trip-related live and promo video spammage

to make up for the lack of a Friday Amusement post last week (17/09) I'm bringing you my favourite live videos of Delphic, who I will be seeing in the land of the cheesesteaks on Sunday. I am also including videos from the other great bands I will be seeing on this trip. have a good weekend my lovelies!

Delphic - 'Doubt' (Later with Jools Holland)



The Temper Trap - 'Fader' (promo video). dude, I wanna be Jonathan Aherne in this, he has the most fun part to play!



The Hundred in the Hands - 'Pigeons' (promo video)



Best Coast - 'Boyfriend' (live at South Street Seaport, NYC, 23/07/10)



Male Bonding - 'Weird Feelings' (promo video)

CMJ. FML.

ok, I already knew several of my friends' bands were playing CMJ.

I hadn't realized how many amazing bands from the UK were actually coming.

it's insane. most of these are from the UK.

Alessi's Ark - UK
Appomattox - friends of mine - US



Bikini - US?
Blood Red Shoes - UK
Brodinski - UK
Dan Black - I've missed him three times now (Dot to Dot last year, Ultra this year, 9:30 Club this year), this will be the fourth. talk about comedy of errors. - UK


The Drums - US
Everything Everything - friends of friends of mine - UK



Fenech-Soler - UK
Ferraby Lionheart - UK
Frankie and the Heartstrings - friends of mine - UK



The Good Natured - UK
Philadelphia Grand Jury - AUS
Phoenix - I have no idea why they need to play CMJ. they've been selling out venues everywhere. weird. - FR
The Postelles - friggin' amazing, I saw them / interviewed them last weekend. Postellementalism. (sorry this embed isn't great live quality, EMI won't let me embed their official video for 'White Night' - go here to watch it). opened for the Futureheads in the spring, then headlined at Koko. amazing. - US



Sky Larkin - UK
The Static Jacks - they opened for Biffy Clyro here last week, and the Futureheads in the summer. 'nuff said. - US



Two Door Cinema Club - friends of mine, they put out my fave album of 2010. if there was one band to see, this is them. - technically UK b/c they're from N. Ireland, but they probably want to be known as IE.



if you have the opportunity to go to CMJ this year - GO. you have been briefed. go forth and prosper!

is British indie is better than American indie?

interesting article from NME tonight. British indie bands have difficulty making it big in America and have had this issue for years. for a while I thought it was b/c of sheer size - I mean, even if you've had a great show in New York City, people in Tulsa have never heard of you.

but now I think it actually has more to do with the commercialisation of radio in America and the lack of real proponents of the American independent music scene. or independent music in general for that matter.

the best recent example I have of the music appreciation divide - not just indie, b/c I don't consider Biffy Clyro indie in the UK, surely! - was their inability to sell out the 200-capacity DC9 venue last Wednesday. they sell out Wembley regularly, for god sakes.

gig reviews from the night:
my Click review
my TGTF review

oh, here's the link to the NME article, before I forget...

Why British Indie Bands Still Can't Break America

and here was my response, let's see if it actually posts.

"American indie types who display a similarly encyclopaedic knowledge of UK indie tend to get dismissed as weirdo anglophiles."

yep, that's me - I couldn't have said it better myself. a lot of this ignorance has to do with the radio stations in America, 99% of which are commercial.

thanks to the internet, the world is a lot smaller and should Americans want to know about British indie or any country's indie, they can read all about it online. but they're not going to get any on local radio stations and certainly not on MTV. we don't have a Lammo, a Huw Stephens, or even a Zane Lowe to champion the little guys of the independent music scene. unless you're actively looking for something non-mainstream and willing to go that extra mile to do the research, you're not going to find it.

Editor, http://www.theregoesthefear.com

this week's Roundtable (16/09)

Lammo is joined by Jeremy Hardy, Matthew Wright and Damon Gough (aka Badly Drawn Boy).

1. Chapel Club - 'All the Eastern Girls' - filling the doom rock void left by White Lies. where ARE White Lies, anyway?

2. Mt. Desolation - 'Desperation' - what is this, ugh. country rock, Eagles redux. this is what Ron Vannucci left the Killers for?

3. the Jolly Boys - 'The Passenger' - el.oh.el. not as bad as I feared.

4. Freebass - 'The God Machine' - umm....

5. Warpaint - 'Undertow' - the winner - I don't get why everyone is loving this sort of music. I'm gonna see what all the fuss is about when I catch Best Coast in 2 weeks.

6. the Joy Formidable - 'I Don't Want to See You Like This' - good stuff. I may see them in November, we'll see.

7. Manic Street Preachers new album - I can't really comment b/c I like the new singles but I'm not a MSP fan from way back, so I can't tell if this is MSP by numbers.

music festival safety - your thoughts?

BBC 6music news reporter Adrian Larkin talks to Melvin Benns (the organiser of Reading/Leeds), a member of Foals (search me who it is), Matt from Delphic (who I think had the most thoughtful comments) and DJ Above and Beyond in this short news bit.

it has been a worrying year. I know my own mother did not want me to go to Roskilde on my own. but I didn't have any mates who could afford the trip out to Denmark with me so it was either go by myself or skip the entire festival. and I didn't think I'd ever get another chance like this so I went. and I'm glad I did.

I realise that as a girl it's even more dangerous in general. but I never felt unsafe when I was at Roskilde. the rape allegation at Latitude was rather scary but I don't think it'd stop me from going to a festival. I did have reservations going to Ultra by myself (which is why I did not go to Miami in March) because in general more men listen to electronic music than women and I was cognisant that this could be a dangerous situation in the dark.

after the Love Parade disaster I don't think I'll be able to leave town if my mum knows where I'm going, especially if it's a dance festival. I'll have to find a way to sneak off...

and I hate having to fool her. I shouldn't have to.

what's wrong with the world today?

like you were a wish that could turn out well.

I'm going to keep this short, being that it is September 11th and it's a national day of mourning and an emotional one. but a couple days ago I had a pretty emotional day of my own.



Tuesday night I saw the Airborne Toxic Event play an acoustic show with their buddies, the Calder Quartet. TBH I wasn't sure how this was going to turn out, because the song that made me a fan, 'Gasoline', heard for the first time so many moons ago in 2008 on Lammo's 6music show, is decidedly NOT made for the acoustic setting. however, I was overwhelmed by the spectacle of the performance; it was obvious to everyone in attendance that TATE loves what they're doing, making music for themselves and others, and really took this undertaking to heart.

I really don't know how I managed not to weep uncontrollably. several times, such as during 'The Book of Love' (the Magnetic Fields cover) dedicated to Mikel Jollett's late grandmother, and the achingly beautiful 'A Letter to Georgia', I could feel the tears pricking my eyes. just beautiful.



something they didn't know: they were the first band I'd ever written about for a blog. click through here to read my breathless retelling of their show on 12 March 2009, the first time I saw them. (second time was at the 9:30 Club last October. Tuesday night was my third time seeing them. they do say three times's a charm, and I guess charm was on my side that night. even before the first time I saw them gig, I had read about Mikel's health problems and family turmoil. I hoped that one day I would get my chance to speak to him, to tell him how inspirational he was to be doing what he was doing as a rock star, living life, living the dream, even with a chronic illness.

I did not know that day would be Tuesday night. when I finally got a chance to speak to him and told him what I had been practising in my mind for almost 2 years, he told me his mother has the same genetic condition I did. I was shell shocked in surprise - I was sad of course that his mother had to deal with such an illness, but at the same time it was reassuring that I was not alone. and of course he knew what I was going through. I told him I was worried about him being too tired from gigging and running around with a band, and he said not to worry that what he had wasn't a big deal. he did however tell me I was a strong person...that was definitely not what I had expected. here was a world-famous singer/songwriter telling me that I was stronger than he was.

me? stronger? I feel like I'm fighting the world sometimes, railing against whoever made me this way, insistent that I will make it, be successful. I don't have a lot of continuous support from friends locally or otherwise, so yeah, often I feel alone.

Mikel happily mugged for a photo with me. I honestly don't know how I made it through that picture being taken without bawling. no matter where I am and what I do in the future, I will always remember that night.

Delphic vs. Friendly Fires vs. Two Door Cinema Club - Melt Festival (Germany)

while this Delphic interview at Germany's Melt Festival isn't really insightful, I find the enormous green microphones that Rick, James, and the German interviewer are holding completely hilarious. they look like they should be bobbing just above sea level in the ocean. or from far away they might look like massive iced lollies.

'one year later actually, your band is actually quite bigger!'

(stop me, I'm laughing.)

also, I wonder if the two of them were under the weather, or maybe where they were being interviewed was really hot. at 1.07, James takes an odd breath and then leans over. at the end, Rick is literally hot under the collar. I often wonder how they deal with wearing long sleeved shirts and suits when they're playing gigs. but then I remember how much I prefer musicians who dress up...!



I've sort of been moaning about the recent 'Stay Here' Friendly Fires collaboration with Canadians Azari and III and not being entirely happy about it (LACK OF GUITARS, GUYS), I think Melt in Germany and Selector in Poland were the only two festivals that featured both them and Delphic.

consulting the tarot cards? brilliant.

also...funnily enough, the interviewer mentions Two Door Cinema Club at the beginning of the interview. haha! it's all coming full circle for me...



and speak of the devil: here is Kev of Two Door Cinema Club.

'you used to be a big secret. but sorry to tell you, but you are now mainstream.' ::big grin::

oh, and the band war continues. Kev just happens to mention that Delphic is opening for them in Hong Kong in August. ooooh, snap!

this week's Roundtable (09/09)

Crime writer Mark Billingham, James Endeacott, and Rose Elinor McDougal (ex-Pipettes) give their thoughts on the latest releases.

1. Kings of Leon - 'Radioactive' - I really don't like KoL. the Southern rock 'mystique' or whatever spell they have cast on the British population? not doing a thing for me. and this song sounds like someone else...will have a think on it.

2. Silvery - 'A Deconstruction of Roles' - not bad. not great either.

3. Paul Smith - 'Our Lady of Lourdes' - ugh. zzzzz. why is everyone going solo these days??? one wonders if he got into a barney with the others in Maximo Park...

4. Antony and the Johnsons - a 'thank you' song of some sort - stop being repetitive. why? b/c it's BORING. how many 'thank yous' are in this song anyway?

5. Belle and Sebastian - 'Write about Love' - the winner - have they always been so cheesy? WTF why is everyone loving this??? hello...???

6. Janelle Monae - 'Cold War' - hmmm. interesting. it's all right. I can imagine it'd be a grower if I heard it more often, b/c in general the vibe is good. sounds a bit Janelle Monae but less r&b?

oh wait. I did not know until Rose said it was Janelle Monae that it WAS Janelle Monae! go me! I'm so good, hahaha

7. new Grinderman album - not a fan of the sound, too garage-y for me. I mean, come on. do you imagine me and my immaculate taste liking a song called 'Worm Tamer'? attractive? apparently I am immune to the brand of Nick Cave's testosterone.

ecstatic doesn't even begin to cover it.

I honestly did not think I had a chance in hell seeing Delphic in Washington this year. and possibly until 2012. MB has had all her favourite bands coming through town and booked through November (Marina and the Diamonds, Lady Gaga, Foals, etc. - acts I don't care for) and I didn't have a single one. so much that I went ahead and booked my travel arrangements and hotels to get me to Philly and Boston to see Delphic SUPPORT the Temper Trap the last week of September.

then I saw this yesterday afternoon on Twitter while I was at work. I really don't know how I managed NOT to scream my head off. I was ready to jump out of my skin.





DC9 is the nightclub where I first heard 'Halcyon' played - ever - in DC. (this was back in February. before I knew I was going to Roskilde. hell, it was 3 months before I even knew Delphic was going to play AT Roskilde.) so it's only right that they will grace its stage in a month's time.

my friends have already gotten their tickets. everyone is stoked to the max.

this is gonna be huge.

I'm overwhelmed that I'll be seeing them 3 times in 2 weeks, the last time in my hometown so I can show them around a bit (maybe, we'll see about that part)...

--

in more Manchester news, I am interviewing fellow Marpleians Dutch Uncles this weekend. I shouldn't have knots in my stomach b/c they sound like amazingly nice guys but yeah, I want this to go well!

Delphic German radio interview

James and Richard were interviewed by a German radio station, detektor.fm, presumedly around one of the festivals they were playing...er...Melt? or Haldern? the interviewer speaks German and I can understand most of it (thank you 5 years of German study in grade school) but most importantly you can hear their answers in English. listen to it here.

apparently around the time of working with Ewan Pearson on 'Acolyte' they got kicked out of a Berlin nightclub for not having the 'right look'. bet that club is sorry now.

this week's Roundtable (02/09)

Lammo is joined by Elly Jackson of La Roux, Q magazine editor Paul Rees and Radio 1's Bethan Elfyn

1. Cee-Lo - 'Fu...' (you know what it is...lol) - cool vibe. just don't name your song with a cuss word b/c chances are I (normally) won't bother to listen to it.

2. the Walkmen - 'Angela Surf City' - the winner - what is this. I know who they are. they're from Philly and Washington. this is what they sound like? lol

3. Gold Panda - 'Snow and Taxis' - it's all right.

4. Badly Drawn Boy - 'Too Many Miracles' - zzzzz...like all his other stuff. he's just famous b/c his song as in 'About a Boy'.

5. the Bees - missed the name - again, what is this. ?!?!?

6. Frankie and the Heartstrings - 'Ungrateful' - I.EFFIN.LOVE.THIS.

don't mind me. Frankie Francis told me I could try on his jacket when I see them soon. haha :)

Elly is a v. opinionated young lady. unfortunately this is going to get her into trouble. I realise that some people don't like Frankie and the Heartstrings, but calling them 'annoying' is uncalled for. are they annoying because they are catchy? last I knew, catchy was a good thing.

7. Pull In Emergency's new album - 'Everything is the Same' is fab. FAB. FAB. have I said FAB? I hope the rest of the album is good as well.

giving it your all, bass player style

I was listening to Lammo talking about his "New Favourite Band" and darling of the blogosphere, Zola Jesus, earlier on his 6music show. not my favourite by any stretch of the imagination: personally I think it's uninspired piffle.

during the interview, she commented, "this album was made with my entire body."

um, TMI? dunno, what do you think?

on the other hand, I am becoming quite aware with all this bass playing that you do, as Grace Jones once said, become 'a slave to the rhythm', particularly if you play in the rhythm section (bass or drums). I've just sussed Jonathan Aherne's bass line in the Temper Trap's 'Fader', and it's so much fun. but I've found when I play it, I'm practically throwing my whole body into my bass b/c it's like my brain is tuned into the music and your body just follows. it's like this rising tide that picks you up and carries you away. (uh...this sound awfully like something else...I'll let you draw your pictures in your head. if I need to explain it to you, you're probably too young to know about this anyway :)

this is kind of funny to me b/c when I told a friend recently that I'd taken up bass, he asked if I was going to be like Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers (he who is known to be all over the place when he plays). I said no with a grin. however, now I'm not so sure...

now if only my wrists didn't hurt. I think I might be developing carpal tunnel! :P