Manic Street Preachers have confirmed they are to perform on Strictly Come Dancing on December the 5th stating via their twitter "Unbelievable – we have got Strictly Come Dancing on Sunday, mass communication indeed. What to wear?"
The girls are upfront with their influences, and why shouldn’t they be? With obvious record collection appearances from X-Ray Spex, Le Tigre, and M.I.A. Georgie Nettell and Sian Dorrer clearly had one hand fingering through ‘Female Fronted’ whilst the other did a good impression of Thing over in Rap/Hip Hop. Not a million miles away from recent releases by and Sleighbells and Trash Kit, their sound is the meeting point of New York synth-rap and London DIY-indie.
Don’t Forget It is the musical equivalent of that slightly embarrassing middle class student fees protest. A bit of naïve moaning about the state of the country made more interesting by some decent beat(ing)s. Fix Up Look Sharp inspired You Keep The Beats, and Poly Styrene vocal impression Body Story are solid tracks with simplistic vocals layered over even simpler drums and ‘check out this amazing keyboard I got in the charity shop’ keys. Dorrer’s true Brit-girl vocals shout at you matter of factly in Man vs. Machine, and feel strongly reminiscent of Elastica’s Justine Frischmann. Real Girl is the track you’ll keep coming back to. It’s a more authentic version of the fashion-rap they try to produce and sits closer to Fannypack than the Uffie shit they veer into at times. At this point I’d like to commend them for their braveness in including Beatles cover Day Tripper. I don’t even really like listening to The Beatles sing songs by The Beatles, but it’s a softer more dreamy side to the band that otherwise is only really seen on final track, Attractive, which is akin to that single soft and sweet Bikini Kill track, Outta Me.
The thing you have to ask yourself when considering whether Plug will be a ‘free download of the single’ or actual ‘bother to drag your lazy arse to Rough Trade’ kind of album is, Do you have any faith in the London DIY scene? This release could easily be filed away under ‘simplistic drums meets spacey keys brought together by fringed hipsters’. Or, as another important step towards creating a fresh wave of fem-fronted bands that aren’t (albeit successfully) ripping off The Shagri La’s. If they can make a full album of the hints toward social commentary and lyrical honesty shown sporadically here, their next release could be great. I might even find myself pulling a disappointed face when I hungrily sit down to review it, only to be greeted by half an hour of Luke Vibert sampling old ladies over some re-hashed drum & bass.
Words : Maya-Rose Boustany
As if the lineup for ATP's new two day festival wasn't already terrifically tantalising already, we can now confirm Grinderman as special guests on Sunday the 24th.
Here's a catchy little treat for all of you readers out there in the form of disco oddballs Cubic Zirconia.
I first heard of Dan Mangan a few months back when “Road Regrets” was getting some serious airplay on American radio stations and had infiltrated the blogging community. I instantly knew this wasn’t a one off hit and that I needed the check out his back catalogue. Days later at a Horse Feathers gig, fellow Canadian Adam Smith of The Mountains and Trees was unashamedly telling all between songs how this record inspired him to get his guitar out and get creative.
Nice, Nice, Very Nice is the second album from Dan Mangan, following his 2007 debut Postcards & Daydreaming. From start to finish, this album covers all the bases that will appeal to a wide audience – there is something for everyone. I’m going to be bold here and state listening to this album was probably one of the best 45 minutes of 2010 for me.
Opening with the aforementioned “Road Regrets”, a strum of the acoustic guitar slowly builds us up, gently accompanied with first the electric guitar and followed with the bass - a crash of the drums sets us upon our path of Dan’s honest and sincere collection of personal tales and poetic observations.
The title “Nice, Nice, Very Nice” is a short poem by Kurt Vonnegut, which might explain how Dan’s well developed prose has come to be that of a certified wordsmith. On the track “Tina’s Glorious Comeback”, the lines “Sold my soul the devil / For nice penmanship / And now I write real pretty / But I’m starting to regret it” implies Dan’s accomplished use of the English language has perhaps been at the sacrifice at more important aspects of life, such as relationships (“We’re not us / We’re not us”) which in turn only aids to the conviction of his tales.
The album will pull on your heartstrings from time to time. The track “Basket”, for example, is an ode to his late grandfather which almost reduced my girlfriend to tears, with it’s sensitive use of strings and Dan’s strong yet fragile voice recalling his Grandfather’s descent into old age.
I was fortunate enough to see Dan Mangan about a month ago at the Hoxton Bar & Grill where he really bought this album to life. It’s Dan’s live performance that reinforces his charisma and likeability – Dan had almost the entire room singing along to “Robot’s” signature line “Robot’s need love too / They want to be loved by you” for an extended chorus that bought a warm smile to everyone in the room.
I strongly urge everyone to listen to Dan’s accomplishment that is Nice, Nice, Very Nice. The varied and often subtle use of many different instruments on this record is an achievement in itself, as is Dan’s role as a poignant and touching protagonist. I for one thoroughly look forward to his next release, which in my opinion couldn’t come soon enough.
Words: Neil Phillips
Monday night’s are usually a bit tame aren’t they? It’s the start of yet another week, you’ve got another four days ahead of you at work before you can let loose… If however, like myself, you have recently been made redundant, it’s a perfect opportunity to go see the powerhouse of punk rock Les Savy Fav up close and personal.
I arrived early to Camden’s Electric Ballroom just as Cloud Nothings began they’re blisteringly energetic and upbeat set to a fairly deserted room. As Dylan Baldi astutely pointed out “it’s too early, in America we’re only eating our dinner right about now”. I’m not entirely sure how gig timings work in America. In the distant hazy year of 2001 I attempted to go see Mark Everett’s “reclusive remix wizard” alter ego MC Honky in Brooklyn. However, on day two of my visit to New York, I managed to have the world’s longest power nap in my hotel and awoke approximately 6 or 7 hours after the gig had finished. I therefore am probably not the best person to comment on transglobal gig timings. But I disgress..
To be fair, the room was verging on empty, but hey, if you weren’t there it was your loss. I recently reviewed the Cloud Nothings release Turning On, and I have to say that upon hearing it live, it didn’t quite have that same Sparklehorse / Mark Linkous lo-fi sound I associated with the record – but was certainly a thrashing, raw experience that left me wanting more. My personal highlight would have to be one of the first tracks I heard from the up and coming lo-fi bedroom rockers, “Cool Kid”.
Next up on the bill was a splash of the UK’s young blood, Leeds’ Sky Larkin. The trio nailed a tight set to a room that was slowly beginning to fill out. I have to admit, I was going in a bit cold with Sky Larkin, as “Molten” was the only track I was particularly familiar with beforehand – and disappointingly I didn’t get to hear it live. I did however get introduced to many more songs which I will make an active effort to follow up. Katie Harkin’s vocals were the right balance of nonchalantly cool and appropriately energetic, when they needed to be. She darted between the guitar and the keyboard, however I was particularly enthused by Nestor Matthews on drums – it’s refreshing to see someone so into their performance they look like they might cry with joy. Beautiful.
Sky Larkin finished their performance by announcing they had, for the first time whilst touring with Les Savy Fav, their own dressing room. There was a sense of conflict in Harkin’s voice as she announced she had no idea what Tim Harrington’s outfit/costume would involve tonight. All was to be revealed (thankfully not literally).
Ten minutes before Les Savy Fav blew my eardrums into another atmosphere entirely, Tim Harrington came out dressed in blue pin stripe pajamas with a poncho over his head, opened a collapsible table up, and performed what I can only describe as a mix of live art installation / bizarre pre-gig antics. Looking like a more disheveled version of Will Oldham at bedtime and armed with a tub of Waitrose sponsored flapjacks, Tim pretended to be asleep for the audience, occasionally throwing savory treats into the crowd in between impersonating (what I interpret as) a dog dreaming about chasing cats and having the obligatory mid-sleep nipple scratch.
Tim soon got up as the other band members adorned the stage and in no time at all lunged himself into the crowd for what has to be one of the most fun gigs I’ve ever been to. I can honestly say Les Savy Fav have changed my perspective on the live gig experience entirely.
Tim Harrington’s relentless love for the crowd and his constant exploration of the room made for an interesting night – throwing himself over stairwells and balconies into the crowd, climbing the stage equipment and dangling upside down, pouring one punter’s drink all over him, parting the audience like Moses and the sea for what can only be described as funky strut back to the stage...
At one point, being the nicotine fiend I am, I sneaked outside for a quick cigarette. Myself and a couple of others were surprised to see down the adjoining alley Tim had burst threw a back door into the smoker’s alley, sweating like some crazed madman with the microphone and was singing to an audience of three. By the time I had got my camera out of my pocket he had been ushered back inside to a crowd who couldn’t get enough of the tour-de-force that is Les Savy Fav.
I could go on for a long time about the charismatic Tim Harrington and his unusual stage presence, but it wouldn’t be fair to the rest of the band and the fact that they tore it up onstage just as much as Tim did everywhere else. As Tim said – “this is a concert, and we’re gonna smoke it to ashes”. They certainly did. Long live Les Savy Fav.
Words: Neil Phillips
Photo: Tim Boddy
Napoleon IIIrd - Rough Music from Brainlove on Vimeo.
Oceansize's discography has particular emotional resonance for me, corresponding as it did with certain milestones of my adolescence. Effloresce, for example, soundtracked my GCSEs, while Everyone Into Position alleviated a break-up, and Frames accompanied the beginning of university. Despite the fact that I'd held the band in such high regard for the best part of a decade, last Saturday was to the be the first time I would actually see them play live. In a way, I was almost nervous: even though their performances invariably receive glowing reviews, and I had enlisted the best possible company for the occasion (my brother; also a loyal fan), I was somehow anxious that, should every aspect of the experience not be perfect, then that rare combination of nostalgia, awe and inspiration that their songs can evoke in me would most certainly be shattered.
The Publishers Club will be teaming up with the Inkygoodness Live Draw tour to put on a live screen-printing and networking event for illustrators and artists in the Manchester area.
