VultureHound06

April 2015 - ISSUE 6 | £3.00

LESS THAN E K A J Weezer n a m k c a H a k i r a M Youth Club

VULTUREHOUND.COM

VULTUREHOUND

REVIEWED:

Moose Blood The Cribs e r o M + a n ia d n I

FIGHT! Jon Stewart V John Oliver

Introducing a new Wrestling magazine

www.steelchair.co.uk

VULTUREHOUND

HELLO.

EDITORIAL

David Garlick Editor / Design david@vulturehound.com

Hello and welcome to the 6th issue of VultureHound. This issue features an extended interview with cover stars Less

visit our website for daily updates

Sarah Carter Deputy Music Editor sarah.carter@vulturehound.com Michael Dickinson Film Editor

Than Jake, and if you are a fan of PEZ

michael.dickinson@vulturehound.com

then skip the rest and head straight there...

We also caught up with Marika Hackman who has just released her first full album and speaks about her dark side.

Lee Hazell looks at the two of the best late night satire hosts, Jon Stewart and John Oliver to try to decide who reigns supreme.

We also have more features, playlists and reviews and more!

Remember that you can keep up to date with us daily at VultureHound.com so I hope you enjoy, and join us on the website as well.

Kimberley Bayliss Live Editor kimberley.bayliss@vulturehound. co.uk Sam Hawxwell TV Editor sam.hawxwell@vulturehound.com

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GUEST PLAYLIST: Matteo

S ’ E W W + Y Z FOZ

O H C I R JE

PHOX’s MATTEO shares his Guest Playlist with VultureHound 1) Percy Thrills Thrillington – Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey 2) yOya – King of Nothing 3) Dr. Dog – The world may never know 4) Feist – Anti-pioneer 5) Field Report – Wings 6) The Flaming Lips – The Spark That Bled 7) Kimbra – Teen Heat 8) Bill Withers – Use Me, Live at Carnegie Hall 9) Tim McGraw – Portland, Maine 10) We Are The Willows – A Funeral Dressed As A Birthday

04 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

LIVE

More photos and review up on VultureHound.com

Fozzy - March 14th 2015 The 1865, Southampton

Whatwe’ve we’vebeen What been to listening listening to Track: English Girls Artist: Catfish andThe theMaine Bottlemen Artist: Song: Hourglass Album: American Candy Album:Chosen The Balcony

by Mitchell Bell Chosen by Bradley Lengden (Music Writer) Track: Runnin’ Away Artist: Sly and The Family Stone Artist: Flying Lotus A Riot Goin’ On Album: There’s Song: Chosen Dead Man’s Tetris Murray

by Amelia Album: You’re Dead!

Chosen Track:

by Murray Somerville (Music Time To Wander Writer) Artist: Gypsy & The Cat Album: Gilgamesh Artist:Chosen Marika Hackman

by Nikki Andrews Song: Bath is Black Album: Love in theCathedral Future Track: Chosen by David Garlick (Editor) Artist: Kitten Album: Kitten Artist: Tenacious D Chosen by Michael Dickinson Song: Beezleboss (The Final Showdown) Track: Shadow Flash Album: The Artist: Pick of Indiana Destiny Chosen by Album: Sarah Carter (Music Writer) No Romeo Chosen by Richard Hart Artist: Jose Gonzalez Song: Heartbeats Track: Leaving Blues Album: Veneer Artist: Leadbelly Chosen Kathryn Fisher Writer) Album:byLeadbelly: The(Music Smithsonian Collection Artist: Chosen Moose Blood

by Mareva Lindo Song: Swim Down Album: I’ll Keep You Found In Mind, From Track: Finally a Job Time To Artist: Time Albert DeMuth Chosen by Michael Dickinson (Film Editor) Album: Albert DeMuth Chosen by Jordan Derbyshire Artist: Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross Song: Artist: Like Home Death Cab for Cutie Album:Track: Gone Girl OST In Frame No Room Chosen by Michael Album:Dickinson Kintsugi (Film Editor) Chosen by Sarah Carter Artist: The Lemons Artist: Moon Duo Song: Chubby Checker Track:We’re Slow the Down Low Album: Hello, Lemons Album: Shadow the Sun Chosen

by Mareva Lindoof(Music Writer) Chosen by Mike Savory

Photo: Olly Hanks

Artist: Belle and Sebastian Track: The Boy With The Arab Strap Album: The Boy With The Arab Strap Chosen by Jonathan Jones

INTERVIEW

INTERVIEW

B U L C H T U O Y

e recently featured the latest video from Southend-on-Sea four piece Youth Club whose latest EP ‘Brothers’ came out at the start of this month.

In 2013 we played at Proud Galleries Halloween Ball in full fancy dress costumes, which was pretty rad! It was rather distracting seeing some of the audience dressed as the Power Rangers though.

Laura Hely Hutchinson decided that it was about time we caught up with the lads to find out a little bit more about them. She spoke to guitarist Danny Blanco about all things Youth Club…

Youth Club is a pretty cool name, but are there any embarrassing clubs you were involved with when younger?

W

You’ve been playing all over the country recently! What’s your most amusing gig story so far?

30 VULTUREHOUND 06 VULTUREHOUND FEBRUARY APRIL 2O15 2O15

A few of us were in the Scouts when we were younger, but don’t tell anyone!

Is there any genre of music that you guys really can’t stand?

We all come from different backgrounds of music and have an open mind when it comes to genres. Gerarrd grew up on Soul and Garage, Rees grew up on Hip Hop, and they both used to play in an indie band called The Jayways, which drew influence from the likes of The Strokes and The Kooks. Joe grew up on Indie and Metal music but also produces music under the Jackin’ House duo Draig Cavid alongside Chris Prountzos, and I (Danny) have also played guitar for various artists from different backgrounds such as Ezra Vine and Ladyhawke; whilst also DJing at various Hip Hop & RnB nights.

WORDS: LAURA HELY HUTCHINSON

Your music is based around everything summer – how do you power through and keep writing in the bleak English winters?

When we write our songs we try to envisage the summer festivals and the nostalgic feeling from summer seasons past.

Would you say the sound on your new EP ‘Brothers’ is any different to on ‘Colours’ and if so, how?

After gigging and touring a lot last year and playing lots of festivals our sound seems to have grown and evolved into something a little larger and more suitable for those scenarios.

Speaking of summer – what are your plans for this coming one?

Hoping to play any festivals?

Do you each have a favourite song from the new EP?

We’re really looking forward to touring our new material from our new EP “Brothers” and of course playing as many festivals as possible.

We often change our minds about this. Joe really likes “I’m looking at You” because it shows a different side to our sound, a more emotional song. Rees likes “People”

as he feels lyrically this song sends a positive message and production wise it has a slick, commercial, summer vibe that translates nicely from our first EP “Colours”.

Gerarrd’s favourite is “I Give You My All” as he loves to sing it live, and my (Danny’s) favourite song is “Breathe” because of the high pace energy and dynamics of this song.

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 07

WORDS: ZOE WILLIAMSON

VULTUREHOUND’S GUIDE TO...

MUSIC IN WAKEFIELD he second in Vulture Hound’s Guide to local music scenes, Zoe Williamson takes a moment to ponder what makes up Wakefield’s music scene.

T

Wakefield. Just saying it conjures up images of bright stage shows and world dominating bands. No? Well, fair enough. That stuff has so far evaded the city. However, there is a slight hint of a music scene emerging from Yorkshire’s forgotten district.

In terms of bands, there’s The Cribs. Right, well that was a nice full list. Time for venues.

Let’s start with the newest addition: Unity Works. Strictly speaking, this is not a newcomer. Once upon a time…and largely still now… the mention of the venue was followed by “Annie Lennox played there

08 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

once”. As venues go, there could be worse. Of course, Leeds will always get first pick of the big acts but there’s a certain charm to the Works. Maybe that’s because they sell pies in the foyer before gigs.

Make no mistake, Foo Fighters won’t be parking the tour bus around Westgate any time soon, but Frank Turner played there once.

Warehouse 23 has had issues with ownership over the years. No longer Black Flag and with fixed air conditioning, it has cast aside the reputation of a dreaded sweat pit where your favourite band can watch you pass out at the barrier.

There’s still a pillar in the middle of the stage and a few amongst the crowd, though. While it is a great idea to keep the ceiling up, it would be more aesthetically pleasing if the support structure weren’t a more prominent feature than the performers.

UNITY WORKS SELLS PIES IN THE FOYER. After that, the list of venues that would appear on Gigs and Tours has been exhausted. Leeds certainly does cast a shadow over its neighbour; boasting an arena, universities and various small venues scattered across the city. Like any selfrespecting English location, there are pubs bands can go to if they’re starting out, but there’s no absolute go-to for the next big thing.

Fortunately, this is a small island.

If a band wants to make it, a less than prosperous city should present no barrier. Especially not when opportunity is 8 miles up the M1.

r e v i l O n h Jo k e e W t s a L LAST WEEK TONIGHT VS. THE DAILY SHOW

Last Week Tonight Vs. The Daily Show

t h g i n o T

The Battle Lines

24 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 10 FEBRUARY 2O152O15

J o n r Stewart WORDS: LEE HAZELL

Daily tShow

s Are Drawn

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 11

Last Week Tonight Vs. The Daily Show ne rumour floating around the blogosphere (well, my deranged imagination at least) is that Jon Stewart was scared into quitting The Daily Show following the roaring success of Last Week Tonight With John Oliver.

John Oliver cast off his Daily Show shackles in 2013 after showing the world how capable he was of fronting his own show. He did this by taking over Jon’s duties while he was off in the Middle East filming his acclaimed directorial debut Rosewater. Oliver was so successful that there was talk of him being Stewart’s full time replacement after he moved on.

O

Everything that Oliver touches upon is pure gold.

But John Oliver was never going to wait that long. Even before Stewart came back there was talk of him replacing Craig Ferguson on the The Late Late Show (a gig that has since gone to James Corden). But his destiny wasn’t on TV. It was on HBO. Last Week Tonight was created as HBO’s other factual satire alongside Real Time With Bill Maher. This show would give audiences a place to express their political outrage with a slightly more charming and ideologically flexible host. Unlike

12 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

Bill Maher, you can be confident that Oliver is using his satiric wit to punch up, and he doesn’t have that worryingly Islamophobic aftertaste.

John is a charming fellow with an educated and appreciable English accent, which, as you can imagine, plays well in a country where an English accent brings out everybody’s intellectual insecurities. Walk into any interview in America with his accent and you will get whatever job it is they’re offering, regardless of qualifications. It’s like listening to a man with a voice scientifically proven to know better than you. It also has a soothing fatherly tone and a bewildered humbleness to it, like he still can’t believe he’s landed the gig.

It stops his opinions from seeming arrogantly superior, which would be the death of any show like this.

The same can be said for Stewart.

He’s got that charismatic, college kid cool. He’s smart, non-threatening, and can make you laugh when you’re not sure you’re supposed to.

That’s the best kind of laughter. It creates the most intimate kind of connection with the host. He also drips with empathy. His depression with the human race as we continue to oppress, persecute and alienate our own kind is contagious, as is his exasperation with the hypocrisy of those we have trusted with the responsibility of leading us. His ability to make us empathise with him is one of the most powerful tools in his arsenal.

But if we’re looking for differences in a pair of shows with a plethora of similarities, then we should stop looking at the hosts and start

examining the format itself. The biggest difference is the length of the shows and their frequencies.

Almost every difference in the two programmes could be traced back to the amount of time they have to play with.

Jon’s show runs four times a week, while John’s only has one slot on Sunday (although his contract has the option to go for more when the show finds its feet). This means they have to fit all the political, corporate, and lobbying muck raking into an easily digestible half hour slot. This has its good points and bad.

The bad is that it just cannot compete with The Daily Show in terms of the breadth and depth of coverage. With just one half hour to play with there are only so many scandals they can touch on.

Secondly, the amount of time The Daily Show has to play with affords it time for variety in not just how many stories it covers, but also how it tackles them.

Most of Last Week Tonight plays exactly the same as the first half

of every Daily Show. Oliver talks to the camera about some financial or political shenanigans, then intersperses his monologue with some VT’s proving his point. He even

does the bit where he cuts a tape in half, first showing the optimistic side, then the disheartening truth behind it. There is no arguing that this is Stewart’s signature.

Also, the reduced running time doesn’t give Oliver a lot of time to play with friends. Aside from a comically stoic voice over guy, Last Week Tonight is essentially a one man show. The Daily Show, on the other hand, is a place where young comic talent can get their big break.

Daily Show alumni include, Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, Rob Corddry, Frozen’s Josh Gad, Hangover’s Ed Helms and Rob Riggle. Recently there has been a movement on The Daily Show picking up all the minority talent otherwise left to wilt by other mainstream comedy shows. This has meant The Daily Show has a gigantic pool of talent to pick from, and they’ve used it wisely. Jessica Williams, Al Madrigal, Aasif Mandvi and Trevor Noah have all been signed this way to their and the show’s mutual benefit.

The contributions from “The Best Fucking News Team” give the show some much needed variety, whether it be their hilariously trolling interviews or some playfully irreverent back and forth with Jon himself. Oliver’s show does have some variety to it – the “How Is This Still A Thing?” segment being the closest thing to a regular feature – but this can actually work in the show’s favour and against Stewart ’s baby.

Firstly, the fact that there is only so much that they can fit in one show means that they only choose the ripest fruit from the news tree.

Everything that Oliver touches upon is pure gold, ready to be cut into pieces by the edge of his acerbic wit.

Secondly, with variety, we must also accept that there will be more misses as well as hits.

Take Stewart’s interviews for example. On one hand, each has been carefully chosen to be more than just the usual sitcom plug or perfume pusher. Jon has shared his spotlight with some really great guests who are peddling a message, not a movie. Unfortunately, with a format like this if you are going to have a guest on every day then it’s inevitable some of them will be duds.

As urgent as the recovery of the motor industry in Detrioit might be, or as important as the plight of the Iowa pig farmer is, sometimes you can see Jon straining just a little too hard to get the passion of the subject out of his interviewees and get his audience more interested.

Audience interest is something that Oliver is expert at generating, mostly through his ingenious social media campaigns. Whether it be some of his notorious Hashtags like #MutuallyAssuredHumiliation or the Marlboro taunting #JeffWeCan, or giving the world hours of footage

Stewart’s ability to make us empathise with him is one of the most powerful tools in his arsenal where animals – dressed up like Supreme Court Judges – decide some of the most important cases that Americans never cared about.

It’s the shows USP, but ingeniously, they don’t overdo it. It’s the one thing Oliver’s got that you really think Stewart and his producers should have thought of years ago, but it’s used sparingly, ensuring it stays special.

These campaigns are a call to action that give the audience some degree of participation, the one thing that The Daily Show lacks. It creates a camaraderie with the audience and makes them think they are colluding with the show rather than just watching. It’s a genius, yet natural move that gives his programme a much needed difference from a show that has perhaps informed too much of its production.

So we put the two shows through their paces, the young buck and the aging mentor. So who wins this contest? Who gets to go home the victor and revel in the spoils?

That answer, dear reader, is easy to figure out. We, the audience, are the winners.

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 13

WORDS: JONATHAN JONES INTERVIEW

N A M K C A H MARIKA 14 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

INTERVIEW

MARIKA HACKMAN I

The nervousness it turns out is completely unfounded as Hackman’s tour manager Bryony leads me to a hotel room upstairs from the live venue in this wonderfully characterful hotel in the heart of Sheffield’s University quarter. A cursory knock on the door and I’m ushered into the small twin room, littered with the necessities of travel, an open case, hairdryer and a host of cold and flu products strewn across beds and dresser alike.

On the bed nearest the window sits Hackman casually dressed in torn jeans and a sweater. Despite the plain attire, this young artist is striking, if a little sniffly with cold. We are introduced, and after fumbling with my microphone and eventually propping it against my camera bag on a chair we both sit cross legged on the floor and begin the interview.

I am at more ease now than I’ve ever been for an interview, despite my earlier concerns.

Q

I’m surprised, having read up on you, that your new album is actually your debut, yet you seem to have been around for ages.

A

I’ve been releasing music for the last two years. the first was a covers EP, five tracks, that I recorded on Garage Band. I then did a mini-album of seven tracks, then followed that with two more EP’s, so I have released an album’s worth of music, but those were like experiments, or explorations. It’s me growing up a bit in the sense of my

own musicality and where I want to be. The new album is a more mature work, it feels a lot more grown up.

Q

Experimentation is very important to you. You’ve played a sitar with a bowstring on one of your tracks, and you’re a self taught musician, do you challenge yourself to learn more and more new instruments to maintain your musicianship?

A

Definitely, my latest fun idea is to buy a cheap trumpet and learn to play that, probably disastrous, so I’m sure my house mates and neighbours won’t enjoy that! But yes, experimentation is very important to me, I don’t want to sound like anyone else, I want to be an innovator. I want to try new things. I want to change all the time and push each record somewhere different. I see a new instrument and I want to pick it up and learn to play it so I can use it in my music.

Q

I’m struggling to learn my

V

t’s always nerve-racking when you’re late for an interview, especially when it’s with an artist as talented as Marika Hackman so calling her tour manager while running along Sheffield’s Division Street, breathing heavily down the handset as you go probably isn’t helping to calm those nerves.

Not a great start, as this panting idiot wanders into the legendary Harley looking completely lost, while fireworks boom in the night sky.

The new album is a more mature work, it feels a lot more grown up APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 15

MARIKA HACKMAN to look forward to?

NEW ALBUM OUT NOW

A

Oh, I don’t know about that, maybe just one note *parodies the sound of a trumpet*

Q

A cliched question I know, but you do have an awful lot of musical influence in your life. Your parents played some cool music in the car, and you’ve worked with Johnny Flynn and Charlie Andrews (Alt-J). All that must have had an effect.

A

A

guitar, do you find it frustrating to learn new instruments all the time?

A

I really stuck with the guitar, starting learning it when I was 14. I was rubbish for ages, and I still don’t see myself as very good with it, I just see it as a tool for writing. But

it’s exciting, I love it [learning new instruments] especially stuff like the trumpet, it’s a whole new realm. I used to play the recorder, so playing things with your mouth is a whole new area but could be great.

Q

So we have some exciting gigs

I’ve been incredibly lucky with the people I’ve worked and toured with, I’ve been inspired by all of them, it’s been an amazing experience. In terms of musical influence I think for anyone the stuff their parents play has an impact. My parents had a great taste, Steely Dan, Stevie Wonder, Joni Mitchell, Led Zeppelin, Simon & Garfunkel, a really wide array of incredible song writers.

My mum was a sucker for a good harmony, and I think I’ve inherited that.

Q

Charlie [Andrew] is producing the new album, how did you get together?

A

I loved the Alt-J record that he produced, and I was trying out

I want to be able to have that power to floor someone through music 16 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

new things with various producers, and because of the uniqueness of “An Awesome Wave” I really wanted to work with him. I sent him some tracks and luckily he liked them enough to want to work with me, and we’ve been doing so for two years.

Q

Can’t be bad working with a Mercury Prize winning producer?

A

No, very talented man and wonderful to be around, which makes life very easy in the studio.

Q

You’re drawn to the darker, more melancholic side of folk music. Any reason for that?

A

I don’t really know why? I guess I’ve never really wanted to listen to just happy songs, I have no idea why I indulge in the melancholy feeling you get in your stomach when you listen to things. I think because I find it so profound when it happens to me that I want to be able to have that power to floor someone through music. I don’t know why I like it... In fact I don’t like it. I used to actively not listen to Laura Veirs, my mum and brother would put it on in the car and it would depress me before school, so I’d tell them to turn it off.

Then I’d change my mind and listen to it non-stop.

Q A

So something you didn’t like became an influence?

Yeah, exactly. It’s not that I didn’t like the music, I just didn’t like that it had the power to twist your stomach. I don’t know why I do that to myself, or why I want to do it to other people, I just do.

Q

Your music makes me think of misty morning forest glades, a hint of melancholia, but actually quite relaxing. Is that your intention?

A

It’s not my intention, but I find it interesting to hear how my music affects other people.

Q

The album is released in February, what else does 2015

have in store?

A

I’m going to be on the road most of the year, but generally I’ll just go with it, I don’t like to put pressure on myself by having goals.

Marika Hackman’s new album “We Slept At Last” is out now and is supported by a UK tour in March/April

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 17

MY LIFE IN SONG

BUDDY HOLLY

WEEZER WORDS: MATT SATTERFIELD

M

y Life in Songs: “Buddy Holly” – Weezer (Or What Happens When You’re Stuck in an English Maternity Ward

at 13) I’ve always thought that the cover for Weezer (The Blue Album) was one of rock’s greatest album covers.

It’s so simplistic with the four band members standing against a blue background. It’s an iconic shot that conjures up the feeling of the mid90s. I remember looking at the cover as a 13-year old, seeing Rivers Cuomo with his bowl cut and thinking he looked just like me. All the other rock stars at the time looked like… well rock stars. The cover of The Blue Album made Weezer seem approachable and relatable.

Songs like “The Sweater Song (“Undone)”, “Buddy Holly” and “Say It Ain’t So” were all over rock radio in the fall of 94 and the spring of 95.

With their witty lyrics, massive hooks and crunchy guitars it’s easy to see why they became such a mainstay of the Alt-Rock scene.

But it was the video for “Buddy Holly” that captivated my attention.

In contrast to all the other Alt-Rock videos, this one was bright and fun – much like the song itself. I didn’t get the “Happy Days” reference at first.

My older brother had to explain it to me and stated, “Happy Days was the most American of all TV shows.” It was a direct arrow through the heart of angry young man pseudo-grunge.

When Rivers Cuomo sang, “I don’t care what they say about us anyway, I don’t care about that,” a new admiration for him sunk in. To me, that line was more that just being in a relationship as the song suggests, but more of a personal manifesto: be yourself and don’t care what

others think. And with his hornedrimmed glasses, the dude did kind of resemble Buddy Holly.

You could argue that the video for “Buddy Holly” and Weezer’s emergence on the rock-scene was a watershed moment for Geek Culture.

They looked and acted nerdy, but somehow were able to be accepted by the mainstream. No one looked or acted like them at the time. It’s part of the reason why their first two albums are so beloved by their fans.

BUDDY HOLLY WAS A WATERSHED MOMENT FOR GEEK CULTURE After seeing the video I begged my mother to let me buy the album but she quickly shot me down. To be fair, she probably had other things on her mind. My mother and I were getting ready to travel to England to visit my sister who was living there at the time and about to give my parents their first grand-child. My mother, herself from England was no doubt excited to come home. I was too young to really appreciate or understand the significance of what was taking place.

I however, I was more concerned with what music I was going to bring on this trip. Six weeks is a long time

to be gone, and I couldn’t bring just anything. As the date for our departure grew closer, Weezer was blowing up the airwaves. I had no idea if they were popular in England or not, but I had the feeling I was going to missing out if I didn’t have the album. My luck came through when a friend copied it onto a cassette for me the day before I was supposed to leave. I finally felt like I was ready for the trip across the Pond.

The morning after we arrived, my mother awoke me with a violet shake.

“We have to go! Your sister has to go to the hospital.” Eh, what? I thought this wasn’t supposed to happen for another few weeks. I was going to be an Uncle! That thought truly hadn’t sunken in until that moment.

Since there was only one car, my mother and I had to go as well. When we arrived at the hospital, my mother went to be with my sister and her husband leaving me all alone in a darkened corridor of a maternity ward. I felt like I was in the inside of a 1950’s Insane Asylum and was half expecting to hear electric shock patients screaming from the rooms nearby.

I reached for my Walkman and put on The Blue Album to pass the time.

I must have rewound “Buddy Holly” a dozen times while I waited. Replaying the video in my head as the song blasted through my headphones made me miss the U.S. I had only been in England less than two days and I already missed home.

About two hours passed. Clearly, my mother wasn’t coming back any time soon. Wanting to conserve the batteries for my Walkman, I decided to take a walk around the hall. I noticed a dozen children’s drawings

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 19

MY LIFE IN SONG hanging on the wall. A sign said, “Tell us why ‘Breast is Best!’” Curious, I took a closer look and noticed that some grade schooler had drawn rudimentary pictures of stick-figure mothers breast-feeding their children.

One caption read, “My brother likes breast milk because it tastes good!”

When I drew pictures as a little kid, it certainly wasn’t of mothers breastfeeding their kids.

Somewhat confused and shocked, I walked back to the spot where I was earlier. A few moments later, my mom finally arrived. Thank God! I can finally get out of here! She gave an update and said it was going to be a lot longer and she had to go back in a few minutes. She paused for a second and looked at my Walkman.

Then came a bombshell: she asked if my sister could borrow my Walkman to help calm her down. I knew I had no choice and gave up my Walkman.

When she left, I was truly alone. The Walkman had been my one solace.

And now I didn’t even have that.

Even to this day, I have never been so fucking bored in my life. I attempted to sing the words to “Buddy Holly” but I botched them because I couldn’t remember all the words.

I looked around for something to read. Anything. I assumed there would be trashy magazines like the ones hospitals and dentist’s office provided back home. No such luck.

The only thing available was a pile of pre-natal and birth books. Augh….

sister.” Her face softened with a bit of relief. “Well, if you have any questions about anything please let us know.

You’re American right? They really do have a backwards attitude towards breastfeeding.” How I wished for my Walkman so I could just tune her out.

I tried to sleep but couldn’t. Finally, succumbing to sheer boredom, I flipped open What to Expect When You’re Expecting to save myself from what seemed like insanity. I didn’t care what I was reading at this point; I just needed to pass the time. Having only a basic knowledge of pregnancy at birth at this point (hey, I was 13), the details inside were a bit of shock: they were a lot more explicit than anything I had learned in my SexEd books.Wait, what?…that actually happens? And that too? I was learning a lot more about pregnancy and birth than I wanted to know.

After what seemed like hours, my mother finally arrived to rescue me. I must have flipped through almost the entire book by then. By this point, it was late into the evening. I had hoped she was going to tell me that my niece had arrived and we could finally leave. Unfortunately, that was not the case. We were leaving, but we’d have to come back the next morning since it looked like delivery was still a long way off.

A nurse came by and seeing what book I was reading, looked at me rather bizarrely. Yes, I know it’s weird, but I’m fucking bored. But it wasn’t as weird as what came next: she asked how prepared I was to be a father at such a young age. My jaw dropped as I tried to find the words. ”Uhhhh…no. I’m just waiting on my

That night as I tried to sleep, “Buddy Holly” was playing constantly in my head. I tried to erase all the stuff from What to expect when you’re expecting from my teenage brain. But it was stuck. And it also latched onto “Buddy Holly” and has never let go: whenever I hear the song now, I’m brought back to the maternity ward.

When my niece finally arrived the next day, I felt relieved. And not just because I no longer had to wait.

After all the reading I had done, I was relieved for my sister. As much as I tried to block all the stuff out of my head, I gained a whole new appreciation for what she had just gone through.

About a year ago when one of my best friends and his wife were expecting their first child, my friend’s wife mentioned some of the crazier aspects of pregnancy. I chimed in about a detail and everyone looked at me with curiosity. “Yeah, so let me tell you why I know this stuff…”

LESS THAN JAKE

WORDS: SHANE BAYLISS PHOTOS: KIMBERLY BAYLISS merican Ska superstars Less Than Jake are currently making their way up and down the UK on tour with friends Yellowcard and French poppunkers Chunk! No Captain Chunk! We headed over to Nottingham’s legendary RockCity to catch up with two of the driving forces behind the band, bassist Roger Lima and drummer Vinnie Fiorello, to talk about co-headline tours, new material, band longevity and Pez dispensers.

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This is the third tour in the last three years that you have 22 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

S S LE N A TH E K JTAERVIEW IN

co-headlined..?

Roger: Really? Wow, you’re like a stat counter I wouldn’t have known that.

That’s because we were at them all. New Found Glory two years ago, Reel Big Fish last year and then this years Yellowcard tour.

Roger: I’ll give you that.

Is there a reason that you guys co-headline, is it just something that naturally happens?

Roger: Ideally, it is something

that can bridge two worlds and bring certain fans out that wouldn’t come for one or the other reason, because ultimately fans know that we are going to be back anyway. So if it’s not some sort of an occasion or an event, something cool that’s going down. Like “oh, they’re touring with Reel Big Fish I’ve got to go to that” instead of just “oh, they are touring with this UK opener and this other band that I’ve never heard of” sometimes the one plus one can add to like three, so when it works it’s a beautiful thing.

Do you actively search for touring mates?

Roger: That’s the thing it’s easy to be like “oh, we know what that’s going to be like. People are going to turn up, and have a fucking good time” it’s an easy choice.

But there a lot of different factors man- Yellowcard we’ve know those guys for like forever and we used to play with them, and it just so happens that our most recently acquired agent just so happens to work with Yellowcard so it was us suggesting “yeah, lets go play some shows in the UK”.

Vinnie: Even on top of that it is hard to put together like Rog said an event, we want to support UK music and we want to support bands that are from the area but it’s hard because those bands tour twice, three times, even four times as much as we do in those cities. So it is a hard thing to assemble an event, when the bands coming back at half a ticket price blah blah, blah blah.

LESS THAN JAKE HAS ALWAYS BEEN ABOUT BEING LESS THAN JAKE It’s fun to do releases, we love making records, we love conceptualising the artwork and getting it done, ordering the vinyl and picking the colour.

It’s exciting for us as collectors, we can just do vinyl whenever the fuck we want. But as far as the whole record cycle thing specifically, our band cycle thing is much longer than most bands because we tour everywhere, and do it twice. This cycle so to speak we still haven’t yet played Japan.

Vinnie: Or Europe! This is the first time on our album cycle we’ll be playing Europe in a weeks time.

Roger: It’s not really done!

Vinnie: Haven’t played South America.

Roger: So that’s how it is.

Individually we’re all working on material, more importantly we’re considering doing the ‘HD TV/ EP’ which would be the follow up to the original ‘TV/EP’ and it will have double the amount of

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Vinnie: The three bands that you mentioned, we pretty much have just been friends with and past tour mates.

The newest single ‘America Idle’ just came out, and it’s been quite a while since the last single came out which is also off the latests album.

So this “record cycle” is seemingly quite extensive.

Is that just how things are flowing, are you working on new material at all?

Roger: Well the single thing, I wouldn’t be surprised if there wasn’t another single that came out with a ‘See the Lights’ song and then some couple of random weird tracks on the other side.

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 23

LESS THAN JAKE

things for particular tours, so we have this thing to talk about and support. I think that’s the model that we want to strive for.

Roger: Chris wanted to make butt plugs, but we were like “maybe we should just make ‘American Idle ‘seven inches instead.”

Something marketable that might appeal to a couple of more people…

Vinnie: He just wanted butt plugs for men though and we were like “we don’t get it dude!”

PEOPLE ARE GOING A E V A H D N A P U N R U T O T FUCKING GOOD TIME ridiculous on a double seven inch vinyl.

Vinnie: Beautiful thing!

Roger: So we’re trying to find time to get involved in that, we’re going to make more fucking songs.

Is that going to be songs from the Netflix and HD era, as opposed to the old skool vibe of the original?

Vinnie: I think it’ll be a fair split.

Roger: There are still a bunch of sixties ones that I want to do to.

24 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

Vinnie: To go back to the single thing, it’s not that we are in this tight album cycle thing. For us we’ve been putting out singles whenever we go out on a tour.

So we’d like to have something in support, so when we left for the Reel Big Fish tour we wanted to have something that you talk about and have. Again all the reasons that Rog mentioned, the excitement of putting them together, the conceptualisation of one song that sometimes you can’t get across when it is part of another record. So I think that we just want to do particular

Roger: Is there a difference? I don’t think there’s a difference.

Vinnie: Yeah, there’s all different colours.

Roger: Could the authorities on butt plugs please speak up.

Anybody..?!

My personal experience of your music was on the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4 soundtrack.

Vinnie: Great for us!

How did that happen?

Roger: Well you weren’t getting laid so you played a lot of video games…

Vinnie: You borrowed some money from your Mum and Dad! I was ten!

Roger: You were ten?!! (laughs)

Roger: At ten?

Vinnie: I’m just going with it!

How did that happen, was it just a record company thing?

Roger: Yeah! One of the few benefits of being involved in a major label I can think of is the ability to get licensing deals for their bands, and to be like “movies that needs songs: we have this band that you’ve never fucking heard of, you could put this song on your soundtrack and it would be fucking fantastic, and everyone will make money”.

But Tony Hawk has a positive effect for you?

Vinnie: Yeh! ‘Digimon’ as well!

Roger: Fucking ‘Good Burger’, ‘Scooby-Doo!’ Anything like that we can do, we are totally stoked on that, and the best thing is there is a cereal company in the States called General Mills and they are bringing back PacMac cereal and we are doing the theme song for the commercial.

So that’s exciting! Good news to blog about! Hashtag!

IT’S HARD TO MAKE THAT Y L L A E R D N A D R O C E R T S FIR BELIEVE IN IT. discovering new music very easy, but it also quadruples the amount of white noise that is out there. So it is hard to get people to find that. So you were sitting in front of your video games and said “fuck, I really like that” but there wasn’t a million other things that you could be doing whilst playing that video game. But if you are on Spotify you can go “let me go to this website” whilst Spotify is playing in the background, “let me make a sandwich” Spotify is playing in the background, “let me make a call” or “let me write this text.”

So technology makes it easy to

discover new music, but it also makes it ten times more complicated to pay attention and become a fan of that music.

Less people actually sitting and listening to an album these days?

Vinnie: It’s very singles based, very one song based. Until you become a fan and start to digest all this other material that they have out at least.

The ‘Pezcore’ album celebrates it’s twentieth anniversary later this year, you’ve obviously re-mastered and re-released it a couple of

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Vinnie: So what you’re saying inbetween masturbating, you were playing video games.

Vinnie: Hashtag Pac-Man cereal.

With the advent of mobile apps such as Shazam and Spotify, do you think that being featured on a soundtrack could become even more important?

(Being able to quickly identify songs, and find songs quite easily?)

Vinnie: Technology makes APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 25

LESS THAN JAKE times, but are you still happy with how that all came out? Is it something you look back on proudly?

Roger: Certainly sort of proud of the fact that at that time we had our shit together enough to write that many songs, playing small shows, piling in a small van to go all the way to Daytona to play to like eighty people.

That’s what I’m proud of. It’s hard to make that first record, and really believe in it. Is it the best recording? Fuck no!

Could we play the songs better now? Fuck yeah we can! It just captured a time that we were just lighting the spark on our band, it’s fucking crazy. There is some good stuff on there, some excitement on that record. I’m not going to compare it to the Op Ivy record, but it’s our Op Ivy energy.

Vinnie: It’s the start of something, and I think that with ‘Pezcore’, ‘Pezcore’ is the

T U O B A G IN H T L U IF T U A E B THE LESS THAN JAKE IS THAT IT’S ALWAYS BEEN AN EVEN PLAYING FIELD sound of a group of guys, and girl.

Roger: Don’t point at me! (when talking about being a girl) Vinnie: That wasn’t you! It’s the sound of a group of individuals finding something that there was no blueprint for, there was no diagram for. When we were doing it there was no like “we should make it sound like blah blah blah” it wasn’t that. It

was like “well we like East-Bay Punk Rock and we like Chicago Punk Rock and we like Third Wave Ska and we like The Clash and we like Iron Maiden and The Descendants” so we are squishing all these influence together. It’s a group of people finding our sound on our first record, it’s awesome.

You had a couple of line-up changes in the early days, but you’ve managed to keep the same line-up now since about 1996/97.

Vinnie: About fifteen years.

What’s your secret to longevity, or do you even have one?

Roger: Well non of us want to learn other fucking songs, or get real jobs.

Vinnie: True!

Roger: I don’t know secret to longevity, don’t write shitty songs. Don’t write songs you don’t believe in!

What about actually being

26 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

a band? How have you stayed friends, and stayed a unit for that long?

Roger: Drugs, alcohol!

Vinnie: Antidepressants!

Roger: Occasional blow outs where everyone speaks their mind, and you get everything out in the open and figure shit out like grown-ups.

Roger: That’s what I was going to say, in our personal lives and in the behind the scenes things. It’s also so true in our song writing, it doesn’t matter if I wrote the riff, or Vinnie wrote all the lyrics.

Everyone puts their fingers in everyone’s business, and I can be like “hey, you should play this

horn part” and somebody can be like “you can play this bass line” and he can be like “the guitar should be like this” we’re allowed to do that because when it’s all said and done it is our song together as a collective. Honestly, that’s what makes it work. If it was like it is with some other bands where it’s like “I wrote every single fucking thing” we would not be here twenty two years later.

Vinnie: Absolutely, that’s the thing man. Less Than Jake, has always been about being Less Than Jake, and no disrespect to My Chemical Romance but in the past when they were around and active it was about Gerard Way; and AFI whilst everybody else puts it together you had the figure head which was Davey.

Less Than Jake is Less Than Jake and that’s the collective. When people come to see Less Than Jake they are coming to see Rog, and coming to see Chris, and the

horns and the fucking banter. It’s that collective mindset that people are attracted to, it’s not that one person. So that’s why twenty two years, everybody in, all hands in!

Call me on my bullshit!

Roger: It’s why Kiss suck without Ace. What’s the future hold?

Obviously you’ve spoken about ‘HD TV/EP’ and Europe. You’re back here in the summer for some festivals?

Roger: We’ve got some things back in the States, hopefully getting over to find some shows in Australia. Definitely going to hit Japan, with our friends in the band Kemuri.

Vinnie: Something with Reel Big Fish as well.

Roger: They’re celebrating some big anniversary thing and we’re

V

Vinnie: It’s communication manand the beautiful thing about Less Than Jake is that it’s always been an even playing field. When someone starts to get unchecked, it’s like (clicks fingers) everyone sorts it and then it goes back down to that even playing field again. To be a band for twenty one going on twenty two years, you have to have that honest discussion at some point in time where you go “I’m unhappy, you’re unhappy, you’re a fucking dick, you’ve been an ass-hole, you’ve been a fucking motherfucker” and then you go back down to doing what we do best going on stage and having that energy, back and forth and writing songs.

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 27

LESS THAN JAKE happy to be there.

Vinnie: We’ve still got a few places to go with this. And then- we were talking about this earlier- coming together in the fall sometime to write some songs, do the ‘HD TV’ thing.

Everybody individually has been gathering riffs, and gathering lyrics and ideas. We’ll go back, and start the process and see where it leads. We’ve still got shit

music industry questions over and done with. Now! Knowing you are both collectors of Pez dispensers, it’s time for……

THE PEZ-OFF 2015!

Two set’s of questions, we’ll start with Roger and you’ll both take it in turns to answer.

In which country did the Pez originate?

How many Pez blocks make up the P in the logo?

Roger: How many blocks, I don’t know maybe nine or ten. I’ve never counted.

Fourteen.

Roger: Fuck man, I should know that.

How many blocks make up the complete Pez logo?

Vinnie: Twenty six?

Forty-four.

Vinnie: That was just an arbitrary guess.

I may have made this a little hard, I apologise.

In which year did this Pez dispenser here originate?

Vinnie: I don’t even know what year we are in right now.

Roger: Squidward, I don’t know let me think about this for a second. It’s got to be two thousand and six or seven.

we have to do!

Roger: It’s an exciting moment, I’m out of songs! It’s awesome!

The Green Hornstuff is done, the Rehasher record is done, Less Than Jake stuff is all done. We’ve put out a couple of live things we recorded forever ago, the ‘Mini-Disk EP’. We’re at a clean slate right now for songs. It’s awesome!

That’s the boring serious 28 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

Roger: Which county? Austria?

Correct!

Who is the inventor of the Pez? Vinnie: I don’t know, I know the original name was from Pfefferminz. That’s about it, I don’t know who has the patent on it.

It was actually two-thousand and fourteen.

Roger: What! Where are you getting this information?

The official Pez website.

Roger: Well that must be a current re-make of some-kind.

And the Batman one?

It was Eduard Haas III. Roger: That’s a little out there!

Vinnie: With the logo on, that has to either be a fake number

one or reasonably recent. As the blue cowl with the grey stem, I didn’t see that so it has to be reasonably new or something fictitious.

Two thousand and eight.

Vinnie: To be honest I don’t believe that’s is real right there (pointing at the logo on the stem).

Roger: Let me consult an image here (brings up a picture of his collection on his phone). Batman I know I have, but I want to see if I have the Squidward because that’s fucking bullshit. If there is a variation of a Squidward out there that I don’t have they I am mad at myself. Okay, I’m going to call bullshit here real quick. Here is the deal,

that’s a stem variation the stem colour is different and they stuck it in a new package and resold it, but the head I would guarantee it is the same mold as the first pressing and I don’t collect stem variations.

Vinnie: Stem variations are for suckers! But not really. What about Batman with the logo?

Roger: I don’t know about that, I have so many Batman’s.

I apologise for the stem variation.

Roger: Late fifties, I want to say fifty-five?

Fifty-two! And nineteen twenty-seven in Austria.

The rarest and most collectible of Pez dispensers is a political donkey of which there are three, one of which was owned by a US president, but which president?

Roger: I heard about this recently I think, I want to say Regan.

Vinnie: Nixon?

JFK.

Roger: What else you got?

In what year was the Pez introduced?

Vinnie: I want to say I never even heard of that! The rarest one that is purchasable is the make-a-face, which is my holy grail.

Roger: There is an orange which is fairly common, but from the same set there is a Pineapple that is pretty rare.

Congratulations to Roger who wins the first official Vulture Hound Pez-Off, and wins a limited edition one of a kind golden Donatello Pez that we spent the morning painting.

Massive thank you to both Vinnie and Roger for being great sports and taking the time out to talk to us. Less Than Jake are currently on their UK tour with Yellowcard and Chunk! Captain No Chunk!

There is still time to catch them on the following dates: 9th April – London Koko 10th April – London Koko 12th April – Manchester Academy 13th April – Bristol O2 Academy 14th April – Leeds O2 Academy APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 29

WORDS: LIAM GILLESPIE

REVIEWS

CHAPPIE

Director: Neill Blomkamp Stars: Sharlto Copley, Dev Patel and Hugh Jackman

happie is the story of how in a futuristic Johannesburg, the notoriously high crime rate is neutralised by a mechanical police force known as scouts. Deon Wilson, played by Dev Patel, is the creator behind these scouts but his ambitions for the robots stretch far beyond simply solving crime.

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He aspires to create the world’s first genuine artificial intelligence that has the ability to think and feel for itself but the company he works for, Tetravaal, led by Sigourney Weaver’s character, a weapons manufacturing company, doesn’t like this idea. Disregarding his superior’s orders, Deon decides to create an A.I. anyway and thus Chappie is born, but not before this revolutionary robot is high-jacked by a trio of thugs, who attempt to turn Chappie down the road of crime and gangster culture.

And thus begins a battle for the innocent Chappie’s well natured

30 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

heart and soul.

All the while, back at Tetravaal, Hugh Jackman’s mullet-sporting, shorts wearing Vincent Moore plots against the kind spirited Deon after the bitterness at not being able to use his crime fighting robot invention, the MOOSE, becomes too much.

Director Neill Blomkamp, whose other films include the hugely popular and critically acclaimed District 9 and the not so popular or acclaimed Elysium spoke recently about how the latter was let down by the writing saying: “I just didn’t make a good enough film is ultimately what it is.” Such honesty is rare these days from Hollywood directors and it’s this honesty that can be sensed throughout his latest project.

Chappie is a film with ambitions and isn’t content with being a average action flick, diving into deeper issues such as the dynamic of a parent and child relationship along with the burning question of what

it means to be conscious. There are some great scenes that encapsulate that early confusion we all felt growing up as we tried desperately to make sense of the world around us.

There’s also plenty of humour as Chappie stumbles in his early days to make sense of right and wrong including the films funniest sequence involving a car-jacking.

Most of the films best scenes involve Chappie, played by Sharlto Copley, who has a genuinely charming quality to his behaviour and carries the film when it begins to be bogged down in sub-plots later on in the film.

Some people have already drawn unfair comparisons to the famously irritating Jar Jar Binks from the Star Wars films but the truth is Chappie never really gets anyway near as annoying as that character did. Far from it, he remains charming and interesting throughout.

Away from the title character, the

film doesn’t particularly have any enduringly interesting strands with the sub plot of Hugh Jackman’s bitterness at not being able to use his robot, wearing thin quickly. The problem is that the film doesn’t spend enough time developing these elements or themes that it hints at and prevents it from being truly profound or insightful on the topic of artificial intelligence.

There is also an issue with the casting of the central trio of gangsters that Chappie spends a lot of the film with. All three are frankly unlikeable and uninteresting to the point of it being maddening especially when so much screen time is devoted to them.

It’s a film full of potential and risks but tries too hard to be too many things at once to cash in on this potential and become a classic like District 9. Nevertheless we should be grateful that in an industry with so few genuine risk takers, wary of stepping outside of their comfort zone, Blomkamp is one who isn’t afraid to make dicey decisions.

A loveable central performance, some interesting ideas, plenty of humour and an exciting look at the urban crime scene in Johannesburg are enough to carry Chappie over the line and move it away from being simply generic or even worse, boring.

It’s far from boring with Blomkamp once again showing a real cinematic flair for science-fiction, the sort of flair that convinced the kind people at 20th Century Fox to hire him to do the next Alien film.

WORDS: GEMMA VOAKES-PEARSON

DYING OF THE LIGHT Director: Paul Schrader Stars: Nicolas Cage, Anton Yelchin, Alexander Karim

hen you read the synopsis of Dying of the Light it sounds like it is going to be a great drama/thriller.

Unfortunately, the end result is anything but.

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I don’t know if this is down to the fact that the people behind the film took it away from the director and re-edited it behind his back or whether it is just that it was not that great to start with. It is impossible to say whether the directors cut would have greatly improved it.

The film is about a CIA agent (Cage) who finds out he is dying from a form of dementia, he decides that his last ‘hoorah’ will be to get revenge on a terrorist that imprisoned him and tortured him a long time before. Cue to flashback scenes of Nicolas Cage being tortured in the past so as to identify the reasons behind his revenge.

Part of the problem with this film is Nicolas Cage’s tendency to ‘over-act’. He puts so much emphasis on his emotions that they become unbelievable. This could be down to direction. There are some promising scenes such as car chases but they are all a bit lacklustre and are missing that final ‘wow’ that rounds off the scene and the action nicely. You just don’t get gripped.

In particular one scene towards the end sees a gunfight, the wounds are not convincing, it does look like one person has just had the blood smeared on them by hand. With the amount of violence in films and the way the audience is hardened to the images nowadays, you immediately lose interest if it doesn’t look convincing enough. Sorry to say I wasn’t convinced at all. This was also in part due to the fact that none of the guns had kickback.

There were some signs of promise in this film, I think if he had been given more scope then Anton Yelchin who plays Nicolas Cage’s CIA sidekick could have really improved the action scenes.

Although his hoarse serious voice did have a tendency to make the detailed dialogue scenes dull.

Alexander Karim however, who played the terrorist I think did a fantastic job.

I think its a real shame that this film didn’t live up to its potential.

With the right direction and a bit more passion in the acting (it did seem that even the actors knew it wouldn’t be great) this film could have been great. All in all, the storyline was good and I liked the ending for Nicolas Cage’s character, it just needed a bit more to make it captivating and visually interesting to watch.

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 31

REVIEWS

THE HOMESMAN

Director: Tommy Lee Jones Stars: Tommy Lee Jones, Hilary Swank, Grace Gummer

ommy Lee Jones does some times feel like an actor born out of his prime. With his weather beaten face and sharp southern tongue he should have been on screen with the likes of Walter Brennan, Harry Carey and Henry Fonda. These days a Western is perhaps, considered more of a throwback, nostalgia conceit than a setting to tell a timeless story. Jones’ first cinema outing as director, The Three Burials of Malquiades Estrada, incorporated the Mexican desert. A heavy sense of Peckinpah in his prime hungover the entire film.

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For The Homesman, his second cinematic feature he’s gone all the way back to the west – the midwest.

Hilary Swank plays Mary Bee Cuddy, a New York music teacher who has come out west in search of more opportunity. Instead what she finds is isolation and a longing for a husband. At 31 years old she feels she’s fast approaching spinster hood. The men of her town already see her that way as it’s

32 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

WORDS: MICHAEL DICKINSON

commented that she is far too plain.

Three women in the region become mentally incapable after suffering abuse, loss and depression. There husbands are unable or unwilling to take them on the treacherous ride to Iowa to a church run home for the mentally ill. A terrified but reticent Mary Bee agrees to take the women on the journey out of her sense of Christian charity. Before setting out she comes across Tommy Lee Jones’ George Briggs, with a noose around his neck for claim jumping a locals area. He agrees to help her for saving his life so the two set out on a voyage with the three women which sees them cross raging rivers, native americans wearing the clothes of dead soldiers, Tim Blake Nelson’s lechorous trader, an Irish James Spader running a hotel in the middle of nowhere and a very benevolent Meryl Streep.

Depression is the running theme of The Homesman. Despite it’s Western trappings, which is not a genre known for it’s treatment of mental health issues, loneliness and desperation hovers over the film like a fog. From the three women

who have all broken down – one after years of rape, one after losing a child and another who can’t cope with life out in the west – are the most obvious examples. But Cuddy’s story is desperately sad too. All she wants is a stable family life, whether for social or religious reasons. Perhaps she see’s in these three women how close to breaking point she is and that sends her on this gruelling trip. All the characters in her home town live for survival as does Briggs. Never directly spoken of but he is clearly a man who has seen a lot of bad things in his life.

Jones’ wonderfully craggly face tells you everything you need to know. His actions – handy with his fists and a gun – and a sideward glance fill in much of the blanks of his past.

As a team Cuddy and Briggs walk the fine line of cliched can’t stand each other but end up loving each other, instead they learn a growing tolerance/respect for one another. homes3Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s regular DOP Rodrigo Prieto gives The Homesman a fantastically sparse but romantic film. Tiny figures are silhouetted against vast

landscapes. It’s a bit of an old hat Western visual but when they look this beautiful it’s hard not to go along with it. The cast are uniformly strong. Jones’ does his usual cranky, don’t mess with me thing but incorporates a vulnerability and a foolishness that makes Briggs a fully rounded character. A prequel about him would no doubt be a tragic watch. The film boasts an alarming amount of top acting talent. Miranda Otto as one of the disturbed women is heartbreaking.

William Fitchner is boo-hissable as one of the useless husbands. John Lithgow brings the right amount of cowardice and kindess to his pastor. Hailee Steinfield pops up in a small but pivotal role as a servant girl. James Spader who is always welcome in this house put’s in a somewhat over the top performance as a hotelier. Then Meryl Streep turns up feeling like a sweeter version of her role in Doubt.

The film belongs to Swank though, both heartbreaking and at times infuriating. She is the definition of out-of-depth but putting a brave face on things.

As with most road movies once the wagon hits the road the story becomes somewhat episodic but it never feels like it’s a stop, start affair. Jones’ the film maker handles the constant stream of characters well by keeping it all anchored with his very strong lead characters.

With Three Burials… time structures were altered, making it a hard film to fully get your heart behind. With The Homesman though he has constructed a very fine film indeed.

If he wanted to make films in the setting for the rest of his career it would be no bad thing.

The Homesman is available on BluRay and DVD from March 23rd via Entertainment One.

WORDS: GEMMA VOAKES-PEARSON

ASSASSIN

Directors: J.K. Amalou Stars: Danny Dyer, Holly Weston, Martin Kemp t’s good to see Danny Dyer back on screen in a film doing what he does best, although it does seen that he has slightly toned down the ‘bad boy’ image as he doesn’t seem as angry in this film as he has done in others.

your seat and I am sorry it doesn’t.

There isn’t enough suspense. The whole revenge thing towards the end just seems a bit ‘bang I have killed one, now on to the next, yep you are dead too’. The problem is you don’t feel he has achieved a sense of justice as the events leading up to it were predictable.

Danny Dyer plays Jamie a killer for hire. He is hired to kill a girl who is the daughter of a local businessman and a rival of the men who pay for him. Jamie however falls in love with the girl and therefore tries to go straight and start a new life, but things don’t go to plan and he wants revenge.

A bad accent from Anouska Mond who plays Alex, Jamie’s girlfriends friend is also slightly unforgiving.

The storyline is a good one and is the base for what could be a great film. Unfortunately, it does fall a bit flat.

Assassin is available on BluRay and DVD now via Signature Entertainment.

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It’s good to see the Kemp brothers back in a film together and I have to say that on this occasion I think Gary Kemp shines through as the best of the two brothers.

It all just seems a bit tame and considering the storyline it shouldn’t be. For a thriller to work it needs to keep you on he edge of

Although, this is an easy watching film with a storyline that shows potential, it just needs a bit more to give it the final ‘wow’ to make it a film you would want to watch again.

WIN Head over to Twitter @VultureHound for a chance to win a copy on DVD

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 33

WORDS: RICHARD HART

REVIEWS

INDIANA

No Romeo (Album Review)

A

twenty seven year old

Kate Bush and Karin Andersen from The

was Indiana’s first real single and

singer from Nottingham

Knife.

is a big, menacing call for love and

chose to take on the

understanding. The vocals take a

name of a rural, mid­

Never Born is the lead­out single of the

slightly different tone, with a touch of

western American

album. A slow, menacing track that

Florence in them during this track.

State and created a musical act known

has a delicate, oriental beat that builds

as “Indiana”. Her vocal style is rich,

up to a ferocious, growling finale. The

The glittering tone of Jack is next. This

sensuous and emotional, her music a

tempo picks up fast for the outstanding

song has some of the darkest lyrics

dark, trip hop inspired pop music.

Solo Dancing; a paen to the nightlife

in the entire album, references to lost

that should strike a chord with anyone

love, broken hearts and bloody death.

The long gestating start of Indiana’s

who loves the dance floor. A fantastic

The chorus shifts the track over the

pop career can trace it roots back to

track and probably the initial stand out

line from good to excellent. “He’ll stay

2012 when she released “Blind as I

from the album. This track is the most

forever that way…all the blood on you

Am” and she finally saw success with

dance inspired and hits a high gear

Jack, it’s not worth bringing me for”.

the dark horse indie classic “Solo

after a superb drop.

Incredible, dark, clever and a classic in

Dancing”. Her album that houses both

the making.

of these tracks is the moody, vibrant

Things shift down­gear again with the

“No Romeo”.

emotional Play Dead. A song about

The gentle, yearning sound of New

heartbreak and rejection, it’s poignant

Heart is next which couldn’t be more

A long, surprisingly complex album, “No

without being truly depressing. The

different in tone to Jack. This beautiful,

Romeo” is a dark sort of pop music.

modern day torch song “Heart on Fire”

peaceful, charming track has an

Synth and drum beats are blended with

is probably one of the poppiest. It still

eighties feel to it and does conjure up

a degree of expertise, the whole album

features the same emotional vocals but

images of classic 80’s rom­com movies.

has a rich, shimmering sound. Vocally

the song itself is a decent pop song,

Pleading, loving lyrics weave through

Indiana has a strong, emotionally

nothing more.

the crunchy synth sounds creating a

resonant voice. Comparisons to Lorde seem obvious but there are touches of

34 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

really special track.

The powerful, keening Blind As I Am

There is a shift back to low, slow gear

The vocals of the emotional Erase

The outro track is the slow, keening

for the sensual but fairly flat Bound. A

soar and call and it’s one of the most

Animal. Another sad song with high

decent track but it’s fairly forgettable.

sad tracks on the album, with imagery

calling vocals, this is one of the

The tempo picks up for the title

that conjures up the movie ‘Eternal

moodiest tracks on the album and

track; No Romeo. Sitting alongside

Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’. Erase

is a genuine downer. It’s a fine song

Solo Dancing this is one of the most

is all about the end of a relationship,

but does feel a little bit like a very

up tempo, though still somewhat

the process of erasing someone’s

downbeat way to end an excellent

downbeat, tracks on the album.

memory and how hard this is to do

album.

and yet how necessary it can be. There Another healthy slice of 80’s synth

is a glowing, menacing tone to the

The length of the album ends up

permeates the track. The delicate

track that is largely based around the

being a mixed blessing. You get a

Calibrated Love is another decent

powerhouse vocals.

real feel of Indiana’s depth of her

track that floats along with a fairly

song writing and the quality of her

soft tone, picking up in tone every

Erase stands in stark contrast with

production work. However at times the

now and again with another retro­

the hopeful, gentle tone of Ink which

album feels overly long and there is

disco moment. The breathy, dreamlike

speaks of the opposite of Erase; the

some repetition of themes. The strong

opening to Shadow Flash is next.

permanence of memory and affection,

tracks stand out very much but the

Indiana’s vocals soar during this track

connection. It’s a really gentle, upbeat

whole album does have a consistent

as she whispers the lyrics. The chorus

track despite some fairly bitter­sweet

theme and feel.

is a glorious, shimmering moment of

lyrics.

keening lyrics.

Indiana’s album is a big, bold, brave The same tone takes a darker turn

and occasionally flawed debut. One

into the deeply charged, tense

worries slightly that she’s left it all out

Smoking Gun. The lyrics get dark

on the field a bit with so much work

during this album with references to

and so much creativity going into a

Go Fast opens with a strange, robotic

self destruction and desperation. The

debut album. There is a touch of pop,

voice calling ‘Take Me In Your Car

chorus is a great, dark tidal wave of

gothic themes, gloomy, emotionally

and Go Fast’. The track has a dark,

emotion and bleak, uncomfortable

charged lyrics, trip hop and dub­

European inspired synth edge to it

themes. At one point she breathes out

step touches to it. ‘No Romeo’ has

and this track has a decent pace to it.

menacingly ‘I’m in possession of a

something that’s sure to catch the eye

It’s a strange gothic mixture and really

smoking gun and I want to hurt you

and in the opinion of this reviewer, a

adds to the mix of the album.

just for fun’.

fairly major talent is announcing her

Only the Lonely is a surprisingly upbeat poppy song that arrives on the back of a lot of much darker material.

It’s a fairly nice, simple song and passes by without a huge amount of fanfare. The upbeat climax is a nice moment.

The slower, seductive Mess Around has the same dark, tense tone that permeates the rest of the album.

There’s a sharpness to the sound and the vocals have a sensual but menacing sound to them. The curiously titled Swim Good has a touch of the operatic in it with its long slow chords and the delicate, sharp edged vocals. The lyrics are at their most desperate and savage during this track. There is a tone of sadness and bleakness that is at its most pronounced during this track.

arrival.

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 35

REVIEWS

MOOSE BLOOD, CREEPER & WITH GHOSTS

The Victoria, Swindon – March 8th 2015

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windon has had a rich history of punk and hardcore shows over the last decade or so, time has progressed, people

have moved on and venues have chained but finally again Swindon is slowly getting back on the map. Upcoming punk bands are now stopping off in the Little Victoria and the crowds are simply lapping it up.

Opening up tonight are local emo/pop punk band With Ghosts – This band are growing with every show and with their swooping hooks and catching melodies they entertain the ever filling room and

With Ghosts

receive a warm reception at the end.

Main support tonight are

are now after a recent support run with

I haven’t stopped listening to them

Southampton’s gothic punks Creeper –

Funeral For A Friend as well as sold out

since discovering them. Kent emo punk

this band are getting bigger and bigger

shows at The Old Blue Last in London.

signed to US label No Sleep Records

bringing their dark punk in the style

Creeper’s songs are super catchy and

who also host Balance & Composure,

of AFI and Alkaline Trio. Will Gould,

ending on a deep, dark ballad Novena, I

Funeral For A Friend and No Trigger

lead singer clad in leather and wavey

can’t wait to see these guys again!

with historically being the home for La Dispute, The Wonder Years and Touché

dark hair bounces around the stage and at times perches on the edge, like

Now, the headliners, Moose Blood – I

Amore are in good company… Touring

an onlooking gargoyle of Notre Dame.

have been pretty late to this party

their debut album I’ll Keep You In Mind,

Plenty of people know who these guys

and I don’t really know why because

From Time To Time which has received

36 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

WORDS/PHOTOS OLLY HANK

Moose Blood

great acclaim, Moose Blood take the stage, beanies on and hoods up.

They instantly sucked the crowd into controlled chaos and wrapped round the stage they scream every word back to singer Eddy Brewerton. The Victoria isn’t very big and the roof has beams which is always a challenge to stage dive, but the kids manage and many try to climb onto the beam, its quite a sight which has also been seen in recent weeks at the Gnarwolves show.

Every single Moose Blood song is quality in its delivery with great singalong parts, big choruses and heartfelt lyrics which give the feel of real life occurrences over simple stories to produce good music.

Big things await Moose Blood stating

Creeper

with this years Warped Tour in the US where you will find them on the road between June 19th and August 8th.

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 37

REVIEWS

ABEL GRAY

ONE TO WATCH

­Outside On The Inside Vol. 1 (EP) oung musician and illustrator Abel Gray cuts a strange figure: a shuffling, modest fellow with long hair and the air of a hipster­rocker. But on stage he comes to life and is possessed of a restless, frantic energy that is belied by his usual relaxed calm.

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His music is an off-­centre white­ boy hip hop but it’s far from the aggressive sort of hip hop that you might be expecting or the weak middle c ­ lass white kid stuff that would make one cringe. There’s a hazy, edgy tone to his rap that is just on the right side of coherent and at times his flow feels like it might just fall apart and go off the rails.

There’s a strong touch of “dub” and a bit of Bristol­style Trip Hop here too and his music has an interesting blend of up tempo, fiery stuff and some much more relaxed, jazzy stuff. Red Tide; the stand out track on this first volume of songs, is a big, bold tune built around a pulsating chorus.

The music is tightly wound, tense and at times edgy. The edgy tone of the lyrics build up as there is a fierce chorus. Things take a much more relaxed tone with the much more upbeat Years which is more like an alt­poem set to music. The tone of the vocals and lyrics is more

38 VULTUREHOUND APRIL 2O15

upbeat but also a bit more ‘slurred’ as the idiosyncratic delivery here slides along with a nice tone.

The catchy, dub infused “Better Than” is a fast paced hip hop tune that has a nice gentle beat which has a good weave of Caribbean sounding drum work. The rap in this track is faster, with a bit of braggadocio but it’s far from the chest thumping stuff that might make some people turn away and shake their head.

Indeed Abel Gray’s work never really comes across as aggressive and never gets truly self involved or introspective. There’s a good range of themes and tones across the five tracks. Things take another downbeat tone with the jazzy, slow paced Incense. Blurry, slow and just as chilled out as you like, Incense is a slow relaxed hip hop tune with a slow, dreamy flow to it. The lyrics have the same snap to them as the rest of the tracks.

As an outro; “History” starts with a gloomy, edgy soundscape and lots of effects work. This is a slower, groovy tune. This track comes across as a bit slower, a bit more experimental and is something of a mixed blessing but it does show the range of ideas that the band have up their sleeves.

The lyrics get much edgier, reaching

a bleak, desperate tone. There’s something striking and vulnerable about the lyrics which have a blend of confidence without ever the usual crotch grabbing bravado of main­ stream hip hop.

Abel Gray is early in his career and a follow up volume is on it’s way. If he can fine­tune his work and create a cleaner, leaner sound then a wider audience could be waiting for him.

WORDS: RICHARD HART

LITTLE MAY

THE MAGIC GANG

ustralian three p ­ iece act Little May are preparing for a breakout year in 2015. Their emotive, sensual and well crafted single Hide paves the way for this.

ands at the ready, magic will be heading your way on April 16th. Well, The Magic Gang, but there’s a suggestion of wizardry in their name.

A edgy, emotional piece of music that is simple in design but edgy and dark in execution belies the relative inexperience of the band.

Hide is a simple song, on the surface speaking to themes of love, rejection and jealousy. But there is an icy tinge of dark to the song that really adds to it.

The New Forest four-piece, now based in Brighton, will be releasing their debut single, ‘No Fun’, for your approval, with sights set on bringing ever more credibility to the UK music scene.

Hide (Single)

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The vocals are delicate, soulful and emotive and the music blends folk with an up t­ empo modern indie sound. The end result is slick, well crafted and layered. This is juxtaposed nicely with a sensual video that features young women heading off to the woods for some sort of ritual.

The flashing, dark images of these women dancing around a fire is striking and works nicely to underline the themes of empowerment and the edgy tone in the track itself. Hide is a fine piece of music, catchy, intelligent and haunting.

No Fun (Single Review)

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If the single proves one thing, it’s that this island is not short on talent. Even if the distorted chords don’t stick with you, it’s quite a task to deny the success that has resulted from their efforts. There’s little to dislike which, though usually means it falls in the category of bland, also manages to be easy to love.

Like any band worth the industry’s time, you can see The Magic Gang touring across the Kingdom in March, April and May. Though, if you come back with a tour t-shirt emblazoned with their name, don’t be surprised if people ask you about Harry Potter.

Little May are off and running….

WORDS: RICHARD HART

WORDS: ZOE WILLIAMSON

THE CRIBS

For All My Sisters (Album) espite a promising start provided by the chaotic intro track, ‘Finally Free’, the record doesn’t seem to have that instant impact that might be expected from the group.

Give it time though, it’s a grower.

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‘Mr Wrong’ recaptures that charm that made the band so loveable when tracks like ‘Mens Needs’ were ringing out through nightclubs across the country. In fact, that track seems to be the turning point for the album, following a fairly tame few what could be considered fillers, what comes to follow is a much more encouraging collection.

‘Summer Of Chances’ is another highlight providing an injection of catchy, toe tapping goodness that is all so familiar to the lads’ trademark sound. ‘Pink Snow’ is another impressive piece of work, lulling listeners into a false calmness that is completely shattered by a huge melodic riff, making for a 7+ minute track that is beautifully crafted.

The album is, if you will, a safe album, something that is by all means impressive, yet hints that more boundaries could have been pushed to be made even better.

There are still more than enough single worthy tracks on there though to make it a great listen, even if it doesn’t make a more immediate impression.

WORDS: BRADLEY LENGDEN

WORDS: RICHARD HART

REVIEWS

MISTY MILLER

SPOILS

Moody and richly produced, Misty Miller delivers husky and emotional vocals in her track ‘Best Friend’. The very young singer started her musical career whilst still studying her GCSEs but there’s nothing reedy or weak about her vocals which are forceful and dramatic.

p and coming act Spoils prepare for the release of their first single with an up coming gig in the town where they were once just university students. Recently signed to the Fruit Cult label; Spoils have also completed a short tour recently and are hoping to break out with their debut single.

Best Friend is a sad, angst tinged song that wouldn’t be out of place blaring out of a teenager’s bedroom.

It’s sad and melodramatic lyrics speak of loss and melancholy. A simple build to chorus is buttressed by snarling guitar work and indie­ friendly production work. The strongest feature of the track is the vocals which bely the youth of the singer. The song itself is not especially memorable, another well told but essentially generic song about sadness and loss but there’s enough potential in there for this to be a decent track on a better album.

Shook Nights; released with B Side Los Tiempos, has the same bold, gritty sound that has permeated all of their previous work. However Shook Nights is far more upbeat than the slow, menacing sound of their previous tracks.

Best Friend (Single Review)

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An average track improved by a better than average singer, worth a listen but no need to rush.

Shook Nights (Single Review)

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Shook Nights has a big, crunchy synth beat to start it off before a jazzy, quick tempo emerges and carries through the track. The occasional lick of a guitar riff floats in and out as the big, gritty beats lay across the top. The lyrics are edgy and dark and the vocals, often one of the weaker elements of the bands work, are decent and have a sort of off-kilter sarcastic tone to them.

It’s a catchy tune but far from poppy. Catching the public’s attention is as much a matter of luck as it is talent so Spoils have done their part. The song takes an unusual twist by slowing right down into a low tempo vocal section which serves as an outro. This showcases the lyrics and vocals which is certainly a bold touch.

WORDS: RICHARD HART

ONE TO WATCH The B-Side Los Tiempos is actually the stronger track. Slow, menacing and mournful, it’s a clever track and weaves background static and voices in and out of the track. The lyrics are gritty and dark and the whole track has a sort of minimalistic bleak tone to it.

The edgy, strange tone shifts up a gear into a sinister but faster tempo ending. The vocals also work well in contrast to the darker sound that has an air of bleak desperation to it. This song is stronger perhaps as this is more of the band playing to their strengths. However this track is certainly less catchy and upbeat than Shook Nights.

Spoils are early in their career and the “go home” gig will be a big test of their burgeoning careers. They’ve taken a first step out there, the next step involves a bit of luck and a bit of patience.

WORDS: CHERIE MOORE

ELLE EXXE

Lie To Me (Single Review)

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omparisons to Madonna, Lady Gaga and then Charli XCX, Elle Exxe has some big aspirations.

All three of the cited influences have had solid pop careers and are, in order, a legendary star, a legend in the making and on the cusp of stardom. Elle Exxe, on the other hand, is just starting out. Her first single, “Lie to Me” is a brisk, simple pop tune with a certain amount of snappy, urban charm and her off k ­ ilter vocals are an intriguing juxtaposition to the slick production of her single.

In terms of the other intangibles of a break out career like look, attitude, relationship with her fans and the like, well those remain out of sight for now. Her profile is still fairly low, though she already has a distinct, highly colorful look which stands in contrast to the slightly more gritty sound that she has produced so far.

The song itself has fairly average lyrics about a jilted love and a vague, empowered girl power feel to it but its more about the sound than the lyrical content.

All in all this marks a decent debut and is the start to a long, tricky path. Elle Exxe might want to look at Charli XCX’s playbook for how to make it…..

WORDS: RICHARD HART

OBEY THE BRAVE

Up In Smoke (Single Review)

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here’s something to be said with a song that punches you right in the melon at the first drop, and that something is “We mean business, you’re coming along for the ride, so sit down and shut the f%#k up”. How I appreciate aggressive orders (no, really, I do) – dominate me boys! Chain me to a wall and burn me with those cherries, ‘cos we all know I like it.

of the track was lost because the breakdowns are unexpected and varied – cheekily the band has slipped three quality tracks into the one overarching song. But on reflection to the lyrics, it’s actually a very clever guise to 1. Keep the track interesting and 2. Resonate with the lyrics, of having a toke and allowing your mind to jump between the sanity of responsibility and the insanity of enjoying the buzz.

Fellow listeners, I give you ‘Up in Smoke’ by Canada’s ‘Obey the Brave’, as featured on their 2nd album ‘Salvation’, released September, 2014 (where the heck was I??) via Epitaph Records – a metalcore rampant anthem with deathcore roots, pioneering the NuMetal duplicitous scene with punk-esque riffs, crowd-cast shout outs and mix-em-up breakdowns, and HALLELUJAH a chorus that isn’t a contrast of growls and melodious radio-play ‘crying bullets’ drivel (think The Amity Affliction; Pierce the Veil; Sleeping with Sirens – then throw that notion in the freaking bin!).

The quintet ‘Obey the Brave’ have delivered a very promising track that forges a new place in the metalcore genre – one that hopefully propels this band and gives listeners that long-awaited variety from standout artists mentioned above.

Aggression, hostility plus old-school philosophy is incorporated in the track, reflected in their video clip featuring a montage of live footage and the band ‘just being their badass selves’. For you lucky UK compatriots, ‘Obey the Brave’ are embarking on a headlining tour near you in April.

‘Up in Smoke’ is as catchy as herpes, and has a serious Pennywise kick, that only serves to enhance the gritty metal aggression that drops you on your head into a death metal laconic hiccup. Initially this fusion disturbed me. The fluency

APRIL 2O15 VULTUREHOUND 41

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