Monday, April 27, 2009

BTBW 27.4.09


Beyond the Big Wave, Mondays 9-11pm Belfield FM
89.9FM for those within about 4 inches of our studio, http://www.belfieldfm.ie/ for all else


Grand National - Talk Amongst Yourselves

Moderat - Rusty Nails

Modeselektor feat. TTC - Dancing Box

Smash TV - Nobody (Modeselektor Remix)

Apparat - Fractales Part I

The MFA - The Difference it Makes (Superpitcher Remix)

Rice Twins - For Penny and Alexis

Junior Boys - Parallel Lines

Home Video - That You Might

Gui Boratto - The Verdict

Daso - Numb

James Figurine - Ruining The Sundays

Matthew Dear - Don and Sherri

Modeselektor - Hasir

Zero 7 - In the Waiting Line

Milosh - Time Steals The Day

Jape - Nothing Lasts Forever

Helios - In Heaven

Dosh - Um, Circles and Squares

Cinematic Orchestra - Colours

Hauschka - Wonder

Max Richter - On The Nature of Daylight

Fridge - Meum

Peter Broderick - Query

Yann Tiersen - La Chute


Broken Social Scene - Ibi Dreams of Pavement

Sunday, April 26, 2009

BSITWT #61


LIVE: R.S.A.G - Roisin Dubh, 25 April

To say this was along time coming is an understatement. From the moment I first got my mits on Organics Sampler (thanks to Ferg's stellar work conveying it to Sydney), I longed to see the music performed live. Reading rave reports from early gigs was fuel to the fire and I am now happy to confirm that it was well worth the wait. 'Stick To Your Line', 'Counting Down' and 'Good Times:Don't Be A Fake' were delivered with the expected thunder and energy by the multi talented, Jeremy Hickey. The one man, drums and a projector show is really something to behold. Hickey as Rarely Seen Above Ground takes the tracks by the scruff of the neck and delivers a lo-fi, percussive drum spectacular. The simple, catchy basslines along with the distinctive tones of the Kilkenny native's vocals combine to create a very pleasing mix. The first time listeners I dragged along were all equally impressed with the results and the original band formation. R.S.A.G. has been tipped for great things and I hope he goes on to achieve further, and international, acclaim.

Who: R.S.A.G. (Rarely Seen Above Ground)

Where: Roisin Dubh, Galway

Cost: Free, delighted.

Verdict: Excellent, everyone seemed to enjoy it. Highly recommend checking out the live show before the rest of the world steals it from us.

http://www.myspace.com/rarelyseenaboveground



RSAG - Stick to your Line (Other Voices) from mrpaulmahon on Vimeo.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

gabbo gabbo GABBO


It's out!!!
Early listens suggest that it's pretty much what we expected, with a little added dubstep. It's grimey, it's glitchy, it's clicky and it has buckets of soul. Tome.

Expect a wildly excited, exaggerated and effectively useless review soon.

Monday, April 20, 2009

BTBW 20.4.09


Beyond the Big Wave, Mondays 9-11pm Belfield FM
89.9FM for the affluent, www.belfieldfm.ie for the scobes and boggers

Yppah - Again With The Subtitles

Moderat - Rusty Nails

Stateless - Bloodstream (Henrik Schwarz remix)

Foals - Big Big Love

Final Fantasy - This Lanb Sells Condos

Beirut - My Night With The Prostitute From Marseille

Born Ruffians - I Need a Life (Four Tet remix)

Appaloosa - The Day We Fell In Love

Chromatics - Running Up That Hill

Bat for Lashes - Daniel

Beirut - Mimizan

David Byrne and Brian Eno - Strange Overtones

David Byrne and Dirty Projectors - Knotty Pine

Bat For Lashes - Glass

Deerhunter - Activa

Deerhunter - Nothing Ever Happened

The Whitest Boy Alive - Intentions

Quantic Soul Orchestra - Tropidelico

Pluxus - Transient

Moderat - A New Error

Tycho - Cascade

Yeasayer - Tightrope

Dave Sitek - With a Girl Like You

Bat For Lashes - Siren Song

Broken Social Scene - Pitter Patter Goes My Heart

Thursday, April 16, 2009

BSITWT #60


Unoriginal and utterly brilliant jangly twee-pop from the band with the greatest name ever.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Electric Picnic 2009 - First Names


2 MANY DJS, ABC, ALABAMA 3, BASEMENT JAXX, BAT FOR LASHES, BELL X1, BILLY BRAGG, CHIC, CHRIS CUNNINGHAM (LIVE SHOW), DAMIEN DEMPSEY, DUBLIN GOSPEL CHOIR, ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN, EFTERKLANG, EROL ALKAN, ESG, EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY, FLAMING LIPS, FLEET FOXES, FOUR TET, HALFSET, HEARTBREAK, IMELDA MAY, JAPE, JAZZANOVA (LIVE), KLAXONS, LISA HANNIGAN, LOW ANTHEM, LYKKE LI, MADNESS, MAGAZINE, MAGNOLIA ELECTRIC CO, MGMT, MICACHU, MICHAEL NYMAN ORCHESTRA, MODERAT, NOZE, OKKERVIL RIVER, ORBITAL, QUANTIC SOUL ORCHESTRA, RODRIGO Y GABRIELA, ROOTS MANUVA, SEASICK STEVE, SIMIAN MOBILE DISCO (LIVE), SKREAM & BENGA, THE SUGARHILL GANG, THE WALKMEN, TUNNG, VILLAGERS, WHITEST BOY ALIVE.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

SPEAK YOUR BRAINS - Tripod misery

The spectre of buffoons on the doors of our cities' watering holes is something Irish people have been subjected to, and in a fashion typical of our race, have grown to accept. However in the world on gig-going, afficionados have been relatively lucky in that most establishments treat their customers like human beings. Not so in Tripod on Sunday night unfortunately. From being ushered to a table on the street for an airport-style pocket-emptying and frisking (free cupping included), to being forced to wait ten minutes for having bought tickets online (with the manager holding two of our group's credit cards in his office for these ten minutes), to being forced along the corridor without even having had the chance to put change back in our pockets after using the cloak room, the Harcourt Street venue's staff showed such a blatant disregard and disrespect for their customers. And as for the mop guys, they actually pushed a friend of ours out of the way to continue mopping the dancefloor!! It wasn't even wet.

Being made to feel as if one has done something wrong is not conducive to a good night out. Approaching customers with a "guilty until proven innocent" attitude is not the way to run a business. Now perhaps Tripod have had trouble in the past and feel the need to adopt a more heavy-handed approach, but none of this excuses the way they went on. I strongly feel none of the 5 of us who entered together will go back to the place ever again. If they want to behave like that, they will quickly (and maybe already have, given the venue was half-empty) lost any potential customer with an ounce of dignity or a brain in their head. Businesses cannot be let get away with treating people like criminals, animals or idiots.

As it turns out, Matthew Dear played a blinding set. Pity it hadn't been held somewhere where we could actually enjoy it.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Moderat is nearly here!!


Modeselektor. Apparat. Two of the most important acts in electronic music today come together to realease a collab album under the inevitable name Moderat. The release date is fast approaching, so this is merely a heads-up and a way of diffusing some of the excitement that is brewing inside me.

Here is the link to the first leaked track I have come across A New Error
From this initial evidence it seems that they are literally combining Modeselektor's crazy techno beats with Apparat's more eloquent soundscapes. I think we are in for a treat.

Here's the tracklist

01. A New Error
02. Rusty Nails
03. Seamonkey
04. Slow Match feat. Paul St. Hilaire
05. 3 Minutes Of
06. Nasty Silence
07. Sick With It feat. Dellé
08. Porc # 1
09. Porc # 2
10. No. 22
11. Out Of Sight
Moderat is released on BPitch Control April 21

Thursday, April 9, 2009

BSITWT#59


Bat for Lashes - Siren Song

Off her sophomore album Two Suns, released this week. I could have picked a number of gems off this delightful release.

Monday, April 6, 2009

BTBW 6.4.09


Beyond the Big Wave, Mondays 9-11pm Belfield FM
89.9FM for the affluent, www.belfieldfm.ie for the scobes and boggers

Van Morrison - Dweller on the Threshold

Weird Tapes - The Heavens

The Field - Silent

Daso - La Fee Verte

Beirut - My Night With the Prostitute from Marseille

David Kitt - Move it on

Matthew Dear - Deserter (Four Tet remix)

Hauschka - Wonder

Final Fantasy - The CN Tower Belongs to the dead

Dan Deacon - Snookered

Bon Iver - Lump Sum

The Antlers - In the Attic

The Antlers - Look!

Fleet Foxes - Oliver James

Mattias Aguayo - Minimal (DJ Koze remix)

Weird Tapes - Nightstalking

The Whitest Boy Alive - 1517

The Whitest Boy Alive - Timebomb

Junior Boys - Sneak a Picture

The Whitest Boy Alive - Gravity

Yeasayer - Tightrope

Bon Iver - Bracket, WI

Antony Hegarty & Bryce Dessner - I Was Young When I left Home

Sufjan Stevens - You are the blood

It's all about the bitches and money, folks.

Loadsa Gigs

Passion Pit
May 7th, Academy
Everyone’s favourite Next Big Thing return to give us a second dose of psychedelic Mary O'Hara samples in the space of only two months, this time at the front tail of a seemingly endless world tour. It comes on the eve of the much-anticipated Manners LP release, the success of which will undoubtedly render the Bostonian quintet ones to watch on this summer’s festival circuit. Expect enormous choruses and an outrageous falsetto (trust me) set against a frantic backdrop of synths, beats and twee melodies . If it’s anything like that surreal Sunday in Whelan’s it should be a belter.
http://www.myspace.com/passionpitjams

Peter Broderick
May 4th, Whelan’s
Ghostly folk from Portland, Oregon, via Copenhagen, Denmark, on a Monday in early May is an admittedly obscure contender for gig of the month, but the Efterklang violinist brings with him a singularly mesmerising brand of dense atmospherics and classical arrangements that may well result in an evening to remember. Not to be missed.
http://www.myspace.com/peterbroderick

Matthew Dear (AKA Audion)
April 12th, Tripod
Those of you lucky enough to have heard Asa Breed will need no encouragement for this one. Re-released on Ghostly International last year, the record is enjoying a gradual ascent into the realms of legendary status. Not content with that, of course, Dear’s evil alter-ego, techno superstar Audion, is putting the final touches to a re-emergence, characterised, apparently, by “powerful experiments in chaos and hypnotic depth, tearing down the walls of the live electronic-music experience.” Now. Whichever his identity on Easter Sunday, it is guaranteed to be a thumping gig.
http://www.myspace.com/matthewdear

David Kitt
April 18th, Whelan’s
Kittser’s probably a mite pissed off with the ‘comeback’ status he is assuredly handed on the advent of each new release. Maybe The Nightsaver – his latest battle against adversity – will finally be the one to banish the hard luck stories. It is a record at once liberated and focused, expressing both an ebullience and depth reflective, perhaps, of the absence of label pressure and the resultant decision to entrust himself with production duties. Whatever the cause, his eclectic blend of electronica, folk and synth-pop is accompanied by a fresh confidence that should result in an engaging live show. Get there early - support is provided by the brilliant Somadrone.
http://www.myspace.com/davidkitt

Rarely Seen Above Ground (RSAG)
May 2nd, Whelan’s
Kilkenny troubadour Jeremy Hickey showcases his remarkable Organic Sampler to the Whelan’s collective. A percussionist by trade, Hickey’s soaring vocals and relentless energy invariably invoke nods to Talking Heads (the vocal similarity is uncanny – in a good way) amongst others, but his ability to marry obscure beats with a polished, charming groove suggests an originality and flair that could succeed far beyond our shores. One for the dancing shoes, I would imagine.
http://www.myspace.com/rarelyseenaboveground


More Stuff...

Fennesz
May 6th, Andrews Lane Theatre
Electronica legend continues to blur the line between guitar and laptop with his beautiful compositions in ALT.
http://www.myspace.com/fennesz

Ellen Allien
April 25th, Twisted Pepper
Bpitch Control queen brings her darkest record in years to Abbey St.
http://www.myspace.com/ellenallien

Doves
April 20th, Olympia
Lead track from the upcoming Kingdom of Rust album, Jetstream, would be cause enough to attend this one. That they continually produce great music is perhaps another.
http://www.myspace.com/dovesmyspace

Health
April 17th, Whelans
Scenester noise-rockers best known over here for providing the elements for Crystal Castles’ remix of Crimewave. Perhaps best left to fans of, eh, noise-rock.
http://www.myspace.com/healthmusic

Ronan O’Snodaigh
May 6th, Whelan’s
Indomitable Kila front man keeps the fuse lit.
http://www.kila.ie/


Later Stuff...

Super Extra Bonus Party
May 15th, Andrews Lane Theatre

Telepathe
May 19th, Academy 2

Deerhunter

May 22nd, Andrews Lane Theatre

Jape
May 23rd, The Button factory

Final Fantasy
May 29th, Whelan’s

Dan Deacon
June 3rd, Andrews Lane Theatre

GIG GUIDE: Matthew Dear, aka Audion, this Sunday


Matthew Dear's album Asa Breed is one of the finest bits of electro/pop work of the past few years. His minimal techno tracks under the moniker Audion, such as Billy Says Go and Mouth to Mouth, are fixtures in the record bags of top tier DJs. All in all, the man is a genius. And he's in Tripod Easter Sunday, 12th April. And we'd be fools to miss out.

Matthew Dear Essential Mix

Thursday, April 2, 2009

The Whitest Boy Alive - Rules


Long-awaited around these parts, Erlend Oye and his boys are back with the follow-up to the scandalously good Dreams. Rules, released yesterday and bought with real money by me today, has the excitement surrounding their London gig on April 16 at fever pitch (sorry Eoin). Deliciously plucky basslines incessently punctuate the album, providing a rhythm that forces one to bop along, grinning. The other ubiquitous joy is Oye's vocal, which is, as always spot on. The man is a genius. Or God. Maybe he's God.
The pure funk of Courage, the dimly-lit lounge room vibe of Rollercoaster Ride and Gravity, the sunny toe-tapper 1517* are among my highlights after a first listen. To be honest, it's all good. I'm so bloody happy about the whole thing that I'll post two mp3's.


The Whitest Boy Alive- Courage
The Whitest Boy Alive- Gravity



http://www.whitestboyalive.com/



*At times I think I can sense a bit of a sample** from "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" in this one. Am I dreaming??
** Metaphysical question of the day: When an acoustic band has a sound that mimics that of an electronic act, can it really be called a sample??

The Whitest Boy Alive play La Scala, London, Thurs April 16

Metric new album


Emily Haines' group Metric finally release their follow-up to 2005's Live it Out. Haines, formerly of the legendary Broken Social Scene, is quite the entertainer and a gifted writer of catchy indie/pop songs such as Succexy and Dead Disco off the brilliant Old World Underground, Where are you? from 2003. Gimme Sympathy, which is already doing the rounds, certainly follows in this vein and is destined for massive radio play time. I'll have to reserve judgement on the full album until I get my hands on it. Watch this space.

Get a preview of three tracks from the album here


Fantasies is released on Last Gang records April 14

BSITWT #58


The Postal Service - Natural Anthem

One of those tracks that gets the hairs standing and the spine tingling. Off the incredible album Give Up which deserves more praise as a classic.

GIG GUIDE: Final Fantasy



Canada's Owen Pallet, better known as Final Fantasy, is coming back to Dublin with his violin, his piano and his recording pedals on May 29. Rumours abound about the release of Heartland, which has been "about to come out" since 2007 now. There are tracks available around the place, but I can't find the album to buy anywhere yet. If it comes close to keeping up with the standards of He Poos Clouds and Has a Good Home, we are in for a treat. Anyone who saw his Vicar Street show a year or two ago will remember how impressive his "one man band" live show is.

Here's the video for one track that I imagine is on Heartland.


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