Monday, December 21, 2009

xx - filling with few notes

(From Logan Intl. airport)

London, more precisely South-London, promotes a new indie electro/rock band.
For what is worth, the self-entitled first album of the band has been highly considered by many music publications and end of year reviews. Pitchfork, for example, placed it at the 3rd place of their "albums of the year" list (http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7744-the-top-50-albums-of-2009/5/).
Although the music is simple and "down" to the basics, the rhythm is extremely catchy and laudable. I have always been convinced that some of the catchiest riffs in rock are pretty simple, so simplification doesn't mean mediocrity. Quite another thing, it is probably more complicated to make something interesting out of few notes/instruments.
Anyway, the style is somehow fresh, new and successfully manages to combine some traditional rock/post-punk with dance music. I like their voices and the way they continuously inter-exchange, how they come out together, while using some bass lines or simple arrangements as only filling. There is enough space for silence and echo-back, which recalls some of the best low-fi of the '80s.
The album itself is produced by the band and most of the songs are co-written by the duo Oliver Sim and Romy Madley Croft. Another very young band, they've done an excellent job.

Can't believe some people still complain that there are not enough new good bands/music out.....where do they look? MTV? 2009 has not been 2008, but was pretty good.




More music at: http://www.myspace.com/thexx

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Thom Yorke & Co. in the Basement

Hopefully one day guys I will see you live

Camera Obscura - Scottish indie-pop

Camera Obscura - an indie-pop band from Scotland - are out in 2009 with their forth work entitled " My Maudlin Career".
After more than a decade of music, they finally managed to break through the UK and US charts with this last release ; the music is a pleasant journey through ordinary pains in love and life pictured with naivety and cute tenderness. They remind me some other good Scottish bands, such as "The Delgados", with their easy-listening melancholic tracks. This time hope is just around the corner. I enjoyed listening to it.

First single out:





More music at: http://www.myspace.com/cameraobscuraband

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Power to guitars

!Rock!
Belfast band "And so I watch you from afar" delivers an exciting instrumental album. Guitars lead the scene during a satisfying experience characterized by well-played guitar virtuousness, supported by a solid and persuasive bass & drums line. The music is loud and aggressive, but it offers some breaks here and there.

The album is ambitious and to me it is a success. Well done to the Belfast boys - it was a while since my last listening to a good guitar-hero record! it's not just a show-off of technical skill, the album flows well providing often changes in rhythm, making the album well-worth a listen and avoiding much of the obvious.

A sample, but there's not much on you-tube:



More music at: http://www.myspace.com/andsoiwatchyoufromafar

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Monday, December 7, 2009

Talking about ghosts: Skip

Alexander "Skip" Spence was the Jefferson Airplane's drummer in their first album "Take Off", dated back in 1966.
A take off for JA, but a hard landing for Skipe that after the record never reappeared with JA. He left to found "Moby Grape" and thereafter lost himself in a sad journey to destruction, featuring drug addiction and alcoholism, which brought him far away from the music industry and from the recognition that his immense talent would have deserved.

A discontinuous genius, he left us with a solo album entitled "Oar". JA dedicated him a song in the notorious "Surrelastic Pillow" record, called "My best Friend", and many late contributions include artists such as Robert Plant, Tom Waits and Beck.

Another lost phantom in the history of music.


http://www.myspace.com/apageforalexanderspence
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skip_Spence