By the end of 2011, things were looking bleak for Sonic Youth. Not that they haven’t released some awesome music in thirty years of being together, but the news that Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore are splitting up has thrown the band’s future into doubt.
However, depressing as the thought that they may no longer record together is, the band’s members have been responsible for some mighty fine other projects over the years. Gordon as part of Free Kitten, Moore solo and in collaboration with others (to say nothing of running his fine Ecstatic Peace label)…and now the news that guitarist Lee Ranaldo is due to release his first ‘proper, song-orientated album’ (quote from the PR I was sent, quotation marks my own) on March 26 through Matador.
It’s called Between The Times And The Tides and features cameos from the Youth’s Steve Shelley and one-time Youth member Jim O’Rourke, and the original drummer Bob Bert. Not only that but Wilco’s Nels Cline features on every track on lead guitar. For indie fans of a certain vintage, as well as people who really know their stuff, this is something to really get excited about.
The first track to do the rounds is called ‘Off The Wall’ (no, not the Michael Jackson song – but if you haven’t ever heard ver Youth’s take on songs like Crime’s ‘Hotwire My Heart,’ The Carpenters’ ‘Yesterday Once More’ and Madonna’s ‘Into The Groove’ you are really depriving yourself unnecessarily), and it’s rather fine…
Feeling a bit sorry for myself here at 17 Seconds Towers this evening.
Myself and Mrs. 17 Seconds have had to take the hard and difficult step to rehouse one of our cats. Not good.
This has popped into the inbox, and it hits the spot rather nicely. Performed by Yacht, and released by DFA. The DFA label can do precious little wrong in my eyes…This track originally appeared on last year’s Shangri-La album.
Now, these aren’t mp3s but I thought they might appeal…
Back in 1993, Smashing Pumpkins’ Siamese Dream was my favourite album of the year. The Big Pink recorded a version of it for the BBC just before Christmas which you can stream here:
I have been slowly won round to Lana Del Rey. Not because of the fact that I had a problem with the way that she looks, but more to do with the excessive hype, and yet ‘Video Games’ and other tracks have won me round. This is a version by a band called Silver Swans, who do an excellent take on it.
Over the last few days, I have become increasingly obsessed with Belgian-Australian artist Gotye (pronounced like Gautier) whose track ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ looks like it might be a huge hit. I hope so. This is a version by a band called Walk Off The Earth.
There’s numerous covers of songs by Frightened Rabbit around, but this is a version of a Frabbits song, as perfomred by John Stotz. The song is originally from their second album The Midnight Organ Fight.
Another track from my inbox, this is a Steely Dan song, performed by The Darcys:
Back in 2009, the duo Robbie Furze and Milo Cordell released their debut album A Brief History Of Love. Though the band had made an album which owed much to the commercially successful end of electronic-cum-goth (think Mary Chain circa 1992, Depeche Mode et al), they did at one stage suggest that this album would have more of a Hip-Hop feel.
They did retract that statement, though, and whilst it would be doing the band a diservice to say that this record was ‘more of the same’ it it’s not a huge departure from their first record as to alienate those who fell in love with their sound. The two opening tracks ‘Stay Gold’ and ‘Hit the Ground (‘Superman’) set an early highpoint, and have already been single releases at the end of last year. Both suck you in quite quickly, and the latter uses a sample of Laurie Anderson’s hit ‘O Superman’ (with its’ synthesised ‘ah ah ahs’).
Whilst the album does play safe on occasions – with the result that your mind tends to wonder just slightly – there are also some other strong tracks like ’13’ and the closing, beautifully brooding ’77’ that make this album worth investigating beyond the singles.
Neil Cowley Trio – ‘The Face Of Mount Molehill’ (Naim Audio)
If the name Neil Cowley doesn’t ring a bell, some of the artists he’s worked with in the last year alone might ring a bell. Like the fact he plays piano on Adele’s 21, and has also worked with Emeli Sande and Michael Kiwanuka (winner of the BRITS Critics Choice and BBC Sound of 2012 respectively). But his own band, the Neil Cowley Trio are, understandably, where his passion lies.
Jazz gets a hard time from rock fans, despite the fact that certain names – Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock and John Coltrane, for example, have always been hip names to drop. This album is twelve awesome tracks of Jazz with rock influences performed by the trio (which also includes Rex Horan on bass and Evan Jenkins on drums), which are very easy to love indeed.
Just listen to second track ‘Rooster Was A Witness.’ No atonal skronking brass here, just a hot as you like trio, supported by strings, playing a song that wonderfully evocative and without an inch of fat on it. Like the soundtrack to a cool film yet to be made, once heard, you’ll want to hear this again and again.
The Neil Cowley Trio are on tour in England in March and April with the Mount Molehill Strings
15th March, LONDON, Queen Elizabeth Hall
21st March CARDIFF, RWCMD
22nd March LIVERPOOL, Capstone Theatre
23rd March GATESHEAD, The Sage Gateshead
24th March LEEDS, The Venue
13th April BIRMINGHAM, CBSO
14th April SOUTHAMPTON, Turner Sims
26th April BRISTOL, St Georges
Although new to this blogger, the work of Grimes is not new to the world of music.
The work of Claire Boucher, she moved from Vancouver to Montreal, becoming involved in the DiY scene there. She’s about to release her fourth album in less than two years, entitled Visions, and this will be coming out one one of my favourite labels ever, 4AD.
The lead track doing the rounds is the single ‘Genesis’ which sounds nothing like the prog-rockers fronted by Messrs. Gabriel, Collins and whoever it was that was also in Stiltskin, but instead, her music sounds like a mix of mid-80s Madonna, Kate Bush, TLC and the Aphex Twin (sorry, I cribbed this last bit out of the NME. But here’s the thing: it’s so true!)
Check out out for yourself, this track is getting a lot of play round at 17 Seconds Towers. She may be all over the blogosphere at the moment – but I’m willing to bet she’ll be all over the en of year lists when they roll round (yet again).
Hugely impressed by their EP, The Flash, I asked LA’s FEVR PITCH if they’d be happy to speak to 17 Seconds.
Very, as it turns out…
17 Seconds: Please introduce yourselves.
Mark: I’m Mark Okoh, from London – make beats and do production. My background is in photography, but started making music about three years ago.
Kill Paris: I’m 25, I’m single. I come from some random place in the Midwest. I usually am the primary the sound designer, last in the factory line process, last at the bar, and longest lasting generally speaking.
Marty: Born and raised in L.A. and I’ve been playing in bands and playing instruments since I was 12, so I come from the most traditional background of the three of us I suppose. Playing in rock/funk/soul bands, busking the city streets, and producing/engineering for other pop/rock artists.
17 Seconds: How did FEVR PITCH come together?
Marty: Initially FEVR PITCH was just Mark and I – with Kill Paris living on the east coast and occasionally collaborating with us. Eventually we decided to fly him out to LA, and like a bad romance novel, there was instant chemistry. The three of us lived together for an ultra sketchy week of debauchery and occasional songwriting. We wrote a total of 7 songs, 4 of which were released as The Flash EP. Kill Paris finally came to his senses and realized he must move permanently to Los Angeles. The city would never be the same…
17 Seconds: Mark, how did you come up with the concept for the the video for ‘Running Away?’ ‘And how long did it take to make?
17 Seconds: Do you play live as a group? If so, how do you approach live performance?
Yep – it’s unique in that it’s a mixture of a DJ set and a live instrumental performance. Three laptops, and a boatload of instruments! We try to keep it eclectic and different than your typical DJ set.
17 Seconds: Do you DJ in and around LA?
Yes – we’re a newly formed group but we’re already in heavy rotation around Los Angeles clubs and bars, including Avalon, Bardot, MI6, etc.
17 Seconds: This is to each of you: what are the records (and other sources) that have most influenced you?
Mark: Discovery by Daft Punk, Vespertine by Bjork (Corey has a tattoo of the album cover..,), Moon Safari by Air, Fist of God by MSTKRFT, Demon Days by Gorillaz, Oracular Spectacular by MGMT, Blue Monday by New Order, ‘Looking for the Perfect Bea’t by Afrika Bambaataa, 4×4=12 by Deadmau5, Ni Silico by Pendulum, Blue Lines by Massive Attack
Kill Paris: what he said, also… And the Glass Handed Kites by Meu
Marty: Just As I Am by Bill Withers, Night at the Opera by Queen, Blood Sugar Sex Magik by RHCP, Thriller by Michael Jackson, What’s Going On by Marvin Gaye, Nevermind by Nirvana
17 Seconds: As well as FEVR PITCH, what other projects (if any!) are you currently involved in?
Mark: Always working on solo material – if it doesn’t fit the FEVR PITCH mold, I keep it for myself!
Kill Paris: Always putting out solo albums as well
Marty: I have one other project which is a soulful rock band, Bravesoul (www.bravesoulofficial.com). We just put out a new EP in December, produced by Mikal Blue (Jason Mraz, One Republic, etc.).
17 Seconds: Who – if anyone – do you consider to be your contemporaries on the music scene?
We’ve been compared to many different artists who use a mix of electro/dubstep along with a strong vocal presence, including Daft Punk, Gorillaz, MGMT, MSTRKRFT, Pendulum, Dada Life, Nero, Magnetic Man…
17 Seconds: How do you approach writing songs as a group?
ALL: In general Kill Paris or Mark will start a beat, and then that beat gets passed to Marty who will start writing topline lyrics and melodies. We tend to approach song concepts and general arrangements together as a group before lyrics are completely finished, and we all have a hand in layering tracks and adding new sections.
17 Seconds: What are your plans for future releases? Will we get an album this year?
ALL: You’ll get a whole load of new songs starting in January – we have a plan to release a new single every week for 5 weeks straight. We put so much into each track that it’s hard to release an album and have people only listen to the first half, so the strategy is to continuously release tracks for the next few months single by single. It also helps us keep in constant touch with fans! At some point this year however we do plan to release a full album, most likely including a few of our favorite singles as well.
2 Bears are Joe Goddard (who in his day job is one-fifth of Hot Chip) and Raf Daddy. The pair will shortly release their debut album Be Strong on January 30 through ultra-hip DFA Records, the label that was co-founded by LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy, and over the years has given us music from LCD Soundsystem, Hot Chip, Black Dice, Prinzhorn and Hercules & Love Affair amongst many others. In fact, when I worked for Fopp (and they still did loads of vinyl in the first half of the last decade), the DFA label on a 12″ was usually enough to pique my interest.
Anyhow, the lead track off the album is called ‘Work’ which sounds like one of those records that will deservedly fill not just the lists of hipsters and beard-strokers, but decent folk too, being able to hold its own with the best of the DFA catalogue and indeed much of Hot Chip’s back catalogue. The single is out now to download, there are remix EPs coming from names to drop like St. Etienne and Toddla T, around the time of the album’s release.
This is almost certainly going to make everyone who hears it fall in love with it.
Dead Wolf Club are (drum roll please): John Othello (vox/guitars), Alwin Fernandez (guitars), Martha Supajirawatananon (bass), and Serra Petalle (drums). They are about to release their debut, self-titled album on the label Scene Not Herd* – to whom they are the first signing – on February 1.
It might be because I’m feeling rather low because of the January weather, but their music hits you like a much needed hit of caffeine to both the ears and the soul, and makes me feel rather better about everything. Definitely what I need.
This is a free track doing the rounds called ‘Radar’. It’s rather good. Make sure you turn it up loud -and if you like it, let me know…
Hyperpotamus is the work of a man who calls himself H. Hailing from Madrid, Spain, but based in London, he describes himself as a multi-vocal solo artist. Which is a pretty accurate description, as he makes music using only his voice, a loop pedal and a few microphones.
So far, not just another singer-songwriter or indie-by-numbers band. Good stuff. Over the course of this thirty-four minute album, H does, however, become slightly harder to listen to. There’s no doubt that he has some fantastic ideas, and I have no doubt that he is absolutely mesmerising to watch and perform, as many of these artists are. But on CD, it becomes just a little bit much to take all in one go.
Worth hearing -and no doubt worth watching live. But slightly harder to digest all in one sitting, (and not a great album to listen to in the car!).
