BBC Sound of 2009 nominees Good day, I’m Mike and Phil has asked me to contribute some blogs post to tgtf. I run the Nothing But Green Lights music blog and I also write for The Morning News. I’ll be writing about lots of new bands, reviewing some albums, and stepping away from the “Only British Music” limitation I usually restrict myself to.
But saying that, here’s some new British music. Not just any new British music, no: this is my contribution to the Sound of 2009 poll that the BBC have asked me to take part in. You may know the artists, you may not, but this is a perfect time for a rethink, and considering who you think is worthy of mainstream success next year…
1. I Blame Coco
I Blame Coco is many things; Sting’s daughter, a Kate Nash alike. She’s cold nights and hot parties. Still thinking about her being Sting’s daughter? You shouldn’t - I liked it before I knew and so should you. “I Blame Coco,” a song that should really called “How did all these people get in my room,” is one of my most played tracks of the year; with little coverage so far, expect big things for 2009 with her bright, warm and ska-tinged pop songs. Maybe they’re waiting for spring hype and summer festivals before releasing this young-thing. Either way, I think this song is perfect for dark afternoons. And look: in the last few weeks, since I last looked, she’s been picked up by Island Records!
MP3: I Blame Coco - I Blame Coco
I’ll bring you my other two picks for the poll next week; the results of the poll will be announced on the BBC entertainment site early December. A teaser: the initials of my two picks are G.S and S.C. Any ideas? Any picks for the best new music of 2009?
Paul McCartney’s Latest Project Currently Streaming Free Over At MySpace Ok, I admit it, I am absolutely obsessed with The Beatles. I guess then, being the Fab Four-nut that I am, I’m kinda biased in thinking anything that comes out of Paul McCartney’s brain is an act of pure genius. And in my eyes, his latest release is no exception. ‘The Fireman’ originally started out about 15 years ago. Combining forces with dance producer Youth, Macca has since released 2 albums under the pseudonym, and this week, The Fireman are back with their third - ‘Electric Arguments‘.
Intrigued? Well, if you’ve yet to come across The Fireman - do not expect any ‘Yesterday’s and ‘Let it Be’s here. The Fireman are as far from the puppy-eyed ballads of the 60s as you could get. Rather, The Fireman duo are an experimental electro project , both edgy and ambient, set to thrill and stun. It’s undeniable the latest Fireman release is a great deal more commercial than the previous two releases (1993’s ‘Strawberries Oceans Ships Forests’ and 1998’s ‘Rushes‘) - for starters, it’s the first of the three albums to have lyrics actually sung by McCartney. While Electric Arguments is still a fair distance from the music that made McCartney the legend he is today - it’s pretty exciting when listening to rocking Helter Skelter stylee tracks such as ‘Nothing Too Much Just Out of Sight’ and Wing-esque songs such as ‘Sing the Changes’.
Generally, Electric Arguments really is an incredibly exciting, and at times very beautiful, album. You can’t wait to hear what colourful surprises the next track is going to offer you. The best thing is, each new tune that comes along on the CD never does disappoint. It’s a peculiar, fantastical trip of an album - a highly recommended one too!
Tracks to check out : Nothing Too Much Just Out of Sight, Sing the Changes, Sun is Shining
Electric Arguments is currently being streamed for free over at The Fireman’s MySpace. You can pre-order the album, set to be released on Monday from Amazon here.
Bands to Watch #45 - The Asteroids Galaxy Tour What’s that cool song in the iPod touch commercial? This is what I have been asking myself for weeks. If you’ve seen the ad (click here to check it out), you know what we’re talking about: a grooving drum beat, bopping bass, funky horns, the all-important cowbell, and a female voice that assures us there are some “good, good times around the bend.”
They call themselves The Asteroids Galaxy Tour and their song ‘Around the Bend’ is catching on mighty quick. “It’s a song about sexual energy,” band member Lars Iversen explains, “An energy that you want so bad from someone, and you’d do whatever it takes to get it.” Fair enough I say. Actually I don’t care what the song is about because the fact that music is so chirpy and vibrant is good enough for me.
We are to remember the bands founders (Lars Iversen and Mette Lindberg) because the energy they produce is exceptional, even when without a band backing them up. It seems that they are not here for the short term and are far from a one hit wonder. Just check out their MySpace to have this proven. The band was once a support act for Amy Winehouse but I am sure it should have been the other way around. The bands alternative tone does not sound like music for the future or music from the past. This is music for now!
You can catch the band at the London Barfly on the 26th November. It won’t be one to miss.
John Barrowman / May 2009 UK Tour John Barrowman has announced a pretty biglineup of gigs next May around the UK.
Tickets are on sale now,
Monday 11th May 2009 - Sheffield City Hall
Tuesday 12th May 2009 - Nottingham Royal Concert Hall
Thursday 14th May 2009 - Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
Friday 15th May 2009 - Newcastle City Hall
Saturday 16th May 2009 - Oxford New Theatre
Monday 18th May 2009 - Birmingham Symphony Hall
Tuesday 19th May 2009 - Liverpool Philharmonic Hall
Wednesday 20th May 2009 - Ipswich Regent Theatre
Friday 22nd May 2009 - Blackburn King Georges Hall
Saturday 23rd May 2009 - Cardiff International Arena
Sunday 24th May 2009 - Portsmouth Guildhall
Tuesday 26th May 2009 - Manchester Bridgewater Hall
Wednesday 27th May 2009 - Harrogate International Centre
Thursday 28th May 2009 - Bournemouth Pavilion
Saturday 30th May 2009 - Brighton Dome
Sunday 31st May 2009 - Plymouth Pavilions
Bands To Watch #44 - Verra Cruz I was reading through a music magazine the other day and came across a band called Verra Cruz. Just as I was about to turn the page I caught a line of the text describing the band’s sound as bluesy lapsteel guitar rock. What? A lapsteel guitar in a rock band! Instantly I loaded up there MySpace page and from then on I have been hooked.
The band consisting of Marc James (Vocals/Guitar/Lapsteel), Jimmy Cooke (Drums) and Henry Cross (Bass) is the best new rock music I have heard in ages. The Lapsteel guitar is played with heavy distortion and creates awesome, face melting riffs that feature on the band’s songs like “Rock and a Hard Place” (my favourite track).
The guys genuinely have a unique sound and they execute it with great style. The vocals supplied by Marc sound like a brilliant cross between Kurt Cobain and Bryan Adams while the guitar playing (on all of the three types) brings together mind boggling tunes like “Freedom”.
A video on their MySpace gives a quick profile of the band and Marc James confesses that there early material was good to listen to but people could not get involved at a gig. I am pleased to report that they have also conquered this problem in their more recent material where astonishing variety is shown. The range of skills is evident from the passionate slower paced “Friend to You” to the crowd friendly “Put the Weapon Down”.
Roses Kings Castles / January 2009 UK tour Adam Ficek’s new project, Roses Kings Castles has announced a string of UK tour dates for next January. The Babyshambles drummer will head out on the road for a 16 date tour playing some small and cosy places in support of his debut solo collection, also named Roses Kings Castles.
The drummer-cum-solo artist will release ‘Horses’, which comes complete with sleigh bells, as a digital download on December 8th, then as a seven-inch vinyl single the following week on December 15th.
Catch Adam Ficek on the road at the below dates:
Monday 5th January 2009 - Leicester Charlotte
Tuesday 6th January 2009 - Cambridge Portland Arms
Wednesday 7th January 2009 - Nottingham Bodega
Thursday 8th January 2009 - Liverpool Academy2
Friday 9th January 2009 - Manchester Ruby Lounge
Saturday 10th January 2009 - Wakefield Escobar
Sunday 11th January 2009 - Birmingham Bar academy
Tuesday 13th January 2009 - Newcastle Academy2
Wednesday 14th January 2009 - Hull Adelphi
Thursday 15th January 2009 - Preston 53 Degrees
Friday 16th January 2009 - Derby Rockhouse
Sunday 18th January 2009 - Castleford The loft
Tuesday 20th January 2009 - Cardiff Barfly
Friday 23rd January 2009 - Sunderland Voodoo room
Monday 26th January 2009 - Glasgow Captain’s rest
Tuesday 27th January 2009 - York Fibbers
Wednesday 28th January 2009 - Wrexham Central
Top photo is taken from aurélien’s flickr stream under the creative commons license.
innerpartysystem / January and February 2009 UK Tour Like Shiny Toy Guns, Ladytron, and shouty frat rock? Then maybe check out innerpartysystem when they tour the UK next month.
Unsure if you’ll like them live? They’ve just released a track of themselves doing a stripped back version of single “Don’t Stop” using iPhones and instruments… ingenious we think. Catch the video after the dates below.
Tickets are on sale now, priced between £8 and £9 each. Catch them at:
Monday 26th January 2009 - Cambridge Soul Tree
Tuesday 27th January 2009 - Brighton Audio
Wednesday 28th January 2009 - Cardiff Barfly
Friday 30th January 2009 - Exeter Cavern
Saturday 31st January 2009 - Birmingham Academy 2
Sunday 1st February 2009 - Glasgow King Tuts
Monday 2nd February 2009 - Leeds Cockpit
Tuesday 3rd February 2009 - Newcastle Academy 2
Wednesday 4th February 2009 - Manchester Academy 3
Thursday 5th February 2009 - London Underworld
Musical Madness Ever wondered what the weirdest and stupidest things to be done in the name of music have been? Well in this article I will attempt to seek out the oddest and most crazy musical facts so that you can crush your friends with useless musical trivia.
- 8 names John Lennon used to check into a hotel:
- Dr. Winston O’Boogie
- Long John
- Dwarf McDougall
- Musketeer Gripweed
- Rev Fred Ghurkin
- Dr. Dream
- Kaptain Kundalini
- Johnny Rhythm Honorary John St John Johnson.
- The smallest guitar in the world is smaller than a red blood cell and has strings that can be strummed. It was made using nanotechnology.
- Termites eat wood twice as fast when listening to heavy metal music. Well any music with a big pounding beat and fast tempo.
- Elvis once said, I dont know anything about music. In my line you dont have to.
- A Mexican musician, Ramon Barrero, famous for playing the world’s smallest harmonica, inhaled the harmonica and choked to death.
- Beethoven dipped his head in cold water before he composed.
- Pop was once banned in India. The song “Tirchi Topiwale” became so popular that the police were instructed to fine 50 rupees to anyone caught singing it.
- The Greek national anthem has 158 verses.
- Monaco’s national orchestra is bigger than its army.
- Elvis Presley once entered an Elvis look-a-like contest in a US burger bar and only came 3rd!!
- The lead female singer in an opera is called the prima donna.
Well there you go, fascinating facts that will probably never actually come up in a conversation.
Bands to Watch #43: Escape The Fate They look scary and have as many tattoos as a Hells Angels annual gathering but if you have ever wondered what My Chemical Romance and Avenged Sevenfold sound like smashed together, just listen to Nevada punks Escape the Fate. It’s either emo with a set of balls or a castrated metal act, but whatever you say about these guys, you have to award credit for the sublime guitar solos, catchy choruses and generally awesome tracks that feature on the new album “This War is Ours.” They bring together big metal-riffed intros, melodic verses and double-bass breakdowns covered in Cookie Monster shouts. It sounds great.
The band met through MySpace and alright, I have never really been an Escape the Fate “fan” but I’d heard a few songs I liked such as Dying is your latest fashion & Situations. I never really cared to listen to the rest of their music though. However, every song is pure genius on the album This War Is Ours (The Guillotine II) which sounds a lot more commercial than the first record.
I will say that I think the band still haven’t peaked and there should be a lot more to come from these guys but at the moment the songs don’t sound like big hits, they still sound like a support act and not the big thing yet. Having said this, there is a bit of me that believes the next album could be the big breakthrough.
See what you think on their MySpace and be sure to check out the track “We won’t back down”.
Bands to Watch #42: La Roux As someone at work pointed out at the weekend, I’m a big fan of elfin looking girls. You already know that I love synthy pop. So combine the two passions and, well, I need a good lay down to recover my senses.
That’s what happened on Saturday evening - I got home to find La Roux‘ sampler CD on the doormat. I put it on, expecting the usual middle-of-the-road stuff that is alright but nothing to rave about, like most promo CDs. Then I had to lay down. Reminiscent of classic electro-pop pioneers like Eurythmics and Depeche Mode, it is still completely modern and is just perfect for a few remixes which would have the lips of the new school of club goers licking their lips. Really.
Synthy, poppy and catchy, 20 year old Brixtonite Elly Jackson just has a way of making her tunes sound so familiar yet completely original. Forthcoming “Quicksand” manages to combine Annie Lennox’ haunting (at times) vocals with a touch of Human League and Prince, yet manages to sound like it’s some throwback from 2010, rather than a dodgy 80’s revival.
Some tracks like “In for The Kill” have amazing choruses that just yell out for you to start dancing madly with mates… like Alphabeat’s guilty-pleasure quality, but not so guilty.
Thankfully, it’s not just me that’s been raving about La Roux - NME called her “the coolest voice to come out of UK club….’Let’s Dance’ era Bowie meets The Knife”… and bloggers have been having wet dreams over her.
MP3: La Roux - Fascination
The most sickening thing? Elly Jackson is younger than me. God only knows what she’s gonna have come out with by the time she’s 30 - it’s quite scary to think she’s nowhere near her creative best and can still pump out such amazing tunes. And only on a demo.
La Roux’ Quicksand is out on 1st December on uber-cool Kitsune records. Preorder from Rough Trade here.
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