Album Review : Liz Green

Four years after she released cracking single 'Bad Medicine', Liverpool's Liz Green finally gets around to releasing debut album O, Devotion!

It's a record from another age, mixing Harry Smith folk, jazz and 1920s Berlin cabaret, all powered by Green's unique voice and adept guitar playing. As usual, my review of the record is over at The Line Of Best Fit.

It's an album not without its faults, but Green's a talent for sure, so to read more just let your fingers do the walking

Interview : Gotye

Hello all! I recently had a phone chat with Wally De Backer, the man behind Australian indie titans Gotye. Currently the hottest thing Down Under since the last heatwave, the band launched their most recent album, Making Mirrors, with an epic gig at Sydney Opera House, so that's the scale of what we're dealing with here, people.

He was a really engaging interviewee, and you can read more at The Line Of Best Fit, as usual.

For chat about remixes, sampling and Kate Bush, click here!

The month (or so) in gigs

Greetings all, it's been a while eh?

In an attempt to actually make this blog a worthwhile experience I thought I'd round up some recent gig-going experiences in one handy post, even if just to show I've been sooo busy and not able to post.

So, we begin back at the end of October and my first time experiencing one of my favourite bands, Wilco, live. It was at Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall, and pretty much worth the wait. Beginning with a stunning trio of songs - barely without a break - the band couldn't have made a better start. Opening up with the epic closer from new album The Whole Love, it's a brave band who'd begin with a meandering, low-key 12minute acoustic meditation on religion, but that's what Wilco did with 'One Sunday Morning (Song for Jane Smiley's Boyfriend)'. Beautiful stuff, and followed closely by album opener 'Art Of Almost'. A brutal version compared to the album version, it was Wilco at its heaviest, the beats a mix of Krautrock and hip-hop, and building to a dizzying climax courtesy of Nels Cline's virtuoso guitar work. Cline spent the best part of two hours windmilling and changing guitars - sometimes mid-song - utterly lost in his own world while the rest of the band played on around him.

Many other highlights followed: 'Jesus, Etc', 'Handshake Drugs', 'I'm the Man Who Loves You', the songs from The Whole Love becoming beefier, and the classics like 'Misunderstood' sounding as good as I'd hope they always would have this close-up. Wonderful stuff.

Next came My Morning Jacket, a band I had the pleasure to see in the early days at King Tuts, but not since. A band who know how to have a good time live, they were a blast from start to finish, making me pine for that unrealised Muppets soundtrack that Jim James has long promised. Many fine moments, from 'The Way That He Sings', 'It Beats 4 U' and 'Magheeta', to classic closer 'One Big Holiday'. One word: aces.

The Antlers at King Tuts is the third time I've seen the band, and they just keep getting better and better. Aided by a new guitarist, Silberman and co played a mix of tracks from Burst Apart and Hospice, brilliantly capturing a mix of beautiful quiet codas showing off Silberman's incredible voice and blistering sonic excursions that probed the edges of post-rock.

Okkervil River were rollicking, blistering and emotional at Classic Grand. I reviewed new album I Am Very Far on this blog earlier in the year and didn't think it was brilliant. Not bad by any stretch of the imagination, but I must apologise to Will Sheff and the band. After hearing the songs live I realise I was wrong in limiting my praise - Okkervil River are a great, great band.

Finally, the second time this year I've had the pleasure of seeing Josh T Pearson. Still a mix of stand-up comedy and beautiful, bruised country songs, he's an absolute must-see. Pearson claimed he was unwell and apologised for his voice on a number of occasions, but to be honest I couldn't tell. Pearson is a stunning guitarist and vocalist, an unbelievable talent who I really hope continues to release music on - at least - a semi-regular basis. If you've not heard Last of the Country Gentlemen, what's wrong with you? It's one of the albums of the year without a doubt.

And that's it. Still to see Iceage, Korallreven and Malcolm Middleton before the year is out, so I may return with more posts before the year is out. Not promising, mind.

Album Review : Korallreven

ALBUM OF THE YEAR.

You can hear a stream of the record, An Album by Korallreven, over at The Line Of Best Fit.

And my review is right here!

Album Review : The Lowland Hundred

Despite what you might think, the concept album is generally A Good Thing. That's "generally", you'll notice. Because with the release of The Lowland Hundred's second album Adit, it shows the concept album does have its flaws when not executed correctly.

Adit had all the potential to be excellent. Band named after mythical sunken kingdom? Check. Concerns itself with universal themes of place, love, loss? Check? Unnecessary references to Guy Debord? Check. Sounds like Robert Wyatt? Check. Sadly, none of these combines terribly well, leaving me writing what amounts to a disappointing review of the album at The Line Of Best Fit. The album's disappointing. Not the review, that's class.

Read all about it here.

EP Review : The Soft Moon

As darkness falls earlier in the evening, it's the perfect time for some gloomy, metallic post-punk. And, as if by magic, the new EP by The Soft Moon has just been released.

Total Decay is less than a quarter of an hour long, but it's a morbidly thrilling affair, clanging along like prime industial, with a bit of Joy Division and the Cure thrown in for good measure. Of course, the review is over at The Line Of Best Fit.

Now, I do like a bit of noise in my music, hence my love for things like Sunn O))), Wolves in the Throne Room, Boris etc and so on, so be prepared for some noises that might hurt your head. Once you've done that, click here!

Listen to the title track below:

The Soft Moon - Total Decay by Sound Injections

Album Review : Ane Brun

It's coming to the end of the year, things are getting chilly, and let's be honest who really wants to go out into the cold when you could sit in with some cracking tunes instead? And if you're going to do that, why not have a listen to Ane Brun's new record It All Starts with One.

As it's November, I never expected such a late contender for album of the year to appear (although watch out for Korallreven next week!) but here she is, the Norwegian songstress, and as per usual you can check out the review at The Line Of Best Fit.

So head over there now, and read all about it whilst taking advantage of the site's exclusive album stream. Oh yes.

Interview : Joe Cardamone of Icarus Line

If you've read this blog at any time in the past, you may be aware that my interviews have developed as I've dipped my toe into these waters. I had an email interview with Jason Quever of Papercuts (and a later one with Jeff Martin of Idaho), then a phone interview with Guillermo Scott Herren of Prefuse 73. Now, to complete the hat-trick, I recently spent sometime in person with Joe Cardamone of LA's rock and roll rebels Icarus Line.

After having review their latest record, Wildlife, at The Line Of Best Fit, I was sent backstage before the band's recent gig at King Tut's in Glasgow to interview singer and producer Cardamone about the new record, and the past/present/future of Icarus Line.

He was a lovely interviewee, and you can read all about it by clicking right here.

Album Review: Hooded Fang

Straight outta Toronto, Ontario, comes Hooded Fang, following up their debut album (cleverly titled Album) with new record Tosta Mista. Dropping their charming indiepop for a short record of surf rock and garage shimmy, it turns out to be something of a surprising success.

As you know, the review can be found at The Line Of Best Fit, so you'll need to visit that site if you want to read about all the goodness.

Here it is, here's the link you want!

Hooded Fang - Vacationation from Long Live The Queen on Vimeo.

Album Review : Dark Captain

After dropping the "Light Captain" from a ludicrously long and difficult to type name, Dark Captain have returned with new album Dead Legs & Alibis. While at its heart it could be seen as folk music, there's elements of Krautrock, psychedelia and shoegaze at work.

You can, as usual, read all about it over at The Line Of Best Fit, where you might also like to check out some other reviews and interviews....more of which later today.

In the meantime, click here for more Dark Captain!

Album Review : Loch Lomond

First of all, it's 50 not out for me! The review of Loch Lomond's new album Little Me Will Start A Storm is the 50th piece I've written for The Line Of Best Fit, and I can't say enough good things about how great it's been since I started back in mid-January this year. I have two jobs: one paid, one unpaid, and I know that without question I prefer the unpaid work for TLOBF.

Anyway, Loch Lomond's album should appeal to you if you're a fan of The Decemberists, REM, Sufjan Stevens....basically, if you're a fan of good music you should enjoy it. It's a multi-instrument treat that rises and falls beautifully across 40 minutes.

And you can read that 50th piece of writing by clicking on the old link.