10 search results for ‘summer’
NEW M.I.A ALBUM
Despite her current ubiquity I’m still a big fan of M.I.A, and her last album, 2007’s Kala, is a pretty great record. Not only does it feature some genuine pop moments in Boyz, Jimmy, and the ridiculously overplayed Paper Planes, it also contains some much more interesting and diverse sounds such as the baile-funk of Bird Flu and the rapping Aborigine children on Mango Pickle Down River.
So it’s good to know that a new album isn’t far off. According to an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, the follow up to Kala should be out this summer. In a quote which will make her many detractors laugh bitterly, M.I.A has stated that she doesn’t want it “to be gimmicky or silly or hipstery”. Whatever she releases it’s unlikely to win round the haters, but for those who like innovative, intelligent pop music this can only be good news. Roll on summer.
Jed. x
ALBUMS OF THE DECADE: SONGS FOR THE DEAF (2002)
By 2002 (at the still-blissfully-unaware-of-the-trappings-of-life age of 15) three American bands dominated my musical preference; Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age.
Whilst Foo Fighters’ One By One wasn’t good enough to be in the running for this retrospective album of the year award, By The Way is my perfect summer album, showing an epic progression in the band’s song writing capabilities and the coming of age of John Frusciante. As well as this, Hot Hot Heat came along at the last minute with Make Up the Breakdown, the album that started my passion for finding new bands and steering away from the big hitters it was easier to like.
Despite how good these two albums are, the sheer ambition of Queens of the Stone Age’s Songs for the Deaf puts it ahead of the rest, making it an AGCS Album of the Decade.
Vampire Weekend - Contra
Yes we may be a bit sick of it now, but last summer (and year infact) was dominated by Vampire Weekend’s self titled debut, and today comes the exciting announcement that their second album, Contra, will be out January 12th, 2010 on XL Recordings.
I think ur a contra 2 m8!
Greg
fun. - I Wanna Be The One
Evening campers.
A short post to let you in on the only band I’ve been really listening to in the last three weeks (sorry Arctic Monkeys etc.), a band called ‘fun.’.
Formed from the ashes of previous band The Format (who I am not yet that aware of), its like Lightspeed Champion but American, with better melodies and even more eclectic instrumentation (including steel drums!). Perfect Pop for the summer.
The WHOLE album is up for streaming on MySpace (review to come), but if you don’t have much time I suggest you check out my track of the summer; ‘I Wanna be the One’.
Greg
PS: The final two Summer Sundae posts are coming; don’t forget coverage of the first two days including reviews of 65daysofstatic, Múm, Wild Beats, Mr Hudson and more can be viewed here.
Adebisi Shank - This Is The Album…
I got the debut album from Irish 3-piece noisemonsters Adebisi Shank (Adebisi was a character in HBO series Oz who unsurprisingly got shanked) earlier this week and have been listening to it on repeat for at least 48 hours now. It is that good. It’s almost impossible to try and describe what they sound like so I won’t, all you need to know is they are mind-bendingly good and their album (This Is The Album Of A Band Called Adebisi Shank) is only £8 (vinyl with free cd) from here.
To give you some idea of what they are like, here is one of the bonus tracks from the album, Oyasumi. It’s 50% Ratatat, 50% Colonel Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade and 50% Refused. That’s 150% win. Turn it up real loud.
The band also released a pretty damn good summer mix-tape that can be found here (right-click and ‘save link as’ to download).
Marko
AGCS @ summer sundae : Friday
So, let’s get straight to business… The overview of the festival is coming at the end of the week, today is just about the bands I caught on the first day of the Leicester’s premier festival.
Thanks to the joy of mobile internet and Twitter, before I’d even had breakfast I was aware The Streets were looking likely to pull out (although it took organisers until 4PM to announce this to the crowd). I’m not the worlds biggest Streets fan but it was a disappointing start to the day (even more so when Idlewild were announced as moving up to fill their slot), and so a good musical beginning was needed.
Leicester’s These Furrows (///) were the exciting start to the festival in the otherwise largely MOR-ish Musician tent, with current Tired Irie (good Leicester band, check them) drummer Darryl taking front man duties. I’d seen this band before when they were Twenty Below Zero but they were much better than I remembered; technical and noisy at the same time.
The first sprint of the day was in order to catch the UK Festival Exclusive™ of South African BLK JKS (////). Playing to a disappointingly small crowd, it was a pretty impressive set with some incredible falsetto vocals alongside more tradition African chanting. I can’t really explain the sound so I suggest you use the old Goggletron and listen for yourselves.
Kid British (/) on the main stage next yet, utter utter über wank. Four false starts of what was set to be a Madness sampled song left them bewildered, and me too. Terrible.
Thankfully, in a little all seated tent in the back corner, Jeremy Warmsley (/////) played one of the most captivating sets of the weekend. Jeremy’s voice is one of the most fantastic things I’ve ever heard, and stripped back with just a guitar his songwriting and knack for melody really shone through. I can’t really talk about him without it sounding wanky, but his voice is beautiful and you should, will check him out.
Oi Va Voi (//) helped kill 20 minutes with their Easten-Europen-esque music, before I headed into the comedy tent to catch Robin Ince (////) with a trademark ranting, and funny it were too.
A result of Idlewild being moved up the bill meant Beardyman (/) was promoted to the main stage. As man that makes ‘Everything live using his voice’ (and about a million effects, loop pedals, samplers etc.), the first minute was interesting but then it wasn’t, at all. Covers of ‘popular’ songs. Bad covers of ‘popular’ songs.
Back into the excellent Drowned In Sound currated Rising Tent, Wild Beats (///) did a pretty decent set that drew a fairly decent crowd (no less thanks to some 6 music single airplay). Punters going to see a band for one song and then leaving became a regular pattern at the festival. I thought people might have liked music more than that to do such a thing but there we go. They were good though, I’ll see them again.
Mystery Jets (//) on the main stage were the main band I was looking forward to but thanks to the worst sound in history and about 100 pissed children (FYI, when I say this I mean ages 14-17), it was a tad disappointing. The sound only really sorted itself out by the last two songs and thus the set that should have been the best was one of the worst.
Back into the Rising Tent for headliners and other UK Festival Exclusive™ Múm (/////), things finally picked up after a bit of a lull. I knew very little about Múm but they turned out to play not only one of the best sets of the festival but one of the best I’ve seen in years. Nice harmonies, interesting arrangements, good songs plus the atmosphere in the tent was great. While the majority of children and idiots were watching the start of Idlewild or Filty Dukes, the wise were the small number in the tent.
I don’t dislike Idlewild (///) but they headlined SSW in 2005 and there is a reason why this year they were only originally third on the bill. However, they have a go and the 30 minutes I see includes the five good singles so I’m happy enough; God knows what happened in the 30 minutes either side of what I saw though.
Finally it’s indoors for The Beat (//) who were OK, but pretty repetitive. A cover of The Clash, check. A few ‘classics’, check. The crowd are happy. I should have gone to bed after Múm.
More tomorrow.
Greg
Tubelord - Somewhere Out There A Dog Is On Fire
Kingston 3-piece Tubelord are set to release their debut album entitled (I think) Our First American Friends and as a preview have released this track on t’interweb. Good, honest, Biffy-esque power pop to put a smile on your face in this miserable excuse for a British summer. They are one of those bands that seem to be on tour all the time, so chances are they’ll roll through a town near you soon, in which case I urge you to check them out, quality live band. Keep tabs on them here.
Marko
It’s Thursday morning and the sun has come out for the first time this week, so here is Marko’s favourite summer albums…
Danger Doom - The Mouse and the Mask
The musical collaboration between my favourite voice in hip hop, MF Doom, and multi-instrumentalist, producer and all round genius, Danger Mouse. This album concerns itself almost entirely with the cartoons of late night Cartoon Network block Adult Swim (if you have never seen it, check out Sealab 2021 and Aqua Teen Hunger Force). As bizarre as the cartoons it is based on, this is outrageously catchy hip hop with a big grin on it’s face. This album has been a popular addition to many a summer BBQ and will probably continue so for years. Standout track - Bada Bing
Pavement - Wowee Zowee
Remember the 90’s when Indie bands had a sense of humour? Those were good days… Pavement’s third album was their most experimental, whilst keeping to the clattery alt-pop style that had made songs like Cut Your Hair so popular. I picked up this album off a friend’s recommendation when I was 14 or 15 and it’s stuck with me ever since. The jangly guitars, off-kilter drumming and bizarre lyrics of this album formed the soundtrack to an entire summer for me and is still a regular summer feature on my iPod. Standout track - Rattled by the Rush
Ben Folds - Way To Normal
The man who made piano power-pop cool in the 90’s with Ben Folds Five and then on into the 21st Century on his own brought out this, in my opinion his best album, just in time for my final year of university to start. New house, good weather, the best housemates a guy could ask for, and this album made the end of summer 2008 one of the best, and you know what? I’m listening to it right now. Absolutely fucking brilliant pop songs which never take themselves too seriously. I love it. Standout track - You Don’t Know Me (feat. Regina Spektor)
Paul Simon - Graceland
The greatest pop album ever created (and that is not only my opinion, it is fact) by the talented half of Simon and Garfunkel (oh no he didn’t!) is probably known to most as ‘that album with You Can Call Me Al on’, but it is so much more than that (for starters, there would be no Vampire Weekend if it wasn’t for it). This was one of those albums my Dad put on during long family drives, most of which I hated, but something about Graceland grabbed me, and ever since it’s reminded me of long summer journeys through Europe and made me smile. One of the most uplifting and charming albums I have ever had the pleasure of listening to, Graceland is still a firm favourite of mine all year round, but the summer is it’s natural environment. Stick this on one sunny evening with a bottle of wine and some friends and you are guaranteed to have a good time. Standout track - Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes
RX Bandits - …And the Battle Begun
Where do I begin with this album? First, let me explain that this not an especially summery album, it just defined 2 of the best summers of my life. I had been a massive Bandits fan ever since someone played me Progress, and this had only grown with the release of The Resignation and a night spent abusing red wine with the band themselves after a stonking gig at The Charlotte (RIP). Then in summer 2006 …And The Battle Begun arrived and made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up from start to finish. Huge, sweeping ska and reggae influenced music, beautiful vocal harmonies and some of the catchiest hooks I have ever heard. The only album I have ever put on at least once a day for over a year and never once gotten bored of, it will forever remind me of the summers of 2006/7, the best parties, the best friends, being in love and basically having an unforgettable time. Even now, no matter how bad of a mood I am in and how bad the British summer can be, this is one album guaranteed to cheer me up. If you haven’t got it, go and buy it. You have no excuse, it is fucking incredible. Standout track - …And the Battle Begun
Here is 4 out of 5 albums in full on Spotify. Apparently RX Bandits aren’t important enough to have ANY of their albums on, but you will buy the album regardless or I will visit every one of your homes and slap you.
Marko
It’s S.A.D sufferer Alistair’s turn to share his favourite albums for over the suprisingly hot summer season. Stay tuned for Marko’s next week!
Beach Boys – Endless Summer
I hope this doesn’t seem too obvious. I promise you, although the word summer appears in the title, it’s not why I chose it and I wouldn’t want you to think this is just thrown in because of Good Vibrations either, because, if you give this huge album a chance, you’ll find it’s all as good as Good Vibrations or Surfin’ U.S.A. Some of it is a little less upbeat than their hit singles, but never less charming and optimistic. Vocal harmonies like this are summer, a sunny lullaby, straight from your ipod, to fall asleep to in the sun.
The Meters- Look-ka Py Py
This album is going to pick up your mood any season. But in summer, when the sun is shining and it sort of makes you giddy, this is what you want on. If you’re walking down a street you may find yourself strutting in your shorts, or, if sat down you might find your head nodding- but ideally you want a nice back garden, a BBQ, and some good friends who know how to get dooown. The sun will do that to you.
E-603 – Torn Up
something a little more contemporary now, and though this is my most hated, most despised ‘genre’ on earth; it’s time to get the cheese out. I wouldn’t just bring out Now 46 mind, (Despite picking this number out the air, it seems you’d be getting Tom Jones and Mousse T - Sex Bomb, Spiller & Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Groovejet and Aaliyah -Try Again. Maybe I shouldn’t just write it off!) no, if I’m doing cheese I’ll do it with class. Whilst Girl Talk holds the multi-mashup crown, E-603 is the air to the throne, throwing mainly 90’s rap over songs we all know too well. What’s more it’s free …unlike all other music…ahem, and will most certainly have that annoyingly over-excited girl screaming “Oh my god, this is my song!” every time she recognises a sample. It’s not your song. Calm down love.
She & Him – Volume One
Chances are you don’t have a convertible. As this is sort of a one-way system I’ll have to assume you don’t, but if you do, you’re in for a treat. For a sunny drive anywhere, She & Him will leave weirdly happy smiles on your faces for passing pedestrians to be unsettled by. It’s unashamedly American and indulgent, but it’s not shallow, it’s lovely and heartfelt and will compliment the wind through your hair beautifully (hair… right? I don’t want to assume. I mean, our demographics’ pretty young but whatever, you’re welcome here.). M.Ward and the radiant, alt-bro lady of choice Zooey Deschanel make up the duo whose albums fails to falter in it’s sunny disposition from beginning to end…apart from a sort-of weird, bullshit harmonica solo 1:50 into ‘This Is Not A Test’.
Dave Matthews Band – Crash
Best. Summer Album. Ever. Crash radiates and emits happiness, optimism and contentment so powerfully I’m pretty sure a blind man would get a clear picture of what a sunny day looks like after one listen. It’s not sickly though which is why it’s so great (Unlike this review). It’s not shoving happiness down your throat. It’s sincere, and yes, It has its quieter moments without getting too dark, but the slow build of each track to smile-breaking crescendos has the same effect as the person you most trust in the whole world telling you everything’s going to be OK.
P.S.
That person should be AGCS… Everything’s going to be OK! Just listen.
The Spotify playlist isn’t complete, but you can get E-603 here
Alistair
During the next month, as Summer officially begins, each Thursday will see AGCS’s four writers in turn talk about their favourite summer albums. Week one sees pedantic constable Jed take his turn…
Hot Club De Paris – Live At Dead Lake
Hot Club De Paris explore the same territory as fellow afro-beat enthusiasts Foals and Vampire Weekend, although the three piece’s set up (guitar, bass, drums) means they could just as easily be lumped in with any number of little known indie bands. Hot Club can be differentiated from your average guitar band through their use of unusual time signatures and song structures, although they retain a good ear for a hook, as shown on Hey Housebrick!, the album’s lead off single. With loads of awesome guitar parts and harmonies, and most songs under 3 minutes in length, Live At Dead Lake keeps it short and very sweet.
Gruff Rhys - Candylion
In the same year that the underwhelming Super Furry Animals album Hey Venus! came out, frontman Gruff Rhys’ released the far superior solo effort Candylion. The title track, all glockenspiels, swooning strings and nonsensical lyrics about confectionery animals, is pure sunshine, whilst the Welsh language single Gyrru, Gyrru, Gyrru (translation – Driving, Driving, Driving) is fittingly perfect for road trips. Best of all is closing track Skylon, detailing a plane journey which begins badly with the protagonist’s seat stolen by a C-list actress and only gets worse with the hijacking of the plane by terrorists.
Bonde Do Role – …With Lasers
When I first bought this album from Fopp (RIP), I took it back to the shop. I didn’t understand it – essentially a Brazilian girl shouting Portuguese over some bongos – and despite the shop assistant’s view (which I DID NOT ASK FOR) that it was “great for a BBQ” I got a refund. I was wrong and he was right, even if I DIDN’T ASK FOR HIS OPINION. Bonde Do Role are apparently “Baile Funk” a genre I know little about, but on the basis of this album involves a load of bongos, tons of samples, and is infectious as fuck. …With Lasers is a great album which all the family can enjoy, because Nan will never know that half the time MC Marina is rapping about anal sex. Unless Nan speaks Portuguese.
Yeasayer – All Hour Cymbals
Fleet Foxes are shit. Yeasayer were there first and they do it better. All Hour Cymbals is a testament to this – insane harmonies, lush instrumentation – Yeasayer have it all. Songs like Wait for the Summer and 2080 are ridiculously joyous, while even tracks like Germs (which will, apparently “get you if you’re not careful”) remain catchily upbeat despite paranoid lyrical content. This album is consistently good and the ideal antidote to the summertime blues.
The Avalanches – Since I Left You
The first (and so-far only) record by Australian turntablists the Avalanches is now almost a decade old, yet it remains one of my favourite albums and top of my list of summer albums. Perhaps best known for their single Frontier Psychiatrist, and subsequently dismissed as a novelty act, the Avalanches’ début is a real labour of love, assembled from over 3,500 vinyl samples (thanks Wikipedia!) and years in the making. It’s an hour long but doesn’t drag or feel bloated, with each track seguing into the next to create a constantly changing whole. At times party-starting whilst at others chilled, it’s the perfect summer album.
Jed Howlett
