Deerhunter opened their fall tour at Cat’s Cradle Saturday night. The tour promotes their new album Halcyon Digest, released just two weeks ago on September 28th.
The welcome from the eclectic Cradle crowd was almost as warm as the distorted melodies to come. The group methodically made their way through the set, while frontman Bradford Cox kept the mood relaxed by joking with the crowd between songs. (He jokingly claimed one of his guitars was hand made by his friend’s dad. If it’s true – thank you, Bradford Cox’s friend’s dad!)
Deerhunter’s music has been described as “ambient punk” which is a pretty spot on description. It’s not as sleepy as ambient, nor is it as jarring as punk. It sits confidently in the middle.
All in all the show gave me a much-welcomed sense of both excitement and relaxation. To me, Deerhunter is the musical equivalent to “Icy Hot” – Distorted noise to dull the pain, warm melodies to relax it away.
“Here’s a band with a big future in front of them.” Those are the words all young performers want to hear and few receive authentically. For the youthful five-some from Sydney, Australia this prophesy is ringing true.
Bridezilla, which was formed in 2005 when the cats were still in highschool, has in the last few years earned their highschool diplomas, been signed to Ivy League Records (Youth Group, The Vines, Jet), released their self titled EP, played shows with Indie Rockstar bands like Architecture in Helsinki and Wilco, and now are on their way to the ATP festival in New York City before the US release of their EP (out this September).
Holiday Carmen-Sparks heads the group with lead vocals, Pia May is on guitar, Millie Hall is on saxophone and keyboards, Daisy Tully plays violin, and Josh Bush is on the drums. At such a young age Bridezilla is musically mature and their sophistication evolves through the mixing and meshing styles of jazz, grunge, and torch, together producing beautifully earthy tunes.
ATP New York is around the corner on September 11th through the 13th. Tickets are on sale now. I wouldn’t miss it, especially Bridezilla who plays Saturday.
Last night Metric played to a packed in Terminal 5. According to Emily Haines, the band’s lead singer, it has been over 3 years since they have played in the city. Playing tunes from their new album Fantasies along with a couple oldies like “Dead Disco” and “Monster Hospital,” the band had us clapping, fist pumping, singing along and practically drooling. Emily was right, “some of us have to be exactly who we are,” we should consider ourselves lucky Metric holds true to that idea. Next up on Metric’s tour? Washington, DC
I urge you, readers, to please dig deeper into Chairlift. Don’t allow yourself to be satisfied solely by their iPod hit, “Bruises”. I was so taken by their live performance at Webster Hall on April 29th where they just may have out-shined the headlining and most sensationalized Peter Bjorn and John. Caroline Polachek’s voice is without a doubt quite stellar to an average good voice. The control she possesses is alluring to the ear. Quite simply, it’s like butter. Aaron Pfenning is a crooner as well, his deep voice is a perfectly erie compliment to Polechek’s. Patrick Wimberly kept it all together as drummer, bassist and keyboardist. These are versatile musicians, exchanging instruments and taking turns. It was something of beauty to watch.
Of course, the masses were there for some PB and J. The Swedish indie idols caused the 123 year old floor of Webster Hall to shake, literally. The crowd did not seem to mind as they bounced and rocked to favorites like “Amsterdam” and “Young Folks”, naturally, along with newbies like “Just The Past” and “Nothing to Worry About”. Their encore was especially moving, with an intimate slow song from their newest album Living Things, titled “Stay This Way”.
The Aussie duo An Horse has spent the last two years opening up for bands like Tegan and Sara, Death Cab for Cutie, and currently Appleseed Cast. What began with band practices in the record store both Kate Cooper and Damon Cox were employed and small gigs around town quickly turned into touring full time and their debut album Rearrange Beds, which hit on shelves last March on Mom & Pop records.
The band has put out a pensive indie rock album about relationships lost and yet to come. The album rides on a similar hook from start to finish, but remains catchy in its own right. My favorite tune off the album: “Postcards.”
Fend: “Rearrange Beds was called a “killer breakup album” by Spin Magazine, whats your reaction to that?”
Kate: “I’m glad they think its killer as far as breakup record some of the songs had to do with a relationship that ended, but its not a breakup record. I guess if I could go back and change it now I would.”
Fend: “Whats the writing process for you guys?”
Kate: “I write and record at home on my computer and then Damon listens and we make changes together.”
Fend: “The first time I saw you guys you opened up for Tegan and Sara at Terminal 5, what was that experience like?”
Kate: “That tour taught us everything we know. The fans were amazing and it blew me away the crowds were going wild and it was really incredible. I thought maybe they thought we were Tegan and Sara.”
Fend: “Where are you guys headed now?”
Kate: “Nashville, TN”
Fend: “Favorite place to play?”
Kate: “ Cincinnati, the kids are kind of crazy there.”
Fend: “Pre-show routine?”
Kate: “There’s a lot of high kicking, from the days of being bored at the record store. High fiving- we are going for the kind of high five that makes a high pitched snap if you do it right, and we get waters.”
Fend: “An Horse has been on the road for quite some time, any awkward experiences on the road?”
Kate: ” Nothing really awkward, but I do have a story…everyone holds doors open for people here, and I didn’t hold the door for an old lady, and she kind of got stuck in the door and now my friends wont let me live it down.”
British Singer/Songwriter Natasha Kahn releases a new gem under Bat For Lashes. True to form Kahn calls on forces of nature and human emotion to play the lead in each song, and masterfully crafts her music into whimsically unique tracks reminiscent of the ’80s.
“I will rise now, and go about the city…” quietly opens up Two Suns as Kahn sings the lyrics in echoey achapella, the lyrics are quickly found swirling in city sounds and pounding drums. ”Moon and Moon,” the albums third track, calls on the moon to accompany a wife looking for her husband, it features Kahn on the piano and is sure to play right on your soul, don’t be surprised if this track has you closing your eyes in order to get the full effect. “Traveling Woman” offers advice for survival in this wild world and just might have been Kahn’s theme song while writing and recording her second album as the process took place from Big Sur and Joshua Tree in California, to the Welsh Countryside, to London and New York. ”The Big Sleep,” a duet with Scott Walker and Kahn, is a haunty sleepy track almost operatic in vocals that is perfectly appropriate to end Two Suns. My favorite track off Bat For Lashes‘ new album: “Pearl’s Dream.”
Typical to Metric’s style, their new album, Fantasies, opens up with sick heart pounding drums, some haunting echoy lyrics and a track that makes you want to assume the rock stance and pump your fist. Turn it up kids this album needs a pair of quality speakers and loud volume to give it the proper listen. First up and my personal favorite, “Help I’m Alive” is a sure hit and kicks off the album with the perfect amount of well, everything.
After touring full time from 2003 to 2006 the band mates took some time apart to “reconnect with their humanity.” Calling Bear Creek (Seattle, Washington) home, the band allowed artistic freedom to reign and all was allowed during their time in the wilderness. From cupid’s grip on her heart(Sick Muse), to gold and guns and getting off(Gold Gun Girls), this album lives up to its name. What first began as a potential acoustic album turned into a dreamy collection of wild, fantastical tracks which now make up Fantasies. You can find the new album in stores April 14th.
Wednesday, February 18th on the 22nd and a half floor of ATO Records marked a blistery but fabulous day for Fend. Metric’s Emily Haines and Jimmy Shaw took some time out of their busy schedules to sit down and talk with us about the new album, random life lessons, band cohesion and most importantly sports wear for babies.
Fend: “There seems to be a reoccuring theme about war/conflict in your work, the newest being Stadium Love, can you tell me what the song is about?”
Emily Haines: “Its the breakdown of the natural world, the line between spectator and participant is completely blurred, every living thing is in the ring, you are betting on the duck and then you are hit in the head. As strange as it may be the whole band was like oh yeah totally.”
Jimmy Shaw: ” Oh Yeah totally, animals turning on themselves.”
Emily Haines: “The song was inspired by Jules Scott-Key, drummer, he wrote in very tiny print spider vs bat on a bulletin board and I glanced at that phrase on the bulletin board and i was like I got it. The whole band totally got it, even if the rest of the world doesnt.”
Fend: ” All members of the band have side projects outside of Metric, do you think that helps with the band’s cohesion and the creative process?”
Emily Haines: “(After she thought I said sad rather than side projects) “I think my side project was a sad project, but I got it out of my system..you go from this amazing moment in your life where you have worked really hard and you get to it and it feels like your dreams are coming true, and then you have no dreams -they have come true. Its a very confusing place and I think a lot of people get lost in that. You get to this point in your life…you have gotta go home, if you dont have one go get one now.”
Jimmy Shaw: “If you want to do something else for a second you need to do that and then come back with a renewed sense of energy… its always a little bit scary….theres the possiblity that you might not come back and thats what makes it exciting, and what makes you want to come back because you are free- I know right now we have never wanted to be more a part of this band.”
Fend: “What was the biggest gamble in putting out a record on your own? Do you think its a realistic thing for other bands?”
Jimmy Shaw: “I dont think its the right thing for every band to do right now, I think its harder to get off the ground right now than its ever been, you need a push, we toured for 8 years non stop and not every band is dumb enough to do that. I dont think its that revolutionary, all we are doing is releasing a record exactly like everybody else does but we arent doing it with one giant company, we set it up on our own.”
Emily Haines: “When it came to making decisions to what to do, we know how it(music industry) works. Its not all fairy dust, its really concrete things, timing-time to set things up, communication and organization to set things up. It takes the bummer part out, I want to write, but in order to do that I have to deal with this fucking asshole, and we have just gotten rid of those people.”
Jimmy Shaw: “The question was whats the risk, and the answer is there is less risk, going with any company right now is a risk.”
Fend: “Help I’m Alive was leaked out, why do you think it has resonated so universally?”
Emily Haines: “I dont know, its a really inspiring moment for that to happen, its something we struggled with always…this song on its own jumped off the record and ran away, it set up this record in a way we could have never planned.”
Notable routine before a show and Emily’s on Stage Headbanging:
Jimmy Shaw:“10 minutes before the show, Jules is jules nothing ever phases him, Josh goes in a wierd state…because he cant play right now he goes into this zen master state, I pace and drink and smoke, Emily does stretches, and gives the giant over view ‘this should be like this,’ she paints the whole picture.”
Emily Haines: “I love that part of playing, the gathering process that takes all these different forms. About the head banging thing, something happens, you know those eliptical machines its something like that everything gets working in motion and I feel like if I would stop everything would fall down.”
Yeah Yeah Yeahs‘ newest albumIts Blitz! hits the shelves today. Prepare yourselves for a different kind of sound. Karen O’s screaming does not make an appearance on the new album and the overall feel is less manic and more electro dance party. Opening up with “Zero” the album kicks off with a hot, edgy track guaranteed to get you moving and will keep you on the move with “Heads Will Roll,” “Dull Life” and ”Dragon Queen.” With softer ballads like “Runaway” and “Softshock” serving as the icing on this album’s cake, the band’s 3rd album is sure to be their most mature album, artistically, to date. My personal favorite tune off It’s Blitz: “Runaway.”
Dark ominous beats, low riding trumpets and whispered voices turn into a playful track about not breaking someone’s heart, which turns into a ballad about looking like an idiot for being in love, and so ensues the roller-coaster ride that is Part 1: John Shade, Your Fortunes Made. You will quickly find the album that first made you afraid to be alone in your apartment, has you craving a packed dance floor and a disco ball from the ceiling.
Fol Chen’s dance tunes and slow creaky ballads make this a tough first album to beat, make sure to check out my personal favorite and their new single: “No Wedding Cake.”
I urge you, readers, to please dig deeper into 
Of course, the masses were there for some 
Wednesday, February 18th on the 22nd and a half floor of ATO Records marked a blistery but fabulous day for Fend. Metric’s Emily Haines and Jimmy Shaw took some time out of their busy schedules to sit down and talk with us about the new album, random life lessons, band cohesion and most importantly sports wear for babies.
Fol Chen’s dance tunes and slow creaky ballads make this a tough first album to beat, make sure to check out my personal favorite and their new single: “No Wedding Cake.”
