Wiley has released some garbage over the years, but when he gets it right he’s also made some undeniable bangers. New single Never Be Your Woan, a re-work of the White Town hit, definitely falls into the second category. I haven’t stopped listening to this track for the past week, and now there’s a pretty cool video to go with it (below).
Sighted with another woman in Shoreditch, It’s my house I pay the mortgage
Also, for anyone on Twitter, Wiley is equally hit and miss but often hillarious over @vneckjumper
The ever reliable Warp Records seem to have hit the nail on the head once again with Babe Rainbow, the one man electronic project aka Cameron Reed. Admittedly it’s rare that Warp misfires, but BR’s debut EP Shaved is a gem of a record that nestles perfectly into the labels roster.
I suppose you would call this dubstep, yet as ever with Warp this isn’t music that was made to sit comfortably within any genre. What I can tell you, however, is that Shaved contains seven dark and paranoid tracks that make for a remarkable, yet often unsettling listen.
Meanwhile the EP seems to come with some strong visual themes, as you can see from Babe Rainbow’s website as well as videos that have been made to accompany nearly every song. Check out higher quality videos (that I can’t embed) over at Vimeo, or alternatively the visual accompaniment for album highlight Screwby below;
To be honest the first leaked track from the upcoming Gorillaz album didn’t do an awful lot for me. Not that it was particularly bad, but I was expecting big things and it just didn’t seem to flick the right switches in my brain. Gorillaz, however, have a rare advantage in that they won’t be judged entirely on their music. After some seriously cool looking press shots in the build up to the campaign, the release of a two and a half minute trailer for the album has well and truly perked my interest again.
The whole thing looks fantastic in HD, and somehow the video accompanied by an orchestral piece of music manages to leave me hungry for more of the bands digital world. For those unaware the record, Plastic Beach, will feature guests Snoop Dogg, Mos Def, Lou Reed, Mark E. Smith and Bobby Womack, and has been described by Damon as one of the poppiest things he’s ever worked on.
If you haven’t yet got around to listening to new track Stylo, don’t listen to me, because you might well love it.
As you’re probably aware, Xiu Xiu release their new album Dear God, I Hate Myself on 22nd February in the UK. The band have released a music video for the records title track which, as you might expect, will not be to everyones tastes. The video (above) features new band member Angela Seo repeatedly making herself sick, while Jamie Stewart nonchalantly munches on some chocolate and dances to the songs groove.
It’s not for the light hearted, but fans of the band will most probably embrace the double edged sadness / tongue in cheek humour that runs through much of Xiu Xiu’s music. Either way, the video is pretty fitting for the song and should be seen by a lot of people which is great.
Despair will hold a place in my heart, a bigger one than you / And I will always be nicer to the cat, than I am to you
While the thought of yet another lo-fi band based in New York doesn’t exactly fill me with optimism these days, when I heard that Cassie of Vivian Girls and members of Woods had got together, I had to give it a listen. The resulting band is The Babies; mixing the Vivian Girls’ blissful summer harmonies with Woods’ folk influences to create upbeat, poppy garage tunes.
Reportedly the band will primarily be a songwriting outfit for Woods bassist Kevin Morby, yet there is also a track fronted by Cassie on the band’s myspace. Check out Meet Me in the City below to get your first flavor of a band I’m expecting to produce cool things in the future.
Despite having absolutely zero web presence, Cardiff’s Islet have managed to make quite a name for themselves in a short space of time. In fact, without a myspace page or even a single song recorded, the band have already had a full page Radar feature in the NME as well as support slots for Los Campesinos! and Frankie and the Heartstrings. So how exactly have the band managed all this? Well, as well as handy support from the likes of Huw Stephens, it’s perhaps their live shows that have captured people’s attention, as the band have built a reputation for energetic and captivating performances.
This should come as no surprise given the band’s background. All staples of Cardiff’s live music scene, the band members which make up Islet are no newcomers to playing in bands. Pretty great bands, too. While brothers Mark and John had previously formed 2/3 of Attack + Defend, there is also Alex of Frederic Stanley Star, as well as Emma formerly of The Victorian English Gentleman’s Club.
Having never managed to see the band live I’ve been eager to check out some recordings, and the band have finally obliged. You can hear two new Islet tracks that have been released as part of Turnstile Music’s Bento compilations, either by subscribing to the labels mailing list or clicking below;
Wiley has released some garbage over the years, but when he gets it right he’s also made some undeniable bangers. New single Never Be Your Woan, a re-work of the White Town hit, definitely falls into the second category. I haven’t stopped listening to this track for the past week, and now there’s a pretty cool video to go with it (below).
