Primavera 2013 Review – Saturday

By Saturday the routine of not going to bed until after 5am every day had started to catch up with me but that didn’t hamper my enthusiasm for seeing Pantha Du Prince & The Bell Laboratory playing in the beautiful auditorium building at 4pm. Having enjoyed Pantha Du Prince’s previous albums I had been a bit disappointed by ‘Elements of Light’, his recent album in collaboration with The Bell Laboratory, which I found impressive in concept but fatiguing to listen to in its entirety. Live however it came alive and was one of the most powerful performances of the week receiving a well deserved standing ovation from the crowd on finishing. For the encore we were treated to a few songs from Pantha’s 2008 LP ‘Black Noise’ and seeing them performed live, with their emphasis on acoustic percussion as much as the electronics, helped set Pantha apart from some of his peers and made for a more interesting live experience than the dull laptop gazing usually associated with many live electronic artists.

Emerging back into the heat after an hour plus in the comfy air conditioned auditorium we headed over to the All Tomorrows Parties stage to catch Mount Eerie, whom I’d been keen to see again since watching him do a solo set last year supporting Earth. I was happy to see him emerge onto the stage with a drummer and two bass players in tow suggesting a much more filled out sound. Unfortunately the performance became a surreal and uncomfortable mess after a band started playing on the adjacent Heineken stage midway through the set. Although his music does have some intense black metal inspired dirges scattered throughout the most powerful aspect of his music are the quieter and more reflective moments and they were intolerable to listen to over the racket of another band playing so loud nearby. Sadly the show has to go down as one of my most disappointing experiences at the festival which is doubly depressing considering the high esteem in which I hold Mount Eerie’s music.

A late cancellation by Band of Horses resulted in Deerhunter playing another set in their place on the Heineken stage. Although the replacement had been announced online and via posters dotted around the site I think many people mustn’t have heard about it because they played to one of the smallest and most comfortable crowds experienced at that stage throughout the festival allowing me and my friends to get right up front. The band raised expectations for a different set by opening with a ‘Cryptograms’ but soon deviated back into roughly the same sequence songs they played on Thursday night. I was a bit underwhelmed as I’d figured that their playing 3 albums in their entirety at All Tomorrows Parties the following month would suggest they should have a bit more of a current repertoire to chose from. Nonetheless the conviction with which the ‘Monomania’ songs that dominated their performance were played made for a more punked up and visceral Deerhunter live experience.

In a bizarre contrast of styles next up were Wu-Tang Clan and their classic brand of East Coast Hip-Hop. Their set drew heavily from classic debut album ‘Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) and it was a welcome pleasure to see a group trying to work the crowd. We were treated to a few songs from GZA’s ‘Liquid Swords’ and a lesson on the virtues of turntableism throughout the gig but it was a bit sad to witness a crowd sing along of The Beatles ‘Come Together’ generating more hysteria from the audience that any of the original material they played. I’d seen the group once before, with Ol Dirty Bastard, at T in the Park years ago and thought their Primavera set far eclipsed the ramshackle mess I’d witnessed then and provided a much more refined and direct performance which resulted in generating some of the best of crowd interaction I saw over the week.

Leaving Wu-Tang as they played out the last 15 minutes of their slot we made our way over to the Heineken stage once again to see Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. It’s been a few years since I have seen Cave live and despite owning everything else he’s done I didn’t pay any attention to his 2 last albums with the Bad Seeds. His set opened with two songs from new album ‘Pushing the Sky Away’ which, while sounding great, left me a little underwhelmed and yearning for the familiarity of old material. Thankfully my wishes were granted in the form of a ripping version of ‘Red Right Hand’, with the Bad Seeds at their most grand and cinematic sounding, and snarling and vicious versions of Elvis in hell exorcism Tupelo’ and the sick twisted homicidal blues tale ‘Stagger Lee’. At barely an over an hour in length though Cave’s set felt too slight and short, especially for an artist with such a huge amount of classic material.

Next up was a rare trip to the smaller confines of a packed Pitchfork stage to see Liars who, in the form of ‘WIXIW’ released one of my favorite albums of last year. Their set consisted mostly of new material which suggested an altogether more electronic and danced based new direction that despite being mostly unfamiliar did a great job of getting the crowd, many of whom were at that point in the night just wandering about from stage to stage in search of a beat, dancing along. Despite being a long term fan of the band it was the first time I’d seen them live and they put on one of the most exciting performances I saw all week further raising expectations for their new material.

The last headliner of the main 3 days was My Bloody Valentine whom I found myself more eagerly anticipating after the surprise release of ‘MBV’ earlier this year. I’d seen the band in 2008 and came away from the gig being glad to have seen them but a bit shellshocked by the intensity of the volume. I found seeing them in a festival setting a much more enjoyable, despite the vocals being a tad too low, and it was good to be able to identify their songs more clearly. Their performance proved to be frustrating to the locals who left in droves a few songs into the set. From further back I found the impressive scale of the noise coming from the stage prettier and more comprehensible that I’d expected and it was a joy to be treated to a few tracks from the new album which came across as poppier and more accessible than their older material. The infamous and inappropriate titled holocaust section of ‘You Made Me Realise’ was as remarkable than ever and even with the sea wind blowing behind it proved to be a uniquely intense and incomparably loud experience.

Our Park Del Forum Primavera time came to a close with Hot Chip’s 4am set which proved a fitting finale in being the only point of the festival that felt like a proper dance concert, an important part of the Primavera experience usually confined to those with the herculean (or drug fueled) energy to stick around until after 5am when the DJ sets begin. The crowd was as packed as it seemed to me all weekend and Hot Chip put on a stellar performance demonstrating their burgeoning strength as a singles band. Once thought of as a UK LCD Soundsystem the breakup of that decade defining New York band leaves Hot Chip as one of the few groups around capable of delivering live shows which satisfy the dance and indie crowds equally and their Primavera set was by far the most euphoric and crowd pleasing I witnessed all week.

One of the most satisfying aspects of the Primavera Sound festival is the wide variety of concerts and performances that go on in different locations throughout the city during the week. From the use of the excellent, if sometimes too small, Sala Apolo indoor venue and the Ray Ban stage on festival site on the Wednesday and Sunday for additional concerts to the more boutique shows put on in metro stops and parks dotted around Barcelona it’s possible to see a lot more music at Primavera than the already ridiculous amount of acts on display at the proper 3 day main festival. On a Sunday afternoon we trekked it down to the idylic surrounds of the Parc de la Ciutadella to see a free show by Mac Demarco which turned out to be one of the most enjoyable gigs of the week. Blessed with a hyperactive positivity Demarco played one of the most appropriately located shows I’ve ever seen and his music seemed custom made for standing in the sun whilst sipping cheap mojitos. In between tokes from a joint he kept in his capo during songs and later giving cigarettes out to members of the audience we were treated to a set bustling with simple yet effective surf rock tunes. The playfulness of Demarco’s performance reminded me of the childlike aura of Jonathan Richman live and after some quite heavy and intense music over the week it was a welcome release to listen to something more optimistic and uni-formally upbeat. Impromptu covers of ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ and ‘Enter Sandman’ mixed together in a set dominated by debut album ‘2’ resulting in probably the most impressive and enjoyable surprise of the week.

Our final live show of the week was back at the Sala Apolo where Deerhunter were playing their 3rd show of the festival. It was a great contrast to see them play an indoor venue and although the set was still festival length and lacking the feel of a stand alone gig it was another solid performance from one of the best live bands out there at the moment. Any reservations I had about the quality of new album ‘Monomania’ had been quashed by this stage and I felt that they gave their best, and definitely their loudest, show of Primavera. ‘The Missing’, ‘Sleepwalking’ and, in particular, the title track from the new album are some of Deerhunter’s most powerful and direct live songs and despite being saddened by the fact they seem to have all but disowned ‘Microcastle’ as a source of material their replacements are equally as competent and satisfying. The band have a different feel live now and the additional guitarist allows Bradford Cox to stand up and assume the free frontman role he’s been talking in the bands recent interviews. Prior to the festival they were probably the act I was most excited to see and being lucky enough to catch them 3 times in 4 days was probably my highlight of Primavera.

Primavera 2013 Review – Friday

Friday started early again for us back at the Heiniken stage where we saw Kurt Vile and the Violators. Vile’s excellent new album ‘Walkin on a Pretty Daze’ has already matured into one of the most fulfilling and re-playable records released this year and I bored my companions prior to his set with my half-baked theory about the surprising depth of feeling and sensitive and wise reflection in his music and how a lot of the emotion in his songs gets overlooked in light of his stoner drawl and slacker appearance. The set drew mostly from the new LP and Vile’s electric guitar driven jams which was a good move considering he could have potentially looked pretty lost up there on such a big stage at such an early hour. ‘Tomboy’ from ‘Smoke Ring For My Halo’ was the only solo acoustic song aired and the band finished with a rip roaring psychedelic maelstrom that surprised me in its heaviness.

By far the quietest day at the festival for us Friday provided a welcome opportunity to relax, explore the festival site and merchandise stands and have the chance to have a couple of beers without having to dash of from stage to stage every hour. After wandering for a while next up were Django Django who played to one of the busiest crowds we witnessed outside of headline acts at the Heineken as the sun settled. I’ve seen them once before and felt that their live show came across a little weak and limp sounding compared to the ambition of the album. Thankfully they beefed up many of their songs with some extended intros and keyboard grooves which made for a more enjoyable show but still left me coming away with the feeling that they could really do with an extra member in order to have a more powerful live presence. ‘Hail Bop’ went down a treat with the locals in the crowd as did a few other songs which leads me to believe that Django Django must be as omnipresent on Spanish TV adverts as they are in the UK.

We had another lull in the programme after Django Django, mostly as a result of the unfortunate late cancellation by Rodriguez, before heading over to the Primavera stage to catch the first few tracks of The Breeders. We basically had the intention of just seeing ‘Cannonball’ (which was again a real treat) and then heading of which seemed to be the plans for many others in the crowd.

The next full set we saw was James Blake back at the Primavera stage. I’d heard good things about his new touring band and they didn’t disappoint. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever heard sub bass as deep and gut shaking as I did throughout his performance. Having not given his new album enough listens prior to seeing him so much of the material was fresh to my ears but came across well and suggested a more direct and inviting record than his debut. I was especially impressed by the rousing rendition of ‘CKCY’ which evidenced that Blake could pull off a more conventional dance sound wonderfully if only he wished. It was surreal, and kind of frightening, to hear a bunch of drunken English girls behind us singing along to ‘Limit to Your Love’, especially considering how intense the bass was in the middle section.

After a bit of deliberation about whether to see Swans and Goat I decided to go see Blur’s headline set instead. I’ve never been a big fan of the band or the entire Britpop movement but past Primavera’s have resulted in me seeing excellent gigs by Pulp and Suede both of which opened doors for a renewed sense of appreciation for them. I was also conscious of the fact that Blur would present the only opportunity of the weekend to see a big headline performance that would get the crowd worked up. Their set did that and more and I was pleased to see some of my favorite tracks from ‘13’ (the Blur album I’m fondest of) receiving emotional live performances. As a casual fan I was surprised to find that I knew almost everything they played and even if I didn’t dig much of it first time round I got swept up the euphoria of the crowd and had a great time. Also, everyone needs to experience ‘Song 2’ live at least once.

Last up were The Knife whose set began at the rather intimidating time of 3.20am. Prior to the festival they had been one of my most anticipated acts but I found my motivation to see them diluted by some of the quite hysterical reactions their London shows received earlier in the month. Being familiar with their live sets only through the bonus DVD on the special edition of ‘Silent Shout’ I’d initially hoped for the same stripped back show which highlighted the individual strengths of both members rather than the amateur creative dance ensemble mime performance that it was. Nonetheless I found myself enjoying it a lot more than I’d thought I would. We stood at the back where we could dance freely which had the added advantage of rendering the visual side of the performance redundant to us. It did sound to me like Karin was singing live on most of the tracks although I was skeptical about whether or not any actual instruments were being played on stage. Thankfully their new album ‘Shaking the Habitual’ is so great that I was able to enjoy the gig, even if it was just that album being played loud over the PA most of the time. Much as I felt the show wasn’t the spectacular failure some people had suggested after their London gig I do appreciate that it probably wouldn’t stand up and would look a bit ridiculous in the more scrutinizing environment of an indoor venue.

Primavera 2013 Review – Thursday

Last week I attended the Primavera Sound in Barcelona for the 3rd time in 4 years (I ended up going to the debut of Porto incarnation in 2012). The festival cemented its standing as the most exciting and varied in the world again this year on account of its yet again stellar line up and continued creative use of spaces outside of the main festival night to deliver an almost week long celebration of music old and new. The Parc Del Forum where the main 3 days of the festival is located provides one of the most spectacular settings for seeing live music and many of the bands who play seem to step up their game because they truly love playing there.

On the Tuesday night me and my companions for the week commenced our journey through Primavera at the Sala Apolo venue seeing Godflesh or rather, being pummeled by Godflesh. The band, consisting of guitar, bass and a triggered drum machine sequencer played probably the most consistently heavy gig I’ve seen, a relentless aural assault of heavy riffs, hardcore vocals and industrial metal percussion. There was more music to come on Wednesday as well where we attended the much discussed secret gig back at the Sala Apolo. A common day signature of Primavera I’ve missed out on the secret gigs over the years due to always hearing about them when they’re sold out. The deal according to the website said that the band would only be announced 5 minutes before they came on leading to rumors abounding as to who they might be. The most exciting I came across was The Dream Syndicate (which would of made me ecstatic) and the most frightening was Shed Seven (which had us walking into the venue beforehand with a genuine sense of dread). In the end when we got in, 20 mins before the band was due, the merch guy was already set up selling Breeders t-shirts which undermined the whole thing a little. The band themselves were in fine form, running through their breakthrough smash ‘The Last Splash’ in its entirety before playing a long encore of other material which thankfully included their incredible take on ‘Happiness is a Warm Gun’. I’ve never been a massive Breeders fan and I’m more familiar with debut LP ‘Pod’ than its follow up but they played with enough energy and enthusiasm and were enjoyable enough if not brilliant. Though ‘Cannonball’ was, predictably, outstanding and had the crowd going crazy.

The first band we saw at the festival site on Thursday was Wild Nothing. Last year’s ‘Nocturne’ is still a regular on my stereo and its pleasant and tuneful wistful guitar pop filled a much needed gap that had been created by overplaying the last Real Estate album. They’re excellent new EP ‘Empty Estates’ had also worked its way into being go to balcony listening in the days prior to the festival. Live they were enjoyable enough, well suited to hearing in the sun at 6.30 in the evening but hampered a little by them playing such a huge stage and to such a large crowd and not quite having a big enough sound to match those circumstances. I’d like to have seen them in a smaller setting but I’m sure that would have just added to headache of clashes throughout the festival.

We left Wild Nothing just before the end in order to make the long trek across the festival site to the Pitchfork stage to see one of the bands of the moment Savages put on a quite incredible and energetic show. Their image is great and their Siouxie inspired agit-pop was a welcome adrenaline boost after the breezy vibe of Wild Nothing. Equipment failures rarely heighten a performance but the way Savages dealt with a guitar breakdown midway through ‘Strife’ without loosing any intensity whist jamming out relentlessly for 10 minutes on the song’s tight drum and bass fuelled groove went a long way to validating how serious and unfazed the band are.

Rushing from one stage to another in a desperate attempt to catch full sets was one of the tiring and disorienting themes of the festival and no longer had Savages stuck their final notes before we were off again in a mad dash to catch Tame Impala over on the Heineken stage. Having written them off on the back of their debut album, a fault I attribute to my fatigue with the compressed throw everything in the mix trademark of producer Dave Fridman more than the band, I was surprised when last years ‘Lonerism’ became on of my favorite albums of the year. Live they were a lot more muscular and heavy than I’d anticipated and their glammed out psychedelic pop combined well with their screensaver on overdrive visuals to create a mesmerizing performance that suggested great future potential for the band to become this era’s (early) Pink Floyd.

Mild exhaustion and Scottishness resulted in abandoning another trip on the slow meandering crowd train over to the main stage to see Dinosaur Jr. and instead opting to have a couple of beers in the food court and get myself a little tanked up before seeing one of my bands of the festival Deerhunter in the tranquil sea background setting of the Ray Ban stage. Missing them touring ‘Halcyon Digest’ was one of my big regrets in terms of recent gig going and seeing them perform ‘Desire Lines’ for the first time was enough to whip me up into a frenzy that took vengeance on my vocal chords the following day. New album ‘Monomania’ had started to settle more with me in the week prior to the festival but I still had doubts about them replacing original bassist Josh Fauver who I thought was indispensible to their sound. The addition of new guitarist Frankie Broyles added more punch to the band’s guitar interplay (although visually it’s miraculous that they managed to find someone more despondent and uninterested looking than Lockett Pundt to join the band). Their set relied heavily on the new album and left me with no doubts as to its deserved place in their ridiculously inventive and consistent discography. As I commented to friends during their performance, if I was 16 my bedroom would be covered in Deerhunter posters and my school books scrawled with their lyrics.

Resolving the dilemma of whether to see Grizzly Bear or Menomena who clashed had been a slight thorn in my side all evening and coming of the high of Deerhunter I opted to see the latter on the smallest stage of the festival rather than seeing Grizzly Bear on the main stage and despite the expected later reports of how wonderful Grizzly Bear were (of course they would be!) any doubts or regrets were nullified the moment Menomena started. As a band they mean a huge deal to me and their lack of more widespread recognition is one of my most rued issues in contemporary music. Their set was one of my major highlights of the festival and I spent the entire time bouncing about with the kind of energy that only something you really love can inspire. Special props to the Spanish girl behind me who knew the words to every song (I thought I did but the frowned looks of some people around me suggested otherwise)

After the high of Menomena we skipped our way across the site over to the main stage to see Phoenix’s headline performance. In contrast to Menomena it’s wonderful to see Phoenix ascend to the status they now enjoy as they’ve made some of the most well crafted pop music of the last few years. The near constant crowd sing alongs were testament to the infectiousness of their music. The mid set dance along that resulted from the medley of ‘Love Like a Sunset’ and ‘Entertainment ‘ being fused into one big rave up was a sight to behold. The fact that by 10 minutes into their set they’d already played new single ‘Entertainment’ and their most recognized song ‘Lisztomania’ and yet the energy levels of the crowd never dropped until their last song of their encore (a revved up dance improv with Jay Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. joining in for some shredding) was further proof of the surprising depth in their catalogue. Performance wise they’ve obviously consulted friends Daft Punk before this tour (the robots came on and did a song with them in New York recently) and some of the song mashups that peppered their set were reminiscent of Daft Punk’s seminal ‘Alive 2007’ shows but played out by a conventional band.

We finished the night by catching a little bit of Animal Collective over of the main stage at 3am. The last time I saw them here, headlining in 2011, I walked away a bitter and disgruntled fan questioning his blind allegiance as they played only a couple of recognizable songs and spent the majority of their performance road testing new material (an admirable artistic move but for me poor play in terms of the inherent responsibilities of playing a headline festival set). What I saw of them this time round was much better if still a little ‘Centipede Hz ‘ heavy. They’ll always be a strange band live for me, equally capable of giving intoxicating performances of inventiveness and bliss (see their takes on Fireworks circa 2007) or being a total borefest.

Sparklehorse

This morning, via twitter, I was made aware of the sad fact that it has now been 3 years since the death of Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse.

Sparklehorse made 4 albums of sad, angry but above all beautiful music. Whenever I return to their 1995 debut LP, the tongue twister titled ‘Vivadixiesubmarrinetransmissionplot’, I come away with the realisation that it might be one of my favourite albums of the 90’s. From the aching lullaby waltz of opener ‘Homecoming Queen’ to the tape hiss laden ‘Gasoline Horseys’ it’s a record I can never imagine tiring off, one of those special albums where I find something new or different sounding to appreciate every time I listen.

The lyrics of Sparklehorse are a surreal mix of inventive images, a rich tapestry of fairytale phrases, pop culture references and self referential wordplay that beg to be explored, examined and interpreted. For the most part they’re delivered in an awkward and brittle voice, barely rising above a soul bearing confessional whisper. A voice which could make something as inane as “Pretty girl, milking a cow, oh yeah” sound like the most heartbreakingly melancholy thing you’ve ever heard.

Mark Linkous’ greatness was perhaps most recognised amongst his peers and the long list of musicians who appeared on Sparklehorse albums (Thom Yorke, PJ Harvey, Tom Waits to name a few) and who participated in his final work, the ‘Dark Night of the Soul’ collaborative project with David Lynch and Dangermouse, are testament to how highly regarded and respected he was.

It’s been touching to see so many tributes paid to Mark Linkous and Sparklehorse today. They are a band I hold very dearly. There appears to be a film on Mark in works and the people who are making it have started a crowdsourcing campaign to fund its development. I really hope they’re successful in getting it made, not just for my own enjoyment, but also so more people can be introduced to such a wonderful and special band.

Music Diary 2012 – Sunday

Next to no music today. I listened to a bit of The Weeknd’s ‘House of Balloons’ mix tape whilst walking to my parents and back. I’m really quite taken with this guy and can’t wait to see him live next month in Porto.

The Weeknd – House of Ballons (MP3) – Hi-Fi

I never listened to anything the rest of the day though I did watch ‘Trainspotting’ and ‘City of God’, both of which, in addition to being amazing films, have excellent soundtracks. ‘Trainspotting’ in particular has one of the most iconic and recognisable soundtracks of the modern era. It’s best known for its use of Lou Reed’s ‘Perfect Day’ and Iggy Pop’s ‘Lust For Life’ both of which were invigorated with a new lease of life and popularity amongst a younger generation on account of their inspired placement in the film as well as Underworld’s ‘Born Slippy’. The rest of the film is littered with inspired musical selections; from Eno’s ‘Deep Blue Day’ which accompanies Renton’s bizarre toilet swimming scene to Pulp’s ‘Mile End’ which encapsulates the bleakness of Renton’s London apartment beautifully. I also totally forgot about how good the Blur track ‘Sing’ is. ‘City of God’ has a great and very fitting soundtrack as well although most of it I don’t know.

I then went and watched the football.

Music Diary 2012 – Saturday

Not much music on Saturday. Well, that’s not necessarily true but most of the music I heard, or put on, was of a purely functional background nature.

I the morning I headed out to the Indian supermarket. On the bus there and back I listened to Deerhunter – Rhapsody Originals. As I mentioned earlier in the week I’ve been on a bit of a Deerhunter binge recently and this live session has been blowing me away. Unfortunately I never managed to catch the band on their most recent tour and the session is mostly drawn from ‘Halcyon Digest’. ‘Desire Lines’ is as epic as one would imagine and is bookended with a ripping run through of ‘Hazel Street’. The highlight of the set is an epic rendition of ‘He Would Have Laughed’ which surpasses the studio version and powerfully demonstrates that when this band is on form they’re as good as anyone going.

Deerhunter – Rhapsody Original (MP3) – Headphones

In the evening some friends came over for dinner. They’re not really too into music so I just had stuff playing on in the background on the Sonos.

 

Pantha Du Prince – The Bliss (lossless) – Sonos

Beastie Boys – Pauls Boutique (lossless) – Sonos

The Knife – Silent Shout (lossless) – Sonos

Music Diary 2012 – Friday

Morning commute

Isis – Oceanic (Spotify) – Headphones

I missed the whole movement of metal bands integrating a Post-Rock ambiance and mentality into their music because it seemed to happen at a point when I’d become adverse to anything that got called Post-Rock. Isis seem to be the pick of the bunch though and I’ve really enjoyed the two or three albums of theirs I’ve bought.

Commute home

Gizzly Bear – Veckatimest (Spotify) – Headphones

After listening to Daniel Rossen’s EP earlier in the week I’d been craving some Gizzly Bear. They’ve promised a new album this year and if it’s anywhere near the quality of ‘Vekatimest’, which I’m sure it will be, it’ll be guaranteed regular rotation by me.

Evening listening

Silver Jews – Starlite Walker (Vinyl) – Hi-Fi

Random choice, as with all the LP’s this evening. I tried to pick out stuff I haven’t heard in a while. I have a few Silver Jews albums. I really enjoyed the first one I bought ‘American Water’ and picked up a few more on the back of that. Their debut ‘Starlite Walker’ has emerged as my favourite. Probably the most Stephen Malkmus (Pavement) heavy of the ones I’ve listened to.

Belle and Sebastian – If You’re Feelings Sinister (Vinyl) – Hi-Fi

I hadn’t listened to this in years. Listening to it I was surprised by how much the aped the rockier ‘Foggie Notion’ side of the Velvets almost as much as the twee ‘Stephanie Says’ sound.

Ryan Adams – Heartbreaker (Vinyl) Hi-Fi

Another one I haven’t heard in years. I’ve always through Ryan Adams has as classic LP in him but he’s never really fulfilled that potential for me. ‘Heartbreaker’ is as close as he got.

Elliot Smith live bootleg (CD) – Hi-Fi

Elliot Smith covers of ‘Don’t Think Twice’ (Dylan), ‘For No One’ (The Beatles), ‘These Days’ (Nico) and ‘Supersonic’ (Oasis) – (MP3) – Hi-Fi

The melancholy of Heartbreaker resulted in my listening to a beautiful Elliot Smith bootleg that I have from just before he killed himself. It’s always tragic to hear music that so clearly prefigures a death and many of the songs in the set, most of which later came out on the posthumous release ‘From a Basement on the Hill’, are haunting in how autobiographical they are. ‘Twlight’ in particular is a harrowing, close to the bone portrait of drug addiction, depression and how even a bit of hope and potential can sometimes not be enough for someone to find a will to survive. After listening to the bootleg I browsed around a folder I have of Elliot Smith covering various other bands and artists ranging from obvious artistic kinship’s like Dylan, The Beatles and Nico to surprise choices like Oasis ‘Supersonic’ which he introduces with the a plea to the audience asking no one to be pissed off for him playing it.

Music Diary 2012 – Thursday

The release of the long awaited My Bloody Valentine remasters was bound to dominate the listening of many people participating in music diary 2012 and it’s a testament to how much of a touchstone they continue to be for so many that this week has basically been one big Valentine’s love fest. I had the remasters on pre-order since they were given a genuine release date a few months ago but decided to cancel my order at the last minute on account of Kevin Shields remarks in a recent Pitchfork interview that he expected vinyl issues to be out within a “couple of months” (though by now I should know better that to trust Shields’ time frames on anything). I listened to ‘Loveless’ in its entirety on Sunday night along with the first few tracks on ‘Isn’t Anything’ and a few off the EP’s. This morning on the journey to work I decided to go back to ‘Isn’t Anything’ and give it a full listen. I must admit that throughout the years I’ve been guilty of neglecting it. Whenever I’ve had the urge to listen to MBV it’s usually been ‘Loveless’ and if not that then the ‘Tremolo’, ‘Glider’ or ‘You Made Me Realise’ EP’s. Listening to ’Isn’t Anything’ this morning I was reminded of just how gobsmacked I was on discovering the band so many years ago. It’s a shame that its destined to forever live in the shadow of ‘Loveless’ because it’s a great album in its own right and it was a joy to rediscover it. So this morning as I made my way through the pouring rain I was reminded of how wonderfully menacing that guitar squall that opens ‘Cupid Comes’ is, that the beginning of ‘No More Sorry’ is one of the most beautiful things ever and that MBV in general used to play things that resembled actual songs, with discernible lyrics an all.

My Bloody Valentine – Isn’t Anything (Spotify) – Headphones

Lost In Translation Soundtrack (lossless) – Hi-Fi

After writing a little about My Bloody Valentine I settled down at home in front of the stereo and flicked through the ‘Lost in Translation’ soundtrack. I was mainly interested in hearing the Kevin Shields tracks after reading today’s illuminating interview with him in The Quietus where he directly addressed his post-Loveless inertia quite frankly. ‘City Girl’ is the most song-like of his contributions and is nice enough and suggests what a modern day MBV might sound like, even if the song itself lacks substance. ‘Goodbye’ is a beautiful slice of brief guitar ambiance that brings to mind early Eluvium. Shields other two tracks are nice enough but merely short mood-setting pieces that function well in the film but feel a bit flat and lifeless when removed from Sofia Coppola’s lush imagery. I didn’t really listen to much of the rest of the soundtrack and skipped the majority though the Death In Vegas track is still pretty great and it was a welcome surprise to hear Jesus and the Mary Chain’s ‘Just Like Honey’ as I haven’t heard it in ages.

Belong – Common Era (Vinyl) – Hi-Fi

Random selection here. I picked this up last year and was entranced by its sound which reminds me of a mixture of My Bloody Valentine fuzz and Faith-era The Cure greyness. Another interesting, and out of the norm, release on the flawless Cranky records.

Four Tet – Pyramid / Locked (Vinyl) – Hi-Fi

Two semi-recent tracks from Four Tet. I really can’t wait for him to drop a new album. Simply one of my favourite modern day musicians. His last full length ‘There is Love In You’ was his most dance oriented release so far and ‘Pyramid / Locked’ picks up nicely where it left off with a similarly organic electro sound.

Monster Magnet – Superjudge (CD) – Hi-Fi

Picked this one out after being drawn to its CD spine. I was a big Monster Magnet fan as a teenager when most of my music taste was dominated by Metal and Hard Rock. There’s not much from that era that I still listen to but Monster Magnet’s early LP’s still get a spin every now and then and whenever I listen to them I find myself impressed by just how well they’ve held up where a lot of their contemporaries now sound dated. Their debut album ‘Spine of God’ is my favourite thing they put out and is easily one of the most deranged and genuinely psychedelic albums I’ve heard. It’s follow up ‘Superjudge’ is a bit more restrained and not as drug addled (though it’s still druggier than 99% of all other music) and a change in lead guitarist which took place between the two LP’s had a subtle but distinct impact on the band’s sound finding them sounding a bit less Stooges and a bit more Heavy Metal. ‘Cage Around the Sun’ is a stoner classic and features typically deranged lyrics from front man Dave Wyndorf. ‘Twin Earth’ is a flanged out fuzz stomper that recalls Spacemen 3 in style if not direct sound. Cult stuff, worth checking out if your unfamiliar.

The Verve – Gravity Grave (lossless) – Hi-Fi

Just the one track here and probably my favourite Verve song, although the EP live from Glastonbury version is the definitive take on it. I was one of those unaware of the Verve until the release of their mega selling ‘Urban Hymns’ album in 1997 and though I picked that album up on CD I never really got into it. A couple of years later I started hanging out with a new bunch of friends and found myself at a party where someone put on ‘A Storm in Heaven’ and I sat there in a chemical induced stupor totally mesmerised by its brilliance. Follow up ‘A Northern Soul’ is great as well and I’d rather just forget everything that came after that thank you.

Beach House – Bloom (lossless) – Hi Fi

Still loving this new Beach House LP. It’s truly great. So good I’m not sure what to say about it.

Jens Lekman – Oh You’re So Silent Jens (lossless) – Hi-Fi

I listened to the first three tracks on the Jens Lekman album as I hadn’t heard him in ages. I wasn’t really feeling it though so turned it off and went back to listening to some My Bloody Valentine.

My Bloody Valentine – Loveless (Analogue Remaster) – Hi Fi

I listened to Disc 1 of the ‘Loveless’ remaster in light of discovering that it’s actually the long awaited half inch analogue tape version rather than, as advertised, Disc 2. I definitely heard a difference in the mix with the keyboard parts in particular being given a new lease of life and audibility. I agree with Shield’s interview statements that in the analogue version it sounds more like the album is being played by a band rather than assembled from countless different overdubs. The analogue version also sounds more like what My Bloody Valentine were like live when I saw them a few years ago. The roaring airplane guitar (as I call it) which is present on most tracks had an increased sense of physicality about it on the analogue version and I think it also demonstrates the sheer volume of the band in a way that the previous issue of ‘Loveless’ had obscured. I’m not sure if I necessarily prefer it to the remastered digital version however. While it’s great to hear the album with this level of clarity and (relatively clear) instrument separation the digital version, with its blurred sound where everything kind of meshes together into one big heap of sound seems closer to the albums original aesthetic. Either way it’s been a pleasure to have reason to listen to the band again in such detail.

Music Diary 2012 – Wednesday

Television – Live at the Old Waldorf (Spotify) – Headphones

No music at all today until I left work. On the way home I listened to Television’s ‘Live at the Waldorf’ release which came out on Record Store Day as a limited issue a few years ago. I’d love to snag a copy of it but unfortunately it sells for silly money online these days, such is the beauty and wonder of RSD. I only heard it for the first time recently when I looked it up on Spotify on account of high praise it was drawing on ILX. I’d previously listened to Television’s sole other official live release, ‘The Blow Out’, as well as a bunch of bootlegs I’ve downloaded over the years. Sadly the poor sound quality of everything I’d heard before ‘Live at the Waldorf’ had managed to somewhat obscure and ultimately deter from so the often proclaimed brilliance of Television live. ‘Live at the Waldorf’ powerfully evidences the force that they could be live. The sound is excellent and the performances simply outstanding. It captures the band in 1978, touring on the back of their seminal debut ‘Marquee Moon’ and just prior to the release of their largely underwhelming follow up ‘Adventure’. Shorter album cuts like ‘Venus’ and ‘Friction’ are played with sparkling intensity but it’s the two longest songs on the album, cult non-album favourite ‘Little Johnny Jewel’ and the bright shining star that is ‘Marquee Moon’ that steal the show. I love when ‘Little Johnny Jewel’ breaks momentum around the 6 minute mark and Tom Verlaine starts picking away at a phrase that sounds like it’s about to burst into ‘House of the Rising Sun’ before cranking out one of his signature lead-as rhythm-riffs as Richard Lloyd summons his guitar to soar above. ‘Marquee Moon’ is treated to a similarly epic arrangement and afforded plenty of room to breath in a performance that to my mind at least equals if not surmounts the majesty of the album version.

Wolf Parade – ‘Semi Precious Stone’/’Agents of Love’ (mp3) – Headphones

I polished off my walk home with a couple of Wolf Parade tracks in the form of their final web only double-single ‘Semi Precious Stone’/’Agents of Love’. Despite not being bowled over by it on its initial release their last LP ‘Expo 86’ was an album I seemed to find myself coming back to frequently. Nonetheless I was relatively indifferent to the news that followed that the band were calling it a day as I felt that the various side projects they had maintained throughout the life of the group had become, at that point, equally, if not more, compelling. ‘Semi Precious Stone’/’Agents of Love’ is however a welcoming reminder of just how powerful Wolf Parade were as a unit and made me a little more mournful about their passing. Spencer Krug penned ‘Semi Precious Stone’ ranks amongst the best songs he wrote for Wolf Parade and there’s a moment towards the end, where Krug plays a mean fuzzed up organ phase which leads into a searing guitar line by Dan Boeckner that seems to be ushering the song to a close before exploding back into life; it’s a quite remarkable moment for me, one that really demonstrates how effectively the two compliment each other’s songwriting in a way that’ll be missed. Boeckner ‘Agents of Love’ is punked up rallying call of discontent in the usual style that evokes sort of alternative universe version of Bruce Springsteen. The last Handsome Furs album was great but marked a shift away from the kind of urgent guitar playing that had previously characterised his usual style to a more exclusively electronic sound and for me the guy is best with a guitar strapped around his neck thrashing away with passion. Krug’s Sunset Rubdown seem to be on indefinite hiatus and although his Moonface project is proving to be conceptually inspired the stuff he’s put out been only OK, and usually I’m a sucker for anything he touches. Surely these guys haven’t burned out. I hope not. I hope that in time ‘Semi Precious Stone’/’Agents of Love’ may be considered as a fitting, near high water mark, eulogy to how great Wolf Parade were rather than a  saddening reminder of how good they could be.

Sharon Van Etten – Warsaw (lossless) – Headphones
Sharon Van Etten – Give Out (lossless) – Headphones
Lotus Plaza – Strangers (lossless) – Headphones
Grimes – Infinite Without Fulfillment (intro) (lossless) – Headphones
Grimes – Genesis (lossless) – Headphones
Grimes – Oblivion (lossless) – Headphones

Random playlist of recently released stuff that I listened to while writing most of this. On the Sharon Van Etten LP I absolutely adore the first 3 tracks and struggle with the remainder of it. I find it especially painful when the guy from Beirut appears which is strange as I don’t mind Beirut normally. The Lotus Plaza album I really like although I’ve been holding off it until I get it on vinyl. I have listened to it a fair bit on Spotify whilst out and about though and while it’s actually pretty great I do fully endorse the Coke Machine Review write up of it which bemoans that underneath all that lovely reverb and hazy ambiance there’s not really much at it’s heart. Fair enough though, it’s candy for the ears. The Grimes album I just don’t get whatsoever; I’ve tried listening to it a bit and though I have warmed to it a little I suppose it’s really just not impressing me much. Musically it has an interesting vibe to it but personally I just find her voice grating and really fatiguing to listen to for anything beyond a song and in the end I always find myself feeling a genuine sense of relief in just turning it off.

New Order – Lowlife (Deluxe Edition) (CD) – Hi-Fi

I fancied some New Order. I’ve overheard people talking about them a lot recently with them playing live again. I chucked this one on mainly to listen to the 12” version of ‘The Perfect Kiss’ which is probably my single favourite New Order song and it really benefits from a couple of extra minutes playing time. I listened to another two or three tracks; remixes and extended versions of ‘Shellshock’ and ‘Sub-Culture’. I switched it off when ‘Shame of the Nation’ came on.

Spiritualized – Laser Guided Melodies (CD) – Hi-Fi

Randomly pulled this one out. I have 3 or 4 Spiritualized albums although there not a band I’ve ever really loved. I like the idea of them and I love Spacemen 3 but there’s something that puts me off them a bit, maybe the vocals. I keep on meaning to listen to them more and I put something on by them every now and again but it never really sticks.

I then left the world of sound for the evening and watched the football before finising writing this. Off to bed now with some mellow tunes and off to sleep.

Bedtime music

Stars of the Lid – Avec Laudenum

The crem-de-la-crem of modern ambient drones.

Music Diary 2012 – Tuesday

Although I did listen to ‘Check Your Head’ in its entirety on Saturday night I didn’t feel like I’d properly paid my respects to MCA and the overwhelming influence that the Beastie Boys had on both me and pretty much everyone I called a friend in the 90’s. Heading out of the door for work this morning I resolved that I’d try to make up for that a little and jam some of my favourite Beasties songs on route. It’s tragic that it often takes the death of someone we admire to make us evaluate their importance to us personally and to be honest, before this weekend I hadn’t listened to the Beastie Boys in years. If you had asked me last week to name the 10 bands that have influenced my listening most over the years I would have reeled off 10 (probably pretentious) names with ease without giving them a passing thought, which is pretty ludicrous and quite shameful. Skipping through my favourite cuts from ‘Check Your Head’, ‘Ill Communication’ and ‘Pauls Boutique’ this morning I felt elevated and amazed by just how brilliant, thoughtful, funny and groundbreaking the Beasties were in their prime. The sad news of MCA’s untimely passing on Friday and the unanimous outpouring of tributes that followed on twitter and message boards was testament enough of the lasting impact the Beasties had on recent popular culture. It was with deep regret that I took my headphones off upon arriving work, I’d have happily walked all morning long and listened to their entire back catalogue from front to back.

 

Beastie Boys Playlist (Spotify) – Headphones

Pass the Mic, Gratitude, Lighten Up, In 3’s – Check Your Head

Root Down, Sabotage, Get It Together,Bodhisattva Vow – Ill Communication

Shake Your Rump, Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun – Paul’s Boutique

After the buzz of the Beasties I was then subjected to a couple of hours in the office with our station select, Radio 2, on in the background. Much as I try to drown out the musical content of Radio 2 I find that I’m just too impulsively drawn towards music to ever truly switch off and completely ignore it. Worst of all I’m particularly prone to ear worms and often find myself mentally traumatised for hours upon hours by some of the pop trite on mainstream radio. This morning we had Bananarama, ‘Manic’ by Michael Sembello and Spandu Ballet. Painful stuff.

A break in the weather and a little bit of sunshine and I grasped the opportunity to walk home rather than take the bus and finish off my Beastie Boy’s listening with a spin of ‘Paul’s Boutique’ in full. No need to extol the greatness of that album here, it’s almost a sui generis social fact by now and with good reason.

Beastie Boys – Paul’s Boutique (Spotify) – Headphones

Daniel Rossen – Silent Hour / Golden Mile (Vinyl) – Hi-Fi

I noticed this in Fopp the other day after having no idea that it existed. I am familiar with Rossen’s side project of Department of Eagles whom I have a couple of LP’s by. Anyway, I’ve only listened to the EP a couple of times and it sounds too much like Grizzly Bear’s ‘Veckatimest’ for me not to like it. Final track ‘Golden Mile’ is a standout.

Upon settling myself down in front of the stereo I pick out a couple of tracks at random to listen to while I figured out which LP to play. I hadn’t heard Dif Juz’s ‘No Motion’, a compilation exclusive song and probably the finest example of their potential, for a while and Burial and Four Tet’s recent collaboration ‘Nova’ has been a regular listen of mines since its March release and is easily one of the most beautiful and captivating things I’ve heard this year.

  

Dif Juz – No Motion (lossless) – Hi-Fi
Burial/Four Tet – Nova (lossless) – Hi-Fi

I’ve been on a big Deerhunter trip recently. I felt like I’d never given their last LP ‘Halycyon Digest’ enough time and it’s been on regular rotation over the past few weeks, during which I’ve become obsessed with its final track ‘He Would Have Laughed’ and in particular a live radio session version of it which is just massive and epic in scope. Although Deerhunter have shown remarkable progression with each release since ‘Cryptograms’, to the point where they’ve probably now assumed the role of my favourite current band, I still love the Ambient-Kraut-Punk of their Kranky debut. The bass lines on the album are great and propel most tracks rhythmically and melodically allowing the reverb drenched guitars to drone away blissfully above. ‘Strange Lights’ and ’ Heatherwood’ are probably most typical of the sound Deerhunter have evolved into with their following releases but its the almost formless drone tracks, like ‘White Ink’ and ‘Providence’, that I find most appealing now. At this point it just made so much sense that Deerhunter would find themselves on Kranky records and I really felt that they took a lot of what I love about the label’s house sound and integrated it into a ‘rock band’ setting.

Deerhunter – Cryptograms (Vinyl) – Hi-Fi

I always listen to music in bed while I drift off to sleep, usually something ambient/modern classical/downtempo electronica. Last night it was Biosphere’s seminal ‘Substrata’ an album that’s eased me into sleep many times. I’ve heard a lot of people make some pretty massive claims about ‘Substrata’ calling it the “greatest ambient LP ever” and “beyond Eno’s vision”. ‘Substrata’ is an album that conjures up images of glacial open spaces and whistling wind. Essential ambient.

Biosphere – Substrata (Lossless) – Sonos