Circle. Square. Triangle.

I'm wigging out...

2008-12-11T11:49:00.002Z

I will use this less and less for pervert-picture-posting and more like a private on-line journal so this will disappear from your eyes soon I reckon'...

I still haven't booked my flight to Canada yet.
After talking about doing it for 3 years, I'm finally moving in March/April.
Fair play to my mates for tolerating listening to me talk about it for so long.
My visa came through yesterday so I'm pretty chuffed to say the least.

I've just turned 23 and have been working in music for 5 years.
I've had enough basically.

Currently in London for a week or so.
I slept in on Saturday morning and woke up at 7am - my flight was already in the air at that time. Dang.
Cost me 100 bills for a flight the next day. That was scheduled to leave at 8am and wouldn't you know it, I awoke at 7am. If I hadn't have online checked-in then I would have missed two flights in a row..........in 24 hours.
What the fuck is wrong with me sometimes?

I've only smoked like 6 ciggies in 5 days or something.
My body aches from doing too many stomach crunches the past month.
I've been hitting on one of my best friend's (Nikki) a lot lately.
She has been with her boy about 2 years or something and lives with him but none of this seems to have any relevance with me.
Does this make me a little shit?
I'm only doing it because she is indulging in it and is very much reciprocating.

I'm through with caring at this stage.

I would. You would. Hell, we all would...

2008-11-13T18:00:00.003Z

Pitchfork had a post about the Handsome Furs earlier today...
There was nothing enticing or exciting about the post other than the picture which came with it...

It's been a long time since I shared a lustful picture of a Canadian girl I fancy the arse off...
Unfortunately, there is no other amateur-porn(ish) pictures of Alexei Perry anywhere else on the net...
So here is another one that I like...
If only that skinny fucker wasn't hanging out of her in it, it'd be almost perfect.

I'll still go see Dan & co. in ALT in a couple of weeks though.
For realz...

Ehhhh...

2008-11-10T17:17:00.003Z

Bless me blog, for I have sinned...
It's been like 10 months since my last post and these are my sins...

I have no idea why I have even started writing on this again...
I think I am in a slump - this city is knocking the shit out of me on a daily basis...
For the past while, I was such a miserable little bollox...
But when I turned 23 last week - I felt incredible...
I do believe that 23 might just be the spiritual age I was after...
Now I just need to find my spiritual home where I get to fuck my spiritual girl and I'll be all set...

But, for all the lovely spiritualness going on in my weird little head, I'm still feeling a bit odd...
I've just spent the past few minutes trying to convince my friend Katy that she should get my name tattooed around her right nipple...

By the way, new Animal Collective record came into the office today and it is fucking awesome!

Peace out yo'!

Jaguar Love

2008-02-26T18:28:00.005Z

No, I am not back blogging...
I am not suited to that game anymore...
The blog was becoming tedious and somewhat wanton...
Besides, I was looking more and more like a pervert...
Which I like to hide from most people until they get to know me...
Then I unleash the hardcore pervert from within...
It's a delicate act which I have mastered...

Anyway. This post is just to inform you that a supergroup (I hate that term) to end all supergroups (ouch) has formed...
Jaguar Love is going to be the greatest band to come out of the States since Pretty Girls Make Graves & The Blood Brothers...
Ironically enough, this three-piece is made up of ex-member from both sets of bands.
Johnny Whitney and Cody Votolato from The Blood Brothers & Jason Clark from Pretty Girls Make Graves.
Everyone's favourite Indie Matador Records snapped them up and will be releasing their debut album...
2 demo songs have re-appeared on their Myspace and they rock so hard...
Expect the debut to fall this Summer...

Most people will describe it as arty/punky/hardcore etc...
I'd say it's more like music to fuck to...

Marvin Gaye is music to make love to (or so they say)...
Jaguar Love is music to fuck hardcore to (or so I say)...

Jaguar Love's Muthafuken Myspace Profile...

Indefinite-Hiatus...

2008-02-11T16:58:00.000Z

Too busy...
No more time for blogging...
I bid thee farewell...

Cry Me A River...

2008-02-11T08:34:00.000Z

France beat us...
City destroyed us...
And Delaney has still not been shot dead at FAI HQ...

This is how I feel after the weekend's depressing festivities...

Fuck Buddies...?

2008-02-08T16:35:00.000Z

What will happen this weekend:

Manchester City fans disrespect the minute silence for the Munich Air Disaster anniversary...

The new Halfset album will be on repeat because it is THAT good. Dramanalog who? (Only Irish people will know what I am on about here - I'll try and stop alienating)...

I'll pull the finger out and finish about 4 songs I have been working on for too long now...

Eastern Promises will be watched constantly again and again because I saw it for the first time last night and it is grrreat. Aragorn for the Oscar...!

Sunday morning will consist of a coffee, the Observer & endless hours of E4 fun - i.e. Gawking at Alexa Chung...

___________________________________________________________________________________________
What wont happen this weekend:

Ireland will give a lesson in Rugby to the "Cheese eating surrender Monkeys" otherwise known as France...

I will buy a new camera, go for a long cycle and take lots of incredibly pretentious/abstract pictures which I'll show off on here come Monday...

She will actually return my love for her...

My music and I will actually agree with one another, ergo - I will feel the need to share some MP3s with you folk...

I will wake up Saturday & Sunday morning with Alexa lying next to me...

Fuck my "no sleaze" policy...
It is flawed and corrupt & I just can't help it...

Three servings of Alexa for your lead us into the weekend pleasure...

P.S. This blog might go through a name-change.
ilovealexa.blogspot.com
;)

Things are going to CHANGE...!

2008-02-07T12:02:00.000Z

I hate how lazy folk can get when it comes to music...
I know very few people who take the initiative and go searching for new artists themselves...
A friend of mine said this to me yesterday:

"Signing is so passé, 20th century thinking, Majors are starting to sink,
its all about Independence now, bring on the Free State...."

That sentence struck a mighty chord with me (apologies for the musical cliché)...

There is so many artists out their who don't have a label or who are signed to a tiny DIY label run by one person from their bedroom...
This (for me) is what music is about...
Dedication on a small scale run by die-hard fans and enthusiasts...
Unfortunately though, at the minute music is full of tired legs...

With this all falling out of my brain right now because it has been going on for far too long...
I will soon start to post about bands you (hopefully) do not know...
And who you can support by going to a show...
Buying a tee-shirt...
Purchasing a hand-made 7"...
Or even just dropping them a mail on their website/myspace and telling them that you like their music...

I don't want this to come across as being biblical but we live in a time and an age where we can be and do anything we want...
So why are we constantly being negative about how music is run...?
Why don't we take the initiative and start changing things ourselves?
It doesn't cost a lot of money to get 100 7" vinyls pressed...
Why not approach an unsigned artist whom you like and offer to release a single for them?

All of the best ideas start off small...

Take your ideas and just go with them...

I am a changed man...

2008-02-05T21:15:00.000Z

I hate it when blogs I enjoy reading don't post new entries regularly (like everyday)...
Although I despise blogs who post 10 times a day (their content is usually weak and plagiarised from some other blog/site)...
I combine both of the above.
I don't blog everyday, but when I do - it's usually short, perverted and full of nonsense (Alexa anyone?)...
I'm going to try and clean up my act though, as if I am ever lucky enough to meet Alexa or Shannyn, how the hell can I
justify the reasoning behind my posting pictures of them on the internet for all to see?
They wont like it one bit and the charming reassuring Irish accent (which is usually a shoe-in) wont mean shit to them.
Once the Irish accent card is gone, then all that's left is me and my personality, and we all know that's no banker...
:s

So, with all of the above in mind - I am going to try and blog in a very civilised fashion...

I really do think buying this bicycle was the best purchase ever. In the entire world. EVER.
Skateboarding is more fun, but I run the risk of getting beat up by scumbags if I go out on my deck because
I look like a sk8er-boi and NOBODY likes Avril Lavigne (especially not scumbags).
Usually about here, I would make a crude comment about Avril Lavigne
and how hot she is, but I'm not going to do that today.
At least on my bike, I pedal like a motherfucker so I'm too fast to be chased by any delinquent.
Which bodes well for me because I can be a total shit to anyone in Burberry within shouting distance and they'll never catch me. Huzzah.

I'm listening to Dev "Lightspeed Champion" Hynes a lot at the moment. He deserves our utmost respect.
This blog is after-all named after his previous bands' amazing single (everyone should be
aware by now that I am a strong believer in the Church of Test Icicles). But his debut solo record is quite something.
Nothing like TI, but is still pretty siiick. I'm looking forward to his gig in April in Crawdaddy, not only to see
this album performed live, but also because I can heckle by repeatedly requesting him to play Circle Square Triangle all night.
Yes, I'll be the loser thrown out by security half-way through the set.

My friends and I always play the "what CD in your collection are you ashamed of" game.
Usually I always win because the entire group (this can sometimes be up to 12 people) collectively agree
that I have too many CDs I should be ashamed of. I'm not embarrassed by any of them though -
although I don't think I would ever be able to bring myself to listen to them in front of real people, with my
shit hair-cut and "emo" piercings, I wouldn't last a second. Even hiding behind this blog, I can't bring myself to tell
strangers over the internet some of these CDs. And if you can't talk to strange internet people then
something is seriously wrong (either that or you just don't want people knowing that you
own 3 Limp Bizkit albums or 3 Lostprophet records). Fuck, that was a typo. I swear.
I really meant to type The Beatles or Led Zep or Jimi Hendrix or any other too-cool-for-school bullshit.

1 very quick thing before I split...

Fresh Cherries From Yakima, my boy Doug is playing his first ever live show
tonight so I want to wish him the very best of luck. You'll be awesome dude, I want to see videos on youtube tomorrow man!

Now that I'm a changed man (for tonight at least) how do I end this entry if I am not allowed to post a picture of Alexa?
Well, we mentioned it above, and for nostalgia reasons (amongst others because you definitely would)...

Avril Lavigne - Sk8er Boi

Sooper Dooooper Toooosday!!!

2008-02-05T11:33:00.000Z

Too Obsessed? Never!

2008-02-04T11:44:00.000Z

Eddie has to walk. We were awful on Saturday. And with Darcy out for the rest of the Six Nations, it's safe to say we are fucked. The Welsh match was brilliant though. James Hook was awesome, he didn't miss one kick and he always found touch. And the French?! The less said about that performance the better, because they are going to punish us next week.

Arctic Monkeys. Legends. I have been listening to them all weekend and you-tubing the fuck out of their videos. I have always been a massive fan but I am slowly but surely turning into an obsessive one. Alex Turner is not content with being in the biggest band on the planet, the selfish little fuck only goes and bags himself the best piece of ass on the planet too! Alexa Chung is scarily attractive. Expect to read a lot more about her from here on out because she deserves at least one post a day on this blog for being hot-as-fuck.

Speaking of Alexa, I sat through an hour of complete and utter E4 bullshit on Sunday morning. It was a special on the outrageously rubbish Nick Cage movie National Treasure: Book of Secrets. The only reason I sat through it was to see the little 2 minute segments of Alexa every-so-often on the screen. Yes, it has become that obsessive. Although while watching it, I also realised I have a slight crush on someone who I probably shouldn't. Take a bow Helen Mirren.

How was Andy Johnson's goal disallowed? I don't understand the off-side rule anymore. The linesman got that horribly wrong. And everyone (apart from the scummy Liverpool fans) want to see Everton do well and take 4th place, so they need these points. Staying on the subject of football, the Observer's centre spread piece on Ronaldo was great. His frantics off the pitch are as colourful as his performances on it. Hookers every night. Them selling their stories to the press saying he was an arrogant cock. It kinda makes you wonder if it's like the scenes in American Psycho (the movie) when Bateman is looking at his own body when he is fucking the escorts. Or when one of them moves on the bed when they are sleeping and he tells her not to touch his watch. These stories are strikingly similar to one other Trafford Legend, Sir George Best.

The Observer Sport Monthly gave Brian Ashton manager of the month. Bet they wish they hadn't already gone to print when the English game finished on Saturday evening. The OSM introduced me to Torah Bright also. She is this hot 21 year old Australian snowboarder who has ignited my interest in snowboarding. ;) So yeah, I was quite impressed with the Observer on Sunday, especially the feature with everyone's favourite bad motherfucker Jack Nicholson.

Happy Birthday Zoe...
xx

P.S. Go Giants!!!!

Get out of here January...

2008-02-01T17:20:00.000Z

Just rounding up some nonsense stories to kill of this week...

So Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy) will be making an appearance on the Alex Turner*** (Arctic Monkeys) / Miles Kane (The Rascals) / James Ford (Simian Mobile Disco) new musical project later in the year...

Defoe has joined back up with Harry Redknapp at Pompey (Good move for Defoe). Benjani move has gone stale and sounds a little dodgy...

Stories coming out of Jérôme Kerviel's question by the filth is proving veeeeeery interesting. Société Générale have twice declined their Executive Chairman Daniel Bouton's resignation. This story gets better and better...

Roman Totale has introduced me to this 12". It is incredible...

The amount of shit-hottt gigs in May will floor you. Some of them haven't been announced yet - but believe me, they will floor you...

Why did Dev Hynes turn his back on the beautiful music he made with Test Iclces and start writing folk instead? The lad is a ledge though, especially since he covered a bunch of Indie songs from 2001-2004 alongside Alex Turner in London the other week. I quite like Dev's guitar playing on cover of the quite spectacular anthem from the Von Bondies - C'mon C'mon! Look in here and select some fun videos...

The Orphanage is a Spanish Horror/Ghost story which looks freakin' awesome. Check out the official website and then go see it during the Jameson film festival...

Laterssssss...

***His missus is fucking ridiculously hot.
Here is a picture of Alexa for you to enjoy over the weekend...

I'll stop perving form here on out.

Domino will never sign a better band...

2008-01-31T17:40:00.001Z

There's actually awards for doing this?

2008-01-31T11:19:00.001Z

I'll level with you, I don't follow this blog malarky much.
Probably because I don't understand how so many blogs are popular considering the proprietor just cuts & pastes stories they have seen on the internet into their own blog. Not very original. However, I was happy to see a bunch of my favourite people get nominated for awards...

French Major who creeped in through the back-door because he is shacked up with an Irish lass....sneaky French fucker. ;)

Red (French's missus) who got nominated for lots. This pleases me as I get a lot of laughs from her blog (even when I am not supposed to).

Obscure Remix got nominated for a few too. His music taste (and knowledge) is second to none. He combines good tunes with dry humour, it's just a shame he's a shit drummer.

James Carroll is da-man when it comes to exchanging rumours & spreading gossip. I've said it a million times before but who would have thought someone from Tipperary would have gotten this far in life?

Nialler being nominated shouldn't really surprise anyone. He is a national landmark on t'internet. I can't wait for the next time he has to do visuals at a Nokia sponsored event.

Also, a lot of you seem to think that this is a music blog.
It initially was intended to be a blog of musical treats, but that idea deteriorated quite rapidly.
Now whenever I recommend an artist/act/band, it is usually because there is a girl in it who I think is hot.
So don't come here looking for music, you'll only be disappointed.

Run the little fucker down...

2008-01-29T14:50:00.000Z

It's been one week...

One week since my last cigarette...
I actually feel quite good...
I don't miss those beautiful bastards one bit...
I figured there was only one real way I was going to stay off the ciggies...
And that was by buying a bicycle (christ I love how alliteration comes together so brilliantly)...
I cycled my arse off last night on my swanky new bike...

It was a difficult decision trying to decide if I should spend my money on either a new mode of transport or upgrade to a cooler & faster skateboard.
I was going to opt for the latter because my deck is pretty dead right now...
But then I thought about it...
Cycling will get me fit and make me want to stay off the smokes...
Whereas people look much-much cooler skateboarding and smoking at the same time...
So with that in mind, I went for the rothar...
She is a peach. I haven't named her yet though.
I'm thinking Mary-Kate (because she is hotter than Ashley Olsen)...

So if you are driving a car in or around the city centre in Dublin...
Keep an eye out for a cocky cyclist who will be tearing it up on the streets...
You may just want to run him down...

2008's first Cult Icon...

2008-01-27T12:41:00.000Z

The Jérôme Kerviel story is my current obsession right now...
How this well-to-do trader beat the system to accumulate losses of €4.9 billion is staggering...
Was it all him trying to get that extra bonus?
Was Société Générale losses so bad that they needed a scape-goat?
Or did Kerviel just want to show everyone the extent to which the current French financial market is in?
The more I learn about these equity derivatives, the more fascinated I am by this ludicrous scandal...
It seems every hour there is another new breaking news interruption to this story...
The blue-collar folk in France see him as a hero. A man who stood up to the greedy rich pigs of their nation.
I have to agree with them.
At the tail-end of 2007, he had actually made a profit of €1.5 billion for SocGen...
But to cover up this paper-trail he had left behind him (as the profit he made was still done illegally), he actually started making deliberately bad bets against the current market so he could balance his winnings out...
Obviously he wasn't expecting the stock market to collapse so badly at the start of last week (at this point SocGen were only down €1.5 billion)...
But by Wednesday, it had risen to its current & startling figure...
He is in police custody now, so no doubt we will hear more stories throughout the week...
But right now, all I have to say is Vive le Jérôme Kerviel...!

Late on the bandwagon...

2008-01-27T00:27:00.000Z

More often than not now, music I initially slag off as being shit - I end up loving 2 months down the line...
I'm going to have to learn to keep my mouth shut and not be so dismissive & music-nazi like in future...
I'm generally very aggressive when I talk about a band or a song that I despise...
So it is quite embarrassing to turn around a little while later and talk about how much I actually now love said band...
In July/August 2007 James Carroller spoke to me about an artist who he said he liked and was tipping to be huge...
This was loooooong before she even released a single, was topping polls or winning awards...
I said I wasn't into her, thought she was so-so, sounded like everything else yaddayaddayadda...
4/5 months on and my piss-poor initial judgement is farcical...
Because right now - I am completely enthralled by Adele...
This young lady has bundles and bundles and BUNdles of talent, something which we should all be very jealous of (she's got really fucking amazing eyes too***)...
I watch live performances of her and I am blown away by that voice, that charm, that endearing charisma...
Very rarely do I walk away from meeting an artist with a very good lasting impression of them...
But Miss Adkins is right up there alongside Saul Williams as one of the better people to work/spend time with...
She is playing an intimate show in Crawdaddy on Sunday March 2nd before coming back in early Summer with a proper full-on 9 piece band to play a bigger venue...
I would recommend everyone to go to the intimate show as at will be one of those special gigs we all read so much about and wish we were at and then secretly tell people that we were actually at the gig...

Adele's Myspace...

This was a less cynical & more enthusiastic post (which is quite rare for me these days)...
Ergo - I'll have to end it on a high note...

What.
A.
Fucking.
Song.

Hometown Glory (live)...

***It's becoming obligatory now for me to name off the physical features I like most in each girl I post about.
I'm a little too callow nowadays I must admit.
;)

Do things come in 3's...?

2008-01-24T23:36:00.000Z

Is that really true?
If one good thing happens, does it have a domino effect and a couple more good'uns come rolling?
Because if it is truly legit then I cannot fookin' wait to see what nombre trois will be...

1. Glassjaw live in Tripod May 12th 2008...
One of my favourite bands of all time who I sing about non-stop will be here in May...
You need to see this band live, it'll be insane.
Back as a 4-piece with a new album to boot.
Daryl Palumbo is a GOD and stands shoulder to shoulder alongside some of my fave people ever.
Lyrically, he has mastered his craft, but the way he emphasizes the tone of every single syllable is incredible.
This should be down as the number 1 show for you to see in an already packed-full-of-awesome-gigs this May!

2. It's been almost a year to the day the last time I saw this girl. She came over for the best gig of 2007 (Brand New in Tripod) where we got to hang out with our hero Jesse Lacey and I will get to see her again soon (pretty much exactly one year on).
I was in love with this girl for the best part of 2 whole years so I am pretty excited at the prospect of seeing her again.
Nikki has turned into a professional journalist now though...
So I'll have to keep my trap shut and not get too drunk around her...
Nikki is allowed two pictures to be posted of her because I have never met a prettier girl in my life (yup, she is more attractive than Shannyn Sossamon which I'll admit right now)...

So what can number 3 be?
Havant & Waterloo beating Liverpool in the FA Cup?
Gerrard getting stretchered off with a broken leg?
Mourinho becoming the next Ireland manager?
Ireland winning the 6 Nations?
All of the really shit bands in the world dying?
Finding lots of money and being able to afford new music equipment?
Chris Morris becoming my best friend?
Spending a week in Montauk for free?
Canada only being a 30 minute journey away?
Dylan Moran taking up a residency in my living room?

Endless possibilities.

A Vaudeville Genius...

2008-01-24T12:15:00.000Z

Buster Keaton - the greatest actor, writer & director of all time.
I watch at least one of his movie everyday now - it's a ritual I haven't been able to break away from.

Phew....!

2008-01-22T19:02:00.000Z

I thought I was going to miss Broken Social Scene live this year because Sunset Rubdown is playing on the same night in Dublin (May 20th)...
However, I forgot about the fan-fucking-tastic ATP Festival the weekend before both dates...

So I will be hitting this up on Friday May 16th...

I want to be in their Scene...

2008-01-22T18:08:00.000Z

Courtesy of the good Dr. James Carroll over on his blog...
The mighty Broken Social Scene set up shop on our shores come May 20th...

I think this will be my 7th time to see them live...
A feat only Muse can rival...

So who (and by who I mean eye-candy) will be part of their tour set up...?
As we all know, Kevin "Princess" Drew only takes girls on tour whom he has fucked or can fuck...
Does that mean that Feist will be part of this scene to keep an eye on him?

Hotter-than-hot Lisa Lobsinger has left altogether to pursue magic with her own fine band Reverie Sound Revue...
Hainsey is finishing up the brand new Metric record so she wont be game...
Will Amy Millan still be touring with Stars by then?
Miss CBC Radio 3 Julie Penner usually tours all the time with the Scenesters...

Even though I have seen it so many times, I still get excited when I hear "It's All Gonna Break"...

"You all want the lovely music to save your lives..."

Cause = Time

Maya Arulpragasam...

2008-01-21T16:57:00.000Z

There's no point to this post really...
I have nothing of any real worth to say...
Other than God-Bless Yousef at Mongrel Magazine for taking this picture...

Bits and Pieces...

2008-01-19T10:25:00.000Z

Jim Dubh, where the hell is your blog? Who else can I find who's an El Ten Eleven fan...? Update me bro...

Sunset Rubdown is playing Crawdaddy in May. Spencer Krug - You are a legend...

My mate Chris is paranoid that his ferociously hot girlfriend is cheating on him. So he has hired an investigator to check out the situation. Jack & myself find this fucking hilarious.
1. Chris is only 23.
2. He hasn't even been with her that long.
3. Most of us think she's a cunt.
4. Chris is a little too sensitive and insecure.
5. It's bloody funny as hell though.

I have stumbled across a couple of blogs that entertain me to no end. One is called College Call Girl, which you really don't need any explanations on what it's about. The other is from a cute little Irish American girl called Baby Sinead. Mostly about sex, music, photography, alcohol, porn, art, her cat - it's very witty and funny (and Sinead is hot).

I have tried to switch from drinking Guinness to JD & Coke but it's just not happening...

Last night I came home fairly late (about 3am) and learned So Real by Jeff Buckley on guitar. Someone mentioned over on Jim's blog about Jeff being overrated. Gah - totally disagree.

I get ID'd for cigarettes every single day now. There's no way I look younger than 18.

I have discovered nice little parts of Dublin which I actually don't mind.

The amount of spam I receive is getting into silly figures. The latest one to amuse me is from a Billie Vanessa, with the subject of the email being the quite genius "blonde toying pussiy about five"...They spelt everything correct apart from pussy?!?! The email itself obviously contained a link, but just above the link was this: "Hello, cutie loves cock." Hahahah, brilliant!

Some fucker nearly ran me over yesterday. I was on my skateboard crossing the road and he sped up to try and nick me. He had gold jewellery and a burberry cap on though, so I kept the obscenities to a minimum in case him and his mates brought me onto the northside to take my kneecaps. Knackers.

The girl who I was going to make a mixed CD for all of those many moons ago rejected my ass like a motherfucker. I can't even go and get a coffee in the place she works part-time now because it's too fucking embarrassing. I really liked the coffee from there too.

I'm hungry and in need of a coffee, a cigarette and The Guardian Newspaper.

Man Stroke Woman...

2008-01-16T18:09:00.001Z

This was possibly one of the funniest sketch shows the BBC has ever done...
Very clever sketches which had no studio audience or laugh track (very rare for any show which followed a similar format)...
Produced by Ash Atalla (the man behind The Office fame), it features a shitload of really cool actors...
But there is one in particular who is one of the finest comedy actors around at the minute...

Yup, of course I am biased because I'm a huge Nick Frost fan...
Spaced was the shit...
Danger! 50,000 Volts was the shit...
Shaun of the Dead was the shit...
Hot Fuzz was the shit...
But Man Stroke Woman was comedy gold...

My favourite character of Nick's was Uncle Jack, who was constantly pissed up or on pills and made his 12 year old nephew come along for the ride...
You should definitely pick this up on DVD from Tower Records because it's hilarious...
Watch some clips on YouTube and then make up your mind about it, but I guarantee you'll love it...
There is too many amazing clips to show you, but I'll settle for just the Uncle Jack ones...

Uncle Jack drunk and driving with his nephew:

Uncle Jack on pills with his nephew:

Uncle Jack at a strip club with his nephew:

Up and Down Up and Down Up and...

2008-01-14T22:23:00.000Z

I don't think I should be a blogger...
I don't post nearly as much as I should.
Also, I originally intended for this to be a music blog...
What the hell happened there?

All of the beautiful things I was speaking about pre New Years have turned slightly wrong...
My skateboard is just about keeping itself in one piece, she'll have to be retired soon...
I'm not happy because good decks are fucking expensive...
My abstaining from alcohol lasted a whole day or two I think...
My coffee and cigarettes intake has increased dramatically...
The camera is away getting fixed, so photography is on a time-out...
And my writing, Christ, it is lacking of imagination and remains totally desolate...

January blues are hitting home like a motherfucker...

And when you are at your lowest point, something beautiful happens...
It cannot be described, it's a feeling of jubilation, triumph, exhilaration, ecstasy, euphoria, bliss...
What is unfolding before your eyes is in slow motion...
Yes, you guessed it - WE THRASHED THE GEORDIE SCUM 6-0!

I don't pity those fucks at all...
Bring back Keegan and then throw in Shearer for the hell of it...
It wont change the fact that you're a mid-table team at best...
"They'll bring back the glory days to the North East!"...
Haha, there was never any glory days in Newcastle...
Tenth in the league isn't actually bad for a team like Newcastle...
And with the dirty Scousers drawing at the Boro and Birmingham holding Arsenal at the Emirates, well January Blues no longer became part of my vocabulary...

So here we go, United's six goals against Newcasle, including Ronaldo's first hat-trick for us...

And just for comedy value, the legendary rant from Keegan...
"He's got to go to Middlesborough and get something from them"...!
Yeah Keegan, we went there and got a 3-0 win you cunt...

Tobias Is Queen Mary.

2008-01-11T00:08:00.000Z

This guy right here not only has a fan-fookin-tastic blog, but he also knows a thing or two about how to make someone a damn good mixed CD of bands...
Mr. Obscure has just introduced me to a bunch of artists I had never even heard of before...

Slowdive...
Rollerskate Skinny...
Notwist...
Jeniferever...
Jaga Jazzist...
Dosh...
Cougar...
Colder...
Christopher Willits...
Casiotone For The Painfully Alone...
Autolux...

Should I be embarrassed that I didn't know any of the above until tonight...
Or is his music taste just that esoteric...?
A rhetorical question really, considering the name he goes by.

Unfortunately I haven't had the chance to go through most - if not - all of them yet...
Because I am obsessedOBsessedOBSESSED with Wolf Parade...
And dare I say it....
Dare I say it...
Dare I say it...
Dare I say it...
Dare I say it...
Dare I say it................
..........
.........
........
.......
......
.....
....
...
..
.
They are better than my beloved Interpol...

Not so long ago, myself & Obscure had a heated debate over a pint about the best debut album released since the turn of the millennium...
I argued ferociously how Turn On The Bight Lights is the best debut hands down...
Obscure disagreed. I asked him to give me three debut albums better than it.
He didn't have to name three. He named just one.
Apologies To The Queen Mary didn't mean anything to me then because it wasn't TOTBL.
I now know why he only needed to choose the one album.

I'm hooked and can't stop listening to it.

This is such a cool video...
This is such a beautiful song...
But lyrically, it's a damn masterpiece...

Wolf Parade - Modern World...

P.S. Whoever knows where the title of this blog entry comes from - you're a fucking legend!!!

Wolf Parade

2008-01-10T11:50:00.000Z

Right now I am obsessed with Wolf Parade...
And all associated bands of Wolf Parade:

Sunset Rubdown...
Atlas Strategic...
Handsome Furs...
Swan Lake...
Frog Eyes...
Johnny and the Moon...
Hot Hot Heat...
Fifths of Seven...
Islands...

Surely we can start a game called Six Degrees of Spencer Krug...?

I don't know if I like Spencer or Dan's vocals more in WP...
The song below is swinging it in Dan's direction though...

Cracking tune:

Wolf Parade - It's A Curse...
Download Meeeeee!

2008 reasons why 2008 will rock...

2008-01-09T13:09:00.001Z

Yeah.Fucking.Right.
Fat chance of me posting that many reasons.
I'll list as many as I can before I get bored/hungry/tired...
Which will probably be after the 15th...

***Floria Sigismondi's first feature-length film will be out (March)...

***Manchester United will do the Treble (May)...!

***Tokyo Police Club's debut album will be released (May)...

***Shannyn Sossamon's band Warpaint will be touring, so I may get to sleep with her (Anywhere, Anytime!)...

***China will fuck up the American's pride more than ever when they beat them in the medal's table at the Olympics (August)...!

***Ana Ivanovic, the best new reason to follow Tennis. Hot-as-fuuuuuck (All year, but mainly Wimbledon)...

***Fresh Cherries From Yakima becoming the best new artist of 2008 (June)...

***Lewis Hamilton VS Fernando Alonso Part II (All formula 1 Season)...

***Singapore will host the first ever night-time Formula 1 race (September 28)...

***QPR spending more money than Chelsea while still playing in the Championship (the entirety of 2008)...

***Glassjaw coming back as a 4-piece and releasing a mammoth album (May hopefully)...

***Our Brother The Native becoming the finest band out of America in recent years (March)...

***Nathalie Portman & Scarlett Johansson will be starring in The Other Boleyn Girl (No fucking idea when. Not arsed about the actual movie. Just staring at them in it)...

***Liquid Football, my Fantasy Football team, climbs the table and finishes in the top 3 (May)...

***A Tale of Two Sisters & The Eye both becoming laughing stocks because the Americans are shit at remakes (Summer)...

***The Kills releasing a stomper of an album and also catching Alison Mosshart live (March)...

***Bret Easton Ellis will be writing the sequel to Less Than Zero (Late 2008)...

***Lunar Park, Ellis's terrifying novel being made into a movie (Late 2008 once again)...

***Tartan Asia Extreme will be releasing the third installment of the Three Extremes franchise (Summer)...

***City & Colour releasing an astonishing follow-up to his debut Sometimes (February)...

***Hopefully at least one of the girls in my Top 11 Of 2007 List will fall in love with me (I'll wait all year if I have to)...

***Dylan Moran touring it up (Unconfirmed Summer-time)...

***American Presidential Campaign turning extremely dirty (today straight through to November)...

***Yours truly will become a fluent-in-French freelance Photographer who travels the world on his skateboard (Keep dreaming Pete)...

I'm slightly bored now with this. I may add more every so often...
Oh no, wait, one more:

***Yours truly will also become an international presenter on CBC Radio 3 (Ummm, August maybe?)...

Here is the reason why we are all going to be fans of Tennis in 2008...

Tartan Asia Extreme...

2008-01-06T11:41:00.000Z

Those of you who know me, will be well aware of my obsession with Asian Cinema...
The best director's of my generation are from Korea or Japan...
Hideo Nakata, Takashi Miike, Kim Ji-Woon, Takashi Shimizu, Pang Brothers, Park Chan-wook et cetera et cetera...

I don't like to compare Asian Cinema with that of the Americans or Europeans...
Mainly because American Cinema is shit so there is no comparison there...
And I don't know enough about European Films to make any sort of valid point...
But I urge all of you to buy or rent as many of the titles (which I will list below) as soon as possible and have a Tartan Asia Extreme night...
You probably know some of them already. Mainly because America can't come up with any clever ideas for treatments anymore so they have to constantly re-make legendary Asian flicks...

Yeah, fuck you Dreamworks!

I'm sure most of you saw the pitiful remake of The Ring?
Or how about the detritus remake of Ju-On (The Grudge)?
Originals are obviously more terrifying.
I don't mean to sound elitist here but if the Westeners can't relate to the original then there is no point re-making it for an American market.

Before I give you a list of the scariest and most entertaining movies of all time...
A little History lesson:

The success of the 1998 film Ring brought the image of the yūrei to Western popular culture for the first time, although the image has existed in Japan for centuries.
Yūrei are Japanese ghosts, ones who have been bound to the physical world through strong emotions which do not allow them to pass on. Depending on the emotion that binds them, they manifest as a particular type of ghost. Most common to J-Horror (Horror movies from Japan) is the onryō, a yūrei bound by a desire for vengeance.
Like many creatures of western-folklore, like vampires or werewolves, yūrei have a traditional appearance and follow a certain set of rules.
They are generally female, although male yūrei do exist. They wear white clothing, which is the color of funeral garb in Japan. They have long, often unkempt black hair, which comes from Kabuki theater where each character has a particular type of wig that identifies them to the audience.

So that is why most Asian Ghosts look similar in each movie.
It's not just lazy film-making, it's deeply rooted into their upbringing and folklore.
We're told that the Boogeyman is going to get us...
They're told that the Yūrei will come and take them away...

One last rant:
When you go to the cinema to see an American Horror Film, let's say Texas Chain-Saw Massacre or The Exorcist...
You buy your pop-corn, get your drink and sit there & be delighted for one-two hours...
Everything is shown on the screen right in front of you.
You get your thrills & your spills and you leave the cinema entertained...

But when you see an Asian-Horror movie in the cinema, there's no point buying food or drink because you wont be able to consume either.
Barely anything is shown in front of you. No blood or gore. You rarely even see the ghost.
It's what you didn't see that makes it worse. The audio is more unbearable than what is actually on the screen, so there is no point closing your eyes because it will just make it worse...
When you leave the cinema, you don't just walk away entertained. Asian Horror doesn't let you get off that easily. It gets into your head. Filters around in there during the entire movie and then leaves it all behind. Beautiful.

Okay, some titles to get you on your way:

A Tale of Two Sisters:
This is my favourite movie of all time. Based on an old Korean Folklore parents tell their children. Definitely the most intelligent horror film I have ever seen. It keeps you guessing right up to the last frame.
A brief summary:
2 sisters return to their father's home after being away in a psychiatric hospital. The father now lives with their step-mother.
A lot of weird noises and eerie things happen in the house on their first night back.
The film gradually moves along in this vein. Lots of creepy stuff happens throughout. You don't know (until the final scene that is) if all the weird goings-on are the cause of A) The 2 sisters unstable mentality. B) Their evil stepmother whose behaviour is erratic as hell. Or C) If there is a sinister presence within the house.
Cinematography and the film's score play a big part in this film. The house itself is as much a main character as the actors.
Genius film.

I can't write a brief synopsis for every single movie as it would take too long...
I'll just list titles & 1 short sentence now. And take my word for it - you'll love them all...

Audition - The last 20 minutes will blow your fucking mind!
Ringu - An all time classic by now.
Dark Water - A little tedious but still quite creepy.
The Eye - Scaryscaryscaryscary! The "chair-ghost" scene is etched into my mind forever.
One Missed Call - Takashi Miike knows how to do fucked up terrifying.
Phone - I watched this late at night on my own. Pretty dumb thing to do.

Special Mention for the Three Extremes franchise.
Three short movies from three different countries from three different directors.
Only 2 volumes available at the minute but more will surely come because they are great.

If you don't like scary films then I will recommend:

Oldboy - Could very well be the greatest movie of my generation. If you haven't seen this yet then you're a dick.
Visitor Q - It's a little intrusive and quite sick. But it makes for incredible viewing.
Ichi The Killer - Not for the faint hearted. Repeat NOT FOR THE FAINT HEARTED.
A Bittersweet Life - The best revenge movie of recent years with the best revenge scene of recent years.
Internal Affairs - A fantastic flick which Scorsese's The Departed is based upon.
Battle Royale - Pleasepleaseplease buy this movie. What an idea for a film! Kids. An island. Weapons. Death.

And if you don't have any interest in Asian cinema then just get these three for now:

The Devil's Backbone - Mexican ghost/horror movie about Orphans in a haunted school. Very Very creepy.
Amores Perros - Another genius Mexican flick. Shame on you if you haven't seen it yet.
The Death of Mr. Lazarescu - Romanian Black-Comedy which is funny as hell.

P.S. If you want to get a laugh. Go onto IMDB's message boards for movies the American's are remaking. You'll see fanatics like myself argue that they should never be remade.
;)

A Tale of Two Sisters Trailer:

Fuck You Hilary!

2008-01-04T16:21:00.000Z

Iowa, you fucking rock!
A record number of you crazy Americans turned out to take part in more than 1,700 caucuses across the state.
And you want Obama Barack as your leading Democrat Candidate.
Damn right.
America needs change and the first black American president will bring just that.

Next up is New Hampshire on Tuesday.

This blog is supposed to be about all things Canadian but for now, I want to turn it American and say a big FUCK YEAH as Obama is leading the race at the very early stages.

Obama Barack for 2008!!!!!!!!

CBC Radio 3 Bucky Awards Part II...!

2008-01-04T13:00:00.000Z

Okay okay...
Who out of all of you remembers this post all those many days ago...?
Well the Bucky Awards came and went just before Christmas...
I obviously listened live on the internet...
I had a coffee in one hand...
A cigarette in the other...
And my laptop on full volume...
CBC Radio 3 is based in Vancouver and the Bucky's started at 12pm their time...
So it kicked off at 8pm my time...
3 hours of glorious music and interviews with the winners...
They were as follows:

Catchiest Hook - Buck 65 "Indestructable Sam"
Best Sweatin' to the Indies Workout Song - Chromeo "Fancy Footwork"
Best Song Title - The Wet Secrets "Grow Your Own F*cking Moustache Asshole"
Best Falsetto - Joel Plaskett Emergency "Fashionable People"
Best Rap - Abdominal "Pedal Pusher"
Best Lyric - The Weakerthans "Civil Twilight"
Best Reason to Learn French - We Are Wolves "Magique"
Best Gang Vocals - Tokyo Police Club "Your English is Good"
Best New Band Name - Said the Whale
Best Song to Listen to in the Fetal Position - Emily Haines & the Soft Skeleton "Doctor Blind"
Most Unpronounceable Name - Basia Bulat
Best Bass Line - Tokyo Police Club "Your English is Good"
Best Yacht Rock - Patrick Watson "Drifters"
Best Road-Trip Song - Two Hours Traffic "Backseat Sweetheart"
Song Most Likely to be a Future Classic - Feist "1234"

But the best award of the entire night was an honorary one.
I was posting on the CBC blog along with the real Canadians whilst listening to the show...
The mighty Grant Lawrence - presenter on CBC Radio 3 and the Bucky Awards Show created a special award for me as I was blogging and listening from abroad...

Yes, that is correct.
Yours truly was given the award for BEST WANNABE CANADIAN...
It's my 15 minutes...!
I have my 15 minutes of glorious wannabe Canadian Fame!

:)

A Pre-2008 Post...

2007-12-31T17:28:00.000Z

Shortshortshort post...

I am off the alcohol so there'll be no drinking tonight...
Just lots of Cigarettes & Coffee to get me through the night probably...
Next year I need to focus on my French lessons, my Photography and my Skateboarding, so I don't want to interrupt that with alcohol consumption...
Poor O'Neills on Suffolk Street is going to lose a lot of business now that I wont be in my second home anymore drinking the night away...

I'll be back blogging later in the week, but for the meantime, I had forgotten how brilliant this band used to be...
Here is a fan made video for their sombre (and best) song "Steam Will Rise"...

Silverchair:

Sleeeaze Baaaaaag!

2007-12-22T02:53:00.000Z

I know this is going to seem like a lame post (so I will apologise now, Sorry!) but I have been told that I have to post my favourite crushes of the past year...
Supply & demand yadda yadda yadda....
This isn't strictly limited to musicians though, so I can choose whoever the hell I wish...

One month ago I turned 22 and realised that I still behave like I am 15 (hence this post)...
Soooo in 2007 some randomer who stars in a Disney Channel musical thing posted nude pics of herself on the net (or someone stole her mobile and posted them instead), it's all the same really...
More Paris Hilton nekkidness...
Britney going starkers...
Meg White lookalike doing amateur porn...
Everyone finally realising that Suicide Girls is actually not great anymore (especially since they fired their best photographer)...
Lots of things to take into consideration...
I narrowed it down and have come up with eleven talented and attractive ladies...
P.S. I tried to make the pictures as PC as possible...

11: Raji Sohal...
This is the only picture I could find of her. It doesn't do her justice. She is a presenter on CBC Radio 3 and a fashion expert. Canadian of course (which helps if you want to get into this list)...

10: Amara Karan...
I saw her in the Darjeeling Limited and she was brilliant in it. This is a still from the movie, she is incredibly pretty, but this is a shitty picture.

09: Jemina Pearl...
Frontwoman of the mighty Be Your Own Pet. She has pretty fucking astonishing vocals and seeing her live is actually better than any of the times I have seen Karen O. Total Punk Princess (did I just say that!?)

08: Vera Farmiga...
Saw her in the fan-fucking-tastic Departed and she stole the show. Boston accents on girls are really hot. Scorsese done good casting her.

07: Megan Good...
Have any of you seen the movie Brick? 1960s film noir set in an American High School. Brilliant little indie/art house film from a first time director. Every scene with her in it, you are glued to the screen.

06: Sash...
Like I said, it's my list so I can choose who I please. This was the most PC pic I could nab of hers, so I know it's not great. She is an alternative model and is stunning. Angelina Jolie's lips don't compete here at all...

05: Alison "VV" Mosshart...
I blogged about her in the post below. Nuff said...

04: Natalie Portman...
I was like not even 9 when she played the 12 year old in Leon. I had a crush on her then and nothing has changed. Oh, and she seems to have the fucking best taste in music...

03: Annie Clark...
I don't think I even knew who she was last year (I'm not a Polyphonic Spree or Sufjan fan). But 2007 was the year Annie Clark stole my heart (and the show from The National in the Olympia)...

02: Maya Arulpragasma...
"Doggin' on the bonnet of your Red Hondaaa" is the lyric of the year from one of the artists of the year who created one of the albums of the year. Kala is a masterpiece and if any of you had bothered to get up close to the front at the Electric Picnic then you would have had the time of your life and not complained about bad sound. She is the shit...

01: Shannyn Sossamon...
Wow, didn't see that one coming.

It kills to be killer...

2007-12-20T12:29:00.000Z

I am making this blog entry because of On The Record's Jim "Christmas" Carroll & his post about The Kills...
Well I'd like to add my two cents to this...
The absolutely-ridiculously-outrageously sexy & talented-as-fuck Alison "VV" Mosshart makes The Kills...
Sure Jamie "Hotel" Hince is a great guitarist and whatever but Mosshart's vocals and lyrics are brilliant.
You've got to love someone who openly discouraged smoking at any given opportunity and continuously condemned smokers for years on end, only to turn around a couple of years down the line and call herself a "chain smoking vegan"...
Take a bow Miss Mosshart, if it weren't for female musicians as gifted & skilled like yourself, then music would be boring testosterone fueled bullshit.
The Kills' live shows are not to be missed - you'll know what I mean when you see them live...
The album is out in March so there will be a Dublin show in Whelans or something around then more than likely...
Pre-empt the possible selling out of this gig by booking a ticket for the non-existent show this Christmas...

I'm not going to end with a download to one of their tunes...
Instead I am going to post the sexiest photograph of all time...

Flowers in the Attic...

2007-12-19T12:23:00.000Z

Yesterday myself and Red both agreed that kooky & quirky girls are the most attractive.
I can't think of any girl who is as fucking mad as Amanda Palmer, one half of the most unique band around at the minute: The Dresden Dolls...
I know all of you know DD already so I wont go into a long-winded post talking bollox about how great they are...
Instead, I am going to point you towards a video which I watched so many times when it first circulated last year...
It was made when DD won the coveted opening slot for Panic! At The Disco's North American tour in 06...
It is an amusing little video (if you like both bands). The song playing over it is by the Dresden Dolls and it is called Backstabber (in my humble opinion - one of their finest moments)...
Amanda Palmer is just fucking brilliant. Her utter mind-boggling weirdness makes her pretty damn hot in my eyes...

Observe:

And to all the haters, Panic! are not that bad a fucking band.
The scene kids love them but I have heard a helluva lot worse than 'em...

Here is a Dresden Dolls song available for you to download...
It's a cracking tune called Dirty Business...
Listen to Amanda's lyrics in both the song below and the one in the youtube video...
Very witty and at times laugh-out-loud...

Dresden Dolls - Dirty Business: Download Me Now...

The best music magazine in the world...

2007-12-18T11:49:00.000Z

Opening Doors in 2007...

2007-12-13T12:50:00.000Z

So many people are creating a million music lists to sum up 2007...
Shit, even I indulged in it myself by creating a top 16 album list...
But my top 16 changes every few minutes so I probably shouldn't have taken part in the "let's compile a list of fantastic songs/albums/videos" farce...

What I really should have done is created a list of my favourite fruit's from 2007, my top pet names of 2007, my favourite piece-of-ass 2007...

So without further adieu, I give you my favourite front-door colours of the past year...

10. White Door:
The religious door. Too clean living and ridiculously irritable. Stay well away.

9. Purple Door:
A little too trippy for my taste buds. Definitely the home of a failed artist or writer.

8. Yellow Door:
Apparently this shade of Banana can drive you insane if your walls are painted this colour. I think it can apply to front doors too.

7. Brown Door:
Very dull colour. People whose front door's are this colour have a standard 9-5 job and are on the verge of monotonous frenzy.

6. Varnished Door:
This is a chippy's door & most carpenter's I know are fucking dodgy. Probably a drug dealer (and not the good kind of drug dealer).

5. Red Door:
Standard & ordinary. 2.4 children with the usual workaholic dad and his very hot wife. We all lived behind this colour door at some point in our lives.

4. Glass Door:
Pros: Capitalists - Greedy folk who want to show everyone on the outside just how much they've spent on the inside of their house.
Cons: Can be smashed by a brick & then looted quite easily.

3. Black Door:
Well educated, morose, sombre, self-loathing & Goth. Just some of the things that can be associated with you if you are the British Prime Minister and live behind a door this colour. Very stylish though.

2. Blue Door:
My ex-girlfriend's front door was Blue & she turned out to be a cunt in the end. However, I have fond memories of that door so it deserves to be at number 2.

1. Green Door:
Intelligent people drive Green cars. So in theory, super-intelligent people have Green front-doors. Paint your door Green and people will think you're smart. It's win-win.

Tomlab...!!!

2007-12-12T16:06:00.000Z

I just bought the following from the mighty Road Records...
The best purchases I have acquired in a fucking long time...
Sinnbus Records and Tomlab have got to be the finest labels around...!

Various Artists:
Puppy Love - 10 Years of Tomlab
Tomlab Records

David Shrigley:
Worried Noodles
Tomlab Records

Ter Haar
Ter Haar 10"
Sinnbus Records

Needle in the Hay...

2007-12-10T14:23:00.000Z

I've been listening to this song all day...
Literally cannot get it out of my damn head...
I think it is because I watched The Royal Tenenbaums over the weekend...
And the best scene in the entire film has that song playing over it...

Elliott Smith - Needle in the Hay: Download Me Now...

City & Colour...

2007-12-05T12:49:00.000Z

Let's all scream out a collective "Fuck Yeaaaaaaah!!!"
It's February.
It's 2008.
It's Dallas Green's new album....!!!!!!!!!111!!!!!!oneoneone!!!!!!!!!1111!!!!!!!one!!!!!1

Dallas Green cleverly goes by the solo name of City & Colour...
Dallas is a City - Green is a Colour.
Tremendous.

He is one fifth of St. Catherine's finest & Canada's biggest export, motherfucking "Alexisonfire"...
Possibly the best band to ever come out of the Maple State, they have written three of the most astonishing albums ever supported by a Canadian Government...
Proof of this is the current album "Crisis" going straight in at number 1 in the Canadian album charts.

Alexisonfire are the type of band you wish you were a part of...
This comes from their method of using multiple vocalists: Guitarist Dallas providing melodic, soft singing, and fellow-guitarist Wade MacNeil's implusively sweet punk rock vocals on one side, with the incredible frontman George Pettit's polar-opposite explosive screaming on the other.
The band describes their music as "the sound of two Catholic high-school girls in mid-knife-fight" which, in my opinion, is the best description of a band's sound EVER.

Easily one of my favourite bands around.
I would love to post a million of their videos because they are so good but I will settle for two..

This is the video for No Transitory - probably my favourite song of theirs...

And this video (Hey! It's your funeral mama) is just incredible. Funny as fuck but the main guitar riff is awesome...

Anyway, the reason I made this post is because Dallas has a new album coming out...
His solo material sounds nothing like his day-job in AOF...
It is singer/songwriter stuff - but it is completely different to the usual bland bullshit we are forced to accept from a male voice with an acoustic guitar...
Dallas' vocals are poetic and sincere...
It's rare for him to tour his solo material because Alexisonfire is full-time and he doesn't really need the money because he is one of the biggest selling artists in Canada...
You might find that hard to believe, but Alexisonfire (and Dallas) are bigger than your beloved Arcade Fire...!

This link is only going to be left up for 1 week and then it will go dead...
It's a very rare song Dallas wrote about 5 years ago...
The track 'Missing' (sometimes it is called Serravale) was written about Green's music teacher, Serravale, who died. One track CDs of this song were sold at his early shows and all proceeds went to the Denis Morris High School Starvathon that Serravalle had started, and continuously supported. Serravalle played a large part in teaching Green to believe in himself as a musician.

A lot of you may be surprised to find this out, but I have listed this song as one of my favourite songs of all-time...
I think it is flawless and ridiculously beautiful...

Download Me Now...

NEW ARTIST ALERT!!!!!!!

2007-12-04T16:08:00.000Z

We all fall in love with new bands/artists on a daily basis...
We cheat on our old favourite acts with brand new ones...
Monogamy does not exist when it comes to new artists...
And I have discovered a love for another emerging superstar...

Fresh Cherries From Yakima is the moniker for Douglas Martin...
An unsigned multi-instrumentalist & lyrical-poet...
For the past 24 house (since I first came across his music) I haven't been able to listen to anything else...
The music is melodic and engrossing, the lyric's dreamy and delicate & the vocal's are nothing short of awe and wonder - dry & whispering...

A self-proclaimed reclusive scruffy book-worm, Douglas has so many enthralling features flowing within his music, it would be an absolute insult to him if I tried to explain how they will make you feel when you hear them...
I wouldn't be able to do them justice...
These songs need to be heard...
They need to be discovered by welcoming ears...

I was awake until about 5 am last night...
I couldn't sleep due to the amount of coffee I drank during the day...
The entire night was spent smoking cigarettes and listening to Douglas' songs...
They took on a whole new meaning listening to them at night...

I don't want to name any other artists whom he reminds me of because it just wouldn't be fair...
These songs don't need comparisons (and neither does Douglas) because their delicate superiority speaks volumes...
However, I will say this - If you can imagine a more melodic Jeffrey Lewis amalgamated with a softer, more diaphanous Isaac Brock, then that is how I would describe Douglas' vocal ability...

You really need to support his music,
I implore you to do so.

Douglas is going to be releasing a brand new online EP for free entitled "Bourbon and Bedsheets," very soon.
His debut album, "Buttons for North Caroline" will be available digitally on New Year's Day (fuck Radiohead, buy this!) and hopefully, it will see a physical release in June....right in time for those beautiful summer nights...

Not content with being a very talented musician, he is also an avid blogger...
And his blog is nothing short of superb and witty...

Some links to this impressive dude's stuff:

His Myspace music profile is heeeere!!!
And his awesome music blog is heeeere!!!

For your listening pleasure, I give you one of the most fantastic songs I have heard in a very long time:
Fresh Cherries From Yakima - Lullaby for a Retired Model: Download Me Now!!!

A lot more music can be found on his blog, where he also has some fantastic cover-versions to boot.
Is there anything this guy can't do!?!?

2007 Albums Were Sexy...

2007-12-03T13:01:00.000Z

So that time of year has come again...
When every music fan feels they deserve a say in what was the best albums released over the past year...
I have seen some lists already which have made me laugh my ass off...
Like some people listing their top 100 albums or even their top 50...
How can you tell the difference between the album you position at number 96 to the one sitting at number 54?
How can you justify listing that many records?
It doesn't make sense and you end up looking like a pretentious dick.

I'm keeping mine under the 20 mark...
A top 16 to be exact...
I would like to say that all of these records WERE released in Ireland in 2007...
They might have been released in The States (or elsewhere) last year, but once they were released in Ireland this year then they are legit enough to be included in this list...

I have incorporated a compilation by Various Artists into the top 16...
It's a fantastic record and I felt it deserved to be in the list...
There is also an 8-track EP which makes an appearance...
It deserves to be there because it is quite simply better than most albums I have heard this year...

Without further ado, I give you my Top Albums of 2007:

16. Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank:
I hate the way people dismiss Modest Mouse nowadays just because their sound has become a lot more accessible than their previous albums which had Seasick Steve at the helm. This is a fantastic follow up to Good News For People Who Love Bad News!

15. The Valerie Project - The Valerie Project:
I posted about this a month ago or so. It's terrifically esoteric and creepy. Grimm Brothers / Nosferatu / fairytale music. A pleasure to listen to.

14. Future of the Left - Curses:
Made up from ex members of McClusky & Jarcrew - this Welsh based trio released a stomper this year of alternative rock. Singer/Guitarist Andy "Falco" Falkous is one of the great British frontmen. His lyrics are laugh-out-loud fantastic.

13. Hauschka - Room to Expand:
Hauschka is the alias of Düsseldorf–based pianist and composer Volker Bertelmann. His work is based upon an exploration of the possibilities of the prepared piano, which he then turns into playfully disruptive songs. It is genius.

12. Pantha Du Prince - This Bliss:
Pantha Du Prince is the solo project of Hendrik Weber, fusing house, techno & shoegazey indie. Each track on this record is bittersweet take techno that'll appeal to dancefloors as well as living rooms. Listen to it with the lights out - You'll love it.

11. Alex Delivery - Star Destroyer:
Hailing from New York, Alex Delivery is a collective that takes influences from many different bands and genres to create a highly dense and psychedelic sound. The album can be seen as a combination of Krautrock, Musique Concrete, Space Rock, Prog Rock, Experimental & Electronic music with repetitive rhythms, jams, dense collages of abrasive noise and effects and a taste for inconvenient. I am certain this album would have slipped under your radar. Don't let it happen twice. It's quite simply a masterpiece...!

10. Love of Diagrams - Mosaic:
This Australian three piece floored me when I heard this album. Taking the Nu-Wave / Post-Punk sound of 1980's New York and making it sound fresh & original in 2007 is no mean feat. Fans of The Pixies will fucking love this album. A certain journalist was in his car listening to this album and without realising it - he was going over 120 mph. That's how fast & furious this record is.

9. Sunset Rubdown - Random Spirit Lover:
Spencer Krug has got to be Mr. Indie 2007. The multi-instrumentalist from Wolf Parade produces gold after gold. When I first heard this album, I instantly thought it sounded like very-very early Arcade Fire. When the Montréal giants played the Phoenix Park a few weeks ago, guess who they were playing before they came on-stage...?

8. Various Artists - A Kind of Awe & Reverence & Wonder:
Can a compilation be included in an End of Year Poll? Of course! There's no rules implied to any polls. This has EVERYTHING you could possibly want on it: 12 intoxicating droplets of contemporary progressive rock, Eastern psych, folk and concrete siphoned from natural sources in England, America, France and Wales.

7. Enter Shikari - Take To The Skies:
They made the kids go crazy. They made me go crazy. They certainly made security at Oxegen go fucking insane to the point where they tried to stop the show because everyone was going wild for the St Albans 4-piece. A mammoth debut album that managed to fuse post-hardcore and heavy use of synthesised sound effects.

6. El Ten Eleven - Every Direction is North:
It's never easy for a band to follow up a debut album which is completely flawless. But ETE managed to do it quite easily. This LA-based 2 piece are probably my favourite band around. I can't get my head around the fact that the these 2 dudes can write music this beautiful. If ever there was an album to listen to in the Summer time - this was it.

5. Interpol - Our Love To Admire:
Aaaah, my boys break the top 5. I know a lot of people are not going to take this one serious as I am an obsessive and totally biased. But OLTA is an amazing album. So Banksy's lyrics are little less obscure and a little more tedious. So the music is a lot more Pixies than ever before. But you can't escape the sheer fact that they have progressed as a unit and this album is a much-much better follow-up album than Antics was.

4. MIA - Kala:
I'm going to sound like a juvenile shit now but she is the hottest piece of ass in music at the moment. This album comes thumping at you with powwa-powwa. An absolute force to be reckoned with. Switch and Diplo making magic happen here (along with Maya herself), this album has so many hooks, skips, beats & raps going on - it amalgamates them all into 12 tracks which will take you all over the world in under 50 minutes.

3. Cadence Weapon - Breaking Kayfabe:
Rollie Pemberton is changing hip-hop. He's making it old-skool again. He's an indie-kid who writes, produces, raps, thumps, screams and hisses the best rhymes you'll hear all year. Although it's 2 years old, this album only got released in September for the first time in Ireland. Prepare yourself for his new album in March 08. You wont hear anything else like this.

2. Tokyo Police Club - A Lesson in Crime:
Those of you who read this blog will have seen this one coming. Released in Canada last year but received its Irish release in February, TPC wrote an incredible EP consisting of 8 songs and put them all onto 1 little disc. There's a languid undertow on the EP, frontman Monks pulling you in with a slow, warm-water voice only to let his pals bludgeon you with just-so rhythms that, even in flight, last a sharp, fast two minutes on average. Debut album coming in March.

1. Emanuel - Black Earth Tiger:
Who??? (is probably what you lot are crying)!! Black Earth Tiger is Emanuel's second album, clocking in at 43 minutes and consisting of 11 songs which are so in-your-face raw and aggressive and melodic, it was a no-brainer to make this the best album of 2007. Matt Breen's vocals and lyrics are cynical & weary, yet he managers to turn them into massive sing-a-long anthems. Closing track Whiteflag (Reprise) is the best song I have heard all year. Please check this band out - they're too good to go un-noticed by music snobs.

I'm Moving Away...

2007-12-02T23:40:00.000Z

And becoming a professional Interpol fan...
Could I make a living off that?
Fuck it, I don't care.

The gig tonight was amazing.
RDS is probably the worst venue I have ever been in...
The crowd were fucking dismal and the sound was shocking...

But even those reasons right there weren't enough to deter me from enjoying myself...
The band were on top form as usual...
Said nothing to the crowd (some things never change)...

Kessler is one of my favourite guitarists. The way he makes it sound so crystalline & sharp is a joy.
They're such a tight out-fit.
The new songs (Lighthouse in particular) were terrific tonight.
But it was the old timers that got this Interpol-Fruit the most excited.
Obstacle 1...
PDA (Which was the closer)...
Stella...
Say Hello to the Angels...

I quite like the idea of people singing collectively about a girl who gives really good head...
And as always, the kiss on the mic at the end of the second verse from Paul...

The only bad thing was Banksy hanging out with fuck-head Bono in Dalkey today.
Bono was up on the balcony watching the gig.
And yes, he looked like a complete cunt.

It astounds me how much I still love this song...
Even after it was released as a single back in 2002 and I have played it to death a million times...
The opening riff still makes me weak at the knees and the lyrics are one of Banksy's best...

Champions League set for revamp...

2007-11-30T12:00:00.000Z

As per the BBC...

Uefa is set to revamp the Champions League today with the top three clubs in the
Premier League qualifying for the group stages from 2009.
Under the plans, the fourth-placed side will now face a play-off against a team from another of Europe's leagues.

Previously in the Premiership, the top two sides qualified by right and the next two joined the third qualifying round.

It is likely the fourth-placed Premier League side will face a tougher play-off compared to
playing in the third qualifying round of the Champions League against weaker opponents.

Hahaha, great news this - because it now means that the Scouse-Scum whom I detest*** so much wont be in the Champions League next season.

This gives me an excuse to post the prodigal son's goal against his former club in injury time on Tuesday night.
He did it to his former club twice this season and what a fucking goal.
The face he makes after scoring it was priceless...
I give you the Number 7 shirt...Cristiano Ronaldo!

***Detest is still a very weak work to describe my hatred for that club.

Nothing Worse...

2007-11-29T12:11:00.000Z

Than being Irish but thinking you're Canadian...

I fucking love Craig Norris. He hosts the CBC Radio3 Video Podcast.
This one is a particular favourite of mine because it is funny as fuck.
Craig shows you what really goes down when bands play gigs.
It's not about the drugs, the fights, the groupies, the music, the Winehouse et cetera...
It's all about the mother-fucking load-in...
That is where the magic happens and Craig shows it to us in all of its glory...
Rollie Pemberton also makes an appearance...
Good times.

You can either click me and watch it on the net or right-click me and download it.

P.S. Hannah Simone is the very fit girl in the picture at the start of the post.
She's a Londoner (England London, not Canada London) but now resides in Toronto as she is now the nationally-seen VJ for the truly magnificent MuchMusic specialty service in Canada.

Grey Cup Championship...!

2007-11-29T11:07:00.000Z

For all you out there who are fans of the Canadian Football League (and there is a lot of you, believe me)...
I see the Saskatchewan Roughriders kicked Winnipeg Blue Bombers ass in the final:
Saskatchewan 23 - 19 Winnipeg...

Go Riders!
They're awesome. Game got a little bit tetchy towards the end but it was a great victory for Saskatchewan...

Highlights in the video below...

Who fucking wants NFL?!! CFL is sooo much better!

Goodbye OC - Hello Hollywood...

2007-11-26T11:30:00.000Z

Or India rather...
Following on from the Phantom Planet/Jason Schwartzman paper trail I have left in the path beneath me...
I bring you an in-depth, accurate, delicate, intricate, enthusiastic, thrilling and complex review of Schwartzman's current project:The Darjeeling Limited...

Not really though. I'm not a critic, nor am I a reviewer - so I wont divulge too much about the film...
If you want to read a good review then go to The Observer's review of it from yesterday's paper...

Sunday's are shit.
Nothing to do except smoke cigarettes, drink ridiculous amounts of coffee and read the Observer...
Yesterday was better than most Sunday's though...
Because in the Observer's magazine was a front-cover feature with Natalie Portman...

Portman has jumped a couple of spots and is now joint top with Shannyn Sossamon for the coveted Shapes & Shadows number 1 spot of "Hottest Female on the Planet"...
After reading the interview, I found her to be even more incredible than I had thought and so I became desperate to see "The Darjeeling Limited" as she is in the short which appears before the movie...

The main reason I have a crush on her though is because her music taste rocks...
This next part wont be new to you - but let's just recap:
To benefit FINCA - an organization that fights poverty by providing microloans to entrepreneurs worldwide - Natalie compiled a selection of tunes from artists who are part of the Independent Online Distribution Alliance (IODA), as well as tracks from a few of her buddies.
The listing is as follows:

1. Tokyo Police Club - Be Good
2. Beirut - My Night With the Prostitute From Marseille [exclusive]
3. Tom Brosseau - Plaid Lined Jacket
4. Curumin - Tudo Bem Malandro
5. The Shins - Australia (Bjorn Yttling Mix) [exclusive]
6. Brett Dennen - Ain't No Reason
7. Sean Hayes - Turnaroundturnmeon
8. Thee More Shallows - Oh Yes, Another Mother
9. Angus & Julia Stone - The Beast
10. Antony & The Johnsons - Paddy's Gone
11. Vetiver - Idle Ties
12. Norah Jones - Broken
13. Devendra Banhart - There's Always Something Happening [exclusive]
14. M. Ward - What Is a Soul? [exclusive]
15. Wooden Wand - Forgiveness Figg (Bethany Hotel Blues)
16. Rogue Wave - How We Landed [exclusive]

Tokyo Police Club first on the list!!
And it's their best song.
A girl after my own heart.

Anyway, she stars in the short film before The Darjeeling Limited with this bloggers new friend Jason Schwartzman.
It's called Hotel Chevalier and is pretty damn awesome.
Cinematography is every inch of perfection and something we have come to expect from Wes Anderson.
Get down to the film early so you can see this short (and Portman's ass because she goes nude in it).
It's an intriguing little 13 minute spell of emotion and a great leeway into the actual film.

Yes.
Please...

Here is an MP3 of Natalie's first choice song for her itunes album.
It's their best track and with a debut album on the way next year - it's exciting times for the Canucks.

Tokyo Police Club - Be Good Right-Click...

The Good Ol' Days...

2007-11-25T03:45:00.000Z

Courtesy of mine & Jacks embarrassing girl-like conversation in the post below...
Well I just had to make this post.
We reminisced about Phantom Planet and that kick-ass song they had out years ago called California...
You remember it, the one that the OC raped until it lost it's beautiful appeal.

Our collective movie knowledge got the better of us and that's how we landed up here..
Frontman Alex Greenwald starred as the school bully in Donnie Darko...
And ex-drummer Jason Schwartzman was the protagonist in Wes Anderson's Rushmore and is also one of the star's in his new movie: The Darjeeling Limited.

Shiiiit, this song brings back memories of Phantom FM back in the day and how they used to play it every Sunday night, right before the Two Pete's Talk Rubbish!

I.
Love.
This.

I want to post the live version they did of it on Letterman too.
Just for Jason Schwartzman's performance on drums alone.
How many drugs had he taken before he did this?
Totally awesome!

Suuucks man!

2007-11-24T21:08:00.000Z

There is no where good to skate in this city.
The skate parks are shit and the roads treacherous.
If it's not the dodgy cobble-stones then it is the Gardaí being dicks.

Anyway, for those of you who skate - you should go out and buy Pretty Girls Make Graves three albums.
The perfect music to listen to when you are out on your board.

Probably the best band Matador Records has ever signed (yes, even better than the God's themselves - Interpol)!
Unfortunately, they split about a year ago.
I think they actually only ever played here once.
There was about 30 of us watching them in a tent in Oxegen back in 2006.
Fucking amazing set by one of the truly best bands of my generation.
Named after The Smiths song of the same name (which itself was named after a quote from Jack Kerouac's The Dharma Bums)

If you have no interest in what I have just said, then I implore you to:
Buy Pretty Girls Make Graves' three albums.
Stick them on your ipod (or something similar).
Buy a skateboard.
Then come back and thank me.
;)

Pretty Girls Make Graves

Southend...

2007-11-21T11:43:00.000Z

Yesterday I was singing about Dan le Sac & Scroobius Pip and also about These New Puritans and how they are giving chav-central (see image above) - "Southend" a make-over by, well being really fucking brilliant.
The best way to kill chavs off is to have a really good music scene in the area, thus, enabling it to be a cool hang-out spot for the scenesters.
You only have to see what Klaxons have done for New Cross (miserable fucking place).
Or every other shitty London fucking band and what they have done for Hackney, Shorditch, Hoxton etc.

Back to the point:

I have just realised that Southend hasn't always been the god-awful shithole I have been portraying it as.
The most diabolical band to ever come out this side of the millennium was from Southend.
Yup, you guessed it - these jokers are from there!!!

Horrifying (bah-dum) band. But they were changing the image of Southend long before Dan, Scroobius & TNP.
And yes, I know. They are absolute dirt.

Luckily, I have just discovered that 2 fantastic artists I am a big fan of also hail from the Essex town:
Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly & Theoretical Girl.

Get Cape... is the moniker & stage name for Sam Duckworth and his band. Great acoustic act with the use of trumpets & laptops. And if you really needed a reason to like this kid, then just read a quote from an interview he did a couple of weeks ago where he is describing the sound of his new record (out next year):

"Duckworth revealed that 'Searching for the Hows and Whys' would be a departure from the sound that brought him to the attention of so many. "Laptop beats and acoustic strings just don't cut it anymore, they don't fit in with my image. Look at Kate Nash - she stole my whole sound and had even had the gall to have her beats manufactured by kids in Bangladesh high on ecstasy for 2p an hour."

Best.
Quote.
Ever.

Yeah, fuck you Kate Nash. You're shit!

Get Cape's Myspace Profile...

Theoretical Girl is just really fun and catchy.
She doesn't have a quote I can use about her slagging off another singer, so instead - I'll just point you towards her THREE Myspace Profiles (because she has too many songs for just the one!)

Myspace Profile Number 1
Myspace Profile Number 2
Myspace Profile Number 3

Beat Pyramid...

2007-11-20T14:14:00.000Z

These New Puritans are going to release the first record next year that you will fall in love with...
BP doesn't disappoint as a debut album and contains all of the skips & beats you'd expect from a band of their calibre & potential...

Many of you would have heard their current Double A-Side single (Numbers/Colours) and would have most likely danced your arse off to both songs...
Well Beat Pyramid has a further fourteen tracks along the same vein...
So "get on your dancing shoes, you sexy little swine..." and be ready for 'em...

Dan le Sac & Scroobius Pip put Southend on the map in 2007...
These New Puritans will follow suit in 2008...

Expect greatness from both of their debut albums.

These New Puritans myspace profile...

This is a live video of my favourite song from the TNP record...
Track is called Elvis...
Sound is a little shoddy...
Enjoy.

Jonny Jonny!

2007-11-16T12:35:00.000Z

People are always quick to remind me not to slag off the CDs & Vinyls my parents owned as I was growing up
because, eventually I would live by this music.
I had to listen to some awful music (Correction: I thought it was awful at time) when I was growing up.
Born in November 1985, by the early nineties I was forced to sit and listen to such songs:

Queen - The Show Must Go On...
The Mamas & The Papas - California Dreamin...
The Eagles - Hotel California...
Prefab Sprout - King of Rock n Roll...

Out of the above four examples, one in particular has a special place in my heart now.

Prefab Sprout are one of my favourite bands of all-time.
They haven't exactly "broken up" - so there's a chance they can still do some more live dates.
And seeing as the Electric Picnic is renowned for having recently re-formed bands perform at their mighty festival, I would like to propose that the organisers get Prefab Sprout to perform at the 2008 Festival.
Pleeeeeeease!

The video below is proof that front-man & chief Sprout Paddy McAloone is a fan-bloody-tastic lyricist.
Taken from their second album (and possibly their best) Steve McQueen - this is my favourite song by Prefab Sprout:

Goodbye Lucille #1:

It's just fun. Plain & Simple...

2007-11-15T17:17:00.000Z

I can't get enough of The Ghost Frequency right now.
Throughout the Summer, their single "Nightmare" was one of the most listened to songs on my ipod.
And if any of you were paying attention, a certain Irish Journalist was playing the single on his show a very long time ago!!!

I don't want to go into a long & terribly boring explanation of where they came from, how long they've been a band et cetera et cetera, it's the music that matters.
And these tunes are great.
Zombie/Electro/Rockabilly/Dance - it's all here and I fucking love it.

Singles "Nightmare" and "Never Before Have I Seen A Man Alive That Looks So Exactly Like A Skeleton" will have you dancing like a motherfucker.
Reminds me of the legendary Test Icicles.

Some of the band's sites:
Their Blog!!! and their Myspace!!!

The video to the amazing single Nightmare:

And here is the brand new video to the current single Never Before Have I Seen....:

Here's a demo song for you to download too Ghost Frequency - Money on the Fire

Seeing as TGF remind me of the super-duper Test Icicles and seeing as this blog is named after their cracking single, download it if you haven't already: Test Icicles - Circle Square Triangle

See any similarities between this video & the last Ghost Frequency one...?

Half it in the bag...

2007-11-14T14:05:00.000Z

The ever-exciting and truly talented bunch Halfset are back gigging this week with a date on Friday in the Sugar Club.
One of my favourite moments of this years' Electric Picnic was seeing them perform on the Saturday night in the Body & Soul area.
Definitely a gig not to be missed, so make sure you get your arse into gear and catch them live.
They're getting on now so you never know, this could be the last time you get to see them live - they're not that young anymore!
;)

Halfset's Myspace: Click...

**P.S. Watch out for their drummer. He's renowned for throwing hissing fits if things don't go his way.
Very entertaining.

***P.P.S. Apparently Carly Sings is totally hot and really awesome live so make sure you catch her set too.

Icons of the past...

2007-11-14T12:50:00.000Z

But who will be the next Rock God/Pop Star/Cultural Icon...?
That's the question which has me in a fit of laughter.
The Guardian blog asked it and people have disagreed and argued to no end.

The Guardian have their list as the following:

1950s: Elvis Presley
1960s: Bob Dylan
1970s: David Bowie
1980s: Madonna
1990s: Kurt Cobain
2000s: ???

Shocking list from Graeme Thomson.

In my opinion, Michael Jackson was surely more iconic and influential than Madonna?!
What about Led Zeppelin and the God Jimi Hendrix...?!?!?!?

For the noughties, I can honestly only come up with 2 people right now:
Eminem & Jack White.

The Radio-heads (see what I did there?!?) will obviously think Thom Yorke.
And fair enough, but I think Marshall Mathers and Jack White have had the biggest influence on music since the turn of the millenium.

Check out the Guardian blog for yourself and see what you think.

When you have no taste...

2007-11-13T14:11:00.000Z

Yours truly has recently met a ridiculously hot girl...
After our first date, we established that she doesn't really know too much about music.
She name-checked (God love her), fucking Kings of Leon as one of her favourite bands.
As you can tell, this is actually quite serious.

It's terrifically cliché but I have got to make her a mixed CD.
I mean, I feel sorry for her. Nobody should have to list KOL as one of their favourite bands.
I don't know how many songs will suffice - so all of your collective knowledge & expertise will be much appreciated for this.
If you make mixed CDs for friends/lovers/potential partners quite frequently, then let me know what songs you use.
The songs must be fairly recent. Let's say 5 years or thereabouts...

Oh, remember that this is a mixed CD for someone with little knowledge of music or bands...
So don't get it confused with being a mixed "I love you" CD.
Which unfortunately means that Marvin Gaye can't grace the tracklisting.

I'm thinking (so far):

Adele - Hometown Glory
Animal Collective - Fireworks
Arcade Fire - My Body is a Cage
Beirut - In The Mausoluem
Bloc Party - She's Hearing Voices
Broken Social Scene - It's All Gonna Break
City & Colour - Serravalle
Cocorosie - Werewolf
Death From Above 1979 - Pull Out
El Ten Eleven - Sorry About Your Irony
Elliott Smith - New Disaster
Hauschka - Paddington
Hot Hot Heat - Talk to Me, Dance with Me
Incubus - Are You In?
Interpol - (Fuck that, Interpol deserve an entire CD full of their best songs on its own)
Jamie T - Here's Ya Getaway
Joanna Newsom - En Gallop

This is much more difficult than I imagined - we (yes, that's right. We're all in this together now) have only made it to the letter J so far and already we've clocked up about 20 bands.
It'll have to be split into 2/3 parts.

Break out the vinyl collection and get thinking.

Get in the right 'lane...

2007-11-12T12:11:00.000Z

Read it & weep.
The fantastic four "Electrelane" are no more.
Brighton's sexiest exports have decided to go on an "indefinite hiatus"...
I don't even know what that means?
Have they called it a day? Or are they taking break?
At The Drive-In are still on one of those indefinite things.
So is Blink 182 (whose last album was awesome!!!).

So this is what they had to say about it:

"INDEFINITE HIATUS

We have decided that the upcoming gigs will be our last for the foreseeable future.
After ten years of much fun and hard work, we have realised that we all need a break and time to do other things.
This was a tough decision for us to make, but ultimately a positive one.
A big thank you to everyone who has come to our shows, put on our shows, and bought our records over the years.
It means a lot to us. We're really grateful to have had the opportunity to play gigs all over the world and to meet so many lovely people.
This last year has been especially enjoyable and we feel happy about moving on with all these good memories to look back on. At the moment we haven’t made any band plans for the future, but we’re going to have a break and see what happens. Love, Electrelane"

You have to wonder, has this happened because of Vera November?!?
Vera November is the solo project of Electrelane’s front-woman and multi-instrumentalist Verity Susman.
Her sound is a unique and exciting rebirth where old and new joyously collide, strings soar over furious synth drum beats and accordions cavort , ethereal vocals float in a world of their own and stark keyboard melodies haunt and bewitch....
...
...
...Or something a little less pretentious.

;)

Music should sound this good. Always.

2007-11-08T17:34:00.000Z

Find me a better a song than the one you are just about to download.
Seriously, I dare you...

Berlin is the city...
Ter Haar is the band...
Sinnbus is the record label...
Fabriken is the song...

Sinnbus Records: Click Me...
Ter Haar Myspace: Click Me...

Fabriken MP3: Right-click and download the fuck out of me!

The weird & the wonderful...

2007-11-07T13:57:00.000Z

Following on from the theme of gothic-folk, here lies an immortal, psychic-folk artist (if there is such a thing)!
It's a little too late for a Halloween related post, but fuck - this girl can't go un-noticed.
Her name is Nora Keyes and she is a little bit eccentric (to say the least).
Unsigned & with a very acquired taste, to be honest, I don't think I have heard anything quite like her before.

I don't even know how to describe her songs.

If you can imagine living back in the 17th century, in a secluded village surrounded by forgotten woodlands.
And these woodlands are apparently habited by a witch.
A witch who likes to sing and play music to an army of ghosts, if you think along those lines then you'd be on some-sort of path toward understanding what she sounds like.

As the singer of LA neo-new wave goth-punk band the Centimeters, Nora Keyes’ vocal style ranged from Casio-cute to downright vampiric. But on her elaborately titled solo record, Songs to Cry by for the End of the Golden Age of Nothing, Keyes’ freaky-deaky delivery sincerely creeps the fuck out of you, for lack of nicer language. Cackling like a witch or purring like the ghost of a dead little girl stuck in some musty, Victorian-era purgatory, she renders decrepit vaudeville tunes over a droning pump organ accompaniment. The sinister, spooky quality of these instrumentals suggests rotting homes and shadowy nightmares, and her haunting lyrics and gloomy, sepia-toned melodies give the impression that if punk had never happened, she would have been destined to become the eccentric madwoman who never leaves the big, dark house on the corner

I really shouldn't like this, but I can't help it.
She is ridiculously unique, and I like that in my music.

Check out a couple of her songs on her myspace profile.
I must warn you that the cackling on the song Small Apart is terrifically eerie.

;)

The Valerie Project...

2007-11-06T11:08:00.000Z

Hold onto your shrooms and brace yourself for some Psychedelic, experimental, gothic-folk.
Yes, gone are the days of nu-rave & indie pop (Fuck off Klaxons and Kate Nash already!)
There's a new player in town and it will suck you into it's fairytale-esque / Brothers Grimm sound.
May I present to you, The Valerie Project. An idea so terrifically esoteric, it's an absolute joy that it was conceived in the 21st century.

What is The Valerie Project I hear you yell.
Settle down for a history lesson & I shall fill you in.

Valerie and Her Week of Wonders was a novel written in 1935 by surrealist Czech writer Vítězslav Nezval.
Vítězslav is still regarded as one of the most prolific Czech writers to this day (even after his death in 1958).
Within the novel, Nezval explored oblique gothic themes and settings (think F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu for example).
By Nezval's own admission, the depth of the tale is not in story itself, but in the dark evocations caused by the mise en scene. It is a tale of folklore, mystery and allegory that unfolds as much in the mind as on the page.

In 1970, the novel was made into a feature film by Czech director Jaromil Jireš.
Jaromil didn't walk down the dangerous path of changing many of the novel's themes when he directed the film.
If there was ever a time to use a quote, this is it:
"Director Jaromil Jires was unerringly faithful to Nezval's myopic approach, lingering on expressions, oblique gestures, the subtle nuances of actor performance and the rich, complex set design of Ester Krumbachova. Lubos Fiser's original score is so perfectly woven throughout the action it becomes the atmosphere within which Jires' actors exist. While a 35mm transfer of the film still eludes the DVD market, one can bask in the splendor of Fiser's (and composer Jan Klusak's electronic contributions) masterwork via the newly re-issued soundtrack on Finders Keepers/ B-Music."

This now takes us to The Project...
The Project Series started with a simple concept; that of recontextualising the filmic meaning and impact of a particular work through the substitution of a newly composed soundtrack. The new soundtrack is meant to be performed live to a sound film, with the original soundtrack turned off or the original music removed. This element is unique in that most live film soundtracks are perfromed to silent era films.
The genesis of the project came more out of a complete infatuation with Jaromil Jires' 1970 dream poem than from any intellectual conceit. The film's relevence to a new generation of folk musicians made it an obvious choice also.

The talented women & men who created this brilliant idea:
Jim Ayre (Fern Knight / Rake) on Percusssion.
Tara Burke (fursaxa) on Vox.
Charles Cohenon Electronics.
Helena Espvall-Santoleri (espers) on Cello & Vox.
Mary Lattimore on Concert Harp.
Brooke Sietinsons (espers) on Acoustic Guitar, Omnichord, Jew's Harp, Autoharp & Space Echo.
Jesse Sparhawk: (Fern Knight / Jesse Sparhawk) Electric Bass.
Greg Weeks (espers / Greg Weeks): Electric Guitar, Rhodes, Recorder, Arp Odyssey, Univox, Mini-Korg & Metallaphon
Jessica Weekson Flute & Rhodes.
Margaret Wienk (Fern Knight) on Cello, Vox & Harmonium.

The incredible instrumental-compostion has 30 tracks on it.
Each one more beautiful than the last.

The myspace profile where you can listen to some of the tracks is here...

The 4 following MP3s are available for download.
They are taken from the very first performance of the Valerie Project at the International House, Philly, PA on Sept 18, 2006.

Intro - Right-click me...
Fire Fountian - Right-click me...
Grandmother's Theme - Right-click me...
The Feast - Right-click me...

Bucky!!!

2007-11-02T17:27:00.000Z

My obsession with all things Canadian runs deep.
Too deep some might say.
There's a time and a place to discuss anything related to music from a Canuck - and that time is now, and that place is here.

A tiny reminder of what CBC Radio 3 is and why I never shut up about it:

CBC Radio 3 consists of three major parts all devoted to Canadian arts and music: a Sirius Satellite Radio station, a weekly podcast from the CBC Radio 3 website, and streaming audio on the same website. The satellite network does air some music by international artists in its playlist, but is primarily Canadian content; the webstream and podcast are 100% Canadian music. The podcast and the CBC Radio One program Fuse also air as programs on the satellite radio channel.
The network's unofficial mascot is Bucky, a cartoon creature with the body of a duck and the head of a moose. Bucky is primarily seen in the introduction to the network's weekly R3TV video podcast, and also lends his name to the network's annual year-end music awards.

Which is why I have written this post. Literally announced about 5 minutes ago, it's the inaugural (and prestigious) CBC Radio 3 Annual Bucky Awards for 2007.

As if I needed another reason to love Canadians, just look at the categories.

Song Most Likely to be a Future Classic:

Arcade Fire - Intervention
Feist - 1 2 3 4
Handsome Furs - Cannot Get, Started
The New Pornographers - My Rights Versus Yours
The Weakerthans - Civil Twilight

Best Song to Listen to in the Fetal Position:

Camaromance – 28 Balloons
Dustin Cole w/ the Specialest – Oh! My Captain
Emily Haines & the Soft Skeleton – Doctor Blind
Lightning Dust – Listened On
Octoberman – Run From Safety

Best Rap:

Abdominal – Pedal Pusher
Grand Analog – I’ll Walk Alone
Josh Martinez – Last Train
Notes to Self – Lifelines
Politic Live – Block O RMX (feat. Rochester aka Juice, Shad, Jerys & Oozeela)

Best Yacht Rock:

Andrew Rodriguez – Astonished Heart
Krief – What We Wanted
Patrick Watson – Drifters
Peter Elkas – Fall Apart Again
Young Galaxy – Swing Your Heartache

Best New Band Name:

Better Friends Than Lovers
The Got to Get Got
The Rural Alberta Advantage
Said the Whale
The Sweet Homewreckers

Best Gang Vocals:

The Besnard Lakes – Devastation
Carbon Dating Service – Starbeat Academy Graduation March
The Choir Practice – Red Fox
The Junction – Components of Four
Tokyo Police Club – Your English is Good

Best Lyric:

Emily Haines & the Soft Skeleton – The Bank:
Whatever it is, spit into a bottle and sell it to me/ I’m looking to buy freedom from my sobriety/ Just like Huey Lewis, I need a new drug.

Great Lake Swimmers – Your Rocky Spine:
I traced my finger along your trails/ your body was the map, I was lost in it/ Floating over your rocky spine/ the glaciers made you and now you’re mine .

J-Bru – Put My Work In (feat. Classified and White Mic):
Excuse me, are you from Canada?/ Oui, yes sir/ I got the heart of Trudeau/ but look like Guy Lafleur.

The Two Koreas – U-Boat Commander:
You rushed the stage at the Morrissey show/ but you only touched the bassist.

The Weakerthans – Civil Twilight:
For the most part I think about golfing and constantly calculate/ all the seconds left in the minutes, and so on, etcetera/ Or recite the names of provinces and Hollywood actors/ Oh, Ontario, oh, Jennifer Jason Leigh.

Most Unpronounceable Name:

Anemones
Basia Bulat
Camaromance
9Nyne
The Phonemes

Best Road-Trip Song:

Jason Collett – Reunion
Maybe Smith – Hearts Like Bears
Po’ Girl – 9 Hrs To Go
Stars – Take me to the Riot
Two Hours Traffic – Backseat Sweetheart

Best Falsetto:

Caribou – Melody Day
The Joel Plaskett Emergency – Fashionable People
Miracle Fortress – Have You Seen in Your Dreams
Patrick Watson – Luscious Life
Two Hours Traffic – Nighthawks

Best Song Title:

The Consumer Goods – Looking for Love (while) in(vading) the Muslim World
Donovan Woods – My Cousin Has a Grey Cup Ring
The Got to Get Got – No One Riots in Winter
Tacoma Hellfarm Tragedy – True Love Killed My True Love’s Love For Me
The Wet Secrets – Grow Your Own Fucking Moustache, Asshole

Best reason to learn French (excluding Giselle Webber):

Les Amis au Pakistan – Mon soldat de plomb
Karkwa – La fuite
Numéro# – J’aime la bourgeoisie (vive le rock)
Omnikrom – NaNaNaNah
We Are Wolves – Magique

Best Sweatin’ to the Indies Workout Song:

Champion – Keep On (Champion’s Alternate Take)
Chromeo – Fancy Footwork
Numéro# – J’aime la bourgeoisie (vive le rock)
Pride Tiger – Let 'Em Go
The Wet Secrets – Secret March

Best Bass Line:

Pride Tiger – Sweet Dreams
Tokyo Police Club – Your English Is Good
Two Koreas – U-Boat Commander
The Western Investor – If You Wanna Go
The Wet Secrets – Secret March

Catchiest Hook:

Akido – Dancing in Chains
Buck 65 – Indestructable Sam
Feist – I Feel It All
The Saint Alvia Cartel – Don’t Wanna Wait Forever
The Western Investor – If You Wanna Go

Get voting here.

Remember, keep supporting & loving Canadian artists & their music.

There is only one possible way to end this post.
A few Pictures of hot Canadian artists.
Enjoy.

Lisa Lobsinger

Emily Haines

Regine Chassagne

AVRIL LAVIGNE!!!

Fuck it, Avril AGAIN!!!

Internet Brothers...

2007-11-02T13:22:00.000Z

Our Brother The Native is:
John Michael Foss (guitar, drums/percussion, piano, bass)
Joshua Bertram (guitar, bowed banjo, sounds/samples, synth, vocals )
Chaz Knapp (piano, guitar, bass)
They are three young Americans (two aged 17, one 19) who write shockingly beautiful music. The ever-exciting Fat-Cat Records is responsible for discovering OBTN towards the end of 2005.
Their debut album "Tooth & Claw" was formed of thrilling, beautifully jumbled gushes of ideas and emotions – its campfire clap-alongs, skewed vocals, and use of circuit-bent children’s toys saw John, Josh & Chaz coming on like the kid brothers of Animal Collective or CocoRosie.

Following on from that release, yet marking a major shift and forming very much its own space, their new album Make Amends, For We Are Merely Vessels is a bold and expansive record that ebbs and flows with huge power and considerable skill.
The eight songs here clock in at between six and fourteen minutes each and take their cues more from expansive post-rock / white noise rather than any freaked folk scene. It was self-recorded in Josh’s dimly-lit Michigan basement between May – December 2006.
Where the previous album was all jagged / ruptured songcraft, ‘Make Amends…’ is a much more fluid, immersive affair, a dense weave of layered (and partially buried) sounds worth a deliberate and slow building grasp of dynamics. Devoid of regular verse / chorus structuring, its songs sprawl out and unfurl with their own particular logic, mixing rich drones and flickering detail with brief but swollen, almost anthemic bursts of emotion, and the simmering threat of explosion. At different points it recalls the likes of Sigur Rós, Godspeed You Black Emperor!, Stars Of The Lid, Popol Vuh, or Black Dice circa ‘Beaches & Canyons’.

Whilst ‘Tooth and Claw’ was recorded and pieced together through internet to-ing and fro-ing, before Josh had even met Chaz and John Michael, let alone played any shows, ‘Make Amends’ was carefully planned out. Before recording, the band had been playing these songs together live for over a year, allowing them to change shape and grow from show to show (a process that’s ongoing), and had a good idea of how they wanted them to sound on record.

Brilliantly controlled and hugely ambitious for a group so young, ‘Make Amends..’ is a deep and powerful album that deserves your attention.

***About the video below - 'My Daughter the Sun' (Pappa Bones track):

"Captured live on February 11th 2006, on the second day of the FatCat 'Open Circuit' festival at Kunstencentrun BELGIE in Hasselt, Belgium. This show was notable as being the first time Our Brother The Native had ever played together. Having previously collaborated by sending files over e-mail, the three had in fact only all met a couple of days before the show, and only had a couple of hours to practise. Nevertheless, they sounded just great and went down a storm."

Nostalgia...

2007-10-30T11:12:00.000Z

I went back to my mum's house this weekend to collect the thousands of CDs she boxed away for me from my old room.
When I got them back to my place - the sense of nostalgia was over-whelming when I started to play some of them.
I felt like it was 6 years ago and I was 15/16 again.
Sitting there on my living room floor, smoking ciggie's and listening to the likes of Fenix* TX, Posion the FUCKING Well and New Found Glory was the only possible way to spend my bank holiday Monday.

I kind've want to go home, pick up my guitar, and play some hardcore music now. Ever since I got my "Poison The Well" albums back - I haven't been able to stop listening to them.
I can only really describe them as beautiful hardcore. The music is totally heavy but will suddenly back off into a corner and become nice and gentle.
Jeffrey Moreira's vocals change from fury to poetic at the drop of a hat.
Try try try try TRY get your hands on their major label debut: You Come Before You, it'll knock you for six! Apathy is a Cold Body is one of the strongest melodic-hardcore songs I have heard in years.

Speaking of melodic-hardcore bands, my number 1 album of the year is still from these guys...

Emanuel have released an album so accomplished, furious & raw this year - that no other (not even Cadence Weapon or MIA) can touch.
Black Earth Tiger has to be in everyone's record collection at the end of 2007.
You'll probably have to go search for this record good & hard though because anything "heavy" generally gets dismissed as being not real music by music snobs who like to think that they are actually open-minded.
Their first record was absolutely shite - but Black Earth Tiger is such an unbelievable follow-up, it's staggering to believe that the same band actually wrote it.
Get your hands on it pronto!

The best band in the WORLD is back early next year...

And boy are they going to fucking own!
Actually, and more importabtly, front-man Daryl Palumbo is back and he is going to tear it up once again!

Daryl Palumbo is a legend.
The best thing to come out of the music scene in New York as far as I am concerned.
Glassjaw are now recording as a 4-piece (which will be exciting news to us fans)...
Probably the most anticipated release for me in 2008 (I think they are still signed to Warner but can't be too sure)...
And if anyone was smart - they'd book these guys for some gigs RIGHT FUCKING NOW!

Daryl Palumbo is God.
Glassjaw are the best band to come out of the States in the past 10 years.
There would be no Long Island hardcore scene if it wasn't for these guys.
Pioneers and geniuses - this is the most important band around and thank fuck they are writing and recording a new album.

Glassjaw - Cosmopolitan Blood Loss...

2 weeks of madness...

2007-10-24T13:47:00.000+01:00

Starts right here.
From this evening onto Saturday November 10th - I aim to be at all of these shows.
The list (as it stands)*** is as follows:

Wednesday October 24th - Arcade Fire in the Phoenix Park

Thursday October 25th - Dizzee Rascal in Tripod

Friday October 26th - José Gonzaléz in Kilmainham and then O'Death in Whelans afterwards

Saturday October 27th - Les Savy Fav in Crawdaddy

Sunday October 28th - Reverend and the Makers in Phoenix Park

Monday October 29th - Amiina in the Button Factory

Thursday November 1st - The National & St Vincent in the Olympia Theatre

Friday November 2nd - You Say Party! We Say Die! & Voxtrot in The Hub

Saturday November 3rd - Bloc Party & Foals in the Phoenix Park

Sunday November 4th - Animal Collective in Tripod

Monday November 5th - Deer Hunter in Whelans

Thursday November 8th - Devendra Banhart in The Village

Saturday November 10th - Little Dragon in the Sugar Club

Who else is hitting the above up?

***I'm sure more will be added in the coming days.

The Boooooosh!

2007-10-23T15:17:00.000+01:00

The boys are back. The Mighty Boosh is coming back to BBC3 in November and it's going to own like a motherfucker once again!
Probably one of the funniest British comedies ever (in my humble opinion) - Julian Barratt & Noel Fielding are awesome.
Series 1 was set in the Zoo - run by Bob Fossil & Dixon Bainbridge.
Series 2 was set in Howard & Vince's flat in Shoreditch (although scenes were rarely filmed there).
And series 3 is going to be based in Naboo's shop.

Pictures and scenes coming out of the new series look hilarious.
Exclusive stuff I have had a glimpse of show Bob Fossil back in the mix - which is cool as he was sorely missed in series 2.

As the fans will be well aware, Matt Berry (who played Dixon Bainbridge in series 1) is coming in to do a show in Crawdaddy on November 22nd.
Berry is one of my favoutire comedians at the minute. He has featured in some of the great British comdies of the last few years;
The Mighty Boosh, Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, Snuffbox (which he wrote and starred in - alongside Rich Fulcher, who played Bob Fossil among many other characters in the Mighty Boosh) & The IT Crowd.
Berry is a talented musician and wrote all of the music for Snuffbox - so his show on the 22nd is not to be missed!!!
Stand-up and music, what's not to like?!

I'm going to sign off on a present I was given for my 21st birthday at the end of last year.
A very BRILLIANT friend got the writers & stars of the Mighty Boosh to sign their boxset for me!!!!
If you can't make it out, it reads:

"Peter! I love you more each day. J x"

"Peter, Boosh Love. Noel X"

:)

F.L.O.R.I.A.

2007-10-19T16:52:00.000+01:00

The Goddess that is Floria Sigismondi is back in action.
She is currently working on her first feature film. The awesome Sigismondi (love that name!) is both writing and directing this film, which is a coming of age story based on the '70s all girl rock n roll band, the Runaways.

Fans of her photography & music videos will be salivating just thinking about how unreal the cinematography will be in the movie. For art-direction, she is second to none.

Some of the most innovative music videos of the past few years have had the Sigismondi touch on them:

"Beautiful People" - Marilyn Manson
"Broken Boy Soldier" - The Raconteurs
"Hurt" - Christina Aguilera
"Red Flag" - Billy Talent
"Supermassive Black Hole" - Muse
"O' Sailor" - Fiona Apple
"Blue Orchid" - The White Stripes
"The End of The World" - The Cure
"Talk Shows on Mute" - Incubus
"Megalomaniac" - Incubus
"Fighter" - Christina Aguilera
"Obstacle 1" - Interpol
"Untitled 1 (Vaka)" - Sigur Rós

Click here for Floria's incredible website.
You can also find a short film she wrote and directed called Postmortem Bliss here.

And as if it wasn't already obvious: I am going to sign off with my favourite video from the master herself.
Surprise-Surpise, it's...

Just a fan.

2007-10-19T01:18:00.000+01:00

Let's all just pretend for a couple of minutes that I am not in love with Shannyn Sossamon.
Just put that thought to the back of your mind until you're finished reading this post.

I know I have only spoken about them but fuck!
The band she is in (Warpaint) are fucking brilliant.
There is only two songs up on the Myspace site right now (they have the best url address too!) - but I assure you that the others don't disappoint.
I suspect great things will come of them given their incredible talents.
A friend of mine saw a gig of theirs in the Summer in New York and said they were unreal live.

Check them out and see past the fact that Shannyn is in the band (there is three other members after all. Jesus)...
;)

I'll end the post with another picture of Shannyn.

Just.
Because...

Alone Amongst Friends...

2007-10-18T15:43:00.000+01:00

The Wood For The Trees are set to release a brand new EP.
Those of you who are fans of this very small, independent electronic project will be already well aware of how good the music is.
Projects like this should be given full support as they're completely independent and free to be as artistic as possible.

4 free MP3s have been made available here for download.

Below is an animated promo directed by John Shearlock for the track "Alone Amongst Friends"...
The video is soooo good and is a terrific reflection to such a beautifully crafted song.
This was released about a year and a half ago and was a favourite of mine when it was featured heavily on MTV2's 120 Minutes.

Have a look-see...

2007-10-18T13:09:00.000+01:00

There is a band I have been a fan of for years called El Ten Eleven.
I am shocked at the amount of people who have never heard of them. It's mental.

ETE are a 2-piece from LA who make the most immense instrumental music.
They were signed to a cool indie label in the States called Bar-None, but were never signed (or even licensed) to anyone outside of the US of A.
They have released 2 superb albums which will literally floor you when you hear them...because you must hear them!
Tim Fogarty plays the drums & electric drum machine.
Kristian Dunn plays a double-headed bass & guitar.
To say that this band is something extremely special would be an over-the-top understatment.
Both the lads are in another clever band called The Softlightes.
They are pretty similar to Clap Your Hands Say Yeah or The Spinto Band.
Softlightes are signed to a world-wide deal with Modular Records/Universal (the first American band to be afforded such a feat). Unfortunately their contract states that The Softlightes is the priority so ETE don't get to tour outside of LA too much - which sucks!

Kristian Dunn is rather incredible. His podcasts were eclectic to say the least (I'll try find some old ones he has and post them up). His bass playing & guitar skills in ETE is fantastic. Once you hear this band - they'll instantly become one of your favourite & Dunn will be your new hero.

You can download various MP3s of ETE from their myspace or Kritian's myspace or even Kristian's own website but if you're a lazy arse then I'll link you to a couple directly:

The 49th Day by El Ten Eleven
Lorge by El Ten Eleven

Instead of staying in and washing your hair...

2007-10-18T11:54:00.000+01:00

Lots and lots of gigs on the horizon here in Ireland.
Quite astounding how spoilt for choice we actually are.

I'm most looking forward to the best dressed band in music land at the RDS on December 2nd though.
Unfortunately, the incredible Blonde Redhead are only supporting on the UK dates so we wont get to see Kazu Makino strut her stuff around the stage.
There is an amusing aspect to the gig that night on the 2nd.
Interpol are obviously playing in the Main Hall at the RDS.
And right next door in Simmonscourt is Rihanna of all people.

I can't quite see an amalgamation of both sets of fans after both gigs have finished: The black-clad, psychotic pretentiousness of the Interpol ones mixed with the orange skin, platinum blonde, white-leather wearing Rihanna jokers.

Interpol have released one of the albums of the year.
I know a lot of people will disagree with me and use the same old miserable excuses (they're one trick ponies).
But fuck, if I had a pony who was able to pen songs like: The Specialist, 5, Direction, Mind Over Time & Obstacle 1 (to name but a few) - then I would be chuffed.

I recommend you go onto ebay, stand on a street corner looking for a tout or anything else which comes to mind in order to get your hands on a ticket for this show.

Inbetween song banter: Hell no.
A tight-as-fuck setlist: Most definitely.

The below video features one of Interpol's best songs. It's called Mind Over Time and was a bonus track on the Japanese version of "Our Love to Admire."

Le future is bright...

2007-10-17T17:19:00.000+01:00

Every so often I will post about an act who turn out to be so fucking good, that they deserve a post to be solely written about them.
Without further ado, may I introduce to you: Le Loup

This band will instantly remind you of Sufjan Stevens (early Sufjan, way before the American college students tore the fucker apart). Their debut record is intricate, delicate and incredibly beautiful. The ambience of the keyboards (and possibly laptop if one is being used) compliment the soothing & melodic sound of the crispy banjo.

For an album like this to appear so late in the year (and a debut no less) is quite astounding.

You have the Seattle based label: Hardly Art to thank for bringing us this record.
For more information on this beautiful and exciting new record label, go to here

P.S. The following is an extract from a blog featured on the Hardly Art Myspace:

"Jonathan Poneman, founder of Sub Pop Records, has started a new Seattle-based label called Hardly Art. Building on the tradition of many other record labels, Hardly Art will indeed be focused on offering quality records for people to enjoy. Releases will be distributed nationally by both Sub Pop Records and ADA, and its offices will be based in the same building as Sub Pop. The label will be run by Sarah Moody, who previously worked in the publicity department at Sub Pop, and Nick Heliotis."

Le Loup is:

Sam Simkoff – Banjo, Keyboards, Vox
Christian Ervin – Computer, Guitar
Mike Ferguson – Guitar, Amp, Vox
Nicole Keenan – Keyboards, French Horn, Vox
Dan Ryan – Bass, Percussion, Vox
Robert Sahm – Drums, Percussion, Vox
May Tabol – Guitar, Vox
Jim Thomson – Guitar, Amp, Vox

"The Throne of the Third Heaven of the Nations Millennium General Assembly" is out on November 16th.

Ten things I love about (it's actually only 7 though)...

2007-10-17T14:43:00.000+01:00

What Team Shapes & Shadows are loving at the minute:

1) Rollie Pemberton AKA Cadence Weapon supporting The G! Unit in Tripod, Wednesday November 21st. This dude (and Saul Williams of course) are the only sparks in the ever declining Hip Hop scene.

Rollie's Music!

2) Shannyn Sossamon is fucking hot. We all know this. She is the girl I would leave my family for. The multi-talented Sossamon is in a band in which she sings and plays drums called Warpaint! Someone set up a record label with me so we can sign them and I can meet her!

Shannyn's fit!

3) Mongrel Magazine will always be my favourite magazine (probably because I have no idea how those messers produce absolute gold every month). Best ever cynical album reviews included.

Jokers.

4) Wayne Rooney. Nemanja Vidic. Christiano Ronaldo. Rio Ferdinand. Gary Neville. Paul Scholes. John O'Shea. Van Der Sar. Owen Hargreaves. Nani. Ryan Giggs. Anderson. Louis Saha. Michael Carrick. Patrice Evra. Wes Brown. Ben Foster. Ji-sung Park. Gerard Pique.

Liverpool are cunts.

5) Blood Red Shoes debut album is a stomper. Not out until next year - I can assure you, it doesn't disappoint. Jack & Meg White in reverse: Steven Ansell (vocals and drums) and Laura-Mary Carter (vocals and guitar). They make dirty, loud guitar music. Get on it already.

Noisey Noize!!

6) What would you do if I told you there was a modern day "At The Drive-In" doing the rounds at the minute? Meet Kristian Stockhaus, Øyvind Solheim & Frode Kvinge Flatland: otherwise known as Ungdomskulen. This band rock so fucking hard. Crazy and loud, just the way we like it.

At The Drive-In for 2007!!!

7) Be Kind Rewind is the new movie by everyone's favourite headcase Michel Gondry. The plot is basically incredible: Jerry (Jack Black) is a junkyard worker who attempts to sabotage a power plant that he believes is melting his brain. But when his plan goes awry, the magnetic field that he creates accidentally erases all of the videotapes in a local video store where his best friend Mike (Mos Def) works. Fearing that the mishap will cost Mike his job, the two friends team up to keep the store's only loyal customer, a little old lady with a tenuous grasp on reality (Mia Farrow) from realizing what has happened by recreating and re-filming every movie that she decides to rent. From Ghostbusters, Back to the Future, Driving Miss Daisy, RoboCop, Rush Hour 2, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Boyz n the Hood, and The Lion King. Jerry and Mike become the biggest stars in their neighborhood by starring in the biggest movies ever made.

A movie for the Jilted Generation.

Cheer it on!

2007-10-17T13:26:00.000+01:00

Tokyo Police Club should be bigger than what they already are.
Okay, so they have only released one EP so far (a damn fine EP too called A Lesson In Crime) - but still!
If there was any justice in the world (or Ireland) then TPC would be headlining Croker, instead of aging assholes like Sting and his buddies.
Okay, slight exaggeration there, TPC would be awful in Croker.
Anyone who was lucky enough to see them in The Hub on Friday July 6th (it was a great way to spend the night before Oxegen) would back me up by saying that the gig was one of the best the dingy Hub has ever seen.
Take away the fact that there were some dodgy chics who were pissed and falling over the bands equipment, then the night would have been perfect.
Their debut album is out in early 2008 (late January/early February) and hopefully it will the see the Toronto natives be name-checked as one of the bands for the future.
I already have monies down on them for winning the Polaris next year and I haven't even heard the record.
Nothing I can say on this post will do them justice - so just head off to their myspace and listen for yourself:
When you're standing in TOKYO POLICE CLUB!!!
If you're into studio sessions then check out these four songs (available for DL too) recorded for the Day Trotter Sessions. Super front-man Dave gives a brief description of each track too.
Free MP3s!!!