Quick Update

Seems like I’ve been neglecting this again. In all honesty, not much has been going on to write about. What with exams coming up and very few decent bands touring, my gig-ing has been somewhat restricted this year.

I’ve had the mandatory Twin Atlantic gigs of course. I can’t describe the pride I felt watching them headline the ABC (1500 capacity), the same venue where I watched them support both The Subways and Taking Back Sunday. The next night, at the much smaller King Tuts, proved to be even more special and was probably my favourite Twin gig to date. Support both nights came from Hampshire band Canterbury. These guys may look like a pop punk One Night Only, with their boyish good looks, but their music is actually seriously impressive. They put on an admirable performance both nights and are definitely worth a listen. You can download their debut album for free (!) here. Each night also had a local band playing. LightGuides completely blew me away at ABC. Describing themselves as “alternative Scot Punk with a twist of flamenco”, they could very well be the next big thing out of Scotland. They were a, slightly obvious, but brilliant choice of support for Twin. King Tuts gave us something a little more…out there to say the least. The LaFontaines combine elements of rap, rock and pop and certainly stand out from the crowd. I was fully expecting to hate them but it was quite the opposite! They were a real fun band to watch and, if his music career doesn’t take off, singer Kerr Okan could almost definitely find a job in comedy! They definitely won't appeal to everyone but they're gaining quite a few fans in and around Glasgow so they must be doing something right.

Other than that, and the two gigs I’ve already reviewed, I saw Reverend and The Makers live for the fourth time in Dunfermline. Now, that was an experience. I don’t think I’ll be venturing to Dunfermline again in a hurry! That said, the gig itself was exceptional. The addition of Andy Nicholson on bass/second guitar seems to have added a new layer to their sound. A lot of the songs just seemed a lot louder and more powerful live. Performance wise, it was the best I’ve ever seen R&TM.

There you have it, the last four months summed up in a few short paragraphs! I’ve nothing much planned for the next little while either. In fact, next up is T In The Park…in July!

My Favourite Albums of 2009

Firstly, this list is purely based on what I think. It's entirely my own opinion and certainly doesn't match up to most "Albums of 2009" lists. There's no Humbug (Although I do think it's a brilliant album), no Primary Colours (Good album; very overrated) and no It's Blitz (I haven't even heard that album to be honest). I didn't exclude these albums to seem cool or obscure, they just didn't mean anything to me. The albums I've picked all had some sort of effect on me; they either relate back to a happy memory or just made me think about things differently. Anyway enough rambling...

Reverend and The Makers - A French Kiss in The Chaos

I think I made my opinion on this album pretty clear here. Reverend and The Makers were my definitive band of 2009. No doubt when I think back to this year it'll be them that will be at the forefront of my musical memories. It may surprise you to learn that, before this year, I wasn't the biggest R&TM fan. Like everyone, I enjoyed Heavyweight Champion Of The World when it was released back in 2007 but they were always just another throwaway band I could take or leave. Seeing them live for the first time back in July changed this. Ironically, it was a gig I wasn't even planning on going to until I got offered a spot on the guestlist. I've been to plenty of gigs over the last two years, some better than others, but that gig was a bit special. Maybe it was the relaxed atmosphere, the showmanship of Jon McClure, the enthusiasm of each band member or the outside acoustic set afterwards; whatever it was, it effectuated in the most enjoyable gig I've ever been to. Even so, when A French Kiss In The Chaos was released a few weeks later, I wasn't banking on it being quite so enticing. This is a big step up from The State of Things, R&TM take everything to a new psychedelic level and Jon's politically incisive lyrics prove that someone does care. There is hope in modern music, we have someone willing to stand up and try to make a difference about stuff that actually matters. It's just a shame not many people are inclined to listen. I've seen this band live three times now and each time I've left feeling fully satisfied and judging by their on stage antics (personal highlight: trapping the roadie on stage in Edinburgh which resulted in one very beer soaked man) the band enjoy every minute of it. And that's what Reverend and The Makers are; they're fun, they're talented and, most importantly, they're real.
Album Highlights; No Soap (In A Dirty War), Hard Time For Dreamers, No Wood Just Trees.

The Rifles - Great Escape

2009 was a year of transformations. The Horrors went new wave, Franz Ferdinand went electro (well, sort of) even Jack Penate tried his hand at incorporating some new genres into his sophomore record. But amongst all this, one band stayed true to themselves - step forward The Rifles. Great Escape is simply just 11 (well 12 if you count bonus track Lazy Bones) great rock anthems. From start to finish we’re met with strong melodies, catchy choruses and lyrics anyone can relate to. First track Science In Violence is a typical in-your-face opener with it’s punchy guitar chords, crashing symbols and catchy vocal chants. This gutsy style is continued for the next few tracks until we come to the gem that is Toe Rag, undeniably one of the best lyrical tales of mundane life since The Jam gave us Smithers-Jones. But for me the real high point of the album comes in the shape of the eerily evocative Out in The Past, in my opinion the best song The Rifles have ever written. Joel Stoker’s vocal talent really shines through in this song and the last “all I saw was you” is so hauntingly beautiful that all claims of The Rifles being another lad-rock band are blown right out of the water. This is further backed up by the lone ballad of the album, closer For The Meantime, a Beatles inspired track that sounds maybe a little too like Strawberry Fields Forever. Great Escape might not be a ground breaking album, it may not be anything we haven’t heard before; it’s simple but it’s brilliant.

Album Highlights; Out in The Past, Toe Rag, Sometimes.

Frank Turner - Poetry of The Deed

The first time I listened to this album I was disappointed. See, what initially attracted me to Frank Turner was the passion with which he delivered his vocals and Poetry of The Deed just seemed a whole lot less...angry than his previous two releases. But the truth is, Frank hasn't got any less passionate - he's just simply matured. So that's why, after a few listens, I learned to love Poetry of The Deed for what it is; a brilliant album by a brilliant artist, regardless of how it compares to Love Ire & Song and Sleep is For The Week. One thing that has remained constant throughout all three of Frank's albums is his lyrics, you'll be hard pushed to find any modern songwriter with lyrics as great as his. This is proven in the albums shining moment Try This At Home were Frank tells us "there's no such thing as rockstars/there's just people who play music/and some of them are just like us/and some of them are dicks". While this is the album's best track it's by no means isolated at the top. Poetry of The Deed is crammed full of emotive tracks that give us an insight into Frank's life and cement his place as a folk-punk troubadour well worthy of Billy Bragg comparisons. As well as his talent at producing fantastic albums, Frank also happens to be one of the best live acts I saw this year so I'd advise you to snap up tickets for his upcoming tour before it's too late!
Album Highlights; Try This At Home, Live Fast Die Old, The Road.

Yves Klein Blue - Ragged & Ecstatic

Yves Klein Blue are probably my favourite discovery of this year. The Brisbane four piece made such an impact on me live that I got their debut album shipped over from Australia. Ragged & Ecstatic is an eclectic collection of uplifting pop delights. It’s exactly what a debut album should be - fun, infectious and full of youthful energy, with Michael Tomlinson’s impassioned and witty lyricism at the forefront of it’s appeal. Songs such as Make Up Your Mind and Getting Wise showcase Tomlinson’s unique vocal style as well as allowing the band’s ebullient personalities to shine through before the album briefly loses control with the boldly named Digital Love, a much heavier number. That’s one of the most impressive aspects of this album; the band’s seemingly effortless capability of sliding between joyous and playful (the ska-tinged Summer Sheets) and dark and contemplative (Celebrity Death; a chilling ballad inspired by the media’s treatment of celebrities). Ragged & Ecstatic is as inventive and imaginative as anything you will have heard this year. Tomlinson’s lyrics manage to effectively convey his views on life, in both a personal and universal manner, and successfully prompt us Into considering our own place in this world. I don’t like to tempt fate but the sheer swagger and energy of this record is reminiscent of early Arctic Monkeys or even, dare I say it, The Libertines.
Album Highlights: Polka, Make Up Your Mind, Reprise.

Fake Problems - It's Great To Be Alive

If the world has any sense Fake Problems will make it big in 2010. I really enjoyed their debut album, How Far Our Bodies, go but this is just something else! The aptly named It’s Great To Be Alive is a quirky collection of quality punk songs. In fact, no, better than that; punk songs that you can dance too. It’s obvious Fake Problems enjoy experimenting with their music. Take Dream Team for example, it has handclaps, cowbells AND xylophone, how many bands could comfortably pull that one off ?! The entire album is interspersed with unconventional little touches like this which help Fake Problems stand out a little from the crowd. Closing song, the uplifting indie-rock anthem Heart BPM is one of the greatest things I’ve heard all year and ends the album on an awesome singalong of “When you're young/ When you're dumb/ When you're drunk as hell and in love/When you're sad/When you're no on/ Pretend you're something more than you are/But your not”, a chorus which proves Fake Problems have progressed lyrically as well as musically. These guys are touring the UK in April and I can vouch that their live show is even more impressive than their recorded work so get involved!
Album Highlights: Heart BPM, Tabernacle Song, Dream Team.

Twin Atlantic - Vivarium

Okay, it’s a mini album…but I’m still counting it. I don’t download leaks, ever, so by the time this came out I was probably one of the only massive Twin Atlantic fans that hadn’t already heard it. And the reviews I’d heard from fellow devotees weren’t too positive. The main gripe appeared to be that there was only one song on the entire album (Better Weather) that we hadn’t already heard, whether that be live or recorded. For me, that isn’t a problem. Vivarium is a collection of Twin Atlantic’s best songs to date, it’s not aimed at hardcore fans, it’s a way of letting new listeners hear exactly what the band are all about. And for that purpose it’s perfect. The album immediately reels us in with the explosive Lightspeed and is essentially non stop catchy hooks and ferocious drums for the next six songs. A highlight comes in the form of Caribbean War Syndrome, starting off pretty mellow there’s always the threat of an explosion and it comes a minute from the end of this epic six minuter as Sam screams “This campaign is criminal, criminal scream fucking insane/Bring me the contract, sign me up to blow these fuckers away”. The boys manage to blend a bit of tranquillity in with all that ferocity with last song Better Weather, it was always a brave decision to leave out fan favourite Crash Land but this beautifully written rock ballad more than makes up for it!
Album Highlights: Human After All, Caribbean War Syndrome, Audience And Audio

Jersey Budd - Wonderlands

There’s been a fair bit of hype surrounding Leicester singer-songwriter Jersey Budd; he’s best mates with The Rifles, he attended the same school as Kasabian (Tom makes an appearance on She Came Back)…heck, he even received a Christmas present from Liam Gallagher! But for a change the hype is well justified. Wonderlands is a solid debut and has resulted in many declaring Jersey the “British Bruce Springsteen”. And it’d be hard to argue with that - he has the looks, the charm and, most importantly, the tunes to become just as big as The Boss. This may not be the most profound album of the year but Jersey’s optimistic take on life, which is displayed in the lyrics to most of the album, along with his wonderful voice and lovely instrumentation (organs, pianos, strings…Wonderlands has it all) combine for something nearing perfect. Each track has it’s place on the album and I wouldn’t class any of them as fillers, something which is quite rare these days. It’s also worth checking out his b-sides (Step Out of The Shadows and Long Way To Go) which also have something to offer.

Album Highlights: Visions of You, When We Shine, All In A Dream

Other Albums I Enjoyed This Year
Graham Coxon - The Spinning Top
Idlewild - Post Electric Blues
Dave House - Intersections
Maximo Park - Quicken The Heart
White Lies - To Lose My Life
Richard Hawley - True Love's Gutter
The Cribs - Ignore The Ignorant
Kasabian - West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum
The Maccabees - Wall Of Arms
Arctic Monkeys - Humbug
Franz Ferdinand - Tonight: Franz Ferdinand
Julian Casablances - Phrazes For The Young
Florence + The Machine - Lungs
Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More
We Were Promised Jetpacks - These Four Walls

Twin Atlantic - 14th/15th September

I'm not going to do another proper Twin review, as I'm sure is obvious (check the title of the blog perhaps?) I like them a lot so it's hard not to be biased. Basically on Monday their mini album Vivarium was released (it's perfect - buy it ;]) and to celebrate they played a special secret gig in the Winter Gardens.

The idea was basically to get up at "stupid o'clock" as Ross put it and go down to HMV or Avalanche to get wristbands which would admit you to the gig. Thanks to school we couldn't go but Holly and Eilidh got us some wristbands so at 7 we found ourselves at Winter Gardens with 200 or so other fans. The venue was perfect (though extremely warm) as, with all its plants etc, it tied in with the album title. The gig itself was just fantastic, probably the best I've ever seen Twin, they played the full of Vivarium plus Crash Land, A Guidance From Colour, I Cave In and Time is The Enemy - in my opinion the best setlist possible. A great night was had by all and after a quick root about for anything we could find (we ended up with a setlist, a plectrum and a flower between us) we headed home.

(the result of not bringing a camera, but you get the idea)

Tuesday saw the guys do a signing at Avalanche Records. Firstly, apologies to anyone we annoyed in the queue, Shannon and Eilidh's birthdays were on Monday/Tuesday and we decided to celebrate by eating cake and playing with a bubble gun. Anyway the signing was pretty fun, had a nice chat with Barry and Ross about, well...everything really. Turns out Ross lives round the corner from me. After the signing Sam played a couple of acoustic songs outside which was a nice touch! Seriously these are some of the nicest guys you could ever meet, add that to the fact they're bloody awesome and you've got yourself a must see band. Roll on October 2nd!!!

(not my video, credit to connorsonfire)

Twin Atlantic (Supporting Taking Back Sunday) @ ABC Glasgow, 29/7/2009

When I got told I was to review this I knew straight away I'd find it tough not to be biased. Twin Atlantic are one of my favourite bands and I won't hear a bad word spoke about them. But the truth is they're THAT good live it's hard not to give them a perfect review.

Playing to another band's crowd is never easy, especially when it's a band as rightfully popular as Taking Back Sunday. From the moment Twin Atlantic took to the stage it was evident that 90% of the crowd were more interested in what was coming next as opposed to what was in front of them. However the subdued crowd failed to dishearten the Glasgow fourpeice as they kicked off with the explosive "Lightspeed" which involved singer Sam McTrusty delivering his distinctive vocals with the kind of passion that's already made his band Scotland's hottest prospect.

Despite a few technical difficulties, namely guitarist Barry McKenna managing to pull his lead out at least twice, Twin continued their set in a blistering fashion. Demonstrating not only fantastic musical talent but also the kind of confidence and stage presence that's normally reserved for the headlining band.

A superb rendition of "What Is Light? Where Is Laughter?" was followed by new single "You're Turning Into John Wayne", an edgy song which proves that despite their imminent success the band aren't about to succumb to a more commercial sound.

Remarkably, neither of these, nor promising new track "Old Grey Face", succeeded in livening up the majority of the crowd. Being more used to seeing Twin in a hall full of adoring fans it was strange watching them having to try and impress but they done just that with the spine tingling "A Guidance From Colour". Even the most die hard of Taking Back Sunday fans couldn't help but take note as Barry swapped his guitar for an electric cello and the band demonstrated their softer side with this atmospheric number.

However it was final song, "Audience And Audio" that eventually roused the crowd, it's soaring vocals and infectious melody forcing people to give the band the attention they deserved. Their fate as a pretty much perfect support band was sealed towards the end of the song when Taking Back Sunday frontman, Adam Lazzara, joined them on stage to sing the final few lines.

As the guys finished up a small group of us departed the main area and headed towards the merch stall, safe with the knowledge that in not many months time Twin Atlantic will most certainly be headlining, if not this venue, then one even bigger. And this time in front of fans that fully appreciate them.

9/10
Gemma Barnes

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