indie
theartsdesk in La Rochelle: FrancofoliesTuesday, 19 July 2011
The French national holiday of 14 July might be marked by parades and fly-pasts in Paris, but here on the Atlantic coast it’s the central date for Francofolies, the annual festival dedicated to French music. La Rochelle hosted its first Francofolies... Read more... |
Congotronics vs Rockers, BarbicanTuesday, 12 July 2011
Several of my favourite tracks of 2010 were on Tradi-Mods vs Rockers. This was a musically audacious project in which a bunch of Western pop and rock musicians dared to unpick the intricate fabric of some Congolese bands who were already making some... Read more... |
Death Cab for Cutie, O2 Academy BrixtonFriday, 08 July 2011
It’s not so much cultural differences that have hindered Death Cab for Cutie’s UK profile, it’s more the difficulty of making a name when “there just couldn’t be less scandal surrounding the band”. Or so guitarist Chris Walla feels. In the States... Read more... |
CD: Nouvelle Vague – Couleurs sur ParisTuesday, 05 July 2011
French interpreters Nouvelle Vague have a seemingly unsustainable path. Reinterpreting Anglo songs of the post-punk and new wave eras in unlikely semi-easy-listening settings (bossa nova, reggae, country and bluegrass) would appear to bring... Read more... |
theartsdesk in Montréal: Les Francofolies de MontréalSunday, 19 June 2011
Montréal natives The Arcade Fire sing in English. Yet 65 percent of the Québec city’s population have French as their first language. Les FrancoFolies de Montréal is Francophone Canada’s annual celebration of non-Anglo Saxon music. This year, big... Read more... |
CD: Bon Iver - Bon IverMonday, 13 June 2011
Well, he’s certainly moved on from his log cabin. It’s three years since Justin Vernon’s group, Bon Iver, released For Emma, Forever Ago, the quietly powerful indie-folk album recorded during a bitter winter in his father’s remote Vermont cabin –... Read more... |
Q&A Special: Electronic Musicians BonjaySunday, 05 June 2011
A potent combination of growling electronics, sub-bass frequencies and expressive vocals seems to have moved back to the centre of the UK's pop landscape in recent months, whether via the likes of James Blake, Magnetic Man or even the unlikely... Read more... |
CD: Battles - Gloss DropFriday, 03 June 2011
They started as a band of hyper-accomplished musicians aiming to play fiddly electronica in a guitar-band format and thereby creating a rather witty new kind of progressive rock. Now, minus key member Tyondai Braxton but plus a few leftfield star... Read more... |
Fleet Foxes, Hammersmith ApolloWednesday, 01 June 2011
Music folklore has it that this band from Seattle changed their name from Pineapple back in the hazy days before their debut album went platinum because frontman Robin Pecknold thought Fleet Foxes sounded like a weird, outmoded English sport - a bit... Read more... |
Disappears, The BorderlineWednesday, 01 June 2011
Sometimes you stare at live bands and question why they bother. It’s a pact - the band plays, the audience looks on and claps. Last night’s debut British show by Chicago's Disappears raised that question. The night before, they’d played Amsterdam’s... Read more... |
CD: Arctic Monkeys - Suck It and SeeTuesday, 31 May 2011
"I poured my aching heart into a pop song/ I couldn't get the hang of poetry": a line from the title track of the Arctic Monkeys' fourth studio offering, Suck It and See, pretty much sums things up really. The new album is a poppy selection of... Read more... |
Sonic Youth play London – almostTuesday, 24 May 2011
Next Tuesday, 31 May, will be a day of difficult choices for fans of New York’s Sonic Youth. London is hosting three separate shows by band members and associates. That evening their mainstay guitarist, Thurston Moore, plays the Union Chapel. SY’s... Read more... |
