James Moore's Blog, page 110

Public Service Broadcasting rock Leicester O2 Academy (16/4/14)

Public Service Broadcasting are a hard duo to describe; one part electro, one part rock, one part old-timey samples, the Brits are a unique act that’s for sure. Having not been massively into their recorded material to-date, I went over to Leicester’s O2 Academy full of skepticism, not sure whether I’d be disappointed or very well entertained. Well, post 10pm last night, I was somewhere between the two, having been surprised in doses by the two ‘Doctor Who’ look-a-likes, who manage to entertain via music, humour and emotion…

More of which later, but let’s start with support act Happyness, who were a strange trio to pin down to just one style of music. They opened with the sombre, ‘Lascascadas’, a mouthful to say the least, and not exactly the greatest first impression in a live arena. Things picked up with the more up-beat ‘It’s On You’, but the tone really wavered between slow and depressing to more progressive and pacier beats. There are certainly some strong foundations here, the group are musically adept and the newer songs they played sounded far more impressive than their initial material, keep an eye out for Happyness!

Now onto the main show, and the stylings of ‘PSB’. Wrigglesworth and J. Willgoose, Esq are the mysterious two from South London, and the initial impact is astounding. Wrigglesworth gets belted into a vast drum kit, centre left of stage, whilst Willgoose is on the right, behind an electronics desk, with banjo and a trio of guitars within easy reach. Of course, a wealth of effects pedals are gathered beneath the desk, and in the background we have a mini-screen which throughout the gig is adorned with black-and-white visuals to compliment the core of the music, samples taken from public broadcasts and propaganda. Chuck in some impressive lighting, strobe and all, and we’re set for a pure hour’s worth of Public Service Broadcasting.

This mini-tour, taking in five UK dates before heading off to mainland Europe, is in support of Record Store Day release, ‘Elfstedentocht Parts 1 &2‘, which is based on a Dutch ice-skating race…you see where we’re going! Well with subjects ranging from go-go dancers to the climbing of Mt Everest to the London Blitz, it becomes a melding pot of samples, excellent live drumming and riffs with the electronic loops and backing beats thrown in. It’s a skilfull thing to watch up close and personal with the two, who communicate (Daft Punk style) via only the electronics at Willgoose’s fingertips, which results in some strangely comedic moments during crowd interaction.

For me, the gig really began with ‘Signal 30′, which is when everything was lined up perfectly, from the terrifyingly pacy drums to the riffs of Willgoose, it was magical to watch, and I began to appreciate just what made PSB special, and has seen them play to a US crowd just recently, and will see them perform at the festival to end all festivals, Glastonbury, this summer. They’re very, very British, as I say, looking like a pair of Doctor Who impersonators in bow-ties, patched up jackets and shirts, it adds to the mystique and the wonder of the two, as they look like they’ve been transported from the black-and-white era so much of their music is based upon, but been trained to play these ‘modern-day’ instruments.

The backing video screen really came into play for me with ‘If War Sh0uld Come’, a devastating song, that when played alongside the accompanying video conjures up a good amount of emotions as it takes you to the place and the seriousness of war. All in a three minute plus song, incredible! The Dutch pair of songs about ice-skating are another great visual delight, too.

If I were to fault one thing, it is the samples. They can grate after an hour’s worth of seemingly samey voices, and whilst it is the niche and the pull of the band, I wished to hear more diversity in the samples played in every song. Or throw in some of the aforementioned robotic voices that a certain pair of French dance kings love to employ!

The best of the gig was yet to come, with my personal faves, ‘Spitfire’, ‘ROYGBIV’ and ‘Everest’, bringing proceedings to a close. Spitfire’s brilliant riff and drum breakdown is hugely listenable, ROYGBIV just makes you want to smile, as Willgoose employs his banjo to great effect and Everest is awe-inspiring, especially when combined with images of the great giant in the background.

So all in all, a great evening’s worth of entertainment; they may not be for everyone’s tastes, but Public Service Broadcasting left a lot of smiling faces amongst their ardent group of fans.

As featured on Indie-music.com, Examiner.com, I Am Entertainment Magazine, Antimusic.com, and recommended by countless music publications, “Your Band Is A Virus! Expanded Edition” is the ultimate music marketing guide for serious independent musicians and bands. Get your copy now.

Liars crack open the glowstick on seventh album, Mess

One of the first things I did after pressing play on Mess, the new, seventh album from Liars, was take my pants off. Only because a voice with Satanic inflections demands it on the opening song, “Mask Maker.” If you fail to comply, it’s your face that’ll get eaten.

Mess is the Liars’ devilishly drugged-up descent into dance music. Thirty seconds in a sharp, popping drum beat inflates the track until you’re dancing like a horned demon, boxer-clad and with brown acid stuck between each tooth.

The first single, “Mess On A Mission,” is a joyously snotty punk whip with singer Angus Andrew gaggling the title in a panicked falsetto. It’s unhinged and almost clowny, but somehow sticks in your head. “Facts are facts and fiction’s fiction,” Andrew sings spitting each word.  

Mess is more abrasive than the last Liars album, WIXIW, which saw Andrew and mates Aaron Hemphill and Julian Gross diving blindly into electronic tinkering and atmospheric resonance. The experience of that experimentation has taken root and found a lavish coexistence with the street-trash rock-and-roll of their earliest work. This mash creates a surreal listening experience that thrives on the emotion of doom and anxiety.

 The tall Aussie plank of wood that is frontman Andrew is the force keeping the album from devolving into a slipshod jam session with buttons and knobs. The desperate, black-out energy behind his voice goes from the lower depths of an entranced guard in The Wizard Of Oz to the manic-high pitch of someone being tickled to their limit. He has many shades of strange and delirium. On “Pro Anti Anti” he emotes like a down-and-out-of-shape Jim Morrison as a tremulous organ surges through zaps of electric bass.

Mess is also the most outright hallucinogenic Liars album. Each hit of bass is muggy and drills deep into the skull. Sounds trail in and out against smudgy organ drum loops. It could be found somewhere in the blurring shadows of The King Of Limbs and Drukqs. “Dress Walker” enters the space race with a Kraftwerk-esque downbeat and the squeamish monotone panderings of Andrew. It climbs on echoes, then side-steps into juicy, space-funk.

The voiceless “Darkslide” is a ball of loops gyrating and splintering up and out. “Perpetual Village” is body-lifting as it slinks along with cosmic sound-waves and pitched drum beats. The final song, “Left Speaker Blown,” moves slow like a flickering candle. Low pulsing feedback is pulled from side to side and shot beyond the periphery of sound until a warm peace overcomes. Could be one of their most beautiful compositions.

With each new record Liars rip the script of the previous creative outing, challenging themselves to discover a new floor in their apartment of sound. If Mess ever hits a snag, it’s with the arduous noise explorations that sometimes threaten the flow of the full unit. Depends if you want to move to your music or zone out to it, either way, Liars allow both. This collection of dark, pepped-up dance tracks is a midnight burner for the long, weird, end-of-the-world basement party you may or may not be having.

As featured on Indie-music.com, Examiner.com, I Am Entertainment Magazine, Antimusic.com, and recommended by countless music publications, “Your Band Is A Virus! Expanded Edition” is the ultimate music marketing guide for serious independent musicians and bands. Get your copy now.

6 bands that are about to put Indie & Rock music back on the map

After years of being on the decline and deemed to ‘never return’, both indie and rock music are having a bit of a revival at the moment. It’s down to the work of a realm of, mainly newcomers, that are determined to bring the brash, hard side of rock n roll back. Let’s see what this sextet have to say…

Eagulls

The Leeds outfit are a controversial lot. In their short time on the scene, they’ve performed as a convicted murderer and his victims, created a music video with a decomposing brain at its centre and had the police raid their home during the making of said music video; divisive enough?! Well if you can put the music ahead of the people, you’ll have a fun time with Eagulls, for they are a raucous, vibrant band that are focused on bringing back brash beats.

Already the punk-rockers have featured on big-time US shows like ‘David Letterman’, supported Scots Franz Ferdinand on tour before finally releasing their titular debut album earlier this year. It was a critically acclaimed record, that has led to them grabbing a number of gigs at a range of festivals in the summer, aswell as an Autumn UK tour, the future looks controversial, but bright for this bunch of Yorkshiremen.

Drenge

Loveless is one word you could describe to Drenge’s music alright. It’s big, booming and unassuming. But Eoin and Rory LOVELESS (see what I did there?!), are changing the game of rock music. Their first album, the titular ‘Drenge’ is fantastic, one of the rare records that is sounds even better in a live environment. The two are brooding and very moody on-stage, participating in very little banter between the crowd, and even away from playing music, they can be pretty harsh, claiming to be ‘not totally overjoyed’ at the namecheck given to them by Tom Watson MP.

Drenge are yet another band that look like they’ll have a long, fruitful career as a top rock band, sure the duo’s drums and guitar riff based music may need an evolution at some point to truly take them to another level, but for now, they are exciting, with a second album in the offing.

Circa Waves

A bit of a happier bunch, Circa Waves are from Liverpool and are a indie band with catchy hooks and a seemingly inoffensive attitude. They sound like a mixture of an in-explicit Libertines and with shades of the Strokes thrown in for good measure. They’ve already picked up the coveted title of ‘Zane Lowe’s Hottest Record’, for top tune ‘Stuck In My Teeth’, got a good number of festival dates penned in for the summer.

Not a whole lot is known about the band, which is kind of refreshing in the modern day market, as it is usually so easy to find out a tonne of comprehensive information about someone just like that. Perhaps by the end of this summer we will all know about Circa Waves.

Warpaint

Two albums through their lifespan and a perfume campaign later, Warpaint have been around for a bit, sure, but it’s only now they’re breaking through into the mainstream. They weave intricate guitars, truly haunting vocals and driving post punk rhythms into gorgeous, songs that skirt the line between psychedelia and intimacy. Both live and  recorded, they sounds incredible and often take your breath away. The all-girl quartet from LA have toured incessantly the world over the last couple of years; with standout performances at CMJ and SxSW, comparisons with the intimate stylings of the xx are justified, and even then, Warpaint seemingly offer a wider range of tracks than the, at times, boring Brits. These girls might not be your typical girl-band, but are instead creators of some beautiful, beautiful music.

JAWS

The Brummie band are just one of a wave of summery, bombastic tunes to be coming from the country’s Second City. Whilst they may not be quite as established as fellow Brummies, Swim Deep and Peace, they’re certainly on their way having toured with both groups and building a solid fanbase the world over. Just one look at their Facebook posts sees the level of diversity amongst their fans, something that is difficult to achieve in the diluted market that is the music industry in 2014.

But no, the surf-pop anthems put out by the band are obviously in great demand, and further collaborations with their fellow ‘happy rockers’ is doing them some good, as fandoms cross over and everyone is a winner. They aren’t the most creative lot in the world, but there is most certainly scope for improvement, the potential is there even if JAWS are not quite the finished article just yet.

The Family Rain

One album in, The Family Rain are already a huge deal amongst blues-rock circles, since forming in 2011. ‘Under the Volcano’ released in Feb 2014, and was a long time in the making. Till then, the band were bubbling under the surface, gaining traction and momentum that resulted in their debut release garnering a lot of positive attention amongst outlets like the NME and the Guardian. Impressively so too, given they had played festivals like Pukkelpop, Latitude AND supported the Rolling Stones before this year’s LP.

Wow. Well, they did put out a number of EP’s just to give the world a taster of what was to come, but they are a strong, if not slightly angsty blues group, that are unique and refreshing to listen too. Their success’ to-date are pretty exceptional the more you look at them, and you wouldn’t bet against them extending their niche sound to the masses.

So that’s my pick, what do you think? Sound off below!

As featured on Indie-music.com, Examiner.com, I Am Entertainment Magazine, Antimusic.com, and recommended by countless music publications, “Your Band Is A Virus! Expanded Edition” is the ultimate music marketing guide for serious independent musicians and bands. Get your copy now.

Bombay Bicycle Club stun fans with new album and live tour double

The stunning fourth Bombay Bicycle Club album, So Long, See You Tomorrow.

UK indie-folk band Bombay Bicycle Club returned with their fourth album at the beginning of February to great critical acclaim, as they expanded their intriguing, folky sound to encompass new electronic instruments into the mixture, and the general result is that they are more popular and great than ever.

The electronic and rough and tumble Banghra influences on the record, ‘So Long, See You Tomorrow’, are welcome ones   that elevate the Londoners to a new level. The time they have taken to deliver this piece of work can be seen in this meticulously designed album, that throws together some stunning samples and great instrumentation to bring in more critical success amid a new sound.

Opener ‘Overdone’, throws in the aforementioned drumming and weird electro into the mixture and is a great, confident start to the album. You get the feeling that rather more than being just an audio delight, this is a visual album, you can feel the colour and vibrant nature of the music in songs like ‘Feel’, inspired by the Bollywood film scene, I’ll have you know. Lots of the album, despite it’s early year release is built for the summer, a song I CANNOT wait to hear as the sun is going down on a wonderfully hot summer’s day is ‘Home By Now’, it’s perfect for relaxation and a great way to wind down, yet it comes midway through the album! It’s yet more signs that this band has matured and developed confidence, so so important in the lifespan of a band, and a sure sign that BBC are here to stay.

‘Eyes Off You’, is a slightly slower tune, pretty haunting in a similar manner to that of James Blake, another very interesting singer-songwriter, and the only real weak link comes in the shape of ‘Come To’, a song which when take on it’s own sounds like a delectable slice of indie-rock. I’d always had a soft spot for BBC, individual songs had caught me as being mightily impressive, but I’d never been too bothered about delving into a fully-fledged album of theirs. I’m really glad I did with ‘So Long, See You Tomorrow’ for it is a special piece of music.

 

A real test of the new LP’s success is whether or not the sound would positively transfer over to the live stage, something which I can confirm IS the case! I saw the band on their Spring UK tour, at the grimy, tight venue of Rock City, Nottingham, a great club that has all you want from a venue, cheap booze, sticky floors and a top atmosphere. But alas, it was the buzz of hearing my favourite tunes played out on the stage, something I feared, given the last time I had seen BBC was a few years before in the open-air auditorium that was Leeds Festival 2012. They bored me to tears I have to say, I was neither impressed nor bothered by their dreary tunes as they matched the overcast weather that looked down upon them.

However, in this close-quarters venue, they lit up the stage, with all types of instruments, a brass section, tambourine, eclectic drumming; you name it! They brought their a-game to Nottingham and Nottingham responded as the crowd got loose to the banghra drums scattered throughout the record, and recited back Jack Steadman’s growing vocals right back at him. The gig went by in a flash, and I craved more than the two-song encore.

Luckily, with festival dates throwing them all over the globe this summer, preceded by a current US tour, which sees them taking in all manner of venues, from Coachella to Las Vegas to Philadelphia, they are EVERYWHERE at the minute. I’ll be very excited to see how the album is touring, given I should be seeing them close the summer at Reading & Leeds, it’ll be closure for touring the album, but it’ll be interesting to see how the songs have developed and become perfected over the intervening six months; a six months that have seen Bombay grow from a bunch of hipster nerds, into something much, much bigger.

As featured on Indie-music.com, Examiner.com, I Am Entertainment Magazine, Antimusic.com, and recommended by countless music publications, “Your Band Is A Virus! Expanded Edition” is the ultimate music marketing guide for serious independent musicians and bands. Get your copy now.

Days And Works might be the album you need right now

Behind Door number 1 we have Hunter & Wolfe. The Brooklyn duo craft true-grit American rock’n'roll persuaded by the heart and soul. Singer Michael Maffei lets loose his lyrics straight from the depths of his rotgut.

Behind Door number 2 we have their second album, Days And Works, released last week and available for download on their Bandcamp. Maffei and Sundeep Kapur put this whole thing together: writing, performance, recording and production. The songs are triumphant and expertly sculpted.

“La La La” ambles in with a joyous romp of twittering piano keys and thick down-strummed acoustic guitar. The second, somber, ”What Has Changed?” builds over time on a throbbing guitar drone with Maffei falling in and out until it finally erupts.

The louder songs remind me faintly of the brash and direct style of The Walkmen. The stuffy room feeling, lazy washed out guitars against driving drums, and an internal personal breakthrough just around the corner. “Woe Is You” is a jagged cutting guitar declaration with a slow-simmering attack and Maffei rolling over the crescendos. On “Please” some dripping wet guitar rinses off a slow-burning flame.

Each song is commanded by Maffei’s voice and the different emotions it brings. He shows great restraint, each note carrying a light quiver, but strong and with full intent. On the acoustically sparse “All My Might” his voice soars between the beautifully interlocked and carefully plucked notes.

Maffei shakes his heart loose from his sleeve on the wallowing “Even Odds.” The acoustic number has singing emotional response. ”Punching all the tickets / Moving point to point / Til it all seems pointless,” he sings from the echo chamber of existential defeat.

Days And Works is a perfectly compact album. Over its nine songs is the rock’n'roll of the young man. It sounds classic and instantly lived-in; a record that could ride parallel with your life for a moment and stay with you always. Really, there is nothing wrong with it.

As featured on Indie-music.com, Examiner.com, I Am Entertainment Magazine, Antimusic.com, and recommended by countless music publications, “Your Band Is A Virus! Expanded Edition” is the ultimate music marketing guide for serious independent musicians and bands. Get your copy now.

OVO Sound and Darius Williams Scam Alert

Darius Williams is on the loose, folks. An internet cowboy claiming to work for Drake’s new label OVO Sound, Williams has been sending out pdf documents en masses claiming to accept artists to the OVO label for a fee of $2500. I received a new email this morning from an artist who has been ripped off by this individual, and it’s really a sad thing that these guys are around. Side note: this was a 16 year old aspiring artist who got ripped off, probably spending all his savings thinking he was going to get on Drake’s record label.

If you’ve been contacted by Darius Williams, one thing you’ll notice in his pdf document, which made it’s way to my desk when he contacted one of my artists, that he’s actually copied all of the language from www.independentmusicpromotions.com, even taking my testimonials and replacing ‘James Moore’ with ‘Darius Williams’. He didn’t even want to take a moment to be less obvious apparently. I made several efforts to contact OVO Sound but no one responded.

That’s all for now, folks! It’s disconcerting to have to post two of these in one day, but the education is important.

As featured on Indie-music.com, Examiner.com, I Am Entertainment Magazine, Antimusic.com, and recommended by countless music publications, “Your Band Is A Virus! Expanded Edition” is the ultimate music marketing guide for serious independent musicians and bands. Get your copy now.

SCAM Alert for The Musician’s Secret Weapon

As a music promoter/publicist, I’m always building my contact lists. It’s a constant process. I work with new publications and freelance writers all the time. So, when I see new companies or individuals providing new information and contact lists, I tend to test them out and see what they have on offer. The most recent contacts package I purchased is called “The Musician’s Secret Weapon“, and I think it’s the responsible thing to do here to expose them as a legitimate scam and warn any musician against paying the $47 price tag for their “product”.

On their website they claim their product is used by Universal Music Group, Sony/BMG, Capital Records, Warner Brothers, Motown, etc…pretty much the who’s who of the major label world, but folks, this is a common tactic used by scammers. I’ll prove to you why this is a lie. Let’s start here. The Musician’s Secret Weapon essentially promises to deliver contact lists/documents with thousands of relevant and labelled email, name, and company contacts for industry professionals, blogs, magazines, radio, etc. I purchased the package and was shocked at what I found in the excel documents.

First of all, most of the documents were improperly labelled, containing only a list of random emails that seemed to be snatched up by an email harvesting software. Much worse than that though, I’m going to copy and paste some of the emails contained in their “secret weapon” contact list that they advertise as being a major boon to musicians.

tjfssb@qzcrgvnbwtntglsqtcmwrvwr.net

tioxchcsku@uyhduxvdujggtps.com

telepsychic@mindspring.com

tbwlfnxq@rvcnwrzrrbnzpghpbkgdrhnmn.de

tbdskhzldj@mbsxqkddxgmdfwpgstnbfskjw.xschjvqznmzj.com.au

store@eroticneighbor.com

webmaster@24-7sexgallery.com

webmaster@3xlivesex.com

webmaster@adultxporn.com

webmaster@eroticneighbor.com

It would be mundane to go on, but these go on in the thousands. The original list can be provided upon request.

Do you think for one second that major record labels would be using this list?

Giberrish, sex sites, and of course, some music contacts thrown in there for good measure. Do I really need to say anything else? I pointed this out to them and immediately requested a refund, as it specifies on their website, www.musicianssecretweapon.com, that they will provide refunds to any unhappy customers. Funny enough, I never received a response to any of my 5 follow ups.

Now, luckily, this article will show up in Google’s search results for this company, run by Mark Ronald, who are quite obviously taking unsigned artist’s money and providing them with this. Ronald does not have a social media presence, just the single website and a gmail address, and this is likely for quick takedown as the scam inevitably becomes more public. Then he can always set up shop under an altered company name.

I have no issue with charging for a quality service that delivers. This internet cowboy mentality when it comes to taking advantage of unsigned artists, though, has to stop and we can collectively put an end to it if we simply inform each other. Stay away, folks!

 

As featured on Indie-music.com, Examiner.com, I Am Entertainment Magazine, Antimusic.com, and recommended by countless music publications, “Your Band Is A Virus! Expanded Edition” is the ultimate music marketing guide for serious independent musicians and bands. Get your copy now.

Skrillex; YAY or NAY?

It feels like the artist known as Skrillex, a.k.a Sonny Moore, has been around for AGES. The oft-hated, maligned dubstep pioneer has been on the scene for a good four years or so, without a solid, traditional LP release to boot. Instead the American put out lots and lots of EPs to the world, that produced a ‘marmite’ image for him; his music was seen as loud, brash and simply mad to some, whereas others completely got him and adored the output. Myself, I was somewhere inbetween, there were some songs of his that I loved and others I could not stand to hear.

Its surprise announcement, via his video-game app ‘Alien Ride’, which saw tracks unlock for streaming on an hourly basis, is very welcome. Having seen how Beyonce released her latest LP ‘xo’, it’s clear the format gets fans and critics alike talking and when the foundations said announcements are built upon are as solid as this record, it wouldn’t surprise me If more musicians that are confident about their work release in a similar manner in the near future. The buzz created far succeeds any long-term announcements, amongst only the most hardcore groups of fans.

My own experience with this guy is that I’m inbetween the love and the hate, but when I heard the genius way he was releasing the LP, I just had to have a listen of it, just to see if he had grown up a bit!

Mr Skrillex, as some may like to call him, has managed to grab a bunch of music’s brightest stars and producers and thrown them all together to create songs that are dripping with high production talent. You get Major Lazer’s very own Diplo, hot hip-hop artist of the moment Chance the Rapper and dancehall duo the Ragga Twins feature on a few tracks.

Infact, by the titular track two ‘Recess’, you can get a strong feeling for the album on the whole. It is a EDM and hip-hop collaboration which sees samples from Fatman Scoop and bizarrely enough, synth-pop band Passion Pit’s lead singer Michael Angelakos flirt with one another, with a building anthemic bass line that explodes into a sumptuous EDM crescendo. It’s amazing to hear, especially when, initially, it sounds like a complete and utter mess.

What is impressive about the LP is its versatility. There are the crushing drops that encompassed the early years, ‘Try It Out’, the most obvious for this; there are also the rap-dance crushes, ‘Coast is Clear’, which whips along at an unnerving rate of knots and then, THEN, there is the aforementioned Diplo collaboration, combining the best bits of both producers and sticking them together to create an awe inspiring piece of work that you really don’t know where it’s going. There is a ballad moment though, on ‘Ease My Mind’, but the best thing is that this wipes away most of the criticism Skrillex has faced over the years, ‘it all sounds the same’ etc. For doubters can just listen and see that this is not the case on ‘Recess’.

What interests me the most about this landmark moment for Sonny Moore’s career, is that it has clearly taken a number of years to carefully craft and mould into what is, for most parts, a great slice of modern-day dance music. He’s certainly come on in leaps and bounds with every prior collaboration, and with ‘Recess’ as the end result, the album artwork of a smiling alien face, isn’t going to be the only smiling face when the album is released next week (March 18th).

The other half of the double announcement was a 20-date headline tour across the USA called ‘Mothership’, which I’d be extremely interested in seeing, and with a number of festival dates this summer, it seems Skrillex is ready to become a strong part of the zeitgeist once again after a quiet couple of years; I for one can’t wait to welcome him back.

As featured on Indie-music.com, Examiner.com, I Am Entertainment Magazine, Antimusic.com, and recommended by countless music publications, “Your Band Is A Virus! Expanded Edition” is the ultimate music marketing guide for serious independent musicians and bands. Get your copy now.

7 of the Best Bands at Reading & Leeds 2014

Probably the most favoured festivals of the UK’s youth; Reading and Leeds 2014 have just announced a sizeable chunk of the bands on offer for this summer’s shindig. Here’s a look at a select few of those bands and artists…

1. Metronomy

Their fourth album, ‘Love Letters’, has just been released to critical acclaim, and with a plump spot midway up on the NME stage, Joe Mount and his bandmates have a lot to be happy about. ‘Love Letters’ is a motown-electro mixture that is brought to the boil at just the right point, and will be an exciting addition to the already eclectic bunch of songs that band have, the title track has to be my favorite, drummer Anna Prior’s repetitive refrain of ‘LOVE LETT-ERSS’ being particularly memorable. 2014 could just be the year Metronomy realize their potential, and what better than a decent spot at Reading & Leeds to end a summer festival season that has also seen them rumored for the big one itself; Glastonbury.

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2. The Hives

One of my personal favourites, the Hives have been around for a good number of years now and their live performances are executed to perfection. They are chaotic, colourful and often hilarious affairs that just require an active audience that want to have a good time. Their transition from 2012′s NME stage appearance over to the outdoor Main Stage will be interesting; blazing sun will be a necessity and a loud, boisterous crowd would be even better, but without all of that, you can still expect a great show from these mad Swedes.

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3. Royal Blood

A loud, unafraid rock duo, Royal Blood had a LOT of hype from day one of their creation-only last year. Arctic Monkeys drummer Matt Helders sported a t-shirt of theirs during last summer’s Glastonbury Festival, and their first single didn’t even drop until November last year. However, when it did, it more than delivered. Royal Blood are one of those bands that get you going, wanting to jump around and have a good time. They may be lacking a substantial back catalogue, indeed they currently have just two singles, but were included on the BBC Sound of 2014 shortlist and indeed supported the Arctics at their Finsbury Park shows last summer, they are fresh, new and exciting, and will be wanting to prove so on a big stage.

Royal Blood-Out of the Black

4. Arctic Monkeys

Okay, so they’ve oft been branded as ‘boring’ in live performances, and my initial reaction their latest, and arguably most successful to date, album was lukewarm to say the least; but Arctic Monkeys are one of Britain’s biggest and most important bands of the moment. They’ve made rock’n'roll cool again, depending on which way you saw frontman Alex Turner’s infamous Brit Awards speech, and will bring an absolute bucketload of fans to both sites. That alone means that these two outdoor shows to a crowd approaching a hundred thousand will be must-see performances of the weekend, plus at this stage in their career, five studio albums down the line, they have more than enough hits to pack a good couple of hours- let it be known I personally am looking forward to seeing the Sheffield band take the R&L Main Stage.

Arctic Monkeys- Do I Wanna Know?

5. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

Definitely the big leftfield choice for this year’s festival, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis will definitely divide musicgoers. Some see them as the antipathy of modern-day music,  a talentless duo thrown together to make money, whereas others, myself included, think they are a breath of fresh air. It’ll be cool to see how the crowd reacts, will it go the way of when 50 Cent performed, when he was bottled off stage?! You’d like to think not, especially as the demographic and musical landscape of the festival have both shifted recently to encompass the new Dance and 1Xtra stages. So, for a brash show, go see blink’s warm-up!

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis- Can’t Hold Us

6. Cage the Elephant

A massively underrated band in my opinion, Cage the Elephant will certainly be on my ‘must-see’ list. Their relatively low down spot on the NME stage, will give them a perfect 45 minutes or so to showcase tunes from new album ‘Melophobia’, along with the breakout songs like ‘Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked’ and ‘Shake Me Down’. It should be a party atmosphere, and the American rockers are another top live band, something which seems to have been specifically targeted by R&L boss Melvin Benn this year, a huge variety of top performers.

Cage the Elephant-Come A Little Closer

7. Queens of the Stone Age/Paramore

Josh Homme and his merry band of rockers ascend to headliner status for the very first time at R&L this summer, along with Hayley Williams’ Paramore, who will also make their debut as the last band of the day. It’s an interesting combination for sure, and one that will likely divide fans of either bands, but I for one am very interested in it. It’s always great to see new bands given the chance in the coveted headline positions, look at how well Biffy Clyro went down last year! Homme and Queens come off the back of their biggest album to date with last year’s ‘…Like Clockwork’, which opened their material up to a whole new group of fans, whereas Paramore’s sound has taken a more pop-based turn, which, again, has seen new fans be welcomed in, but the more hardcore be turned away. It’ll be good to see the mixture of old and new for Hayley Williams, and, on a sidenote, refreshing to see a female-led band become headliners.

Queens of the Stone Age- No One Knows

Paramore-Ain’t It Fun

What are your favourites? Comment below!

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On Morning Phase Beck rubs the sleep from his eyes

If you’ve spent a couple rain-soaked afternoons listening to Beck’s first plush collection of songs, Sea Change, then there should be no surprises with his newest offering, Morning Phase. The two effectively go hand-in-hand.

As the title suggests, it’s purely a morning album. Where Sea Change fits perfectly between, say, the hours of 4 p.m. and 5 p.m., Morning Phase is more nestled somewhere around 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. It drifts lightly like the steam rising from that first cup of coffee.

Essentially, they’re the same album with Morning Phase given a little more production weight, but not much. The songs are all acoustic-based with big pillowy drums and swirls of lilting instrumentation. Rarely is the mold disrupted.

The first actual song, “Morning,” moves sloth-slow. It feels like it will end in the aftermath of every snare clip. ”Blackbird Chain” settles on a charming bass line and pop-melodic guitar, while “Unforgiven” bears down with a sturdy beat and hammered piano notes.

Mostly, Beck’s voice remains at a low murmur with a constant echoed tail. On “Wave” he sings from an island in a sea of lush and tepid strings. There is a haunting premonition in the lowly notes as Beck wails, “Isolation…”

The rollicking guitar on “Heart Is A Drum” devolves into smoky drums that waft from the mix. “Country Down” is a torch-pass from Neil Young’s Harvest. The bass notes of the acoustic hunker down and the sweet reflective air of the harmonica billows out.

In the six years since his last album, Modern Guilt, Beck has been busy. He’s released off-center electro singles at random, sheet music you can’t hear without your hands, recorded cover albums with his pals, let unreleased music collect dust–everything but release an official album of his own music, which can make Morning Phase a bit of a disappointment.

Beck unearthed himself in the early 90s as a slack-jawed loser parting the seas of punk and psychedelia. In the two decades since he’s corralled funk, soul and hip-hop break beats into his musical blender with a fat finger on puree. When Sea Change came out twelve years ago, it was a revelation, that grungy, weirdo Beck could be an actual song-writer and express sincere, unironic emotion.

With Morning Phase that notion hasn’t been strengthened any. It’s really an album to play early in the morning and forget about. It’s swift and subtle and breaks no ground. I imagine a lot of people will not find it too engaging. For those craving the funky white-boy Beck though, he apparently has another album simmering, ready for release this year, and apparently Pharrell is on it. So, if anything, Morning Phase should be the crackers to the bowl of soup. Like it or not 2014 just might be a Beck year. Hell yes.

As featured on Indie-music.com, Examiner.com, I Am Entertainment Magazine, Antimusic.com, and recommended by countless music publications, “Your Band Is A Virus! Expanded Edition” is the ultimate music marketing guide for serious independent musicians and bands. Get your copy now.