2011. Five LPs (and then some).

5. Tassili ----- Tinariwen

4. 21 ----- Adele

3. A Winged Victory For The Sullen ----- A Winged Victory For The Sullen

2. Azari & III ----- Azari & III

1. The Harrow & The Harvest ----- Gillian Welch

Also noteworthy: Laura Marling, British Sea Power, Hannah Peel, Low, SBTRKT, Trembling Bells, Katy B, Grimes, Josh T Pearson, Connan Mockasin, EMA, Arborea, Peaking Lights, Anna Calvi, Cut Copy, Vetiver, PJ Harvey.

2011. Tunes. Twenty of them.

20. Vondelpark "Camels"



19. The War On Drugs "I Was There"



18. Wild Beasts "Albatross"



17. Taragana Pyjarama "Ocean"



16. NZCA\LINES "Compass Points"



15. Tashaki Miyaki "Somethin Is Better Than Nothin"



14. Sarabeth Tucek "State I Am In"



13. Metronomy "She Wants"



12. Cold Cave "Confetti"



11. Jessica 6 "White Horse"



10. Purity Ring "Ungirthed"



9. Tinariwen "Tenere Taqqim Tossam"



8. Polock "Fireworks"



7.  Katy B "Movement"



6.  Connan Mockasin "Forever Dolphin Love (Erol Alkan Rework)"



5. SBTRKT "Pharaohs (Ft Roses Gabor)"



4. Peaking Lights "Tiger Eyes (Laid Back)"



3. Laura Marling "Sophia"



2. Low "Especially Me"



1. Grimes "Vanessa"

Interview w/ DJ Shadow

I interviewed this cool fella for TIFDIY a few weeks back. We chatted dubstep, Thom Yorke and the all-important new record. Read in full here.

Darren Hayman / Emika reviews

Here's a review of Darren Hayman's new record. And here's Emika's.

Interview w/ Ben Howard

Conducted roughly a month ago, published @ This Is Fake DIY.

Venue's Autumn Guide

Below are some little blurbs I wrote for Venue's 'Season's treatings' guide (October issue). Read the guide in full here.

[MUSIC]
1 OCT INDULGE IN GHOSTPOET’S PERVERSE HIP-HOP
Ghostpoet isn’t your average rapper — he’s unassuming, experimental and nearly always attired in a cardigan and thick-rimmed glasses. His glorious, Mercury-nominated debut ‘Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam’ is an inimitable blend of dissimilar sounds: a mellow trip-hop chill and a natural jazz musicality finely glazed with barbed post-dubstep production. Rightly avoiding the constrictive abyss of synth-heavy chart-friendly hip-hop, his slightly awkward style is at once imaginative and charming. Some have crowned him the new Mike Skinner, but his resonant wordplay and stirring lyrics have more in common with early Roots Manuva.
GHOSTPOET IS AT START THE BUS, BRISTOL. FFI: 0117 930 4370, HTTP://STARTTHEBUS.TV

[EVENT]
8 OCT CELEBRATE SMALLNESS AT THE SCHUMACHER CENTENARY FESTIVAL
A two-day event exploring the work and vision of the late, leading ‘green’ ethics thinker E.F. Schumacher, author of ‘Small Is Beautiful’. Lively lectures and debate include Green Party leader Caroline Lucas MP, Radio 4 performance poet Matt Harvey, founder of climate change awareness site 350.org Bill McKibben and co-creator of the Transition Network Rob Hopkins. A concert entitled ‘Small World’ takes centre stage on Saturday evening – performers include Indian percussionist Trilok Gurtu and kora player Seckou Keita. On Sunday, wise up with workshops and watch premières of thought-provoking flicks like ‘The Four Horsemen’ and ‘Future of Hope’.
THE SCHUMACHER CENTENARY FESTIVAL IS AT COLSTON HALL AND THE WATERSHED, BRISTOL. FFI: 0845 4585925, WWW.SCHUMACHER.ORG.UK

[MUSIC]
12 OCT TAKE A RIDE WITH BOMBAY BICYCLE CLUB
Radio 1 A-listers and young gen darlings Bombay Bicycle Club return to Venueland following last year’s sold-out St George’s gig. Second album ‘Flaws’ had been a bold move in a fresh, stripped-back direction – gone was the infectious jangle-pop of old and in its place came mellow banjos and John Martyn covers – but on ‘A Different Kind Of Fix’ we hear them rediscover fun, throttling indie rock ’n’ roll. Expect hook-laden melodies and loads and loads of jumping up and down.
BOMBAY BICYCLE CLUB IS AT O2 ACADEMY BRISTOL. FFI: 0844 477 2000, WWW.O2ACADEMYBRISTOL.CO.UK

[MUSIC]
23 OCT QUESTION EVERYTHING WITH INCISIVE RHYMERS WHY?
Best known for their smart, wry tongue-twisters, California’s foremost alt. hip-hop trio Why? return to our shores for a brief stint backed by a grand piano. Lauded by critics for his melancholic spin on rap, frontman ‘Yoni’ Wolf’s morbid lyrics aren’t for the light-hearted – sex, death and confusion are his stock in trade – but the way in which his effortless wordplay mingles with easy-going electronics makes for a daydreamy, head-nodding delight.
WHY? PLAY COLSTON HALL 2, BRISTOL. FFI: 0117 922 3686, WWW.COLSTONHALL.ORG

[MUSIC]
1 NOV SET SAIL FOR ST. VINCENT
As an ex-member of The Polyphonic Spree and Sufjan Stevens’s backing band, and best buddy of Grizzly Bear and The National (whom she joined on stage at Latitude festival this year), Annie Clark has a CV overflowing with American indie rock royalty. The talented multi-instrumentalist and Twitter queen (400,000 followers – how?!) has so far released three critically adored albums under the St. Vincent alias – ‘Marry Me’, ‘Actor’ and this year’s ‘Strange Mercy’ . It’s twisted artful pop, all dark lyrics, complex arrangements, silvery horns and fluttering harmonies – expect goosebumps.
ST. VINCENT IS AT THE FLEECE. FFI: 0117 945 0996, WWW.THEFLEECE.CO.UK

[MUSIC]
19 NOV SWOON AMIDST WILD BEASTS’ BEAUTEOUS LIVE SHOW
Recently proclaimed “the most inspirational, intriguing, effortlessly enrapturing band at work [in Britain]” by the BBC, the splendour of Kendal’s flamboyant, operatic Wild Beasts has finally cracked the mainstream. Eerie third album and chef d’oeuvre ‘Smother’ has been praised as a dazzling step forward by critics and fans alike. Commanded by Hayden Thorpe’s erratic falsetto and Tom Fleming’s deep quivering croon, underpinned by tribal rhythms and an incessant bass groove, their literate musings are at different junctures funny, sexy and macabre.
WILD BEASTS IS AT ANSON ROOMS. FFI: 0117 954 5800, WWW.UBU.ORG.UK/YOUR-UNION/ANSON-ROOMS

Venue 'Big Gig' feature

 
Originally published @ Venue magazine (and online).

Zun Zun Egui are an exciting enough live prospect, but Huw Oliver’s equally intrigued by the re-emergence of the man with the colourful first name.

A reclusive pop legend making only his third showing since 2006 certainly constitutes a ‘big gig’. Green Gartside has unveiled a revamped Scritti Politti in every decade since their 1976 inception, but in super-sharp contrast to the Duran Durans and Erasures of this world, he always pops up ready with fresh ideas. Anxiety problems and a heart attack after a gig with Gang of Four resulted in stage fright for Gartside – until 2006 he hadn’t performed live for over 20 years – but now you can catch him in a rare live performance supporting Bristol psych-rockers Zun Zun Egui. What to expect? Other than the fact he has a new band in tow, we haven’t the foggiest.

Scritti’s first shock transformation came after a visit to NY in 1984: from DIY squat-hatched post-punk to glossy chart-bothering synth-pop. Stevie Wonder and Miles Davis (whose trumpeting can be heard on ‘Oh Patti’) were newly recruited admirers. In a “life-changing moment” in the late 80s he discovered Run DMC and latterly decided to make an album which spanned all of R&B, funk and reggae. At the time absorbed in self-doubt and secluded in rural Wales, his 1999 LP ‘Anomie and Bonhomie’ was a warped version of rock-rap, whilst his appearance on a Kylie album came as even more of a surprise. His Mercury-nominated 2006 album showed an unforeseen level of acoustic introspection, but in spite of all of these musical shifts, the well-read musician has always instilled the same leftist politics and philosophy into his music.

No one knows whether you’ll be able to yell along to hits like ‘Wood Beez’ and ‘Perfect Way’ or hear new material (he claims to have 100+ songs in the works), boogie on down or marvel at his soft acoustics, but we have an inkling this’ll be a rather memorable warm-up regardless of what’s planned.

As for headliners ZZE, they’re not likely to let you down. Instruments will flail, time signatures will confound and singers will squall Mauritian Creole, French, Japanese and nonsensical English. Not to mention the kaleidoscopic visuals, noodling bass-lines, hard rock riffs and twisted dance moves. Sounding a bit like Femi Kuti covering Captain Beefheart or an even more maniacal Islet, with ‘Psycho Killer’ vocals and the odd math-y Battles-esque intricacy thrown in, debut album ‘Katang’ spans psychedelia, prog, world, heavy metal and every peculiarity between. It drops in early October but this massive album release party comes to Bristol towards the end.

Ryan Adams / Marcus Foster

My reviews of  Adams' 'Ashes & Fire' and Foster's 'Nameless Path' are in October's DIY mag (pages 81 and 82). My complete review of the latter can be found here.

Dum Dum Girls interview

I spoke to Dee Dee from Dum Dum Girls @ TIFDIY in August.

Slow Club / Teeth interviews

Chatted with Slow Club and Teeth for TIFDIY.

Inbetweeners Movie review

This was the first time I've ever written about a film. Originally published here.

"Crude, lewd and unbelievably excruciating. Essentially one long, plot-less episode of pratfalls, scatological one-liners, relentless barrages of expletives and hapless attempts at achieving sexual identity, the same jokes repeated ad infinitum. But what did you expect? A deep, multifaceted, psychological thriller? No – what we have here is a big-screen adaptation which sticks entirely to its formulae. Think equally rude spin-off ‘In the Loop’ but as re-made by Borat for adolescents.

‘The Inbetweeners’’ greatest asset has always been its outstanding characterisation – and the film affirms this. Each of the socially inept protagonists – weedy Will (Simon Bird), blockheaded Neil (Blake Harrison), ungracious Simon (Joe Thomas) and wannabe ‘lad’ Jay (James Buckley) – is superb. Simple musings which reflect these characteristics often entertain: for example, Simon’s idea to visit the Minoan palaces and Neil’s retort that “You can see that shit anywhere”, or his later revelation that “G-O-D” is reversible. But it’s the visual gags which provoke the most laughter – be it their ‘Reservoir Dogs’-referencing swagger in Pussay Patrol T-shirts, the hilarious empty club dance routine or (the laughs of disgust at) Neil’s excrement in the bidet. The recurrent nudity is rather unnecessary, and it's a shame that the storyline’s a bit threadbare and the film frequently lulls.

Having just finished their A-levels, the four hit Crete, resembling “the world's shittest boyband”, as Will puts it. The exposition is thus: Simon has split up with his girlfriend Carly and he needs some cheering up. Neil just so happens to have chosen the same resort as said girl and the result is disastrous. There's no coherent plot thereafter, but the ‘hotel’ owner dangling a dead dog on their arrival is certainly portentous – they have a horrendous time. Things do start to look up as they get friendly with a group of girls and the end is remarkable, if conventional: they all find love. Laura Haddock's role as Alison, Will's polar opposite and eventual lover, and Lydia Bewley’s as Jane, Neil’s spitting image and lover, are particularly impressive.

It must be said Ben Palmer has done a pretty chipper job in transposing ‘The Inbetweeners’ from sitcom smash to blockbuster hit. The script, once again courtesy of Iain Morris and Damon Beasley, is sordid and infantile, but that's what drew most of us to ‘The Inbetweeners’ in the first place anyway. A satisfactory valediction to a satisfactory series."

See No Evil live review

One of the most surreal events I've attended. Originally published here.

"“Welcome to Bristol” reads Tats Cru’s convivial doodle above Café Central. The setting is an urban dream. Formerly drab apartment blocks show off their bizarre new depictions and the streets are festooned with deck chairs and fake grass. A whiff of sausage wafts down Nelson Street. Debenhams is only a few minutes away but all this is the perfect antithesis to last week’s riot. A sense of unity and community is prevalent. The jubilation is almost overwhelming.

Whilst DJ Die and Gus Pirelli bring their lively house-via-funky to the main stage, towering over a multitude of early dancers, Nick Walker’s gargantuan bowler hatted figure empties a tin of paint on top of us. It’s a rather distracting backdrop. Meanwhile, wander past Niels Meulman’s bewildering calligraffiti labyrinth and you discover MC Lil Rhys rapping with Youtube sensation Mr Woodnote outside The Galleries. Together they loop and intertwine beat boxing, suave sax, bleepy electronics and slick whiteboy wordplay with a strangely engrossing outcome.

A mix of UK funky and Beyoncé blares out of the Red Bull vehicle outside the Lanes whilst Shambarber plays electronica and does fine beverage vending business. Arguably the most striking of the installations, Aryz’s plump wolf clad in lumberjack shirt and braces looms high.

The crowd now scopes the whole stretch, and pioneering electro-funk maestro Greg Wilson storms an early headline set. His samples span everything old skool, from a throbbing ‘Another One Bites The Dust’ to an anthemic ‘Getting Away With It’. Bolstered with hypnotic bass loops, undulating piano slithers, ringing cowbells and thudding bass drums, they incite sing-alongs and put-your-hands-up moments aplenty. DJ Milo later rocks it. After-parties ensue. Welcome to Bristol, indeed."

Cave Singers live review

Presently experiencing work at Venue mag. This is my review of a Cave Singers gig. Originally published here.

"Every musician knows that you have to dress to match your sound — and as a hirsute chap in a baseball cap and his three bandmates attired in well-worn shirts come on, we all know that Bristol’s The Short Life Of Gracie are very well aware of this. Their music is the whimsical blind date where Conor Oberst’s drolly dark Americana falls for Belle & Sebastian’s quaint twee: an endearing reflection of their appearance. Underpinned by rolling bass-lines and overlaid with bittersweet Wave Pictures narratives, the natural chemistry between the two guitarists is evidenced by their cooing harmonies and playful riffage. The SLOG are one of two highly impressive preambles tonight.

The second — London-based Deer Park — manage to fill half the room with an enthusiastic crowd. Possessing a witty American croon, frontman Mark Grassick stirs the audience with his literate offhand rants which evoke The Hold Steady’s Craig Finn and Okkervil River’s Will Sheff at their deftest. Keyboardist Jo Shiel provides the saccharine vocal support whilst the contrasting Grassick croakily directs his band through a sprightly set of macabre folk-rock. The affecting ‘Something Here Is Fractured’ and the cacophonous ‘Waiting On A Change’ prove the standouts.

So far, so good, and with the main event looming the Fleece promptly approaches capacity. Excitement heightens as the three Cave Singers set up their gear. And so they start. The audience is rapt. Whether a result of the ineffable noise they make for a trio, the oddly soothing rasps of lead singer Pete Quirk or the genuine warmth which he exudes, we’re indubitably hooked and it’s impossible to stop listing reasons why. Derek Fudesco, ex-bassist in Pretty Girls Make Graves, present lead guitarist in the Singers, is seated in one of those anomalous Robert Fripp postures and manipulates his beaten axe all the while whipping his straggly black mop back and forth. He also controls a bass pedal which fills up their sound with thumping, nod-inducing loops. Intricate percussionist Marty Lund holds it all together, making use of a ludicrously diverse selection of maracas, bongos and washboards.

Most critics have rightly lauded the group’s unforeseen decision to unleash a heavier side on new LP ‘No Witch’. Indeed, the live incarnations of the raucous implicated definitely outshine the mellow rest. The pinnacle is latest single 'Black Leaf' which recalls Seasick Steve in its bluesy garage feel, whilst the similarly triumphant ‘No Prosecution If We Bail' provokes mass shimmying and the odd sing-along. Direct crowd interaction is frequent in the banter between numbers: Quirk cosies up to and amuses the Bristol audience through declaring his penchant for ‘pie minister’, as he calls it, and expounding on his idea of smoking frozen cider. We silently consider giving these eccentrics all the pies and booze they want in return for another performance like this."

Oh Land interview

Interviewed Oh Land for TIFDIY. Topics included nature and antibacterial handwash.

Teeth review

I wrote a couple of paras about Teeth's new EP here.

S.C.U.M. review

 

Read my review of 'Amber Hands' here. 

Latitude Festival — 15 best

I had a great time at Latitude, but I'm now in the midst of a stonking anticlimax. You can check out my rundown of the top fifteen music acts here on Sucking Lemons. Top five were The National, Fool's Gold, My Morning Jacket, Oh Land and Bright Eyes.

Kyla La Grange review

Read my review of 'Been Better' here.

Interview w/ Gold Zebra

Montreal's Gold Zebra were one of the first ever groups I picked out for a new band feature. I still adore them. The French-speaking ice-electro duo (Julie on vox, JP Richards on synths/guitar) and I conversed via e-mail about various topics. Here's what they had to say for themselves. 

GZ, how is life treating you?

Life is good right now. The summer has finally started in Montreal. We played a lot of local shows during the winter and spring time. Now we are taking some time to record new songs and enjoy the nice, warm weather.

For those uninformed readers of Mane Shakin' Folk, how would you describe your music?

We are purveyors of late-night heartbreaking disco noir music.

How did you meet?

We meet 2½ years ago at a NYE party where JP was DJing. We had a couple of drinks and talked about our musical tastes. Not long afterwards, we decided to start playing music together.

Have you always been into performing and making music? 

JP has played music since High School. He's been in various bands predominantly playing guitar. He's also a DJ. A few years ago, after shoulder surgery that kept him from playing guitar for a while, he started to buy and play old analog synths. He also started making music with these at this time. I have always been into music but never really seriously. JP convinced me to sing and so, GOLD ZEBRA was born.

What inspired the release of your debut EP (download for only $3 here) last year?

It was more about exploring and experimenting. When we started the project JP had a good idea of the sound he wanted for GZ, but we had to try different things to achieve it. Through that process, we found an sound completely different to the initial idea but which suited us better. The result was the 5 songs on Debut EP.

My personal highlight is 'Back In The Dust' (above). But what was the instrumentation and production like behind the whole EP?

We made the EP with a very DIY mindset. We wanted to do everything ourselves, from recording to artwork to distributing. It was recorded at home between two moves using analog synthesizers, drum machines, guitars, mics and a computer. Our friends TONY COPS helped us with the mixing and mastering of the songs. Soundwise, the recording is far from perfect, but the essence of our songs is there. I think you have to see the live show to catch the whole experience and get the emotion we wanted to induce.

I'd be interested to find out where exactly GZ's influences lie. Any surprises?

We've been into many different styles of music over the years. From Sonic Youth, Joy Division, Kraftwerk and Human League to Company Flow, Non Phixion and Sole, but we now listen to 1970s french pop, new wave, minimal synth, italo-disco and stuff like that. I don't think there are any surprises. We've been influenced by a lot of different styles which have coloured our music in many ways, but we haven't copied a particular style.

How do you find 'the live show'? Is it more enjoyable or burdening?

We love to play live! Before a show, it's always very stressful, but as soon as we hit the stage, we are comfortable and we give all our energy to playing our songs with emotion. The aftershow when people come  to give us comments and feedback is always good. It pumps us for the next show and helps us improve. 

Can you tell us what's in store for GZ in the remainder of 2011?

We are currently working and recording new material. Debut EP is about to be reissued on CD with  new artwork. We will also have a new songs on the VISAGE MUSIQUE compilation that will be out this fall. Also, a 2-track 7" is in the making and a small fall tour will probably follow.

Finally, are there any particular records/artists/labels/etc you especially love at the moment?

You have to check out our new label VISAGE MUSIQUE which features Montreal's finest minimal and Italo acts. Minimal Wave have released a lot of good reissues that we've listened to a lot lately. The Anika album produced by Geoff Barrow and the Blondes EP are also in rotation.

Gold Zebra's new single 'Love, French, Better' was released as a free download earlier today. You can grab it below right now. It's part of a new compilation released by VISAGE MUSIQUE.

Week #26: July Mixtape

Congratulations guys! You've made it to the 26th week of the year! I think it's apt that I now introduce the first ever Mane Shakin' Folk mixtape, essentially a best-of-2011-so-far rundown. It's sick.

Here's what I had to say about it in the about section of the brand new bandcamp page:

Since we're now six months into 2011, 'July' is a collation of the best new music the year has had to offer so far. Track 1, for example, is the best song of 2011 thus far. Flitting frantically and randomly thereafter, we go from hip hop to folk to noise to post-dubstep to grunge to whatever else. I've tried to include something for everyone. Enjoy.

This is who is on it:

1. Grimes - Vanessa
2. Jhameel - Shut Up
3. Hunters - Deadbeat
4. Unknown Mortal Orchestra - How Can U Luv Me?
5. Shabazz Palaces - The Reeping Of All That Is Worthwhile (Noir Not Withstanding)
6. When Saints Go Machine - Kelly
7. Zumo Kollie - It Was on my Mind
8. Stay+ - Young Luv
9. Kris Ellestad - Shame
10. Tom Eddy - Bird Dog
11. Cold Showers - I Don't Mind
12. Niki & The Dove - The Fox
13. Boring Girls - Dream Fluff
14. The Bell Peppers - Bell Pepper Hop
15. Floppy God - An Adult Brought Me Here
16. Elles Infanit - Somethin
17. AlunaGeorge - Analyser (Last Japan's Buy Me A Spaceship And Fly Remix)
18. Bos Angeles - Beach Slalom
19. Arborea - Careless Love
20. Blithe Field - Crushing

So, there you go. Stream all twenty tunes below and download them for free here. The wonderful artwork up there was done by my friend Charlie aka Ichnogram.

Interview w/ DOM

I chatted with DOM for DIY Mag. Read online here.

Week #25: Holiday

I'm off travelling in Europe tomorrow, which means there won't be much activity here next week. However, I can promise you the arrival of the FIRST EVER MANE SHAKIN' FOLK MIXTAPE next weekend, which is very exciting. There'll be tunes by many MS'F favourites (Stay+, Shabazz Palaces, Jhameel, Bos Angeles, Boring Girls, Kris Ellestad, Zumo Kollie, When Saints Go Machine and more) all in one free download over on the new bandcamp page. In the mean time, above and below are a few songs which make me want summer to last forever. Adieu!

P.S. If you're a new band and want to be considered for any future Mane Shakin' Folk mixtapes, just drop me a line telling me why on hboliver@hotmail.co.uk

Mix Chopin 'Love Story' EP

Exams are finito. I feel somewhat tingly. I can't think of any better way to celebrate than to bust some moves to Mix Chopin and his unique brand of funked up house. The innovative Torontonian producer has a new EP entitled 'Love Story' and it's groovy-as-hell. Particularly special are opener 'Bonne Nuit' with its pummeling beat and suave slap bass, and 'When I'm With You' which sounds like a bassier, reinvigorated Chic without Nile Rodgers. The EP also features remixes from Robotaki, Darius and Hana Yori Kichou Na. It's out now via Shiny Disco Club Records. Stream below.

Week #24: Kris Ellestad / Fungi Girls

In No Man Is Land, Calgary's Kris Ellestad has created one of the finest LPs of the year so far — a sprawling, folky concoction that commingles emotional vox with a variety of peculiar instruments like langeleiks, munnharpes and hardangers. The result sounds like a less brassy Beirut.  His vocals often reach a beauty on a par with Antony Hegarty ('Shame'), his songwriting in a similar vein to Fleet Foxes ('Another Day'). All in all, it's a thoroughly pleasant listen. Listen for yourselves below. You can download the entire album for only $7 on his bandcamp.

Fungi Girls, raucous upstarts from Clebourne, TX, have a ludicrous number of tunes. Hot tunes at that. Eschewing any clear resemblance to other lo-fi garage bands, they sound as if they've assembled the best parts of LoVVers and Psychedelic Horsesh*t's back catalogues and filtered them through a cheese grater. That's how freakin rock n roll this sounds. Want noise? Need melodies? Crave RAWK? Have a listen to their new single 'Velvet Days' where they sound like a male Dum Dum Girls. Is that conceivable? Stream it below.

When Saints Go Machine review

'They exude a creepy beauty that's rarely seen in contemporary pop'

Read my review in full @ TIFDIY

Inc. 'Swear'

Odd shrill funk from the LA-based duo formerly known as Teen Inc. Released in July via 4AD.

Week #23: Zumo Kollie / Kauf / Country Mice

Zumo Kollie's slick wordplay is the stuff of dreams. Hailing from Providence, RI, he goes deep with a seamless flow and a deft ability to effortlessly discharge his consciousness. On 'It Was On My Mind', backed by slap'n'pop bass, jazzy keys and funky-as-hell horns (production courtesy of D-Man), he already sounds like a superstar: 'everything black and white / so on the average night / catch me wearing ray-bans / avoiding the camera lights', and so he should — he's the best rapper I've heard in a loooooong time. 'It Was On My Mind' is taken from Last Showing, his new LP released on July 11.

Kauf (alter-ego of LA-based DJ Robert Kaufman) is another one of these shady electronic figures.  His musical endeavours are so far encapsulated in only two 5-min-ish tracks: 'Relocate', a bareskinned bassy soul-pop number, and 'When You're Out', another soulful one which kinda brings Miike Snow to mind. They both exude a nostalgic awesomeness, and haven't really been off my stereo today. Listen below and expect big things.

Completing an all-American trio this week we have Country Mice, a band from Brooklyn who create a retro fusion of Crazy Horse-via-White Stripes country rock. Tunes like 'Festival' are just so damn cool I can't get over it. Riffage coming out their ears, this band certainly know how to rock out (see band member playing guitar with cymbal here). A debut LP entitled Twister was released on Monday via Wao Wao Records. You can hear the whole thing over at Spinner right now. It's fab.

Twin Sister 'Bad Street'

Twin Sister, NY indie quintet and creators of one of the best songs of 2010, are back. The scruffy lo-fi we heard on the earlier EPs has ebbed away and in its place comes immaculate production; newbie 'Bad Street', equipped with its disco guitars and synths, resonates like an edgier, funkier Morcheeba. It's lifted from In Heaven, their debut LP released in September via Domino.

Live: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart / Fanzine / The Puncture Repair Kit @ The Junction.

It's a sunny June evening in Cambs and most are confined to wading through notes and writing theses. You'd therefore have thought a gig featuring relatively unknown (on this side of the pond, anyway), 80s-hearkening occultists would receive a pretty poor turnout. Thankfully the scene refutes my preconceptions.

As locals Puncture Repair Kit kickstart proceedings with their awkward, occasionally dissonant brand of fluttering death-folk, the (now) void junction 1 is hardly up for it. Whilst both these guys and the headliners have at some junctures in their careers created excessively twee-resonating sounds with a stark darkness lurking beneath, the incongruity of the PRK's a-bit-too-much-like-Belle & Sebastian acoustics and the ensuing acts' throttling feedback and general abrasion comes as a bit too much of a shocker. The black comedic 'Murder's probably wrong' and 'Dr Freeman', however, through their mix of banjos, fiddly violin jangles and melodica solos, provide a pretty nifty beginning, if a bit mellow and elongated.

6/10

Fanzine, on the other hand, blow the damn roof off, gargantuan riffs galore. Their lung-pummelling melange of slacker-rock and grunge is tight as hell and effortlessly catchy. From the intricate solos and slick 'ooh-ooh's of opener 'Biru' to the chugging, Pavement-recalling 'Beetle Song', the delights just keeping on coming. They seem to have that natural connection on stage that requires no intracommunication and to be one of very few grungey bands who really go for it *ahem* that's NOT you Yuck, you uncharismatic so-and-sos. In a short set brimming with highlights, Fanzine's standouts also come via 'Susan' and 'Kisser', both rollicking odes to lovers that would never be.

I am later swayed by the lead singer (below) to purchase a neat little EP of theirs - only £3! - which turns out to be a lot less sparkling and a lot more DIY, but just as sick as the live experience. All of this comes together to make me wonder, could they actually have outshone the formidable PAINS? Check out cool live videos and more on their blogspot.

9/10

POBPAH, as hinted at above, are as momentous and sexy as ever. In a set which straddles the oldies and the newbies, the room is now (sorta) teeming, which is somewhat relieving. Like Fanzine, the band is unbelievably tight, vivifying the tracks on Belong, their second full-length, as well as resurrecting tracks from their self-titled debut.

'Belong' sounds a lot like Smashing Pumpkins (which is ridiculous really — imagine them playing in front of 500 people!), its throttling beat to-ing and fro-ing in time to the floppy front strands of the drummer's hairdo. Frontman Kip, adorned with a Vivian Girls tee, performs sleek moves during the wistful highlights 'Heart In Your Heartbreak' and 'Come Saturday'. His fiddly riffs are infused with distortion and feedback at each chorus, and although this did become rather formulaic after a while, his lively persona and kooky accent are enough to captivate onlookers.

Tonight, their stadium-sized antics seem rather out-of-place, but that's not their fault. I suppose we'll be seeing them at the O2 in a couple of years time anyway.

8/10

Catcall 'Swimming Pool'

Sydney's Catcall creates slick, dark disco-pop akin to Gold Zebra and Rainbow Arabia. 'Swimming Pool' was released a while back, but only just came to my attention. I love it already.

Week #22: Revision - 11 albums to ease the process

Punch Brothers - Antifogmatic / Punch
These are two gently seguing bluegrass LPs that will definitely not distract you. Compositions and arrangements such as those in 'Blind Leaving The Blind, movement 1' may also provide fruitful ground for comment in a music essay.


Smog - Knock Knock
This is more of a personal one. 'Held' is my favourite track from one of my favourite albums of all time. It's by Bill Callahan (Smog), who is also one of my favourite songwriters of all time. That riff has become so firmly ingrained in my brain that revision can go actually ahead at full steam.


Nicolas Jaar - Space Is Only Noise
This newish album from Parisian bleep-maker Nicolas Jaar is so weird and otherworldly that it kind of distances itself from you. If you have a heck of a lot of revision to do, this will help.


Mono - Under The Pipal Tree
Post-rock behemoths Mono reside in Japan. They specialise in creating ridiculously lengthy jams brimming with reverb, ambience and colour. It also happens that they're rumoured to be playing the lucrative 'Sunday Midday' slot at Latitude Fest this year... so, this tune is giving me something very special to (hopefully) look forward to after exams.


Joni Mitchell - Court And Spark
Joni Mitchell's fluttering harmonies and funky sax fit revision like an egg cup does an egg.


Sarabeth Tucek - Get Well Soon
Sarabeth Tucek's new LP resonates like a more downbeat Breeders effort. This is grunge at its most melancholic and work-friendly.


Marvin Gaye - What's Going On
Marvin Gaye's super-soft vocals, omnipresent strings and damn meaty sax solos exude similarly laid back vibes to the Joni Mitchell album. 'Mercy, Mercy Me' is one of the shorter tracks from his seminal 'What's Going On' work.


Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts Of The Great Highway
Everyone knows Mark Kozelek is a genius. But not everyone has discovered that he's also adept at creating slowly unwinding paeans that provide the perfect backdrop for a little bit of memorising, Maths practice or note-making.


Mazzy Star - Among My Swan
Fuzzy music like this always makes for a neat little revision sesh.


Isolée - We Are Monster
Isolée's 2005 album 'We Are Monster' is my final suggestion. The German microhouse producer makes creates sublime songs like 'Schrapnell', which, as you can hear, is much more upbeat than the other songs I've picked.

Week #21: Lucknow Pact / The Pear Traps / The Chain

I'm almost completely in the dark about Lucknow Pact. Google 'em and you get a wiki page about a semi-known Muslim agreement.  Facebook 'em and you get nothing. Myspace 'em and you'll find a wincey bit of information: they reside in Gothenburg and from there they evoke some pretty damn sumptuous soundscapes. Take 'Waiting In The Sun' for instance, where their vocals vaguely recall Tunde Adebimpe's in their bewildering range. The result is one truely catchy tune. The video which accompanies it is also one of the best (if simplest) promos this epoch has seen. Oscar for the director plz.

The Pear Traps utterly startled me when they arrived in my inbox last week. Who on earth was this perfectly concocted band? Their new self-titled EP was the reason for the revelation. Encompassing FX-laden vox, rolling guitar flickers and a sheer knack for sublime song-writing, it made for an exhiliratingly gloomy listen (in a great Alligator-era The National sorta way). You can stream the EP below, download 'Come Home' for free and purchase the whole EP for only $4 on their bandcamp.

Fetishize your bass really, really bassy? Your bells really, really twangy? Feel like dancing about the room like a rampant lunatic? Get a load of the new 'Lostwithiel' EP from The Chain. It definitely ticks your criteria. The now-legendary R & S label release it soon.

David Thomas Broughton 'River Lay'

Delicate darkness from David Thomas Broughton. 'River Lay' is somewhat akin to Antony Hegarty in its vocal style, but vaguely recalls Tom Waits in its gloom and starkness. Out now via Brainlove Records.

Interview w/ Arborea

Buck and Shanti in London (Cat Stevens)

Arborea create the world's most absorbing folk paeans. Red Planet, their fourth LP, is one of my favourite albums of 2011 thus far. I recently spoke with the duo about its creation, their fascinating background and career so far and their diverse influences.

Arborea, at what point in life do we find you?
 

Buck: At this point Shanti and I have been touring steadily since December of 2006... performing shows, festivals and radio sessions in the US, Spain, Italy, France, the UK, and Ireland.  Red Planet represents Arborea's fourth album along with two compilations that we've created: Leaves of Life and We Are All One, In the Sun: A Tribute to Robbie Basho.  The Leaves of Life compilation was created to benefit the UN World Food Programme which included Fern Knight, Devendra Banhart, Micah Blue Smaldone, Alela Diane, Marissa Nadler.  We Are All One, In the Sun included Meg Baird, Helena Espvall, Fern Knight, Glenn Jones, Steffen Basho Junghans, Cian Nugent, and Iraqi born oud player Rahim Alhaj. The UK based label alt.vinyl will be releasing a vinyl version of the Basho tribute sometime this year.  Musically, I feel like Shanti and I are in great shape and we are really looking forward to touring in support of Red Planet.  We've also finally found the time to start making short films to go with our music.  Our love of film and photography has always went hand in hand with our music and those elements are a huge part of what inspires the music.

Shanti: I feel like we are standing at the edge of a cliff in a vast dark and endless forest. We are hungry and breathless and ragged and heartbroken and crazy in love with being alive. We will jump and fall or we will fly. It could happen at any moment. We could all jump and fall or fly.

How would you describe your music to those uninformed readers of Mane Shakin’ Folk?

B: Arborea's music is really a huge melting pot of our life experience and all our forms of creativity.  Much of the music is inspired by the places we've been or the important moments that we've shared together: our improvisations, our poetry, photography, the landscapes of Maine...our travels in Spain, Ireland, and the UK, our family life and two children.  Our melting pot is made of all kinds of musical elements: Folk forms, Blues, Rock, Experimental...musical elements from America, Ireland, British Isles, Persia and Asia.  Above all, it's about Shanti and I coming together and creating...striving for beauty with lots of space and surreal atmosphere.

S: I try to be honest with myself and hopefully it connects with the listener- I don't make ironic music and I'm not going to pay attention to trends and I'm going to keep writing and playing forever. I guess that doesn't really describe the sound though...dreamy film scores?

Tell us the ‘Arborea story’. Why did you decide to start making music together?
 

B: I've been making music for a very long time, but when Shanti and I got together I knew she had a great voice but she was painfully shy.  It took 7 years of marriage before she finally started to feel comfortable enough to sing around me.  In 2000 we moved from Virginia to Shanti's birth place in Maine.  After moving to Maine there were two primary things that happened which acted as the catalysts leading to the formation of Arborea.  In 2004 Shanti's partents gave us a recording program for our computer, and by that winter she had made me a special recording of her signing for my Christmas present.  The second important thing...that following summer, I knew an important step Shanti's musical development, would be to find her the right instrument to bond with...something that would really inspire her too take things further.  I found the perfect instrument for her birthday that summer...an open back banjo.  That first summer making music was really all about hanging out and improvising, but by the next summer we started to write instrumentals and songs which eventually became our first album Wayfaring Summer.  Most of that album, as with many of our recordings all the way up to our latest Red Planet were written at an old family cabin that Shanti's great grandfather made during the 1930's.  That cabin resides next to a lake beneath two mountains and it's incredibly inspirational to spend time there and focus on creating without the distractions of modern life.  Our latest album Red Planet really represents those pure moments where we've truly lost our selves to creativity.

S: Buck mostly answered this, but also it seemed like the necessary next step in our relationship- a sharing of our creative selves.

How did you go about recording and writing the songs on Red Planet?
 

B: Red Planet was recorded between our home studio and at the family cabin in the Mountains here in Maine.  The Tim Buckley song 'Phantasmagoria in Two' was arranged a couple of years ago, but was actually recorded in Austin while we were there for our SXSW showcase last March.  The songs were really written during different seasons... 'Careless Love' in the Spring, 'Black Is The Colour' in Autumn...even so, I think the album does a good job of sounding very consistent.  Shanti had already written a couple of the songs several years ago... 'Song for Obol' is a good example.  She wrote that very quickly after we returned from a stay in Ireland which followed our appearance at the Green Man Festival that year.  It's a song inspired by the family we stayed with...old friends of mine that I had lived with in the late 90's.  'Arms and Horses' was written after the unexpected loss of her father, during a walk with our children.  Shanti was observing the delicate patterns of the snow and reflecting the fragility of life. 

I wrote 'Spain' while I was longing to return to those moments where Shanti and I were on tour there. Both 'Spain' and 'Arms and Horses' were recorded last summer while Helena Espvall traveled up to Maine and stayed for a week to record with us.  She travelled with Derek Moench whose photographs we used for the album.  Derek is also responsible for making the video for 'Phantasmagoria In Two' (below).  The day before we headed to the cabin, we took Helena and Derek to one of our favorite places on the Maine coast.  That's where all the imagery for the album was created.  We were all just hanging out along with our two children...having a great time and without the intention of creating something for the album.  At one point Shanti handed Derek our red filter.  Shanti had made a staff with driftwood and bark from a Birch tree and was carrying it around. The cover of the album came together from those elements.  We didn't even know that photo existed until Derek sent us a disc with all the photos.  When we were going through them, I saw that photo and just instantly fell in love with it and thought it would make the perfect album cover. 'A Little Time' started with Shanti playing that rhythmic figure on our tenor ukulele and singing a fragment of the vocal melody.  At the time I was in another room and I heard her fooling around and I ran into where she was and told her to keeping playing it.  Then I suggested a few notes to expand the melody and told her to keep playing it.  I then grabbed some paper and the words just instantly fell onto the page.  At that point the album was already finished, but we liked the song so much that we quickly recorded it and put it at the end of the record. There's also a hidden track at the end...another piece Shanti created in memory of her father.  The title track 'Red Planet' was created by me combining and mixing layers of improvisation...which included the harmonium, hammer dulcimer, electric guitar, and our friend Frederic Oberland from Paris sent us some tracks of bowed electric guitar that he improvised over the harmonium track I emailed to him.  One important thing to emphasise is that when we are recording, we're really working to create the perfect atmosphere and mood.  We are also attempting to slow time down...especially, in this digital age where information (and ourselves) end up traveling at light speed...the real goal we are hoping to achieve is almost a state of suspended beauty like you find in a painting (or in a film)!  Something you can spend a long time with... pondering all it's colours, motion, and depth.

S: We wrote the songs over the period of a few years as a reflection of our experiences and time spent with amazing people and our misadventures. We recorded the songs ourselves and with the engineering help of our friend Derek on 'Spain' and 'Arms and Horses'. We have an old cabin on a lake in the mountains in the western part of Maine. My great-grandfather built it during the Great Depression - it's just a small camp, a place for the family to go fishing and hunting and now it belongs to the whole third generation family- we share it by writing our names on a calendar when we'd like to stay there. There's a screened in porch that overlooks the lake and mountains and at night you can see all the stars of heaven and hear the loons calling out from distant lakes - their song echoing in the wilderness. I got really good at calling back to them and they would come to our lake to try and meet the strange sounding loon that I was pretending to be. I would stand on the dock with my head thrown back and making this crazy lamenting sound and I could hear them splash into the water and come swimming towards me- it was so surreal.  Helena Espvall played the Cello on Red Planet and she recorded at the cabin with us. One night we were all in the cabin and she took her cello out on the dock and sat on a stool and played to the lake, beneath the moonlight. Those moments are all a part of what inspired us during the recording of the songs.

I hear semblances of various singer-songwriters such as Marissa Nadler and Joni Mitchell in your sound, but from where do you actually draw your influences?

B: We have certain artists that we really enjoy to listen to, but the influences in our music are really based around improvisations and the exchange of ideas between ourselves.  Instrumentals might stem purely from improvisation or even the resonance and overtones of the banjo or guitars in low alternate tuning.  Songs might begin with just a fragment of a melody, which leads to one of us adding to that, and then it goes back and forth until a song or piece of music is created.  The rugged landscape of Maine and just being outside in the mountains or along the coast is a huge inspiration for our music.

As for music that has had an influence on us... I'd say that the impact others have had is more peripheral and inspirational.  The Doors are definitely an inspiration.  The sensual and visual side of their music and lyrics...dark, expansive and evocative.  Also, when I first started thinking about Shanti and I making music...the June Tabor and Martin Simpson album A Cut Above was an archetype from which I drew inspiration...the ability to creative such a dramatic soundscape through just voice and guitar.  Those songs and recordings are intensely mystical and so well done.  Tim Buckley's music has been a huge inspiration! Jimi Hendrix, Robbie Basho, Skip James, BB King, Peter Green, Chris Whitley, and Jeff Buckley.  Shanti really loved Iron and Wine's Woman King.  Gillian Welch Hell Among the Yearlings is another album that we both love.

S: Mostly just by getting out and taking walks, listening to the world around us. I've actually listened to more Tori Amos than Joni Mitchell, but I can hear those elements too. I think there's a collective consciousness - we're all drinking from the same well.
 

You use a whole host of instruments on the record. Which piece of musical gear do you hold most dear to your heart?

B: For me, Shanti's voice is the dearest instrument.  Her voice is the most important not only for songs that she creates, but even for my own song writing, as I tend to write many songs that are not suited for my voice, but specifically created with Shanti's voice in mind.  The next two things of great importance is the banjo and guitar.  I use the guitar as a voice...thinking in terms of creating dynamic tonal colors with the use of alternate tunings and slide.

The other thing is that Red Planet features a guitar that I designed and made.  I built it extremely light and responsive and the instrument truly has a voice of it's own.  Depending on what tuning I have it in, the notes and various overtones that arise from it inspire music...'The Fossil Sea' and 'Black Is The Colour' being great examples of the sound of this instrument inspiring the performance and music. Shanti's open back banjo and the open minor tunings are similar to my guitar in the way it resonates, so when when the two are combined they sort of create their own orchestra of sound.  We also have a harmonium made in India that is featured on songs like 'Black Is The Colour' and 'Red Planet'.  That instrument is otherworldly sounding.  All of these instruments, with their tonal complexities and the space we put in the music really helps shape and define our sound.

S: My voice is my most beloved instrument. It's a part of me and it convey my feelings, distills my emotions more effectively than any other instrument I have. It's also temperamental and demands to be cared for. It doesn't like it when I yell or cry or stay up too late or drink too much or hang out too long in smoky places and sometimes it just doesn't work at all and I don't know if I will ever have it again-which  leaves me feeling brokenhearted and desperate. I can't go out to the corner music store and buy another one if I break this one. It's that kind of relationship to your instrument that means that you will never take advantage of it and you will always be grateful for it.

What’s in store for Arborea in the remainder of 2011? Any UK tour plans? 
 

B: We are coming to the UK in June after an extensive Spanish tour.  We'll play a show in London, then off to play the Body And Soul Summer solstice festival in Ireland, followed by several shows in Scotland with Two Wings (Hanna Tuulikki and Ben Reynolds). We love travelling in the UK, so we are definitely looking forward to coming back.

S: I would like to endlessly wander, maybe you'll meet us in some quiet corner but I do know that we are playing in London and Scotland in June.

Finally, are there any particular artists/records/labels/etc that you especially love at the moment?

B: More so than music...again, Shanti and I are inspired by films and the ideas of films.  Some of the gorgeous movies made in Japan in the 60's...combining music, sound, film movement...poetry and painting in film .  Kaneto Shindo Onibaba, Hiroshi Teshigahara - Woman of the Dunes, Ingmar Bergman films.  The music we love to listen to includes Tim Buckley, Ornette Coleman, Robbie Basho, Sand Denny, The Doors, The Police, Led Zeppelin, Chris Whitley, Tori Amos, Anne Briggs, June Tabor, Martin Simpson, Nikhil Banerjee, John Coltrane, Peter Green, Cameron de la Isla, Gillian Welch.  Contemporary artists that we love to listen to...many of who are friends and artists we play shows with: Meg Baird, Helena Espvall, Two Wings (Hanna Tuulikki and Ben Reynolds), Fern Knight, Teddy Thompson, Marissa Nadler, William Tyler, Allysen Callery, Plinth, Eric Carbonara and Jesse Sparhawk, Dave Olliffe, Frederic D. Oberland, Matt Bauer, Vetiver, Jeff Zentner, Jeanne Madic, Denise Dill, Glenn Jones, Jack Rose, Sean Smith, The Changing Colors, Micah Blue Smaldone, Jakob Battick, South China, The Pleasants..

S: I wouldn't say I'm in love with anything in particular, but there are lot of bits and pieces that float around in my subconscious. I like the new PJ Harvey record and I'm rediscovering some of the older Tori Amos tunes, and there's a Teddy Thompson record from a few years back that I'm enjoying. I also like the music my friends are making, Jeff Zentner, Fern Knight, Denise Dill, Marissa Nadler, I know so many wonderful people that are making amazing music. I feel like the luckiest person in the world to be surrounded by this kind of creativity and beauty. Also these days we are so bombarded by the outside world (since we are all so connected.) I feel like I am most inspired when I turn it all off and just listen to the sounds of the wind and the birds singing and water trickling over rocks or even off our own breath, taking a deep sigh.... In and out. And in again. 

Red Planet is out now via Strange Attractors Audio House.