Band Aid 30: Cease and Desist

Bob Geldof caring about African children

Last week, the news of a fourth Band Aid project came through. Today, the full list of artists involved was announced and it's a stellar cast of British pop giants, just like previous Band Aids. It's going to be a re-recording of the "classic" Do They Know It's Christmas and it's going to raise money for West Africa and their fight against Ebola. It's going to be plugged a lot and it's going to be up and around that part of the charts when it comes to Christmas number one time, though a release date has not been announced yet.

Before I slag off Bob Geldof and Band Aid (because I will be doing that), I should first mention that Ebola is a terrible disease that has torn apart lives, families and whole communities in West Africa. The fact that such a tragedy is happening primarily in a place which is so under-equipped to deal with a crisis like this is particularly worrying. Caring about the plight of those in close contact with Ebola should have little to do with the risks of us in the Western world catching it. There is plenty of reason to do so already, mainly compassion for your fellow human.

Give what you can to help the Red Cross in their valiant efforts in West Africa

Ok

Anyone who has been at all aware of British popular culture in the last 30 years will be aware of Do They Know It's Christmas. If you managed to dodge that bullet, please watch this video of famous people pulling their best "I care about poor people" faces:


Amazing.

Well where does one start? The hair? The hilariously 80s synths? George Michael? These are all too easy targets.

First of all, the lyrics. These are some of the most patronising lyrics ever written. This song is a prime example of how Western media have created detrimental misconceptions about charity and developing countries. Just take this line for example:

Oh, where nothing ever grows, no rain or rivers flow

Tell me if I'm jumping to conclusions, but the song actually telling us that Africa has no rivers, no rain and is completely barren. Nothing ever grows, no rain or rivers flow. Just to clear this up, it does rain in the vast and geographically diverse continent of Africa, crops are grown (approximately 65% of Africans work in agriculture) and there are rivers in Africa. In fact, the longest one in the world is in Africa. From just this one line, Bob Geldof has created a wholly negative image of Africa: a strange, dystopian wasteland devoid of life. More lines that make this proud, culturally rich continent seem like something out of this painting include:

And it's a world of dread and fear

Where the only water flowing is the bitter sting of tears

And the Christmas bells that ring there

Are the clanging chimes of doom

It's shit like this which makes people view Africa as a basket case, totally uncivilised and definitely inferior to us clever Europeans. This latter, almost colonialist view is emphasised in this line:

Do they know it's Christmastime at all?

Do they know it's Christmastime at all? Well the answer will obviously vary from person to person. Those who don't know it's Christmastime won't know because um, well, they have their own cultures that don't do Christmas like we do. Those who do, well it's because us Europeans brutally colonised them and made them believe in God. So either way, it's kind of patronising to ask this question...

Ok ok ok I get it, it's not meant to be taken literally, it's a metaphor for the fact that Africans in poverty have less reasons to be happy than we do in such a time of celebration. But it is still kinda patronising. It is kind of implying that you can't be happy unless you celebrate this Christian festival, like us clever guys in Europe. You can't be happy unless you buy into this lifestyle, these values and these customs. If you don't, you must be living in some kind of dystopian wasteland where there are no rivers or something...

Some these lines are just god damn stupid. Take this one for example:

And there won't be snow in Africa this Christmastime

Here is a link to a website for a ski resort in Lesotho, Africa.

Well tonight thank God it's them instead of you

I don't have to explain why this is bad do I?

So the song itself takes 53 different countries in Africa and places them all into one, mega-hellhole. Hearing this song a lot in TV, radio or on your music playing device might just make you think no-one in Africa is capable of anything. You'll think this despite the fact that many African countries are developing every day. Having this kind of viewpoint is wrong, especially when you consider the story of Nigeria, who have managed to completely rid themselves of Ebola, showing a great deal of independence doing so.

Ok ok ok I hear you. Yeah sure the song has dodgy lyrics, but it's raised millions and millions of pounds over the years for charity, making it alright...right? Well maybe not. The question of where did all the money go is quite a good one. There have been allegations that money from Band Aid in 1984 went to rebels in Ethiopia, who then used it to buy arms...to kill people. This BBC article (for which Geldof complained, and the BBC ended up apologising) claims that the percentage of money that ended up in rebel hands could've been around 95%. Admittedly, no-one can truly know whether or not this figure is true or not, but it remains the case that a significant amount of money raised by Band Aid went to killing people. It's a common problem faced by all humanitarian groups, but it's not like that was part of the aesthetic of Band Aid. Bob Geldof fills these projects with idealistic rhetoric, that promise so much from the contributions of us clever Europeans. It's never been mentioned that fucking it up and making it worse is a distinct possibility. There are plenty of charity workers and humanitarian groups who are doing good work and trying to make the world a better place, but the good ones know that these problems exist. Band Aid tends to forget that part somewhat...

So that was in 1984. What's changed? Well they did another one in 1989. Then Band Aid 20 happened in 2004 for the famine in Darfur. That brings us to 2014 and Band Aid 30. The artists involved this year so far include most of the most annoying people in British music:

One Direction (utter shit)

Ed Sheeran (no...he's not good...he's just not good...and he's so very boring)

Bastille (maybe even more shit than One Direction)

Foals (just to clear it up, listening to Foals does not make you indie)

Elbow (world's greatest advert/montage music band ever)

Ellie Goulding (meh)

Sam Smith (could it get any more boring?)

Coldplay (yes it could)

Olly Murs (I want to punch his stupid grinning face)

Paloma Faith (no, you're not kooky)

Bono (I think South Park sum this one up best)

So these boring people will be coming together to do a very bad song that has already been done three times. Why on earth would they be doing this? Well it's clearly a self-righteous career move. It's a stamp of approval from mainstream media. It's a chance to show the public at large just how decent they all are because they love charity. 

Ok ok ok I hear you. What's wrong with them loving charity? Can't they do their bit too? Well yeah, of course they can and there's nothing wrong with loving charity. Is doing Band Aid loving charity though? Could Bono, the man so rich that he once paid for a first-class plane ticket for his favourite hat to fly to his gig not be charitable more effectively? Could he and his very rich and powerful friends not feed the world as well the people buying the shit music? Must he also be so loud about how good he is? The tragedy of charity singles like these is that the focus shifts from the people who are selflessly committing themselves to these worthy causes and to these celebrities, who do relatively very little. 

The sad thing is, all of what I've said here has been said before. Chumbawumba famously put out the album Pictures of Starving Children Sell Records as a pretty direct criticism of it. Morrissey also said this about Band Aid:

'I'm not afraid to say that I think Band Aid was diabolical. Or to say that I think Bob Geldof is a nauseating character. Many people find that very unsettling, but I'll say it as loud as anyone wants me to. In the first instance the record itself was absolutely tuneless. One can have great concern for the people of Ethiopia, but it's another thing to inflict daily torture on the people of Great Britain. It was an awful record considering the mass of talent involved. And it wasn't done shyly it was the most self-righteous platform ever in the history of popular music.'

It does feel a bit wrong to openly attack someone who recently and tragically lost a daughter, but I do think Band Aid has done a lot more bad than good. To me, this makes it even more upsetting that in 2014, this is happening again. At face value it's a shit song, making it bad for music. Then the song patronises Africa, having a detrimental effect on how its proud nations and people are perceived in this country. Worst of all, it changes what charity is about. Charity should be about compassion for your fellow human. Charity should be entirely motivated by kindness and goodwill. Charity should be about those who have more than they need giving what they can to those who don't have enough. 

Popstars are great, but you don't always have to buy into their bullshit. If you want to donate money to help out those in West Africa, go straight to the charities we know are doing it right. Don't go through the most self-righteous, nauseating middle-men in history.

Donate to the Red Cross here

Generic End of Year "Best Of" List

Fat Whites: worth it

Winter tends to be quite rubbish in most aspects of life: it gets cold, people start complaining all the time about how cold it is and you end up doing the same, thus contributing to the never-ending cycle of whiny weather-bullcrap. However in the world of music journalism, winter is the time when end of year lists get published, which is always fun. Voting for the NME awards opened today, so I'm going to take that as an invitation for the beginning of the end of year lists. Like much of music journalism as a concept, the end of year list actually makes no sense. It's an attempt to find an absolute answer to a totally subjective question. Obviously not everyone's going to agree on a single "best album of 2014", it's missing the point to think otherwise. That being said, it is quite fun to think about what you liked and more importantly why you liked it. Without further ado, here is what I think:

Best Breakthrough Act
Sleaford Mods
In 2014, the state of this country was most accurately represented in the Sleaford Mods album Divide and Exit. Sleaford Mods are not new. Jason Williamson has been spitting out his poetic, angry rants over Andrew Fearn's minimalistic beats since their first release Wank in 2012. Sleaford Mods are also not young. Both Williamson and Fearn are in their 40s, with Williamson only recently leaving his day job as a benefits officer. Despite these factors, Sleaford Mods managed to put out the most thought-provoking, witty, exciting British release this year. They evoke the sounds of true legends such as Mike Skinner, John Cooper Clarke and Mark E Smith but manage to build on this rather than bow down to it. I personally see it as a bit unfair to make those comparisons, the point of Sleaford Mods is not that they're reviving these characters. They're ripping open a much-needed new arsehole in British music.

Most Criminally Overlooked Release
Winter by Vancouver Sleep Clinic
Vancouver Sleep Clinic is the project of Australian musician Tim Bettinson, who is yet another 17 year old who is more impressive than me. He makes some really really chilled out electronic music with him singing some of the best falsetto I've ever heard over the top. I made this discovery at 12am on the Sunday of Green Man festival, standing groggily in the Far Out tent. Seeing Slint the night before was really intense and I was prepared just to spend the day waiting for Neutral Milk Hotel later, but I ended up wandering into Vancouver Sleep Clinic's set. It turned out to be the perfect way to start the day. Bettinson played a powerful set that bathed my ears in comfort. He covered Hold On, We're Coming Home by Drake and made it a thing of beauty. Winter is the EP that he released this year and it's essentially one of the most chilled out 23 minutes I've had in a while. I honestly can't wait to see what this guy does next.

Most Interesting Music
FKA Twigs
The latest in the line of cool-as-fuck female figures electronica started by Grimes, Twigs put out some of the most original and interesting music this year in LP1. Whilst often described as R&B,  I have to agree with her disagreement to that label. Like she does, I suspect it's a label that she's earned for being mixed race. It's much more interesting than merely R&B. The rhythms of some tracks make you think Massive Attack, other tracks have the time and space of The xx. However, these comparisons shouldn't detract from the originality of FKA Twigs. The music is genuinely like falling through a trap door into another universe which you had no idea existed
HONOURABLE MENTIONS: St Vincent, East India Youth

Best Grooves
Piñata by Madlib and Freddie Gibbs
No question about this one- Madlib is the undisputed king of hip hop production. This album has some of the most satisfying songs to listen to whilst walking down the street. It's impossible to fall into a gentle swagger whilst listening to Scarface. The production is jazzy, interesting and compliments Freddie Gibbs to perfection. Piñata is one of the best albums of the year and definitely has the best grooves.

Best Debut
Annabel Dream Reader by The Wytches
Plenty to choose from this year, from FKA Twigs to Jungle to Kate Tempest to East India Youth to everything else. That being said, it's the psych-tinged, horror-punk, slow grunge stylings of the Wytches which has ended up catching my ears the most. The riffs are huge but not dumb. The singer has a powerful scream but isn't clichéd. Overall, it's a very compelling listen. The songs are intense but full of space. You could mosh to them or you could get stoned to them. It's your choice. Their early afternoon set at Reading was very well attended, considering their relatively low-buzz, new-band status. It'll be worth watching what they do next.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS: FKA Twigs, Kate Tempest, Jungle, East India Youth, Temples

Best Live Performance (that I saw...obviously)
Neutral Milk Hotel - Green Man Festival
This year I've seen over 80 acts perform so I'm going to go ahead and say I've got decent authority to make a call on this one. I managed to see a lot of incredible music this year, which I feel really lucky to have done so. However when choosing a favourite, it gets hard looking any further than Neutral Milk Hotel. Seeing songs like King of Carrot Flowers Parts 1,2 &3, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea and Holland, 1945 performed live was a genuinely magical experience, one that I'll never forget. Their set took me on a journey with emotional ups and downs, swelling and ebbing in intensity with one constant: Jeff Mangum sang with so much passion it was like he was going to blow his brains out at the end of the set. Ever since that performance I've seemed to listen to the whole of In the Aeroplane Over the Sea every day. It's now pretty well lodged as one of my absolute all-time favourites. It's one of the few things in life where in my opinion, hyperbole is impossible.

After they finished, we watched the Green Man burn down, the fireworks light up the sky and then sat around the campfire until sunrise. I met and talked to anyone and everyone, and they turned out to be pretty cool. It's a magical night that I won't forget very soon and will forever be associated with Neutral Milk Hotel.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS: The Brian Jonestown Massacre (v.amazing), Mac Demarco, Fat White Family, Snarky Puppy, The Libertines

Best Album
Salad Days by Mac Demarco
I can't get enough of this album. At any point this year I've thought my Mac Demarco obsession has grown to an unsustainable level, I've found another youtube video where he does something really fucking weird or just put on Passing Out Pieces again and the love has lived on. Salad Days is a brilliantly complete album. It has a theme: being jaded. It's got a sound: twangy guitars with some eerie synths. Boy oh boy does it have a personality. It's filled with tunes with Passing Out Pieces, Let Her Go and Chamber of Reflection being three of the best songs to come out this year. The guitar solo on Goodbye Weekend is a work of genius, carved from the side of the mountain of brilliance that is Mac Demarco. From a completely personal point of view, nothing else this year has come close to being better than this. It's an album that creates and operates in its own world and the more you listen to it, the more you want to be a part of that world.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Are We There by Sharon Van Etten, Burn Your Fire For No Witness by Angel Olsen, Piñata by Madlib and Freddie Gibbs,  Divide and Exit by Sleaford Mods, Overseas by Tonstartssbandht

Best Song
Passing Out Pieces by Mac Demarco
Genius, pure genius. That clav synth, that bass line, those brilliant lyrics. That WEIRD video.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Every Time the Sun Comes Up by Sharon Van Etten, I Am Mark E Smith by Fat White Family, The Beigeness by Kate Tempest

The Year Belongs To...
Jizz Jazz
When I say jizz jazz, I refer to the gang that surrounds Mac Demarco. One of the best things about Mac Demarco is his band. All of them have their own music which this year has been having a decent amount of success. All of it is brilliant. As well as Mac releasing Salad Days, Tonstartssbandht (roommates and now partially part of Mac's band) released Overseas.  Homeshake (Peter Sagar, Mac's old guitarist) put out In the Shower. Walter TV (Mac's part-time other project but mainly his bass player and drummer's band) rereleased Appetite on vinyl for the first time. All of it is great music, but it's their aesthetic that's the best bit. They just have the most fun and it really comes through in the music as well as on stage. 2014 truly belonged to the jizz jazzers.

Walter TV

R.I.P Crystal Castles

This week the news that Alice Glass has left Crystal Castles, breaking up the duo broke. Ending it with a tweet, Glass wrote: "For a multitude of reasons both professional and personal I no longer feel that this is possible within CC"

And so within 140 characters, it came to pass that one of the boldest and most exciting music projects of the late noughties ceased to exist. Whilst it's important not to get too bogged down in hyperbolic "I CAN'T LIVE ANYMORE" stuff , one should take a moment to reflect on the life of Crystal Castles and appreciate what they brought to the table.

To the outsider, Crystal Castles were basically that band who sounded like a video game with some girl screaming. To the initiated, Crystal Castles were a relentless electrical typhoon of excitement. Ethan Kath commanding the storm from his synths with Alice Glass surfing it on her sadistic-punk screams and eyeliner. Crystal Castles created a sound so original that it was hard not to get involved. The music produced across all three albums is utterly captivating.

A short amount of time on Youtube and you'll realise just how upsetting it is that in the foreseeable future, there will be no more Crystal Castles shows. Alice Glass is so full of energy, commanding the stage and your attention by making it impossible to ignore her. Whilst she's still going to be around, it's a shame that we won't see her in the Crystal Castles context again. I would've loved to have seen them whilst they were still around and it's quite sad that the chance to do so has gone. Just look at their Glastonbury 2008 set and feel sorry for yourself because you weren't there...

In their time as Crystal Castles, Alice Glass and Ethan Kath released songs that should now be regarded as anthems for this generation. Tunes like Baptism and Untrust Us are firmly cemented as modern classics. I, II and III contain some of the most innovative, interesting and excellent All good things have to end at some point but it's always sad when they do. Especially when that thing is as twisted, violent but strangely beautiful as Crystal Castles.

The Rock n Roll Saviour Complex

Total Wanker

If you were to judge the current state of music just by reading any issue of NME from the last two years, you'd have a couple of deep rooted and strong misconceptions: the Arctic Monkeys are the only band in the world; Oasis should headline every festival and Alex Turner is not a wanker.

However, the most important mistaken principle that NME and others rely on these days is the idea that rock music is dead and constantly needs to be saved. This crazy, over-exaggerated hype has reached a climax recently with Royal Blood's debut LP getting to number one in the UK charts. The most recent issue of NME has Royal Blood on the cover, being described as being the band "giving British music a kick up the arse". Throughout their feature NME hype them up, calling them a "genuine rock phenomenon", mentioning "amazing results for rock in recent weeks" at Radio 1 and implying that Royal Blood are going to kick off a huge new wave of guitar music.

Slightly Moronic

It all sounds very familiar. Just take a look at Alex Turner's douchey speech at the Brit awards. The whole premise of that stunt was based on creating an image that the Arctic Monkeys are the saviours of the genre. Just read this stupid as fuck article by Sergio Pizzorno from Kasabian: http://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/kasabians-sergio-pizzorno-british-rock-n-roll-needs-to-up-its-game. What's happening here is a capitalisation of the apparent lack of any "rock band" leading the music scene and using it to sell records. This is what I like to call the Rock n Roll Saviour Complex.

This is a confusing ploy used by the likes of NME to sell their magazines to an increasingly middle-aged readership. The reason NME constantly declares rock to be dead is partly because their definition of it is stuck in 1996. In 1996, Britpop arguably turned the clocks back for the rock n roll guitar group in quite a detrimental way. A focus shifted entirely away from creating something new and fresh and straight onto creating something that harked back to a bygone era. This was cool whilst it lasted but when a generation of guitarists grow up thinking that Noel Gallagher is the best role-model they have, the future begins to look bleak...

The truth is though that despite Britpop, decent guitar music never died and has always been around. It's just that it's changed and looks different now. The same rock n roll spirit of punkish rebellion with a youthful focus is alive and has never been better. This is the same spirit that was once owned by bands like the Rolling Stones and the Who. Punk came along and the Sex Pistols and the Clash took it. The Smiths had it, the Stone Roses had it, Nirvana had it, even Oasis and the Arctic Monkeys once had it. The counter-cultural rock n roll spirit never went away, it just changed shape. Saying it did is just lazy.

Fat White Family are awesome

So which guitar acts have this kind of spirit today? Like everything else good, they're in the process of breaking out of the underground as we speak. Until you see Fat White Family live, it's impossible for you to fully understand just how good a state rock n roll is in today. Their pure punk spirit, dressed in scuzzy fuzzy guitars and their sleep deprived appearance means that this Peckham collective are probably the best young band on the planet. Unlike almost every other band today, Fat White Family's music has a point to it. Everything from the cynical band name to frontman Lias Saoudi's frequent comments about how shit something is, Fat White Family scream rebellion. They play by their own rules and abide by no-one else's. Their shows are filled to the brim with raucous energy (and even nudity). They are the embodiment of the rock n roll spirit in 2014.

Mac Demarco with bros

On the other end of the spectrum, but still in the same category is Mac Demarco. Some of the best guitar work of the last few years has come from this Canadian singer. He's written some of the twangiest riffs in recent memory but it's his attitude and personality that separates him from the crowd. Utterly unpretentious and genuine, Mac is a totally unique package. Like the Fat Whites, he is best when live. He's got a reputation for being wild and drunk live but more recently he's toned it down slightly, being able to rely more on the strength of his songwriting. His carefree, footloose aura that doesn't give a crap is much more aligned with the spirit of rock n roll than anything that's declared itself to be this year. Like all good music, Mac speaks for a generation. A generation who really can't be bothered with the bullshit and would rather just wear ironic baseball caps and chill their own way. Judging by the growing cult of Mac Demarco around the world, it's clearly resonating with plenty of people.

Sleaford Mods probably embodies the spirit far better than any guitar group today. They're a rap/shouted word act but there's a ton of rebellion in Jason Williamson's lyrics. They've captured the voice of pissed off, austerity Britain and deserve every bit of praise they get. Divide and Exit has to be a contender for best British album of the year.

This is perhaps the greatest flaw with the Rock n Roll Saviour Complex: it distracts from the acts that embody this timeless, youthful spirit in modern times. The same spirit that bursted out of the hacked off and frustrated solo of You Really Got Me by the Kinks. The spirit that still exists in the screams of Lias Saoudi and Mario Cuomo of The Orwells. In its place, the commercial, soulless "indie" stands in the limelight. Bands who are rock only in name.

Royal Blood's new album is decent, don't get me wrong. Those songs are well crafted with some really good riffs. The sound Mike Kerr gets from his bass guitar is incredible as well. It's decent music, but there's no way it's giving anything a kick up the arse. It's basically really high-quality pub rock, which is good but it just doesn't capture the right vibe. Definitely Maybe caused such a riot when it first came out because Oasis wrote songs about escaping the shit and making it. Liam Gallagher's voice encapsulated that rock n roll spirit perfectly. That's what it's meant to be like. Constantly declaring it dead in order to resurrect it isn't going to do anything other than appeal to stupid people.

Everyone will work it out in time. No-one will be talking about AM or Royal Blood in a few years, but there might be a few decent discussions about Salad Days and Champagne Holocaust. The smoke and mirrors don't last...

I mean, they're pretty good for what they are

Who should win the Mercury Prize?

Well it's this time of year again when 12 more British albums from the last year get picked out and a group of people choose which one is the best. Of course, they aren't the big albums you'd expect, they're more "left-field" choices that you wouldn't have thought of. Previous winners such as Primal Scream and the Arctic Monkeys went on to achieve greater things after winning. Others like Speech Debelle and Gomez have...well...not. It's questionable what exactly winning this prize offers...but nevertheless it still inspires some decent thought and discussion.

So who's going to win?

Damon Albarn is the biggest name in the shortlist. The Blur and Gorrilaz man put out his first solo album this year in what was a decent offering with a couple of niceish moments. However, personally speaking I think this album should never have received a nomination. Whilst it's quite nice, it's far from Damon's best or most interesting music. To justify such a big name for this prize, the music has to be even better, simply due to reputation. In this case it isn't justified. Sorry Damon, I really like your stuff but I don't think this is your year...anyway don't
you object to the Mercury prize? The word albatross springs to mind...can't remember why...

Bombay Bicycle Club are the second biggest name in the shortlist and their album So Long, See You Tomorrow essentially just sounds like classic Bombay Bicycle Club: kinda nice, kinda boring middle of the road music that fails to interest or excite...but nice enough to hear on the radio. Like Damon Albarn, I don't think this should have ever been nominated but this time it's because it's not actually that great an album...I don't think it has any real chance of winning anyway.

I don't particularly think that much of Nick Mulvey either. Similarly to BBC, his music is perfectly pleasant but doesn't particularly excite or move me in any way. I personally wouldn't have nominated him but his presence doesn't really irk me too much.

Two jazz albums have been nominated for the prize, which don't have any chance of winning but it's important to have them in the list for diversity's sake. Gogo Penguin's album v2.0 is a very relaxing, chilled out listen with some really nice rhythms and grooves. Polar Bear's In Each and Every One contains plenty of space within, and is well arranged. Both albums should be given a chance by everyone and hopefully the exposure that comes with being nominated will help both groups. There's no way they'll win though...

Young Fathers put out a pretty alternative hip-hop record out with some really good production on it. The lo-fi R&B sound that they have going on is well worth a listen. A pretty solid nomination that should hopefully get this group more exposure.

Anna Calvi is no stranger to the Mercury shortlist, having been nominated in 2011. Her album One Breath is one of the stronger nominations, with it being a deeply personal affair, filled with interesting arrangements. Sound-wise, Calvi is one the more stand-out nominations. Image-wise, Calvi is easily one of the coolest on this list. A lot of passion and feeling comes across in One Breath, making this album a deserved candidate for the prize. This isn't my personal choice to win it but if it did, I certainly wouldn't object.

East India Youth put out one of the buzziest albums of the last year, causing a bit of a storm amongst the indie music internet community. Total Strife Forever makes an unsurprising appearance in this list and is bound to appear on more "best of year" lists. This is some of the more exciting electronic music from 2014, catching the attention of the likes of Brian Eno. This album contains one of the most exciting listens from Britain, being experimental and with each track sounding new and fresh. This album should be receiving serious consideration for the prize, though William Doyle finds himself amongst fierce competition...

This is who will win

If FKA Twigs doesn't win this I will be very very surprised. Her album LP1 has received rave review upon rave review upon rave review, and frankly, it deserves all of them. LP1 has an incredibly unique sound, resembling no-one else but FKA Twigs. Filled with intricate, layered production, perfectly complimenting her hushed voice, creating a remarkably complete vision. LP1 is eTwo Weeks create their own worlds which you get lost in. Weird, sexy and undeniably futuristic, FKA Twigs is who I predict to win the Mercury prize 2014.
asily the sexiest record on the list. Songs such as

That being said, it isn't impossible that the panel will instead opt for Jungle's self-titled debut. Most of the music press seemed to focus on the whole "mystery" aspect of Jungle when this album came out, failing to fully address just how fresh it sounds. Jungle is a cracking album, jam-packed with grooves. Like FKA Twigs, Jungle have carved out quite a unique sound. Unlike FKA Twigs, Jungle's stuff is really fun to dance to. For this reason, Jungle have become one of the best live bands in Britain today. I thoroughly recommend witnessing their 7-piece live band in the flesh. Any album which can produce a song like Drops should always be regarded as notable.

Royal Blood are probably the most commercially successful group on this list this year, selling 66,000 albums in the first week of its release. It's one of two albums on the shortlist to get to number one (Bombay Bicycle Club being the other). Their year has been very big for the heavy rock duo from Brighton, with their Reading set being one of the most exciting of the weekend. What was intriguing from that set was how large the crowd was and how into their songs everyone got. Considering they had only released three singles at the time, this kind of pulling power is worth noting. Sound-wise, it's pretty trad. heavy rock. One of them bangs the drums really loud whilst the other plays big riffs and sings lyrics that don't really mean anything. There are some really tight songs on this album and considering Mike Kerr gets that sound from a bass guitar, it's definitely worth a mention on any "best of 2014" list. That being said, due to the lack of innovation or freshness, Royal Blood shouldn't win.

This is who should win

My personal favourite on the list has to be Kate Tempest. Everyone Down has the best lyrics on the shortlist by a country mile. Tempest is a really impressive poet and Dan Carey's excellent production compliments perfectly. The contrast between her Reading set and Royal Blood's was huge. Royal Blood filled the NME/Radio One tent, the second biggest stage. Tempest played to a half-empty Alternative stage. Despite this, there was no doubt in mind whose music was the most appropriate for Britain in 2014. It is key to remember that this award is for the best British music, especially when considering someone like Kate Tempest. She isn't someone who plays up her nationality but her record is distinctly British. On the shortlist, nothing is as relevant or as thought-provoking as Everyone Down. I don't think it'll win but in my mind it should.

The best British album this year

One notable omission from the shortlist this year has to be Sleaford Mods and their album Divide and Exit. To quote one YouTube comment, Sleaford Mods have "blown a new arsehole in British music". Divide and Exit is the essential soundtrack to Coalition Britain. The brilliant rant-raps really tell it as it is. This album has a definite conscience and soul. Nothing is a relevant as Sleaford Mods are today. That being said, there is a sense that they're better off without the pressure of winning this award. The duo have expressed on Facebook and Twitter that they feel like they've dodged a bullet too so I'm not too upset at their omission. That being said, if this award is supposed to be for the best British album of the year, they've messed it up by not nominating the best British album of the year.

This year's shortlist is a strong one as Mercury Prize shortlists go. I'm fairly certain FKA Twigs will win but I would love it to be Kate Tempest. If LP1 does win though, it'll be thoroughly deserved.

Your new favourite band: Tonstartssbandht

In a musical world full of pretenders and imitators, true mavericks are hard to come by. However all this really means is that when you find a couple, they stand out from the crowd like no others. Ladies and gentlemen I present to you: Tonstartssbandht.

To some people these guys may be familiar as the fellas who live and sometimes play with Mac Demarco. Guitarist and singer Andy White has even plays in Mac's band occasionally. Always showing great personality in their Mac-related moments (like this brilliant q&a) , it's often far too easy to forget their own music...and what a crime that would be...

Originally hailing from Orlando, Florida, these two brothers (Andy and Edwin) play a kind of music that can frankly only be described as Tonstartssbandht "boogie rock". There's no real other way to do it. Their 2009 album contains a fair amount of lo-fi synth work with highlights being 5ft7 and the incredible Black Country.

However more recently the instrumentation has tended to be Andy on a 12-string guitar with Ed on drums, both singing vocals soaking in reverb. It is with this set-up in a live setting where Tonstartssbandht are best. This year's release Overseas (available for whatever you want on their bandcamp page http://tonstartssbandht.bandcamp.com/album/overseas) is an album that shows this to be the case. Made up entirely of various live recordings from gigs (you guessed it) overseas. In some sense this is a live album but rather than being one concert, it's more of a collage. The opening Alright Medley showcases Andy and Edwin's brilliant musicianship to great effect but also their ability to create such a large expansive sound with just two instruments and voices.

This song has a glorious jig to it. This song is also a great exploration of sound, making it one of the most interesting songs to be released this year. Other tracks show other sides to Tonstartssbandht, for example First Taape, a fantastically gritty lo-fi guitar anthem. Black Country also makes a welcome appearance.

Tonstartssbandht's sound is an exciting melding together of a number of different sounds without sounding like any of them. At times they're atmospheric, at times they shred. They're metal, they're country, they're synth-pop, they're lo-fi garage rock, psychedelic rock and definitely blues but all they really are is boogie rock.

Rather like their contemporary Mac Demarco, Tonstartssbandht have a sound that is difficult to define. Like Mac has "jizz jazz", these guys have whatever they want to call it. Unlike Mac, their music is for creation of new sounds rather the personality and fun. The plethora of styles and variations on show in an album like Overseas is fantastic and makes them even harder to pin down, thus making them more of a maverick group.

For all the experimentation and awesome sounds, Tonstartssbandht are in essence two excellent and unbelievably admirable musicians who work together in a truly exciting way. This is the reason their live recordings are the best. The chemistry in their performances is breathtaking. For any aspiring guitar/drum duos, the video below is a must-watch. Watching musicians creating sparks in such a way is one of the most captivating sights in the world. For some reason there isn't that much of it in today's music, making Tonstartssbandht even more exciting.

Hello Operator @ The Spread Eagle, York, 09/08/14

Whilst garish northern hens and loudmouth stags infiltrate the pubs and clubs of York in swarms, local lads and potential hometown heroes Hello Operator take to the stage at The Spread Eagle. What they're offering is also loud but very, very different. This pub-cum-music venue is today the home of the Oxjam music festival and whilst admittedly small, the crowd is in a festive and excitable mood. One punter leans over and tells me that this band are being sent to Reading and Leeds by BBC York and are reportedly being looked at by CBS after a very buzzy EP came out earlier this year. This would explain the knowing anticipation that was beginning to fill the room.

They played a classic desert rock, sleek-yet-heavy power set, shaking the veins of the crowd. The band utilised all of their biggest riffs (which are very big indeed), swaggering through around half an hour leaning on their EP Blood Stained Bill. Whilst starting slightly quiet and almost nervous looking, frontman Max Dalton gradually began to find his voice as the set went on, beginning to really ooze cool by the end. Musically, Hello Operator are a standard Josh Homme-influenced desert rock quartet. If you think Humbug is the best Arctic Monkeys album or you think Royal Blood are the best band around today, you may enjoy these guys.

This was by all means a very warmly received hometown gig, playing to friendly ears. Halfway through one number, Dalton paused a song to rouse the pub to sing happy birthday for his friend before returning to playing an earth-shattering riff. This gesture was a high point in a set otherwise filled with huge guitar lines and and excellent rhythm section. Despite appearing to be an unassuming lanky white guy with as much rhythm as a coffee table, Robin Elliot is an extremely promising bass player and is one of the group's greatest assets.  

The set highlight had to be their rendition of Wiser Than a Fool from the aforementioned EP. The "oosh...sha-la-la-la" had Kasabian-esque swagger and it's not had to imagine a tune this big occupying a much bigger stage in the near future. I definitely have hopes of one day being able to proudly brag that "I was there in 2014 at The Spread Eagle". With the likes of Royal Blood getting a lot of attention these days, Hello Operator may find things moving quite fast for them if their BBC Introducing stage set goes down well.

 

British Summer Time Festival, Hyde Park, 5th July- Libertines etc

Yeah I know it was a week and a half ago but...


I was there for the Libertines primarily but got there early to make a day of it. After all, there were some other decent bands on and it cost £55...

The Last Internationale 7/10
This was the band that I knew least about before the gig. In fact, I knew nothing about them so it was quite fun to have them introduced to me like this. It was 1.30pm and the Libertines weren't on until 8.45pm so understandably, there was quite a thin crowd for this fairly unheard of band.

Musically, The Last Internationale are a pretty no-nonsense basic rock and roll band. Donning leather, the New York four-piece injected a classic rock into the ears of the small crowd that had gathered. Singer Delila Paz had bags of energy and charisma, oozing passion onto the otherwise fairly apathetic and already drunk audience. I suspect that they would've gotten a much better reception in a smaller, indoor venue full of people who weren't only interested in getting really smashed for the Libertines (more on that later).

Walking off after shouting "free Leonard Peltier", it became clear that The Last Internationale have a clear political message, unlike so many others among their contemporaries. I liked what I heard and I'm looking out for more.

The Enemy 8/10
After a break, we came to the main stage band of the day that I had heard of. It was pretty appropriate to have The Enemy play today, frankly due to how indebted they are to the Libertines. Quite a big crowd gathered for their performance showing that really, scheduling them this early was frankly a bit stupid. Their 45 minute set impressed and demonstrated how they're a band that can touch many people. The first flares of the day were seen during Away From Here and Tom Clarke's chat was good (although he might have said "fair play" a bit too much). The highlight of the set was unsurprisingly the best thing they've ever written: We'll Live And Die In These Towns. The crowd, full of people from towns like Coventry, where The Enemy hail from, to whom the song clearly meant a lot. It was a solid set that really should've gone just before the Libertines. I think they proved themselves to be the perfect warm-up act for the Libs.

Maximo Park 4/10
These guys were shit.

Before their 4pm set I only knew them in name so I was fairly prepared to be open-minded. They drew a sizeable crowd, slightly smaller than The Enemy but respectable. The tunes were fairly middle of the road, not really moving me to feel anything but indifference, the marker of average music. I might've been more sympathetic but frontman Paul Smith just really pissed me off. His hat was stupid. His singing was average. His chat was awful. He had the charisma of a Cbeebies presenter and he really annoyed me. Mind you, plenty of middle-aged white people around me were getting really into it so maybe I have the problem...but it's a problem I can live with.

Spiritualized 8.5/10
By 5.25pm, the crowd were well on their way to getting properly shit-faced for the Libertines. This was reflected by the relatively thing gathering for minimalist, psychedelic drone collective Spiritualized, with everyone opting to join the outrageous queues for beer. The queues at this point were so long that people were actually buying a pint, rejoining the queue, finishing it by the time they reach the front and buying a new one.

It was their loss because Spiritualized were awesome. Mammoth tunes like Come Together and Hey Jane showered down from the sound-system, bathing Hyde Park in glorious psychedelic spiritual goodness. I was personally mesmerised but it struck me as a strange booking for the day. This crowd was donning t-shirts of Arctic Monkeys, Stone Roses and Oasis, not Spacemen 3, Slowdive and MBV. I spotted several parka jackets, many moddish haircuts and even a few Oasis tattoos. No-one here was really in a mood for some actual, good music. This was shown when large portions of the audience started singing along to Aka...What A Life! when it came on over the PA straight after the set.

I bloody loved it though.

The Pogues 7/10
Unsurprisingly, there was a big draw for the celtic-punk legends and everyone was clearly really into it. The Pogues showed up and did their thing and it was great. They were pretty solid and they met expectations, playing all the classics like The Irish Rover and set highlight Dirty Old Town.

The main thing that most people gathered from this performance was just how unhealthy Shane MacGowan looked. He was a one-man anti-drinking advertising, hobbling up to the microphone and pottering off after a few songs to have a little rest. Luckily, his style has always been a sort of drunken mumbling so he still sounded pretty fine. However, he remains a bona fide legend and was greeted with great affection throughout the set, thought it's now affection for an old uncle rather than a punk hero.

The set was briefly halted by someone suffering from cardiac arrest near the front. This was only to be the one of several problems throughout the day for the organisers...

The Libertines 8/10
And finally, the main act!

Ok my opinion of this reunion has changed quite a lot. I've gone from

To "wait...this happened four years ago...haven't they got enough money? The last reunion provided closure and was super emotional. They made a film and everything! Plus they haven't put out any new songs since then and they're being flanked by massive "Barclaycard" logos, they're definitely just doing it for drug money...isn't it totally against the spirit of the Libertines to do a big 60,000 people park show the night before McBusted do one? What the fuck is this? The Libertines weren't built for "legendary veteran" status like the Rolling Stones were...this is going to be shite..."

And then when I got my tickets I went straight back to

All cynicism left when they walked on though and I remembered what was happening: the Libs were back and about to play my favourite songs to me! Opening with a shambolic rendition of Vertigo, the magic began again and it was all going to be ok...

But then halfway through Boys In The Band, the crowd troubles started. In a bizarre turn of events, Peter fucking Doherty became the health and safety officer, getting people to move back. Things started getting really squashed where I was as people started moving about crazily trying to get out. Some people were genuinely distressed and it was a bit shocking to see. This constant stream of people moving about meant I missed The Delaney trying to stay on my feet and not die. They had to stop again soon after and a lot of speculation over whether they would be able to continues arised.

Frankly, it was a total shambles. By this point there was a mad mixture of distressed girls trying to get out, butch men being nobs and really really drunk people who just weren't helping the situation at all. Massive fights were seconds away from breaking out at times and tensions were high. At times there were whiffs of Hillsborough and it was not comfortable. It was hard to breathe and hard to move at all. Staying upright became the primary occupation of the mind and it was a real struggle.

In 2014, this sort of thing should not be happening. 

I 100% do not buy the argument that these things are caused by the crowd. The BST festival organisers should hang their heads in shame at just how much they fucked this up and be really grateful that it didn't go worse as it was really fucking close to being a total catastrophe. It could have been far more than 38 injuries and 8 hospitalisations. 

In 2014, this should not be happening. 

Mind you, the Libertines played a blinder.

As a band on that stage, the Libertines reminded everyone why they had paid £55 to come and see them on an overcast/drizzly afternoon. Once the initial crowd troubles finished, they relaxed and played all the favourites, including a rendition of the Babyshambles song Albion, with Carl symbolically singing along. After a third interruption caused by naked people climbing the delay tower and a raucous I Get Along (a true anthem), Peter and Carl closed by reciting Suicide In The Trenches by Siegried Sassoon. It's long been a Libertines staple but in the centenary year of WWI, it was a really nice touch. Really nice.

All in all it was a great gig. Shame about how badly it was organised though...a real shame. Especially as that's the only thing the media ended up reporting. Hardly anything was said about how great they played. I didn't really learn much new but I had fun.

The Brian Jonestown Massacre @ Roundhouse, London 01/07/14

For a band who once seemed to be forever doomed to just being in the "interesting story" category for hipsters and pitchfork, selling out the Roundhouse in London was always going to be a big deal. At the very least, it should be noted just how far Anton Newcombe and psychedelic circus have come. They are no longer playing at small bars to a handful of people, but playing for crowds well into quadruple figures. And they aren't just playing for them, they are truly mesmerising them.

Ok I was always going to love it. As you can see from my previous post about the BJM (over here http://tinyurl.com/p2ew56u) as well as the fact that this blog is named after one of their songs, I'm a dedicated follower. I had been waiting for this gig for a long, long time. Frankly I would wait twice a long just to see them play like that again. Greeted with a hero's welcome from a capacity crowd, the band launched straight into the showering Whoever You Are and the awesome Who? setting a mighty precedent for the rest of the night. The setlist was a healthy mix of old and new with the BJM unafraid to drop What You Isn't into the show early. In general, all the new songs from Revelation got really good reactions, a good indicator of how well the album has been received. Everyone already knew every word to Goodbye (Butterfly) and Food For Clouds, showing that they're not just here for retro value.

In fact, my personal highlight of the set came from Revelation. Frontman of Les Big Bird and featured vocalist in the album Joakim Åhlund was welcomed onto the stage for Vad Hände Med Dem. Anton informed the crowd that this could've been the final performance of this song in Swedish. I really hope for future audiences that it wasn't because it was an absolute belter of a live tune. Joakim sings it so well, commanding the stage with a mean swagger, plus it's got an incredible driving groove. For me it's this song that proves the BJM still keep on putting out incredible music to this day. It was ready-made for the 21st century psychedelic mosh pit, and what a mosh it was.

The crowd at the Roundhouse on this Tuesday night key to the occasion. It was an eclectic mix of young hipster types donning peruvian ponchos and a few middle-aged folks who'd been with Anton since the beginning. All of them had one thing in common: they were members of the greatest musical cult of all time. There were some real characters from the wide-eyed, crowd-surfing crazy girl waving glo-sticks to the prick with the feather in his fedora who stood in front of me for portions of the gig. This made for one of the craziest and coolest mosh pits to grace the Roundhouse in a while. For someone like me who had become obsessed with the music without seeing them live, it was hard for me to imagine just how mental the crowd could get. It turns out that Not If You Were The Last Dandy On Earth is the greatest lose-your-shit song ever composed. It was at that point that my friend and I were swamped in and separated, also making it the point that I lost all my inhibitions and temporarily reached nirvana.

For me, this gig was monumental. It was a total shifting of the goalposts. Until Tuesday night I honestly thought that I was the only person in the world who was properly into them. After all, I don't really know many other BJM fans personally. To be there in a room of 1,700 people, all singing every single word of The Devil May Care (Mom & Dad Don't), all of them having gone on a similar journey as me, discovering the band one day and becoming properly obsessed. To be surrounded by people demanded songs like BSA and Miss June 75 was incredible. I never knew that anyone else knew about them! Personally, it was a breath-taking experience. No-one would ever be able to achieve the same feeling with a mainstream, commercially successful band, there's nothing as special about it.

Frankly, they destroyed it. They absolutely tore down the Roundhouse with their huge sound and unbelievable back-catalogue. They commanded the crowd, even without playing arguably their biggest song Straight Up And Straight Down, known for Boardwalk Empire fame. If you ever get the chance to see this band, grab it with both hands and never let go because it was just awesome.

Glastonbury 2014: View From The Sofa/Internet- Kasabian

Another year, another Glastonbury I couldn't go to...still, there's always next year! I'm going to two other festivals this year so maybe I shouldn't complain. Plus it's been quite fun following the action on TV and the internet. Thank god for the BBC! Naturally I had a lot of excitement for some things and other things surprised me.

I'm writing this whilst watching Kasabian close the festival with their headline slot on the Pyramid stage so I may as well start with them. Essentially Kasabian are built for this kind of show. Headlining Glastonbury is a really big gig both symbolically and physically. Symbolically, this slot is coated in a huge amount of "literally the biggest thing ever" and "historic landmark" rhetoric by the British music press. You don't have to go much further than any issue of NME in the last 5 years to see proof of this. Kasabian also drown themselves in this kind of talk daily. Once again, you don't have to go much further than any issue of NME in the last 5 years to see proof of this. This rhetoric has been amplified farcically this year with the release of 48:13. Serge Pizzorno has been coming out with endless "modern rock is rubbish" statements, evidenced right here http://tinyurl.com/ntdl9pq. Physically, this is a huge gig watched by thousands of people at the Pyramid stage, potentially millions at home and millions retrospectively on iplayer and youtube. Physically, everything about Kasabian is huge. Their ego, their swagger and most importantly, their tunes. Tracks like Underdog, Club Foot and biggest of all Fire always have the power to make me want to jump about stupidly. These are testosterone-heavy, power anthems that often frequent sports montages and adverts. They're perfect crowd pleasers.

Intellectually these are not challenging songs at all and it's really easy to sneer at their lad-rock, Oasisish macho aesthetic. The stuff that Tom Meighan comes out with is sometimes hilariously stupid and the Spinal Tap comparisons from Billy Bragg are pretty astute http://tinyurl.com/kudsphd. The lyrics from 48:13 are also atrocious, but anyway that's really not the point. The beauty of Kasabian is how they embrace the more ridiculous nature of rock n roll and channel that into helping people lose their shit in a field in the British countryside. Needless to say, this was a pretty safe headline booking. It's quite impressive when a band gives me a slight adrenaline rush, even though I'm watching from the sofa. The previously mentioned big tunes went down a treat, as expected. Newer songs go down alright but their best stuff really comes out of West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum etc. Mind you, I did enjoy the rave beats of Treat and the crashing Bumblebeee quite a lot. Other highlights include the Black Skinheads reference before Shoot The Runner and Tom Meighan getting the crowd to sing happy birthday for their roadie (which was a bit like when Alex Turner did that with his mum last year, but a lot more macho). Oh and Noel Fielding's appearance for Vlad The Impaler was just awesome. Actually the whole of Vlad The Impaler was awesome. It just summed up what Kasabian are about. Noel being there made it fun and the chorus managed to make thousands of people lose their shit. 

A couple of things were slightly annoying in my opinion. I'm sorry but it's going to have to take a lot of convincing to get me to like eez-eh whilst sober. It's just a bit too PS2-rally-game-music for me. Meighan also said "GLAS-TON-BU-REEE" far too much. These are minor points though and both in some ways add massively to the live experience.  Closing with Praise You and LSF ended the festival perfectly, just as predicted. They're not a band who disappoint much when it comes to their live show. When they were booked to headline Sunday night, it was with the knowledge that they wouldn't fail. This was a slot that meant a lot to the band and that was visible throughout the set. I would say that it was a career-defining performance if it weren't for the fact that they'll probably say it in NME next week.

My Relationship With: The Brian Jonestown Massacre

In exactly one week (at time of writing) I will be going to the Roundhouse in Camden to see the Brian Jonestown Massacre. If you're familiar with BJM great, if not then I think you ought to be. They're a psychedelic rock collective with roots in shoegaze, originally from San Francisco. The band has had over 40 different members in its history but at its centre has always been Anton Newcombe, the driving force behind the Brian Jonestown Massacre. He's almost always been joined by tambourine player and "spokesman for the revolution" and at first was, and now is joined by Matt Hollywood. Rick Maymi was also a founding member and is back touring with the band. 

They have always been branded as being chaotic, self-destructive and known for breaking out into fights on stage. It's a reputation that has been perpetuated and supported by the film DIG!, which is how most people will know the band. The film essentially follows the fortunes of the Dandy Warhols and the BJM, examining their descent into becoming "enemies". I found it to be a BRILLIANT film, possibly ranking as the best rock doc ever made. I've seen it many times and have always found it entertaining and compelling- it's a wonderful piece of storytelling. Despite this, I've always suspected the presentation of both bands to be quite unfair. Both bands have come out repeatedly saying how the film is a gross misrepresentation of their relationship and the nature of both groups. I'm unsure of whether the BJM are that self-destructive or ever were. The film portrayed Anton to be a lunatic, violent drug-addict who was bound to either commit suicide or OD as soon as the film was over. There was an implicit focus on these aspects of the band, forging a story where perhaps there wasn't. There were multiple exaggerated claims of Anton's genius but those were heavily outweighed by an overwhelming focus on how his crazy drugged-up antics were destroying his potential. It's because of the film that they've always carried this stigma whenever they've cropped up in mainstream culture and frankly, it draws away from their music. Thankfully since Anton got clean a few years ago it's a reputation that's slowly beginning to fade and the music is becoming the central focus. In my mind, it always has been.

This is mainly because I discovered this band from my friend's blog (http://working-titlee.blogspot.co.uk/). I wasn't really reading it properly and then I noticed that he had listed something called Tepid Peppermint Wonderland- A Retrospective by a band called the Brian Jonestown Massacre as his favourite record. All I was thinking was "wow that's a crazy name" and started listening. I had no other knowledge of the band. I had no idea where they were from, who they were, if they were old, if they were new, if it was one guy, if it was 20. At the time, I didn't even know Brian Jones and what the Jonestown Massacre was. I really had no idea. It just looked and sounded like the coolest thing ever. They were just a band with albums that were called Their Satanic Majesties Second Request. Their sound appealed to me in a way no other sound had before. It felt new and adventurous whilst feeling comfortable and trusted. It sounded experimental and psychedelic enough but still retained a strong sense of melody. It sounded so 60s but I couldn't really match it to anything- it wasn't like the Beatles, Hendrix, Joplin, the Who, the Byrds or anyone like that. It sounded a bit like the Rolling Stones but only the less well known Stones songs, certainly not the famous stuff like Satisfaction or Gimme Shelter. For me at the time, this band sounded so refreshing. Whilst becoming fairly hyperbolic, I'd say that the Brian Jonestown Massacre changed the way I listened to music and over time has influenced my day-to-day view of the world- the mark of a great band.   

It was only after I was reading NME one day that I discovered DIG! and that the BJM feature in what they considered to be a cult classic. As previously mentioned, I loved the film although mainly because the BJM and their music were featured. It's definitely a weird presentation of the band. The ending of the film seems to give the impression that they split up and OD'd after the release of Strung Out In Heaven. Considering that they have released 6 full-length studio albums since then, one suspects that a degree of exaggeration has taken place.

Since then, an obsession with the band has occupied a fair slice my brain. They're always a band I come back to, no matter what I've been listening to that day or week. Anton has a knack of writing songs that sound so simple yet so genius, perhaps similar to Noel Gallagher in 1994. For any budding guitarists out there, learning Anton's songs is the easiest way to learn your pentatonic scales. 

The fantastic thing about the BJM right now is the size of their back catalog. There's no other way to say it: they are prolific. This year they released their 14th studio album and like almost all their others, it's almost at double LP length. They have soooooo many songs. There is just so much to explore one you're into them. I'd say I'm a pretty big fan of them but I still discover new BJM songs every week. It's one of the main reasons they're currently the most represented band on my Spotify playlist: they just have more songs than anyone else. My favourite BJM albums are prone to changing, but right now Take It From The Man! is a big favourite. It's home to the Anton's biggest riffs, the most recognisable probably being Straight Up and Straight Down, perhaps best known these days for being the theme tune to Boardwalk Empire (amazing show by the way). A good entry-level Jonestown record would be Give It Back! which is not only one their shorter albums, but has some nice riffs and tunes. Tracks like Servo and Whoever You Are have become staples of their live shows. This year's Revelation is also pretty good. I wouldn't say it's their best album but it's a good representation of the band right now, containing their eclectic mix on influences, drawing from shoegaze, psychedelia, folk, post-punk, electro etc. Tracks like Goodbye (Butterfly) and Vas Hände Med Dem? rank right up there as some of their best work in my opinion. Since Anton got clean, his vocal performance has definitely improved. 

In terms of ageing, it's a band that seems to have ended up coping quite well. They've had their difficult times and ended up being too old to die young. Despite this, they now have quite a substantial cult following and are able to tour the world regularly. Not only are they touring the world, but they're doing it well. The gig I'm going to next week is at Roundhouse, a substantial venue that fits about 1,700 people. Not only are they playing there, but they've sold it out weeks in advance. This is made more impressive when you realise that they AREN'T backed by any big label or sponsor. They've achieved all of this through hard work and toil, without sacrificing their independent principles. Not only did have they done this without receiving much music industry support, they've outlived many who have received more support than them. They've outlived many who were more commercially successful than them. The BJM deserve anything good that they get right now because they have earned it. 

They're a band who occupy their own space on the spectrum. Musically genius, an excellent example for any aspiring bands to follow- the complete opposite of what DIG! says. No-one is like them. They've never been properly recognised by mainstream culture, never been given proper time by music journalists and have never really sold any records, but they have carved out a place for themselves in music history. My life wouldn't be totally different without them, but I'd definitely be living it differently. I cannot wait for next week.

So thanks for your blog Peter, they're an awesome band.

 

Album Review: Breakfast by Teleman

7.6
Best tracks: Cristina, 23 Floors Up

Since January 2013 with the release of the single Cristina I've been excited by the prospect of a full-length studio effort from Teleman. For me Cristina is right up there as one of the best singles of 2013. At the time, the chilling organ intro, followed by Thomas Sanders' naked, vulnerable vocals knocked me sideways. The song builds up slowly with muted guitars, drums and synths creating a mesmerising sound. From that moment on, I was a fan of Teleman, hungry for more...

The rest of the album is pretty good, making a pleasant listen. The general sound of the album continues the vibe of Cristina, being chilled and synthy. It's a very polished sound which producer and ex-Suede man Bernard Butler should get credit for. Working alongside the band, he's managed to take 10 well-written songs and turn them into haunting, synthy slow-dance tracks.

The band's origins lie in the ashes of the band Pete and the Pirates, however the sound is radically different, the only similar trait being the voice of Thomas Sanders. In my opinion there is no doubting that this set-up suits his voice far better than the trad-indie rock stylings of Pete and the Pirates. The more stripped-back, electronic instrumentation suits the vulnerability that his voice exudes. I'm a big fan of his performance on this album.

Despite all of this, my only worry is that in places the album begins to sound slightly samey. The polite guitar and synth build-up formula gets slightly tired by the time you get to Lady Low, depending on what mood you listen to it.

However, this still remains a strong debut from Teleman. Tracks like Cristina and 23 Floors Up are stupendous efforts. Like Cristina did to me when it first came out early last year, it's made me intrigued as to what's coming next

Album Review: Phantom Pop Star by Hedgehog

8.5

Best tracks: Star Shine, DDDDDDreaMMMMMM, She Is Under The Moon

Listen and buy here: https://hedgehogrock.bandcamp.com/

Phantom Pop Star is Hedgehog's 6th studio album and it sees the Beijing based "noise-pop trio from another world" undergo a transformation from their most recent energy-filled indie rock effort Sun Fun Gun to a much more expansive sound. Phantom Pop Star sees the group venture slightly into the world of psychedelia with guitars sounds that are much more shoegazey and dreamy than previous Hedgehog songs. 

This effort at something more psychedelic and expansive manages not to be half-baked or gimmicky, aided by some excellent production from the band. This album is one of Hedgehog's most thoughtfully produced records with nothing feeling out of place. An example of this would be the inclusion of a cello (played by Yang Zai) in three of the tracks that build on the songs subtly. The guitar sounds in this album should be noted, with guitarist and singer ZO creating some really spacey and instantly relaxing textures. Some guitar sounds reminded me a bit of early Modest Mouse tracks like Dramamine.

Bass player Fun and drummer Atom have changed roles slightly in this album, slowing down their usually driving and energetic playing to something more laid-back. This isn't to say that they're lazy, just more chilled. There's a very cool Vitamin C-esque shuffle on She Is Under The Moon. Their tight but laid-back rhythms complement ZO's guitar textures perfectly, creating a succession of relaxing songs with plenty of space within. Sweeping phasers and buckets of reverb coat the album, swelling and ebbing, building up and breaking down. Nothing is rushed but nothing is slow. 

This can be considered to be one of Hedgehog's best works to date. Their venture into a much more dreamy sound is a good move and has paid off with one of the best albums to come out of China this year. It also confirms their now legendary status within the Chinese indie scene, a class act.