Spinning: JAGD - Civic

In 2016 the quartet JAGD won the Amsterdamse Popprijs where the judges praised them for their energetic music and international potential. Meanwhile the group has spent many hours on stage, recently during Popronde, and even could free up some time to record a new EP. Civic holds four brand new songs that show what JAGD has to offer.

And there's a lot on offer here, since despite the just over 15 minutes of music, it is firing up quite a lot of musical bullets. The four songs are chuck full of catchy punk rock that is hard to resist. The title song opens the record, a great track with a pleasant groove that completely explodes in the chorus. Explosiveness and excitement are exactly the qualifications that come to mind when listening to the band.

But the foursome are able to prevent their music from becoming to predictable and overdone, by applying everything in the right quantities. A surf guitar is added to 'Elevate' and it has a calm intermezzo. When needed though the band goes completely crazy, fronted by singer Nanne van der Linden, who is sometimes screaming on top of her lungs. She's doing this with great effect in the racing song 'Overbored'. Finally they are going full force in the banging last track 'Awkward'.

Indeed JAGD proves with Civic to be full of potential and deserves it to be heard. Live the band even picks it up a notch and is able to overwhelm everyone with lively performances. When the bookers in The Netherlands and around are paying attention they already have put JAGD on their list with a big marker. This band will definitely be a big hit on every festival around.





This album discussion has also been published in Dutch on FestivalInfo.nl over here.

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Spinning: The New House - Moves

Spring has shown that it means business and all of a sudden everyone is in a Summer mood. This calls for fitting music that will accompany the many warm nights that are hopefully ahead of us. The EP Moves of the new Amsterdam collective The New House is perfect for these nights. The band around trumpet player, music craftsman and producer Mark Nieuwenhuis is mixing many styles that results in catchy music with many summery and exotic elements.

Nieuwenhuis recruited a nice set of musicians to shape his compositions. His creations that combine jazz, hiphop, funk and world music aren't always simple, so it asks a lot of them. But the band is playing the often cheerful songs convincingly and with feeling. The record opens with the sometimes raw 'Light Blue' around a refined trumpet theme where you can also hear a solid guitar solo. 'Sharktank' lives up to its name where the guitar is going wild again, driven by grooving drums. The song has some Balkan elements that make it very danceable.

Because The New House wants people to dance, judging from the playful 'Chitka'. The staccato 'Square' could easily be on a movie soundtrack, like the rest of the completely instrumental record is bringing movie images to mind. 'Vlugtlaan' is the melancholic ending, with main parts played by saxophone and trumpet. This way all musicians get plenty of room to excel and show themselves at their best.

Despite the high musical level, Moves is not a record that sounds overcomplicated, but that is all about atmosphere and feeling. The lively compositions create a summery vibe that turns into a festive mood. It is perfect for the the lush time that lies ahead of us and the band would be great for any summer festival looking for a band that can spark a nice dancing party. Or simply enjoy them in your living room with your favourite cold drink.





This album discussion has also been published in Dutch on FestivalInfo.nl over here.

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Spinning: METZ - Strange Peace

It only seemed a matter of time before noise rockers METZ would team up with one of the greats of the noise rock scene Steve Albini. It actually makes a lot of sense that Albini would produce an album by the Canadian band, who draw so much inspiration from his work. Strange Peace is the result of that explosive collaboration where everything falls into place.

METZ alreay had the relentless repeating grooves in their kick-in-the-nuts music, but this time they have managed to come up with a more diverse sound, where the eruptions have even more impact. The album kicks in loud and heavy right from the start on 'Mess of Wires'. The drums are upfront in the mix so they keep pounding away on your ears. In 'Mr. Plague' they sound like an unstoppable repeating pile driver with grinding guitars. The intro of 'Drained Lake' sounds like bashing metal where the Johnny Rotten-like vocals cut right through them.

Beyond all that violence, an uneasy feeling is seeping through. 'Caterpillar' sounds dark and ominous where in 'Sink' a pestering guitar predicts trouble. "I've seen it watching constantly" we can hear, "all day long it's been calling to me", any moment you expect that horrific Pennywise to jump you. Songs about those uneasy feelings in life that will paralyze you, make you numb. The uncomfortable feeling in 'Cellophane', about how you can feel powerless, like being wrapped in plastic.

METZ' world is definitely not a happy place, but it never was. The album's closer 'Raw Materials' seems to die down halfway but then slowly rises up again with more trouble coming, until it erupts, tearing everything apart. Strange Peace is METZ at its best where Albini gives more direction to the wild explosive band. This time it is more than just a kick in the nuts, it is someone grabbing them and slowly squeezing. I know that doesn't sound really good, the album is like that, but in a good way: a form of satisfying self-flagellation.





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Spinning: Japandroids - Near To The Wild Heart Of Life

Up till now the two of Japandroids wanted to make their records sound the way it sounded on stage. This meant that the recordings were quite "lofi" and not a lot was cleaned up in the studio. After a few years of radio silence, because of exhaustion, they are doing things differently this time. For Near To The Wild Heart Of Life the duo left the "lofi" approach and decided to actually make full use of the studio a lot and mix in all kinds of additions to make it sound more impressive. Residing in different Canadian cities this time, it was also more practical to turn it into an actual studio project, so they could record independently from each other.

And so now we can hear all kinds of overdubs, synthesizers and other instruments. They didn't care about how to make it sound live on stage, which worked really well. Things go wild with synths and harmonies on 'Arc Of Bar', causing it to grow into seven minutes of almost epic proportions. The title song 'Near To The Wild Heart Of Life' also sounds big and impressive with wild drum fills and guitars. Japandroids all of a sudden sounds like a band that can fill arenas with a massive rock sound.

Of course they were never a band that were restraining themselves or used a subtle approach, but now everything has been made bigger for an even wider sound. Closer 'In A Body Like A Grave' even turns into a sing along track, that will probably go down well at festivals this summer. In the end only the short 'I’m Sorry (For Not Finding You Sooner)' feels somewhat out of place. According to the duo the song started out as an interlude, but was later added as a separate track.

Nevertheless Japandroids have taken a new direction with a bold and courageous choice, that works very well. The band sounds more impressive and deep than ever without losing any power. Even better, they actually gained power and seem ready for the next step to a wider audience. This simply must turn into an explosive happening when they play the new songs live.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

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Spinning: Preoccupations - Preoccupations

Canadian band Viet Cong left quite an impression with their dark music on the first record. By spending many hours on stage they are able to play their music live convincingly as well. Until their controversial name was causing a lot of resistance and they were forced to re-brand to Preoccupations. Maybe it was quite naive to choose that initial name in the first place, but it feels like starting over again.

Fortunately that's not the case on the first album with the new name, that comes without a title like their debut, and where all song titles are only one word. It is clear right from opening track 'Anxiety' that the band is still mostly dark and their music a mix of new wave and post-rock with the thundering voice of Matt Flegel, who is chanting his lyrics monotonously. He can rely on a very strong rhythm section who are putting down repeating riffs and grooves in an impressive way, that give the music a threatening and sometimes industrial face. For example 'Zodiac' starts off stormy with drums that like a pile driver hammer the foundation in place.

But this time there are also lighter moments, like on 'Degraded', a new wave song with a nice intro and bass line. Two very short songs go back to back, 'Sense' and 'Forbidden', that are paving the way for the anxious 'Stimulation', a haunting song that keeps repeating the sombre line "there’s nothing you can do ‘cause we’re all dead inside, all gonna die". The amazing 'Fever' closes the album, where you can hear heavy Kraftwerk-like synthesizers and that could easily be used as a soundtrack. The band knows how to use these synthesizer layers in a very effective way in their music.

The more than eleven minutes long 'Memory' summarizes the record at best. After an ominous intro and a dark first half the vibe changes halfway, where the higher vocals of Wolf Parade's Dan Broeckner bring alleviation. Here you can hear the recurring elements again, that demonstrate the power of repetition very well. After two thirds of the song the feedback of guitars are used for a long and oppressive outro. It is typical for Preoccupations and it only asks for more.



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Spinning: Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Skeleton Tree

Losing people that are close to you is inevitable and part of life, but at the same time there are not many things that leave bigger scars on people. Unfortunately I experienced this first hand when I lost people, some of them way too young. Losing one of your children, something I am glad I never had to go through, is probably one of the worst things that can happen to a parent. Singer Nick Cave lost his son while recording his latest record. Needless to say that left its marks on his music.

Cave always had a fascination with death and dark subjects in general and was able to capture that in his music that never fails to intrigue. After such a tragedy it was to be expected that it would somehow end up in the songs he was recording and that this record would not be a light one. The album was released together with the movie 'One More Time With Feeling' that shows him in his moments of grief and mourning, a man trying to pick things up after a devastating loss.

Exactly that is what you can hear back in Skeleton Tree, although part of it was already recorded before the deadly tragedy. It's hard to believe the opening track 'Jesus Alone' was one of the tracks that were already done. The first lines of the LP couldn't be more ominous in this light: "You fell from the sky/Crash landed in a field /Near the river Adur". It's a heavy and gloomy track, that sets the mood for the rest of the album.

The songs are following the same path as the ones on Push The Sky Away but gain even more depth, maybe because of their extra load. The almost spoken-word singing of Nick Cave in 'Rings Of Saturn' is followed by the soul crushing 'Girl In Amber' where he sounds like a broken man backed up by weeping vocals. 'Anthrocene' leads off the second half of a record that seems to go deeper and deeper. You can hear the pain and grief in 'I Need You' which is followed by 'Distant Sky', a song that makes you stop doing whatever you're doing and makes the world stop spinning for a short moment.

It's exactly the feeling you get when you are mourning the loss of a loved one. The big lump in your throat that doesn't seem to go away, that sickening feeling in your stomach, the feeling of being lost in a world that seems detached. A feeling of hopelessness, as if everything just seems to fall out of your hands. Nick Cave obviously is a man who was crushed and tries to pick up himself from the pieces, tries to carry on with that huge wound on his soul. He translated these feelings perfectly into music, arranged beautifully by Warren Ellis and recorded with his Bad Seeds. The album cover, black with some simple text, also expresses this. It's an intense record that cuts deep into your soul and where it's almost impossible to keep your eyes dry. Yet I want to spin it again and again, despite the lump in my throat.



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Spinning: Radiohead - A Moon Shaped Pool

You must have been living under a rock if the news about Radiohead's new album A Moon Shaped Pool didn't reach you. An immense buzz surrounded the rumours about new music and when it was finally announced together with a tour, the internet exploded. Now you can even get a bit tired of all the Radiohead news when music news sources seem to bring you every small detail as headline. Of course all critics wanted to get their reviews out fast and couldn't stop raving about the new LP. So is it really that good?

With this band you know that they are probably the most favourite group of the whole alternative music scene, if that is a thing, and can make you a bit sceptic. Noel Gallagher said: "If Thom Yorke fucking shit into a light bulb...it'd get 9/10" and it seems that's not too far from the truth. But when you listen to the new record, you know he didn't shit in a light bulb at all, since it's stuffed with wonderful music.

All the critics are simply right this time. Right from the start with album opener 'Burn The Witch' you kind of know they did it again and delivered a master piece. The lush strings that we hear in it are the common thread running through the album. In general the arrangements are simply beautiful and well thought through. Every song gets exactly what it needs. The guitar and stylish drums in 'Present Tense', the piano and strings in the sad 'Glass Eyes', it's all spot on.

Like 'Burn The Witch', some songs did already pop up years before and simply took a long time to finish. The band played 'Ful Stop' before and now made it onto the record with it's buzzing bass. And all the time there's the fragile voice of Thom Yorke, creating this scenic slightly melancholic world like on 'Daydreaming'. 'The Numbers' may be one of the best songs Radiohead ever came up with. It starts with weird noises and a ringing piano slowly unfolding itself, where halfway the strings kick in until it ends the way it started.

Mostly the record has a melancholic feel to it with some sad moments. It ends this way as well with 'True Love Waits' which is a dark sad song built around piano sounds. People that once loved Radiohead but couldn't follow the direction leaving their rock sound behind, will not really like this album either. But for anyone that can appreciate anything they did from OK Computer and Kid A on, it is possibly their best one since those two illustrious predecessors. Once you start listening you can't stop and it has ended before you know it...so you start playing it again.



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Spinning: Audacity - Hyper Vessels

When the members of Audacity started their punk band fifteen years ago they were still teenagers. When you see and hear them now, they are still a group of young dogs, that by now released three full length LP's and a bunch of EP's. A few of those were released by the illustrious Burger Records label. This record company, that also settled in their home town Fullerton California, has a nose for bands that go their own way and this foursome fits in there very well. Hyper Vessels is their fourth album which is released on Suicide Squeeze Records.

On the new record you can hear that the boys turned into men and grew some balls. Not that they lost their swagger, since the band still knows how to go full force and the songs still have that garage sound. But it's clear they are on the road to adulthood and this has given the songs more edge. The catchy 'Counting The Days' that opens the LP, may sound very cheerful as if nothing is the matter, but the lads are definitely bringing some depth to their music. For example in the song 'Baseball' where they are wondering why everyone is so occupied with baseball, while the world is on fire.

So the sunny character of their music is only just first appearance, where the not always very exciting live in the small town of Fullerton found its way into the recordings. Their music now only got stronger and is still full of irresistible hooks and grooves. 'Dirt Boy' has a sharp sounding solo with a nice build up to the end where we can also hear some nice riffs. More of this is in the fierce 'Riot Train' and 'Hypo' with its heavy guitars. The record hardly loses speed and only has a few more quiet moments. Closer 'Lock On The Door' is a somewhat slow song with a very nice bass line. With garage rock giant Ty Segall on recording duties everything sounds extra sharp.

It is nice to conclude that Audacity only gained strength and quality over the years. The many hours on stage probably have something to do with that, but the band also knows how to let this reflect in their song writing. They managed to combine a grown up sound with the youthful eagerness from the beginning of their career and this makes listening to Hyper Vessels a big feast.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

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Spinning: Bob Mould - Patch The Sky

The solo records of veteran Bob Mould were over shadowed for a long time by the monuments he built with Hüsker Dü. It wasn't that his solo work was bad, but they couldn't measure up with the impact and energy the legendary rock band played in those days. Mould turned out to be a master at writing righteous songs where he transformed his anger and outrage into walls of guitar. But on 2014's Beauty & Ruin he proved again to be able to let his guitar speak and capable of writing powerful songs. Convincingly he continuous down this line on Patch The Sky that holds mostly explosive and hard rocking punk songs.

Good examples are the fierce 'End Of Things' or a typical punk son 'Hands Are Tied' that, because of its short running time, has a huge impact. All songs have that unmistakable Bob Mould signature, where his loud but not too heavy guitar riffs and hooks build a sturdy foundation for the uptempo songs. This is cast into some extra concrete by the tight and solid rhythm section consisting of drummer John Wurster and bassist Jason Narducy. It puts a song like 'Losing Time' in the right gear and makes the mostly acoustic 'Losing Time' still sound very groovy.

Like always the heavy songs are a bit of misleading vehicles for Mould's deeper lyrics. Again he is digging deep into his soul and is turning everything inside out without shying away from themes like insecurity and suicide. It is praiseworthy that he is not afraid of showing his emotions and revealing himself completely. Only in the heavy and slow 'Black Confetti' and the melancholic closer 'Monument' it is clear right away that these aren't light tunes. It is striking how inspired Mould always sounds and how refreshing this makes the record.

In the same way as other veterans like Iggy Pop and Nick Cave, it seems there's a lot we can expect from the old Hüsker Dü front man. Patch The Sky may even be his best solo work so far and reminds now and then of his heyday. Only this time he is a heavy-duty experienced musician with a long life behind him with many ups and downs. Fortunately he still doesn't hide himself behind his powerful guitar play, but shares his mind without problems with anyone willing to listen.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

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Spinning: Motorpsycho - Here Be Monsters

Not heavy guitar riffs or swelling drums are opening the new Motorpsycho record, but a single piano is playing a quiet melody. It's characteristic for Here Be Monsters, the new addition to the imposing catalogue of the Norwegians, since the seven tracks can be found in the quiet part of their broad spectrum. The band's creative brains are regularly visiting symphonic rock or sparkling jazzy prog rock explosions and anything that can be found in between. This time however the men are looking for more peace and concentrate on melodious rock songs, referring to the sixties of Pink Floyd.

Those sixties are most obvious in the H.P. Lovecraft cover 'Spin, Spin, Spin'. The record found its roots in November 2014 when the band played a concert for the Teknisk Museum's anniversary in Norway. They worked together with Ståle Storløkken, who also cooperated on The Death Defying Unicorn, but this time he was unable to help them rework the arrangements into an album. Of course this wasn't much of a problem for the three experienced musicians who recorded a wonderful LP once again.

'Lacuna Sunrise' is a beautiful song with a refined guitar and a typical hypnotic Motorpsycho middle part. 'I.M.S.', short for "inner mountain shame", starts with a lush piano and then completely opens up when quiet parts alternate with fierce parts. The core of the record is at the end with the dazzling 'Big Black Dog', that tells about the endless dark nights in the cold North in winter. The song, which lasts more than fifteen minutes, has numerous twists with screaking guitars and enchanting moments where the hypnotic drones appear to be endless. These moments are wonderful, mastered to perfection by the band and which make them so unique.

On Here Be Monsters it seems Motorpsycho has returned to their sound in the nineties after many different adventures. Patiently they are crafting attractive and impressive songs. For years now the band seems to have arrived at a level where they can get anything done. Whether it's experimenting, stretching creative boundaries or deepening their sound, it always results in something beautiful. That puts them in an luxurious and enviable position.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

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Spinning: Snarky Puppy - Family Dinner Volume Two

Put a few musicians together and something will happen. That's probably what the jazz collective Snarky Puppy around bass player Michael League must have thought when they started their "Family Dinner" project. For the first edition a few years ago they brought some singers together in combinations that you wouldn't expect. It resulted in something very nice and they wanted to repeat the idea. But this time no only singers were invited, but also other musicians. They chose for New Orleans to compose the songs in six days, performing them live afterwards. It eventually resulted in Family Dinner Volume Two with eight very varied compositions, that are all beautiful in their own way.

And so on 'Soro' you can find Malinese singer Salif Keita together with two Brazilians, flute player Carlos Malta and pandeiro player Bernardo Aguiar. The result is a beautiful song that starts melancholically with lush vocals by Keita and then turns around in a swinging exotic mix halfway, propelled by the two Brazilians. On 'Don't You Know' multi-instrumentalist and boy wonder Jacob Collier goes crazy with sousaphone player Big Ed Lee, a mind blowing track of more than 10 minutes.

It keeps on going with dizzying and sparkling play by Snarky Puppy and the queer, but successful combinations. Laura Mvula together with organist Michelle Willis in the dreamy 'Sing To The Moon', triple Grammy winner sax player Jeff Coffin with the electronic duo Knower in a swinging combination with a nice funky sax solo by Coffin. As dessert no one less than David Crosby can close the record in the modest song 'Somebody Home', that he introduces himself with a good sense of humour.

Snarky Puppy's musicians once again prove how talented they are and that they know exactly what a song needs. With all these different artists and styles, that result in different compositions, they make sure it still stays coherent. That in itself already is quite an achievement. A lot of enthusiasm and good vibes added to the mix makes Family Dinner Volume Two a feast for your ears.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

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Spinning: The Icarus Line - All Things Under Heaven

Influences like Iggy & The Stooges and Birthday Party are pointed out in The Icarus Line's music regularly, so you can expect some aggression and intensity, but they never sounded so angry as on their new LP All Things Under Heaven. That is a plus for a band that have been around for more than fifteen years, because it often means the music has not faded and the band still has plenty to say.

The group is hitting hard on their eighth album and starts that right away in the first song 'Ride Or Die', that has an ominous beginning with a fade-in and a dark humming voice, eventually bursting into explosive drums, raging guitars and a screaming organ. "Jesus, save us" you will hear, but that's not going to happen, since The Icarus Line take you onto a diabolical tour through a dark world. Once again it reminds of Nick Cave like in 'El Sereno', where you'll hear harmonies singing "in the black water" and shrieking guitars that could easily have been produced by the Australian. On 'Bedham Blue' Warren Ellis even collaborated, indeed, Cave's loyal companion in The Bad Seeds and Grinderman.

All the anger comes together in the title track 'All Things Under Heaven', where artist Joe Coleman is playing a kind of devil's advocate in a monologue. Supported by a dramatic sounding organ and what seems a beeping alarm clock, he's addressing the state of the world and how mother nature regulates population by means of diseases and other misery. He ends his plea with "the serial killer, the taker of human life is the cure...you’re the problem!". Those are heavy words, but it's clear they make you think about it. In 'Millenial Prayer' a series of sentences follows that start with "thou shall" complementary to the Ten Commandments. The nervous sax you can hear stops all of a sudden and the song ends with "who the fuck do you think you are? some kind of exception to reality?". The words hit you like a sledge hammer and all you can do is humbly bow your head.

All Things Under Heaven is an impressive record where singer Joe Cardamone is dealing with the demons in his life in an aggressive way, by boldly sending an even more devilish monster on them. He's staring the demons right in the eyes, swears at them and spits them in their face. It makes you want to play the record over and over again, as if the beast is hypnotizing you and you're under his control. When the album ends with 'Sleep Now' it's not a lullaby but leads you into a dark nightmare. There simply is no escape.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

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Spinning: Ought - Sun Coming Down

Three Americans and and Australian that meet in Montreal Canada and start making music, that is the story of Ought in short. In the lively artist scene over there, it was possible to experiment as much as they could. This already resulted in the first record More Than Any Other Day with intense and impressive songs. The follow up Sun Coming Down was highly anticipated with great expectations and has been streaming on SoundCloud for a while now.

On that LP there are eight brilliant songs, that once again leave an impression. The quartet builds on top of the first album, but plays the tracks even more convincingly and with more finesse. The music is even more spot on and gains sharpness and intensity because of that. The nervous, threatening atmosphere is still there, better yet it only got stronger. Singer Tim Darcy's nasal voice is talk-singing his often endless repeating lyrics, stringing together the words in high speed. Together with the repetitive grooves they turn into a kind of mantra, that is being hammered into your head bit by bit.

It is striking how creative the band is doing this, with wonderful drum parts and guitars that sometimes are screaming and shredding and other times play lovely ringing tunes, and well timed tempo and rhythm changes that add extra tension to a song. You can hear beautiful drum fills and nice guitar melodies in the melancholic 'Passionate Turn', where the band is going full force in 'The Combo' with a very stormy beginning. In the end all builds up to the epic 'Beautiful Blue Sky' halfway, which is also the first single. The song brings Television to mind, like other songs, and it's where the band brings it all together. "War plane, condo, oil freighter, new development", Darcy sings, after which he endlessly seems to repeat "I feel alright", followed by "I am no longer afraid to die, 'cause that is all that I have left, yes".

It characterizes the atmosphere of the songs, where they look at the world, the daily grind many of us are in and the cold heartless side of technological progress we became so dependent upon. It is more of an observation than a depressing conclusion, where the uneasy feeling it raises, perfectly finds its way into the music. It turns Sun Coming Down into one of the most intriguing records of the year and one you really should give a spin. Together with convincing shows on Lowlands and Into The Great Wide Open, Ought is a band to watch since things could move quickly for them.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

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Spinning: The Vaccines - English Graffiti

Ever since The Vaccines released their first album in 2011 they keep writing songs that are inviting to sing along to. That's why the band are a welcome guest at festivals where they can make any crowd jump around. We were promised a new sound on their second record, which in the end was only partly true. On their third album English Graffiti the quartet is supposed to have chosen another direction once again.

This time the lads do keep their promise, since there truly is a new sound in the eleven tracks. You can hear this very well in 'Minimal Affection' where besides the obvious The Strokes hook it has more of a synth rock vibe to it, with some Duran Duran mixed in here and there. The songs 'Dream Lover' and 'Give Me A Sign' could have been taken from an Oasis or Noel Gallagher album and are actual songs that have a pleasant ring to it. The tracks are not really meant to go wild on, although they do settle themselves in your head.

It doesn't mean jumping around and yelling along isn't possible at all, since there are still a number of tracks on the record that are great dance tunes. 'Handsome' with the insane Kung Fu video and '20/20' are typical catchy The Vaccines songs. But it's remarkable how coherent and more tight the band sounds and how rich the production of the tracks is, that carry subtle electronic elements regularly and give it a more poppy sound. The band also is looking for more quiet moments, which give the songs more air and make them more powerful.

English Grafitti is a surprisingly strong record that shows The Vaccines are open for other influences and that they have matured some more, without losing their edge. Therefore I can forgive them for the weary song 'Want You So Bad'. In this shape the band are able to fire up many a festival crowd in years to come.



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Spinning: Wolf Alice - My Love Is Cool

Their name was already buzzing around the music scene after releasing two EPs and a few singles, but now London based band Wolf Alice have released their first full album My Love Is Cool. Right after the release I saw the group play at the Best Kept Secret festival and was quite impressed with their music. After that I had more time to listen to the album properly.

After giving it a few plays I even became quite addicted to it. I instantly liked the mix of electro pop, rock and grunge which sounds refreshing. The band fronted by singer Ellie Rowsell who originally started out as a folk band, have perfected their sound since their first EP and now it sounds well balanced. It enables them to bring in lots of variation, sometimes pushing towards electronic pop and going into a more rough rock direction at others. That way songs like 'Soapy Water' and 'Your Loves Whore' are quite different but nevertheless already carry the Wolf Alice mark.

Rowsell also is able to adapt to both directions, singing with a clear voice on 'Silk' or screaming on top of her lungs on the rocker 'You're A Germ'. And then the tracks also have lots of hit potential which catchy hooks, creative grooves and breaks like on 'Bros' and 'Giant Peach'. The grungy elements that sometimes are subtle or quite obvious like on 'Fluffy' give the album the right amount of bite. The songs deal with the usual themes in a young person's life like relationship trouble, the search for true love and other uncertainties in life. However the music is where the real beauty lies and that you will appreciate more and more every time you listen to it.

The best thing is, that Wolf Alice have created enough space around them to move in either direction or keep sitting where they are. In any case they are in a position where they can grow and let their music evolve in several ways. Live on stage you can hear it's still evolving and therefore it's worth to go check them out when they are in the neighbourhood. Especially since there's also plenty of potential to move up as well and the band may not be playing small stages any more within a few years.



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Spinning: Tame Impala - Currents

One of the most anticipated albums of the past few months was without a doubt Tame Impala's Currents. Musical genius Kevin Parker already slowly revealed some tracks which gave some insight in the new directions he was going. It was clear the album only had a supporting role for the guitar and that Parker moved the synths into the spotlight. It is interesting to hear how this unfolds for the entire record.

Although it's not strictly a break-up album, Parker's break up with Melody Prochet of Melody's Echo Chamber is apparent on the album and has led to a few songs like the wonderful smooth soul track 'Cause I'm A Man' and 'Eventually'. The break-up and the album are part of the changes he has been going through and this is what reflects in the songs. Parker explained in an interview that changes flow through a person like currents and are part of life. It's clear those changes are what the record is about, including the break-up in his relationship and the changes in his music. Parker even sings about this in 'Yes I'm Changing'.

When you first hear the songs, they remind of 'Feels Like We Only Go Backwards' from the brilliant second album Lonerism. Many songs have the same feel and maybe Parker used that as a starting point. The songs are fluently flowing into each other and instead of fuzzed guitars you get spacy synths on reverb. Although especially that second album carried some big hits like 'Elephant', this one seems to lack potential hits. But 'Elephant' seemed unlikely to become a hit at first as well and when you give it a second thought, songs like 'The Less I Know The Better' and 'Let It Happen' could easily turn up high in the charts.

With every spin, the new sounds sinks in more and becomes more familiar. Listening closely to the album it's also not such a drastic change as it seems. The tools may be different but Parker is actually still crafting his songs in the same way as he used to. Instead of carving his art from stone with a chisel, he's now painting on canvas. Although the result is seemingly different, giving it a close listen reveals that it is still unmistakably a genuine Tame Impala work of art with lots of gems sparkling in it. It does feel less of a master piece than Lonerism, but maybe after some time it may prove to be just as brilliant or even better. If not, it's still a wonderful album and a proper addition to Parker's catalog.



Listen to 'Currents' on Spotify.



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Spinning: Daniel Norgren - Alabursy

A few years ago I saw Swedish musician Daniel Norgren for the first time and was immediately sold. Normally I'm not really into this country-like singer/songwriter music but there's something different about the Swede. He proved it again last month when I saw him in a festival tent full of chatting people where he managed to play a wonderful set as if I was the only one there. He played some songs of his newest album Alabursy as well.

That record struck me right away with its gorgeous compositions, the wonderful voice of Norgren and the atmosphere the songs create. It's one of those albums that simply wants you to stop everything you're doing and just sit down and listen with your eyes closed. Intimate songs like 'Everything You Know Melts Away Like Snow' and 'Like There Was A Door' are so beautiful they make you forget about the world around you. It's as if the music takes you out of your surroundings and puts you into the Swedish woods in front of a cabin with nothing else to distract you.

It's the way he builds up the compositions, so patiently and laid back but never letting the tension slip. Together with wonderful lyrics like on 'As Long As It Lasts':

"I hear the old folks when they say it's funny how time slips away/I hear the old folks when they say the day's getting shorter every day"

Sometimes the songs and lyrics get kind of obscure like on the bit creepy 'Why May I Not Go Out And Climb The Trees?' where he sings about someone telling a kid nasty reasons why it can't do things:

"May I let the puppy sleep here in my bed? Puppies got bugs that lay eggs inside your head"

Norgren unmistakeably has a unique talent of writing lyrics and music, the ability to create somewhat mysterious songs that grab you by your throat and don't let go any more. I don't think I will hear many better albums this year. If you haven't heard of Daniel Norgren yet I suggest to look him up. Sit down, close your eyes, forget about the world and simply listen.



Listen to 'Alabursy' on Spotify.



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Spinning: Twin Peaks - Wild Onion

Maybe you know Twin Peaks front man Cadien Lake from the duo he started with his brother Hal, Teenage Dream. When the band Smith Westerns asks Hal to join them, Cadien starts Twin Peaks. Their first record in 2013 is a pretty lofi recording, put together hastily to be able to sell I during their tour, but for its successor Wild Onion they take more time.

It has nothing less than sixteen tracks, which still doesn't make it an extreme long LP, since in the end it is just over fourty minutes. That's because most of the pieces are short ones, where the instrumental and melancholic intermezzo 'Stranger World' with a sexy saxophone is just over a minute. Still it never feels as a record that is all over the place despite all the variation. Nice rough songs like 'I Found A New Way' are alternating with slower songs like the lingering and psychedelic 'Ordinary People'. But especially you can hear echoing guitars and jangling drums in the mostly catchy rock songs that clearly have been inspired by the sixties.

Despite the band name, that really has nothing to do with the David Lynch series, the foursome were inspired by bands like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Beach Boys. At the same time they listened to bands of their own generation like Thee Oh Sees, Ty Segall and Tame Impala. Indeed you can hear these influences in the pleasant mix of sixties rock 'n roll garage rock and psychedelics. Because of the compact songs the record has a nice tempo and you're flying from the solid rocker 'Strawberry Smoothie' and the exhilarating 'Fade Away' to 'Good Lovin'' with its The Rolling Stones-like sound.

Twin Peaks didn't lose anything of their enthusiasm on Wild Onion and still sound just as sparkling as on their spontaneous debut. The foursome clearly aren't short of ideas and they have plenty of new material that will sound great live too. Recently they visited Paradiso Tolhuistuin during RAWK, where they showcased lots of new songs. Hopefully Cadien Lake will keep enough spare time to bring out albums like this regularly.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

Listen to 'Wild Onion' on Spotify.



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Spinning: The Hubschrauber - I Want To Buy A Farm With You

Nijmegen based band The Hubschrauber (German for chopper) didn't want to make a full album yet, since they think an album should be more than just a collection of songs and should tell a story. So instead they chose to record their second EP I Want To Buy A Farm With You, which gives them an opportunity to practice their "album making skills". They even made a mini-documentary about the recording process.

The band sounds mostly melancholic with playful guitars and warm vocals. They consider themselves a mix of the Pixies' dynamics and Grandaddy's melancholy, but when you listen to the tracks you'll also hear early dEUS which is not a bad reference either. This is not only because of the way the music and vocals sound, but also the way the songs build up and the band’s way of using dynamics. You can hear this on opening track 'Euphoria' that is alternating between slow, melancholic parts and rocking moments with a nice gritty guitar.

The band is clearly influenced by the grungy sound of the nineties as well, which you can hear in 'Clarity' and 'Simple-Minded Lucky Man'. It definitely bears the sound that the Pixies started and which was used by so many alternative bands in that time and today. The Hubschrauber make it their own and are not simply copying it. Two interludes are mixed in between the tracks, where the first one, that sounds like a defective tape recorder, plays after track two. The second one later on is a piano part that sounds as if it was recorded ages ago.

The album cover of I Want To Buy A Farm With You is a picture of a little house as a kid would draw it on a colourful background, but the record is definitely no child’s play. No, this is the real stuff, these are mature convincing songs with clever arrangements. Compositions that breath the right atmosphere and are of a high musical level. Although you can clearly hear their influences in the music, they know how to apply it to their sound in a tasteful way. Hopefully The Hubschrauber has a story to tell very soon, since it will be very interesting to hear a full album.



Listen to 'I Want To Buy A Farm With You' on Spotify.



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Spinning: Mark Ronson - Uptown Special

As producer of the successful Amy Winehouse record Back In Black, British producer and composer Mark Ronson became an established name. After that he worked with Lily Allen, Adele and even Paul McCartney. As performing artist he had not been able to match this success yet, but now with Uptown Special he finally did it. All over the world the record is at the top of the charts, driven by the single 'Uptown Funk' with Bruno Mars, that has been dominating the charts and radio stations for weeks, while the year had barely started. The steaming funk song funk song is probably already one of the biggest hits in 2015 early in the year.

Mark Ronson - Uptown Special

Ronson realized that he couldn't achieve this by himself so his idol, Pullitzer price winner Michael Chabon, and Jeff Bhasker, who worked with Kanye West ans Alicia Keys, helped him write the songs. He also managed to gather a group of diverse artists to lay down the vocals. Besides the aforementioned Bruno Mars, you can hear Tame Impala's Kevin Parker, rapper Mystikal and no one less than Stevie Wonder on the album.

Cleverly enough, Ronson knows how to get the best out of these artists, even when singing different kinds of songs. On the somewhat psychedelic and very danceable 'Daffodils' Parker is singing with lots of reverb, but his falsetto is also fitting the Steely Dan-like 'Summer Breaking', and again in the great disco song 'In Case Of Fire'. Not just the wonderful soul voice of Stevie Wonder is used in opening track 'Uptown's First Finale' but also his unique harmonica playing.

Apparently Ronson has a perfect nose for what a song needs to sound optimal. Inspired by the funk and disco from the seventies and eighties, and what he played himself in the New York clubs end of the nineties, Uptown Special turned into a fine dance record. Like he mentions himself, he is so full of ideas that he needs to make clear choices. That's something he didn't quite succeed on with this very versatile album, that indeed shows so many different sides, that he could have made three records out of it. With more focus it could have turned into an instant classic although he does showcase all of his talents now. Of course 'Uptown Funk' is such a great song and mega hit, that it could have carried the whole album by itself, although in the end that is not necessary. Because Uptown Special is primarily a wonderful and smart set of songs, that offers a lot to enjoy.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

Listen to 'Uptown Special' on Spotify.



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