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Across the world, ten new lo-fi bands will have formed by the time you reach the end of this sentence. Given that, it’s easy to forget what a breath of fresh air No Age were when they first came clattering into earshot. Released in 2007, "Neck Escaper" was something of an early anthem for the duo and its gallant swing endures even if Randy Randall and Dean Spunt now prefer to make lusher, more overwhelming noises together.
The Vivian Girls
Here’s the next batch of our top 100 records list for 2009. Our favourite albums of 2009, our favourite singles of 2009, our favourite tracks of 2009 - they’re all in here mixed together. Well, numbers 80-61 are anyway.
"A ‘peephole’," Wikipedia tells us, "is a small opening cut in a door, typically to allow people inside to see outside without opening that door." OK - so quoting Wikipedia is pretty much the laziest thing that anyone can possibly do, but for Brighton duo Peepholes the definition’s too apt not to use, "Airforce Trainer" so obviously the result of two lonely people making music in a bunker somewhere.
Did you know the dudes in No Age were dirty mice-morphers?! F#@k, I never trusted those guys to begin with.
The band has a new video for the title track of the latest EP, Losing Feeling. You can purchase the EP at Sub Pop Records…
Damn near the last minute I was given a chance to attend this year’s ATP NY (I’ll be covering it for Gothamist all weekend) and I have to say I don’t think I’ve been this excited about a musical weekend in ages! With bands like The Flaming Lips, Deerhunter, and Animal Collective all on tap and crazy concoctions like Bob Mould with No Age (performing as Hüsker Dü) and the Boredoms doing a 9 drum BOADRUM, this is gonna be a crazy weekend! It starts tonight with several legendary performers reprising classic albums and a highly publicized reunion from The Jesus Lizard that we are especially amped for! Here’s what I’ll be catching tonight (full review tomorrow hopefully!) and you should join along. I’m skipping the comedy stage, most of those guys are from the area already.
3:15pm: The Drones
The first act to take the stage this weekend are from Australia and are here to promote their upcoming album (which just happens to be on ATP Recordings). Even though they are promoting a new album they will be performing Wait Long By The River And The Bodies Of Your Enemies Will Float By in its entirety. I’ve honestly never really listened to their music so this will be a new experience for me, but since they are the first band of the weekend they will probably get my undivided attention and a lot of my bubbling energy!
As fun as all the other bands had been on day one the real reason we all wanted to be there was to see the reformed version of The Jesus Lizard tearing everyone a new asshole.
Out of all the bands that played ATP this year, all the legends that graced the stage, there was one act that really stood out above all the rest as the act I wanted to see and that was the crazy pairing of No Age with Bob Mould with Mould agreeing to play Hüsker Dü songs during the set! For a kid who grew up worshiping punk rock Hüsker Dü is at an idol level for me, they are one of my favorite band ever. And to have No Age assist Mould in pulling it off was almost as cool as if Grant Hart and Greg Norton would have joined Mould on stage, okay maybe not quite that cool. But I do love No Age and I have loved Hüsker Dü for a long, long time so to finally see Bob Mould playing these songs on a stage was a very special moment.
Late last week word came down that Bob Mould had recruited No Age to perform a set of Hüsker Dü tunes it warmed my heart to know that the second best possible version of the band would indeed be hitting a stage. Sure, it may not be Mould, Grant Heart, and Greg Norton, but it will be the first time Hüsker Dü songs are played in a live setting in a few years and I’m excited for the chance to see (so long as I can find the cash to cough up!). It also led me down nostalgia road, listening to the old tunes and discovering them once again like I did somewhere in my teen years.
I’ve been singing Jay Reatard all day. Easily one of my favourite sets of all time, Jay Reatard catapulted through a lightning speed set of songs mixed from his back catalog, although unfortunately seemed to pay less attention to my personal favourite, Blood Visions. Like the other crazy sweaty messes up the front I too was left hankering and hollering for Blood Visions, the title track. We were at least blessed with Greed, Money, Useless Children from the same album, a highlight song for me. Living up to his rep, the incredibly hairy Reatard simply yelled out the song title of the next song between each sweat-soaked rollercoaster track. Come to think of it, listening to Blood Visions now, you can almost hear him doing the same on the record, between Greed, Money… and It’s So Easy! The band had one of the best stage presences I’ve ever seen, EVER. His bass player was like Gene Simmons (but less creepy), pulling epic poses with his flying V that matched Jay’s, waving his head around loosely with his mouth agape so that his sweat and spit sprayed a metre in diametre. The quiet drummer was poised and perfectly fast. An incredibly talented and fun band, it was always going to be a hard one to beat.
A lot of the new-ish grage afflicted bands hailing from New York take themselves a bit too seriously. They strut and pose on stage, trying to look cooler then they are in their designer clothes and perfectly pieced together outfits. They try not to sweat no matter how much their music begs them to. Well the West coast doesn't seem to have quite the same problems with their garage acts, bands like WAVVES and No Age, who have mixed punk, noise, lo-fi, and garage into one big grab bag but expect you to have fun while listening.
Photos from a recent FOE gig - a friend of our friends Hold Your Horse Is - she’s gonna be big!!! Read the gig review after the jump.
Shots of North Carolina’s folk-rocking Avett Brothers’ stop in Glasgow - 22.08.11
Read the review of the gig here.
Take a look at the acts and art on offer at this year’s Latitude Festival in Suffolk. Included are the likes of Fight Like Apes, Lykke Li, Sea of Bees and Seasick Steve. Photos from our own...
Good time with Bad Guys. Photos from the May 29th gig at the Old Blue Last. Read the review by the Bad Guy himself, Stuart London after the jump.
Artrocker.com exclusive: for fans of White Lies and Crocodiles we’ve got some fresh pictures from their UK show at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire earlier this month, courtesy of Alessandro...
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