Flashback Friday.. Oasis - 'The Hindu Times'

Love or loathe the Gallagher Bros., there is no doubt in my mind that, whatever generation you were born into - old or young, teenage to middle age - you have the lyrics of at least one Oasis song seared into the fleshy crevices encased within your cranium.

Perhaps somewhat subconsciously, out of the big '90's bands, Oasis were probably my favourite. Yes, I admit, I'm not a massive Britpop fan. In fact, it very nearly grates on my nerves. Sorry. Looking back, in the '90's you either worshipped Britpop or were just unashamedly pop. Even though I was incredibly young then, I was sufficiently aware of the last wave of Cool Britannic patriotism; the Union Jack was emblazoned everywhere - including Geri Halliwell's tea towel of a dress circa BRIT Awards 1997, and riding the crest of that wave was Oasis, the perfectly imperfect, hedonistic band that every newspaper and music magazine loved to adore and vilify alternately.

Fast forward to 2002, and Oasis come with an essence of nostalgia, but wafting that aside, Heathen Chemistry had some amazing singles; 'Little By Little', 'Songbird', 'Stop Crying Your Heart Out', and this forgotten gem, 'The Hindu Times'.

And it really is forgotten, as (in)accurately as YouTube viewing stats go, this video has only been watched 836,668 times, despite being uploaded more than four years ago. If you were asked to name an Oasis song off the top of your head, it most likely wouldn't be this one, but even though it appears to have become enshrouded within the abyss of space and time, it's still incredibly good! Evidently, the lyrics of the song have nothing to do with the song title, as 'The Hindu Times' was already decided upon prior to the lyrics having been written, most likely because of the sitar sounding guitar, although many would attempt to connect the two and result in 'religion = euphoric high'.

Oasis turbulently departed in 2009 after an apparent Gallagher altercation, and the band (minus Noel) currently exist under the new umbrella of Beady Eye, whilst Noel's solo venture is Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.

http://www.noelgallagher.com/
http://www.facebook.com/noelhighflyingbirds
https://twitter.com/NoelGallagher

http://www.beadyeyemusic.com/
http://www.facebook.com/BeadyEyeOfficial
https://twitter.com/beady_eye

New Waves.. Delphic - 'Baiya'

Edit: Snazzy new video has been debuted - woop! 

Manchester band, Delphic, return with 'Baiya', the first song to début  from their second album, Collections.

'Baiya' is reminiscent of the electro-pop vein of the singles taken from their previous 2009 album, Acolyte, albeit perhaps more chart friendly, with synths flowing as opposed to being used for choppy rhythms a la 'Doubt' and 'Halcyon', incorporating oriental strings around the refrain 'All hell is breaking loose' and walking the fine line between modern and comfortably retro. It is also not the euphorically hectic maelstrom of noise that was previously released song, 'Good Life' (I had no idea that this song existed until today!)

That said, I'm so glad to see/hear of Delphic again! I loved Acolyte and will most likely love Collections when it's released.

Collections is released on 28th Jan 2013.

http://www.facebook.com/delphicmusic

http://www.delphic.cc/

http://soundcloud.com/delphic

Rapid Review.. Bloc Party - 'Four'

If there's one thing that this review isn't, it's time effective. Once again, apologies, part 1 - because I didn't even get this album 'til a month or so ago, and part 2 - becuase after I started writing this review, I actually forgot that it was there...

The fourth album by London based quartet, Bloc Party, imaginatively entitled.. erm, Four, dropped in late August (almost 3 months late - sorry!) and in my opinion it is easily one of the best efforts from the band as of yet, and most surprisngly of all...

It's heavy.

Yup, who'd have guessed it?

Four is a tightly wound, if not ragged beast; a scruffy powerhouse collection of songs that you really wouldn't expect from an often soppy and sentimental band such as Bloc Party. That's not to say that they don't do soppy and sentimental well, and sure, they have the some amazing belters under their, er, belts (puns galore!), but for this quantity to be in a Bloc Party opus is unheard of.

The album itself is incredibly consistent in the quality of the songs, but unlike their previous albums, it feels like there is no real stand-out track. Silent Alarm had many - 'Banquet', 'Helicopter', 'So Here We Are', A Weekend In The City - 'The Prayer', Intimacy - 'Mercury', but with Four, a track doesn't leap to mind. At a push, I'd say 'Kettling', and at a further push, perhaps 'Octopus' (with it's Daft Punk guitar), whilst '3x3' surprisingly wouldn't sound out of place with Matt Bellamy on vocals - it really reminds me of something old Muse would have concocted.

Somehow, this review had turned out sounding negative - it's really not! If you've ever had reservations towards Bloc Party, end them by listening to this. They were never run of the mill, and always worth your attention, but with Four they grab you buy the collar and shake you and pull you until your reservations have been blown to smithereens.

Something which I don't think anyone, fans and fence riders alike, was expecting.

http://blocparty.com/
http://www.facebook.com/blocpartyofficial
https://twitter.com/BlocParty/

New Waves.. The Family Rain - 'Trust Me... I'm A Genius'

Bit slow this week, I've been busy with uni and seeing my boyf and friends, as well as being ill.

But anyways, his rowdy little number is by Bath based trio, The Family Rain. 'Trust Me.. I'm A Genius' is reminiscent of classic rock turned bluesy, but with a cocky edge that only the young can pull off, making the song feel exciting and relevant as opposed to tired.

To me, it brings to mind a bulkier and less lazy sounding Black Box Revelation, with Jack White added for some extra oomph.

The single is out now via iTunes. 

There's a limited run (250 copies) of 7" available through Rough Trade at £4.99, though these don't seem to be available until 7th Jan 2013.

What do you think of The Family Rain/ 'Trust Me... I'm A Genius'?

http://www.facebook.com/thefamilyrain

https://twitter.com/thefamilyrain

Flashback Friday.. The Clash - 'Rock The Casbah'

Everyone - even if you've only a fleeting ear for rock based music - must know this song!

'Rock the Casbah' has to be one of the most famous and widely known songs by English punk band, The Clash, and taken from their fifth album, Combat Rock. The album also spawned the singles 'Know Your Rights', 'Should I Stay or Should I Go' (an indie disco staple!), and 'Straight To Hell', which you may recognise as being heavily sampled in Brit rapper, M.I.A's song 'Paper Planes which addresses immigration issues and perceived reasons for immigration. But that's another story.

Similarly, the ethos of The Clash is consistently liberal and anti-establishment, although their message has been twisted in the past; singer, songwriter and rhythm guitartist, Joe Strummer was famously reported to have wept when he heard the phrase 'Rock the Casbah' was written on a U.S. bomb to be used in the First Gulf War in Iraq [1]. What the story of 'Rock The Casbah' really entails is a fictional account of an oppressive Sharif banning rock music but being defied by the country's citizens by proceeding to 'rock the casbah' anyway, and pilots ordered to bomb those who didn't comply defied the ban by listening to rock music in their cockpit radios themselves. 

Lyrics aside, the song is poppy with a fun beat and is easily my favourite Clash song - 30 years on and it doesn't feel dated! First released in 1982, it actually charted higher in the UK Singles Chart upon its second release in 1991, hitting a peak position of 15.

What do you think of The Clash and 'Rock the Casbah'? What's your favourite song by The Clash, and what do you think of how the message of the song has been distorted and applied to something completely opposite as to what was originally intended?

http://www.theclash.com/

http://www.facebook.com/theclash

[1]  Ty, Burr (9 November 2007). "Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten Movie Review". Boston Globe (via http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_the_Casbah)

Rapid Review.. Kate Nash - 'Deathproof EP'

Old Kate Nash and New Kate Nash are two different entities - let's treat them as such. One day, New Kate Nash had a humdinger row with Old Kate Nash and took the candlestick, from the library, and proceeded to beat the utter shit out of Old Kate Nash until, as a battered bloody pulp, she was unceremoniously dumped in 6 ft of dirt under the rose bush.

Or so it may well have been, for there's really not much connecting the music of New Nash to the Old, for example, New Nash is pretty much devoid of a cockney accent! Oh - don't get too excited - it's still there to an extent, but it's nowhere near as aggrivating as 'You-ou've gon an' got sick on myy train-errss, I on'y got theez yes-ter-day/ O-mah-gosh, I can-not be bovvad wiv thisss'. This Nash swaps her 'Mouthwash' piano for big bass riffs and whoops, growls and squeaks through  four out of five of these new songs, although it's worth noting that none of them are as screechy and strangled as previous song, 'Under Estimate the Girl' managed to be. It's still in the same grungy, new-wave vein however; the title song (single?) 'Deathproof' has a lazily cute vocal, as does 'Fri-End', and the whole EP sounds distinctly retro. 'I Want A Boyfriend' is particularly catchy and edgier, with the shrieking making an appearance, whilst 'May Queen' ends the EP on a softer note. There's even a surprisingly good cover of The Kinks 'All Day And All Of The Night thrown in there too!

I have to say, as a person who has never loved Nash outside of 'Foundations', 'Birds' and 'Pumpkin Soup', I really liked this EP and it will no doubt grow on me as I listen to it more; I may even delve into her second album, My Best Friend Is You a la 'Do Wah Do', which passed me by completely.

Nash has stated that her third album, Girl Talk is due in early 2013 and you can pre-order it and  get access to other content via her Pledge project.

Deathproof EP is out now on iTunes and her Pledge project.

Have you listened to the songs? What do you think? Do you prefer Kate Nash's new sound or do you prefer her old music?

http://www.myignorantyouth.com/
http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/katenash
https://twitter.com/katenash
http://www.facebook.com/katenash
http://katenash.sandbag.uk.com/Store/

New Waves.. Churches - 'Lies'

Only just ran across this band whilst looking for some new music to listen to (if you have any suggestions -comment below!). 

Glaswegian band, Churches, only have two songs to their name - that I can find anyway - but the whole affair is a moody electro powerhouse reminiscent of The Knife. The song in question, 'Lies', so far appears to have garnered them more than 100,000 hits on their YouTube channel since May, and it deserves it, the song is edgy and doesn't just wash over in a non-descript or sterile manner that a lot of electronic music can do. 'Lies' definitely shocks you out of your reverie!

There is currently a link to the mp3 on the blog of their label, Neon Gold.

https://twitter.com/CHVRCHES

https://www.facebook.com/CHVRCHES

http://soundcloud.com/chvrches

Flashback Friday.. Le Tigre - 'Deceptacon'

I've been slaving at a Kathleen Hanna biography for my university Life Writing module for what feels like an age, and naturally this has lead to me doing a load of research to do with the '90's Riot Grrrl movement and feminism. I say this like it's a chore - it's not, I've quite enjoyed the research, reading and watching material on Riot Grrrl et al.

Subsequently this led to this post! If you've not heard of Kathleen Hanna, she is the feminist punk singer of the bands Bikini Kill, Le Tigre, and has recently restarted, The Julie Ruin, originally Hanna's '90's solo project and now a band. However, 'Deceptacon' is a Le Tigre song, and it is very addictive jarring and poppy dance punk.

It's largely believed that 'Deceptacon' is a response to the NOFX song 'Kill Rock Stars', where the band really tear into Hanna and the riot grrrl movement, although it is definitely worth pointing out that the lyrics include 'Don't dare tag me misogynist/ I thought the goal here was mutual respect' don't really throw the group in the anti-women pile. 'Deceptacon' itself references the 'Who took the bomp?... Ram-a-lam-a-ding dong' lyrics from the Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies - a cover band including Fat Mike from NOFX - who covered the song 'Who Put the Bomp', and it's worth noting that Le Tigre have altered the lyrics to imply having something taken from them/ being scorned in some way. With prior knowledge, the song is really is a double-middle-fingers-up to the original NOFX tirade.

Like I said, 'Deceptacon' is addictive, and there's really no point in getting all political and argumentative in music if it  doesn't actually sound good. But it is. So listen!

http://www.letigreworld.com/
http://www.facebook.com/LeTigreWorld
http://thejulieruin.com/
http://www.facebook.com/thejulieruin

New Waves.. The Ramona Flowers - 'Dismantle and Rebuild'

Presumably named after comic book character, Scott Pilgrim's spunky love interest, the debut song from indie electro outfit, The Ramona Flowers is a classy affair. Infused with subtle dubstep elements, 'Dismantle and Rebuild' flows passionately - and the video is apt, as the sounds bring to mind cityscapes and speeding traffic, and where a lot of electronic music can sound stark, this song is rather comforting to the ear.

Apart from that, The Ramona Flowers' debut EP, Dismantle is OUT NOW and is currently floating around the cyberspace of the iTunes charts.

http://www.theramonaflowers.com/

http://www.facebook.com/theramonaflowersmusic

https://twitter.com/theramonaflower

New Waves.. Swim Deep - 'Honey'

Swim Deep is summer, and 'Honey' is a sun trap. OK, it's the wrong time of year and the Birmingham band aren't likely to see much seas or sand, but despite the harsh winter wind and balaclava inducing weather, I'm sure we can all manage to kid ourselves that tropical heat is somewhere on the far too distant horizon.

The song plods along in a chilled out manner, and the lyrics relate as an ode towards not wasting your life a la 'And don’t you dream in your sleep it’s just lazy''. But, to be honest, who can resist, when the sound of Swim Deep just makes you want to laze around and enjoy the view. Best enjoyed with a beer and a reclining sun lounger.

The band have recently announced their own headline tour February 2013.

14th Southampton Joiners
15th Birmingham Temple (HMV)
16th Leeds Brudenell Social Club
17th Manchester Soup Kitchen
18th Nottingham Bodega
19th Sheffield Plug
20th York Duchess
22nd Glasgow King Tut's
23rd Liverpool Kazimier
24th Bristol Thekla
25th Norwich Open
26th London XOYO
27th Brighton Green Door Store

'Honey' is OUT NOW.

http://soundcloud.com/swimdeep
http://www.facebook.com/SWIMDEEPUK
http://swim-deep.tumblr.com/
https://twitter.com/SWIM_DEEP

Rapid Review.. Charli XCX - 'SUPER ULTRA Mixtape'

You've probably gathered by now, if you follow this blog that is, that I am a large fan of Charli XCX. The alt. pop singer has been garnering more and more press coverage recently, and now she has released her second mixtape, SUPER ULTRA, prior to the release of her album early next year.

SUPER ULTRA hits the ground with 'Cloud Aura' (feat. Brooke Candy), which I reviewed previously, and stated that I felt it wasn't one of the strongest songs from Charli as of yet, although in hindsight after listening to this mixtape, it actually adds some well needed "oomph" to the sequence of tracks. The mixtape itself feels somewhat trippy, there are more mid-tempo/slow songs here and strange beats, with only 'Heatwave' really getting the listener excited by being a nice dance track. For me, the highlight of the mixtape has to be 'Forgiveness'; it's the nearest thing to a ballad that Charli has given us yet, and it's simple and personal, although as with any Charli XCX song, the temptation to mix it up is always there, as after the first chorus is done and dusted, the atmosphere turns menacing and dark.

On the newsletter email that delivered the free download, Charli stated that the entirety of the mixtape was written during her two days touring in Poland, and that the songs are all about love and are all sad in some manner.

Go to Charli XCX's website to download the SUPER ULTRA mixtape for FREE.

Read my review of Charli's previous mixtape, HEARTBREAKS AND EARTHQUAKES HERE.

Charli XCX is also doing a DJ set at The Garage on 21st November (tickets here) with Tom Vek, Brenton and Coves all playing live.

http://charlixcxmusic.com/
http://www.facebook.com/charlixcxmusic
https://twitter.com/charli_xcx
http://soundcloud.com/charlixcx

New Waves.. Kodaline - 'All I Want'

'All I Want' by Dublin band Kodaline is not particularly new, I've come across the video a few times on the music channels.

Although, let's be honest, if it wasn't for the intriguing music video, with the 'monstrous creature' type guy searching for love and acceptance in a cruel cruel world, I probably wouldn't have kept watching, because although the song is gentle and subtle, that could also translate to being more than a tad dreary.

That said, with lyrics such as 'when you said your last goodbye/ I died a little bit inside/ I lay in tears in bed all night/ alone without you by my side', it was never going to be a jolly 'Thing's Can Only Get Better' affair. In regards to that, I suppose it's one of those songs that we'll all turn to when in need to mope over a newly branded '-ex'. Plus, Ben and Jerry's. Cookie Dough, if you please.

http://www.kodaline.com/
http://www.facebook.com/Kodaline
https://twitter.com/Kodaline

Flashback Friday.. The Cure - 'Boys Don't Cry'

Alas, another night on the tiles dictating this Friday feature!

Last week was my 20th birthday, and after celebrating with a nice meal with the family on the Friday, I went on the razz up Birmingham on Saturday night with some friends. After flitting between The Yardbird - a jazz bar - and Lloyds, we found ourselves in Snobs, an idie/alt. music club; from my slightly patchy memory, I can clearly remember The Cure's 'Boys Don't Cry' permeating through the haze!

'Boys Don't Cry', along with 'Love Cats' and 'Friday, I'm In Love', has to be one of The Cure's most well known songs, if not the most mainstream. It is easily, a cult song. Released in 1979 (!), it still manages to sound fresh, and will no doubt continue to withstand time challenging musical shifts where the music of today most likely fail.

The Cure returned to the festival circuit this year, headlining the 2012 Reading and Leeds festivals in the UK, have a looksee at their set here.

My favourite Cure song is 'Love Song', how 'bout you?

http://www.thecure.com/

New Waves.. Everything Everything - 'Cough Cough'

Catching our to attention with their highly catchy single 'MY KZ, UR BF' in 2010, Everything Everything still managed to slip under the majority of peoples musical radars.

Their latest single, 'Cough Cough' picks up the momentum; as wonderful as 'MY KZ, UR BF' was, this is better. The breakdown to the drums for the chorus turns the usual chorus crescendo  on its head, the verses, bubbling electro-pop. Singer, Jonathan Higgs easily has one of the most unusual voices of recent years, he definitely reminds me of The Maccabees frontman, Orlando Weeks in his quavering delivery. If Weeks fronted MGMT whilst he and said band were attached to electrodes, it would result in this band!

At the moment, I'd go so much as to say they have real potential to fill the lull in my iPod as of late; 'Cough Cough' has definitely made me excited to hear their second album, Arc, which is to be released on 14th January 2013.

'Cough Cough' is out now, and Everything Everything go on tour in February 2013.

Portsmouth Wedgewood Rooms, 6 Feb 2013
Brighton Concorde 2, 7th Feb
Norwich Arts Centre, 8th Feb
Bristol, Tekhla, 9th Feb
Cambridge, Junction, 11th Feb
Birmingham, HMV Institute Library, 12th Feb
Oxford, 02 Academy 2, 14th Feb
Sheffield, Leadmill, 16th Feb
Liverpool, O2 Academy, 17th Feb
Glasgow Oran Mor, 20th Feb


http://www.everything-everything.co.uk/
http://www.facebook.com/EverythingEverythinguk

New Waves.. The Joy Formidable - 'Cholla'

Well, new for me any way, I swear these days that I must live with my head in the ground because, once again, this had totally passed me by. I was aware that the band were playing two small shows prior to the album being released but wasn't aware of a single. I sure keep up to date!

'Cholla' is what could be described as typical of The Joy Formidable; their name certainly encompasses their sound, as the band manage to juxtapose ferocity with somewhat soaring guitars and Ritzy Bryan's innocent sounding vocal; a far more grittier voice would be expected of her in order to compliment the aggression, choosing to compliment the softer elements is far more interesting.

The song would have been right at home on the band's début album, The Big Roar, and with this as the lead single, their follow up, Wolf's Law seems very promising!

Wolf's Law itself is expected on 21st January 2013. The band recently announced that they would be touring in the new year in support of the album. Dates as follows:

January
Tuesday 22nd Liverpool, Kazimier
Wednesday 23rd Norwich, Waterfront
Friday 25th Belfast, The Limelight
Saturday 26th Dublin, Academy
Monday 28th Cardiff, Solus
Tuesday 29th Bristol, Fiddlers

February

Sunday 24th Nottingham, Rescue Rooms
Monday 25th Leeds, Cockpit
Tuesday 26th Glasgow, Oran Mor
Thursday 28th Manchester, Ritz

March

Friday 1st Wolverhampton, Wulfrun Hall
Saturday 2nd Sheffield, Leadmill
Monday 4th Brighton, Concorde 2
Tuesday 5th Exeter, Phoenix
Wednesday 6th Portsmouth, Wedgewood Rooms
Friday 8th London, The Roundhouse

http://www.thejoyformidable.com/

http://www.facebook.com/thejoyformidable

https://twitter.com/joyformidable

Flashback Friday.. My Chemical Romance - 'I'm Not OK'

AND IT'S MY BIRTHDAAAAAYY!

But seriously, I guess it's time to mourn my youth because I am most definitely a little old lady destined for 10 cats from here on in! But looking back on a decade of music that I have loved and, quite often, no longer love, it seems fitting to pick one of my favourite songs to be my birthday Flashback Friday!

Music has been so important to me in so many big and small ways, from the places I go, the people I bond with, the way I dress, my view points on life - it really is important to not underestimate the power that music can have over your life! Going through my iPod, I really struggled over what to choose, it's impossible to just choose one song to encapsulate this past decade of my life. The song that I chose surprised even me, but it holds a lot of nostalgia.

'I'm Not OK' by My Chemical Romance was one of those songs that my group of friends in high school knew inside out - alas, even my one friend, who only listens to R'n'B, knew all of the words due to us always singing it. It brings back a lot of memories when life and friendships were simpler, before our separate paths in life got in the way, at a time where we weren't necessarily popular with our classmates for petty reasons, and it felt like us against the world. For a period of time, this was our anthem! I can still hear us singing it at lunch times and walks home, even acting out the video, because we knew it so well.

Post Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge, my love of My Chemical Romance waned. I really didn't like The Black Parade bar 'Famous Last Words' and 'I Don't Love You', and I especially detest the title song! But Three Cheers will always have a small space in my heart, I still own a CD copy, and it's never entirely left my iPod since it was first synced circa 2004 (8 years!!!). Quite amusingly, looking back, it was The Emo Age!

Anyways, if you're reading this, it has been projected forward, as at the time of writing my birthday is yet to happen! Hopefully, it will be a good one and a positive next decade! :)

http://www.mychemicalromance.com/news/
http://www.facebook.com/MyChemicalRomance
https://twitter.com/MCRofficial