>>Nostalgia For Infinity

Del.icio.us links for February 27th through March 6th:

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According to the short biog on their label’s website, Hang the Bastard “sound like Eyehategod, Electric Wizard and Sabbath learning Slayer riffs whilst listening to Integrity and Ringworm“. Alas, I’ve never listened to Electric Wizard, never heard of Ringworm, am only passingly familiar with Eyehategod and Integrity, and don’t care for Slayer – although I do dig Sabbath, mostly since being genuinely blown away by how good a show they put on live. Still, by the sounds of things I’m about the worst person to review this record, but hey, I’m always up for a challenge…

So, throwing aside for a moment sub-genre definitions, what you have here is really aggressive and speedy chugging metal, replete with heavy palm mutes and fat riffs loaded with low-end sound, and some occasional sweet lead strung over the top – plus the occasional bit of synth. A little while ago, before writing this review, I described the band as “big, brash stoner metalcore” which I don’t think is too unfair; from the comically grotesque imagery (in the artwork and in those lyrics I’ve been able to make out – digital review copy, unfortunately) to the fact that the music sounds like it would knock you down, pick you back up and press a joint into your hand before flailing off to thrash its fucking neck some more.

That said, you’d be absolutely wrong if you took my use of the stoner label to mean that this record is meandering or self-indulgent. So don’t think that. This is an album which demonstrates restraint; the integrity of the song takes primacy over individual showing off.

In terms of individual songs, I’d pick out ‘Hell’s Teeth’ which boasts some particularly sick riffage, ‘The Blackest Eyes’ for its synthy intro and kick-arse vocal interplay (chanted group vocals from the rest of the band interposed with throaty roars from the singer), and the sinister-sounding tremolo guitar in ‘Genesis’, which also boasts some classic metal-esque soloing – without straying into masturbatory territory, of course.

Probably my favourite song present is the closer, ‘Farewell Leicester Square’, which is a good tune to end on. It alternates smoothly between mournful guitar licks and solos and chugging riff-heavy segments replete with the machismo that characterises most of this record, before ending with feedback and sampled bong-smoking.

I have an earlier EP by Hang the Bastard, last year’s Raw Sorcery, and while that’s a decent slab of metal itself it lacks the kick, variety and sheer power of Hellfire Reign. And while I’ve not grown up with metal and metalcore (a pre-requisite if you want to know what you’re fucking talking about – it’s hard as hell to properly grasp these scenes as an outsider or Johnny-come-lately) I’ve heard enough to say with confidence that this is a strong album from a promising band. I can’t wait to see them live and watch them let rip.

MySpace | Facebook | Holy Roar Records

It’s a few months now since I last wrote about London electro-pop duo Victoria & Jacob, and at long last their new single ‘With No Certainty’ has arrived. Almost: it’s out this weekend. I’ve been listening to it quite a bit over the last few months, and the pair’s dreamy melodic pop has dug its hooks into me. It helps that Victoria has one of those voices that I can’t help but fall a little bit in love with. I’m a sucker for female singers, me.

The lead track opens with layers of weird, squawking beats and gentle melodic synth lines, over which Victoria offers her vocal talents and increasingly strong lyrics: “I looked into the mirror too, to see what my body meant. I don’t know what this means“. A new trick is that a lot of the effects Jacob uses are heavily modified samples of Victoria’s voice; not a unique gimmick, but one used to great effect in this simple but warm and catchy tune. To accommodate this new method of songwriting they’ve abandoned the extraneous instruments used in earlier material, making The Postal Service an even more unavoidable comparison. It’s not that accurate, though, as the two outfits are only really similar in what they do, not how they do it.

B-side ‘There’s A War’ is a slower and altogether more minimalistic affair, again blending gentle beats with a simple melody over which Victoria’s sweet and soft vocals drift along, carrying her wistful lyrics: “There’s a war between our developments and our animal; evil doesn’t exist, we’re all natural in state”. Thematically I’m not really in agreement with what the song is pushing at but it’s good to see the duo’s subject matter extending beyond more predictable personal territory.

I’ve also been sent a third track, ‘What’s Your Face’. No idea where this one is from – maybe a second b-side on an alt 7″ – but it’s more of the same in a good way. More up-tempo than ‘There’s A War’, and utilising a really nice harmonising effect to give the choruses some extra depth, it’s a catchy tune that layers vocals on vocals. Lyrically it’s more personal in nature than either ‘With No Certainty’ or ‘There’s A War’, addressing an unnamed other person with a faintly sad sense of longing, and its choruses utilise similar tricks to the title track.

Overall the three songs demonstrate an increased confidence and maturity, both in terms of sonic experimentation and lyrical depth. It will be interesting to see where they go next.

In the meantime, they’ve been running a remix competition, and here’s my favourite of the bunch so far. It’s not the most ambitious effort in the world to my ears, leaving the song mostly intact but putting a more 90s dancey sort of spin on it (yeah, I don’t know a damned thing about dance music, I know). There have been more ambitious efforts but they didn’t really resonate with me. Actually, here, have the ZAFLON remix as well. The crescendo at the end is awesome, but I really hate that shitty breakdown about two and a half minutes in. Your mileage may vary.

Victoria & Jacob | Voga Parochia | MySpace |

Deathwish isn’t a label I’ve really followed over the years, as in my head I had it pegged as a repository of boring macho metalcore. But while it probably has had such bands on its roster at some point, it has also played host to hardcore luminaries like Cursed, Breather Resist, Modern Life Is War, I Hate You, Boysetsfire and Converge. The moral of the story, I guess, is that I’m kind of a fool.

Anyway, this album cropped up on a couple of best of 2009 lists I read last month so I picked up a copy, and hoooly shit this is some seriously pissed-off hardcore. Pardon the cliche, because I am really serious. The riffs and drums rain down like hammerblows, and their vocalist punctuates every bar with a snarling bullet of vitriol.

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Where “best” is used in the subjective sense of “what I liked the most”. You want analyses of what was most finely crafted or most significant in terms of pop cultural trends, go read Pitchfork or a music postgraduate’s dissertation. Here’s what caught my imagination, heart, and desire to put my fist in the air this year. » Read the rest of this entry «

Roads, Bridges & Ruins

San Francisco’s Nothington are one of those bands that have managed to pass me by for years, and then one day I idly check them out on MySpace and am blown away. I picked up their 2007 full-length debut All In last August-ish and it immediately leapt into regular rotation. Happily, it was then only a few months until the release of the follow-up Roads, Bridges and Ruins. I’m kind of glad I failed to notice them for so long; the wait would have been infuriating.

So anyway, Nothington play Southern Rock-tinged punk; melodic hardcore with hard-drinkin’, soulful sing-along lyrics. Main vocalist Jay Northington (ex-Tsunami Bomb, along with drummer Gabriel Lindeman) has a gloriously gruff, throaty voice akin to Chad Price in Drag The River mode (two asides here: Nothington are more Hot Water Music than they are Drag The River; and when Jay scales back the sandpaper he almost reminds me of Milo Aukerman, which is kinda funny considering Chad Price’s career). Jay is complemented by harmonies from the more nasal chords of Chris Mutalich (ex-Enemy You, who I’ve not heard). Thumping drums, warm bass, scruffy but tight rhythm guitar, and intermittent clean lead round out the sound. Happily the lead fades in and out and isn’t permanently the centre of attention, the vocals and melodies are the focus here.

The Tsunami Bomb lineage is sometimes evident in elements of the songwriting, which is little surprise considering the lead singer, one guitar and the drums derive from that band, but even if you didn’t get into the pop-punk stylings of that band you should give Nothington a go. They’re a fully distinct band, a much louder and rawer affair, and their hearts are on their sleeves.

Download ‘The Ocean’ and ‘If You Say So’ as .m4a files (convert ‘em if you don’t like the format)

Nothington on MySpace | BYO Records Nothington page

(Brighton folks – they’re playing the Albert on Feb 24th!)

Del.icio.us links for July 13th through July 26th:

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I saw the Mae Shi for the first time just a few weeks ago at ATP: the Fans Strike Back. A review of that whole festival is forthcoming (um, eventually) but suffice to say that I didn’t have any expectations except that they put on a great live show. They did, it was fun, and during one song the thought “this is the best thing I’ve ever heard” crossed my mind. And yes, I was drunk, but you don’t often think so grandly even then.

HLLLYH is a record that I’m really quite ambivalent about. On the one hand, it’s tremendous fun and can’t be mistaken for anything else out there right now. On the other hand it doesn’t quite live up to their tumultuous live show, and there’s plenty more you can criticise even if you’ve not experienced that pleasure.

Like what? Well, I’m not yet convinced that this album isn’t a flash in the pan – you love it for a few months and then shelve it for years. The songs are very immediate which may mean they lack the substance to continue rewarding repeat listens – although it does mean that they’re gloriously fun from the get-go. And loving an album for just a few months is no bad thing.

Quite a lot of the tunes on HLLLYH also feel a bit like the intros to longer songs. I’ve not heard any earlier Mae Shi records but I’ve heard of them, and it sounds like this record is a step forward from their past technique of peppering hundreds of tiny riffs all over cassettes in a frenetic ejaculation of musical ideas. They’re not quite ready for the dreary business of writing complete songs yet, but they’re inching closer. And in all honesty, is there anything that wrong with keeping songs short and simple before moving on to something new? The Minutemen did it and they’re one of the most beloved and respected bands in punk rock – rightfully so.

I’m sure you’re picking up on my ambivalence now, right? So yeah, I like this album a great deal, but there’s an ongoing arms race between my conflicting opinions. I guess I’ll just have to keep listening until one up and nukes the other.

Oh hell, I just realised I’ve not said anything about the music itself. Okay, it’s a grab-bag of synths and hardcore punk, yelping and vocoder, beats and riffs, relentlessly upbeat and ferociously unique… for the ultimate in lazy comparisons its Blood Brothers crossed with Crystal Castles with half the depth and twice the fun. Download these two tracks and if you like them, go see the band live or buy their record. Not everything has to be complicated.

The Mae Shi – Run To Your Grave MP3
The Mae Shi – Young Marks MP3

Official site | MySpace | Team Shi Records | Moshi Moshi Records