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Day: 3 December 2013

Police find body in Withington

Written by Aidan Gregory on . Posted in News.

Police and ambulance crews discovered the body of a man outside a block of flats in Withington shortly before 2pm today (3rd December), following reports from members of the public.

Police cordoned of the scene, on Tatton Grove, next to the Red Lion pub on Wilmslow Road, for two hours. An ambulance and forensic van came and went.

A police officer at the scene told The Mancunion that the circumstances were “not being treated as suspicious at this stage.”

The identity and age of the man remains unknown to the public. Detectives have begun an investigation into the circumstances of his death.

Cornerhouse Pick of the Week: Jeune et Jolie

Written by Angus Harrison on . Posted in Film.

Many may find François Ozon’s Jeune et Jolie, just a little bit ridiculous. On the surface it performs its stereotypical duties as a French movie perfectly. Sections of the film divided by the music of Françoise Hardy, cigarette smoke billowing out of Parisian windows, self reflection and sensuality. If this film was, as it may appear, about sex and prostitution then it fails to answer many questions about these subjects. Marine Vacth, who plays the films lead Isabelle, is perfectly positioned as both vulnerable yet disarmingly beautiful, yet her escapades as a call girl result in her learning very little about the dark side of the sex trade.

The films emotional stakes are also strangely muted. When her mother and step father are made aware of Isabelle’s practices, the drama doesn’t change in pace as one would expect. Instead they absorb the information, and build it into their complex familial dynamic. It was at this point in the film that I, watching on, realised that perhaps it wasn’t a movie about sex at all – rather a movie about age. Isabelle is a 17 year old who decides to become a prostitute after a rather disappointing holiday romance. From this point on, all the men she sleeps with are far older than she is. The value they see in her is shallow, her youthful beauty and purity. Yet this dynamic reflects poorly on her clients in her encounters with them. Her innocence makes them seem far older and more grotesque. Even the more sympathetic client, Georges, who we learn enough about to almost like, appears sallow skinned and selfish.

Yet Isabelle’s youth and beauty is not always portrayed as innocent. The older female characters view it as something altogether more dangerous. Her mother does not understand where she went wrong, and even becomes jealous when she overhears a flirtatious exchange involving her husband (Isabelle’s step father). Family friends become equally nervous around her, not wanting to leave Isabelle alone with their partners. She becomes a constant threat; no longer naive, now knowing.

Isabelle’s trajectory is one of skewed maturity. Towards the beginning of the film Isabelle’s mother tells her that she too was rebellious in her youth. At this point her mother has no idea that her daughter is a prostitute and is merely hoping to encourage her to get out more. She wants rebellion, but within reason. As an audience we are similarly fooled by the beginning of the film that shows Isabelle in a suit, gliding through a hotel foyer. She looks older, with make up and formal clothing. At a glance it would appear that this is perhaps two or three years later, showing Isabelle in a career. We then discover that the time passed is only a matter of weeks. This new level of sophistication makes our previous assumptions hard to recognise. Much like the seemingly ridiculous French film about sex, that matures beyond recognition.

Album: Tegan and Sara – Heartthrob

Written by Ruby Hoffman on . Posted in Music.

Released 29th January, 2013

Warner Bros

5.5/10

Canadian indie pop duo Tegan and Sara’s latest album, Heartthrob, is quite the departure from previous albums. More electro pop than indie rock, they seem to have distanced themselves substantially from their roots. However, as catchily flowing as Heartthrob is, the almost total loss of the sound that defined the duo throughout their many past albums is a shame, as it seems they’ve shifted into one of the all-too-many radio-ready and pop-friendly groups of the 2010s.

There’s a sense of bitterness and longing radiating through the upbeat electronic beats of Heartthrob (see tracks such as ‘I Was A Fool’ and ‘How Come You Don’t Want Me’). One thing Tegan and Sara have not lost is their honest, relateable lyrics, which are best articulated on tracks like ‘Now I’m All Messed Up’, with lines such as “Now I’m all messed up / wondering where you’re leaving your makeup” or ‘Goodbye Goodbye’ (“I can’t live with / all these things I would say”) that any angst-ridden teen or twenty-something could easily play on repeat. Still, there seems to be some confusion between what could be dance floor anthems if not for the fact that their content encases such a negative sentiment.

Another flaw in the album seems to be this one track mind of the lyrics. Heartthrob doesn’t seem to adhere to any sort of storyline progression, ending on the track ‘Shock to Your System’ in which the last line reads “What you are is lonely” – essentially summing up the entire album, and the song itself isn’t that exciting rhythmically either. As cliché as it sounds, all the songs sound the same, and while I’m all for progression and development in bands, it’s a shame that a band that’s been around as long and accumulated so much critical claim as Tegan and Sara has come to this.

Interview: Pokey Lafarge

Written by Jamie Bulman on . Posted in Music.

You may have seen Pokey Lafarge’s set on Jools Holland’s NYE Hootenanny a couple of years ago, or on David Letterman. He has caused waves in the world of contemporary Americana with his progressive and unique blend of American roots musics. His music links archaic styles such as Polka, Calypso, Ragtime, Country blues and Appalachian folk with early Jazz, to create a theatrical performance which transports his audience into another era. He is supported by a five-piece band of virtuosic multi-instrumentalists playing antiquated instruments such as the washboard and kazoo, alongside brilliant brass and wind players. I picked Pokey’s brain about revivalism and the peculiar quality of the old, as he picked at Southern fried chicken in the green room of Manchester’s Gorilla before the evening’s show.

This dynamic character looks like he has just stepped out of a smoky 1930’s Jazz club, rarely appearing without a 3-piece suit and tie. On stage he plays the role of both musician and entertainer, and his caberet-esque jests with the crowd at Gorilla embued the modern venue with the swinging vibes of a speakeasy. “I’ve always liked music that has a lot of character. I wanted a bouncy feel, and jazz goes along with all of that” Pokey tells me. With the addition of the wind and brass for Pokey’s latest eponymous album, the music takes on a more playfully jazzy feel. “Being a bandleader and a songwriter will entail a certain amount of ambition and vision, of course. The fact is I’ve been wanting to play with a bigger band ever since I started making music, it’s just more colours to paint with.”

Conversation strayed to the marginalization of ‘old’ and authentic ‘folk’ musics in preference of contemporary styles at European festivals these days. “We played some big festivals this summer, and we’ve been getting great exposure and exposing people to music they would never otherwise hear” Pokey explains. “I think it’s refreshing for them, especially when you go to these festivals and you’re just hearing guys with laptops. It’s so often like a wall of sound geared behind a singer and a product, and not always necessarily rooted, sincere and honest expression.”

“You hear me play, you know I’m from America” Pokey offers. He is proud of America’s rich musical heritage, which stems from the cultural melting pot that emerged as settlers from Europe brought their own music that over time merged with the native musics of slaves from Africa. A prime example of this was the introduction of the guitar, brought to America by Spanish immigrants, to African folk songs to form the key ingredient in ‘the blues’. The echoes of this fusion can be heard in almost all contemporary music. “You’re not going to hear a lot of West African music, or calypso or Latin music at festivals these days” Pokey muses, “because of course in the Western world, in the most sincerely humble way, American music does reign supreme. Thankfully I think there’s a reason for that.”

I quizzed Pokey about his formal dress and the old-fashioned style of both his clothing and his music. “Some things just happen to have been unfortunately popular in the past, for example a higher standard of dress and appearance. To me it just seems like common sense. It’s a manner, and a matter of having respect for yourself and the people around you.” Pokey is more interested in heritage and history than vintage: “people are concerned with where their food comes from, and it’s the same with music and dress. Is that a vintage thing? Fuck no. It’s just common sense.”

Despite using old styles of language and standard folk and blues references, songs such as ‘Close The Door’ from his latest self-titled album take a contemporary political stance, in this case critiquing the privatised health service in the States. Pokey doesn’t want ‘to confuse anybody: “Lyrics should paint a picture that people can understand. I have things that I want to say, I want it to be like a conversation.”

The gig at Gorilla was a real tour de force of instrumental prowess and rebellious authenticity in an age that has marginalised ragtime and swing music. But Pokey Lafarge and his shoestring band don’t just give the music a new lease of life. Speaking to Pokey truly was like stepping into a time machine. He profoundly embodies the style and values of a simpler time, and is truly devoted to bringing old music to new ears. American depression-era music has never felt fresher; I recommend you check it out!

Live: Gold Panda

Written by Olly Mitchell on . Posted in Music.

26th November

Gorilla

9/10

For an electronic artist, it is refreshing to see Gold Panda take on an evening show akin to bands. For the standard that artists should make electronic music, then DJ or play a live set late at night in a club, he truly is in a league of his own. For this live show is much more than DJing his own tracks off his laptop and twisting a few knobs. He strips back his original productions to the bare bones and restructures them fully, Derwin is busy and engaged for the duration of the show. He is a shy character, not darting his eyes up once to measure the crowd’s reaction or seek any kind of approval.

His album released back in June, Half of Where You Live was met with mixed reviews. I personally put that down to the fact its complexity requires a few listens to interpret and appreciate what he’s trying to portray. He opened with ‘We Work Nights’ and ‘Brazil’, rousing the room with additional anthemic ornaments. His tracks have been described as a kind of musical storytelling, and his live versions gave these stories a fresh context and different characters. The recurring edit he would make were new segments towards the end of tracks. They sounded so unrelated to the main body that I was fooled into thinking it was a new track coming into the mix. He would then deliver a reprise of the chorus – it was delightful in so many ways.

The highlight for me was his live rendition of ‘You’, one of his hits from Lucky Shiner released back in 2010. He tapped the riff out live on a pad, screwing with it, even pitching it down to the original sample from which he sculpted it. He played through a variety of edits of the main sequence and bridges, each sounding as fresh as the next – the atmosphere peaked by the final reprise. I must note that something wasn’t quite right about Gorilla’s sound system; it lacked the power from subs to really deliver the warm sweeping bass lines featuring on Gold Panda’s tracks and was lost in the overhead PA speakers as a muffled roar. I can’t take anything away from him, only from Gorilla. He has successfully brought live electronic music into an evening show context, moving his work away from the late night clubs where live electronic music is usually showcased. He has separated himself from the pack and I hope other artists follow his lead.

Top 5 Songs… about Clothes

Written by Bernadette Chapman on . Posted in Music.

Chris de Burgh – Lady in Red

Electric drums, the gentle guitar riff played with overbite, classic synth, and Chris’s smooth ‘mmmms.’ You cannot get any better. Literally; it’s Partridge endorsed you know.

Weezer – Undone (the Sweater Song)

Made when Weezer were on the precipice of the frat-rock genre. If only they stopped at this song about pulling a sweater thread until there’s nothing left, instead of going on to record ‘Beverley Hills.’

Velvet Underground – Venus in Furs

‘Venus in Furs’ is drone music with a mysticism fetish and very few chords. It sonically aches with its story of love and obsession.

The Cramps – I Wanna Get in Your Pants

Imagine the dancing in Dirty Dancing was actually as sleazy as everyone in the film pretended it was and multiply by a factor of surf. Perfect rock ‘n’ sleaze.

Pissed Jeans – Caught Licking Leather

I have no idea what they’re on about. The drums march on, but everything else bleeds in and out of the track in a fantastically noisy fashion. Brilliant.

Opinion: Why Everyone Should Listen to Jazz

Written by Nathan Pigott on . Posted in Music.

Listen to a conversation on any bus on the Wilmslow road bus corridor on a Monday morning and you’ll be beguiled by stories of students’ hedonistic weekends. Most often the conversation turns to “how sick the DJ was at the house party” and a discussion of the various genre-defying mixes that emanated from the oversized rig ensues. Yes, we take the music we hear on nights out very seriously, and a culture has evolved where people go to house parties to hear a specific DJ.

Here in Manchester we’re lucky to be able to experience great quantities of quality dance music almost everywhere we go, but how many of us actually think about where it comes from and what it actually is? You may be able to guess where I’m going with this.

If you think about it, practically all the dance music we come across is in some way indebted to jazz. Sounds like a sweeping statement, but starting with Disco each consequent movement has taken an element from jazz and incorporated it into its sound, from the obvious sampling of jazz breakbeats in hip-hop to the more subtle incorporation jazz harmony into deep house.

I’ll illustrate this with some examples. Why not start with one of the first ever disco records? Manu Dibango’s ‘Soul Makossa’ (1972) is a prime example of how jazz rhythm has influenced dance music. Here we see the emphasis placed on 2 and 4 of a four beat bar, rather than the typical 1 and 3. This has been an important feature of ‘swing’ rhythm in jazz from the 1930s onwards.

Moving on 40 years and elements of jazz are used by many House, Techno and Trance musicians. Examples range from the explicit sampling of jazz musicians themselves (such as in St. Germain’s album Tourist) to the more subtle incorporation of swing rhythms into most Techno tracks (that certain bounce you can hear is what a jazz musician would call swing) – I could go on but word limits are restricting so you’ll have to trust me.

But why does this mean that you should listen to Jazz? Isn’t it outdated and elitist, and anyway that’s why we’re seeing so many modern reinterpretations of it? Put simply, no. The reason why you should listen to Jazz, like so many of your favorite artists have, is because many of the themes and underpinning concepts behind Jazz are still relevant today. Rebellion, anger, oppression; these are the things that make it so exciting and so current.

Jazz has inspired musicians of consequent generations. Surely this must be down to the fact that they felt something within it is so valuable that it must be preserved for anyone who hans’t been exposed to it?

So, go to Matt and Phred’s on a Monday Jam night to see the local talent (there’s lots!) and go find out which jazz artists inspired your favorite DJ to see what kind of Jazz you may be into. I promise you’ll be intrigued, if not delighted.

From the Vault: Slint – Spiderland

Written by Jack Winstanley on . Posted in Music.

Released March, 1991

Touch & Go

With Slint playing one of two ATP headlining shows in Manchester’s Albert Hall last Thursday (28th November) then going on to play ATP’s End of an Era Holiday camp at the weekend, this seems a better time than any to look back at why Slint were such an important band.

Formed from the ashes of seminal punk outfit Squirrel Bait in the late 80s, Slint put out their first release in 1989. Recorded by Steve Albini, Tweez was an interesting albeit imperfect album, straddling the line between Squirrel Bait and what was to come, leading to what was ultimately a bit of mess, despite the meticulous Albini’s presence.

Nonetheless Slint persevered, and in 1991 they released their masterwork. Comprising of six tracks and running for a total of just 39 minutes, Spiderland wastes no time achieving its vision. Each track contains a fully realised narrative (barring the instrumental ‘For Dinner’, which sounds like a precursor to Radiohead’s ‘Treefingers’). Vocalist Brian McMahan mumbles his way through each story, accentuating the words with strained singing on the beautiful ‘Washer’, or even turns back to his hardcore days such as the shouts on ‘Nosferatu Man’ or the famous “I miss you” refrain that ends the album.

Instrumentally, each track features intricate interplay between each band member, with the guitars weaving in and out of each other as they explore their sonic palette. To a synesthete, this music conjures only black and white, the photograph taken by Will Oldham that adorns the cover acting as a gateway to Slint’s beautiful, creepy world.

Many vouch for Spiderland’s influence on the creation of post-rock yet, much like Talk Talk’s later work, there are very few instances of others really trying to work with the Slint sound besides perhaps Chavez, Mogwai and fellow Kentuckians Rodan. Slint contains within itself an entire reality, one designed not to evoke necessarily positive feelings, but for one to immerse yourself in and think.

Spiderland is a vital document of underground music at its most challenging yet listenable, and will forever remain a timeless and singular work.

Interview: MS MR

Written by Harriet Leitch on . Posted in Music.

I catch MS MR after a British-style blowout Sunday lunch before their show in the evening in Academy 3. Despite feeling slightly lethargic, they seem eager to tell me about the band. They reminisce about the last time they were in town: “We did a show in Manchester in the middle of summer and it was so hot that we literally melted” Lizzy says smiling, “but it was one of my favourite shows I’ve ever played with the most energetic crowd, I even stage dived”. Max cuts in to add, “well yeah, you could say that, I looked on twitter after the show and someone had posted ‘the show was so great and Lizzy landed on me’ [they laugh].”

Lizzy and Max both attended Vassar College in New York, but it wasn’t until after they graduated and got back in contact that MS MR was eventually founded. This was only in 2010, and they’ve achieved a lot in the last three years, the last two of which have been touring worldwide. Max says “We’ve been on tour for two years and we only have two weeks left. I’m looking forward to getting home, but we’ve had the best time”.

But in their recent rise to success, they haven’t forgotten their humble beginnings. Max explains; “We had a keyboard, a laptop and one microphone and that was it” and Lizzy adds “We didn’t even know we were going to make a record. It was just me and Max in Max’s closet turned studio”. With this, Lizzy turns to me and continues “We were doing it around our day jobs. I think that pressure of time meant that we had to be really focused and efficient. So we didn’t really know we were a band until we had a collection of songs and we were like “Wow”. So we put out and EP and started getting some industry attention and then things sort of…snowballed”.

Interestingly, the band was signed having nearly a full albums worth of songs already up their sleeves. “We got signed and went to the studio and we already had the tracks so all we had to do was mix the record. It was a very powerful position to be in because we’d had the opportunity to completely define our musical and visual aesthetic ourselves before bringing other people into the process” says Max. Their dedication and hard work paid off and their debut album Second Hand Rapture, released in May 2013, received a very positive reception.

They both agree that they’ve really captured MS MR’s identity in the album. Their pop sound is distinctively defined by their dark wave sensibility and catchy melodies. Lizzy describes her lyrics by suggesting they are “often philosophical or introspective and metaphorical”, and says “I’ve even pulled inspiration from things like Gothic literature [laughs]”, all of which have contributed to the almost eerie style of captivating tracks like ‘Bones’ and ‘Dark Doo Wop’ that appear on the album.

“There are a lot of styles, genres and time periods that we draw from and are inspired by” Max suggests, emphasising that “we pride ourselves on being a mixed media and collage orientated band”. This forms a particularly unique facet to the band, evident from their Tumblr which chronicles some of their inspirations and influences, serving as another creative outlet in addition to the music. “It started as a tool to help us define our aesthetic and now it’s continued to be an on-going mood board that’s been with us from the very beginning” Max concludes. “The music comes first, and that’s where our interest is dedicated”, Lizzy interjects, “but I think it’s fun to see how your vision can be executed across different platforms to develop and extend the identity of the music and the band”.

As part of their busy tour schedule, the pair performed at festivals throughout the summer. In amongst their summer highlights, Max says “We had an amazing time in Splendour in the Grass in Australia, it was wild. There were thousands of people there and they all seemed to know the lyrics” and Lizzy adds “it was definitely our Beyoncé moment.” And when I ask them which festival they enjoyed the most, they pause, look at each other and unanimously declare “Glastonbury”. Lizzy says “It was awesome. Chic were my favourite, honestly it was so much fun. All different age groups full on dancing all together. It was just so much fun”.

It seems that MS MR have been busy for so long they’ve forgotten what it’s like not to be touring. They’ve been soaking up every minute, however, and are excited to see what is in store for the band in 2014.

Live: Crystal Fighters

Written by Matthew Staite on . Posted in Music.

23rd November

Academy 2

10/10

Crystal fighters have sold out Academy 2 for tonight’s gig, and if the dance music blaring out of the speakers before they have even come on stage signals anything, tonight is going to be electric.

The six band members enter the stage, immediately launch into ‘Solar System’ from their first album, Star of Love, and the crowd erupts. Crystal Fighters have a punchier live sound than on their records, with pulsating bass and synths, which makes the whole gig feels more like a rave than a concert. They move on to play two more older songs ‘Champion Sound’ and ‘I Do This Everyday’, featuring intense drumming on the txalaparta, a wooden xylophone-like percussion instrument played by two people standing face-to-face, and the song is a perfect demonstration of Crystal Fighters unique blend of folk blended with dance music. As the band hurl themselves into one song after another, this party is showing no signs of stopping. We are treated to seven new songs from the bands second album Cave Rave, and ‘You and I’ stands out as one of Crystal Fighter’s best songs yet.

‘Plage’, perhaps the bands most well known song, brings the biggest reaction of the whole set before the band head off stage. The crowd have a few minutes to catch their breath, before the band run back onto the stage and throw themselves into ‘I Love London’. Finishing song ‘Xtatic Truth’ is the perfect climax to the night, and sees everyone in Academy 2 go mental one last time. Crystal Fighters did not disappoint. They struck the perfect balance between playing more dance heavy material from Star of Love, and material from Cave Rave, which is clearly more mature. The whole show feels like you are invited to a Crystal Fighters party, and the atmosphere on the night doesn’t wane at any point.

Interview: iTCH

Written by Sam Woodgate on . Posted in Music.

“Everyone else is taken- you can only ever be you, and once you figure out who you are- which takes a while- and you put that out and you bring something new to the game people take to you… I’ve never been here to just have my 15 minutes of fame; I’m here to leave a legacy”. To some it may come across as trite, but the conviction with which Johnny ‘iTCH’ Fox speaks dispels any preconception of bravado that would normally accompany such a statement.

His claim is as convincing as it is ambitious; given his penchant for unconventionality, it’s perhaps a shock to many that The King Blues wound up breaking into the mainstream, with their third album ‘Punk & Poetry’ cracking the Top 40 and their music being featured on televised adverts. Success for iTCH has come through individuality- his spoken word pieces, for example, are a breath of fresh air for a generation who have grown up without any mainstream examples of the format.

iTCH attributes his initial interest in the genre to seeing punk poet Attila the Stockbroker live; “I saw how vulnerable he made himself and it really touched me. The whole reason The King Blues started off acoustic was so that people could hear the words; it was really important to us that the lyrics came first. If you’ve got lyrics that are decent and you can spit them as a spoken word piece I think people will take to it.”

The former King Blues frontman might have swapped the folk-punk of old for a more urbane approach as of late, but his attitude towards the music he makes hasn’t shifted an inch. When asked about what punk rock signifies on an individual level, he responds that “to me punk rock has never been about 3 chords and shouting; it’s always been about an attitude and a way of life and how you see things. Being politically engaged to me is vital when it comes to punk, otherwise it’s just a throwaway word that means nothing.”

iTCH is certainly well versed in the political and activist side of punk. Fans of The King Blues will remember their acoustic march to the Houses of Parliament as a statement of intent from a band that genuinely had something important to say. According to iTCH, there’s definitely a gap in the market for artists that are willing to talk politics with their fans. His claim that “no-one has really come in and filled that spot [left by The King Blues] of being a politically outspoken band” simply reiterates the uniqueness of his trade.

For iTCH the desire to make a difference does not come solely from music. He describes The King Blues as having been “activists first, musicians second”, and although there may not be a King Blues mark II on his radar, he still holds faith in the youth of today.

“We’re told that this generation doesn’t care about anything, but this generation has thrown the largest anti-war marches we’ve ever seen. We’re told they just go on Twitter and take selfies but at the same time they’re organising the massive anonymous and occupy movements which are done over social networking. I’d hope that there are kids out there that are pissed off who are going to make music with something to say.”

Life for iTCH isn’t all about bandanas and marches, however. He describes his summer in The States as part of the legendary Warped Tour as “a real honour” which not even a broken leg could dampen. “I did the whole thing in a wheelchair which physically was a challenge… it was pretty tough, but as a tour it was amazing.”

The show tonight is itself part of a Warped Tour package whilst also constituting iTCH’s debut solo headline tour. The man himself doesn’t seem fazed by the drop down from the festival stage to sweatbox clubs and instead seems to relish the idea of a fresh start. “The last couple of years of the King Blues felt like we were going through the motions a bit. Now I’m back to really enjoying it again and I’m revelling in touring once more; I’m a bit older and I appreciate it more now.”

“When [The King Blues] started out there was always a threat of Nazi skinheads turning up or the police shutting it down; it was that kind of danger that I weirdly enjoyed. After that it just felt a bit safe.”

Circumstance has cut short the lifespan of many artists, but iTCH seems adamant that he’s in it for the long run. “I’ve based my entire career on not following trends and not following fashions and I’m here 11 years later. I think that’s because I’ve never gone with what everyone else was doing- once you do that and you try to catch up with what other people are doing it’s too late.” It’s not unreasonable to think that as long as he continues to plug away in his own way- as he did the first time around-history may well be on the verge of repeating itself.

Live: iTCH

Written by Sam Woodgate on . Posted in Music.

20th November

Roadhouse

7/10

It’s a fairly miserable evening on the streets of Manchester, but thankfully there’s some warmth to be found inside the walls of the Roadhouse courtesy of ex-King Blues frontman iTCH. His seamless mix of rap beats and deft punk lyricism has brought a small yet passionate following out to play, and when he hits his flow their faith is rewarded in style.

For the uninitiated, iTCH’s newfound hip-hop sound might seem like a drastic departure from the folk-punk vibe of The King Blues, but there’s still plenty of righteous anger to be found amidst his new approach. ‘Spooky Kids’ is a hectic burst of reggae-infused dubstep which has heads banging and bodies skanking from the word go.

Elsewhere ‘Homeless Romantic’ fizzes with pop charm before letting loose a shimmering chorus that sees the crowd find their voice in fine style. iTCH is a feral blast of energy on stage, making his presence further felt by joining his audience on the floor for a song. There’s no sign of nerves from iTCH on his first UK headline tour as a solo act as he drops a spoken word piece in the middle of his set without so much as a stutter. It’s a strong show of confidence which goes down a storm with those assembled.

It’s not a show meant to please everybody- the lack of any material from his King Blues days is clearly a disappointment for several members of the audience- but tonight is ample evidence to suggest that iTCH has more than enough substance to succeed as a solo act.

His refusal to rest on former glories is refreshing in itself, but the results of his choice are even more endearing. iTCH has well and truly found his voice and it’s now only a matter of time before the masses sit up and take notice as they did with The King Blues.

Album: Eminem – The Marshall Mathers LP 2

Written by Dan Whiteley on . Posted in Music.

Released 5th November

Shady Records/Interscope

7/10

In the world of rap music, few events are as hotly anticipated as the release of a new Eminem album; having sold close to a quarter of a billion records, he’s remained one of the world’s most influential pop culture icons ever since he inspired outrage and adoration alike with his breakthrough record The Slim Shady LP. Since then, his work has always seemed to follow a strong thematic thread, with 2002’s The Eminem Show being followed by Encore, as well as the extended narrative arc of Relapse and Recovery. Within this ongoing narrative, The Marshall Mathers LP 2 is his first direct sequel, reflecting on – and paying tribute to – what is perhaps his best loved set of songs. The decision to release a second instalment of the album that inspired a nation to “not give a fuck” was undoubtedly a risky one, and while it will never have the impact and appeal of the original, TMMLP2 is largely a worthy follow-up.

Opening with the ambitious seven minute murder story ‘Bad Guy’, a continuation of The Marshall Mathers LP’s landmark single ‘Stan’, the dark and at times uncomfortable tone of the original is re-established early on. ‘Brainless’ and ‘So Much Better’ continue to harken back to the vintage Eminem sound, the latter of which being the latest example of his infamous misogyny. However, overall, the album is surprisingly eclectic musically, thanks in part to the large rotation of producers, most notably Eminem himself and Rick Rubin. Singles ‘Survival’ and the Beastie Boys-inspired ‘Berzerk’ are refreshingly modern and upbeat, signalling that his celebrity-name-dropping-in-a-funny-accent tendency in his lead singles has mercifully come to an end. ‘So Far…’ and ‘Love Game’ are some of the most fun and light-hearted tracks he’s released in years, whilst ‘Legacy’ and ‘Headlights’ – a startling and affecting apology to his mother – are exactly the kind of frank emotional outburst that has won him the trust and respect of his listeners for the last two decades.

That being said, as with most of Eminem’s recent records, the definite highs are accompanied by some cringe-worthy lows. First and foremost is ‘Stronger Than I Was’, which straight off the bat is the worst thing to happen to music since the Crazy Frog; a soppy Bieber-esque piano ballad that sees Em’s nasal whine of a singing voice take centre stage for five wince inducing minutes, it’s both out of place and unnecessary. ‘Asshole’ – the other main culprit – sounds tired, with a flat, uninspired chorus, and filled with dated Insane Clown Posse and Gwen Stefani disses; a minor offense, but it’s hard to imagine the Eminem of old being so out of touch.

The Marshall Mathers LP 2 works as both an album in its own right and as a companion piece to the original; overall, it’s a welcome change of pace from the self-help preaching of Recovery and, despite its flaws and the inevitable comparisons that will be drawn, it’s at least good to hear Eminem start having fun again.

Album: Death Grips – Government Plates

Written by Jack Winstanley on . Posted in Music.

Released November 13th, 2013

Third Worlds

7/10

13 months, 13 days and 13 hours after the controversial release of last years NO LOVE DEEP WEB, Death Grips dropped Government Plates onto the internet for free. This time however there was no prior warning that the album was in the works, no media fanfare surrounding battles with Sony and certainly no phallus adorning the cover. This time, much like with their debut mixtape Exmilitary, Death Grips are allowing their new album to speak for itself.

So what does the new album have to say for itself? Well honestly, nothing that its older siblings haven’t said before. If nothing else, Government Plates could be described as the quintessential Death Grips record. By decreasing the running time to 35 minutes they have seemingly curated the most distinctive aspects of their sound- complex, primal drums, dissonant yet catchy hooks and of course MC Ride’s inimitable flow- and created something like a Death Grips for Beginners. Tracks such as previous single ‘Birds’ or the opening track (with a name far too long to print) exemplify this culmination of their albums, and even demonstrate a newfound accessibility beyond their hooks, with MC Ride’s restrained, playful verses in ‘Birds’ marking a welcome change in tone.

Ultimately though, these factors act as both the album’s primary strengths and its biggest shortcomings. 35 minutes is a great album length, but it leaves no room for filler, and Government Plates certainly has its fair share throughout its second half. Moreover, whilst the choice to build on existing ideas is a welcome one, it has led to a decrease in new ones. For a band that have so far provided a challenge with each album, this one feels like a bit of a stagnation.

Much like Kanye’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Government Plates feels like a waypoint, a chance to reflect on all that has preceded it and push those sounds to their limit. Unlike Yeezy’s magnum opus however, this release doesn’t turn the past into something greater than the sum of its parts. However, Kanye subsequently seemed to take a leaf out of Death Grip’s with the dark, industrial sounds of Yeezus earlier this year. Who knows, perhaps Death Grips will return the favour.

Interview: These New Puritans

Written by Oliver Fenton on . Posted in Music.

These New Puritans cannot be second ­guessed. Starting as a four­piece band, they drew influence from hip­hop and electronica. Now, with their latest album, Field of Reeds, they are classical sounding, with flowing melodies, and an added brass section. This unpredictability has made them one of the most revered young bands in Britain. They also have a reputation as enigmatic interviewee’s, but this was not the case when I spoke with lead singer and bassist, Jack Barnett,to discuss how he went about evolving his band, what he liked most about the new direction, and his quirky inspirations.

Despite the development of their sound, not much has changed for Barnett. For him, the new songs involved “a return to how I used to write when I was a kid… when I was 8 or 9 I’d come home from school and write songs on my guitar just for fun, purely for fun.”

Asked of how he decided on the new classical outlook to These New Puritans, Barnett was dead­pan. “I just sat and wrote stuff.  There were about 50 things that could have been on the album. Some of them were fragments, some were finished.”

But how did he decide on the variety of sounds he used? “It’s whatever the song demands. When I’m writing a song, it will just be made up of different instruments and sounds, that’s how the songs come to me. Obviously people focus on things like the hawk, but that’s just because the song demanded that, it’s a musical part. He then divulged, “the motivation with this record was just doing whatever was the most fun; being guided by your instincts kind of thing.” Due to the harmonic depth of the new album, this was hard to fathom, but Barnett explained, “you could play all these songs on piano, if you wanted to”.

When it comes to deciding how to arrange his songs live, however, much more attention to detail is applied. “It will take me weeks adapting the songs to new instruments. Then me and Tom [Hein] will work on the electronic sounds involved. At the moment he’s using a load of stuff, including an Akai z8, an old hardware sampler. It’s obsolete technology but it suits us really well.”

So Jack has retained a made-­in­-the­-bedroom mentality to making music, but he has made this unnoticeable live. ­ “Right now we have a 7 piece band; trumpet, French horn, piano, Elisa [Rodrigues], Tom on electronics, and George [Barnett, Jack’s twin brother] on drums and vibraphone” he said. “Oh, and me. It’s good ­ not too big, not too small. It’s agile but we can still make a big sound. It’s perfect.” The added timbre hasn’t increased stress on Jack, thanks to the benefits of the new band members, especially esteemed Jazz singer Elisa Rodrigues, alongside him. “I enjoy singing live now too because now that Elisa is doing 50% I can focus on my 50% and not try and do everything. I just do what I do. It’s great singing with someone else, suddenly everything slots into place. You get to specialise a bit.” The increased complexity of their sound has, in fact, made Jack’s job easier, more refined. It is possible to get the impression of These New Puritans as something of a one­ man­ band, with all ideas flowing from Jack, but he was quick to point the value of the rest of his collective, “some top musicians, …I really love this band at the moment”.

I then told Barnett that I thought Field of Reeds deserved a Mercury Award nomination, which it didn’t get. “Thanks. I’m fine with it; you win some you lose some. It’s not something that if I was just a music consumer, rather than a musician, I would pay a huge amount of attention to.” Jack was also magnanimous when I asked him his views on the state of British music, he explained “it’s not something I think about too much; I’m part of the tradesman’s class, I’m basically the worker, not the theoretician. I just write songs, try to make them sound good and hope people get something from them.” It is this edge that sets These New Puritans aside, as a band that have a clear direction, who were never going to get second­-album­-syndrome, because, despite maturing their sound and enjoying success, Barnett hasn’t forgotten why he started making music in the first place.

Towards the end of the interview, we got talking about some of his contemporary, and classic, favourites: ‘East India Youth, he’s good, he supported us on a few shows of our UK tour. Good melodies and stuff.’, and, surprisingly, “Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band. I grew up learning those songs.’ And what was the most distinctive moment of his musical upbringing? ‘A re­run of Sparks playing ‘This Town Ain’t Big Enough For The Both Of Us’ on Top of the Pops. Ron Mael is a comedy genius.” ­ These New Puritan’s unpredictability is left intact.

Interview: Eddi Reader

Written by Elizabeth Gibson on . Posted in Music.

With her beautiful and distinctive voice and enduring songs such as ‘Perfect’, ‘Patience of Angels’ and ‘Bell, Book and Candle,’ Eddi Reader has been an integral part of the British music scene for thirty years. Glasgow-born Eddi has proved incredibly versatile, performing solo and in various groups, live and in studio, and singing pop, folk and jazz.

I speak to Eddi just before her gig at RNCM Manchester, the first of a month-long tour of the UK which she is “looking forward to”. She likes Manchester and has visited many times. Eddi is best known to many as the lead singer of acoustic pop group Fairground Attraction. Having spent several years in apprenticeship, busking and doing live work, “in 85, 86 I was looking for a band to get a deal.” So Fairground Attraction was born and spawned a number one album, The First of a Million Kisses, and the iconic song she describes as “my hit”: ‘Perfect’, which reached number one in the UK, Australia and South Africa.

Sadly, the band only lasted several years, breaking up in 1990. Eddi describes it as, “Just one of those things – didn’t last too long, but we got an album’s worth of material or an album and a half’s worth,” – the latter referring to Ay Fond Kiss, an album recorded alongside their first and released after the band broke up. She values her time performing with Fairground Attraction as it meant she was “left with an audience” for her own material.

She released her first solo album, Mirmama, in 1992, and in 1994, her second solo album Eddi Reader reached number four in the UK. She received a BRIT for Best British Female in 1995. She has since released seven more studio albums and her next, Vagabond, will be released in February 2014.

I have found Eddi’s music dances between folk and pop, with a clear Celtic influence. When I ask what inspires her, she says much of her inspiration comes from the singing and dancing of “drunk people at New Year’s Parties” she attended when she was young. I ask if she feels music runs in her family and she thinks it certainly does, telling how she found out that her great grandfather sang Robert Burns songs as well as music from England, Ireland, Hungary and Russia.

Eddi herself recorded an album of Burns’ poems put to music. Not liking the school system in London, and not wanting her sons to be educated there, she moved back to Scotland in the early 2000s. “Home is home. I felt very distant in London.” It was around this time that she recorded Sings the Songs of Robert Burns, in celebration of Scotland’s Bard, which received much praise.

When it comes to collaborations, Eddi has worked with musicians such as Annie Lennox and Alison Moyet, and has had a long song writing relationship with Boo Herwerdine, who will play guitar with her on tour, who she sees as “a great guy and a great songwriter” and “a solid rock” for her musically. When asked who would be her dream collaborator, living or dead, she gives late American band leader Nelson Riddle, as she thinks they could achieve some interesting things together.

Eddi has no doubt achieved great things – three BRIT Awards, an MBE, and a number one single and album with Fairground Attraction. She cites her proudest achievements as managing to get through her sons’ teenage years and getting honorary degrees from four different universities.

I ask about her favourite song to perform, and she replies that it varies – at the moment she enjoys ‘Dragonflies’, ‘Mona Lisa’, ‘In Ma Ain Country’, and ‘Vagabond’, the latter is the title track of her next album.

My final question – why does she think human beings invented music? It isn’t essential to our survival, so why have we kept it all these centuries? Her response is very touching. “I don’t think we invented it; it just happens, like breathing. It’s the one instrument we all carry around: we slap our knees, we snap our fingers. We didn’t invent music – we may have invented how to make money from music, but music was given to us.”

It has been a true honour to interview such an incredible artist, and I wish her all the best for the rest of her tour, and for what promises to be a very bright future.

Review: Parkland

Written by Jack Crutcher on . Posted in Film.

Parkland is a film that tells an all too familiar story. The assassination of the 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy,  has been mythologised and tediously picked over numerous times on the big and small screens. However one thing each and every rendition thus far has had in common, is that they all sing from the identical hymn sheet as those that preceded them.

When you look at the greatest success stories in the film industry over recent years, those that have taken all of the plaudits are the ones that feel fresh, provocative or even those that seek to challenge complex and difficult subjects (think Slumdog Millionaire or The Hurt Locker). And it is this high bar that ensures the safe road Parkland has elected to take will prove to be nothing less than a recipe for failure.

With this in mind, you might have thought in the era of Occupy, Wiki-Leaks and the NSA scandal, director Peter Landesman will have aimed to put a less sanitised spin on those infamous events in Dallas – both for the sake of his fledgling career as a Director (this being only his second film in the hot seat), but also for the sanity of film fans everywhere, who are unfortunately set to contend with another re-hash of the mother of infamous story.

This being said, the conformity of the story told is not this films’ biggest problem. Its greatest pitfall is its refusal to add any meaningful depth to the main-characters, and hence you find yourself in a constant struggle to emotionally invest in their subsequent turmoil. On watching Parkland’s opening scenes there is a sense some of the characters could have an intriguing personal story to tell, but as the film progresses you soon come to realise these characters will not be developed in any notable way . The early-film intrigue set-up by Zac Efron’s take on womaniser Dr Charles Carrico, or Paul Giamatti’s very human performance as Abraham Zapruder, are cruelly taken away by a Director afraid to divert attention away from a very safely fielded take on Kennedys death. This film seeks to hold its middle finger up to its brave peers, and then cover this finger with bright flashing lights and fireworks for good measure.

Perhaps the lack of character depth is best understood, not necessarily through bad directing or bad casting, but through the relatively short length of the film. In ninety three minutes not one scene in this assassination movie leaves you emotionally shaken, even the shooting of Kennedy falls flat with the attempt to mesh original Zapruder camera footage with the view of Gimatti’s Zapruder standing by with his camera, only succeeding in defiantly destroying any tension or drama the original film reel can claim to boast. Kennedy dies on the operating table, and a hospital room covered in the dead President’s blood is probably the most provocative scene in Parkland – but this rare flicker of emotion is created by effective set rigging, not effective character development. Actually, by this point you even struggle to care about the fact Carrico is standing in the middle of all of this blood.

Having said all of this, a few moments in the film do manage to achieve their desired effect. Billy Bob Thornton cuts a genuinely convincing figure as the secret services’ Forrest Sorrels, all be it in a part that won’t be winning him an Oscar any time soon. And the surprisingly touching dynamic between Robert Oswald and his brother and culprit Lee Harvey Oswald does deliver a somewhat substantive relationship. But none of this is enough to offset their really (really) annoying mother, that even at the expense of historical accuracy is probably best left out of any future script. Overall Parkland plays it too safe, and as a result feels disappointingly flat – its resonant of the colour beige or a plate of bread and butter – it won’t do you any harm, but it certainly won’t immeasurably improve your day.

 

 

Animation Comes of Age: How grown ups can laugh with the kids too

Written by Suraj Vara on . Posted in Film.

As most self-respecting twenty-something year olds these days, I’m not afraid to admit I love animated films; my older brother, now closing in on his thirties happily mentions Shrek as his favourite film, and my dad, closer to sixty than fifty, tells me that Despicable Me is the best film in our (vast) collection.

At first you might go ahead and categorise us all as man-children who, in an attempt to retain a grasp of fleeting youth, have clutched a cartoon close to our hearts and superficially maintained that they’re amazing. Despite the way you decide to categorise us, there’s no denying that animated films have recently become more exciting, more daring and certainly more intelligent.

I remember classic Disney films, in the Pantheon of animated greats, such as Peter Pan, the Jungle Book, the Rescuers, Hercules, Beauty and the Beast, and who could forget Hamlet adapted for kids in The Lion King. All of these films, many of which were adapted from old folk tales, had inscribed within them a moral sensibility, one which often steered away from more daring content and were aimed at a specific child demographic. However, recent animated films have begun to grow into wonderfully intelligent works which appeal to both children and adults on many different levels.

I can think of a plethora of films which maintain some of the cheesy old school slapstick with intelligent one liners, Monsters Inc. for example. After discovering that laughter is more powerful than scream, Mike Wazowski, Sully’s wisecracking sidekick, is sent into children’s rooms to make them laugh:

Mike: So, you’re in kindergarten right? I loved kindergarten, best three years of my life! [waits for laughter] …Of my life!

At this point the kid doesn’t laugh so Mike eats the microphone he’s talking into, lets out a huge belch and fills his quota of laughter for the day.

When I first watched these films in my much younger days, I never really noticed funny little jokes like these, and it begs the question: How has animation evolved?

Remembering the classics, it feels as though animation and its humour have grown up a bit, well a lot. Animated films have become a lot more implicit in their explicit nature, no longer shying away from some of the more crass comedy that appeals to the conventional man-boy or woman-girl.

In Pixar’s Cars, the heroine, a little Porsche called Sally, has a “tramp stamp” pinstripe tattoo under her spoiler; Despicable Me’s Gru makes mention of the “any resemblance to persons living or dead is coincidental…” speech, as well as labelling the Lehman Brothers as the “Bank of Evil”, an economic joke I’m pretty sure no-one under the age of sixteen is really going to understand.

Shrek is pretty much a pioneer in taking the piss out of the old Disney classics, with a princess who’s secretly an ogre; Prince Charming is really a stupid narcissistic mummy’s boy, Sleeping Beauty is a narcoleptic and the Big Bad Wolf is an open transvestite. Despite all the farts, burps, gross ogre food and Shrek getting hit in the nuts from time to time, there are literally hundreds of cheeky adult jokes woven into the fabric of the film series which elevates it beyond some if its goody-two-shoes ancestors.

These intelligent cartoons are also beginning to incorporate more adult themes, like the death of the hero in Megamind, Will Ferrell’s answer to Steve Carell’s Gru in Despicable Me, two of many animations which are making use of the anti-hero. Toy Story 3 which was reported to have made grown men cry in cinemas. Fat can be fought as taught by Po in Kung Fu Panda, and it doesn’t matter what species or race you are, you can still make a pack, or so say Manny, Sid and Diego in Ice Age.

Looking at these wonderful pioneers of animated comedy and their growth into conventional, multi-layered films, rivalling much of the film industry’s live action productions, it’s impossible to deny that they aren’t just for kids anymore.

Top 5: One Take Scenes

Written by James Moules on . Posted in Film.

5. Atonement

Ever wanted to know what it would be like to have been at the Dunkirk Evacuations? In this scene, Joe Wright gives you the closest thing you’ll get to actually being there. As Robbie Turner arrives at the evacuation site, he is presented with what some may call hell on earth. Nothing is left to the imagination.

4. Children of Men

Alfonso Cuarón (who may or may not be appearing later on this list) used several impressive long takes in this chilling, post-apocalyptic movie, but the one that everyone remembers is the now famous car scene. A normal drive along a country road turns quickly into a nightmarish chase sequence. It’s a scene that is not so much viewed as lived.

3. Touch of Evil

Tick tock tick tock. We follow a time bomb from the moment it is planted to its explosion three minutes and twenty seconds later. Only Orson Welles could have pulled this one off so effectively.  

2. Goodfellas

Mobster Henry Hill leads Karen through the nightclub where his fellow criminals are, and in this three minute tracking shot, she falls for both Hill and the gangster lifestyle. And who wouldn’t after seeing this scene? Good job, Mr Scorsese.

1. Gravity

The opening take of Alfonso Cuarón’s latest is a whopping seventeen minutes long – that’s right, seventeen minutes. And this isn’t just seventeen minutes of a still camera recording two people talking in a room. It’s seventeen minutes of following space shuttles in orbit, George Clooney flying with a jetpack and satellite debris smashing everything in its path. It’s not until Sandra Bullock goes spinning off into the void that the camera first cuts.

Contrary Corner: Waxing on The Wackness

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Film.

If your film didn’t have Batman, then 2008 was a hard year to get noticed. Blanket press appraisal of The Dark Knight overshadowed much of the year’s cinematic output, and this coming of age drama was one of the Joker’s many victims left hanging in the nosebleed section. Puzzled expressions continue to greet the unfamiliar indie in my favourite films. It’s become like my delinquent child who secretly hides a heart of gold, and reacting as if it’s the last straw at a stressful parent’s evening, I find myself fiercely defending this roguish little misfit’s questionable outside appearance. I get it. Funny title, few critic lists, and it doesn’t help my case that the main character is an alarmingly thinner version of the loudmouth cherub from Drake and Josh. Swift smartphone searches that reveal its considerable distance from the Shawshank summit of IMDB further hurt claims for its greatness, but The Wackness struck something special when I first saw it in a dingy South-London Odeon, my friend and I composing half of the total audience.

Amidst the sticky summer streets of 90’s NYC, pre 9/11 and post Wu-Tang Clan, roams a lonely weed dealer named Luke Shapiro (Josh Peck). Shapiro has recently graduated High School, and is quietly going about his risky occupation for the endless weeks until College, when he begins to deal to an eccentric psychiatrist in exchange for therapy sessions. Enter Dr Squires (Sir Ben Kingsley), a welcome ear to Shapiro’s problems yet ill equipped to be imparting advice, as he is secretly self-medicating to handle a flourishing mid-life-crisis. However, the pair’s dilemmas provide the impetus for an unlikely friendship, where they begin to bond over a mutual dissatisfaction with life. This is particularly with regards to their troubled and often mirrored dealings with the opposite sex, as their burgeoning friendship coincides with Squire’s loveless marriage and Shapiro’s dicey infatuation with Stephanie, Squire’s stepdaughter.

In the present age of rigid consensus over what’s considered acceptably brilliant, this film was something rare; something fortuitously unearthed instead of aggressively enforced. It was a snapshot of adolescence far removed from any of British TV’s offerings at the time: the cartoon hedonism of Skins or the unabashed goofiness of The Inbetweeners. Though it follows well-trodden ground in dealing with the familiar themes of heartache and increasing responsibility, Peck and Kingsley’s effortless chemistry lifts this film above the more predictable crowd. Their musings on life are so thickly etched into my memory that revisiting their scenes feels like I’m in the company of old friends, and the film’s lesson of dramatic action when life grows stale has continued to ring true in the years since I left that deserted Odeon. In the gloomiest of British winters, this story of love, blunts and the benefits of bad choices remains strangely comforting.