Bat For Lashes - Sleep Alone Bat For Lashes Tour Dates 08/09/09 Lollapalooza Chicago 08/12/09 Webster Hall New York, NY 08/13/09 Paradise Rock Club Boston 08/15/09 9:30 Club Washington DC 08/17/09  Loft  Atlanta, GA 08/19/09 The Parish Austin, TX 08/20/09 The Loft Dallas, TX 08/22/09 Bluebird Theatre Denver, CO 08/25/09 Venue  Vancouver, BC 08/26/09 Neumo’s Seattle 08/27/09 Wonder B Portland, OR 08/29/09 Outside Lands Festival SF, CA 08/31/09 Music Box Theatre LA, CA 09/05/09 Electric Picnic Stradbally 09/11/09 Bestival Isle Of Wight 10/01/09 Bournemouth Opera House 10/02/09 Brighton Dome Brighton 10/04/09 Corn Exchange Cambridge 10/05/09 Roundhouse London 10/06/09 Roundhouse London 10/09/09 Colston Hall Bristol 10/10/09 O2 Academy Liverpool 10/12/09 Rock City Nottingham 10/13/09 O2 Academy Leeds 10/14/09 Academy Manchester 10/16/09 Great Hall, Cardiff 10/17/09 Octagon Sheffield 10/19/09 O2 Academy Glasgow 10/20/09 Picture House Edinburgh 10/28/09 Postbahnhof Berlin 10/29/09 Uebel & Gefahrlich Hamburg 10/30/09 Melkweg Oude Zaal Amsterdam 11/02/09 Den Atelier Luxembourg 11/04/09 Olympia Paris Discography [2007] Fur and Gold [2009] Two Suns Video Bat For Lashes - Whats a Girl To Do Read More Bat For Lashes http://weheartmus... A friend of mine asked me to check out this errie music video for "What's a Girl To Do" by Bat fo...

Natasha Khan, aka Bat for Lashes, with her band made their very first American show last night at the ever elegant Varsity Theater in Minneapolis.

Once again, Dearling Physique (official / myspace / twitter), opened up for Bat. Compared to their previous appearance, I would have to say that this show sounded so much better (I talked briefly with the band and they admitted it was because they actually had a chance to do sound check prior to playing). Mister Dominique Davis came on stage in somewhat of a superhero outfit, complete with table cloth cape and all. It should be interesting to keep an eye on this band, they're starting their national tour in a few weeks.

Bat for Lashes ♥ Varsity Theater, Minneapolis (8/7/09) Setlist ♥ Varsity Theater, Minneapolis (8/7/09)

Back to Bat for Lashes, I was lucky enough to catch them very early in their career in America, at the very tiny 7th Street Entry in 2007. They only did eight songs, based on their setlist. And not even that Springsteen "I'm on Fire" cover song (Natasha told me that they just didn't have the proper equipment to play it).

With only just two years later, the band's audience had quadrupled with the Varsity Theater filling up quickly. Gone was the Indian/Native American theme, such as the Shaman's sceptre - but it's understandable as the setlist is mostly from their Two Suns album. And the theme to Two Suns, if anything, is about duality and opposites. Like the mountain the sky, the sun and the moon, love and hate, which the stage was clearly demonstrating.  For example, there were all these plastic Jesus statues and candles, but their songs are about nature (with the background of the mountains and the sky).

The highlight for me was them taking care of my favorite "lonely lonely lonely" song, "Sleep Alone", very early on their set.

The audience obviously loved "What's a Girl to Do?" and "Daniel". I should add that "Pearl's Dream" sounded fantastic live, as they end their set before coming back for the inevitable encore.

A fun note, as I have previously mentioned, Charlotte Hatherley is in Khan's band as the bassist/backup vocalist. I wanted to say hi after the show, as I've met her a while back when she was touring with Ash and that I have always liked her solo work as well. Unfortunately, the Varsity staff was kicking everyone out and I ended up just going home.

If you get a chance, check out Bat for Lashes on tour. Their latest album is Two Suns, however, a quick check shows an exclusive iTunes EP that was just released: Bat for Lashes - iTunes Live: London Festival '09 EP

 08/08/2009 01:27:24 ♥ vu () ♥ batforlashes.com ♥ myspace.com/batforlashes ♥ twitter.com 

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They Might Be Giants - Why Does the Sun Shine?

The theme of this post is obviously about the Sun. What's also interesting is the similar album artwork as well, so keep that in mind.

As the 1950 song "Why Does The Sun Shine" (download over at ACME.com) states:

Yo ho, it's hot, the sun is not
A place where we could live
But here on earth there'd be no life
Without the light it gives

They Might Be Giants loved the song so much, they covered it for a singles-only release.

Empire of the Sun - Walking on the Dream Empire of the Sun EMPIRE OF THE SUN walkingonadream.com ♥ myspace.com Empire Of The Sun, named after the novel-turned-movie of the same name, is a collaboration between Sleepy Jackson's Luke Steele and Pnau's Nick Littlemore. Based on the cover artwork and songs, the album have a theme to it: a fantasy world ... of dance music. Surprisingly, this is a really good dance-ish album, very electronica and not something you'd expect if you were already a Sleepy Jackson fan. Also, maybe it's just me, but there's more emphasis on the nasal and falsetto-singing style. It's not as annoying as it sounds, as I think it fits the album. Their album, Walking on a Dream, debut late last year, and already reached the top ten in the Australian charts. It wasn't long before the UK (particularly the BBC) picked up on this hot new band. As usual, the US is far behind, but take my words: they are good and you'll probably hear a lot about them in the coming weeks. Some songs to check out: "Standing on the Shore", "Walking on a Dream" (this was a free iTunes download), "We Are the People", and "Tiger by my Side". I really like "Tiger", especially the when Steele sings quickly: "Television changing channels, telling people wearing flannels, culture shocking walkways to the shore" Below is a video for "We Are the People", shot in Mexico. Empire of the Sun - We Are The People (HQ) As you can see, they really get into their exotic costumes and characters (Emperor Steele and Lord Littlemore). I love it, check out these cute paper cut-out dolls. Walking on a Dream is available now via my favorite Astralwerks Records, you can pick it up anywhere that carries CDs.		Bat For Lashes - Sleep Alone Bat For Lashes BAT FOR LASHES batforlashes.com ♥ myspace.com Bat For Lashes - Whats a Girl To Do Where we last left Natasha Khan, aka Bat for Lashes, I had mentioned that ex-Ash Charlotte Hatherley joined Bat for Lashes. Like Christina, and everyone in the world, you might have heard of Bat for Lashes through their Donnie Darko-ish video for "What's a Girl to Do?" Just like Empire Of The Sun, Khan has the flair of the theatrics, often dressing up in Indian attires and using Shaman instruments (as witness at their live show). Bat for Lashes' new album is called Two Suns, the title seems to have come from her song "Glass" (and not from her song "Two Planets"): To be made of glass, when two suns are shining The battle becomes blinding, to be made of glass But we ride tonight, tonight, tonight, we ride If you are already familiar with their music, then you'll feel comfortable with the new album. No insane directional changes and you can expect most of the album to be pretty mellow. What I'll also add is that the album has man-made electric sound, but it also feels very warm and organic. My favorite song is "Sleep Alone", with its catchy chorus of "lonely, lonely, lonely". I think people will also love "Daniel", where midway there is this constant percussion and electronic sound that pulls you in. Bat for Lashes are currently on tour - be sure to check them out: 5/20 L’Olympic Nantes 5/22 Le Bikini Toulouse 5/23 Salle Victoire 2 Montpellier 5/25 Le Ninkasi Lyon 5/26 La Laiterie Strasbourg 5/27 Le Bataclan Paris 5/29 Primavera Sound Festival Barcelona 6/10 Seattle WA, Crocodile Café 6/11 Portland OR, Doug Fir Lounge 6/13 San Francisco CA, Great American Music Hall 6/16 Los Angeles CA, El Rey Theatre 7/16 Somerset House London, London and South East 7/17 Latitude Festival Southwold 8/9 Lollapalooza Chicago 9/5 Electric Picnic Stradbally 9/11 Bestival Isle Of Wight
Ra - Broken Hearted Soul Ra RA ra-band.net ♥ myspace.com Ra, as you may have guessed, they were named after the Egyptian sun god. So it's not a surprise that their official third album is called Black Sun. Most people will probably know them from their From One album, with their strong "Do You Call My Name" single on various games and sporting events, at the height of their popularity. Black Sun mark the band's first studio album since departing from Universal Records, and continues the band's hard-rock/alternative sound. I'll have to confess that I was expecting it to be harder, but surprisingly this album is pretty accessible. You know what they say, you have to make a good impression with the first song on the album, and I think "Broken Hearted Soul" does just that. The first time I heard that spanish-acoustic guitar, followed by electric guitars and Sahaj Ticotin's vocals, I knew I would like this song. Another track that stood out for me is called "Waste of Space", it's a bit of rage and hate and disenchantment, possibly directed to their ex-label? That's the impression I get hearing the spoken dialogue in the song. The use of uncommon instruments like the violins and sintars (?) found on "Lost Along the Way" or piano on "I Believe Again" are a nice touch to counterpoint the typical guitar/bass/drums music we're so used to hearing. Like what you hear? You can download their live album, Raw, (as well as an acoustic version of "Broken Hearted Soul") over at ra-band.net by signing up with an email address. Black Sun is out now, you can pick it up at most store, including Best Buy. It also looks like there will be a new album in the works called Black Sheep.		Corsica - Beautiful Remains Corsica CORSICA corsicaband.com ♥ myspace.com The Ponsonby DC's - Just Another Kick Corsica, not to be confused with other bands with the same name, are from San Francisco, California. Their bassist*, Keith Dion, is also in another band called Ponsonby DC's, which we've previously reviewed. While the DC's singer, Gavin Buxton, is defined by his adorable New Zealand accent, Corsica's Brad Orgeron sounds more like Nick Cave and Steve Kilbey. Their debut album is called Sight Of The Sun, which I think was only released in 2008. They do have a few EPs, but these are only sold at their live shows. What I like about this band, besides the knowledgeable and deep songwriting, is they seem to make use of violins (particularly on "Sunspell", "Lights Of Tuscany", and "Strangely Moving"). The violins also made "Safe Harbor" sound more epic. You can hear many of the songs from Sight Of The Sun, on Ear Candy Podcast. Anyway, the good news is, just as recently as May 17th, the band made an announcement that they are planning on recording a new album called Ocean Born of new original songs, including two covers (one of which is a cover of Donovan). Meanwhile, singer and guitarist Brad Orgeron can be found on the band Jack Orion with an album tentatively called Darker My Sky. Sight of the Sun is available now, see Shock Hound or their website. * Edit 5/19/09 10:56am: Dion is their guitarist, who also doubles on bass if needed.

 05/19/2009 06:13:04 ♥ vu () ♥weheartmusic.com♥podcast.weheartmusic.com♥news.weheartmusic.com 

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Charlotte Hatherley - White Charlotte Hatherley Read More Ash http://weheartmus... Ash confirmed that Twilight of the Innocents (to be released July 2007) will be their last album....

As you may have noticed with my absents, I do have a day job that's actually gotten really, really busy this past few months (and will likely carry over to May). In fact, it's Saturday morning and I have to get in the office and work. Hey, in this economy, I suppose I should be thankful, right?

So, anyway, there are very few albums that I have requested for review. There are some that came in that I'm very excited about and won't mind not sleeping in the next few days to write about them - so keep your eyes glued here.

Here's an album that I won't be reviewing (because I don't think the UK record label likes us): Cinnabar City by Charlotte Hatherley (official/myspace). Her previous albums (Grey Will Fade and The Deep Blue) was never officially released in the US, so her fans, actually paid good money for imports. Her third album, Cinnabar City, will be released in the US via Minty Fresh, which a reader have reported to me that they mostly sell MP3s only... so CD fans might still have to shell out big bucks for an import.

Charlotte Hatherley - Kim Wilde

Oh, in case you were wondering who Hatherley is, I first heard of her as the "girl guitarist" in the band Ash - a band that I have been a fan of since the early 90s when I was getting into all these Britpop-type bands. She naturally started doing her own solo material and left the band a few years ago. The last I heard of her was she was in the band new waver Client with Kate Holmes (not to be confused with the wife of Tom Cruise) and Sarah Blackwood.

Bat for Lashes - What's a Girl to Do

Currently, according to the press release I received, Hatherley will now be part of Bat For Lashes (for touring?). Who knows how long that will last?

Look for Cinnabar City sometime in the Summer. The cover artwork will be done by Lewes Herriot, so expect a thick pen with solid colors artwork. In the meantime, her preview song is "White", which I will have to confess didn't really talk to me on the first three or four listens. I suppose it sounds too internety-serious for me, not as fun as her 2004 stuff like "Bastardo" or the head-bopping as "Kim Wilde".

Those darlins

Those Darlins - Wild One Those Darlins Tour Dates 04/15/09 The Parlour at Southgate House Cincinnati/Newport, Ohio 04/16/09 The Vogue w/ The Avett Brothers Indianapolis, Indiana 04/17/09 High Dive Champaign, IL 04/18/09 The Hi-Tone Memphis, TN 04/24/09 White Water Tavern LRock, AR 04/25/09 Smoke & Barrel Fayetteville, AR 05/09/09 1000 Faces Festival Rhappahanock, Virginia 05/11/09 Milestone w/ The Features, The Dexateens Charlotte, North Carolina 05/12/09 Rock & Roll Hotel w/ The Features, The Dexateens DC, Washington DC 05/13/09 iS Venue w/ The Features, The Dexateens Charlottesville, Virginia 05/19/09 Grog Shop w/ The Features, The Dexateens Cleveland, Ohio 05/20/09 Schubas w/ The Features, The Dexateens Chicago, Illinois 05/21/09 The PArlour at Southgate w/ The Features, The Dexateens Newport, Kentucky 05/22/09 The Dame w/The Features & The Dexateens Lexington, Kentucky 05/23/09 Barley’s w/ The Features, The Dexateens Knoxville, Tennessee 06/19/09 Border Bash: Downtown Bristol, in the middle of State Street. Bristol, Tennessee

I got this email about Those Darlins (official/myspace), and there was this disclaimer for the 'foxy' picture attached:

"Disclaimer: Don't blame me. The Darlins' manager JT is crazy. He's the one who wanted to use this picture and the phrase "Drop More Dates..." He's currently boot-scootin' around our office and snickering, as I write these very words. We run a super, super-duper tight ship over here at Oh Wow Dang/Thirty Tigers."

I actually thought the picture is really cute that I made this quick sketch, obviously, looking at it side-by-side, it doesn't look that great compared to how I envisioned it.  I think I made the head too big anyway :/

Their self-titled debut album will be out July 7^th on OH WOW DANG Records, but in the meantime they have this single out called "Wild One", which sounds a bit country, don't you agree?

 04/04/2009 10:42:50 ♥ vu () ♥weheartmusic.com♥podcast.weheartmusic.com♥news.weheartmusic.com 

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 01/04/2009 01:10:06  ♥ written by vu ()

School of Seven Bells-Chain School of Seven Bells Tour Dates 01/16/09 PR (Self Titled Party w/Free Blood, Juan Maclean (live acid set), & Justin Miller (DFA)) New York, New York 02/06/09 Wellesley College Wellesley, Massachusetts 02/07/09 Terrace F. Club Princeton, New Jersey 02/11/09 7th Street Entry (w/Fujiya & Miyagi) Minneapolis, Minnesota 02/12/09 Bottom Lounge (w/Fujiya & Miyagi) Chicago, Illinois 02/13/09 Magic Stick (w/Fujiya & Miyagi) Detroit 02/14/09 Alfred University Knight Club (w/Fujiya & Miyagi) Alfred 02/15/09 Paradise (w/Fujiya & Miyagi) Boston, Massachusetts 02/18/09 The Trocadero (w/Fujiya & Miyagi) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 02/19/09 9:30 Club (w/Fujiya & Miyagi) Washington DC, Washington DC 02/23/09 Whelans Dublin, Ireland 02/24/09 Captain’s Rest Glasgow, Scotland 02/25/09 Cockpit Leeds, UK 02/26/09 Cargo London, UK 02/27/09 Night & Day Manchester, UK 02/28/09 Start The Bus Bristol, UK 03/01/09 Audio Brighton, UK 03/04/09 AB Club Brussels, Belgium 03/05/09 Le Point Ephemere Paris, Ile-de-France 03/07/09 Gleis 22 Münster, Germany 03/08/09 Bang Bang Club Berlin, Germany 03/09/09 Molotow Hamburg, Germany 03/10/09 Studio 672 Cologne, Germany 03/12/09 Flex Vienna, Austria 03/13/09 Atomic Cafe Munich, Germany 03/14/09 La Casa Milan, Italy 04/07/09 The Ritz (w/Bat for Lashes) Manchester 04/08/09 Queen Margaret Union (w/Bat for Lashes) Glasgow, Scotland 04/09/09 Stage 2-Northumbria University (w/Bat for Lashes) Newcastle 04/11/09 Metropolitan University (w/Bat for Lashes) Leeds 04/12/09 Birmingham Town Hall (w/Bat for Lashes) Birmingham 04/13/09 The Regal (w/Bat for Lashes) Oxford 04/15/09 Anson Rooms (w/Bat for Lashes) Bristol 04/16/09 Brighton Corn Exchange (w/Bat for Lashes) Brighton 04/17/09 Sheperds Bush Empire (w/Bat for Lashes) London See Also Bat For Lashes http://weheartmus... A friend of mine asked me to check out this errie music video for "What's a Girl To Do" by Bat fo...

School of Seven Bells (aka SVIIB) got their name from some PBS program about some "mythical South American pick-pocket academy", as mentioned on their their interview/music session on KCRW (incidentally, check out KCRW's vox page). Although Alejandra have admitted to not being able to verify the name, I can tell you that the so-called school is from the Andes Mountains outside Bogota, Colombia.

I am assuming that the Andes Mountain shown in the PBS program might have inspired the naming of their debut album, Alpinisms (the term refers to the European mountain range, often called the Alps). Strangely, however, the cover artwork by Bryan Collins, well, it looks like it was pulled from a picture of Yosemite National Park's famous Half Dome.

The band consists of two real life twin sisters called Alejandra and Claudia Deheza and bassist Benjamin Curtis, formerly (?) of Secret Machines. The band was formed in early 2007, and they are bringing back an old familiar sound of electronica, mixed with a little shoegazing/dreampop - mostly because of the harmonies of the two sisters.

I think grouping the band into the shoegazing category might not describe them, these aren't really sad/depressing songs (with the exception of the slow-moving song, "For Kalaja Mari"). Instead, surprisingly, the album is pretty upbeat, thanks to noisy sounds and quirky keyboard and sound effects. It's like half dance and half awkwardness (because they're not like typical dance rhythm).

My favorite songs on the album is "Wired for Light", a strange violin-ish scratch sound and afro percussions made this song stand out. Obviously, "Half Asleep" is big hit for them. It's pretty melodic and poppy, I can see why they chose this song to release as the single.

My absolute favorite is "Chain", however. Which I'm sure most people won't like for its use of vocal-correction effects. I think it fits the song, especially with the various samples (or at least I think they're samples), and overall gives it a dancey vibe to it. "Chain" should be a real crowd pleaser if they play it live.

And speaking of live, be sure to check them out on tour this year, see the two handsome sisters for yourself, as they play with some other indie-favorites such as Fujiya & Miyagi and Bat for Lashes.

Fans of 4AD, Movaje 3, Cocteau Twins (wow, will someone please do an article on them?), Au Revoir Simone, and Blonde Redhead, will immediately fall in love with SVIIB (if you haven't already). So pick up their wonderful album, Alpinisms, at any online retailer or their record label, Ghostly (where you'll find some EPs for sale as well).

Links: schoolofsevenbells.com myspace.com/schoolofsevenbells ghostly.com

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 09/15/2008 00:36:32  ♥ written by vu ()

Worst Case Ontario - You're Glib Sheri Miller - The Blade Five A.M-Just Say Anything Gershon Veroba - Bamarom The Ramones - Blitzkrieg Bop Department Of Eagles - No One Does It Like You

What can I say? Another great show, and as I promised last week, I will be keeping these brief. If there is one podcast episode you have to listen to: it's this one.

Download this episode (44 min)

As usual, you can subscribe to the show via mypodcast.com

Also, for the first time, I think I've finally got the audio levels down so it's not too destructively noisy. This show is, once again, divided into three parts. Before I get to that, the music I excerpt throughout the show are: Sheri Miller, Worst Case Ontario, Five AM, The Ramones, Gershon Veroba, Bat for Lashes, and Laura Marling.

PART ONE
We talked to Sam from Worst Case Ontario about his band and living in New York and recording. Make sure they get to the top twenty for MTV2 by voting for them on addictedtonoise.com.

PART TWO
Brian and Alex talks about Apple's new line of iPods and iTunes 8 and its "genius" features.

PART THREE
Brody and Dolly talks about the music that they are loving lately. This includes Caroline Smith and Department of Eagles.

PS, please send me any suggestions and tell me what you like (do you want more band interviews? less news?).

UPDATE 9/15/2008:
This came kind of late, but I think I'm supposed to interview this guy, Kordan, when he arrives here tomorrow.  Here is an excerpt of the press release that came out:

Kordan is Arthur Eisele a Global Affairs graduate from Rutgers.  After having created drum n' bass music in Puerto Rico where he grew up, he had moved to Jersey City to pursue his education and is now currently residing in today's renaissance city Williamsburg. 

(excerpt)

Check out the demo for his upcoming single "Fantasy Nation" (MP3)

Kordan will begin working on his full-length soon after for a release early next year.

Tour dates opening for Cut Copy and The Presets:

September 16 @ Fine Line Cafe in Minneapolis, Minnesota
September 17 @ The Metro in Chicago, Illinois
September 19 @ Sound Academy in Toronto, Ontario
September 20 @ Club Soda in Montreal, Quebec
September 21 @ Webster Hall in New York, New York

Links: www.weheartmusic.com news.weheartmusic.com podcast.weheartmusic.com

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Bat for Lashes - What's a Girl to Do Bat For Lashes Bat For Lashes http://weheartmus... A friend of mine asked me to check out this errie music video for "What's a Girl To Do" by Bat fo...

When I saw Beatrix*JAR walk past me, I was shock to find out that they were the opening band for Bat for Lashes. I've seen them before at the Bryant-Lake Bowl and I know they sound nothing like Bat, but more similiar to such DJ acts like Benthley Rhythm Ace [W♥M].

It was cool though, I think the audience wasn't expecting two DJs doing some live mixes on stage. I recorded a 50 second clip to show you what they sound like: stage6.divx.com

The crowd for Bat for Lashes was really healthy, more people showed up than I had expected. It was evident that a lot of these fans loved the video for "What's a Girl to Do" because the crowd instantly started cheering when the first few notes of the song was played.

I think the best part about the show was the unconventional musical instruments that was brought on stage, including the infamous Shaman's sceptre (the ceremonial head of the staff was removed, so it just looked like an ordinary wooden stick).

I'm including the rest of their tour - so check them out if they're coming to your town.

PHOTOGRAPHS ♥ Setlist ♥ Natasha with Shaman's sceptre ♥ Natasha ♥ Bat for Lashes ♥ Beatrix*JAR ♥ Video: Beatrix*JAR

* Big thank you to Dick

 July 29, 2007 3:38 AM  vu my♥posts vu@weheartmusic.com batforlashes.co.uk www.beatrixjar

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Love Is A Losing Game

I was sitting back watching more coverage of Glastonbury when it suddenly occurred to me that I actually have a mental image of the whole layout of Glastonbury superimposed in my mind. I could literally walk you from stage to stage...

I won't...

Day two of the biggest music festival in the UK has seen some of awesome bands on all of the main stages but I'll start by talking about Amy Winehouse (Website, Myspace) who featured on the Jazzworld stage.

Winehouse has been over described by most of the music magazines to the extent that a rather simple down-to-earth pint drinking gal appears to be almost schizophrenic on their pages. She is one of the leading lights of British soul music and has more balls than most of girl power groups. Her set went down a treat with the viewing audience and rightly so!

Let's Make Love And Listen To Death From Above

My favourite moment of the day (I am still pretending I am there) was the sex god of the mods, Paul Weller (Website). His time on stage was made all the better by the presence of Ocean Colour Scene's Damon Minchella (Fired from the group in 2003) and Steve Cradock, two mighty fine guitarists. A Town Called Malice has never sounded sweeter.

The award for best attempt at crowd surfing goes to Lovefoxxx from CSS (Website, Myspace), who successful managed to lose her head band in the process. Like everybody who performs at Glastonbury, the Brazilian group played in awe of the festival itself.

With tickets for Glastonbury costing £145 these days, I almost feel sorry for the hippies who attend for the spiritual side of the festival. But one glance at the faces in the crowd and all criticisms of the growing commercialisation of the festival are thrown to one side. Glastonbury makes people happier. Drunk, drugged up and happier.
 

Books From Boxes

Maximo Park (Website, Myspace) impressed me on the Pyramid Stage with a confident performance. Impressed and surprised me. However even more spectacular was the sight of a sea of people singing along to the instrumental stylings of Rodrigo y Gabriela (Website, Myspace).

Bat  for Lashes were awesome on the John Peel stage and I am really looking forward to seeing them live now. If you don't own their album, I highly recommend you pop it on your wishlist if nothing else.

Jackie Big Tits

All in all, rock was pretty well represented in the lineup this year. One of the advantages of watching from home is the late night special performances in the BBC tent. It was with some delight I witnessed Calvin Harris sing along to an acoustic version of his track, The Girls. Another treat was hearing the Canadian poet and hip hopster K'Naan (Website, Myspace) for the first time. He has secured a place on my wish list.

Back to the big bands, the Kooks (Website, Myspace) were the penultimate act on the Pyramid stage. I've never been caught up in the fuss surrounding the Kooks. In my opinion, there are pretty average but you have to appreciate Jackie's Big Tits. The Killers (Website, Myspace) finished off the night. They were, well, The Killers. You either love them, hate them or stalk them. Interestingly, David Keuning claimed that when recording a song, the band ponders how the track will sound at Glastonbury.

Either Way

The Twang

There is no better way to finish my drunken early morning rambling than with the music of the Brummie band, The Twang (Website, Myspace). This group has been nominated by NME as "the Group of 2007". Putting that cursed title to one side, The Twang are pretty damn good. They have an additive from the gutter sound. The Streets gone rock. Poetic and working class. Definitely my one of the highlights of my festival experience. - Ryan.

Amy Winehouse - itunes, Amazon UK, Amazon USA.
CSS - itunes, Amazon UK, Amazon USA.
Maximo Park - itunes, Amazon UK, Amazon USA.
The Kooks - itunes, Amazon UK, Amazon USA.
The Twang - itunes, Amazon UK, Amazon USA.

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Bat For Lashes - Whats a Girl To Do

A friend of mine asked me to check out this errie music video for "What's a Girl To Do" by Bat for Lashes.  My first thought was of how remiscent it is of the film Donnie Darko (especially with the fellow in the bunny mask).  Although I wasn't very impressed with this video, I did enjoy many of her other songs from her debut album Fur and Gold (2006).  Whereas the music video for "What's a Girl To Do" presents a nightmarish landscape, most of the group's other songs offer dreamy fairytales weaved together with tropical lyrics.

Prescilla

The girl behind the band is Natasha Khan, a British singer/songwriter who spent the majority of her youth in Pakistan.  She is joined by Gabi Lee, Abi Fry, Lizzy Carey and a plethora of instruments.  One such instrument is what she refers to as a shaman's sceptre that is played by banging it against the floor to make a loud thunderclap.  In an interview with musicOMH.com, Natasha also explained that the band dresses up for shows to add to the themes of the songs and the overall experience for the audience. 

She also loves to sing the song "I'm on Fire" by Bruce Springsteen at her lives shows.  I must say, I do like her version better.

The Wizard (live)

Bat for Lashes

If you want to catch them in the flesh, check 'em out at:

June 23rd: Glastonbury Festival 6pm, John Peel Stage
July 12th: Manchester International Festival, Academy 3.
July 14th: Latititude Festival, 4:30pm
July 23rd: Maxwell's - Hoboken NJ Buy Tickets
July 25th: Knitting Factory - New York NY Buy Tickets
July 27th: Schuba's - Chicago IL Buy Tickets
July 28th: 7th St Entry - Minneapolis MN Buy Tickets
July 30th: Cafe Du Nord, San Francisco CA Buy Tickets
July 31st: Spaceland - Los Angeles CA Buy Tickets
August 11th: Field Day 2007, Victoria Park London Buy Tickets
August 26th: Rock en Seine, Paris
September 1st: Connect Festival, Inveraray
September 2nd: Electric Picnic, Stradbally
September 9th: Bestival, Isle of Wight 2:30pm

- The Valley Girl

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