Archive for October, 2009
Weekend Anthem
Saturday, October 24th, 2009
Hometown: Los Angeles, United States
Hear more: http://www.myspace.com/seawolf
Pigeonhole: Arcade Fire, Bright Eyes
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Scotland’s got Talent
Wednesday, October 21st, 2009
Rock bands can boast the most loyal of followers but even the popular ones rarely get much coverage outside specialist media.
The mainstream press prefer to pretend the genre doesn’t exist unless they’re running a story about some troubled teenager, while everybody knows the blogosphere is run by indie kids for indie kids.
Their wilful ignorance is partly justified, though. Rock music is a bit like comedy movies – the majority of it is cliched dross but when it’s done right nothing lifts your spirits more.
The fact that there are so few modern rock groups who are able to run with an original idea and push the genre forward means those who manage to do just that should be hailed as idols with instruments.
Enter BILLY TALENT. They are four albums into their career but the Canadian quartet’s 2003 self-titled second record, in particular, is a listen that never fails to reward. It’s intelligent, hurtles along at a breakneck pace and contains their most memorable choruses – take your pick from Try Honestly, Line & Sinker, Lies and River Below.
They’ll be in Scotland this week. Give them the welcome they deserve.
Billy Talent – Lies
Billy Talent – Line & Sinker
October 23, Barrowland, Glasgow (tickets)
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Classic F.M.
Monday, October 19th, 2009
I am an ageist. I care not for old bands, old movies, old buildings, or old testaments. But every so often a song from a bygone era will come along, shake me out of my wireless bubble and make me look a little more fondly at life pre-1994.
One such song is Everywhere by FLEETWOOD MAC, released way back in 1987 on the group’s Tango In The Night album. The words “pop perfection” are thrown around by critics with such inappropriate regularity that it’s barely worth writing any more, but it really is the only phrase applicable here.
Everywhere begins with the magical twinkling of a synth followed by a cunningly simple bass line and mid-tempo drum beat, before Christine McVie enters the room armed with a question and gives the distinct impression she has written a sad lament for the lost and the losers…
…until, that is, the chorus comes soaring in with fairytale harmonies (if you want to hear just how difficult they are to pull off, check out the Vampire Weekend cover which falls flat at this point) and you suddenly realise Everywhere has turned into a dewy-eyed love song that makes you want to do a nimble shimmy across the bedroom.
So there you have it – we’ve found at least one song that was worth hearing before Weezer released their first album.
Fleetwood Mac – Everywhere
Vampire Weekend – Everywhere
October 22, SECC, Glasgow (sold out)
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