3 posts tagged “charlotte hatherley”

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

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.

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.

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 - Wild One Those Darlins 1 comment 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?