Grayson Perry, Death of a Working Hero, 2016, Tapestry, Courtesy the artist, Paragon Press and Victoria Miro, London, Photography: Stephen White © Grayson Perry
A BEER THING
BEAVERTOWN’S SOUR SOLSTICE Put together a vague list of things we love, and it’ll likely include phrases like ‘a day drinking in a brewery’. High-fives, then, to the champs at Beavertown who are providing the chance to do exactly that. Bringing together a host of top brewers showing-off the very best in all things sour and wild, this is the finest way to celebrate (almost) the longest day of the year we can think of. There’s even cheese toasties to be had as well. We are truly blessed. WHEN: JUNE 25TH. PRICE: £39 ALL-IN TICKET WHERE: BEAVERTOWN BREWERY TAPROOM, N17 INFO: beavertownbrewery.co.uk // @BeavertownBeer
AN ART THING
GRAYSON PERRY: THE MOST POPULAR ART EXHIBITION EVER! First off, let’s marvel at just what a great title that is for an art exhibition. Bravo Grayson, bravo. The reason for it? Well, it’s probably Perry’s aim for this show to be as inclusive as possible - for it to be art for all people, not just the trad gallery crowds. Exploring themes including popularity, reaction to art, the relationship of traditional art and the age of social media, the always-fascinating Perry here brings new work together for this huge, and almost certainly very popular, exhibition. WHEN: JUNE 8TH - SEPT’ 10TH. PRICE: FREE ENTRY WHERE: SERPENTINE GALLERY, W2 3XA INFO: serpentinegalleries.org // @SerpentineUK
A NEW VENUE THING
FIVE MILES It’s always refreshingly positive to have a new opening to talk about. Out Seven Sisters way, this new venture from the folk behind Dalston’s Alibi and Pamela sees a 250-300 cap venue, a mint sound system, and even their own brewery. With Saturday beer‘n’bbq times, and a positive space for promoters to put on shows, this is a real welcome addition to London’s venue scene. WHEN: OPEN NOW WHERE: 39B MARKFIELD ROAD, N15 4QA INFO: fivemiles.london // @fivemileslondon LiS 21
THU 1 JUNE ST PANCRAS OLD CHURCH
SAINT SISTER CLUBNIGHT ELLE WATSON GORDI PETER BRODERICK NICK MULVEY SUN 4 JUNE NOTTING HILL ARTS CLUB MON 12 JUNE THE WAITING ROOM
MON 12 JUNE ST PANCRAS OLD CHURCH WED 14 JUNE BUSH HALL
MON 19 JUNE VILLAGE UNDERGROUND TUE 20 JUNE HOXTON SQUARE BAR & KITCHEN
JOSEPH J. JONES MAGGIE ROGERS WESTERMAN HOLLOW COVES RIVER MATTHEWS CITADEL FESTIVAL JUNIUS MEYVANT BANFI WED 21 JUNE ELECTRIC BRIXTON
WED 21 JUNE SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS TUE 27 JUNE THE WAITING ROOM
THU 13 JULY ST PANCRAS OLD CHURCH SUN 16 JULY VICTORIA PARK FRI 21 JULY OMEARA
TUE 12 SEPTEMBER THE LEXINGTON
WED 20 SEPTEMBER ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL
JAKE ISAAC HEIN COOPER LISA MITCHELL JOHNNYSWIM FYFE TORA
THU 21 SEPTEMBER SEBRIGHT ARMS MON 25 SEPTEMBER VILLAGE UNDERGROUND TUE 26 SEPTEMBER SCALA
TUE 3 OCTOBER DINGWALLS
MON 9 OCTOBER THE LEXINGTON SAT 14 OCTOBER O2 SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE
FIONN REGAN
THU 19 OCTOBER O2 SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE
NADINE SHAH FREYA RIDINGS NICK HAKIM
THU 26 OCTOBER ST GILES IN-THE-FIELDS WED 8 NOVEMBER KOKO
WED 8 NOVEMBER O2 SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE
SYLVAN ESSO THU 16 NOVEMBER O2 FORUM KENTISH TOWN
FINK LEIF VOLLEBEKK TUE 21 NOVEMBER MOTH CLUB
COMMUNIONMUSIC.CO.UK
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interview
Young M.A
“People tell me I’m something different, something fresh…but I don’t usually see it the way other people see it because I’m always just being me.”
words: Andrew Hannah photography: Ebru Yildiz
t only takes a few moments of the video for ‘Ooouuu’ for you to realise you’re watching someone special. Once an intro of Young M.A – the 24-year-old Brooklyn rapper who’s taking the hip hop world by storm – sitting at a table surrounded by Chinese food, dollars, Hennessy and champagne fades out, it’s replaced by a woozy synth line and doped-out stuttering 808s. Then M.A’s voice drops in: a hoarse low tone, rasping rhymes, grinning and showing off a set of gold grills along her top set of teeth. It’s stunning. ‘Ooouuu’ is one of the best hip hop tunes to have appeared in a long time, but there’s more than just the music to talk about. “Baby give me head; that’s a low blow” is one of the first lines in the track that makes you sit up and take notice. We’re nearly a year on from the release of that track so it’s almost staggering to take in that twelve months previous, Young M.A was practically the first openly gay rapper in the mainstream talking this explicitly about sex. And she didn’t give a fuck. And she doesn’t give a fuck now. Going from strength to strength with the likes of ‘Hot Sauce’ and grabbing the attention of NYC hip hop royalty, Young M.A is simply a rapper, no labels. Ahead of her forthcoming debut London appearance at M.I.A’s Meltdown, we spoke to M.A for a bit more background. LiS 25
interview
I ask Young M.A if being from New York means that the influences on her style are from that city. “Yeah I’m from Brooklyn,” she says, “so definitely New York rappers. I mean I listened to a lot of music from all over but New York was my biggest influence from 50 Cent, to Jay-Z, to Eve.”
career: “I didn’t really care, you know,” she asserts. “I didn’t care what people thought of my sexuality. Music is something that I did and loved and I honestly didn’t care what people thought about my sexual preference.”
Yet there’s still challenging material here for the hip hop community; notoriously But rapping was also in the family. M.A’s homophobic and overtly-masculine, lines like mother was a rapper who grew up around “I swallow pussy like I can’t chew” (from Roxanne Shante, but the Brooklynite plays ‘Body Bag’) address head-on decades old this down. “Umm she wasn’t really a issues. But it’s all second nature to Young rapper,” says Young M.A. “She did a little M.A, nothing here is calculated. “Oh yeah, rhyming every now and again but never really definitely. It definitely comes naturally,” she did any shows or anything.” However, Young affirms. “I just have to express myself and be M.A’s mom was a big influence on the rapper honest, you know what I mean? I don’t like to when she decided that music was going to be analyse or look at things too much, I don’t feel her path. “I was nine comfortable doing that. when I realised I I just look at myself as “I use music as my wanted to rap,” she someone who expresses begins. “I never wanted themselves to people in outlet to catch everybody general so I use music to do something else and my mom definitely as my outlet to catch supported me. Anything in the raw and let off everybody in the raw I needed for music she and let off a lot of supported me, anything stress.” a lot of stress.” I wanted she bought Alongside knocking me. She bought me a down gender roles and stereotypes, Young karaoke machine, books, tapes, CDs, whatever I M.A is revitalising some worn-out hip hop needed to do what I wanted to do.” tropes. “Yo bro, I think I had too much At the age of nine, the young Young M.A sat Hennessy man…I’m a little drizz, but we in down and began to write: “I definitely wrote the club, man, OOOUUU” are the opening lyrics, wrote rhymes. I wrote songs!” she lines to the excellent ‘Ooouuu’, with M.A’s exclaims. “And I used to record them on the rasping delivery over drunk beats putting life karaoke machine, on to cassette tape….” back into rhymes about drinking, dollars and Does she still have some of those recordings? the club. “I hear that a lot, you know,” says “Unfortunately no I don’t have anything,” M.A of her freshness. “People tell me I’m sighs the rapper. “They was in storage and something different, something fresh…but ended up being auctioned off…my mom I don’t usually see it the way other people see wasn’t paying for it cos we weren’t living in it because I’m always just being me. I’m used that town no more. There’s a lot of stuff I to being myself, dressing this way, whatever. don’t have from my childhood that I wish I But I hear it a lot, I’m inspiring to a lot of still had today.” people. It’s crazy cuz it’s not something A lot of fuss has been made over Young M.A’s I was trying to do, it really just happened as sexuality and while of course she stands as a I was trying to express myself to the world. I role model and appears happy to do so, she wound up doing something that actually still dismisses chatter over her sexuality and made sense…and it’s working, you know what how it might have affected a blossoming I mean?” LiS 26
“When you get recognition from Jay-Z or Beyoncé or anybody in WKDW FDWHJRU\ LWōV GHƓQLWHO\ D VXUUHDO IHHOLQJ Ő Boy is it working. From Beyoncé dancing to Young M.A’s music on Instagram to supporting Queen Bey and meeting Jay-Z, the young rapper is already in exalted circles. I ask if it sometimes all gets a bit too much to take in. “Wellll, that was pretty much the goal, you know what I mean?” she says in the most relaxed voice. “To be heard and to be talked about, to get support…and when you get recognition from Jay-Z or Beyoncé or anybody in that category it’s definitely a
surreal feeling because it happened so quickly! Usually it takes time for Jay-Z and Beyoncé to recognise new talent, especially when there’s so much talent coming out at the same time. To be one of the few that they recognise means a lot. I’m just grateful for it.” I ask Young M.A if she can see a point where all this seeps into her music, where it’s all guest spots and rhymes about being famous. “I’m not that type of person,” she fires back.
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“I’m kind of in a shell a lot. I like being on my own a lot. I mean, I love meeting people, new people but I’m one of those types of people who keep a wall up. I don’t trust a lot of individuals… I don’t let a lot of what’s on the outside of music affect my music. I just have to have the confidence and motivation… but them [Jay-Z and Beyoncé] having an influence on me. Those are legends, man, so hell yeah, definitely.” As it comes time to draw the interview to a close, I return to one of the rappers Young M.A raised at the start of our conversation, 50 Cent. I make the point that 2003’s Get Rich Or Die Tryin’ appears to stand the test of time and remains a marker for commercial and critical success, and perhaps can act as a blueprint for Young M.A’s future. “Absolutely!” agrees the rapper. “I’m excited
to release my first album and show the world what I’m really capable of, to create a body of work, to touch peoples’ lives in an inspirational type of way. 50 Cent’s first album was such a success; just like me he was something fresh, something new… everybody loved his swag, it was dope. He was a big influence on my music, and he played a part in what I do and how I do it today.” There seems little doubt that Young M.A is heading in the right direction; she’s already got the acclaim… get rich? No doubt. LiS
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Young M.A plays her first ever London show as part of M.I.A’s Meltdown at Southbank Centre, happening June 9th-18th. Her debut EP Herstory is out now via M.A Music @YoungMAMusic
ON THE STEREO with
1. JME MAN DON’T CARE
Last year saw Afropunk arrive in London for the first time in its history, bringing an incredible line-up and a hugely positive and inclusive attitude. A truly multicultural event, it practises a message of zero tolerance to the ‘isms and ’phobias which blight too many human’s experiences. So, basically exactly what you want from each and every event. We’re really thrilled and happy that Afropunk is back again this July, with an even bigger and better line-up. It’s sure to be one of the events of the summer, and here they talk us through five acts they can’t wait to see.
There’s a real important aspect to JME that really resonates with us, and that’s ‘INDEPENDENT’. He's done everything outside of the mainstream with his BBK label, and we can’t wait to have him at AFROPUNK as he rarely performs live and when this track kicks in it’s gonna go crazy. Plus we love his work on getting young people to vote! #grime4corbyn JME
Afropunk takes place July 22-23rd at Printworks, Surrey Quays Rd, SE16. afropunkfest.com/london/tickets @afropunk LiS 30
3. MAHALIA INDEPENDENCE DAY We love Mahalia as she doesn’t conform to one specific genre, her versatility in her music output is great and she’s definitely going to go on to achieve huge success. NADIA ROSE
KOJEY RADICAL
2. KOJEY RADICAL KWAME NKRUMAH Another artist who’s doing it independent and achieving success. Mixing spoken word with great beats, this track has such raw energy which we absolutely love, and have most definitely played very loud at AFROPUNK HQ.
4. NADIA ROSE - SKWOD There’s a recurring theme in our picks, and that is they’re all from the UK. There’s such a wealth of talent and another artist who’s shone through is Nadia Rose, representing Croydon and, much like the grime community, doing things her way. We love her infectious energy in this track and that energy is going to go down very well at AFROPUNK. LITTLE SIMZ
5. LITTLE SIMZ PICTURE PERFECT Of course we would end on the incredible Little Simz, again keeping it independent, her latest LP Stillness In Wonderland is such a good album and deserves the huge props it received. We await you at AFROPUNK with open arms Simbi (and thanks for being so kind to allow us to use the fantastic ‘Picture Perfect’ on our promo video). LiS 31
JUNE / JULY ~ LIV E ~ 01.06
Irini Mando /
04.06
Peggy’s Big Sunday / 10.06
13.06
Fibre + SDR /
The Vacant Lots /
15.06
Gospeloke /
20.06
02.06
16.06
14.06
07.07
08.06
12.06
Sick Puppies
Tove Styrke
Sounds Familiar Music Quiz
Vanessa White /
Joseph J Jones / 03.07 +04.07
JacksonsWarehouse
30.06
18.06
FUN DMC
Club CloseUp: Rocky Nti
Daniel Caesar [Sold Out]
Girls & Boys: Scors + Sunken
27.07
Sola Rosa Sound System
~ LATE ~ every Friday
03.06
10.06
NIGHT CALL
BUSHWICK BOOGIE
APPLEBUM LOOSE CATZ
Weekly
Hip hop, R&B, house, garage,
Friday Club
bashment & everything in between
presents
17.06
18.06
24.06
MOHO
THE DOCTOR’S ORDERS
FREE DLVRY
90s hip hop and r’n’b knees
Exploring every year of the
A night of forward
up for all you cool kids
40+ year history of hip hop
thinking bass music
Dates, times & tickets: w w w.hoxtonsquarebar.com
| HOXTONSQUAREBAR
Ovation DATE
ARTIST
VENUE
27.04.17 HVOB and Winston Marshall Live, David Douglas
Oval Space
30.04.17 Soul:Ution and Special Guests
The Pickle Factory
11.05.17 Throwing Snow Live, Yaws Live
The Pickle Factory
16.05.17 Off Bloom, Harrison Brome, Nuuxs
The Pickle Factory
17.05.17 Ekali Live, Salute (DJ)
Moth Club
25.05.17 Death in Vegas, Ramleh
Oval Space
25.05.17 Death in Vegas Afters
The Pickle Factory
28.05.17 Soul:Ution and Special Guests
The Pickle Factory
01.06.17 Krrum
The Pickle Factory
11.06.17 Ezra Collective, Tom Skinner, Very Special Guest
The Pickle Factory
29.06.17 Guises: Akkord, Minimal Violence, Guy Andrews, Untold (DJ) The Pickle Factory 08.07.17 Soul:Ution and Special Guests
The Pickle Factory
03.08.17 ADULT.
Moth Club
www.ovationmusic.co.uk
www.ovalspace.co.uk www.mothclub.co.uk
photo: Bryan Allen Lamb
Jamila Woods words: Rachel Grace Almeida
interview
It’s hard to capture who Jamila Woods is with words. First and foremost, she’s an artist – in every sense of the word. She’s also a teacher, a mentor, a poet, an activist, a singer, a writer and a collagist. Growing up in Chicago, where she still resides, has given her a strong definition of community – whether it’s through her own acclaimed music, her poetry, or her position as artistic director at Young Chicago Authors (YCA). Youth programs have not only directly informed her art, but they’ve nurtured it too – as she helps young people grow, she grows with them. Speaking to Jamila, it’s clear that the value she places in artistic community is second to none. Those same after-school programs that she now heads up gave her the platform to perform her poetry and sing in public for
misunderstand poetry and think it's this inaccessible form of writing, but through studying the Chicago literary tradition I understand poetry as everyday thoughts and speech distilled into their purest form.” It’s this concept of free speech that rings loudest throughout her music, though – her brand of soulful R&B is sung with effortless assertion, with lyrics about resilience, love and social justice. Her need to express herself through music was also a way to let her politics manifest in a new way. Her single ‘Blk Girl Soldier’ is an ode to black girl magic; it’s not drenched in metaphor, or cloaked with abstract phrases that are difficult to decode – Woods tells it like it is, with straightforward words about her experience as a black woman in America, and how her community has helped her survive.
“I aim to create art that allows my communities to feel seen, fully human, and more free.” the first time. “It was through those programs that I gained confidence in my voice and met a lot of my future collaborators,” she tells me. But Jamila’s relationship with her words, in particular, is what has been a driving force in her music and artistic activism. Poetry was a way to express her discomfort; tackle her oppression; and come to terms with her observations. Growing up, she felt awkward and out of place a lot, but through her poems it was like she was speaking her language for the first time. “One of my favorite poets, Gwendolyn Brooks, said, ‘I am a writer perhaps because I am not a talker.’ I'm an introverted person and as a teenager I often found myself observing and listening more than expressing myself,” she states. As an art form, poetry can sometimes be regarded as elite, something only to be enjoyed by a certain few but Jamila thinks poetry is misunderstood. “I think that a lot of people
Her main goal now, however, is to heal – whether it’s herself or others – through her music. To her, recognition is less important than the tangible effects her music has on the people who listen to it. Writing about self-love and strength doesn’t always come easy, but recognizing that there are lessons along the way is something that she is grateful for. Ultimately, though, she strives to be authentic. As we wrap up our conversation, she makes one thing very clear: “My goal is to create art that is healing and transformative for people who experience it. I aim to create art that allows my communities to feel seen, fully human, and more free.” LiS
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Jamila’s HEAVN album gets a new and full release soon via Jagjaguwar/Closed Sessions. @duhmilo @jamilawoodsofficial
illustrations: Liyv (liyv.co)
IN A DAY’S WORK by A Tour Manager No two days are the same, but the aim of the day remains the same; to make sure the band and crew get to the places they need to be on time, to make sure the day runs as smoothly as it can and to make sure everyone is happy. The last bit is probably the hardest. You’re kind of a cross between a PA and a parent, even if the band are double your age. I wake up in a different bed, at a different time in a different city every day on tour. I set 2 (or more) alarms, because I don’t 100% trust modern technology despite using it for almost every single part of my job. I’m writing this early in the morning on the way to pick up a van for a tour that starts today - I set 3 alarms. On a normal day I’m glued to my phone or laptop, apart from if I’m driving. I wake up and check my email, see if anything has changed for the day, check what or if the band have press that day, I also check Google maps, the traffic and the weather conditions - the boring but necessary things. Then I’m either lucky enough to have a band that is at lobby call on time or I'm hammering on a hotel room door or non-stop ringing them from the front desk until they get up. Hopefully the journey to the venue will be straight-forward, stress free and easy. Unless, for example, you get stopped by the German police to be searched, scanned and
asked “what are these?” about a box of CDs right at the back of the van then made to unpack everything, on your own, whilst they watch you, only for them to find (45 minutes later) that the box of CDs you told them was a box of CDs is in fact actually a box of CDs or when you get stopped by sniffer dogs and someone has ‘something illegal’ on them despite you telling them to get rid, but you miraculously get away with it. Then there are the times a van breaks and you’re on the side of the road in the snow for four hours, or it takes you triple the time to get through customs because someone from overseas tried to tour in the UK without a visa years ago. You get to the venue, get the wifi code, eat some combination of bread, cheese, cold meat, fruit and hummus then help load in and set up, set up merch, brief security if it’s a big show and spend the rest of the night between the dark venue, the dressing room, merch desk and a production office, if you get one. Dinner time; you either get a bowl of slop, a tenner or the best meal you’ve eaten in your life. Back to the venue, make sure the band get on stage on time, send some more emails, they do the show, keep an eye on everything, we hopefully sell a tonne of merch, pack down, get paid, load everything out and either go to a bar, to the hotel or to get food. Usually food.
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ALBUM REVIEWS RECORD OF THE MONTH TOPS
SUGAR AT THE GATE Arbutus Records June 9th
TOPS have never been the most energetic of bands. Their 2012 debut Tender Opposites combined spiky lo-fi gems and slick dance-pop, while 2014’s Picture You Staring broadcast songs to swoon and shuffle to. Both were fun and bright, but never required you to overexert yourself. While recording their third album, the Montreal trio decamped to Los Angeles where they lived in a mini mansion and former brothel. “I took the experience of living in LA as a challenge to make music that I know is real to me, in the sense of it feeling true and of containing true feelings,” singer Jane Penny says of the band’s temporary move. Perhaps that’s why Sugar At The Gate takes things, in part, down a rather more melancholy route than before. If its predecessor was twirling under the disco lights then this record is largely standing in the corner of the room, staring forlornly at its shoes. There are breaks from that sadness. ‘Petals’ is an ’80s-tinged, pastel-hued piece of indie-pop perfection and one that makes you want to spin right into the middle of the floor. ‘Dayglow Bimbo’ is a rush of buzzing guitars that threaten to drown out Penny’s ever-elegant vocals, while ‘Cutlass Cruiser’ is the record’s most fun moment, boasting a chorus you’ll be chanting along to long after the album is over.
photo: Chatal Africa
If Penny was worried about getting true feelings into Sugar At The Gate, she needn’t be. It’s an album that is full of palpable emotion, be that in her and guitarist David Carriere’s lyrics, her unique voice or the music itself. Songs like ‘Further’, which has Penny sighing “It’s all over now/I was hypnotised for a while” and, later, “I just want one more time”, and ‘Marigold & Gray’’s solemn staccato alone are rife with feeling. It might not be immediately obvious from its downcast guitar lines and apathetic lyrics like “I don’t care any more than you do”, but ‘I Just Wanna Make You Real’ is a triumph in that field also. Slowing down and sobering up might seem like a boring thing to do, but TOPS prove that’s not always the case and do so in emphatic, beautiful form. Rhian Daly STAND OUT TRACKS: Petals, I Just Wanna Make You Feel Real, Further, Cutlass Cruiser. LIVE: The Dome, June 6th. @tttopsss
BIG THIEF
CAPACITY Saddle Creek // June 9th
Following-up a widely acclaimed debut is an unenviable task, but from the spine-tinglingly haunting opening of Capacity to the gorgeous closing number in ‘Black Diamonds’, Big Thief have emphatically succeeded. As with its predecessor, the beauty of the work is Adrianne Lenker’s ability to blend her stunning songwriting ability - see the flawless, deeply moving ‘Mary’ which could fit on her wonderful solo record - with an almost Brothers Grimm-esque hue; identity struggles, car crashes, scar stories are all bundled together with as much raw, garage-tinged power as effortless poise. Singles ‘Mythological Beauty’ and ‘Objects’ provide the best examples of the band’s ability to concoct catchy indie, while moments like the jarring, psychedelic opening to ‘Shark Smile’ remind us that we’re listening to an emotional outpouring rather than a tinkered, overly-considered project. Another masterpiece from this incredibly important outfit. George O’Brien
KEVIN MORBY
RIDE
CITY MUSIC
WEATHER DIARIES
Dead Oceans June 16th
Kevin Morby bills his fourth album, City Music, as “A love letter dedicated to those cities that I cannot get rid of”. Quite the opposite of the moaning about touring commonly peddled by many of his contemporaries, it seems enraptured by the possibilities the road has afforded its maker. Though largely consisting of shimmering Americana best exemplified by the elegiac opener ‘Come to me Now’ and the stunning title track, we also get a Ramones homage in ‘1234’, the lo-fi soul of ‘Dry Your Eyes’ and even a sprinkling of spoken-word storytelling in ‘Flannery’. A charmingly friendly and wide-eyed record, City Music is the equal of anything in Kurt Vile or Mac Demarco’s canons, let alone his own formidable catalogue. Tour it already. Thomas Hannan
Wichita Recordings June 16th
The worry is, when it’s been twenty years since a new Ride album, that it will be terrible. Sure, the lyrics (never their strong point) are clumsy in places, but that aside, Weather Diaries is very far from awful. The opening bars of ‘Lannoy Point’ make the hairs on your arms stand on end and it won’t be the only time that happens; ambient number ‘Integration Tape’, improvised the same day the Oxford quartet announced their reunion, is also gorgeous. Elsewhere, you can hear producer Erol Alkan's influence quite keenly, especially on ‘All I Want’ and ‘Rocket Silver Symphony’. And for those wishing to relive their youth, ‘Home Is A Feeling’ sounds just like the dreamy Ride of old. Welcome back, Ride, we've missed you. Simone Scott Warren LiS 41
NOGA EREZ // OFF THE RADAR City Slang // June 2nd
‘There’s no place for politics on the dancefloor’ is not a saying you hear a lot but I am willing to bet there are some dickheads out there who think it is true. In fact, the dancefloor is a very good place for politics, because dance music - particularly pop-leaning dance music - is the perfect trojan horse for ushering issues into people’s consciousness. Katy Perry may be an activist these days but she’s got nothing on Noga Erez, the Tel Aviv-based singer whose wonky pop tunes deal with the political situation in Israel, ineffectual governments, sexual assault and the unending loneliness of social media (which, to be fair to KP, isn’t far off what ‘Chained To The Rhythm’ is on about). “People think it’s brave but I just think it’s… necessary,” says Erez. On Off The Radar, she ushers you into a world of irresistibly danceable if doomy beats while simultaneously making you question your complicity in the world’s wrongs - and if that doesn’t sound like a good time then you haven’t heard how Erez and her co-writer/producer Ori Rousso do it. Beats and bloops skitter all over the place, pulled into shape by Erez’s versatile vocal style that lands her somewhere on the spectrum between Bjork and Grimes. It might not change it much, but Off The Radar is the perfect soundtrack to the end of the world. Kate Solomon
SHITKID // FISH PNKSLM Records // June 2nd
Ignore the folksy cover. The only thing old fashioned about the debut album from 24-year-old Swedish star Åsa Söderqvist are the bouts of lo-fi grit imbued deep within these nine songs. What’s lurking behind that welcoming smile is a razor-sharp wit with a deadly ability to cut to the heart of a pop tune. It’s best summed up on ‘Sugar Town’, her garage rock anthem that wouldn’t sound amiss on a Cramps record with the oh-so-sweet “Sh-Sh-Sh-Sh-Sh-ShSh-Sh-Sugar Town” chorus. I defy you not to crane your neck in the hopes of decoding those swaggering lyrics. Her life story is just as intriguing. Hailing from the north of the Sweden, Åsa moved to Gothenburg after high school to start a feminist punk band before retreating to her bedroom to record her debut solo EP on a broken computer. Even in those early recordings you can hear the eerie incandescence of her deceptively simple signature sound. Now, the majority of her tunes still weigh in just around the three-minute mark and continue to say a lot with a limited palette. She’s also still writing, recording and producing them all. Yet one song at a time she’s proving that her siren call of DIY nonchalant rock pomp is impossible to ignore – a sound that’s made possible by her clever mastery of loud/soft dynamics that both surprise and delight. Geoff Cowart
DUA LIPA
DUA LIPA Warner Bros // June 2nd
CHASTITY BELT
I USED TO SPEND SO MUCH TIME ALONE Hardly Art // June 2nd
Chastity Belt’s previous song titles include ‘Nip Slip’, ‘Why Try’ and, brilliantly, one of their earliest tracks was named ‘Giant Vagina’. Which makes their third album, I Used To Spend So Much Time Alone, sound a little earnestly jarring. But there’s no irony in its title. It takes their brooding, sparse Electrelanestyle post-rock songs and adds emotional depth. There’s an honesty and intimacy here that seeps through on the almosttitle-track ‘Used to Spend’ as lead vocalist Julia Shapiro sings “I wanna be sincere”. But being serious doesn’t mean being boring. Sure, it’s a more assured album, perhaps more self consciously reflective - but they’ve always been a candid band, here we just see it in a new focus. And with guitarist Lydia Lund and drummer Gretchen Grimm penning tracks, they feel even more like a gang. ‘Different Now’ shimmers with reassuring lyrics about finding your place in the world and ‘Something Else’ echoes beautifully. Serious fun. Danny Wright
‘Hotter Than Hell’ may remain the best track penned for Dua Lipa’s 2-years-in-the-making debut album, but don’t be downtrodden yet. Its self-assured splendour only works to heighten the record’s surrounding slow-burners; Dua’s got a lot more where that came from, and she’s not about to let up now. The blips – for there had to be some – are not her own. Although it was kind of Chris ‘I’m A Cool Dad’ Martin to re-hash A Head Full Of Dreams single ‘Everglow’ (see ‘Homesick’) and Miguel’s helping hand on ‘Lost In Your Light’ does a wonderful job of adding the soothing sounds of musical afterthought to an otherwise actually alright album, we must remember that this is not theirs to take. At its best, Dua’s debut is one of power ballad proportions, so let’s not worry about the troughs – with peaks this high, there can only be good things to follow. Charlie Mock
IKONIKA
DISTRACTIONS Hyperdub // June 2nd
Hyperdub golden girl Ikonika returns with her third LP, Distractions, the follow up to 2013’s Aerotropolis. While her roots in dubstep and 90s video game bleeps remain central to her sound, Distractions nods to the R&B and hip hop found in her DJ sets with greater vigour than we’ve seen in her previous output; the affiliation with Night Slugs is evident. The LP features vocals from rising grime artist Jammz as well as Andrea Galaxy - whose tone is reminiscent of NAO’s - plus fellow Hyperdub affiliate Jessy Lanza, and Andrea and Jessy’s R&B flavoured vocals shine over Ikonika’s distinctive use of throwback trancey synths and weighty bass. At times Distractions lacks momentum, but this is remedied by Ikonika’s excellent use of space between layers; her music always uncluttered and cleverly arranged. Katie Thomas LiS 43
BEST AVAILABLE TECHNOLOGY EXPOSURE THERAPY Styles Upon Style // June 2nd
On Exposure Therapy, Best Available Technology lauds the gnarled origins of New York hip hop, contaminating the ‘boom bap’ fundamentals with the digital squelch of more modern production. This is the sound of neon and rainwater, damp concrete and pollution mist. ‘Session_10670’ takes Aphexian stomps and warbles and devolves them into more naturalistic sounds, standing in sharp relief against the crisp snare and lazy hats on ‘Session_11673’. Exposure Therapy makes sense as a product of many obsessive sessions where elements grew and fell away incrementally, and while the album feels unified under its urban nostagia, there are only a few examples where a session (such as the flexing ‘Session_6192’) is able to elevate itself above the position of a single idea and into a track that feels fully developed. Grant Bailey
FLOATING POINTS
REFLECTIONS - MOJAVE DESERT Pluto & Luaka // June 30th
Tracing Sam Shepherd’s evolution from DJ booth to band leader has been remarkable, if only because each release resembles an artist relishing the opportunity to challenge himself and, more significantly, us. Elaenia was an unpredictable, sprawling listen and Reflections is similarly ambitious and exquisitely textured, perhaps driven to greater lengths by its unique recording process and accompanying short film in the vast expanses of the Mojave Desert. ‘Kelso Dunes’ benefits from the location most conspicuously; flanked by a flurry of other musicians, the twelve-minute track is the most furious and blockbuster piece of music Shepherd has ever recorded. Once confined to the shadow of frequent collaborators such as Four Tet, with every stunning record Floating Points is demonstrating why he warrants to be revered just as wildly. Lee Wakefield
SAINT ETIENNE
HOME COUNTIES Heavenly Recordings // June 2nd
A musical eulogy to the Home Counties is a tough sell, the region typically defined by stockbroker semis, stifling satellite towns and blue rosettes on bloated chests. You wouldn’t readily place the sound of these suburbs as jubilant salsa, Gallic electronica or Motown revival. But revelling in the possibilities of all pop forms is how Saint Etienne roll, and ‘Home Counties’ is a paean to youth, home and coming of age; of romance, discovery, nostalgia – common magic whatever the surrounds. ‘Magpie Eyes’ vindicates the trio’s ongoing quest for pop perfection and ‘Sweet Arcadia’ is a delightful smooth-jazz curiosity, a lounge-car train ride through the England they love. That said, no matter how brightly a tune glistens, a lyrical reference to Crawley will always dull the sheen. Nick Mee
friday 19 may | 7:00
wednesday 21 june | 7:00
saturday 20 may | 3:00
thursday 22 june | 7:00
monday 22 may | 7:00
saturday 24 June | 7:00
tuesday 23 may | 7:00
sunday 25 June | 3:00
thursday 25 may | 7:00
friday 30 june | 7:00
fri 26 - sun 28 | VARIOUS
saturday 1 July | 7:00
thursday 1 june | 7:00
saturday 7 July | 7:00
thursday 1 june | 7:00
saturday 2 september | 2:30
IN DYNAMICS FESTIVAL MUSICA ENE BATUSHKA
THE DISTRICTS SAD13
RAW POWER FESTIVAL NARGAROTH MALEVOLENCE friday 2 june | 6:00
WITHIN DESTRUCTION saturday 3 june | 6:00
QUO VADIS tuesday 6 june | 7:30
TOPS + THE GOON SAX saturday 10 June | 5:30
ISARNOS
SCHOLARS
THE BOUNCING SOULS BLACK CILICE CANVAS
TOUCHSTONE WONKFEST THE ALGORITHM COLD HARD TRUTH ALL-DAYER Friday 29 september | 7:00
BLACK FOXXES saturday 30 september | 7:00
KADAVAR
thursday 5 october | 7:00
FRANK CARDUCCI saturday 7 october | 7:00
wednesday 14 june | 7:00
CURRENT SWELL
THE KENTUCKY HEADHUNTERS
saturday 17 June | 7:00
saturday 21 october | 7:00
saturday 17 June | 7:30
friday 27 october | 7:00
tuesday 20 june | 7:00
tuesday 7 novemer | 7:00
THECITYISOURS THE BATS
BAD OMENS
THE FLATLINERS SATURNUS
JAPANESE BREAKFAST
GIGS OF THE MONTH
Our pick of the best upcoming shows around London
O2 SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE
THE GOOD SHIP
REGGIE WATTS
TACOMA NARROWS BRIDGE DISASTER + CODICES
June 9th £20adv // @o2sbe
Shepherd’s Bush CHARLOTTE CARPENTER
June 10th £4adv // @thegoodshipnw6
Kilburn
O2 ACADEMY ISLINGTON BAT SABBATH: CANCER BATS PERFORMING A FULL BLACK SABBATH SET June 21st £15adv // @O2Islington
Angel
SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS THE SHACKLEWELL ARMS
CHARLOTTE CARPENTER June 27th £6adv // @ServantJazz
Dalston Junction / Kingsland
TABLE SCRAPS June 9th FREE // @shacklewell Arms
Dalston Junction / Kingsland
THE LOCK TAVERN VINYL STAIRCASE + FACTORY SECONDS + CARAMEL June 8th FREE // @thelocktavern
Chalk Farm / Camden Town
THE DOME
TABLE SCRAPS
TOPS + THE GOON SAX + BETTER PERSON
THE LEXINGTON
June 6th £10.50adv // @DomeTufnellPark
Tuffnell Park
BOSTON MUSIC ROOM CANVAS + RENOUNCED + LET IT DIE + GRIEF TOURIST June 25th £10adv // @BostonMusicRoom
Tuffnell Park
SWEET BABOO June 15th £11adv // @thelexington
Angel
BRIXTON WINDMILL MADONNATRON June 30th £5adv // @WindmillBrixton
Brixton
MOTH CLUB
THE WAITING ROOM
PEAKING LIGHTS
AMBER MARK
June 26th £11adv // @Moth_Club
June 6th £5 // @WaitingRoomN16
Hackney Central
HOXTON SQUARE BAR & KITCHEN
Dalston Junction / Kingsland
THE TOOTING TRAM & SOCIAL
VANESSA WHITE
THE SEA SLUGS + JORO + MORE
June 16th £10adv // @HoxtonSquareBar
June 10th FREE // @TootingTram
Old Street
VANESSA WHITE
Tooting Broadway
PICKLE FACTORY NOGA EREZ June 13th £7.50adv // @PickleFactoryE2
Bethnal Green/ Hoxton
MONTAGUE ARMS BAT AND BALL June 8th Queens Road Peckham / New Cross Gate FREE // @Montague_Arms
NOGA EREZ (photo Tonje Thilesen)
THE 100 CLUB
THE SLAUGHTERED LAMB
JD MCPHERSON June 4th £17.50adv // @100clubLondon
EMMA STEVENS Tottenham Court Road
PAPER DRESS VINTAGE
THE AVALANCHES Hackney Central
June 21st £20adv // @O2ForumKTown
Kentish Town
OSLO
BUSH HALL
DAWN (FKA DAWN RICHARD)
PETER BRODERICK June 14th £18adv // @Bushhallmusic
Farringdon/ Old Street
O2 FORUM KENTISH TOWN
GRACE LIGHTMAN June 29th £7 // @paperdressed
June 2nd £14adv // @slaughteredlam
Shepherd’s Bush
June 13th £12.50adv // @OsloHackney LiS 49
Hackney Central
JW RIDLEY THURS 1 JUNE THE WAITING ROOM
D.D DUMBO WED 23 AUG OMEARA
BECKIE MARGARET THURS 28 SEPT THE WAITING ROOM
YANN TIERSEN MON 30 OCT ROYAL ALBERT HALL
PERFUME GENIUS THURS 8LDJUNE OUT SO HEAVEN
NOTHING SUN 27 AUG THE LEXINGTON
LAWRENCE ARABIA MON 12 JUNE THE ISLINGTON
CAR SEAT HEADREST TUES 29 AUG O2 FORUM KENTISH TOWN
AIR TRAFFIC WED 4 OCT T LD OU SCALA SO MON 9 OCT ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL
CHRISTIAN LOFFLER & MOHNA TUES 31 OCT VILLAGE UNDERGROUND
OTZEKI WED 14 JUNE CORSICA STUDIOS GRACE LIGHTMAN THURS 29 JUNE PAPER DRESS VINTAGE DEVENDRA BANHART WED 18 DJULY OUT SOL EMPIRE HACKNEY TOM HICKOX WED 19 JULY OSLO HACKNEY
THIS IS THE KIT THURS 21 SEPT O2 SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE THE NATIONAL MON 25 SEPT, TUES 26 SEPT, WED 27 SEPT, & THURS 28 SEPT EVENTIM HAMMERSMITH APOLLO
KELLY LEE OWENS THURS 19 OCT OSLO HACKNEY (SANDY) ALEX G TUES 24 OCT SCALA DIET CIG WED 25 OCT MOTH CLUB IDER WED 25 OCT & THURS 26 OCT ARCHSPACE
INSECURE MEN WED 8 NOV SCALA ANNA MEREDITH THURS 16 NOV OVAL SPACE LUKE HOWARD FRI 17 NOV ST PANCRAS OLD CHURCH FUTURE ISLANDS OUTNOV SOLD MON 20 & TUES 21 NOV O2 ACADEMY BRIXTON
PARALLELLINESPROMOTIONS.COM
FULL JUNE LISTINGS
LONDON’S GIG GUIDE Your full listings guide to all the best shows happening across North, East, South and West London this month. Thursday 1st June
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Saturday 10th June
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Tuesday 13th June
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FULL JUNE LISTINGS
Saturday 17th June
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LONDON TICKETS: WeGotTickets.com/LondonInStereo Tuesday 20th June
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FULL JUNE LISTINGS Thursday 22nd June Wednesday 21st June
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LONDON TICKETS: WeGotTickets.com/LondonInStereo Friday 23rd June
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FULL JUNE LISTINGS
Tuesday 27th June
Thursday 29th June
Wednesday 28th June
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Saturday 1st July Friday 30th June
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FULL JUNE LISTINGS Tuesday 4th July Friday 7th July
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LONDON TICKETS: WeGotTickets.com/LondonInStereo Thursday 13th July
Sunday 9th July
Friday 14th July
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06—17 MOTH Club Valette St London E8 Thursday 1 June
LESCOP Tuesday 13 June
SEAN NICHOLAS SAVAGE Monday 19 June
JUANA MOLINA Tuesday 20 June
KIKAGAKU MOYO Monday 26 June
PEAKING LIGHTS Shacklewell Arms 71 Shacklewell Lane London E8 Friday 2 June
THE COURTNEYS Wednesday 7 June
ALGIERS Thursday 8 June
MANNEQUIN PUSSY Thursday 15 June
M!R!M Saturday 17 June
THE PUSSYWARMERS
Lanzarote
lanzaroteworks.com #lanzaroteworks
presents
The Waiting Room 175 Stoke Newington High St N16 Saturday 10 June
COSMO VITELLI Thursday 15 June
QUAL Saturday 24 June
KAREN GWYER Tuesday 27 June
HOLLOW COVES The Lock Tavern 35 Chalk Farm Rd London NW1 Wednesday 7 June
TALL JUAN Thursday 8 June
VINYL STAIRCASE Saturday 10 June
MUERTOS The Montague Arms 289 Queen’s Rd London SE14 Thursday 8 June
BAT & BALL Friday 9 June
DREAM NAILS + CHARMPIT
photo: Anya Broido
IN LONDON with ULRIKA SPACEK Why do you live in London? In many ways it's a good place to make music. There's a lot of like minded people and always someone who wants to collaborate. What are your go-to places for food & drink? We probably spend the most amount of time in Baxters Court Wetherspoons in Hackney Central. We don't particularly have much money to spend in more expensive places. But are also quite content eating and drinking in our house. We have a Turkish supermarket close to the house that is great and pretty cheap.
“It will be a shame when people pursuing artistic ventures feel like they have to leave.” It’s (almost) summer in the city - how do you like London when the sun’s shining? We are very lucky that we have a garden, that’s a wonderful thing. It’s good in that you can meet friends in the parks as well. That said when it's boiling hot, London is the worst place in the world to use public transport. What’s the worst thing about London? The difference between wages and the escalating rents. There will be a tipping point if things continue. It will be a shame when people pursuing artistic ventures feel like they have to leave.
Favourite outdoor spaces? We have a few - Victoria Park, Walthamstow Marshes, Hampstead Heath. What’s the perfect way to spend a day here? It’s nice having visitors from outside London, it's an effective way of seeing the city with fresh eyes. Unfortunately, it’s quite easy to go into autopilot whilst living here. Walking around stopping at various places is a day in which you can't go wrong. There are canals, there are parks, pubs and parties. Do you have any favourite venues? We really enjoyed playing the Waiting Room in Stoke Newington and Village Underground in Shoreditch, it’s a very impressive building the moment you walk inside. It certainly doesn't look like anything from the outside. Does living here influence the music you write? It has done in that we live in a shared house that we have been able to record albums in. In many other cities people just live on their own, living in shared housing where people can collaborate is a really beautiful thing. It has definitely left an imprint on our band. How would you advise someone to get the most out of London? You can be who you want to be. That’s a great start.
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Ulrika Spacek release their new album, Modern English Decoration, June 2nd via Tough Love Records. LIVE: The Lexington, June 14th. @ulrikaspacek
LIVE REVIEWS THE GREAT ESCAPE FESTIVAL, BRIGHTON - MAY 18TH-20TH Another year, another dash to Brighton for The Great Escape to rub shoulders with buzzbands and make it to as many free drinks events as humanly possible. It’s schadenfreude for everyone who thinks music industry professionals are dickheads because it tips it down all day on Thursday. We dash between venues wielding umbrellas and awarding extra stars to every show without a queue (thank you Gurr and your gentle 90s influenced melodies). By the time we make it to ALMA we’re sodden but quickly dry off - it’s a dance party in a dive, all swaggering electro-pop, hair the colour of tennis balls and arms-up singalongs. The only thing missing is a glow stick cannon.
“It’s a dance party in a dive, all swaggering electro-pop, hair the colour of tennis balls and arms-up singalongs. The rain eases on Friday and we manage to catch Noga Erez in the sunshine, whose confrontational dance loops get us all moving. After completely stacking it on the beach, Adam Naas’ sadman soul soothes our aching hands as well as our aching hearts before Mount Kimbie’s comeback show gets us in the mood for a big night. We dance to the hits and, well, gently bob to newer, more thinky, tracks.
the great escape, 2017 Not sure we’d recommend seeing Latvian singer Elizabete Balcus first thing on day three of a festival since she plays electrified fruit and loops flute and is, frankly, a lot. We’re hyped for Sampa the Great who lives up to her name in with an extremely fun Fugees-indebted set. Stefflon Don headlines the Vevo stage and the whole place goes off, convincing us all we can shake parts of our anatomy that have never previously been shook. We’re exhausted but a late night Pom Poko show is enough to convince us that life is worth living. As ever, there’s a long list of acts we wanted to catch but saw the queue for and were like “cba tbh” (soz Sigrid) - but any year that features a woman playing vegetables is one that highlights how inventive “the scene” is right now. It’s an exciting time. Kate Solomon Much <3 to Instax for providing us with cameras to play with all weekend - the exposure made us all look way more fresh-faced than reality ever could, and we’re very thankful for that. instax.co.uk
@instaxHQ
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FRIDAY 08 DECEMBER O2 ACADEMY BRIXTON
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PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS The Former Blogger by Jake May Your days spent trawling Bandcamp were not wasted. Searching tags “lo-fi” and “bedroom pop", you’d discover truly average men playing guitar and singing into the microphone of their Macbook Pro in their parents’ spare room, and you’d listen to 30 seconds of two or three of their songs before deciding that, yes, this new band was the one that everyone had to hear. You’d spend a of couple minutes stringing together a few sentences – where are they based, what instruments do they play and which two old bands does this new band sound like a combination of? – and you'd post those 25 carefully-constructed words on your wide-reaching, influential and, some might say, ground-breaking blog. In fact, you'd discover an average of five of these essential new bands every week. This was an important service. If you didn’t write about these bands then who the hell else (other than the 10 other bloggers that posted about the same band in the hours and days following you…) would? Sure, they're never going to release a substantial full-length album, or even get spot-played on BBC 6Music, but this scrappy four-track EP they've uploaded – along with some artwork taken on a disposable camera from Boots – needs to be heard and deserves some wider recognition! Your old school friends are impressed by the comments in your last FM shoutbox. “Insane blog, bro” and “hey man any chance you could send me that new Los Campesinos! album???”, they admired. They’re even more impressed when you casually drop into conversation that you have over 600 Twitter followers – even if they are almost entirely made up of now-abandoned accounts for bands indistinguishable from those you’ve already lauded as "truly unique" and "stunningly sincere”. You haven’t got a lot to show for those days now, but it wasn't entirely worthless. You work in marketing and communications in a university on an okay wage having gained a strong and balanced skill set from those glory years, and you even made a few friends along the way – each of them equally as jaded and bitter as you. Plus one day your grandchildren will be sitting round, listening keenly, their jaws to the floor, as you tell them the story how you – ol’ cardigan-wearing pa; their own flesh and blood – were the first person to ever blog about Gross Magic. Jake May is the founder and editor of Basement Fever. Find Jake on Twitter at @__jakemay
LiS 73
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