Friday 29 February 2008

Friday Friday


Quick notes on the fun ahead:

Radioactiveman at Concorde this Saturday. Coming out of fellow Lone Swordsman Andrew Weatherall's shadow, there should be plenty enough analog electro to go round. Also on Saturday, DatA plays water margin for a meagre fiver. Old vs new school electro then, if you're not still reeling from our party on Wednesday..

MP3: Snoop Dogg - Drop It Like It's Hot (DatA remix)

MGMT (pictured) reach our shores finally on Monday. Hotly tipped, and from the same Brooklyn stable as Yeasayer, the gruesome twosome is not to be missed. See if you believe the internet babble- try the taster too:

MP3: MGMT - Time To Pretend

Listings for the rest of the week on Monday.

Check the 'Pony facebook for photos from Wednesday's pack-out party btw, a right treat it was...

Monday 25 February 2008

Show Pony Gymkhana!


It's all true. Show Pony are going live, with bands, DJs and prancy antics, this Wednesday night at Funky Buddha. Editorial lovelies are selling tickets in the foyer today/tomorrow/wednesday, get down fast cos it's not the biggest place in the world. The line-up keeps shifting for the better, check back here for updates. Suffice to say it'll be ridiculous to miss out: there's a pinata. Tickets are the usual £5 for two, £3 lonely folk.

Monday 18 February 2008

Great Escape news


The annual weekend away for Londoners (presumably the reason for the name?) is actually looking pretty good this year. For those of us living around Brighton it's rarely seemed worth it, being held in venues that we visit anyway and with only a handful of decent headliners, resulting in huge queues for bands the majority of ticketholders wanted to see. This year though the line-up's better than ever, and spread across the board. Wombats, Joe Lean et. al and the Teenagers should soak up a lot of the crowds, leaving everyone else time to catch some of these highlights:

Superlative rock sense from Secretly Canadian's reliable roster. January's second album moved them on from acute rock standards to more atmospheric, all engrossing waves of rock essence. Tongue out or tongue in cheek? No matter, make sure not to miss them. They'll be at ATP too, so watch out for some London gigs around that time. Enjoy Tyrants in the meantime:



Too many touch-stones to mention, and at times the all encompassing mush starts to grate but this is one of their finer moments. Should be a breath of fresh air live too, with not a Lyle+Scott jumper in sight! 



Tidy femme fourpiece from London. Don't let the fringes put you off, they're crisp as a well starched collar and having supported The Liars and Siouxsie Sioux, have the pedigree to prove it. Watch their video for Harmonise here:



Both semi-mainstream these days, and both still a big reason to part with some hard-earned. Tunng's third album, though fired off fast, went to prove folking around with new and old can have true longevity when done with such craft and excitement, something the Adem's of this world are now lacking. By contrast, trad-folk and proud, Iron and Wine are still making delectably morose songs, teetering between joy and despair with the composure of old masters. Watch some tour footage on PlayedLastNight for further proof. 

Video Podcast-Tunng Videos and animated joy


It's hard to know what to make of Monobright, most of their information being in Japanese- if I'm going to watch stompy danceable indie joyfaces though, this is exactly the form I want it in. A bit Dungen-y in the vocals, a bit Mustang Sally, a bit wrong.. check their video here, and follow the links to more. See you down the front, poloshirted, pogoing and utterly bemused.. 



From the first bar you know you're in love, or at risk of changing teams.. The less than saccharine nature of the lyrics, impeccable delivery and casually off-kilter back track make you realise just how unattractive faux-Essex Kate Nashery really is. Who wants estuary bitching when you can be beaten down by a viper-tongued Parisian chanteuse? It's insipid, it's daft, and it's superb. 



What a way to finish. Awesomness oozes from this noisy rabble like jam from a donut. No matter how you're feeling they will make forget, forgive, and embrace your uncertain future. Not bad for a Brooklyn fourpiece, who can be caught at the ICA on March 6th for those too impatient to wait. Download this, then go buy the album. 



So ends our personal highlights: check the full line-up here for more information, and buy your tickets in Resident, they deserve the support. If you're there, take photos, write things afterwards, and send them to us. Just, beautiful. 

Friday 15 February 2008

Friday Premonitions

New feature! Friday seems a good day to give you a guide to the week/end ahead gig and other wise, so that's exactly what we'll do. Good'uns will then get reviewed and posted about the following Thursday. Most of the time. No-one's perfect.

Tonight is Kode9 + the Mystikz at Concorde2, Super Dubpressure stylings and all that goes with it. Wobble along to future bangers, then watch T4 with the subtitles on cos your ears have gone to mush. Competition is from Born Bad, Komedia's sweaty tribute to rock'n'roll from a time when that meant something. Equally good in opposite ways, and makes crystal castles seem the rather damp, forgettable option- no offence but don't put yourself down: unlike yesterday, you can do better.

Saturday's Kissy Sell Out (@Digital) vs. Adam Freeland + Evil9 at Concorde. Compare notes by listening to Kissy's podcast here, and checking out the Marine Parade label site's podcast here. I'll be doing the mailing list at Concorde, so giz a wave if you make it. Another hard choice and both over a tenner for mortals, so maybe it's another houseparty for most...

Next week sees Cazals at the Barfly on Monday, with support from Cut Off Your Hands (check their video for Still Fond here). Not everyone's cup of tea, but bound to be a lively knees-up at least. For a quieter evening, try the British Animation Awards tour in the Sallis Benney- it's on Sunday and Monday evening, and should be packed with goodness: for a sample, there's a clip of Best Student Film nominee Milk Teeth here, and Best Comedy nominee Cat Man Do here.

Tuesday sees Cut Copy at Digital. Last time they played the gig got moved at the last minute, an impressive convoy of fans trudging through town to Ocean Rooms to finally catch them around midnight. Slicker, bigger tour this time and a new album to plug (In Ghost Colours). You can download a shiny happy taster here:

Cut Copy : Lights and Music (Original Mix)

Or visit their site.

On Thursday you can pay £20 to see Mark Ronson at the Dome. God knows what that gets you- presumably he can't round up even half the vocalists off that last album which leaves you watching.. a DJ set? Lord help us.

Not the hottest week in the world, true, but check back tomorrow for the longer range forecast: there's plenty to get excited about in the coming weeks.