The Dodos: ‘Visiter’

Marry a tuneful dirge of strummings and vocals to the sound of someone beating the crap out of a bag of cutlery, pots and pans, and you’ve got it: The Dodos. ‘Industrial folk’. Flippin’ brilliant.

‘Red And Purple’ is a case in point. Percussionist Logan Kroeber apparently strapped tambourines to his shoes for this one, creating a noise akin to a high speed steam train. The other half of the San Franciso duo, guitarist Meric Long, adds to the clatter with the speed and rhythm of his open tuned guitar. So far so ‘interesting’ – but what makes this record a more sophisticated delight is a sweet chorus (“Come and join us in the trenches, red and purple by our sides”), the way the toy piano carries the tune, and the appearance of a fuzzy blues groove guitar and cavernous backing vocal.

There’s a lot of the Elephant Six collective’s influence at play. The fuzz acoustic owes one to Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel, and the horns on ‘Winter’ are classic Beirut. There are echoes of the retro experimentalism of Yeasayer and Akron/Family. But three albums in, you’d expect a band to have found their own niche, and the Dodos have. The melodies are just so strong.

Sure, stuff is beaten and bashed excitingly on many of the tracks. Pleasingly fuzzy guitars are thrashed, and mixed up with mandolin, banjo, slide. There are attention-grabbing yelps and shouts galore, sudden endings, odd echoes - at times seemingly all on one song (‘Joe’s Waltz’). But most bands would kill for just one of the hooks that ‘Fools’, for example, has at least four of.

Maybe if those 17th-century island colonists had been dancing around to this, instead of setting pigs free and running amok with clubs, The Dodos may have survived. Long live industrial folk. Long live The Dodos.

Released on 14th July 2008 by Wichita Recordings.

Live on SIRIUS, June 07

omygod.

Live in a tunnel

Stereolab: ‘Chemical Chords’

I once tried to say a friendly hello to Stereolab’s Leticia Sadier. Such is her Gallic icy cool, she looked at me like I was a piece of merde on her shoe and walked on. So it is somewhat disappointing to report that ‘Chemical Chords’ is rather good.

This is the eleventh album from the Anglo-French Moogsters. You know ’em –vintage synths, driving lounge pop rhythms, Sadier’s philosopher’s tongue. Like Serge Gainsbourg in space.

‘Chemical Chords’ is the first album proper since 2004’s ‘Margerine Eclipse’, and emerged from songwriter Tim Gane messing around with 70 tiny drum loops. It’s generally poppier than their previous Krautrock influenced albums - ‘Self-portrait With “Electric Brain”’, ‘Daisy Click Clack’ are particularly immediate.

Some songs follow the ‘lab blueprint faithfully, like ‘Neon Beanbag’ and ‘Fractal Dream Of A Thing’. Others branch out altogether, like ‘Nous Vous Demandon Pardon’, with its pace and squelchy, dancefloor friendly bassline.

But French lounge is the persistent influence, helped along by string and brass arrangements from Sean O’Hagan. These provide fresh layers to the ‘lab sound, and the record’s highlights, including the title track, for example, and ‘Cellulose Sunshine’, with euphoric piano, strings and singing in the round, while ‘Vortical Phonotheque’’s bassline and building keyboard motif recalls Air in its blessed out loveliness.

Leticia, I forgive you.

Released on 18th August 2008 by Duophonic UHF Disks/4AD.

Fans of twisted folk sea shantys should check out sons of noel and adrian’s eponymous debut. Everyone else should check it out too.

Track listing:
1. Indigo
2. Kernow
3. Damien. Lessons From What’s Poor
4. Cave
5. Ragwort
6. Divorce
7. Violent Violet
8. The Wreck Is Not A Boat
9. Inside Olympia

Released 7 July on Shelsmusic

At Concorde 2 on 8 August.

Blood Red Shoes: ‘This Is Not For You’

Quiet loud quiet – it’s a tried and tested formula. Blood Red Shoes do it pretty well, and ‘This Is Not For You’ treads in the footsteps of famous QLQ indie tunes like ‘Cannonball’ and ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’.

This Brighton boy and girl’s debut LP ‘Box Of Secrets’ has been going down a storm and this, their ninth single so far, plays on the ‘are they, aren’t they?’ questions about the pair’s relationship. ‘Let’s pretend that everything’s just fine, let’s pretend that everything’s alright’ they insist. A chorus is a giant explosion of bitter sweetness, like a pink yeti has scooped out your brain and squished it all over your face. Moreish.

Released on 7th July 2008 by V2.

Underworld: ‘Ring Road’

Underworld have a rare talent in turning ordinary observations into something special. ‘Ring Road’ offers a day in the life of Romford, but never has the arse end of Essex sounded so seductive.

You’re bound to know the lads best from the ‘shouting lager lager lager’ clarion call of ‘Born Slippy’, but there’s little like that for beer boys to sing on this, Underworld’s new single from last year’s ‘Oblivion With Bells’ album.

Instead, it’s a long and dirty journey round the estates: “At the back of the shops where the purple wheelie bins are pushed against the doors that say fire exit. The smell of grease, there’s a broken glass thing under my feet, the boys stop for a smoke in the sun and watch girls cross from the job centre.” With a percussive and twinkling backing track, you can almost smell the Benson on the summer breeze. Wind down the windows of your modded 306 and crank it up – summer’s here.

Released on 7th July 2008 by Integral.

Here’s what idiomag says about Joanna Robertson: “Like an adult dressed up like a child at a party, Joanne Robertson is less engagingly quirky than embarrassing. Coming from a fine art background, her album is not built on sure-fire melody or lyrical depth - or even musical competence. What could be appealingly loose and seductive on a cursory listen rapidly becomes a mewling, derivative bore. Joanne plays a slow, hesitant acoustic guitar - folk influenced and minimal, the plucking is wearing, repetitious and unimaginative. Her voice veers off the notes, her words are muffled and the apparently mellow service hides the absence of tune or structure. Laziness replaces effortlessness. An interesting visual artist, her music nods at cliched ideas of fragility and purity when she lacks the musical skill to bring these concepts to life. There are a few moments of laid-back pleasure scattered across the (overlong) album, but The Lighter is theoretical music - it sounds like a good idea, but it is mannered, passionless and, ultimately, derivative. It could work as a soundtrack to a mobile phone advert.”

Can’t wait!

The Thirst: ‘My Everything’

Zane Lowe apparently approved this single for release – taken from The Thirst’s recent debut album ‘On The Brink’. A back-handed compliment if you ask me. In fact, if they had asked me, I wouldn’t have picked this distinctly average and forgettable slice of indie by numbers.

‘My Everything’ features singer/guitarist Mensah’s vocal at its most strained and shouty. Imagine a brickie singing along whilst on the throne and you’ve got the picture. Then add lyrics inspired by a documentary about an HIV positive 18 year old, a girl with ‘Open toed sandals on her feet’ (where else would they be?) and that brickie vision gets even more uncomfortable. The music aims at The Jam but misses by a country mile, landing with a great splat in the bargain bin. Zane Lowe – so much to answer for…

Released on 14 July 2008 by Wooden Records.

The Thirst: ‘On The Brink’ LP

Judging by the title of this debut album, The Thirst are clearly an ambitious bunch. Support slots with The Rolling Stones and Sex Pistols show that some big names are watching over them… but aren’t they just another bloody indie band?

Mark, Marcus and brothers Mensah and Kwame were discovered by Ronnie Wood – hence the Stones support slot – and make a big deal out of their childhood hip-hop, reggae and ska influences. This isn’t apparent from the record however, and they could do a lot more to differentiate themselves from the pack.

The album catches you off balance straight away, starting out with a low-key, acoustic challenge to doubters on the downbeat ‘They Don’t Know’. But thereafter we’re fully in spiky indie pop territory. On ‘Ready To Move’ I honestly thought my stereo had switched to the Arctic Monkeys by mistake. The Steel City boys want to get the lawyers onto this lot – only the London accent offers a clue to show that yes, this is a different band.

Other Monkey-shaped items include ‘I Believe’ and ‘Sail Away’ – the latter nevertheless an enjoyable paean to life away from the concrete jungle. Unfortunately the album doesn’t include David Sugar’s dub mix, which is well worth seeking out separately. ‘Acre Lane’, ‘Watch Me Now’ and forthcoming single ‘My Everything’ are entirely forgettable ways to fill NME column inches.

For the sake of variety, ‘I’m Falling’ tries some rather clumsy strings. ‘Don’t Waste Your Time’ goes the whole ska hog, but sounds forced and false, and features an excruciating guitar solo. ‘All Mine’ and title-track ‘On The Brink’ turn up the fuzz in an effort to sound different, and at least inject some honest energy. But overall it ain’t enough. On the brink (of major success)? I think not.

Released on 2nd June 2008 by Wooden Records.

Edgar Prais: ‘Pop Song No.93’ / ‘Jamie’

Edgar Prais follow in the intellectual and foppish footsteps of Vampire Weekend and other blazer lovers. This Aberdeen three-piece named their band after a local barrister, for goodness sake. Apparently, he’d defended a local musician friend and won his way to their hearts in the process.

On their website, Oscar Montague (ha ha!) tells us that ‘Like carpentry, song-writing is a craft to be learnt in time’ and compare themselves to Fellini. I’d be amazed if even Mr Prais QC could defend that.

The music is a fuzzy dirge from the Snow Patrol school of constipated rock. Distinctly average, it lacks the charm and lightness of the Vampires. I, for one, don’t want to wait around while these would be chippies learn how to hold a saw.

Released on 30th June 2008 by Dixie Cups.