9 posts tagged “scotland”
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09/02/09
Stereo Glasgow, Scotland
Discography
09/03/09 Brudenell Social Club Leeds 09/04/09 moseley folk fest birmingham, Midlands 09/05/09 Thekla Bristol, Southwest 09/06/09 Bush Hall London 09/07/09 Point Ephémère Paris
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Indie pop has had its fair share of epic collaborations (Calvin Johnson and Amelia Fletcher, anyone?), but few are more unexpected and strangely fitting than the Glasgow-based Pastels and Tokyo-based Tenniscoats. Recorded in Scotland, their joint album, Two Sunsets, is a dreamy combination of both bands’ signature sounds and an intercontinental sampling of languages and aesthetics.
According to Stephen Pastel’s reflection on the album’s conception, the bands aimed to work “instinctively and quickly,” and this notion is clearly felt throughout the album’s many subtle quirks. Instrumental tracks like “Tokyo Glasgow” and “Modesty Piece” have an organic feeling to them despite being infused with soft tinges of electronica. Saya Ueno of Tenniscoats describes the collaboration as “something like Pastels underneath, sounding beautiful like a big cloud, with Tenniscoats flying over,” and the image of a cloud is fitting, as most of the songs have a crisp, almost post-rainfall feel to it.
This clean feeling of recovery reverberates in “Song For a Friend,” which has verses in both Japanese in English. Melancholy contemplations about “shadows as memories” and “places we would be” are accompanied by a simple keyboard and the occasional horn. Stephen’s baritone contrasts deeply with Saya Ueno’s tinkling voice, but somehow the delicate verses and melodies meld them together seamlessly.
The different languages make for an interesting combination in several songs, though most tracks tend to stick to only one. Despite this, both bands’ influences are clear on each track. On the English track, “Vivid Youth,” Stephen and Katrina provide breezy vocals, but the lounge-like ambiance is distinctly Tenniscoats. Similarly, on the Japanese track, “Sodane,” the upbeat keyboards and twangy guitars give off a subtle aura of Glaswegian pop. The two bands manage to strike a perfect balance of their particular sounds, and in true contradictory indie pop fashion, the end result is both sunny and gloomy – and of course, completely irresistible.
The Pastels and Tenniscoats are not two bands that immediately come to mind in terms of compatibility, but Two Sunsets is sterling proof of their chemistry and general understanding of each other’s personal motives behind making music. Quietly beautiful and subtle in all its charms, these two bands’ joint effort is quite possibly the musical equivalent to a summer rain shower: unpredictable, much-needed, and oddly refreshing.
Note: Domino Records, Two Sunsets will be available on vinyl, cd and download on September 22nd.
08/15/2009 23:27:16 ♥ kateg (
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tenniscoats.com/myspace.com
♥ myspace.com/thepastels
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I wanted to give you guys a November update, even though the month's nearly over. I'm looking over my pending music list right now and I have too many to cover before the year's over, but I'm going to give it the old college try and cover as much of it as I can before starting a fresh slate for 2009. I'm very excited about the new year, working with brand new exciting music companies that we haven't worked with before.
Also, I wanted to give a warm welcome to Jaklumen to the W♥M team, who I think will be handling most of the electronica/ambient stuff. I'm going to try and schedule to have all the active writers to appear on a future podcast (once everything is sorted out, I think our next writer appearance is Australian "Schnitzel" Sally). For those keeping track, previous appearances includes: Kate & Lara, Emelia, Brian, Alex, Derek, Dave, Ryan, and Christina. I would love to get a reoccuring co-host, but just getting someone to a commitment to a weekend recording session on a regular basis is harder than you think. Generally, I prefer taping on Sunday (daytime) so I can work on editing the show Sunday evening, whilst catching up on television I've missed via hulu.com.
Speaking of television shows, as I am writing this, I'm downloading the third season of Supernatural on iTunes for free. Technically, I have paid for it because I picked up the DVD. I'm starting to see more and more when you buy a DVD it comes with a digital copy of the movie for watching it on your computer or portable device. Since I have an iPod Touch, I have noticed I am starting to use its video feature a lot (especially when I'm sitting around with my cat and reading reference books).
Sure, I would love another browser on the iPod, like Opera, but Apple does not play nice. I just want the freedom to add whatever software I want to it, you know? Quake (with physical buttons add on) is available on a broken iPhone, so the potential is there! They can really turn this into a PSP or Nintendo DS competitor, but perhaps that's fourth or fifth generation down the line.
If Quake is your thing, the best free first-person shooter on the iPod is Cube. This is such a great-looking game on the platform, shame the accelerometer control and gamma is pretty bad. For the price (free), I would still give it a five-star rating.
As for music, I've been listening to Camera Obscura on my iPod and as a special bonus, here is our own Emelia with her ukulele rendition of "Tears for Affair". Apologize in advance for photography cover artwork, just so you feel better, here's a picture of me & photogirl. I do have a funny story about that picture, but for the long and short of it, the photograph was taken at a Camera Obscura concert on a velvet couch at the Varsity Theater.
Of course you protest, that's what you do best
And you're modest and shy to the end
You're watching them as they're looking at you
And you know it was money well spentShe told me you'd given up drinking to be with somebody you knew
And you tried to get into the bible but it never got into you
UPDATE 11/30/08: Normally we get one or two people who listens to W♥M exclusively through The Hype Machine, which is not a lot, but any new reader/listeners is cool in my book.
Well today I checked our page and there is a huge spike (36 as of this writing) on the Camera Obscura's "Tears for Affair" song!
Links:
www.weheartmusic.com
podcast.weheartmusic.com
news.weheartmusic.com
The theme to this post is creepy duos.
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myspace.com/patronandpatron ♥ nonine.com The first thing you'll notice about Patron & Patron's Gen is that it's the type of music you'll find on a horror movie or some science fiction movie. A little bit dark and a little bit creepy. Like many of these electronic artist, the music is usually composed by one man or a duo, in this case, the later is true: Sakuran (Frederik Van de Moortel) and Me Raabenstein makes up Patron & Patron. There's a lot of usage of bass in these songs, which is kind of unusual for electronic artists. But you'll quickly find yourself at home when you run into random noises and quirks throughout the album. There are no lyrics (although there are random movie lines or something, like "We Are Not Alone"), so you're left to interpret each song. This actually makes it really hard for me to describe to you what each song is about. There seems to be an industrial influence on this album, songs like "Magenta Verve" uses natural sounds like doors opening or chains (?), mixed with artificial energy... but warped somehow. Of all the songs, I thought "Either Or" is perhaps the best one. There's a skeleton structure to it, and there's also a funky jazz feel to it. I'm calling it space jazz. I suggest you really experience this album with headphones to catch all the quirkiness and sound effects. The full album can be purchased on nonine.com, but via paypal and digitally. |
myspace.com/meraabenstein ♥ nonine.com Nonine is also releasing Bedtime Stories from Taub. Between Patron & Patron and Taub, I thought Taub had a more cohesive feel to it. Think of it as a soundtrack to a children book. Once again, Me Raabenstein is co-writing. This time with David Hillary (aka Harold Nono). If Nono sounds familiar to you, that's because we've previously mentioned him twice over. What makes this collaboration interesting is that Nono is Scottish, and with the internet, this teamup is possible. I liked the piano and weird noises on "Chamber Pot" (there's definitely a lot of pianos and keys throughout the album, I'll have to add). Towards the end of this song, you'll notice some sort of singing that sounds like children dying (!) As soon as I heard lyric-type singing (it's not actually someone singing, it's more like distorted vocal samplings) they made the songs more memorable. At least to me. Like "Rouge Absolu" feels like a French film, especially with the dialogue at the beginning. I'm not even sure it was French, come to think about it. Speaking of French, my favorite song on here is "Backyard Maud the Fraudian Fairy", it sounds like scary circus music. The "La Ronde at the Top" song seems to be two songs in one. The first part has a Middle Eastern feel to it, but the second half sounds chaotic. Again, this is available digitally. The cost is 10,90 Euros, which is about $15 at current exchange (keep in mind that a portion of this amount actually goes to paypal), but like Gen they do come with a full size 800x800 cover artwork and PDF file (I am assuming that's the lyric book) and each song is encoded at 320kbps. |
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antenne.suite.dk ♥ nonine.com Speaking of creepy, check out this #3 album by Antenne. As the name suggest, this is the third full length album from a duo (Kim G. Hansen and Marie-Louise Munck) based out of Denmark. The majority of the album features the vocals of Marie-Louise Munck, and despite being Danish, she actually sings in English. Sometime her voice, although sweet and clear, it makes me sad for some reason.... kind of like a haunting ghost. I do actually enjoy feeling sad and depress and songs like "Long to Kiss" and "Blue Light" takes me to an isolated place, surrounded by empty space ("Days into Nights") or unnatural electric field ("Ttreaa#7"). Let me be clear on some things, these are not pop songs... but easily the poppiest, and the most accessible, song on this album is the beautiful "Gloves On". If you like experimental music with haunting vocals, definitely check out Antenne. Don't let the eight tracks fool you, this is by no means an EP. The album clocks in about 50 minutes, perfect for an LP. The album was released earlier in July 2008, and you can purchase it on the record label Helmet Room Records. |
myspace.com/battleoflandandsea In keeping with the creepy duos theme, here's The Battle of Land and Sea. I actually don't know much about this Portland-based band, but they seem to be good friends with a Mr Jacob Golden (if you remember, Ryan went to see him in Newcastle, UK). Their music, based on this (debut?) self-titled EP from Mis Ojos Discos (My Eyes Disc), they seem very acoustically folky. As a cover lover, my favorite song on here is "Harden My Heart". It totally made me dig out my Quarterflash single. Battle's version is so stripped down and haunting that they can be considered two different songs. Special notes: I used to think this song goes, "I'm going to pardon my heart". |
Harold Nono graduated from Edinburgh Art College with a painting degree. Listening to his third release on Bearsuit Records, To the River Lounge, his degree is quite fitting. The album sounds like layers of paint, juxtaposed, and organized in his own unique way. It opens with "Lullaby", a downtempo track that features a woman's voice singing over a head-jerkin drumbeat. The following track "A Shining Space" reminds me of some creepy Japanese horror film like Ju-on. Next is "Rain" and it makes me feel like I'm floating above a body of water on a beautiful sunny day. "Waterspeakers" brings the listener back to the water and features bells of some sort and a looping hum that sound like waves. Later in the album, "Tacky Tigers" comes and sweeps you out of the water and into a fairy-tale with its glistening flutes and innocent and playful tone. To the River Lounge is truly a great album and different from what I normally listen to and post on W♥M.
For more information on Harold Nono and/or purchase the album, visit his site or Bearsuit Records.
04/18/2008 23:41:50 jason my♥posts myspace.com/haroldnono myspace.com/bearsuitrecords
It snowed non-stopped yesterday and it finally stopped this morning. I've been pretty much housebound today, watching The Food Network, Best Week Ever and Smallville.
Anyway, I thought it would be fun to compile some snow-winter-related bands and songs.
We really have to start off with Dean Martin's "Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!"
He's actually not the original singer (Vaughn Monroe was), but Dean "The King of Cool" Martin certain made it famous for his 1959's Christmas album, A Winter Romance.
Jonathan Richman is always fun. This is a pretty typically fun song from Richman, "Abominable Snowman in the Market". I think the title pretty much sums up the song :)
I'll have to do a full entry for Richman later, because he's been around for years and years. A quick history on Richman: he is from Massachusetts, who moved to New York trying to break into the music industry. He eventually left and came back to Boston where he formed The Modern Lovers, around 1972.
Loads of stuff happened, but you probably remember seeing him in "There's Something About Mary"
From Glasgow, Scotland, is Snow Patrol. I first heard of them through Belle & Sebastian's UK record label, Jeepster Records. They left that label for their third album (which proved a massive hit for them) Final Straw.
My favorite Snow Patrol song has got to be "Run", which is the strongest song on Final Straw. Whenever this song is done live, Gary Lightbody's heavy Scottish accent really shines through. You can find the live version on Live Lounge, or if you live in the US, you can find an exclusive EP from Park Ave CDs in Orlando, Florida.
Speaking of "college" band, Keane is my next band. I guess I'm not that keen on Keane, but I did want to talk about "Snowed Under" mostly because I have it through a Best Buy Compilation. I think Best Buy discontinued this tradition of giving away Sweet Tracks album around Christmas time (at least I don't remember getting one last year).
The Sweet Tracks are usually in a tin case and are given away if you shopped at their store and are a Reward Zone member. I've managed to scam a few extra tin by shopping multiple time ... which I'll have to admit is fairly easy for me as I go there every Tuesday. Anyway, perhaps I'll do a full article on each of the Sweet Tracks this xmas if anyone's interested in reading more about these... er... sweet tracks.
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Tour
12/05/07 The Beat Kitchen Chicago, IL 12/06/07 Vaudeville Mews Des Moines, IA 12/07/07 House Show - Norman, OK |
Lara uploaded "Snow in Berlin" - I thought it was just perfect to use for this Snow-related entry.
It seems like an odd title for a band from Austin, Texas, but this is Chris Simpson's latest project. I talked to someone who was big into his old band, Mineral and The Gloria Records, who seemed really excited about Zookeeper's debut album Becoming All Things, telling me about how diverse each of the songs on the album were.
They're currently wrapping up their tour, but you can still catch them for the first week of December.
Yes, there's probably a lot of Snow-related songs out there (including a Stars song, but I think we talk about them way too much!).
12/03/2007 00:14:12
vu
my♥posts
www.weheartmusic.com
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Tour 2007
Sep 27 Nice n Sleazies - Glasgow Sep 28 Monty's Dunfermline - Dunfermline[2] Sep 28 Greenside Hotel - Leslie nr Glenrothes[2] Sep 29 TBC Sep 30 Doghouse Dundee - Dundee Nov 01 Dublin Castle - London Trivia Did you know that Juno was the name of the Roman Goddess? Her original name from the Greeks was Hera, but when the Roman took over, they changed all the names. Suddenly Zeus was called Jupiter, etc. In 2011, NASA is planning on launching a spacecraft called Juno that will be orbiting the planet Jupiter. Band Members
Footnotes [1] Which, by the way, I have seen live with Apollo 440. [2] Supporting Kid Carpet on "Our friend Electric tour" |
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Audio
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Juno! (not to be confused with the American band, Juno[1]) are from Glasgow, Scotland. Although they're based out of Scotland, they do have members in Fife and Tokyo.
We briefly mentioned that they were working with Manda Rin[W♥M]. The song they worked on was called "Smoke and Mirror", which is available through Shifty Disco.
Having
listened to the "Smoke and Mirror" song a few times now, I have to
admit it does sound a lot of fun and reminds me of Bis.
The song did make me want to check out more on their myspace. Which I have to say I quite enjoyed "Sunshine in my Pocket".... so I'm also including their video.
Also, if you're curious what they sound like live, you can watch them on Nexus Live Show (19 Jul 2006). The production level on Nexus Live is very professional and worth watching. Although I would have to admit, watching videos on a small screen is taxing on the eyes.
Anyway, they're currently finishing up recording their debut album called Harder Than It Should Be, to be released sometime this year.
September 17, 2007 10:00 PM
vu
my♥posts
vu@weheartmusic.com
www.junovision.co.uk
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Tour 2007
Dec 06 London Islington Academy - London Dec 07 Manchester University - Manchester Dec 08 Glasgow Oran Mor - Glasgow
Albums
[1] To be released by Red Cherry Record [2] From Manda's Blog |
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You KNEW this was coming! ... This entry is for Maggie.
Last week, Manda Rin announced three tour dates with... BIS! This was a surprise considering that the cute band broke up in 2003. As it turns out, this was in celebration of Bis' 10 year anniversary of The New Transistor Heroes and a brand new greatest hits CD/DVD is coming out called We Are Bis From Glasgow, Scotland[1].
Bis is techno disco / synth / DIY band, with girl-boy vocals from Glasgow, Scotland.
I was a little late into the game, discovering them in 1996, in Mark's car, listening to Radio 1 Sound City Leeds. Technically I wasn't late, but I should've caught them on the radar when they were on Top of the Pops in 1995, preceeding their Secret Vampire Soundtrack EP.
Of course, I loved what I heard, especially because Manda's child-like vocals (which I'll have to admit may sound annoying to certain people). They weren't signed to any U.S. distributors, so pretty much we had to import the EPs or had friends in the UK make you mix tapes.
My favorite album from them is Social Dancing, a really fun dance and disco album. My least favorite is Return to Central, which was more DJ-like (almost an experimental and departure from their original sound). It's still listenable, but I guess I was just expecting them to stay the same. This quote from Manda pretty much sums it up:
With the strong 'image' of the 90's, we found it hard to be taken seriously and for people to realise we no longer made music like Kandy Pop.
Then before you knew it, they broke up. They got back together with some new band members and formed Data Panik, but the last time I checked, the band aren't together. You can download some demos off their website to get an idea of what they sound like.
Manda Rin said she is working on solo material. You can hear one new song on her myspace page and she's also guest-starring in a band called Juno (which she may be appearing in London, Nov 1st)[2].
September 10, 2007 5:59 AM
vu
my♥posts
vu@weheartmusic.com
www.bisnation.com
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On Tour
18 Aug Open Air Gampel, Das Festivalgelфnde, Switzerland 22 Sep Eutopia 07, Cordoba, Spain 23 Sep La Merce-Damm Fest, Barcelona, Spain 05 Oct La Riviera, Madrid, Spain 06 Oct Festival de Musica Independiente, Zaragoza, Spain |
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I was over at Brody's place and he asked if I had heard the new Travis album. I told him that I wasn't that big of a fan, but I own all of their albums going back to Feeling Good (1997).
Of course, by 1997, Britpop was already fast fading out, and Britpop fans were looking for something else to hold onto. I think that's where Travis came in
I found Travis on a few compilation CDs, including the famous Volume series [W♥M], and started to like them. By this time, I wasn't all that impressed with Feeling Good, but I thought The Man Who (1999) was pretty good.
They had a major hit single, "Why Does It Always Rain on Me?", followed by another hit single, "Sing" off of The Invisible Band (2001). It also help that these singles were produced by Nigel Godrich (who helped crafted Radiohead's sound with OK Computer).
In 2002, Travis's drummer, Neil Primrose, broke his neck in a diving accident and the band took a break from public performances. They regrouped when Primrose made a full recovery and released the barely-noticed 12 Memories album.
Which brings us to The Boy With no Name, released on May 2007. I actually had no idea they released a fifth studio album. Their big single release this time is "Shelfish Jean". It's very good, I was really impressed with it.
As it turns out, this "new" song is actually recycled from their 1997 song "Standing on My Own". The music is different, but the theme and some lyrics are re-used for "Shelfish Jean".
August 17, 2007 8:22 PM
vu
my♥posts
vu@weheartmusic.com
www.travisonline.com
The Pastels are from Glasgow, Scotland. They've been together since 1982 (!!), their recent works includes the soundtrack to The Last Great Wilderness in 2003 and music production for 12 Stars in November 2006. Currently they are just a trio: Stephen, Katrina, and Aggi.
Don't let this great duet fool you, I honestly don't think Stephen is a good singer at all. His voice cracks and whines on their early songs (it's AWFUL), but for some reason, he's not half-bad on this song, "Nothing to be Done". I believe that is Annabel (Aggi) singing the girl part - which reminds me a lot of Hope Sandoval.
PS, I just found out that a band called Love Is All covered "Nothing to be Done" (their latest EP cover art is in their profile). Being a cover lover, I really want to hear their version of it!
