The Price of Being Skint In Avalanche May 17, 2009
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I took a little wander into town yesterday in an attempt to break the monotony of an uneventful lifestyle. And, as is inevitable, I ended up in Avalanche Records, the best shop in Edinburgh. I only had thirty squids on my person, and for a music nutter such as myself that is just not enough… I always have an itch to buy everything I see. I noticed Conor Oberst has a new album out. Huh? How did that slip past me? And I still haven’t got Grizzly Bear’s most recent album. Bugger, fuck, shite, cunt and arse-flaps. I need a job.
Anyway, I did buy three albums so here goes…
Aidan Moffat – How To Get To Heaven From Scotland
This is actually pretty decent. Not as good as I anticipated, but good nonetheless. I was expecting something slightly more sophisticated and quirky, but it turned out to be rather predictable in places. It has a rather safe structure and safe set of up and down tunes. Moffat’s lyrics are quite clever and witty, but seem to lack any real conviction, which is a bit of a problem for some, but it can be easily ignored so not to worry. The stand out songs on the album for me are Big Blonde and Oh Men! both with up-beat folky jingle-jangliness, if that makes sense.
Overall it’s not bad, but could be better.
Zoey Van Goey – The Cage Was Unlocked All Along
When I uploaded this to my iTunes earlier the genre column was automatically filled with “Unclassifiable”, which perfectly describes this album. It has everything in it. To try and put a label to this band would be like trying to find a can of Irn Bru in America. Impossible. This album encompasses nearly every style of music I can think of. Well…you know what I mean. It’s got the obvious folk tinged indie that’s everywhere at the moment, but it has so much more. It’s hard to describe. There’s a vestige of electro and at times there’s a splash of reggae thrown in to the mix. There’s also a very comfortable classical feel to it, which may just be me, I don’t know. It’s weird, there’s so much to mention about this, but I really just want to say, fuck it…go and buy this, then sing and dance and have fun. You will not be disappointed. Really. There’s not one song you won’t like.
The nice guy at Avalanche let me know that they’re playing instore on the 25th of May at 2pm or thereabouts, so be there or be square.
Camera Obscura – My Maudlin Career
This is just fucking outstanding. Not much else to say. Camera Obscura’s previous releases have been brilliant, but this is the crème de la crème. Don’t think I can write about this without using the word perfect. There’s nothing wrong with this album. Tracyanne Campbell’s voice is to die for. If she doesn’t make you melt and reduce to a puddle on the floor then I don’t know what will. The lyrics are lovely, as is the music. The balance between the two is immaculate; they compliment one another magically, which seems to be slightly absent thesedays what with bands using the irony of happy music and sad lyrics.
I first put this on while I was tidying my house and within the five seconds it took to get a hang of the beat I was dancing with the Dyson.
It’s brilliant. End of. Buy it. Now.
Rob St. John – Like Alchemy May 7, 2009
Posted by matthew in scottish music.Tags: lo-fi, post-folk
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Upon first listening to this I thought it was boring and dreary, which is a little strange for me, because I can tolerate quite a bit of dreariness… but after a few listens it became clear this EP is quite extaordinary. It’s steady slow pace of gentle acoustic guitar and double bass resounding gently and reassuringly behind a brilliantly honest voice makes you feel all cosy and comfortable. The First song Like Alchemy is wonderful, with it’s beautiful autumn imagery and solemn honesty – you can hear the creaking and moaning of floorboards from the church the EP was recorded in, which is in a way comforting and almost homely. I’m slightly lacking in what to say about the rest; perhaps I should let you listen for yourself. This is the sort of music that is perfect for both falling alseep and waking up to, it’s drowsiness will have you daydreaming instantly(that’s a good thing, by the way). You can buy a copy from Avalanche Edinburgh or from their MySpace page. Please do so soon, because they’re very limited and you wouldn’t want to miss out, would you?
There’s not really much to tell about the band itself. They’re from Edinburgh and regularly play shows… Rob has a solo project called The Great Bear and is part of Eagleowl, which is Bart’s band and very, very good may I add.
First post: John B McKenna May 5, 2009
Posted by matthew in scottish music.Tags: lo-fi, music, scottish
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To Glass In The Blast
By Glasgow local John B McKenna, To Glass In The Blast is quite frankly fucking amazing. I’m a huge fan of lo-fi folk and indie and such like, so this album basically is the bee’s knees. Perfectly balanced with all the personality and atmosphere you could ever ask for. Mostly this album is warm and friendly, but at times eerie and chilling so watch out.
This wee album just oozes with a clean-cut lo-fi tendency which causes you to feel like you’re in John’s living room having a cup of tea and a deep conversation with him about the mysteries of life, love and the general this and that. It’s so characteristically clever it’s quite unique, all of the songs seem to stand out with their own lines that cause one to pause and think. McKenna’s voice is also soothingly present; it sounds like a distant memory or a dream, someone you know or used to know. The music swoops and sways with an overall acoustic backdrop of intricately played guitar and piano, layered and placed together brilliantly. McKenna deserves more recognition and you can do so by downloading the album by clicking the photo above or having a wee listen at myspace.
This album by John B McKenna is a complete and utter diamond. I can only say you’re a complete fool if you don’t have this already.
