Dancing About Architecture 09.12.06

Posted by Ian Wright on 09.12.2006

An Electric Picnic, The Shins, Isobel Campbell, Cat Power, Deerhoof, Liars and Sufjan Stevens.

The bit at the start

Hola, I was away at the Electric Picnic Festival down the country last week so there was no column. Despite the lack of Arcade Fire, who were the highlight of last year's festival, for the most part I had a great time. The weather behaved itself most of the time, I got to hang out with loads of my friends and most importantly of all I got to see a load of amazing music.

Mogwai were as good as I'd always hoped they'd be, that is to say, mind-blowing. Super Furry Animals acoustic bingo was loads of fun (although they got lucky and most of the hits came out of the hat), Saul Williams was astonishingly intense. Broken Social Scene's gig was never going to be as good as the near 3-hour set I saw them play back in February but it was still brilliant. Tapes n' Tapes were cool. Yo La Tengo were nowhere near as mellow as I thought they'd be and provided the undoubted rock n' roll moment of the festival with a 90 second display of guitar swinging induced noise towards the end of the set. Delorentos were as good as they always are. Devendra Banhart was his usual blessed out self, even if the guy he got up on stage to play a song jumped over about 4 people to get up there.

But the musical highlight of the weekend wasn't some pitchfork approved bunch of Canadians or New Yorkers, it was Ireland's own Redneck Manifesto. Mogwai may be the current kings of post-rock (although I prefer Explosions In The Sky myself) but I saw the Dublin instrumental quintet come on stage a couple of hours after them and they easily matched the Glaswegian's performance. While Mogwai rule when it comes to power and noise the Rednecks just blow them away in terms of tone, time changes and riffs. Bassist Richie Egan also provided the 3 friends I was with and I with our catchphrases for the weekend.

It wasn't all great though. Antony was lost on the main stage and there was too much noise filtering through from other places for me to enjoy him. I adore his music but it just didn't work for me. He'd have been amazing in a tent. Also, the Yeah Yeah Yeah's were phenomenally boring headlining on Sunday night. I never thought I'd say this, but I should have gone to see The Pet Shop Boys.

Beg, borrow, buy, steal or download this album.

Saul Williams – Saul Williams.



This is one angry guy. But his rhymes are incredible.

2 hip-hop albums recommended in a row, I'll be back to indie next week, I promise.

You news, you lose

Kicked in the...

Details of the Shins' upcoming album continue to emerge. It's almost as though their label is leaking info regularly to ensure lots of coverage of the release, ain't that odd.

Anyway, Sub Pop are releasing Wincing The Night Away on January 23rd of next year (meaning that we have something concrete to look forward too and won't have to pray for the world to end as the clock hits midnight on January 1st, yay).

Writing about the release on their website last week the band said, "Trust us if we had our way it would be out next week, but 'The Man' has seen fit to do otherwise. The good folks at Sub Pop have scheduled this like a finely tuned machine, and we have all the confidence in the world that January is the magic month for a reason. We are excited." So am I guys, so am I.

Oh yeah, if you're lucky enough to be seeing the band at Austin City Limits this week you're positively encouraged to bring along all sorts of "digital cameras, phones, and other media capturing gadgets" because "your footage could be used in a video broadcast of one of our songs." Presumably this means you won't get any hassle from security goons.

If you bring one of those old fashioned box cameras that require the band to be motionless for 5-minutes while you get your shot I'll worship you as though you were a god.

That's a promise.

I don't' get it.

You know what pisses me off. When record company's release an album and then a few months later re-release it as a special edition with some new tracks tacked on to the end to completely balls up the painstakingly thought out tracklisting and a few videos in order to screw over the hardcore fans who bought the album in the first place.

Well I was all ready to tear Matador and Cat Power a new one (I even had the headline decided on "Bad kitty, BAD!") when I heard that they were re-releasing The Greatest which is barely 9 months old but it seems that they're doing something a bit different this time. First of all the tracklisting is exactly the same as the original version of the album. The only real difference is in the artwork, the album now comes in 3 different slipcase covers. Oh yeah, and it'll now be priced at $9.98 in the US.

I don't know if I'm missing something but this seems like really good value. Unfortunately this means that I've got a load of pent up anger that I had prepared to direct at Matador and Chan Marshall. Maybe I should go and kick some puppies or something.

The album came out (again) today, you should go buy it if you don't own it already.

I'm sure the word "Power" is in the lyrics somewhere.

Deerhoof, the uber-cool San Francisco band with the big sound and small Japanese singer have had an eventful year. They've been touring almost non-stop and lost a member yet they've managed to squeeze in recording a new album along the way. It'll be out on the same day as the Shins record on Kill Rock Stars/5RC and it's called Friend Opportunity.

The album was recorded in Tiny Telephone in San Francisco and apparently sounds "like symphonic grime with drum corps."

I've never really cared for Deerhoof on record but after seeing them open for Radiohead a few weeks back I have to say that I do like them and maybe it's time for a reappraisal of their recorded work on my part.

Crikey.

Berlin based Brooklyners/Brooklynites/Brooklynians New Yorkers Liars paid tribute to the late crocodile hunter Steve Irwin last week in a touching message on their website. "Steve Irwin we'll miss u..missumissumissu," it read, how sweet.

The band even went so far as to compose a new song for the dear departed thumb-up-a-croc's-bunghole sticker-upper and posted it up on their MySpace page. Entitled simply "Steve Irwin" the song features squalling distortion interspersed with Irwin soundbites.

Can anyone tell me if Drums Not Dead is as good as people are saying?

I think the only way to top the pitchfork headline would have been to add an "on" ...

… thus making it read "Isobel Campbell to Lay Down (on) Milkwhite Sheets", thinking about that prospect for an extended period of time would probably lead to me sitting funny.

Anyway, following up from her Mercury prize nominated collaboration with Mark Lanegan earlier in the year the ex-Belle and Sebastian chanteuse will release her second album of the year Milkwhite Sheets on November 6th on V2 in the US.

The album sees Campbell singing solo (and have I mentioned how amazingly well the stark contrast between her voice and Lanegan's work on The Ballad Of Broken Seas? No? Well it does.) with one song being sung a capella.

The album was recorded around the same time as Ballad and was inspired by folk artists such as Shirley Collins, Anne Briggs, Jean Ritchie and features Campbell taking on many traditional folk tunes.

As for what it will sound like, we'll leave it to the lady herself to describe it; "The guy who mastered my album usually works on death metal records. He said it sounds 'satanic'! I was quite flattered..."

Hmm.

Tracklisting:

01 O Love Is Teasin'
02 Willow's Song
03 Yearning
04 James
05 Hori Horo
06 Reynardine
07 Milkwhite Sheets
08 Cachel Wood
09 Beggar, Wiseman or Thief
10 Loving Hannah
11 Are You Going to Leave Me?
12 Over the Wheat & the Barley
13 Thursday's Child
14 Bird in the Wood (CD hidden track)

Ho ho ho.

Hey, you know those Sufjan Stevens Christmas albums that've been floating around the internet for the last few years? Well they're getting a proper release on November 21st. The five disc release encompasses the four previous collections which Stevens recorded in 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2005 as a Christmas gift to his friends and family as well as a new set of songs which were recorded during the especially festive June of this year. As well as the new material the box set will feature a whole lot of extra crap including stickers, essays, short stories, songbooks, music videos, comic strips, and, according to the Asthmatic Kitty website, "an original Christmas Family Portrait painting of Santa Sufjan (with wife and kids!)"

Tracklist:

Noel: Songs for Christmas, Vol. I (recorded December 2001)

01 Silent Night
02 O Come O Come Emmanuel
03 We're Goin' to the Country! *
04 Lo How a Rose E'er Blooming
05 It's Christmas! Let's Be Glad! *
06 Holy Holy, etc.
07 Amazing Grace

Hark!: Songs for Christmas, Vol. II (recorded December 2002)

01 Angels We Have Heard on High
02 Put the Lights on the Tree *
03 Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing
04 I Saw Three Ships
05 Only at Christmas Time *
06 Once in Royal David's City
07 Hark! The Herald Angels Sing!
08 What Child Is This Anyway?
09 Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella

Ding! Dong!: Songs for Christmas, Vol. III (recorded December 2003)

01 O Come, O Come Emmanuel
02 Come On! Let's Boogey to the Elf Dance! *
03 We Three Kings
04 O Holy Night
05 That Was the Worst Christmas Ever! *
06 Ding! Dong! *
07 All the King's Horns *
08 The Friendly Beasts

Joy: Songs for Christmas, Vol. IV (recorded December 2005)

01 The Little Drummer Boy
02 Away in a Manger
03 Hey Guys! It's Christmas Time! *
04 The First Noel
05 Did I Make You Cry on Christmas Day? (Well, You Deserved It!) *
06 The Incarnation *
07 Joy to the World

Peace: Songs for Christmas, Vol. V (recorded June 2006)

01 Once in Royal David's City
02 Get Behind Me, Santa! *
03 Jingle Bells
04 Christmas in July *
05 Lo! How a Rose E'er Blooming
06 Jupiter Winter *
07 Sister Winter *
08 O Come O Come Emmanuel
09 Star of Wonder
10 Holy, Holy, Holy
11 The Winter Solstice *

* original Sufjan Stevens composition

If you can you should go to these gigs.

The Shins

09-15 Austin, TX - Stubb's (Austin City Limits afterparty)
09-16 Austin, TX - Austin City Limits
09-30 Mountain View, CA - Shoreline Amphitheater (Download Festival)
11-02 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom (Sub Pop CMJ showcase)

Deerhoof

09-10 Boston, MA - Bank of America Pavilion ^
09-12 Charlottesville, VA - Charlottesville Pavilion ^
09-13 Atlanta, GA - Tabernacle ^
09-15 Oklahoma City, OK - Zoo Amphitheatre ^
09-24 New York, NY - Hammerstein Ballroom ^
10-18 Providence, RI - Lupo's %
10-19 New Haven, CT - Toad's Place %
10-26 Columbus, OH - Wexner Center $
10-27 Pittsburgh, PA - Andy Warhol Museum $
10-28 Buffalo, NY - Showplace Theater $%
10-30 Toronto, Ontario - Opera House %
10-31 Montreal, Quebec - Le Tulipe %
11-01 Burlington, VT - Higher Ground %
11-11 San Francisco, CA - RIOTTT! Festival
12-08 Somerset, England - Butlins Holiday Resort (ATP's Nightmare Before Christmas)

^ with Flaming Lips
% with Fiery Furnaces
$ with Fog

I love you but I've chosen darkness

09-06 New Orleans, LA - House of Blues *
09-07 Memphis, TN - Complex *
09-08 Athens, GA - 40 Watt Club *
09-09 Asheville, NC - Orange Peel *
09-10 Nashville, TN - Exit/In *
09-11 Bloomington, IN - Landlocked Music
09-12 Cincinnati, OH - Bogart's *
09-13 Detroit, MI - Saint Andrew's Hall *
09-14 Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall *
09-16 Austin, TX - Austin City Limits Festival
10-05 Leuven, Belgium - Stuc
10-06 Groningen, the Netherlands - Vera
10-07 Brussels, Belgium - Bontanique
10-08 Amsterdam, the Netherlands - Paradiso
10-09 Cologne, Germany - Gebauede 9
10-10 Hamburg, Germany - Uebel & Gafaehrlich
10-11 Lund, Sweden - Mejeriet
10-12 Oslo, Norway - Betong
10-13 Gothenburg, Sweden - Pusterviksbaren
10-14 Stockholm, Sweden - Debaser
10-16 Berlin, Germany - Magnet Club
10-17 Stuttgart, Germany - Schocken
10-18 Lausanne, Switzerland - La Romandie
10-19 Basel, Switzerland - Das Schiff
10-20 Bologna, Italy - II Covo
10-21 Rome, Italy - Circolo degli Artisti
10-22 Perscara, Italy - TBA
10-24 Munich, Germany - Orangehouse
10-26 Dijon, France - Atheneum
10-27 Nevers, France - Festival Nevers a Vif
10-28 Tourcoing, France - Le Grand Mix
10-29 Paris, France - La Maroquinerie
10-31 London, England - Luminaire
11-01 Dublin, Ireland - Whelan's
11-02 Belfast, Northern Ireland - Speakeasy Bar at Queen's University
11-03 Glasgow, Scotland - King Tut's Wah Wah Hut
11-04 Nottingham, England - Stealth
11-05 Leeds, England - Cockpit
11-06 Bristol, England - Thekla
11-09 Castellon, Spain - Tanned Tin Festival

* with She Wants Revenge

The Rapture

09-12 New York, NY - Apple Soho Store (instore)
09-20 Berlin, Germany - Popkomm
09-21 Hamburg, Germany - Reeperbahn Festival
09-23 Lille, France - NAME Festival
09-24 Milan, Italy - Rolling Stone Red
09-25 Zurich, Switzerland - Mascotte
09-26 Paris, France - Bataclan
09-28 Barcelona, Spain - Razzmatazz
09-29 Marseille, France - Marsatac Festival
09-30 Strasbourg, France - Ososphere Festival
10-01 Reims, France - Magnitude Festival
10-03 Munich, Germany - Muffathalle
10-04 Lohmar, Germany - Stollwerk
10-05 Utrecht, the Netherlands - Tivioli
10-06 Brussels, Belgium - Botanique Orangerie
10-08 Nottingham, England - Rescue Rooms
10-09 Brighton, England - Concorde 2
10-10 Norwich, England - Waterfront
10-12 Edinburgh, Scotland - Liquid Room
10-13 Belfast, Northern Ireland - University
10-14 Sheffield, England - Leadmill
10-15 Manchester, England - University MDH
10-17 London, England - Koko
10-18 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Melkweg Max
10-26 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club *
10-27 Toronto, Ontario - Guvernment *
10-28 Detroit, MI - Saint Andrew's Hall *
10-30 New York, NY - Webster Hall *
11-01 Boston, MA - Axis *
11-02 Montreal, Quebec - Club Soda *
11-03 Philadelphia, PA - Pure Nightclub *
11-05 Chicago, IL - Metro *
11-07 Austin, TX - Emo's *
11-09 Phoenix, AZ - Old Brickhouse Theatre *
11-10 Pomona, CA - Glass House *
11-11 San Francisco, CA - Bill Graham Civic Auditorium (Be the Riottt! Festival) *
11-13 Seattle, WA - El Corazon *
11-14 Vancouver, British Columbia - Richard's on Richards *
11-15 Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom *
11-17 Las Vegas, NV - Celebrity Vegas *
11-20 Los Angeles, CA - Henry Fonda Theatre *

* with the Presets

Cat Power

09-12 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse *
09-13 Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre *
09-15 Austin, TX - Austin City Limits Festival *
09-16 Dallas, TX - Gypsy Ballroom *
09-17 Austin, TX - Stubb's BBQ *
09-20 Mexico, City, Mexico - Venustiano Carranza 25
11-01 London, England - Roundhouse *
11-03 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Paradiso *
11-04 Brussels, Belgium - Ancienne Belguique *
11-05 Paris, France - Grand Rex *
11-07 Zurich, Switzerland - Kaufleuten *
11-09 New York, NY - Avery Fisher Hall (The Music of Bob Dylan)


* with the Memphis Rhythm Band

Writing under the influence

Without which this column would not have been possible:

Talk Radio
Yo La Tengo – I can hear the heart beating as one.

The bit at the end

Arsenal have been pretty crap at the start of the new season. It has to pick up soon right?

The Arctic Monkeys won the Mercury Prize. Meh.

And now a public service announcement. Kids, never take ecstasy at the start of a Yo La Tengo gig then spot the really hot girl singer from Broken Social Scene and decide that it'd be a good idea to go tell her how much you enjoyed her show. You'll just wind up possibly scaring her and you'll spend the next week hoping she knew that you were teasing her when you mocked her telling you that "you guys are just the best crowds".