Me My Head
On Thursday 3rd December an intimate and excitable rabble of Me My Head fanatics descended upon the Relentless Garage to celebrate the release of debut album Survival In No Man’s Land on MBM Records. As an expectant crowd enjoyed and endured respectively sets from energetic Italian four piece To Be Rhudes! and London based The Bridport Dagger, the electricity in the air was palpable and it was more than just the December chill sending shivers down the spine. This release has been long and eagerly anticipated by the band’s avid fans and the London boys lapped up the atmosphere and fed off the crowds’ energy.
Opening track Night Is On Fire was a raucus, thumpin’ New Wave masterpiece, delivered with pounding kick-driven drum patterns, rock-steady basslines, delay-doused pop hook guitar licks, synth riffs reminiscent of an 80′s Atari console, and spit-flecked vigour from frontman Charlie Moss whose well-deserved vocal pomposity and indie-swagger will draw comparisons to the likes of Harry McVeigh and Tom Smith. Further crowd pleasers Say It All and the epic White Lights displayed anthemic Pop choruses, infectious synth lines, and in particular with the latter, a guitar riff that will plant itself in your brain on constant ostinato loop – listen with caution. In short, these songs would be welcome echoing around the walls of far larger venues than the Garage.
A well-constructed and perfectly mixed medley of What Is Love? by early 90′s Dance act Haddaway and Poker Face by everyone’s favourite Pop diva Lady Gaga delighted the crowd, with Moss‘s cracked and vulnerable vocals haunting and hanging ethereal in the air of the small venue. In a jocular and welcoming environment it would be easy for the lads to use a cover as comic relief, so it was all the more enjoyable to witness this take on two tracks from almost 20 years apart taken seriously. Who doesn’t love a cover done well eh?
Me My Head owned the small stage for the duration of the seamless set, which was interspersed with bouts of well-constructed yet genuine banter. A professional performance then from a fantastic act, characterised by rolling thunderclap floor-tom massiveness, chugging bass drive, pop-hook Edge-esque guitar licks, delicate New Wave synth lines and anthemic vocal melodies. Like White Lies without all the death.. or a poppier Editors with more electronics, either way, check out the MySpace and buy the album. You wont regret it.
Clement Marfo & The Frontline
Behold, the future of music is upon us – check out a few tips that I think could come good in 2010. Starting with the magnificent Clement Marfo & The Frontline. This 7 piece act is the product of a collaboration between Hip-Hop artist Clement Marfo and the Indie / Electronic band The Frontline, and the resulting fusion of music and ideas is fucking ace. Champion for instance layers Electronic glitch & beep samples, Ska-infused prominent brass melodies, guttural driving basslines, subtle bluesy guitar licks and intricate kick / snare patterns to provide the platform over which Marfo spits his venemous rhymes, while Kojo Vihram provides catchy pop-hook choruses. Anthemic pop-sensibility meets grime vocal prowess and a whole host of other cultural and musical influences for good measure – amazing! Lights Out meanwhile takes the bass driven, indie dance-beat and euphoric electronic vibe of bands like The Killers and The Bravery, and throws in some grimey vocals a la Marfo, who puts some of the current Grime-Pop acts of today’s charts to shame with his impressive display of lyricism. These guys and girls are playing a few London shows on the run up to Christmas so be sure to check ‘em out while it’s still hot off the press.
Jenners Field are a really young London-based band who take the bleak death-Pop stylings of White Lies, the vocal pomposity of Tom Smith, and the experimental Electronic Indie feel of Me My Head, and stir it all up in a lo-fi, endearingly under-produced and raw blender. These boys also happen to have written one of the most stirring, atmospheric and infectious tracks I’ve come across in a while in Brave: an experimental rock track which transcends cultural barriers, combining middle-eastern guitar melodies with western popular traditions, and not to mention one hell of a chorus. And they use a theremin.. ’nuff said.
Jeuce is a musical force as yet unrecognised by the masses. However they are steadily building a fanbase for themselves, and are gaining the respect of the electronic music community; up-and-coming labels and producers alike, and for me, 2010 could be their year. They are entrepreneurs unhindered by futile dreams of immediate pop success, and as such there are many strings to the Jeuce bow. Not only are they a phenomenal live dance act, they are also well-reputed DJs, producers, opinion leaders, and have even dabbled in running their own label. It’s their live performance that is most exciting though, and you should definitely check out their grimey brand of dub-infused, bleep & bass indie dance immediately. 2010 could well be the year that the Jeuce brand drops.
Sketches are an emotional, dual-vocal Indie band. Epic and powerful sweeping soundscapes characterise their more soul-wrenching tracks, Dear Heart and Bleed Victoria (due for release on Fandango next week). Simple, brilliantly produced with lush delay and reverb guitars reminiscent of The Edge, and effortlessly endearing, Sketches have a few big-name followers, so fingers crossed 2010 will be their year.
Also in 2010, listen out for these guys: electronic Pop sensations Nite Visions; emo /alt rockers This Familiar Smile whose debut album Ribbons, Regards & the More Machine drops 2010; Pop-Punks Monte Carlo; Rap / Electro group F*Street, who have definitely got what it takes to ride the JLS riptide.
Yeeeaah Rock on 2010!
Biffy Clyro
Ok so I was lucky enough to get down to the first two nights of the Q Awards gigs running up to the Q Awards themselves, and therefore had the pleasure of seeing White Lies, supported by Bombay Bicycle Club and The Drums on Monday, and Biffy Clyro, supported by The Boxer Rebellion and Frightened Rabbit on Tuesday.
Both were incredible shows, with both headliners absolutely owning the stage and mesmerizing the crowd. White Lies thumped out booming bass-driven, sombre Indie-Pop anthems against a backdrop of pulsing bright white lights, to an entranced rabbit in a headlight crowd. Note perfection, pristine and polished production, and colossal renditions of singles Farewell To The Fairground, Death and To Lose My Life made this a memorable show.
Biffy Clyro meanwhile exploded onto stage in a flurry of Celtic ferocity and facial hair with the apocalyptic That Golden Rule. Monster riffs, ethereal melodies, tight as fuck arrangements and an epic light show worthy of a sci-fi battle scene made this performance unmissable! Biffy absolutely dominated, as expected: their presence more than filling the stage; and crowd pleasers such as Whose Got A Match? and Living Is A Problem Because Everything Dies deafening the ears. The Scottish Alt Rock / Power Pop trio finished with Mountains, originally a non-album single but now included on Only Revolutions (due for release 9th November), to the delight of a grateful and exhausted crowd. Epic. ‘Mon the Biff!
White Lies
